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Art, Creativity, My Story

Life of Two Best Friends:College CHPT 47

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Life of Two Best Friends: College CHPT 46

Chapter 47

The day was here. I wasn’t as anxious for today as I had been, when I would be against Bryan. The drive was gone. I knew I would still swim my heart out today, but the urgency was gone.

But the atmosphere, arriving on deck today was way better. Everyone seemed relaxed, excited even. But I think they were in the same funk as me. That without the stress of Bryan, they didn’t know how to act accordingly, so they just relaxed. Which may not be the best; because today was a racing day. And only top 12 would be A-strings. And currently, unless the newer athletes are here to do business there is only five spaces available; after the people I believe will fill in the spots.

“Hey George,” Chad was walking towards me, “Coach wants to start the stretching. I’ll gather everyone over there. Can you check and see if there are any stragglers? I think people will be cut from the team if they show up late today. For Coach being in an upbeat mood last night; he seems to be in a bad mood now.”

“Yeah, sure. No problem. Start them on the stretches. The stragglers will just get to do less.” I walked towards the exit.

Being co captains seems to be going well. Chad has been stepping up to the role. I looked out the doors. I called out, “Anyone coming to the mock meet better hurry up. Coach is in a foul mood.” Nothing. Just as I turned I heard a “Wait!”

Looking back I saw a girl running up. It was the girl from orientation. What was her name?

“Thanks for the reminder George. I was down the hall tutoring my student early. I didn’t know how long this mock meet would take. Am I late?” Stephanie was flush and loaded up with bags.

‘A freshman is already a tutor. Impressive.’ “You’re good. Just go get changed and join the group.”

“Will do, George!”

I checked the hallway again and saw no one else. I closed the doors, and headed back to the group.

…

“As follows. Every athlete today will be swimming every race. The only difference is if you want to tryout for the A-Strings you will swim the 200 Freestyle, 200 IM, 100 of each stroke, 50 Freestyle and the 500 Freestyle. If you do not feel like you can race all those events today you will still compete but you will compete in 200 Freestyle, 100 IM, 100 Freestyle, and 50 of each stroke. Do not worry. We will have another mock meet at halfway through the season. So that those of you who would like to tryout again you will have a chance. B-string and C-string events will be first. A-string after. If you have any questions you can find and ask your co captains. But know they have races today as well. Okay let’s get racing!”

Coach wasn’t kidding. When he said being captain is a big job, it was. Suddenly I was surrounded with teammates with questions. I looked over to Chad, and he was surrounded so much I could barely see him. Thankfully I had his help too or I would have missed all my races.

…

Yeah. The my drive was at a standstill. I didn’t feel a push or a need to beat anyone today. I knew I would win. Even if it wasn’t my favorite race, I would win. It’s like everyone else knew it too, so I didn’t have anyone to push me to be better. And Coach knew it too.

“Well George. I’m surprised at your times. They are not bad, but they are the same as they were at the end of last year. Not what you have been showing me in practice lately.”

“I know Coach. I just don’t seem to have the drive or push anymore. I had planned to use Bryan to push me to be better. But now that he’s gone I don’t feel driven. If you understand?”

“I do understand. However, George, you cannot use anyone or anything else to drive you to be better. You have to be that role too. You chase your current self. Your drive should derive from you wanting to be better. Do you think that current Olympians use others to be better? On their teams? In practice? No. Some may, but several of them don’t have the luxury of having a sparring partner. They all have to push themselves.”

I knew all of this. I knew it. But why was I still not driven to do what Coach was telling me. It just seemed to be going over my head. “I know Coach. I do. But…I don’t know…I…”

“Alright. College must still be clouding your mindset. You say you need something physical to stimulate your drive, right? All athletes go through this. Henry. Come here,” coach waved Henry over. “Alright. Henry. We both know you will be a A-stringer. Your co captain is not giving this meet his all. Can I count on you to help him out?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good. You both have the 500 Freestyle left. You want something tangible to have a drive. Okay then George, Henry will get a 50 head start. Your job is to beat him. You should know George, this is Henry’s main event. He holds a solid average the entire time. You will have to dig deep to beat him. Henry you don’t allow him to get closer. Keep him a 50 behind. But know George will be chasing you down. It’s his nature. Now go. Compete!”

