This morning I got here at 6 a.m. for the dreaded morning shift duties and for some reason I looked up at the quote board in front of my desk. This is the place where my colleagues and I immortalize some of our funniest or most outlandish sayings so that we can remember them. Mine tend to be those things you say in the heat of the moment and didn't think too much about.
But back to my point. As I looked at one of the quotes I noticed it was from May 2008. Seriously? I remember saying it (it has something to do with assaulting an editor -- all in fun of course). But how could it have been two years ago?
Lately it seems like my life is on fast forward. And as it gets imminently closer to my birthday, I'm having that feeling on overdrive. Now, I'm not freaking out about turning 37 -- I mean not a total freak out as can happen on odd-year birthdays for me. But I do find myself wondering how I got to this point in my life so quickly.
Now, don't get me wrong, I'm actually pretty happy with where I am. Sure, when I pictured my life 10 years ago, I didn't expect that I would have stayed in one place for nearly 7 years -- or that I would be selling my condo and looking for houses, which basically indicates I have no plans to leave Louisville. Shocker.
I certainly didn't imagine that at 37 I'd still be trying to navigate the singles scene. I mean I am a fantastic catch -- please spread the word about that to your single male (straight) friends in their mid-30s to early 40s. I'm serious about that. But after a very painful breakup and another stab at dating, I realize that I'm ok with this and that eventually the right person will come along. And in the meantime, I'm learning so much about other people and myself. And I'm being honest about what I'm looking for.
I didn't imagine that my father would be in the hospital, post stem cell transplant. He's hanging in there but it's been a very rough road for him. We're still waiting for his white cell counts to start going up and pretty much the only thing that makes him feel better is popsicles. (This by the way is my niece Alaina's answer to being sick -- eat popsicles and ice cream.)
And I never thought that I would have turned into a marathoner. I think it's safe to say that as I prepare for my second marathon in less than a year that I've become a marathoner, especially since I'm already signed up to do the Chicago marathon on Oct. 10. It's hard to believe that in just over a week I'll be at the starting line of the San Diego marathon. And on top of all the training, I was able to raise (with much generous support) more than $5,400 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Training. Not to brag, but I was the top fundraiser on my local team, with Maggie a close second also going over $5,000. That's more than $10,000 by Team Doug!!!! So, thanks for that.
I guess my point is that time flies. And as I start to do that annual assessment that inevitably comes with each of my birthdays -- I have a lot of blessings to count. While I could sit around and think about the negatives -- because there are plenty of those -- I'm proud of myself that at this point in my life, I chose to count the positives. I'm grateful for all those painful things of the past six months or so because they have really taught me a lot and ultimately made me stronger.
And I'm grateful for all the people in my life who have helped me get through this time. I've met some new friends. I've gotten closer to old friends. And even those people who have fallen out of my life lately, I still hold them in a special place in my heart and carry the lessons I learned from them no matter how painful the separation has been.
So, Happy Birthday to me. By this time next year (which will be here in an instant) I will have a new house, hopefully some new friends, maybe even a special guy, another couple marathons under my belt, more great stories, and who knows what else -- the possibilities are endless.
