A Recommit and FMM

Now that I'm pretty sure the reading list of this blog has been reduced to no one, it seems like a great time to start blogging again. That's how this whole thing works, right? Blog. Stop blogging. Start again when no one cares? No? Well, I've been going about this all wrong then.

I haven't been blogging because there's been nothing to tell. After injuring myself in November, I fell off the wagon (and the bump from the fall really didn't help with the whole back injury thing - *snort* I love bad puns) and while I kept telling myself to get back on it, it was so hard. The wagon was so tall. I had to, like, climb up on to it and shit. (If you read that in a really whiny voice... yeah, that's what I sound like about this whole thing.)

Then I returned to full time work. And then I had a couple of other time commitments. And then my dance class moved to a location I couldn't get to. And. And. And. And I rock at coming up with excuses. Seriously, school kids should hire me to create their "I wasn't in class today because..." notes. Instead of excuses, I needed a goal. Something simple. Something I know I can do. Something fun.

Like a 10K.

I missed the TC 10K in Victoria because [insert any previous excuse here]. Also, I don't really like doing the 10K: it's insanely crowded and I find myself wanting to punch people in the back of the head because slow moving people crowd into corrals well above their projected finish time. I needed a new 10K to do.

I have tentative plans to visit my family in Alberta this summer so I searched my preferred travel dates and found a 10K in Taber, AB. It's apparently part of the Taber Cornfest. While the Taber Cornfest website still shows 2011 information, a 2012 race is posted on a couple of Canadian running websites. so hopefully it's a go for this year.

If it's not a go, I'll plan my own 10K route through the cornfields of Southern Alberta and make my family stand on the side of the road and cheer me in at the end. Preferably while they wave homemade signs of encouragement. Right now they're reading this and thinking "Andrea's such a clown". We'll see who's laughing when I hand you my home made ticker tape I want to run through!

Training officially begins next Monday.

EEK!

What better way to jump back into blogging than with a Friend Makin' Monday?

Simplified guidelines: Answer questions, post and link up here, sit back and watch the accolades pour in. Or something like that.

FMM: Three Things

1. Three of your favorite movies:
-Casablanca
-Beauty and the Beast
-Monty Python's Life of Brian (super excited because the Victoria Film Festival is having a MPLOB Quote-Along in two weeks *squee*)

2. Three of your favorite things to drink:
-Tea
-Coffee
-Beer (really can't get much more specific than that, I just like beer)
(I know, I know, water should be on this list and I do actually enjoy drinking straight water but it's not a 'favourite')

3. Three of your favorite songs:
Just three? Ugh, this pains me.
-Who Knows How to Make Love Stay - Doug and the Slugs (oh, 80's Canadian pop, how I love you!)
-Rolling in the Deep - Adele (I will listen to anything this girl puts out)
-Maple Leaf Rag  - Scott Joplin
A friend once described my taste in music as 'a menagerie of sounds'. Yup, that pretty much sums it up.

4. Three people who have recently been a positive influence on your life (outside of your family):
-K from work: really pushed me to go after a new job opportunity and then helped guide me through the process. It worked. I've got a new (and awesome) job.
-T and 106 (friends): convinced me that regular board game nights are cool (and they totally are!)
-Walter Lewin: read For the Love of Physics and it really opened my eyes to the beauty of physics of the every day world. I find myself trying to recall the equation for wind velocity when I see breeze through the trees nowadays. My goodness, I sound like a giant nerd.

5. Three things you to do keep yourself entertained:
-Read
-Sing and dance in the privacy of my apartment/listen to music in general
-Watch TV/movies

6. Three things you’re attracted to in the opposite sex:
-Eyes and smile (I'm lumping these together because one of my favourite things about eyes are laugh lines and you only get those if you smile a lot. The frequency of the smiling is more important than the actual smile.)
-Someone who is kind
-Nice ass (Hey, I'm just being honest)

7. Three things you love about yourself:
-My sense of humour
-My smile
-My nerdy personality (it took me a while to own up to my true level of nerd and now that I have, I like who I am better as a person)

8. The last three people who text messaged you:
-106
-THR
-Trish

9. Three things you’re looking forward to this week:
-Baby shower for THR
-Drinks with the alumni band crew
-Talk on human rights I've helped organise

10. Three wishes specifically for yourself…What are they? (Be selfish, and be honest.)
-I wish I could snap my fingers and be the active, fit person I once was
-I wish I was independently wealthy so I could set off on a round-the-world trip tomorrow (in the active, fit body I used to have)
-I wish I had a maid

