on choosing to have a good day

Hey, it's been a while. This post is dedicated to Laila, who runs one of my favorite blogs and is one of my favorite people.

So I'm back to living in Phoenix, still doing the pediatric nursing thing. I did a sprint triathlon, and then a half marathon. I'm still spending my free time with Russell and our Wonder Dog. And the new love of my life is hot yoga.

Hot yoga is one of those things that I said I would never do (like running a half marathon and eating fish, both of which I have done). Yes, it is so hot that your entire body sweats so profusely that you need a towel on your yoga mat so that you don't slide off of it. Yes, sometimes I need to lay down on my sweaty yoga mat because I am seriously concerned that I am going to throw up. But it makes me feel good and happy and more sore than I've ever been in my life. My favorite instructor looks like Eric Nies, raps through our flow, and played a James Taylor song during the practice today. I am SOLD.

So I went to yoga today and afterwards, I was feeling great. Russell and I went to the mall to get my computer fixed. We walked around and bought some cookies. We drove all around Phoenix and Scottsdale on a day that was so warm and beautiful that it might just be illegal to have such a day in February. We had burritos for dinner. And all day long, I kept thinking that it had been such an amazing day and I was surprised how nice everyone had been.

And it hit me. You get what you put into life and you find good in the world when you're looking for it.

I have to be honest. Most days, I am not happy. I work on a floor with really sick kids and understandably, their parents are not in the best of moods. I am on my feet for 12+ hours a day. It is not rare for me to have shifts where I don't get a chance to eat or go to the bathroom. I do it all with a smile on my face and by the time I get to my car at the end of the night, I am drained. I come home mean. I cry a lot. I have a hard time being thankful.

But if I took more time to be mindful of the world around me, I could find a lot of things to appreciate. I work with brilliant people with big hearts who second guess every detail because they are saving lives all day long. I have a family who loves and supports me. I live in a society where I can support myself. I am young and healthy enough to push my body to its limits in a yoga class or out on a run. I am rich enough to not have to worry about where my next meal will come from or where I will sleep at night.

I woke up this morning. And because of all these things, I don't deserve to have a bad attitude today.

this is why my brother is the athlete in the family

Vegas & I have started running. I mean, I'm calling it "running" so that you all (hi Dad & Bekah, my two most devoted readers) understand what I'm doing. If I were somebody who actually ran, I would call it jogging/walking/listening to an iPod while trying to keep Vegas out of the street/from eating cats/from eating garbage while she tries to pee on every rock that we pass.

Our schedule goes like this:

0700 - alarm goes off

0701 - reset the alarm so that I can sleep another 15 minutes

0715 - alarm

0716 - reset

0745 - alarm. Decide that we probably ought to get out of bed

0746 - stretching

0750 - realize I've fall asleep stretching, resume stretching

0755 - put on running shoes. Vegas knows WHAT IS UP

0800 - head out the door. Jog/walk/iPod/in the street/chase cat/pee on rocks

0845 - back home. Take off shoes, socks, leash, shirt. Vegas & I both stretch in front of the fan.

0900 - try to convince myself that I want yogurt for breakfast. I hate yogurt. Eat a few bites. Feed the rest to the dog.

My future as a triathlete is not all that bright. Furthermore, making me run past Raliberto's, Filiberto's AND Armando's? That is just unkind.

Anyway, sneaking into that interview seems to have switched up my luck. I have TWO interviews tomorrow for pediatrics positions!! If you are of the good thought sending or praying types, I'd appreciate if you send 'em up for me!

The Wonder Dog, although expensive, is most likely going to live. There's something both oddly satisfying and frustrating about the vet telling you how healthy your dog looks.

I. Miss. Charles. de. Gaulle. And the noise that SNCF trains make. Take me back now. That whole "graduation" thing sounds lame, anyway.

Russell and I are making chicken & waffles tonight. And watching Modern Family. Sounds like a pretty successful evening to me.

one sick puppy

Please send out some good thoughts for Vegas the Wonder Dog, who is feeling seriously under the weather and has to go visit the vet tomorrow.

I mean, really, how could you resist a face like this?

In other news, Russell and I have decided to explore all that the world of thriftiness has to offer. That means we're bidding farewell to sweet potato fries and burgers at Fez and welcoming PB&J and baked potatoes for dinner. Goodbye, movies and sodas and popcorn and candy (I'm not really missing the popcorn, due to an unfortunate case of food poisoning combined with a huge bag of kettle corn). Hello, free movies under the stars at Biltmore Fashion Park.

I think that in a couple months, we'll look back and realize that doing things on the cheap will have led to us being much more interesting people. At least that's what I'm hoping :)