A few weeks ago on Twitter, someone posted information about an organization called With this Ring. It's a cool concept. Basically, instead of giving money, you give away your diamond engagement ring and they hock it (my words) to give drinking water to a well in Africa.
My first thought was, that's a neat idea, but I would never do it. My engagement ring and the day it's given to me will be precious. One man, one ring. That's how I feel. No way am I giving up my engagement ring.
I started wrestling with that a little later, though. There's no way I would ever give up my engagement ring or wedding ring, but I would surely give up the diamond.
Weird random factoid about me that very few people know. After a hard break-up, I always plan an element of my wedding. I'm not going to tell you how much of my wedding I have planned, but it's a lot.
Still, as I have planned my wedding over the years, I have never been able to settle on what kind of diamond I want. I see people's rings and think, "Oh, that's nice" but honestly, I don't really like any of them for myself. And I have that disease that a lot of women have, which is that if it's not bigger than my friends', please do not bother.
So I'm putting this in writing. For whatever man gets to marry me (that's right, I said it, "gets to") please save up for a reeeeally nice diamond ring for me. I'm talking, a Tiffany's, platinum, 5 carat diamond ring.
But when it comes to actually proposing, give me a simple band that says something unique to us. And donate the Tiffany's diamond ring money to a cause we both feel is worthy.
Monday, February 22, 2010
Monday, December 14, 2009
Half-Marathon
Now that I've had a couple of days to recover (well, other than a wrapped foot, a band-aided toe, and sore muscles, that is), I figured I'd share my thoughts and experiences about the race.
First off, there is nothing more exciting than lining up with 9,000 people to run a race. Nothing. OK. Maybe Christmas when I was 5. And hopefully my wedding. But other than that, nothing quite as exciting. I found the first 10 miles extremely easy, comparatively. I didn't train quite as much as I should have. Although I was pretty diligent about getting the mileage in, I don't think I pushed myself hard enough to complete the mileage as quickly as possible. So, although the first 10 miles were a piece of cake, the last 2 miles proved to be nearly impossible. I actually had a thought go through my head of "Oh, my gosh, I'm not going to finish this thing."
If you've ever run in Charlotte, you know how hilly our best running roads are. I've heard other runners describe them as "rolling." OK, let me explain... I think of rolling hills as slight hills, not as hills that make you feel like you're hiking up a mountain. Not that there were many of these, but there was definitely one on Colville Road. The rest were ok, I guess, but many complaints were heard about the hill on Morehead. Honestly, I don't remember this. Probably because I was trying not to black out.
Getting to the start line was difficult. There were several spectators standing directly beside the start line, which is understandable, but for whatever reason the people with numbers on their chests trying to get through had no sort of priority for these spectators to move. I barely made it to the start line on time, and there were several others that were having a hard time getting there as well. Still, running with a crowd that large is pretty cool. Next time, I would like to be able to run fast enough that I fit into one of the pace groups. One of the struggles that any runner will tell you is figuring out which of the crowds you need to stick with, and which of the crowds will be too fast or too slow. Unfortunately, they do not offer pace groups for "extremely slow, barely making it through" runners. My only option is to speed up.
Like I said, the first 10 miles were incredibly easy. Although I wasn't running with anyone, there was a point (at about mile 8 or 9) where I looked around and thought, "Wow, this is so cool... having this many runners with me pushing through!" I kind of felt like we were on a stroll in the park with friends (except, running of course). I told you I was with the slow group.
I will definitely run with a fuel belt next time. I didn't want to run with a huge water bottle strapped to me, but the ones made with little bottles were super expensive. So, I did without and relied on the water stations. The water stations were correctly instructed to give us half a cup of water (any more than that will make you throw up), but I was still super thirsty by the time I finished. Next time I run, it will be with a nutritionist guiding my caloric, salt, and water intake.
The last 2 miles were horrific. Serious thoughts of stopping crossed my mind. And not in a "I'll just give up" kind of way, but in an "I'm not sure I have the ability to finish" kind of way. There was a band at the final (.1 mile) stretch that played "I thank the Lord for what you've done for me" and I literally started crying. I was really tired. I wanted to go home. Or, at least, sit down.
A friend asked me right after if I would do it again. I said absolutely not. Honestly, though, I can't wait for my next one. I'll just try to train longer. This was the start to my training. Next year, watch out!
First off, there is nothing more exciting than lining up with 9,000 people to run a race. Nothing. OK. Maybe Christmas when I was 5. And hopefully my wedding. But other than that, nothing quite as exciting. I found the first 10 miles extremely easy, comparatively. I didn't train quite as much as I should have. Although I was pretty diligent about getting the mileage in, I don't think I pushed myself hard enough to complete the mileage as quickly as possible. So, although the first 10 miles were a piece of cake, the last 2 miles proved to be nearly impossible. I actually had a thought go through my head of "Oh, my gosh, I'm not going to finish this thing."