11. Three of your favorite quotes:
"Humuor is not a mood but a way of looking at the world." ~Ludwig Wittgenstein
"Who, being loved, is poor?" ~Oscar Wilde
"Oh, don't pay life the compliment to take it seriously." ~Robert Service (from his poem, Laughter)

12. Three of your biggest fears:
-Falling and breaking a bone (I've never done it and the thought of it terrifies me)
-Sharp items like axes, chainsaws or swords make me nervous. Surprising for most people as I own two swords and have used axes and chainsaws many times in my life.
-Moving scarecrows on TV
 
13. Three of your favorite TV shows:
At this moment:
-The Wire
-Game of Thrones
-New Tricks

14. Three of your favorite things to purchase when you’re shopping.
-Books.
-Books.
-Books (I don't actually like shopping. It's simply a necessary activity so the only time I really enjoy it is when I'm turned loose in a bookstore.)

15. Three things that you enjoyed last week:
-Board game and Pub night with T and 106
-Tea and a game of rummy with C
-It becoming official that I got the new job

16. Three things that you always have in your bag or close to you if you’re not a purse kind of person.
-Lipgloss
-Wallet
-Pen and notebook

17. Three types of food that you wouldn’t want to give up.
-Pretty much anything my mom cooks (save her occasional decision to cook liver and onions when I was growing up. She can keep that to herself)
-Pad Thai
-Cheese Fondue

18. Three things you do to enjoy burning calories:
-Walking/Hiking
-Running (when I was doing it regularly)
-West African Dance

19. Three things you dislike about blogging:
-I love my family but sometimes I wish I hadn't told them I blog because I censor myself more knowing that my mom will read any curse words I put on here.
-Glaring grammatical errors or spelling mistakes that I notice after I hit publish.
-It's not blogging specific, but my current laptop is a pain in the ass. It's old and slowing down which means that a simple post takes way too long to write. Trying to include photos is almost painful. I've found myself saying "fuck it" and just tossing half-finished posts because my laptop is making me want to punch it.

20. Three ways blogging has changed your life:
-I've met some really awesome people
-I always wanted to keep a diary but was kind of crap at it unless I was travelling (I am the travel diary queen!) but blogging fills that need
-I plan more because I need to for the blog

Back is Back To Good! And FMM

Just checking in for Friend Makin' Monday and to pass on that I have been pain-free in my back for about three days. I haven't even had the occasional soreness-in-that-area which makes me super excited! Dance is back on the agenda for 2012!! With Christmas going ons and what-not, I don't have too much to share. I've been pretty good this holiday season save for Saturday night when my free pouring host kept refilling my glass while I was too busy chatting to notice. I swear I wasn't sticking my wine glass out in front of him on purpose.

If you're new to Friend Makin' Monday, you can find the guidelines here.

FMM: Have you ever?

1. …traveled outside of your home country? If so, where? USA, Mexico, Ireland (lived there), UK (all four countries), France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany (lived there), Switzerland (lived there), Austria, Italy, Cuba, Tanzania (lived there)

2. …performed on stage in front of at least 1,000 people? If so, share some details! Not for over than many people, no. But I do love being on stage.

3. …watched an episode of Jersey Shore? Yes

4. …baked a cake from scratch? If so, what’s your specialty? I prefer baking cakes from scratch, but my specialty is actually pies, not cakes. I've never not had pie crust turn out perfectly, even when I was 14 and didn't have everything so I improvised with whole wheat flour and a metal baking tin. It wasn't until I was older and tasted some less-than-stellar homemade pie crusts that I realised how lucky I am that that was the baking super power I inherited from my mom.

5. …worked in a grocery store? No.

6. …dated someone who was your best friend first? Best friend no, but a few of them were friends first. 7. …made a difference in someone’s life during Christmas? I volunteered at the Food Bank a few times growing up and I adopted a family with two co-workers one year.

8. …been on TV? Yes. It's an episode of COPS my mom won't ever forget ;) Kidding! But I have been on TV.

9. …had cosmetic surgery? No.

10. …learned a second language? If so, what else do you speak? I used to have decent travel French and Spanish and I'm working on getting them back. I achieved fairly high levels of fluency in German and Swahili when I lived in Germany and Tanzania respectively. When I put my mind to it, I can pick up languages fairly quickly. It's the keeping them up so I maintain that level that causes me problems.

Goal: Heal Quicker!

Last week I set two simple goals: don't skip dance class, and go for a long walk. I went to dance class... and then failed to do anything else for the rest of the week. Even my at-home goals suffered because it's hard to crochet when you're lying on your back or clean out your fridge when you can't bend over.

