Summer Update, wk 7

So close to the finish line. This course, however…sheesh.

There are times when I will do literally anything to find a way not to write. Fortunately, it’s not often but some days are tougher than others. I’ll do things I absolutely hate just to avoid writing. With an upcoming vacation on the horizon, I feel a lot of pressure to get ahead in this course and write papers back to back. My mind is not cooperative. If I have to complete a paper while basking in the ocean breeze, so be it. But my mental stamina is suffering right now contemplating writing anything more than the bare minimum. Hopefully it’s just a phase.

What’s funny about July’s Book Club book is that no matter how much or how little I try, I will forever be attracted to the ocean. It calls to me like a siren song of proportions I cannot fathom. Or maybe I’m just ready for a vacation.

In other news, I received an invitation to return to game night! If you’ll remember several weeks ago, there was concern my Sailor mouth would ban me from all civil company. Alas, I behaved myself (minus the winning part, of which I did, of which no one really liked). So odd. This time I proudly announced “I came to win!”. No confusion there. And, Spare Parts won this time. We’re a bit of a force to be reckoned with.

Mini had an opportunity to attend VBS since she missed both Texas and Tennessee’s sessions. She makes friends like I do – presumably by talking too much and dragging them along on her adventures. It works for us. She has also befriended a much younger girl whom she reads to and plays in the pool with. Henceforth, I am prepared for inquiries for a baby sister when she returns. To be clear, we’ve had this discussion several times and my appropriate Naval answer is always “that ship has sailed.”

Sailed. And then sank. No possibility of recovery. She’ll just have to embrace being an only child. Somehow I have no doubt she’ll find a way.

___________________

I ask you –

Do you play board or card games? We played dominoes and spoons.

Are you the talker in your friendships/relationships?

Tell me your only child advice!

(The post Summer Update, wk 7 first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

Summer Update, wk 6

What a week! Also, I think I’m a little out of order in terms of photos. Meh.

We played some mud volleyball! If you’ve been following RoF for any length of time, you may remember my summer lack-of-success stories with attempting to form (or join) a mud volleyball team. This year my losing streak ended! Minus our team losing streak.

Mini had a photo shoot with cows – seriously – and did all the girly, outdoor things her little heart desired. She’s now a professional chicken wrangler, too.

Alas, my summer is also winding down. If only the heat would wind itself down, too. Ugh. It’s 80° at 0330. Send help. And a zookeeper because mini is out of control with this animal farm stuff.

__________________________

I ask you –

Have you ever played mud volleyball? Sand volleyball?

Did you grow up on a farm?

Tell me how to find a zookeeper! Google?!

Summer Update, wk 5

Mini has now taken her traveling show on the road by returning to Tennessee for the week. Post recital, she vacated her mother’s side in favor of extended family and more summer adventures. I’m not dramatic.

Recital 2023

My southern roots are showing. But only when it comes to food. Tennessee green tomatoes!

The remainder of the week consisted of our final volleyball session, excessive heat warnings, a few runs (before sun-up), and preparations for mud volleyball. More on that next week!

Finally: my apologies to the classmates I made fun of and (possibly) ridiculed for the atrocious discussion posts they have submitted. It’s my turn. Recently I posted the biggest load of garbage that has ever escaped my fingertips. All 1100 words of it. I genuinely had no idea what I was writing and it sounded stupid even as I did. So, please accept this piece of humble pie as a token of my respect. You were probably just muddling through. Because…same.

__________________________

I ask you –

Have you ever had a taste of humble pie?

Do you like fried green tomatoes?

Rumor has it there will be a photo shoot with mini and cows!

Summer Update, wk 3

By the time you’re reading this, mini will be but a few days from my arms. Missing her is hard. Technology helps.

She ate snowcones and messed around, in true summer fashion. As she should!

Me? Well, I spent some of the week busy, accomplishing lots of things I can’t remember now. The other half? I was grumpy and had to be talked off the ledge a few times.

I spent most of my days like this (and I let the four letter words fly) –

Sometimes we let the less-than-best sides of our emotions get in the way; other times, life runs smoothly. I did retrieve mini’s recital costumes and was able to play 1 volleyball game. Due to player illness, we didn’t make it to the second opportunity but it’s probably for the best since my knees still look and feel like I’ve spent too much time on them.

Alas, it also looks like the triple digit temperatures are here to stay so that means an end to running outside. Good thing I just completed the training plan. Ugh.

Cheers to a better week!

__________________________

I ask you –

Have you ever had a taste of humble pie?

Do you like fried green tomatoes?

Rumor has it there will be a photo shoot with mini and cows!

