“Who needs this life anyway?”
That’s how I felt months ago, when the WR was so far in the future I didn’t really have to think seriously about it. I’ve never really planned to do anything far in advance. You think 5 months isn’t advance? You know me not…
As training camp nears, now 10 short days away, I’m suddenly having greater appreciation for the things around me. Appreciation is not a terrible thing, but along with that, I’m also experiencing some odd attachments. There are many, thus I’ll just share a few!
5 things, in no particular order, picked from my brain much like lottery balls from a whirly ball enclosure.
New appreciation – Food options. I dine out every day, 2 – 3 times a day. I can’t even get into how extremely unimpressed I am with food these days. Or rather how unimpressed I was until I realized I -will- be living on a “steady diet of beans and rice” while on the WR. Oh, I like beans and rice, but every day? Each and every? I have a feeling that I won’t scoff, eyeroll and gag next time someone suggests meeting at an Applebees.
Strange attachment – Jelly belly and snickerdoodle cookies. I’m not even a sweets junkie. Well, I wasn’t. For some reason my brain imagines these specific items will not be available outside of my USA so I spend time fantasizing about eating them. Perhaps I’m attached to the idea. I should just pig out on it now and cure myself.
New appreciation – High speed internet. That one is pretty obvious. Last week I got on the phone with the hotel IT office and made them increase the speed specifically for my mac addresses on certain access points. That might not mean anything to you, but just know that I’ll probably be laughed off the phone if I try that anywhere else in the world.
Strange attachment – Bose earbuds. I read some racer’s packing blog about packing a bunch of earbuds because they break easily and get lost. I used to lose these regularly which was just an annoying inconvenience before. On the race, this might be tragic without access to replacement pairs. The new me hasn’t lost a single pair in two whole weeks. (knock on wood)
New appreciation – Underwhelming hotels. My job recently moved into the city and I haven’t been able to find the perfect spot to replace my old place yet. This week I tried a sheraton outside of the city because I heard the one downtown is a dump. My instant reaction was… ugh! Even this is a dump! Then I thought about my new condo (aka big agnes jack rabbit double tent) and suddenly, I kid you not, I had the honest feeling that “it’s not so bad.” Shortly after that I thought, gee, this is going to look like the Prince de Galles in a few days. [heart clutch]
The New Condo. "Mr. REI Man, is this really a 2 person tent?
I can’t imagine what I’m going to feel like come December much less January. But you know what, for the super powerball last draw, there’s one more (not so) strange attachment – The WR. I go through a bunch of moments, more recent than before, where I’m having ‘second thoughts.’ I try to imagine *not* going on the WR…and I can’t. That gives me hope. Although I can’t imagine the challenges I will face, some serious and some silly, I also can’t imagine letting it go.
