Put me in Coach!

Ah yesterday was an action packed Thursday! I walked and did some work on the stationary bike before heading off to babysit my cool kid gang. I was driving my dad's electric car so that opened up the possibilities for the afternoon. Usually I walk over to the King's house but now that I had transportation we could go somewhere, and go we did. We went to Emily Douglas Park on Wheat St. (my favorite street in the world), this is the street I grew up on and the park I spent many years playing. It is a lot different than when I was little but there are still things to get excited about! The sand pit for one, the kids immediately rid themselves of shoes and dove into the mound of sand! I took to the swings; there really is nothing as enjoyable as swinging on a swing set. If I look straight up in the air when I start my decent backwards it gives me that little jolt in my stomach...it makes me squeal a little bit! I watched the kids navigate the monkey bars backwards and forwards, I have never been the best at upper body strength so as a kid the MBars terrified me....but like all things I hate I try to find a common ground with them. So I walked over to the metal bars, which I now tower over, and did the only thing that I have ever been able to do with them. I grabbed on and hoisted my legs up and over until I was hanging upside down. After a second Avery joined me and we were just hanging...;)

After leaving the park we headed over to Earth Fare to get a veggie/juice drink from their juice bar! Let me tell you, if you were wondering where the hot spot is at 6 p.m. on a Thursday it is at EF. Apparently kids eat free, so they had a balloon animal maker guy and kids galore. It was a bit overwhelming but it was nice to see so many parents taking the opportunity to feed their kids healthy alternative foods! After getting my juice we headed home. I dropped them off and headed for rehearsal!

EG picked me up and we swung by my bro's house to pick up some props for RtbP. He is graciously loaning us some baseball paraphernalia. I grew up playing baseball/softball and to this day would do anything for a pick up game. I put my old first baseman's mitt on my hand, although after playing softball for so many years a baseball feels so tiny it was nice to just feel the leather of the glove and the stitches in the baseball! When we arrived to the theatre I found that my new favorite Trey was down to toss the ball around. So that is what we did...a bit of back and forth in the rehearsal space but no we couldn't be stopped so we took it to the alley. It was a beautiful night last night, breezy and cool, the sky to the west of Columbia is always astounding at dusk. It may have been getting close to too dark but we were on a mission. I think we were both impressed with our mad arm skills. There were only a couple close calls to broken windows, or when I over threw the ball went barreling towards Huger street...um not good...but was saved by a guy who jovially tossed Trey the ball and joked about how he never understood why the call softballs soft "Because they ain't" Trey was with him all the way!

I thought my arm would be sore today from the few minutes of one-on-one it got with the ball yesterday but it isn't! So I woke up early this a.m. to walk with EG. It was bomb. It is so nice, not as cold as the other morning! I tell you what though the first day you wake up at 5:30 it is all exciting like yeah man look at me being all awesome...not so much the second day. It is still exciting but I was tired for sure. We did a little variation to our walk, added another hill and some jogging. We talked about how one of my ex-boyfriends won't talk to me which is just annoying because I am friends with all my ex's. They all mean a lot to me, they taught me so much about life and myself and having them as friends is a treasure right! But whatevs. We also talked about cute boys and butts and all the yummy things girls talk about at 5:30 in the morning. We ALSO talked about how we are going up to Black Mountain tonight after rehearsal. This is one of my favorite places on the planet, my family's cabin in BMountain. It is right outside of Asheville which I can only imagine is one of the most beautiful places to be in the fall, when the leaves change color! We are going to put around Asheville then meet up with the majority of the ADG at a bar and watch GAMEDAY!!!! Go cocks! On Sunday EG, Boxter (That's Baxter EG's bf) and I will cook breakfast, maybe hike a bit, drink waaay too much coffee and read book in the cool fresh air of the mountain side! Heaven?! I promise pictures of the golden browns and reds and yellows that border the sky!!

While I am thinking about things that I love I must take a moment to tell you about some of the things in my life that I use/wear/need on a daily basis. These are the 3 constants in my life. I may have more but these are big. They will probably seem a little strange but hey have you met me? I am a little strange (a lot)!
These aren't really in order of greatness...


This is The Professor. My Times Square Build-A-Bear creation from the ever favorite trip to NYC with EG in 2006 (I think)! Also on this trip I was kissed by a cute boy in the rain...oh one of my favorite memories! Anywho, The Professor has not left my side since his creation! He has been there through sickness and health, I took him to China and back, so he too is a world traveler. This will be one of those things were if my future child asks for him I will most likely say NO, HE IS MINE. Then go and guilt buy them anything they want!

Next we have:

I know right....let me tell you about this right hur, introduced to me by my MRB back in the 3300 days it has been a stable of my daily life since. I have always been a compulsive lotioner. Every day. No question it is what you do, my mom taught me that. Hydration is important inside and outside of your body. Your skin will be healthier if you treat it well and this lotion is like a daily pampering. It smells yummy and has fewer additives than most name brand lotions. Someone once told me that what you put on your skin can be absorbed into your blood stream...um I would OK thanks for that now I am totally aware of what I put on my skin at all times! So this is it for me, I took 4 bottles of this stuff with me to China; it lasted me the whole year!

Last and the most recent addition to my life:

My jade Buddha! Given to me by my kind and dear friend Maggie Zhi. Maggie and I met bc she is the editor for China Grooves, the expat magazine I wrote for in Xi'an. We became great friends over the 6 months we worked together! I miss her and the magazine dearly. We spent many hours together wandering market streets looking at bits and bobs and on more than one occasion I mentioned how I wanted a jade Buddha necklace. You can buy fake jade all over the place but I wanted the real deal. In China they say that jade stone when worn on the body will heat up and mix with the oils on your skin. Jade is thought to be a healing nutrient so wearing it will prevent disease and well ward off evil. I wear this around my neck every day. The Buddha hangs down on my chest close to my heart! If you see me you will see the red string around my neck. In China everyone had a red string, it might not have a jade Buddha on there but it would have something. Red is the color of China, it is seen as the color of happiness power and prosperity. And so I wear this jade Buddha, to remind me of my life in that land, of the beauty in friendships that I made, the treasures of a culture that I learned and like this stone will carry with me for a life time!