If you've ever run in Charlotte, you know how hilly our best running roads are. I've heard other runners describe them as "rolling." OK, let me explain... I think of rolling hills as slight hills, not as hills that make you feel like you're hiking up a mountain. Not that there were many of these, but there was definitely one on Colville Road. The rest were ok, I guess, but many complaints were heard about the hill on Morehead. Honestly, I don't remember this. Probably because I was trying not to black out.
Getting to the start line was difficult. There were several spectators standing directly beside the start line, which is understandable, but for whatever reason the people with numbers on their chests trying to get through had no sort of priority for these spectators to move. I barely made it to the start line on time, and there were several others that were having a hard time getting there as well. Still, running with a crowd that large is pretty cool. Next time, I would like to be able to run fast enough that I fit into one of the pace groups. One of the struggles that any runner will tell you is figuring out which of the crowds you need to stick with, and which of the crowds will be too fast or too slow. Unfortunately, they do not offer pace groups for "extremely slow, barely making it through" runners. My only option is to speed up.
Like I said, the first 10 miles were incredibly easy. Although I wasn't running with anyone, there was a point (at about mile 8 or 9) where I looked around and thought, "Wow, this is so cool... having this many runners with me pushing through!" I kind of felt like we were on a stroll in the park with friends (except, running of course). I told you I was with the slow group.
I will definitely run with a fuel belt next time. I didn't want to run with a huge water bottle strapped to me, but the ones made with little bottles were super expensive. So, I did without and relied on the water stations. The water stations were correctly instructed to give us half a cup of water (any more than that will make you throw up), but I was still super thirsty by the time I finished. Next time I run, it will be with a nutritionist guiding my caloric, salt, and water intake.
The last 2 miles were horrific. Serious thoughts of stopping crossed my mind. And not in a "I'll just give up" kind of way, but in an "I'm not sure I have the ability to finish" kind of way. There was a band at the final (.1 mile) stretch that played "I thank the Lord for what you've done for me" and I literally started crying. I was really tired. I wanted to go home. Or, at least, sit down.
A friend asked me right after if I would do it again. I said absolutely not. Honestly, though, I can't wait for my next one. I'll just try to train longer. This was the start to my training. Next year, watch out!
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
In case you missed it...
As of last Wednesday, I am now a freelance writer over at the Examiner. I will be writing about all things young pros in Charlotte (from places to eat/drink to networking to all news affecting YP's). Pleeeease support me. This is where I beg. I get paid based on my readership. No readers=no paycheck. This means that not only do I write more over there, I also am slightly more interesting, if you can believe it.
So far, my top 2 articles are:
If you follow me on Twitter I will be Tweeting out whenever there's a new post.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Because my blog is the latest, greatest thing...
Look to the right and you'll notice a little fundraising widget. It's been up there for a couple of weeks, but recently it changed (and actually has money on it).
Yesterday, I announced that I will be running my first, possibly last, half-marathon. It's crazy, considering I ran a 5K on Saturday and made it 2 miles and then got sick. Lovely.
But still, I am convinced I can do this. Hoping to not walk any of it, but we'll see. And in the meantime, I've committed to raising $2000 for the Bethlehem Center. But I need you to help me get there. I will match every donation that is made up to $1000. That means if you donate $25, it really is like you donating $50, and so on and so forth. Just think, if you donated $1000, too...
Anyway, I just posted this yesterday and have already received 3 donations totalling $85. I'm impressed! But we still have a long way, so if you could just click on that widget and donate, I'd appreciate. :-)
Yesterday, I announced that I will be running my first, possibly last, half-marathon. It's crazy, considering I ran a 5K on Saturday and made it 2 miles and then got sick. Lovely.
But still, I am convinced I can do this. Hoping to not walk any of it, but we'll see. And in the meantime, I've committed to raising $2000 for the Bethlehem Center. But I need you to help me get there. I will match every donation that is made up to $1000. That means if you donate $25, it really is like you donating $50, and so on and so forth. Just think, if you donated $1000, too...
Anyway, I just posted this yesterday and have already received 3 donations totalling $85. I'm impressed! But we still have a long way, so if you could just click on that widget and donate, I'd appreciate. :-)
Monday, August 10, 2009
A little bit insane...
A few months ago, someone gave me a newspaper clipping that stated that Run For Your Life was looking for charity beneficiaries for their Thunder Road Marathon in December. Obviously, I jumped on that. I headed over to RFYL in Dilworth to talk to them about adding Bethlehem Center as one of the beneficiaries.
