“Self-discipline: the art of investing today’s actions for tomorrow’s results. Making yourself do something you don’t want to do in order to get a result you would like to have.” – The Traveler’s Summit (a fantastic book, highly recommend)
Waiting patiently for the jonquils to bloom. Typically they are in full glory around my birthday so just a few more weeks! It’s cherry blossom time in the Eastern part of the U.S. As they’re my favorite, I find them notable to include here.
A sweet gift from my beautiful friend! We haven’t met in awhile but as soon as the weather turned favorable we were outside walking…which prompted a partnership and more opportunities to walk and talk!
This is week 2 of physical therapy. Last week included a fancy new knee brace, a Rx for 5 PT sessions, 15 exercises, and a promise to discuss running after 6 weeks. Not a bad deal. Interestingly, the physical therapist is treating it like a MCL strain/sprain with indications of patellar tendonitis and some residual meniscus issues. It was a lot to take in.
Obviously I did not partake in the outdoor snow activities. Instead, I managed to walk over 10K steps indoors by taking 10-15 min breaks from writing. By the way, I received ethics review board approval so I can start the data collection portion. It’s getting there.
The snow days pushed everything from one week to the next but I stayed happily entertained with multiple computers providing the eye-crossing minutiae my mind needs. Basically, a very long sentence to say this post is short because I’m busy.
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I ask you –
To run or to not run, that is the question.
How much snow have you received in 2025? Maybe 0.5 inches.
Snow skiing vs snow boarding? Your thoughts.
(The post Injuries / Snow. first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)
2nd re-post on this joyous Christmas week. Hope you all are celebrating, rejoicing, smiling, and taking time to enjoy the holiday. Be back soon!
…thru the tulips!
It’s a good thing the expedition called for tiptoeing because my knees are very bruised from volleyball but we’re undefeated so I can’t complain too much. Also, a day after turning 38, I managed to bust all the blood vessels in my middle finger putting the volleyball net away. Not my middle finger! I need that one! This is why…I have spare parts.
Back to the tulips, the Texas Tulips located in Pilot Point, TX. Only accessible about 6 weeks out of the year, it’s a fun getaway, one I didn’t know anything about until a few weeks ago. Spring Break presented the perfect opportunity.
I might have also overindulged in sushi and cookies. Both were incredible! If you’re in the DFW area, Sushi Axiom is one of my favorites. I probably should have taken a photo but I ate it all before considering the photo op. For the cookies, Insomnia Cookies is the way to go. Only available near college campuses, they’re open until 0200ish and offer delivery of warm, fresh cookies to your doorstep. Not kidding.
In several years, this is the first time I’ve had a full staff. Every position filled, with both new and seasoned employees keeping me on my toes. Yet, I’m the lucky one. Nearly daily, I marvel at the opportunity to be their leader. Someone believed in me, chose me, to lead them. It’s an honor unlike anything else. We have frank, real, deep conversations. I feel their respect when I explain the why.
Get it together. Some days it feels as if everyone is a psychology major. Words from the DSM (current edition DSM-5-TR) are now buzzwords. For example, imposter syndrome. Never heard of it until recently, now we can’t unhear it. I believe the concept is real; however, using it as an excuse for not stepping up is irritating. Sometimes there is no one more qualified than you, regardless of what your insecurities tell you. Be the leader. Do good things.
A small portion of Team Fitness
Nevertheless, transitioning from employee to mentor to leader is not for the weak. It is a lot of needs to balance! I do my best to share the big picture, the budget constraints, always the why behind decisions, yet some are reluctant to grasp the entire narrative. How many times have I done the same.
Tis the season for a million demands on my time. From a weekend with multiple events to planning upcoming holiday activities, it can be hard to take a deep breath. I don’t know how some people manage to float from one busy weekend to the next. My brain is tired just contemplating what’s on the agenda
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I ask you –
How often do you use the term imposter syndrome?
What’s on your calendar?
Advice for the break takers!
(The post When it’s busy first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)
Resubmitted my manuscript last week in hopes they’ll approve it for proposal defense. Now I wait. Again.
In the meantime, I’ve been reading, and running. A lot actually. And drinking copious amounts of coffee, but that isn’t new. I’ve also cleaned, paced, and generally avoided saying much.
On the bright side, October ushered in cooler weather and I want to spend every day outside. Might even move my desk outdoors.
Not sure if I’ve shared yet – my favorite mug from McK. She gets me.
Small town things – a turtle race! I can just see numerous children the week of the race scavenging for turtles. Some large, some small, hopefully none that snap. Probably lots of angry parents.
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I ask you –
Did/does your hometown celebrate homecoming, etc. with a festival? My little 1A school did not.
Long live volleyball! I just wish I didn’t hurt myself so easily. Yes, I own knee pads. Several pairs. But did I remember to bring them and put them on? Clearly not.
My kind doctor said I had 6 months to fix my high cholesterol levels. In his defense, he’s given me 3 yrs thus far. The good stuff is getting better but it’s still overall too high for comfort. I blame my parents. In the meantime, I’ve made some easy switches – less fat, more good stuff. Turns out turkey bacon is really good, and I definitely enjoy balsamic vinegar on my salad. More avocado, less fried stuff. We’ll see what happens. I’m always up for an experiment!
Me: I know it’s Saturday morning at 0500, nearing FY end, so let me check my email and really test these new anxiety meds. My brain: Dondnekndicngmeixnwkffiend🤯. Long story short – now I will worry and feel ill the remainder of the day for forgetting for 4 months! to order something I agreed to.