Have you had a snow cone lately? What flavor is your favorite?

When was the last time you flew off the handle?

Tell me something amazing you have going on this weekend!

Phone Photos

Found a bunch of random photos in my phone so here we go:

This is how I know mini was left unsupervised in my office. Who was supposed to be watching her?

When you’re doing 2 workouts a day, your entire laundry basket is shorts and sports bras.

When I spent my niece’s graduation gazing longingly at their gymnasium bleachers and wanting to know the brand so I can beg the government to fund them.

My work bestie and I running everything, including our mouths, attitudes, and being generally obnoxious.

__________________________

I ask you –

Have you ever had a taste of humble pie?

Do you like fried green tomatoes?

Rumor has it there will be a photo shoot with mini and cows!

Have you ever had to delete photos to make room for others?

Does your laundry change with the seasons?

If one more person asks if that’s my daughter…

Summer Update, wk 2

Mini’s Californian vacation has closed out its second week with the following results:

She volunteered at the Rock n Roll San Diego Marathon and Half Marathon which required her to be happy at a very early hour and encourage all the participants to stay hydrated. Later she stated it was awesome!

Spare Parts had a fabulous idea to propagate roses using only a random TikTok video for reference. It included cutting rose stems, shoving them into a potato, and planting the whole mess. Her parting words were “…now we plant them and hope we don’t grow potatoes!” We both had a good laugh.

Parts bought me this nifty egg-boiling contraption called … Nifty Egg-Boiling Contraption. I made that up. It actually works!!!! It’s made of something smart that tells me when the eggs are adequately hard-boiled, or not. There’s no in between. Although it probably serves a better purpose for weirdos that want eggs basically raw (ahem, McK), I’m still using it because it’s fun.

Finally, Kelly Crocker was enticed to make cookies. I haven’t had raw sugar and flour in so long I didn’t even recognize the taste! Alas, one miniscule taste was all I had. Dare I say removing sugar, flour, and mostly all carb-y things from my diet has made a world of difference. Yes, it’s difficult to say no but I know myself well enough to know that if I indulge once then it’s a long fall to the ground and an even longer amount of time to get back up. I choose to live vicariously through others.

____________________

I ask you –

Have you ever volunteer at a large event?

When was the last time you baked?

On a scale of 1 to that’s-never-going-to-work, do you think the roses will actually grow?

(The post Summer Update, wk 2 first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

Summer Update, wk 1

Wk 1 of mini’s Californian vacation –

I watched trashy albeit hilarious movies. Huge Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin fan. No, I don’t care about her past. I played on my phone for hours and got zero accomplished. Maybe I wrote a little. Maybe I didn’t. And I lost my voice, presumably attributed to the previous 2 week’s battle with allergies and a summer cold. Moms don’t have time to be sick. And we all know I need a voice when mini is around. Can you imagine? When I think about trying to parent her sans voice, I recognize the propensity for her to be leading a small country. Hmmmm. Maybe she’s the secret weapon to domination. I’ll tout this idea to leadership.

Additionally, I played nearly 2 hours of volleyball, got invited to play on a team for the remainder of the month, and ran. I ran a lot. Eventually my voice came back and people stopped avoiding me. Mini, on the other hand, is enjoying a semi-heated pool, new friends, and probably all the Youtube she could dream of. It makes me laugh when I think of how well-traveled and blessed she is; she really has no idea. While I sit here and go a little crazy with worry, she lives her very best life. Life is a little funny like that.

Miles are a cruel and unforgiving mistress that take nothing else into account but distance. So as I rack up the miles, in June no less, I try to fill my time with papers and plans. This week’s paper wasn’t so bad but next week’s has turned into a sweltering dumpster fire of garbage. Hot flipping garbage. But I’ll get an A. It’s what I do.

__________________________

I ask you –

Have you ever had a taste of humble pie?

Do you like fried green tomatoes?

Rumor has it there will be a photo shoot with mini and cows!

Do you prefer funny or serious movies?

When was the last time you lost your voice?

I wonder what semi-heated actually means. Slightly above freezing, I presume.

It Keeps Happening!

Can I just tell you I’ve never been more worried – and that’s saying a lot – than when I was researching leadership styles and an article I was considering using popped up in Russian. My brain: well, this is how it ends for you, Kel.

Buzzwords are the bane of my existence. Using key words to research and filter through the amassed collection of literally thousands of journal articles, I’ve discovered it’s easier to find articles relating to resilience (current buzzword) than self-confidence (no longer a buzzword, I guess). Although I deeply love anything related to resilience – I instruct resiliency methods nearly weekly to military and civilians – the art of the buzzword is not lost on me. Indeed, it makes perusing journal articles either very productive or very frustrating.