I have a very quiet weekend, what with the laying on a heating pad and all. While my mobility has vastly improved, bending over is still pretty much a no-go area at the moment (so is sitting up without back support). I tried a bit of a walk on Sunday to meet up with my mom and by the end of the 20 minutes, I knew that I had reached my limit for physical activity for the day. Boo-urns! I had thought I was getting better but that was a wake up call.

I had to revamp my list of fitness goals for this week as one of the goals was weight training. It's really hard to work around back pain. I can't just work upper body because of a knee problem or lower body because of a shoulder issue. Also, not being able to walk for extended periods of time... also difficult to work around.

Sigh. So much for my 'off to a good start' gumption.

Still, the pain won't last forever and I can still do small things so I'm committing to walking for 20 minutes every day. It's not much but it's something and I'll adjust as the back improves. It's just something to make sure I don't spend the whole week sitting on the couch!

If my back feels better sooner rather than later, I'll throw 2 yoga sessions onto that list but I don't want to push myself too quickly.

It's a Good Sore, I Swear

I can't bend over today.

Putting on my pants was almost impossible.

In fact, if I didn't have a coffee date with a friend, I could very well still be pantless as I write this.

It's all because of dance last night.

Well, it's because of my inability to control my joy over dancing again that I went at it a little hard.

So hard, in fact, that when it came to the last dance through of the three moves we've learned so far, I just stopped. I do occasionally push myself harder than I should and end up marking moves (doing them without the jumps, hops, and energy I normally do them with) but I just full out stopped. Stood up with a big smile on my face and just watched everyone else.

I'm so happy that dance lesson season has started up again.

Except I'll make sure I don't push myself so hard next time.

Hello Fall! Sort of!

September arrived and so did Victoria's fall weather. Don't get me wrong, the days are still gloriously sunny and hot. But the evenings are cooling off and my jackets have been pulled from the dark cobwebbed corner of my closet.

My apologies to any arachnophobes who may be reading this.

Okay, there weren't really cobwebs but I hadn't been back there for a while.

It's that awkward time of year when you either suffer through being cold in the morning, or you wear a jacket only to have to carry it around after 9:00am. For the record, I suffer through being chilly. I have an aversion to carrying jackets when I don't have to (like putting up with being a tad cold for my 20 minute walk into work so the rest of the day is gloriously jacket-free).

Of course, I'm not really that sad about the arrival of fall for two reasons.

1. I'm going to visit the famdamily.

Any excuse to post ridiculously embarrassing cute photos of my cousins/brother.

2. West African Dance classes start up again!! (Yes, I just shamelessly linked to the best dance school in Victoria/Shawnigan!)

The instructors getting down during our Pub Night at last year's Denbaya*.

I still have a week to go before classes actually start (in fact, I have exactly one week) but I've been running through the dances I do know in anticipation for the first class. And do I ever plan to 'bring it' to that class. I'll show those newbies how to move their T&A! *snap*

I was feeling like a bit of an impostor in the beginners class by mid-way through last year. Not only was I decidedly not a beginner after a year of classes, but I also come from a dance background which many of the other students don't. In a strange-backwards move, I started hiding at the sides of the classes and stop helping other students when they were confused about moves. I had a fear of becoming 'that girl', the know-it-all who thought she could teach the class.

But then three different newbies I've run into over the summer (it's Victoria, running into people is what we do) expressed how appreciative they were to have me and the other not-really-a-beginner in the class because a) they couldn't always see our teacher and they knew that standing near either of us meant they'd have someone else to watch and b) we've gotten over that new-student fear so we hoot and holler during cross floor and performances like the Guineans do and it always makes everyone feel good to hear people positively yell while they dance.

So I'm looking forward to my Wednesday night classes with a renewed excitement that was missing last May when I opted not to do the summer session.

*Denbaya means 'family' in Susu, the language of the coastal people of Guinea. It's also the name MoonDance gave to their weekend 'mini-Guinea' they host every two years-ish. It's a long weekend of drum and dance lessons with various Guinean teachers. In short: it's a lot of fun!

If My Unmarried Biological Mother Hadn't Gotten Knocked Up...

I've just returned from my completely unplanned over-a-week-long non-blogging holiday. In short, oops! I'd love to say that the lack of blogging was due to being insanely busy and always on the go and just not having enough time to sit down and put pen fingers to paper keyboard, but I've already admitted elsewhere that this is not the case.

I even missed this week's Friend Makin' Monday... which is okay because the question was about your fourth of July plans and I'm Canadian, so... my plan was to spend it like any other Monday (crying in a corner wishing I was 20 years younger and had no responsibilities).