Volunteers, team of 2
Definitely needed a run to clear my head from that disaster. Later in the day, I saw the victim of my forgetfulness and apologized profusely. She didn’t seem to mind much, which was a big change from my anxious brain telling me to escape. Ugh, such a liar.
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I ask you –
Do you enjoy any healthy alternatives to your favorite foods?
What is your go-to activity to clear your head?
Tell me about forgetting something important!
(The postI’m a Forgetter first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)
When the weeks are dragging on and you need a few interesting things to keep you wanting to get up, do stuff, adult. This is getting ridiculous.
to the water park!
Found this fascinating story regarding one of Sheppard AFB’s very own Airmen doing big things to benefit countless individuals: Air Force Tourniquet Belt.
I say “Call me if you need me!” a lot for someone who rarely, if ever, answers the phone when anyone calls. It’s a formality. Just text me like a normal person, ok?
Admittedly, I am the most ignorant person I’ve ever met. Ask me about the day I walked around with a huge vape thing in my hand because I picked it up outside thinking it was an old battery pack. It was pink. I probably should have known something was up.
Then, a staff member told me they had accepted a jewel in the lost and found and asked how to return it to its owner. Jewel. Upon further questioning, along the lines of who loses a jewel, it was carefully explained to me someone lost a brand of vape. How was I supposed to know?
Then, it took nearly 2 hours for McK and I to figure out how to put gas in the government vehicles. In our defense, the instructions were unclear, there were inoperable pumps with obscure signage (read: none), and we’ve never done this before! We lead from the front, for sure! However, I do appreciate the consistent vehicle drive-bys who didn’t ask if we needed help until the final task was completed. I’m not being sarcastic – I think we would have been affronted if some…man…had tried to help us. We are independent!
The requisite activity versus pages tracker:
Additional pages: 23!
We’re strongest in our struggles. Which is probably not how the saying goes but it feels as if everything leading up to vacation is a struggle.
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I ask you –
Do you prefer calls or texts?
On a scale of 1 to who-let-you-out-of-your-cage, how ignorant are you?
Tell me your thoughts on independence!
(The post Pre-Vacation first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)
Mud volleyball – the only time when a sport requires less clothing rather than more. No knee pads. No shoes. No pants. No problem!
We didn’t win a single game but we had a great time! And as it probably isn’t the best look for any of us, I kept the photos smaller so as to protect the innocent. Thank you to Jaime, Allie, Darrell, and Robin for humoring me. I wouldn’t want to play in the mud with anyone else! It was definitely well over 100 degrees, but I stayed in the shade and did my best to stay hydrated.
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No questions this time. I’m exhausted. Still. It is a long holiday weekend so hopefully I can get caught up. But I’m a doctoral candidate so never mind. My goal for next year is to put together a mud volleyball team early, then create fun uniform shirts like the pro’s wear.
Introducing Blue Bell Creameries, headquartered in beautiful Brenham, TX. Since I was a very young girl, I’ve always wanted to visit the place where my favorite ice cream is made. It really is a lovely community with a proper downtown, a few coffee options (Mescalito was fantastic!), and some amazing BBQ!
The tour of the ice cream facility ends with $1 scoops of Blue Bell. Life is so good. As we visited first thing in the day, ice cream was more of a breakfast option, which I think is perfect! Blue Bell is actually the name of a flower, which the founders of Blue Bell Ice Cream chose to name their business after.
(L) Buttered Pecan (R) Salted Caramel Brownie
We toured banks-turned-boutiques, museums, and even made a quick stop in Waco, TX, to check out the much loved Magnolia Market and Silos.
As the weekend capped off the return from VA and seeing my best friend, it was a whirlwind of sights and sounds. But the ice cream made it worth it.
The intent was to share here how I competed in a recent Mini Triathlon. But you won’t be reading a recap as I decided the day prior to forego the event in lieu of keeping myself alive. Slightly dramatic but not by much. Originally when I considered it, the weather had been hovering around the 75° mark and it was raining near daily. Then, summer arrived. The projected high on the day of the Mini Tri was 99°. Despite it starting around 78-ish°, the humidity was rapidly increasing.
All this to say, maybe next time. It’s not worth chancing it. Nonetheless, I was out there doing director things and playing witness to the other able-bodied individuals with Triathlon goals. Base support was awesome, we recruited different groups of people to help facilitate the event as it spanned multiple smaller events and a large footprint. Personally, I love seeing our team get together and DO outside the office.
Team Fitness!
Also, I’m trying something new. I want to keep track of my weekly exercise activities and the addition of manuscript pages in an effort to see valued change 1 yr from now, when I project completing this doctoral journey. My plan is to add a screenshot of my weekly activities via the Garmin app with a numerical indicator of manuscript pages. (I don’t have an activity list for Wk 2 but I know I added 9 pgs.)
For example, the below was from Wk 3:
Additional pages: 18
Despite the fact these variables probably have zero correlation, it’s an interesting concept to me. I like lists and comparing things, although not typically numbers because I’m not number-y, I’m word-y. As it stands, I can’t imagine there will be anything to this beyond being able to look back at it, mainly because I don’t run/cycle/walk between 4-6am because that’s when I’m writing. Additionally, I don’t run/walk/cycle between 5-8pm because it’s either too hot, raining (as of late), or I’m working on my manuscript. Therefore, my work day is primarily when I engage in exercise so one rarely precludes me from doing the other, except on the weekends when I attempt to do both. Since I’m not tracking just the weekends, the data is mostly garbage stats. Thank you for listening while I worked all this out.
Nonetheless, it gives me something to look forward to so without further ado –
Running on Fumes 
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