Okay 2021, come in, sit down and please don’t break anything!!

Well what can I say about 2020 that has not already been said and well, will not get my mouth washed out with soap. I started 2020 running my first marathon and had so many great things planned. Once we all went into lock down, every one of them went out the window. This was a tough year and I truly let it get the best of me. But as it says above, New Year, New Goals and a New Me. Okay maybe not a “New” Me because, well I like the me I am, but let’s just say an improved me. I am excited to start looking at what 2021 holds.

New Year

I guess we cannot talk about the new year without acknowledging the shit show that was 2020. I have a few years that are like Voldermort, they are years that shall not be named, 2020 has joined those ranks. I have truly never been witness to so many history making events… from the pandemic to the civil unrest, then to watching city after city be decimated by Covid 19. Sometimes I really thought can it get worse, what else can happen. That was answered on August 4 when I found out my niece Kimbers had breast cancer. I will say never wonder if it can get worse, because it can. But this is a battle that Kimbers has been witness to and she is amazing, strong and she is kicking cancers butt.

Now when 2021 started we all had high hopes, I mean come in.. sit down and just don’t break anything 2021. For the most part 2021 has been a better year than its predecessor (except for that little insurrection thing, but we can blame 2020 for that). So we have a lightly dented 2021 with 8 months left , and many many possibilities. Will it be traveling… Broadway here I come, will it be racing, oh I hope so. But one thing it definitely will be, seeing my family again. I miss them all so much and cannot wait to hug each and every one of them.

New Goals

What I know about me is, I do like to do new things. In 2016 that was running, I ran 33 races that year. I started by walking around my block then walking and running to finally running my first mile. I then tried my first Ragnar in March 2017 and had a blast… Go Running Down A Dream Team!!! It was hard, but it was so fun. Next in line of new things was triathlons and I went from doing a mini sprint in 2017, then to a few sprint distances. But in 2018 I did my first Olympic distance at the Malibu Triathlon. You want to see some fun video of the waves, just google Malibu Triathlon 2018. https://youtu.be/j-HPIa3_ghw Now we cant leave out the LA Marathon, it was epic and it was hard and the training was more fun than the race, but checked that one off the ole bucket list.

So here we are, 2021 and as things are starting to open up, I think, what to do what to do?? I have several Triathlons on my schedule for the year with the first one in July, the Legacy Triathlon in Long Beach. I hope to get at least one Half Marathon in this year and some nice 5K’s I would be happy with. So just as I am wondering what I can do next, it seems to be handed to me…..

One of the things that I have taken on these past few months is being part of a Virtual Race #CRAW or Circumpolar Race Around the World with our team of 10, I Cant Believe They Agreed To This… yes that is the name. This is a race of 30,167 miles, through 12 regions of the world. I did not start until Region 4, but let me tell you this is the most fun and the most miles I have ever done ever.. and on my bike. Now some of the miles are IRL or In Real Life, but the majority have been on my bike trainer and with Zwift. How far you ask, total bike miles since January 1, 2021 ….. 1,238.3, yes that is a lot of miles. This has really opened my eyes to what I can do, especially on the bike. Something that I actually enjoyed doing but lacked a bit of confidence in. Well it has now given me my new and most crazy goal I have ever taken on. My new goal is to ride the AIDS/Lifecycle Ride in 2022. This is a ride to end AIDS and goes from San Francisco to Los Angeles … 545 Miles .. 7 Days. I have known about this cause for many years, starting in 2018 when my best friend Angela rode it the first time. I then helped support the ride on the Day on The Ride Event in 2019. This year I have been participating in TOGETHERIDE as part of the New Bear Republic Team. Doing this ride in 2022, just seems like the right goal for me. Although the ride is in 2022, the majority of the training will be in 2021. I have not been this excited in a very long time to take on something big. 545 Miles and lots of climbing BIG!

So this girl has her next big thing set, this is going to be fun.

New Me

One thing I am trying hard to do for this year is self love and with that, I acknowledge that faults and all I do love me, so let’s just say I am looking to grow and improve on me. Some how these last couple of years I am back to starting a each new year with… I need to lose weight and this year is no different. What I want to do though, is work at it from the physical activity part of losing weight. With the races that I have, there is plenty of training that is going to need to be done. I want to take the passion I had when training for the marathon and let it loose on these next races. I will be adding more stretching, cross training and core to what I have been doing. Saying I am going to do it though and doing it are a whole other story. That will be the fun part of all of this , figuring how my brain works and do what I know I need to do. That is the next part of improving me, and that is my mind. At the beginning of the year I signed up for a year of Skill Share Classes and Master Class, programs that allow you to take classes online on a multitude of subjects and with MasterClass you can even take it with others. I told myself 2 classes a week, no excuses. Well I have taken 2 classes in total, so yep, got a lot of work to do here. My final “me” improvement is giving back to the earth. I want to give back to this earth that I feel we all have not taken good care of lately. Whether that is not using paper plates, which by the way I have not used in 5 months, to cutting out paper towels and cutting back on food waste. There are plenty of opportunities for me here in and around the area that I live in. No more waste.

So I have a plan, I believe I have the motivation and I know I have the support. I know that because 2020 would have been an even bigger shit show had I not had my friend Angela Lee there. From social distanced lunches, to the occasional masked up and spread out runs, to virtual dance classes it made such a difference. Also a huge hug to Aureila Taleb who today posted a shout out for me. I was overwhelmed with the kind words she said and she commented on my Blog Site. Just know this site was right now going to expire and I was not sure I was going to continue. This post was exactly what I needed at the exact right time. Just know as all my family and friends do… I am a true believer in fate and things happening for a reason. Thank you Aureila!

So 2021 lets do this one right!!!!