I did, however, keep up with running. It's been nice to have a running partner again, both for the social aspect and the accountability. (Speaking of social, I should probably get her a blog name... I know tonight's topic of discussion!) During Monday's run she mentioned that she never would have believed a year ago that she'd be running. This got me thinking about the decisions I've made which have landed me at this point in my life.

(I'd like to say 'great minds think alike' but really, coincidences occur in the blogging world. Caitlin at Healthy Tipping Point wrote about this same idea this morning.)

Eventually, it became a fun game for me and I've started going back to look at some of the larger decisions in my life and things they have yielded which I may never would have otherwise discovered.

For example:
If I didn't decided to move to Tanzania four years ago then
I wouldn't have looked for an African community in Victoria to be apart of when I returned then
I wouldn't have found MoonDance then
I wouldn't have learned about Matoto then
I wouldn't have met AC then
I wouldn't be going to a baby shower in two weeks.

If I didn't accept an invitation to meet a guy in Switzerland (who ended up being my first real love) then
I wouldn't have studied German in university then
I wouldn't have met E then
I wouldn't have had someone to hike around Thetis with two weeks ago.

If I hadn't decided to blog then... well, the unknown results of that are still being discovered :)

How about you? What unexpected or interesting end results have your decisions brought you?

At Least I Danced

Despite only having one formal day of work this week (today), it has been a long week. Physically, I didn't do a whole lot. Of course, BFSD (Bad Fish Sunday Dinner) really didn't help as it took until Wednesday to feel normal, but if I'm being honest it was a combination of laziness and other priorities. I am on the board of a non-profit and we have our annual weekend retreat up to Shawnigan tomorrow. I'm on the planning committee which is organizing and facilitating this event, Exciting? Yes. Stressful? Only when I stop to actually think about it. I still made sure I got out for longer walks but I was okay with letting the running slide this week. The deal I made with myself was to get back to it on Sunday and I know I'll stick to that.

I did, however, make it to dance on Wednesday. I know I say this at least once a month on here, but I can not stress it enough. I LOVE my West African Dance class. I loved it even more when another student cornered me after class for a quick comment. "I wanted to tell you that I love watching you dance. There's just something about the way your body moves, like there's a joy in it or something. I love the cross floor work because I really get to watch you and I could watch you do these steps for hours."

How could I not love that comment? It still has me smiling. My body loves to move so much that other people can see it. Sometimes I need to remind myself of that.

I'd Jump For Joy But I Might Break Something

Somewhere over the very busy past five days, I stopped limping and started walking like a normal person. My hip is still sore, but it's that dull ache from over-compensating it for so long and that seems to get less and less every hour. I had my ergonomic assessment on Tuesday and regardless of if that was the cause or it was just added to an underlying issue, I'm really happy I had the assessment done. Even after just two hours in my adjusted workspace, my body was feeling better.

I was really looking forward to taking my much-less-sore hip to West African Dance tonight except I was out very last last night at a very awesome Leonard Cohen concert so I came home, opened my email and fell asleep sitting upright on my couch. That's what 5 hours of sleep does to me.

When I awoke 40 minutes later (with my fingers still over the proper keys, I may add), I decided a short walk was in order as I missed the dance. I didn't go to far, but I walked for 20 minutes then even ran for 2 minutes. I am very happy to report that there was no pain. It did feel a little tender and sore, but gone was the tear-inducing pain of my last running attempt. Could this be it? Could my days of feeling like an invalid finally be over? Could I actually be back to regular runs before the end of 2010? Could Ross really be the one for Rachael after all this time?

I don't want to get my hopes up too high but my body isn't 100% yet (and given my track record, I'm sure I'll pull a back muscle tomorrow) but things are definitely looking up.

Come On, Brain, [Insert Activity] Builds Character!

Sometimes I wish I could shut my mind off. Obviously not for important things like breathing and swallowing my own saliva, but for those awesome things that you want to do, you know you should do, but your mind is just too lazy to do.

Tonight was West African Dance night and my own mind almost talked me out of going. I didn't sleep well last night, I had a crap day at work, and all I wanted to do when I got home was watch Hawaii 5-0 and hope to see Alex O'Loughlin's abs... and I almost did just that.

You have a bunch of writing you have to do.

You have nothing ready for dinner and do you really want to have to start cooking when you get home?

You should upload those photos for your piece on Alberta.

You missed vacuuming on the weekend.

Maybe you should just have a nap. You only slept six hours last night.

Alex! O'Loughlin!

My mind had more excuses than a five year old who doesn't want to go to bed (it may have even used the five year old I-don't-wanna as well) and I found myself sitting in a funk, watching my clock creep closer and closer to leaving time. I jumped off my couch with minutes to spare, dressed while using the toilet (try doing that without getting pee everywhere, gentlemen!), and raced off to class.