I asked for this. I did. But it seemed impossible. Pretty much Coach was telling me to sprint the entire 500. So death. Means death. But I felt better. I felt that spark coming alive. I felt inspired to swim. “Alright Coach. Good luck Henry,” I outstretched my hand.

“You too. Good luck,” Henry returned the handshake.

Now I had a race.

…

Art, Creativity, Daily Prompts

Easy!

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What are three objects you couldn’t live without?

Husband, kids, meat! Haha 😂

No let me think. Those would be my answers, but let me try and find three more personal items that I own.

1: My trusty chubby red. It’s my medium sized Dutch oven. I named it chubby red. I have a Bug red and a baby red. But the middle one can do various things.

2:My photos. All of them. I want to in the future do those picture books. I can always paint if I want art, but photos of my kids and memories can’t be replaced.

3: A collection of things. Mr. Pinky, my wedding dress, my ring, my locket, those type things. Because you can replace many things. But my wedding dress was discontinued, so I want to have the option to pass it down to one of my daughters. My ring could be passed down to my son’s wife if he wants. My locket was from my husband; it holds pictures of my kiddos. It could be passed down; maybe become an heirloom. Wright girls would wear it. Mr. Pinky….because he is so old already, I want to see how old he can become. He’s currently 30 years old!

This was fun. I sat in the couch looking into the house trying to discern what was important to me. I like my choices. But also my first choices too.

Enjoy your…Monday. Had to check. Haha!

Art, Creativity, Life As A Mama, Reflections

Life…

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If you think your life is chaotic…

I am a mom to two high energy kids. 6 & almost 3. And now I’m a mother to a 2 month old.

I cook from scratch for every meal, for every day.

I’m doing at least 3 loads of laundry a day to keep up!

My husband’s schedule shifts from day shifts to night shifts; that I don’t know what today is even. Oh, Sunday. I had to look.

But tack on top of this that we are trying to sell our house. So I have to keep the house showing ready. With those two rambunctious kids it’s almost impossible.

And we have our first showing tomorrow…at least I’ve been trying to stay on top of the house so it should be easy.

But if you are feeling overwhelmed today; just know there might be someone with a more chaotic life than yours. Relax and enjoy yourself if you have the time.

I do not. At least not until bedtime.

Have a great Sunday!

(Happy I know what day it is!)

Creativity, Daily Prompts, Life As A Mama

Being Awesome

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What were your parents doing at your age?

My mom was being a super mom.

She was working full time, but also was taking care of her kids. She was doing so much; that I now know and totally understand what it is to be a mom.

Her life was constant. Constantly moving. Constantly taking care of her family. To me that is what a superhero looks like!!

Art, Creativity, Daily Prompts, Life As A Mama, Reflections

I Know!

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You get some great, amazingly fantastic news. What’s the first thing you do?

I call my mommy!!

Because naturally if I’m getting that amazing news my husband is with me. So the first person is mama!

Crazy, is I read the question and instantly knew the answer!

I love you Mama! So very very much!! Excited to see you soon!

❤️

Art, Creativity, Daily Prompts, Life As A Mama, Reflections

Nope.

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Describe your most ideal day from beginning to end.

I started writing my answer just before this. You know, getting sleep and my kiddos listening to me 100%. But I deleted it. It’s gone.

Because as much as I would love to have those things, it’s not going to happen right now. And I don’t want to be frustrated or annoyed with my life. Sometimes venting too much can lead to more negativity in life. And that’s what that original post would have been; me venting and wishing for a different life. However, my life is what it is. I have stubborn headstrong children. I have a hard working husband who has to go to a job a various hours that he hates. And I spend all my time taking care of my family.

It’s a good life. I don’t want to list everything that I wish for, because then I’ll just be disappointed when that day never comes.

So for a realistic answer. I want a day where all my loved ones are well and healthy; and they all accomplish what they wanted to do that day.

Have a great Wednesday. If today is not what you wanted; there is always tomorrow. ❤️

Creativity, Daily Prompts, Life As A Mama, Reflections

Everything!