“One of the most precious gifts you can give your family is being emotionally secure and healthy.” I received quite a few responses and some incredible feedback regarding last week’s post about family drama. Nearly every time I’ve encountered others with conflict in their personal lives or in the process of healing relationships with loved ones my question has been…Do you have a therapist, a counselor, a mental health person you can confide in? Trust me – the work they do can be life changing and, sometimes, life saving.

On the note of personal lives, the baby niece I slept on a couch for over 12 hrs waiting to be born – she graduated. I am unwell. She looked gorgeous and relieved. Her mom cried a lot. And the ceremony was short . Alas, time is a thief.

__________________________

I ask you –

Have you ever had a taste of humble pie?

Do you like fried green tomatoes?

Rumor has it there will be a photo shoot with mini and cows!

Have you looked up anything crazy lately?

What are your current buzzwords?

Tell me if you know anyone graduating soon!

Dollars & Sense

I’ve determined unless you’re an absolutely complete moron, then money can literally buy anything you want, including a doctoral degree. Maybe not a doctoral degree for an actual medical doctor but definitely one like I’m getting. Really. Because if the way some of my classmates write is any indication of their ability to form coherent sentences and be decent human beings, then money must be the reason they’ve made it this far. Sorry not sorry. Here I am stressing a dissertation I don’t even have to begin for another year and they’re writing like a sixth grader. Spoiler: we’ll probably all walk the stage at the same time which proves my suspicion that money can buy a degree.

You know what else money can buy? Pizza! And it makes me happy, too.

Money can also buy replacement body parts, especially when Spare Parts still hasn’t come through on the slightly used knees. Mine are starting to look and feel like I either make a living in the red light district or this volleyball hobby is getting the best of me. They’re so bruised I’ve been afraid to wear shorts to work lest someone question my evening habits or tell me I’m too old to play sports. Cue the daughter jokes again.

our most recent photo together

Lastly, speaking of jokes, it’s impolite to stare at someone in a public setting, then loudly proclaim, “Oh good, I found the other one!” as if twins are an unheard of phenomenon. We are not a scavenger hunt. I really don’t understand the fascination. Parts and I don’t even look that much alike! And, I know of at least one other set of twins (identical) who also work on the installation. Maybe they have better luck than Parts and I.

And by luck I mean people don’t stare like they’re a circus act. Or at least say hello first!

__________________________

I ask you –

Have you ever had a taste of humble pie?

Do you like fried green tomatoes?

Rumor has it there will be a photo shoot with mini and cows!

Do you think money can buy anything?

On a scale of 1 to you’re insane if you don’t love it, how much do you like pizza?

Please share your advice or comeback phrases for the shock & awe twin encounters!

Never Seen Before

It’s fascinating to me how often I hear the words, or some variation of, “We’ve never seen this before.” As it’s almost always said with shock, eliciting fear and a call to action, I’ve realized we don’t often say the complete opposite, “Oh I’ve seen this before.” Guaranteed many, many, many situations, events, or challenges have been seen before. Maybe it’s the generalization that bothers me most. I’m opposed to words like always or never because it’s rarely true. No one always does something, there will be times when they don’t. No one never says the right thing, surely this is a lie. The human behavior side of me rests on believing people do the right things. A cynic I am not.

As a generational statement, the phrase is incredibly subjective. Just because you haven’t seen it doesn’t mean someone else hasn’t. The start of WWI was thousands of people going “We’ve never seen this before”. Do you think by WWII people were suddenly saying “Oh, it’s fine, we’ve seen this before “. Eye roll.

On a slightly different note, family drama – at least in mine – is the result of unsupported mental health, trauma, and lack of adequate coping/communication skills. Basically everything. To protect the innocent and guilty, I won’t be slandering anyone on here – even if the truth does need to be told. Perhaps it’s not my story to tell, yet I will say one thing: when someone speaks up for themselves and emphatically stands behind their decision, I believe that’s the epitome of strength and healing. And it’s something we don’t often see or congratulate in the way it deserves. So despite the snarky last word and the passive aggressiveness of future interactions, I’m here for it. And I’ve seen all that before.

I know I’m super geeky about human behavior stuff, but this is interesting to me! The innate versus learned, nature vs. nature – whatever you want to call it. We’re all products of multiple pieces of our lives we have zero control over. It’s what we do with the pieces defined as choices that make us human.

_______________

I ask you –

How often do you state “I’ve never seen this before!”?

Do you have family drama, too?

Tell me about a time when a choice impacted your life in an unexpected way!

(The post Never Seen Before first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)