Shoo Fly, Don't Bother Me on Camera

Part of my job is to promote tourism to the county in which I live and work. On Wednesday, the first day I came back to work from a long weekend visiting my mother and sister in Atlanta, I was asked to kill two to three minutes on one of our public access shows. This wouldn't have been a problem if my hair wasn't all akimbo in a bad ponytail and if I wasn't in my casual jeans and a sweater comfort outfit. But I said I'd do it because no one else was around to talk about it and someone had to do it. So on camera I went.

Luckily it wasn't a live recording because two things happened. One- I totally blanked in the middle of a question. I just stood there blinking with my mouth agape like a cave-man saying, "uhhhh, uhhhhh, uhhhh, um." All that was missing was some drool. But I was told that's okay- they could edit around it. So take two. During take number two, a fly thought my face was the only place to be while I was able to choke out something coherent. It landed on my glasses. Then it landed on my cheek. It was just all over my moneymaker. I just kept talking because that's what you do- trying not to blink too much or swat at the fly.

I have no video to share with you all so you could see the trainwreck. Otherwise I would be happy to. I haven't even seen it myself. I doubt there's very much of my face because of the fly. And I bet my clip is only a minute thanks to my difficulty using the English language. Oh well. Just another day at the office.

And the Lord Said, You Crazy

As you know, I’ve done a few triathlons and half-marathons. Training and racing has been something that I find tremendous joy in and as a friend of mine put it- it’s time for me to step up my game. Two half-marathons? I'm getting lazy. So when I received an invitation in the mail to join the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training I thought I’d see how they could help me train for a marathon. I need a new goal and something to help me keep my mind from wandering to dark places. Helping others is a great way to keep looking forward.

I got to the coffee shop a little late from traffic but they were so nice I didn't feel like a jerk at all. Okay, maybe a little. But almost immediately I realized there was no way I couldn’t join Team in Training. Here is a group of people who train for distance events together, honoring those affected by leukemia or lymphoma. I heard about how research for blood cancers helped lead the way in discovering new treatment for all cancers. For example, chemotherapy was developed initially for blood cancers and now it’s routine treatment for many different cancers. Much of this research was made possible due to the fundraising efforts of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. LLS helped raise millions of dollars and Team in Training was, and still is, a big part of that. I would be training with people who want to help others. Our shared goals of finding a cure and achieving a tremendous physical feat together, as a team, would be too much for me to say no to. I signed up then and there.

I need your help to raise $3,800 by January 13^th, the day I'll be running the Disney Marathon with my team and fellow fanatics. It's going to be great. Your donation will not only help me reach a fundraising goal, it will help every single person whose lives have been disrupted by blood cancers. Please help me help them.

I run not for me, my health or for fun. I’m running for those who are no longer with us- those who can no longer run, feel the sun on their face or hear the voice of their loved ones. I’m running for those who fight, who need hope, who need strength to face treatment. I’m running for those who’ve survived so they can share their story.

Please help me by donating. Why not a dollar for every mile I will run? You can go to my fundraising page

http://pages.teamintraining.org/uny/wdw13/kstepheyun

Together we can find a cure. You guys are awesome. Thank you.

Pretty Things

Aside from reading, watching teevee and eating my only other hobby is collage. I like to make mixed CDs as presents and collage the front cover. It's the perfect collage size- not too big, not too small. I'd like to do more but it takes so much diligence (and magazine buying) to collect things to collage with. I always make copies of the covers for posterity. Posterity of myself. But I ended up scanning a few. And I'm going to share them with you this post.

This one might be my favorite of the bunch.

These are my girliest covers. I don't have any scans of the one I've made my brother or dad. But those have cowboys, Batman and other manly things. I hope you like them. This hobby brings me great joy.

A Brief Explanation

So.... Like... What's up with the blog? Why haven't I been posting? Where have I been? I've had a lot to say this last year but just couldn't figure out the way to say it. I also didn't know how I felt about it as it was all happening. Bottom line, my relationship ended. I'm getting divorced.

I'm not proud of the way it happened. Neither party was particularly kind to the other when it was happening. Frankly I didn't tell some people very close to me because so much of it was terribly tumultuous. So I wasn't about to sort through all of that in my blog. I wanted to- believe me. But I'm sad to say I was afraid of what would be said about what I wrote. I moderate the comments and most of the people who would have a problem with what I'm writing don't talk to me anymore and probably don't read this anymore- if they did at all. So it's not like anyone can really attack me here. And I'm trying not to let fear control my life anymore. But this is a difficult journey for me.

We separated right after Thanksgiving last year and moved into separate apartments in January. My New Year's Day 2012 was spent moving. It was pretty awful. We tried working on it but I wasn't being honest or forthright with myself or with Mike about what I wanted and it was pretty rough. And unfair. June was when the divorce started to move forward. We went to mediation and now I'm just waiting for the paperwork so it can be final and I can move on.

This divorce is for the best. It is sad, yes. But I'm okay. Really, I really am.