Even just with the decision to get my butt in gear, I found my mood elevated and I didn't feel so tired. By the time I got to class, I was singing out loud to my mp3 player (even serenaded a few people on my walk to class that's how good I was feeling). I gave my all in that class--as I always do because it's impossible not to--and I ended up sweaty, out of breath, and craving more. I left the class feeling like life was awesome and I should go for a walk. So I did.

To a coffee shop.

Where I got delicious decaf coffee.

And dinner.

Okay brain, now we can watch Hawaii 5-0.

*****

Anyone else have problems convincing their brain to workout? How do you handle it?

Denbaya

It was the Labour Day Long Weekend (or Labor if you're from the States) and I can honestly say that I spent the weekend labouring. If you don't believe that a weekend of West African Drumming and Dancing isn't a workout, no matter how fun it is, than you should really get yourself to a class so you can re-evaluate your beliefs.

Sunrise over Shawnigan on our first morning

The weekend was held at Camp Pringle on the beautiful Shawnigan Lake. The location was a bit of a highlight for me as I used to attend Camp Pringle as a camper way back in the day. Surprisingly, it hasn't changed a whole lot since I was there (although current construction will mean big changes by next year's Denbaya should we return).

The event is often touted as 'mini-Guinea' as all the instructors are originally from there. This year we had Mohamad and Marielle Duranteau, N'nato Camara, Manimou Camara, and Aboubacar Camara (who surprisingly doesn't have a webpage despite insisting that he's the life of the party) who all originally hail from Guinea but now make their homes in Victoria, Vancouver and Seattle.

Mohamed, Manimou, Aboubacar, and N'nato having a laugh

Our days were filled with dance and drum lessons until our feet blistered and our fingers cracked. Yet everyone kept coming back for more. We found rest during food breaks and during our preciously little downtime which always seemed to disappear into class time... or practice time.

Practicing djole during the down time before dinner

Saturday night was a traditional Guinean meal cooked by Mohamed. The dinner was open to the public (for a fee) followed by a Cross-Cultural Forum and then a Doundounba where all the instructors performed. We ended the night standing around the unscheduled camp fire while learning songs in Susu from Aboubacar. After all the craziness which is a Doundounba, I couldn't think of a better way to end the day.

Sunday was more of the same. Drumming, dancing, eating, drumming, dancing, crying about sore muscles. Moondance treated us all to dinner at the West Arm Pub (we were responsible for our beverages). In true Guinean style, the instructors brought a few instruments. People actually got up from their tables to come watch us. It was a great feeling to be in the middle of it.

Despite the hangovers a few most people were nursing, we were right back into the drumming and dancing on the Monday morning before breaking camp and heading back to our respective towns. I have never been so sore in my life but I can honestly say that it was completely and utterly worth it. I got to hang out with cool people from all over Western Canada and Washington State who shared my love of West African music and dance. It was a fantastic opportunity and I'm already itching for next year's Denbaya.

Djembes waiting for the next lesson

The End of Summer is Nigh!

You will forgive me, dear Readers (all two of you), for being a little remiss with my blog updates as of late. While the East Coast slowly roasts itself into the next Sahara, the West Coast is welcoming Fall. When the sun's out and I'm not at my desk, I've been frantically trying to fit in as many enjoyable outdoor activities as I can.

I've been taking it easy when it comes to workouts this week. This is due in part because my running partner is under the weather so she's limited to walks. In one month I lose her to Vancouver. I want to maximize my THR time while I can! I'm also willing to just walk because this weekend I'll be going up to Shawnigan Lake to take part in MoonDance's Denbaya West African Intensive. There is the potential for 14 hours of intense cardio over three days. Granted, some of those classes can also be instrument classes, but the potential is there! To give you an idea of how awesome a cardio workout West African dance is this video is of Wontanara, MoonDance's partner Performance Troupe.



Yeah. I feel okay with not running this week.

Through increasing the number of blogs I stalk follow on my reader, I stumbled across Tina's 30 Days of Self-Love yesterday. I think it's a fantastic idea which deserves to be shared. I know some many amazing women with so many enviable qualities which they never see in themselves because all they see are their body issues, work issues, marital status issues, etc. Is it too much to ask of ourselves to take 30 days to focus on loving ourselves as we are? I will be talking about it more at a later day when I've had a bit more time to sort out my thoughts and ideas. In the meantime, click the link above (or on the side--coming soon) to find out more information and to join.

[Source]

It's like I'm being kicked while I'm down

They say things happen in threes. I'm not a believer of that theory as I can think on many times when things *didn't* happen in threes, but if they were right (whoever the f* 'they' are) then I would feel that the universe might owe me three good things this week.