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What’s your favorite thing to cook?

Since on my journey of making everything from scratch, I’ve found I love to make anything and everything. Baked goods, breads, Mexican foods, Chinese foods, Italian foods, Pizza, American foods, desserts, etc.

I make bread about twice a week. I make a baked good about once every two weeks. I make pizza once every two weeks. I make something chocolatey once a month; which involves making my own chocolate. I tend to cycle through all the types of foods. American, Italian, Mexican, etc. but u tend to make lots of Mexican foods because they are delicious!

Then comes a week where I’m not inspired to cook. I have many many recipes. More than you can imagine; but during this week none of them sound good to me. So ask the husband what he is craving. He gives his idea and I go on a hunt for a feasible recipe. So we try new things for a week; some are good and some are terrible. But it helps me to kickstart my drive to cook again.

I don’t really have a favorite thing to cook. I would say I love to cook foods that my husband is craving. I love to cook foods that my kiddos will devour without complaining. I love to make chocolate things just for me; but I always have to end up sharing.

It’s always a bummer to put in all that hard work of trying something new and it’s a flop. Because one you wasted your time, but you also have to make something else for dinner.

But I will say that bread is super easy now. Chocolate is super easy. Enchiladas is easy. Mac n cheese is easy. Pizza. Pudding. Pancakes. Etc. I could list many more. The ones I mentioned, I make either once a week or two-four times a week.

I even told my mother-in-law that it seemed like my day is spent making food, eating food, feeding a one month old, and cleaning up. Very true. Ha!

I hope your Sunday is filled with delicious foods.

Also. I’ve been making lots of hearty soups. My mother-in-law has been craving soups. Easiest meal ever! One pot! Yum!

This picture is kind of random, but mother-in-law asked if I had any idea to rearrange their living room. This was what I came up with. The colors aren’t exactly right but just so that she can show her husband the idea. Visual is always helpful when asking for a budget. Haha 😂

Hopefully it works for them. They have most of the furniture already.

Art, Creativity, My Story

Life of Two Best Friends: College CHPT 46

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Life Of Two Best Friends: College CHPT 45

Chapter 46

“So let me understand. You want to be co captains?”

I looked to Chad and he nodded to me. “Yes, Coach. We both want to be captains simultaneously.”

“I had hoped there would be only one leader. However, what is your plan for this arrangement.” Coach settled back into his chair.

“Well Coach. As you know I did not choose my friends wisely these last three years,” Chad had wanted to explain our reasonings.

Coach nodded.

“So you giving us the chance to choose a captain; made me think about if I could actually do the job. Believe me, I didn’t want to listen to George when he told me that he thought I couldn’t do it to the fullest ability. But I didn’t want to blow him off, because that’s what Bryan would have done. I don’t want to be anything like him. So I heard George out. He wants us to co captain. Because then the rest of the team will slowly begin to respect me again. It will help to be working with the person they see as their leader already. George will co captain with me to show that things have changed; that the bully side to the upperclassmen is gone. That things will change.”

It was my turn to bring our proposal home, “so Coach we will co captain until closer to finals. Then around that time we will decide who should be the lead captain. But this seems to me the only way that Chad could possibly be the captain. That he needs to gain the respect of everyone else first.” Now it was Coach’s choice. He could say no and make us decide.

Coach didn’t answer. He just sat in his silent stance.

I can never read what he is thinking.

“Well it’s not what I expected, but I must say I’m proud of both of you. That fact that you didn’t just want to cover up everything; that you actually want to change things for the better is quite impressive. This is why I made you both discuss it. Because at this moment in time I didn’t think Chad would be able to gain the respect of his teammates. That there would be more chaos than leadership. But I also didn’t think that you George were quite ready to fully lead. You partially lead, but to be the full time leader is more work. So I approve of your decision. I think this will work out quite well. Maybe this way will help change everything, because then it is never just one with all the power. It will be kept fair. I do quite like this,” Coach smiled before taking a sip of his coffee.

‘It’s eerie to see Coach smile.’ “So should we announce it officially at the mock meet tomorrow? Or should we just start spreading the word?”

