my name is karel. i'm 26 years old and reside in portland, oregon, although i'm from the east coast - new jersey and new york city, specifically. currently i'm a graduate student in school counseling. i have numerous artistic pursuits, including writing, graphic design, jewelry design, and knitting. (although i'm actually quite bad at knitting.) i have a failproof weakness for chef boyardee beef ravioli.
portland blog - my boyfriend brian and i document our adventures out west
sunshower design jewelry - my handmade jewelry business
scrawl - password-protected site for my writing (email me for access)
pdx hoods - coming soon!
frustration
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September 2009
October 2009
November 2009
December 2009
January 2010
now if only i could stop being such a klutz Labels: frustration, love
Thursday, October 22, 2009
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This past Monday night, as I made the 10-minute trek to my apartment from the bus stop at quarter to ten, I became acutely aware that the night air has taken on my favorite damp, misty feel and smell, that only happens in autumn. I really think that the reason I've come to feel so comforted by autumn is the fact that it's when Brian and I were first falling in love. (I know, I know. Sorry.) As I headed through the empty, peaceful streets at a brisk pace, I suddenly had an overwhelming urge to run.
In light of the past couple years of relative inactivity, mostly due to my chronic eye problems, sometimes it's really hard for me to accept the fact that there was a point in my life during which I was running on a regular basis, and easily able to churn out five or six miles, and that after my knee injuries (patellular tendonitis) I simply was not able to re-incorporate running back into my routine.
The simple truth is, it's not impossible for me to run. I have knee support straps, and I can stretch before and after, and ice after. I can slowly work my legs back into strength. My eyes? Well ... I'm not supposed to be wearing my contacts while I'm on my treatment, but I figure less than an hour every few days isn't too detrimental.
So I decided, I need to do this. Brian and I have really been trying to find new ways to grow closer, and running has always been so personal and intimate to me that sharing that process with him might just be a good step forward. There's no one I'd rather have by my side as I work back up to the strength and pace where I'd like to be - and I knew that it was something he would like to do.
I suggested it to him when I got home that night, and he was totally for it. The very next day, he came home from Goodwill with a $15 pair of secondhand Asics, and I decided there was no better time to start than that night! And it felt amazing. Okay, okay, at some points it felt horrible, but in that masochistic, pushing-your-body-to-its-limits sort of way. I am out of shape, for sure, but I do relish the aches that my body feels as it reacts to this now-foreign activity. We ended up doing a 2.5-mile loop around our neighborhood, and my knees and eyes held up just fine.
The two days that have followed have been full of aches and sore muscles, but I feel great. So great, in fact, that I wanted to go again tonight. Brian advised me to take it easy, so we planned to do a mild 1-mile loop ... about five blocks from home I slipped on a loose walnut on the sidewalk and totally wiped out. AGH! I twisted my left ankle and bruised and scraped up my right knee, and after bravely walking home with help from Brian, I'm iced and bandaged up and can't walk without pain. (Mostly in my knee ... my ankle is small news.) Sigh. It'll probably ease up in a day or so.
What I'm really excited about, though, is making this a routine. I want us to dedicate three nights a week to night runs - I want it to be our time to just be side by side, me reclaiming control over my own body, him encouraging me with his presence. In the past few months, we've identified some areas in our relationship that we'd like to reform and strengthen, and I think this is going to be a very good way to move forward - both for us, and for me. :)
i don't understand
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
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why every female who has ever been any part of my boyfriend's life:
a. needs to be his friend on facebook
b. needs to then comment or like all his posts on facebook and
c. seems to intimately know his mom.
wtf? boundaries, anyone?!?!