We have been added to their list of charities. In support of this event and what Run For Your Life does, I have decided to enter the half marathon. Which is insane, for so many reason. One being that even in my top shape (I ran track in high school), long distances have always been difficult for me. Our warm up was 3/4 of a mile, and I even struggled with that.
Still, I'm determined. I ran a 5K on Saturday, and am currently running 3-4 days a week. Save me now.
We have been added to their list of charities. In support of this event and what Run For Your Life does, I have decided to enter the half marathon. Which is insane, for so many reason. One being that even in my top shape (I ran track in high school), long distances have always been difficult for me. Our warm up was 3/4 of a mile, and I even struggled with that.
Still, I'm determined. I ran a 5K on Saturday, and am currently running 3-4 days a week. Save me now.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
I only have $10... Now what?
As a fundraiser, the most frustrating thing that has ever happened to me was someone taking back a nickel because it wasn't enough. In a charity, nothing is never enough, and every little bit helps.
CharlotteONE: recently started the BeONE campaign to raise money. The point is to have 40 people donate $10/month ($4800/year, for all of you math slackers). As you can see, this adds up quickly. Still, it isn't a ton of money towards the cause. But that's ok.
The point isn't necessarily that every $10 helps, although it does, it is more to get people on a regiment of giving. $10/month--$2.50/week--seems like nothing. Ok, I have one more teeeny bill, but compared to my $500/month in student loans, this seems like something I can handle. So, I start giving monthly. Well, then I realize that I can up my giving to $15/month with very little effort, and so on and so on, until finally that starts adding up to some major buck-a-roos.
At Bethlehem Center giving $50/month would put you amongst our top 10 individual donors. A fact that made my Board of Directors gasp when I told them. In all honesty, we can all afford $50/month. Truth is, you probably easily spend that on lunch in a week b/c you don't want to eat PB&J every day (ok, or am I just speaking about myself right now?).
I challenge every one reading this blog right now to find a cause and start out donating just $10/month. No fair with counting event ticket costs in that amount. Set up your bill pay or use their fundraising services. Let's see how much of an impact $10 can make, shall we?
Sunday, July 19, 2009
What in the world has been going on??
Yes, "what in the world" is right. I haven't posted lately, due to a miriad of factors. Specifically, I haven't shot anything praise-worthy in a while, although I hope to shoot an engagement session for my friends who recently got engaged. This is the friend who was my first model when I got my camera. Poor guy.
Recently, I've been trying to find my passion, though. There were definitely a couple of days of me not wanting to get out of bed b/c I couldn't find the motivation to. To say that I need a change is an understatement. Don't get me wrong, there are things that I enjoy, but sometimes it's hard to remember those things.
Anyway, before I change this into a sob story, I wanted to update. I am still looking for study buddies for the GRE, since I haven't been doing a great job of staying on top of it. In the meantime, I have been looking for opportunities overseas to study economics hands on before I go back to school. This has not been easy. After all my searching, I found one fellowship overseas that is exactly the type of thing I'm looking for. I would be away for approximately 3-4 months, living and shadowing Kiva, an organization that pairs business owners in poverty with donors that can help them with their mission. It's an amazing organization doing something very similar to what I've already studied and talked about. I've also researched opportunities with their partners. Ideally, I would like to find something in the states that would give me the opportunity to travel overseas from time to time, but actually working and living overseas for a few months before I head back to school would also be a great opportunity.
Prayers are appreciated. I'm very much a believer in open and closed doors, so I trust that God has my ultimate good in mind. Still, I'm getting slightly impatient with his revealing of that plan to me!
Recently, I've been trying to find my passion, though. There were definitely a couple of days of me not wanting to get out of bed b/c I couldn't find the motivation to. To say that I need a change is an understatement. Don't get me wrong, there are things that I enjoy, but sometimes it's hard to remember those things.
Anyway, before I change this into a sob story, I wanted to update. I am still looking for study buddies for the GRE, since I haven't been doing a great job of staying on top of it. In the meantime, I have been looking for opportunities overseas to study economics hands on before I go back to school. This has not been easy. After all my searching, I found one fellowship overseas that is exactly the type of thing I'm looking for. I would be away for approximately 3-4 months, living and shadowing Kiva, an organization that pairs business owners in poverty with donors that can help them with their mission. It's an amazing organization doing something very similar to what I've already studied and talked about. I've also researched opportunities with their partners. Ideally, I would like to find something in the states that would give me the opportunity to travel overseas from time to time, but actually working and living overseas for a few months before I head back to school would also be a great opportunity.
Prayers are appreciated. I'm very much a believer in open and closed doors, so I trust that God has my ultimate good in mind. Still, I'm getting slightly impatient with his revealing of that plan to me!
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