“Go ahead and spread the word. I actually want things to change on this team. I think that’s the only way for great swimmers to come out of this program again. That it’s less about the official roles on the team, but that the environment is more relaxed for you swimmers to focus on what matters. The pool. This is great. I’m excited for tomorrow. It will be interesting to see who will be the A stringers. Anything can happen. Especially if there is no intimidation from Bryan and his gang. Okay. Go back to your dorms and prepare for tomorrow.”

I let the breath I was holding in, out slowly. Relief flooded me. He accepted our proposal, but he seemed very interested in the outcome of this change. That was my initial intention. I wanted things to change. To do what Coach had asked of me. To change this team. And to do that, it doesn’t have to just be because of a new leader; but because of the whole dynamic of the team. That any string athlete can an A stringer. That not one person has all the power and control. That not another Bryan would happen. That swimming would be the focus! How it should be. I too was excited for tomorrow. Anything could happen.

…

Art, Creativity, Daily Prompts, Reflections, Uncategorized

This one is hard.

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What’s the thing you’re most scared to do? What would it take to get you to do it?

I don’t know if I could pick just one thing.

I’m terrified to “swim with sharks”. You know those cages you can be put into to have sharks swimming around you…Nope! Nope, nope, nope! But I have no idea what it would take to get me to do it. Because I have the fear that if I was ever tricked into one of those, I would pass out from fear and my leg would slowly fall through one of the openings, and a shark would bite my leg off. So if as long as my leg or limbs could not be on the outside, and it was magically a huge cage with a small cage in the center. Maybe $1 billion dollars. Already taxed. So that my fear is worth while.

I’m terrified of snakes. All snakes. Obviously the poisonous ones are worst. I have no idea how old I was eight, nine, ten…something like that. I was at a cousins birthday party and they thought it would be fun to hire one of those people who brings different animals, and puts them on someone in the crowd. Again I didn’t know I was scared of snakes at this age. But I was randomly picked as the person. So he started off with a centipede, non poisonous, and placed it on my wrist. That was okay. He pulled out a giant non poisonous spider and placed it on my head. That was fine. (Not anymore, Nope!!). Then he pulled out a snake to drape on my shoulders. Yeah that didn’t happen. I was done. I don’t remember what I said to him, but he took everything off of me; I wonder if I threatened him…haha! But after that moment I’ve been terrified of snakes. My most recent snake moment was my daughter went to turn off the hose and she screamed. I came running and found a baby rattlesnake just under the faucet. I checked with my neighbor who knows snakes and she told me the type. I then proceeded to have a panic attack. Thank God He was looking out for my daughter in that moment; because I don’t know what I would have done. So I don’t know if there is any amount of money that would get me to hold a snake, non poisonous. Maybe another $1 billion dollars, already taxed.

Next. A Ferris wheel. I’m terrified of heights. I remember when I was maybe fourteen. Which would make my brother ten. He wanted to go on the Ferris wheel at the fair, but he couldn’t go alone. So I went with him; since my mom was like, Nope! I didn’t know I was afraid of heights. Oh believe me I found out quickly. My poor brother did not get to enjoy that ride at all. The booth would swing with movement. So there was me yelping my head off at any tilt, or if I caught a glimpse outside the window; and my brother who wanted to look outside and enjoy himself, but couldn’t. So this one is difficult, I could maybe go on one, if my husband took charge of the kids, and I could sit in a corner with my eyes clamped shut and holding onto something so much that my hands turn white. But if not…maybe $10,000 dollars already taxed.

Speaking in public. Public speaking is impossible. I’m terrible at it. Like truly terrible. So much so that I’m questioning whether to get back into coaching, because I’m so bad. But it also terrifies me. I don’t like people staring at me. And to publicly speak you have people purposefully staring at you. Nope! Will I do it again, I don’t know. And I don’t what would have to happen to get me to try again.

I’m scared of things that won’t happen and I’m scared of things that might happen. But money is the only thing that would motivate the insanity to do something so stupid. So that my family would get money incase something happened. But see I would rather be alive than have money. So it will never happen.