The weekend started off with the crummy: C died. Then on Saturday, I noticed that I seemed incredibly tired and my arms really hurt after carrying home my groceries. By Sunday morning, I was pretty much bed ridden. I had caught the flu which was going around the office and I spent an entire 48 hours either in bed sleeping or doing things that didn't involve much thought. To give you an idea about how much thought was too much, a friend had lent me Iron Man on DVD because I had never seen it. After 15 minutes, I turned it off because it required too much thought. Yeah, that sick. The upside is that I didn't really eat much because I couldn't stay awake long enough to make anything. The downside is that I haven't done anything physical in a week. I'm not expecting great things tomorrow. Quite frankly, I'll be happy if I break even.



My third thing happened late last night. I had been giving most of my extra free time this summer to helping organise a BC Tour for Ballet Saamato. We diligently sent off the visa applications in early July and then started the process of waiting... and waiting... and waiting... and being asked to send additional documents... and then waiting... and still more waiting. It was an agonizing situation to be in. We wanted to move forward with the planning, but how can we confirm concerts and sell tickets if we don't even know if they're coming? Ballet Saamato were supposed to arrive tomorrow but two weeks ago we pushed it the flights back to next week. Then last night we got our answer. From my 'things in three', I'm sure you can guess that it was a decline. The Embassy has their reasons (not enough paper trail to prove that the artists will return to Guinea once the trip is over) and we have to accept their answer, but we have already started creating that required paper trail (proof of land ownership, copies of birth records for children, I know it sounds odd but paper trails rarely exist in Africa; when the literacy rate is less than 30%, a piece paper doesn't mean much) in the hopes that we will be able to try this again.

I'm still not entirely back to my usual fabulous self, that will take a few more nights of decent rest and proper nutrition, but I'm hoping to be back to the running by Friday. I've missed a lot of time on my training and although I'm not too worried (yet) that I won't be able to catch up, too much more and I'll have to rethink the run-walk a half-marathon plan. Sigh... perhaps I'll just spend a little more time in the self-pity wallowing pool. Just for tonight; I promise.

Do you guys ever have a week that makes you think 'ugh, why bother'?

I like warm; I don't like hot

This pretty much sums up how the weather in Victoria makes me feel at the moment:

It hit 33C (with a 'feels like 36C') which I know isn't that hot compared to Tindouf, Algeria which is projected to it 47C tomorrow (!!!) but I have Irish blood coursing through my body. We don't really 'do' heat. I mean, we do it all right beside a pool with a drink in our hand and an umbrella above us but not when there's day-to-day chores activities to be done. The only beings who seemed even more unimpressed by this mini-heat wave are my cats who have taken to laying down with such a resounding thud, I am sure the people in the apartment below will complain at some point.

It was in the midst of this mini-heat wave that I began my doundoun dance class. What better way to spend the hottest day of the year so far than in a dance studio with no AC jumping around beating a drum while you dance? I really didn't dance as hard as I could have that day, going through the movements without adding the hops and skips that make it such an incredible cardio workout, but I still found myself drenched with sweat by the time the class was over. I can't tell you how relieved I was when my suggestion to THR that we forgo our run that night and instead meet up for a beer and gossip was met with a positive response.

If the weather stays like this, I'm going to have to find an indoor, air-conditioned track to do my training on. I wonder how work would feel about me doing laps around the office...

All My Loves Combined

I feel like I have been ignoring my blog because, well, I have. Since coming home from the wedding, I've been spending all my extra time working on this:

What you see here is the rough draft of my very first .pdf creation. The final product looks a little different (but I can't upload .pdf files) but I was very happy with the whole process. I should note that this was sent to all the dance schools and is not the actual product we will be using for advertisement, that's why it's a little vague on the details. I felt awkward spamming all the schools with the same email, but the responses I've gotten back have all been very positive. As much work as all this volunteering has been, I'm loving it. It feels really good to be doing something I feel so passionate about.

I've also been spending a great deal of my time checking out the World Cup. Those of you who know me know that soccer actually comes before hockey in my sports world (gasp, and she calls herself Canadian!) so this is a big deal. Granted, my beloved Ireland did not make it in thanks to Handball Henry so most of my support has gone towards Switzerland (long shot), Côte d'Ivoire (long shot), Ghana (long shot), and anyone playing against France. As if shamed by the knowledge that they shouldn't be at the World Cup, France have done me proud and have failed miserably in all their games. They finished last in their Group and so they will be getting on a plane and returning home to drown their sorrows in a few bottles of wine and some crunchy frog legs. (What wine goes with frog legs? Red? White? Just googled it, dry white wine is apparently best.) Am I bitter? Perhaps.

