Winter Wonderland

It is the phenomenal amount of snow that I am witnessing that is inspiring me to finally write. I am in London Ontario. There is a snow squall occurring and although I did not remember what this was, I do now. From the window it is really quite pretty- trees bent over with the heaviness of snow and an endless white. When I look at my runners and think about running outside it is a bit of a joke. There is no way even a hearty Canadian can get through this without snowshoes.

I better back-up a bit as quite a bit of time has passed since my last blog and now. I have, surprise, surprise, been rather busy. After my last race of the season in Phoenix, I had two weeks off from training. I was really really ready for it. I thought that maybe I would have a hard time not showing up at the pool, throwing my runners on or getting on my bike but I actually had no trouble saying good-bye to my training regime for a little time. It helped that I was able to do things that I have not done in such a long time – hike, play, stay up late and not worry about the next days work!

Tanner and I went to Big Bend National Park which is in the South of Texas on the Mexico/US border. It was spectacular. The park is in the middle of the desert, has an incredible canyon that the Rio Grande meanders through, and is a collection of limestone peaks that provides the most incredible views, sunrises and sunsets. The night sky is unforgettable – thousands of stars that the naked eye can see. I was able to let go of my endless list of things to do and give over the pressure I put on myself to constantly achieve and work hard. I was able to just be.

This set the stage for the rest of my vacation where I had a whole lot of fun with friends in Austin. I could not ask for anything more… sadly it all came to an end when I got onto the plane to Ottawa.

I arrived at 4:30 to a dark sky, rain and a chilly wind. It was everything I dreaded. I was in Ottawa to see friends, get some things done and move my boxes to London Ontario in a big UHAUL truck. As per usual Ottawa folks were amazing. The Cyclery got me set up with an awesome Tacx trainer, Ryan at Solefit Orthodics got me into a new pair of orthodics, I saw my favourite Dr. Taylor at Carleton Sport Medicine Clinic and Rebecca at Westboro Chiro worked on some surprisingly jacked up gluts. It was like I never left. I ran along the beautiful Rideau Canal and swam with the best swim club ever – ROCS. After saying good-bye to friends I said good-bye to the city. Ottawa has been amazing to me in so many ways but that chapter of my life is now closed and a new one has opened.

So now I find myself in London Ontario with my mom and Ted. The fridge is always full, the apple cider warms the house and mom is constantly baking the next loaf of bread. Christmas centre pieces are found throughout the house and it is warm and cozy especially when Ted starts the fire. I have a room devoted to my bike trainer and can watch VHS movies… excellent. I have reacquainted myself with the pathway along the Thames river, the treadmill and am training with the University of Western Ontario swim team. It is actually all working out quite well from a training perspective as long as I am ok with it being indoors. I look forward to my brother arriving and chilling out with him. So until I return to Austin (Dec 31) I just have to stay warm, not get frustrated with the shovelling, ice, layering, slower pace of moving and remember that a few feet of snow really is quite pretty…!