Sabbatical

I've recently taken a sabbatical from writing my blog post not because I don't have things to write but because darn it...I've been busy.  Just in the past two months I've gotten new carpet laid in my entire house, new tile placed in the master bath, granite counter tops in the kitchen and painted the basement.  

Yes, my house is on the market and I'm moving.  I'm going to simplify my life - downsize to a smaller, rancher-style house and less yard work so I have more time to do what I've been doing for the last couple of months, like:

A half marathon, the 4.5 mile Dirty Dash, sign up to climb Mt. Adams, register for a 5K Foam (look that one up), 150 mile bike ride, won a golf tournament and interviewed for and got a promotion.  Pretty exciting, in a few short days, I am moving to a new office to take a seat as VP - Marketing at my current employer, STCU.  Talk about ecstatic.  I am just a wee bit.  I couldn't of done it without friends, family and my great STCU family.

So, what does this all mean on the "how's your stress level meter, Ms. Richey?"

Pretty darn good.

It may be because last week I showed up for my first Reiki session and my chakras are all aligned, got my teeth cleaned and have no cavities and my favorite 'Rosie Robot from the Jetsons' AKA iPhone Siri, pocket dialed my x-husband who is getting married next weekend...by the way, Mark...congratulations, you deserve the best.

Today, I was invited to board the Mish-a-Nock on Lake Coeur d' Alene and watch the Ironman triathletes swim.  Wow...what an adventure.  I actually felt a bit guilty eating the lovely breakfast buffet they provided us while watching these athletes tackle the cold waters of Idaho.  

The most difficult thing for me to witness was a woman who was four seconds shy of completing the two mile swim in the allotted 2 hours and 20 minutes - she couldn't continue. Thousands of us cheered her on, but she crossed the finish line just a few strokes too late and had to fly back to  her hometown of Virginia after having trained for two years for her first race.  

She was pulled off the course.  She wouldn't be able to show herself (or others) whether she could peddle her bike 112 miles or run the 26.2 miles needed to complete.  

Talk about a sabbatical...I grant you one, ma'am.

And the winner...he completed the entire race (swim, bike, run) - 140.6 miles in 8 hours and 30 minutes.  

And the winning woman...from my very own Spokane, completed the grueling race in 10 hours.

True Ironmen (women).