THR and I moved up in our running time and so we've decided (foolishly?) to sign up for a 5K which starts at 8:00am... on Canada Day... in Sidney. Now, neither of us drives which means catching a bus from downtown at Supid O'clock in the morning. I'll be lucky if I can stay awake to watch the fireworks after that; we must be mad! However, if anyone knows a nice breakfast spot out in Sidney, please let us know. The only place I know that's open for breakfast in Sidney is White Spot, but there must be more! I am tempted to make THR wait with me until Bistro Suisse opens for lunch, but I fear she will eat my arm if we have to wait that long.

Weight Watchers is still going. I was within 'strip off the jeans' of the 5lbs goal but then the weekend of the wedding coincided with a missed Wednesday run so I went up a little bit. I knew I hadn't it the 5 lbs, but I was just really, really hoping I'd break even. Well, I honestly got what I deserved but I'll do better this week. Thankfully, no one can vote you out of WW like they can on the Biggest Loser!

Ja-oui-da-yes-si-ndio-ahan Learn to say 'yes'

I had a post all written in my head, but I have to take a moment to rant. I hate roofing tar. It is the only thing in this world that gives me a headache akin to a migraine. I am lucky that I don't actually get migraines so I'm making an assumption based on what people who do get migraines tell me they feel like. I was all stoked for my run today because I was properly prepared for it. Unlike Monday's run where I wasn't properly hydrated and made a not-unhealthy-but-not-great-food-choice for lunch and felt it for the entire run, today I was well hydrated and had planned every last bite I was going to take that day and so this run was going to be awesome. But alas, roofing tar, the Moriarty to my Holmes, made an appearance and instead I've spent the evening lying on my couch with a cold compress on my forehead, offering my first born to which ever deity may be listening. I hate you, roofing tar. Hate. You.

I spent a fabulous weekend in Cedar (the farmland/forested area south of Nanaimo) visiting my stepmom and cheering on a friend to the alter. I had great plans to do some runs while I was up there, but then it ended up being a bit hillier than I'm used to and I was stopping every two minutes to take pictures (such as this one on the right)... well, the thought was there. At least I didn't use the wedding as an excuse to do nothing! I spent a few hours at my new favourite pub, The Crow and Gate. It's the first "English" pub I've been to in Canada where I honestly thought 'yup, they've got it right." Leaving it, you honestly do feel like you should see a small Cotswold village extending from the pub door, or perhaps you'll even spy DCI Barnaby strolling around collecting evidence and eye witness accounts (yes, I'm a dork). The wedding was fabulous with a short ceremony which reflected the happy couple 100% and a great, relaxed, outdoor reception afterwards. I had brought my bottle of wine (people were camping all weekend so it was BYOB) which is worth 12 WW points and planned my weekend accordingly. Not surprisingly, however, I befriended two fellow wine drinkers and before I knew it, we had bogarted two more bottles. Sunday, also not surprisingly, was very, very painful. Oh well, live and learn :)

Back in Victoria, I have spent some time examining where life (or, more to the point, my choices) has taken me and it's strange how things can turn out. A year ago, I went to a Ghanaian fundraiser with a work colleague I didn't know too well. There were supposed to be four of us but the other two backed out and suddenly I was stuck with a social evening with someone I had never said more than three sentences to. Luckily, we hit it off and ate fabulous food while watching Keyke Fare perform. A few months later and I'm taking dance lessons from Keyke Fare's school, Moondance Arts. A few months after that and I have volunteered to help with the organisation of a tour of BC for Ballet Saamato from Conakry, Guinea. The German studying has been put on hold while I brush up on my rusty, rusty French and for the first time in my life, I actually enjoy learning French because I can't wait to learn everything I can about dance from these people. A year ago, I hesitated about going out that night because I was tired and I didn't know the coworker. Today, I'm so glad I made myself go.

I need to say 'yes' to things more often.

"You live and learn. At any rate, you live." Douglas Adams

This past week and a bit has been a big learning week for me. I mean, every week I learn something (don't eat even slightly pink chicken!), but there were a lot of lessons and 'a-ha!' moments this week. (I hope everyone is now singing "Take On Me" like I am).

First lesson: celebrating Towel Day doesn't mean much when you're at home where no one sees you or at the gym where everyone is walking around with a towel. So much for educating the masses, I'll just have to stick with singing "So Long and Thanks for All the Fish" while standing at the photocopier at work.

