Hug Someone You Love

Well, the last week hasn’t been boring, that much is true. Last Friday, my sister (Allison) and her boyfriend (Dan) had planned to visit me and Phil. What wasn’t planned was getting laid-off from my work. My official last day of work will be June 19th. On the bright side, I’ll get more time to train before the triathlon. On the not so bright side, I have been job searching, networking and feeling a little stressed. Fortunately, it was great to have Allison and Dan here because we did a lot of fun things that helped keep my mind off of my forthcoming situation.

Unfortunately, on Wednesday June 10th, my mom called me after I had gotten to work. I already knew this wasn’t going to be good. She informed me that our close family-friend, Mary Lou Osborne, passed away early that morning. If you have been following my blog, you will know that I ran the Race for the Cure in honor of Mary Lou. She had been battling breast cancer for over two years when her original diagnosis was to only live for six months. Mary Lou truly battled. Even after the discovery of brain tumors, she still battled. Unfortunately, the monster of cancer became much too big for Mary Lou to conquer, but I will never say that she gave up.

Mary Lou was one of the kindest, funniest, strongest, friendliest people I knew. I will always strive to be more like her. She will always be kept in my memories and my heart.

My training this week has taken on another form, a cathartic form. It has been my constant. Even though my job is soon going to end and a dear friend has moved on, I know that the road and the water will still be there. I know that I still have to get on my bike, put on my running shoes or slip into my bathing suit and train. It has helped me clear my mind and feel at peace.

With only a short time until my race, my ankle is healing nicely. I went for my first run yesterday. Today, my ankle feels little bit more sore than it has, but still, not bad. I think I’ll try to stick to the treadmill so that I can control the conditions and be able to stop if I need to. I also received an email today that the bike course has been modified. In addition to being changed from an out and back to a loop, they also added 1.5 miles making the bike course 14.4 miles long. I happy they did this, not only will the ride be more interesting, but I’m also happy about the distance because I will be strong on the bike.

I hope you are all in good health and remember – hug someone you love.