Spin, speeches and breaking bread -----> Week in Review, Day 202-208

~ went to spin class two days in a row. Ouch.

~ did my first 10-minute presentation at my networking group. I practiced it out loud about 20 times. It went really well (I think).

~ hung out with singing/piano teacher. Been wanting to do that for a long time. We had bread and cheese in her new awesome apartment.

Day 147 - Visited an ENT

Ear, nose and throat doctor. My voice teacher recommended a visit, since I've been having trouble hitting the higher notes.

This very nice doctor snaked a long, thin camera up my nose and down my throat to peek at my vocal chords. Oddest feeling. Crying is a natural reaction, it turns out.

It also turns out I have a deviated septum (nothing to worry about) and nodules on my vocal chords (worrisome). The next step is to visit a speech therapist and rest my voice as much as possible. This will be a major test in patience.

I am bummed. I was just making great progress with my voice lessons and about to start practicing with a band. And I'm sad I've damaged myself this much. At least it is diagnosed so I can move forward in a healthy way. And I will take this break as an opportunity to finally learn piano.

Day 41 - Got a sports injury

I may have been lucky my whole life, but it may mean I never really exerted myself before. So I am proud to claim a sports injury. Torn calf muscle from a combo of running and snowboarding. It hurts. It's frustrating to walk so slowly. But compared to other, worse things that can happen in life, this isn't so bad. Just have to give it 2-4 weeks for rest and elevation and I'll be back to sports. The Olympics will just have to start without me...

Day 16 - Caught on a cliff - twice

Feeling confident sometimes leads you to do stupid things. Now that I am getting pretty good on a snowboard, I have been getting more adventurous. Mother Nature answered with a lesson in humility.

On one of the first runs of the day, I went out exploring and found myself on steep ridge lined with rocks.
That's me. Exit strategy was hike back up and out, or go down. I chose down and executed with a long butt slide, followed by a front flip onto my head into the soft snow three feet below. Not the least bit graceful but, as one observer said, "At least you didn't punk out." Somehow sliding butt-to-head first out of there didn't feel that cool.

Later in the day, after learning nothing, I went exploring again and found myself on the edge of a cliff. There was no falling out of this one. The only option was to turn around and climb out the way I came. I hyperventilated for about 30 seconds then pulled myself together. The scariest moment was unstrapping my board, trying to get footing, and turning myself around to a comfortable spot to climb. I'm not being dramatic when I say that one false move would have sent me over the edge and to the hospital. But Mother Nature was being forgiving and provided some trees for me to hold on to. It is hard work to climb out of deep snow but I survived, and with more awareness.

Much thanks to Mother Nature for sparing me and to my husband for the photo and confidence.

Day 10 - Rode backwards for one snowboarding run

My goal for the last couple of years has been to learn to ride backwards on my snowboard. Snowboards are directional, with a definite front and back. But when you are on a long run, or need to get out of a sticky situation, riding backwards can give your front leg some rest and help you avoid obstacles. It's just a good skill to have in your back pocket.

Last year, I would try it now and again but never really committed. This year, I once again proclaimed that riding backwards is my goal for the year. I was lucky enough to get a new snowboard this season that has some new technology allowing the rider much more freedom of movement. So it seems like the best year to really give it a good, solid try.

I completed one whole run down the mountain riding backwards. It was slow-going and the hard snow did my rump no favors, but all in all, not too shabby! It was the first time I've ever done it for one whole run, through slow patches and steeper sections, just trying to feel my way through. Must add this as a regular thing to my days on the snow, but you may want to avoid Lower Monte Wolfe for a few weeks...

Day 9 - Learned to dolphin dive

Lacking a new thing for the day, my friend John suggested I learn to dolphin dive, a classic breakdancing move. Sure, why not? I have seen him bust out some impressive moves over the years so he was the perfect teacher. A dolphin dive involves diving onto your hands, then rolling into what I describe as a backwards worm. Like this girl:



Could not get past the fear of jumping onto my hands, but I started to get the rhythm of moving forward. So in the end, I think I really just learned to do the worm, and not very well at that. It was a good start to my breakdancing career, though. John expects to see better results in a few weeks. While I practice, check out this funny video.