Second: When you plan properly (and use a few of your weekly extra points) you can be really bad on the weekend. Case in point: I celebrated a friend's birthday with three drinks and cheese on Saturday night. Only used 8 extra points. Yay planning! It gives me hope for the next two weekends where I have a bachelorette party and a wedding to attend. I can do this!

Third: Along the same food idea, I have learned that I can have chocolate at my desk and not eat it. See, the weekend I ran the 10K I discovered Côte d'Or Passion Fruit Chocolate and it was pretty much love at first sight. I love Passion Fruit; it's a love I picked up in Tanzania and, unfortunately, I don't get to indulge in very often now that I'm home. I bought one of these and pretty much devoured in within 30 minutes of cracking it open. While trying to make healthier food choices these past few weeks, I decided to needed to work out a reward system and why not make it something I really love? Something I would feel very guilty about if I was to over indulge in my reward? One of these chocolate bars has sat on my desk since last Wednesday. Every day, around my afternoon coffee break, I break of one square and enjoy every last bite of it. I'm amazed for two reasons: 1) When you limit yourself to such a small quantity, you learn to savour it so much more 2) I am still slightly shocked that I haven't just torn into and eaten the whole thing (it's sooooo good). Maybe I can do this whole healthy eating thing...

Fourth: I really love West African Dance and I love the people I've met through it. I participated in our Annual Student Gala on the weekend and it was quite possibly the highlight of the past few months. I threw myself into my dances (I did two) and came out the other side sore and out of breath but so, so happy. I hit all my moves, I jumped as I as I could, and I got lots of compliments from other dancers (and who doesn't like that?) Through MoonDance, I have found a community where my love of song and dance is cherished and my less-than-perfect-physique is loved. Having danced for many years in my childhood, I know how precious that can be. Every person I have talked to has been so friendly, so kind, and so encouraging it's hard to express in words how great that can make a person feel except to say that I look forward to those dances classes in ways I've never looked forward to other group activities. I have chosen not to do the four week summer class (too many other things to concentrate on at the moment) but I will definitely be back in September to rejoin my extended (dance) family.

Fifth: You always hear people talk about losing friends when they decided to do something to better themselves. I think I have found mine. Negative comments and under the breath remarks have made me re-examine why I considered this person a friend. I'm not totally ready to rule her out (I honestly don't think she's aware of the negativity she's causing), but it's been a good reminder that there are those out there who like to see people fail at something they try. Perhaps my failure would just be further proof for her that she doesn't need to do something about her unhealthy choices but she'll just end up where she is now. I'll just use that to spur me on, to show that success is possible.

Sixth: No sixth lesson learned, I just didn't want to end with the downer so I'm going to make up a learned lesson: a towel is the most useful thing a hitchhiker can carry and don't panic.

Dancing my ass off

I find my workplace very stressful. Not work, workplace (as in specific coworkers), and I'm finding exercise is a great stress reliever after some of the antics I've had to put up with. The knowledge that I had my regular African dance class tonight along with an hour long doundounba afterwards was about all that kept me from walking away from my desk today.

I can't put into words how much I love dance, and I don't know why it took me so long to get back into it after I stopped ballet. I did a couple of belly dancing classes and thought 'I should give this whole dance thing another go', but I never did. Here I am, over 10 years after I stopped formally dancing and I'm only now getting back into it. I love West African dance in a way I never loved ballet, there's a naturalness and freeness to the moves (if either of those are actual words, I like to make things up that sound real) and the cardio it provides is amazing. I don't even sweat that much when I'm doing a run!

After working on our soko dance for the beginners, we had a brief break while the other students and outside participants arrived for the doundounba as part of the Dance Victoria month long celebrations. In this case, the doundoundba is a Guinean circle dance (it's also an instrument and a specific beat), usually used for celebrations and it's pretty much a free-for-all with dancers entering at random or entering together to 'challenge' each other with their moves. The drummers struck up a beat and we had at it. Being fairly new and a little, well, sore from my class to be honest, I spent most of the time moving around the outside practicing my pulses and just enjoying watching the other students dance with such wild abandon. There are certain moves which indicate 'everyone join in' and once I got those down, I definitely got in but no solos yet... maybe next time.

I was having so much fun pulsing to the music, clapping along, and hootin' and hollerin' that it wasn't until my walk home that I  noticed at some point I must have gone over on my right ankle, my back was really sore, and my left ribs felt like they were out of alignment. Still, the doundounba was so much fun, it was worth the pain I'm going to feel tomorrow!

A note about the picture: I tried to find something in the public realm, but while Google gave me lots of posed picture, I was unable to find the craziness and informality that is a doundounba. So I stole (I prefer the term 'permanently borrowed') this picture from Moondance (the company I'm taking lessons with); it's one of their recitals from a few years back.