today in gratitude

[moominmolly]

I'm not doing the gratitude project; I already try to give a lot of thanks to people for being awesome on a daily basis, and I think that I'm in general pretty in tune with the happy things in my life. This morning, though, I'm sort of brimming over with it. Here's what's on my mind, happiwise:

• Pumpkin Spice latte (with an extra shot).
  
• The beautiful french press on my desk and all the hot George Howell coffee it makes me every day.
  
• My bike shoes! I spent $90 on bike shoes last year, after never having spent more than about $40, and these things fit me better than I could have imagined possible. They're easy to wear, cute, sturdy, and extremely well-fitting on my weird feet.
  
• aroraborealis once (fondly) accused me of having 'exercise bulimia'. I like to think it's a little more functional and enjoyable than that, but anyway, I'm in a crazy-workout phase and I love it. I love that yesterday morning I biked to redheadedmuse's house and went running and it felt like a rest day. I am strong and capable.
  
• No credit-card debt. I don't like that I got to a place where this is exciting and new, but at least it's true, and I'm grateful.
  
• Snuggling and skin. Nothing helps me stop thinking and just feel happy and loved as much as simple quiet contact with loved ones.
  
• My bike. The softride I'm currently riding gave me some knee troubles a couple of years back when I used it on some randonée rides. Early this summer, I tweaked the beam a tiny bit and ever since then it has felt like an extension of my body.
  
• My trainer. I have never in my life had someone I could call my trainer. She's fantastic. I'm doing a crazy Crossfit thing three days a week, and she gives amazing form tips. One hand on my shoulders and two words about my hips and suddenly my deadlift is 15% stronger. She's good, she's perceptive, she helps me modify lifts when they put strain on my tiny girl wrists, she's encouraging without blowing sunshine up my ass, and she makes a background assumption that I'm strong. Perfect.

There are other good things in my life, but I just realized how many things I had been thankful for *in the last 12 hours* and felt like I had to say something. Like maybe "RAAAAAR!"

Comments

[veek.livejournal.com]

H'ray!

[kcatalyst.livejournal.com]

Yaay! that sounds completely awesome!

[bluepapercup]

Woohoo! So glad that things are good! Puts a big smile on my face for you! :)

[chienne-folle.livejournal.com]

Yay for you!

[gentlescholar.livejournal.com]

RAAAAAR! indeed.

A personal trainer is one of those things I want to get money again for.

[jojotbird.livejournal.com]

Awesome!!! I've been bit by an exercise bug lately. Perhaps it's the awesome fall weather?

Also, I find that the more I exercise, the more I want to be in shape, because if I was in better shape then there would be this whole other genre of fun exercise that I could do! I've never had any upper body strength, and suddenly I want it... now to figure out the best way to make it happen :)

[harimad.livejournal.com]

One easy, quick, inexpensive way to start on upper body strength is pushups. You work amazingly different muscles depending on how close together/far apart you put your arms, and how you place your hands.

[rednikki.livejournal.com]

How does one develop the upper body strength to do a pushup, if one cannot already do one?

[moominmolly.livejournal.com]

You do some form modifications to the pushup to make them easier to do until you build up enough strength. This page (http://hundredpushups.com/what.html) lists some good ones!

[rednikki.livejournal.com]

Hooray! That's all great stuff.

[amber-phoenix.livejournal.com]

um... please do not say "hot George Howell" ever again, even when that's not what you meant. i used to work for the man. it hurts my brain.

[moominmolly.livejournal.com]

Ha. Er, sorry.

[keyne.livejournal.com]

RAAAAAR! (http://www.redbubble.com/people/simonsherry/t-shirts/519698-7-raaaaar-im-a-dinosaur)

[dietrich.livejournal.com]

This sounds truly awesome.

Question for you: I'm still just getting into bike riding. I have a hybrid that is on permanent loan from the lovely concrete, and while I took it to Ace Wheelworks to get some modifications (softer seat, slightly higher handlebars), it's still not the best for me. I think what I'd really like is a cruiser, or at least a bike with nice high handlebars.

So:
-where do you get a cruiser that doesn't cost a thousand dollars and
-how do you set up your bike so it feels like an extension of your body??

[moominmolly.livejournal.com]

(1) is easy, ish -- troll craigslist bikes for a while. I've gotten some great deals there for friends in the past. Watch it for a week or two and you should see some things come up.

(2) is harder. For me, I think it's partly about my comfort on the bike, partly about the way it handles, and partly about the length of my time with this bike (I've had it for ten years). I love how quick and nimble it is, how easy to handle, how perfect the handlebars are for my frame and preferred riding positions. I've always liked the way it felt, but it gave me a bit of trouble on long rides; now that it doesn't do that, my enjoyment of it is unthrottled. :) My guess is, though, that if you spend a lot of time on a bike that you truly love and begin to feel wholly comfortable with it, it might begin to feel that way to you. Or maybe not! You know? Maybe to you it will feel more like a familiar pet or favorite car or good friend. I hope it feels like *something* good, though, because biking is awesome.