relationships

Does your significant other support your running?

| cheriarmour

I try to keep my husband at a minimum on the blog.  Not because I’m not crazy about him, because I absolutely am.  But more because he didn’t ask for his life to be splashed across the interwebs.  But occasionally, I just can’t help it!

I’m running Ragnar in Las Vegas in less than two weeks, and unlike the typical Ragnar relay, we are considered an ultra team, meaning that instead of 12 runners over 36 legs, we are 6 runners over the 36 legs.  I’m so looking forward to it, and yet, a little apprehensive about running over 34 miles over a few days.

But, despite my apprehension, my body, my mind, and my legs feel strong.

In prep for the race, I’ve run at a few odd times – and last night, it was around 9:30pm.  Luckily, I live close to the state university, and can stay pretty safe running on campus during these odd times, or can call my brother to run with me.  And every time I push off at these strange times, Austin offers me a butterfly knife, and asks if it’s completely necessary for me to run at those times, in the most worried and caring of ways.

And this time, the poor thing was in no position to come with me, because he sprained his ankle terribly playing volleyball at the Y.

Exhibit A
Exhibit A

But I’m taken with how supportive Austin has been of my running. When we met, I was just doing some running for maintenance.  Despite being an avid weightlifter (which doesn’t  classically mix), he ran my first 5k with me.  Then my second.  He cheered me through my first half.  And then stood out in the cold during my first two fulls.  And now, even though he can’t come to Vegas with me, he’s been so supportive, and making sure that in the midst of all my training, that I’m staying safe and happy.

 So how does running fit into a relationship?  How should running fit into a relationship?  For you runners, weightlifters, triathletes, golfers, how does your sport fit into your relationship?  And is your significant other supportive of how you stay fit?  

For us, even though Austin has never expressed any interest in taking on the challenge of a full or an ultra, running has always been something that we could enjoy and do together.  And it makes me feel supported by him, that we aren’t in competition, but that it’s something we can do side-by-side.  Running can be so solitary, and yet, it makes me feel so close to so much and so many people.

You? 

White Ford Bronco – Where were you?

| cheriarmour

So on Wednesday, Austin turned the big 2-8, so in celebration, I took Austin on date to the first place we ever went, which was the Rockford downtown.

The Rockford is really cool spot, and was an excellent choice for Austin to take me to because the food is good, fresh, and it has a little bit of a vegetarian lean – I could easily find something on the menu without having to do too much wiggling to figure out something to eat.

So I took him there, and we had the best time.  He brought me flowers.  I hope we never stop “dating.”

Date NightThis poorly lit, sorta blurry photo is the only documentation I have of the night cause we asked this guy at the bar for a photo, and he snapped a terrible one, and I was too embarrassed by his terrible photography skills to ask him to do another one.  Oh well!

Okay, so let’s make a right turn.

Bronco Chase 6-17-94The other night, Austin and I watched this ESPN documentary that documented June 17th, 1994.  Which was 20 years ago, by the way, if you’re looking to feel super old.

I’m not really interested on anyone’s opinion on OJ’s guilt, however, what I am interested in is finding out what you were doing when this chase was going down.

For me, I was with my family (there were only 5 of us at this point), at Smuggler’s Notch in Vermont.  I remember it being one of the most amazing vacations in the entire world – I also remember coming back to the condo from a swim or something, and my parents being transfixed by this chase that was happening in real time.

The Knicks were also losing a game, if I’m not mistaken.

Where were you during this chase? 

 

Tinder Dilemma

| cheriarmour

Hi!  I totally hope you guys are doing amazingly today – it’s Austin’s birthday today and between prepping to take him out for din and actually washing my birds nest of a mane, some things didn’t get scheduled, and you were out a post this morning.  For that I am sorry.  Only a little sorry though, cause I managed to squeeze a run in too this morning before it got up over 90 degrees, and that’s invaluable these days.

Now, moving right along folks, I want to present to you a little something that we in the biz (that’s what we call social work, the biz) call a dilemma.

So, have you guys heard of TInder? For those of you who are not privy to how us kids are getting’ down, a lot of our relationships are starting online.  And from that online dating thing, a few really interesting apps have developed, all for the purposes of providing millennials like me with an option to meet folks with the one thing we don’t leave home without – our phones.

images

It’s cool, and it eliminates the awkward bar interactions that used to pre-date a relationship.

[As a side night, thank you lawdy that I had the good fortune to meet Austin during graduate school, cause God forbid I was out on the market now, I don’t think I could handle it.]

So here’s the dilemma, which a friend posted to Facebook a few days ago.

She’s on TInder. A “happily married” male friend of hers was on Tinder.  Does she say anything to the wife, who is also a friend of hers?  Does she stay out of it?  Maybe the couple is into that, right?

My understanding is is if you’re not looking for a relationship, you’re not on Tinder, or you’re not on of of these sites right?  But unless I’m really really close to one in the couple, I’m staying out of it…but is that the wrong thing to do?

Have any of you guys experienced a dilemma like this?  What do you think? 

Oh, and if you haven’t today, please vote for me to be on the cover of Women’s Running Mag!

Yoga pants?

| cheriarmour

Don’t take this the wrong way, I love workout stuff – it’s nearly as essential to my workouts as my will to workout is.  That might sound ridiculous, but if you’ve ever worked out in the wrong shirt or a bra that’s chafed you, you know exactly what is is I’m saying.

So even though between my job and teaching classes, I spend a lot of time in any variety of workout gear – yoga pants, sports bras, and technical tops, I was really puzzled when Austin, the boy behind the blog, gave this thought-provoking answer to one of the questions I asked him during an interview last week.
The question was:  What’s a popular fashion item for women right now? 

DSC_0014
My uniform for classes.

His answer?

Yoga pants!!!

 

Okayyyyyy. So I was really trying to figure out where this answer came from. Again, it’s not that I find yoga pants offensive, but really, when you think of popular women’s fashion items, you might think of things like, the color mint green, sparkly ear cuffs, or cropped tops with jorts, especially for Coachella. But yoga pants?

So I asked him to clarify, and this is what he had to say.  Imagine this in a southern accent.

Well that’s all I see those girls wearing when I go to shop at the Cameron Village Teeter [Harris Teeter].

Annnnnd that would explain it. Every single girl who shops at the Cameron Village Harris Teeter, which is where you go if you want to make sure someone hits your car when they drive 30 mph in a parking lot to return their Redbox DVDs, is a student at either Meredith or NC State. Their uniform is either Norts (Nike Shorts) an oversized sorority tee, with an option of swapping the Norts for sweatpants with a pair of boat shoes, Nike Frees with high socks, or Rainbows.

The moral of the story? Austin is taking his fashion cues from the Harris Teeter.  Cool.

Why do women do this?

| cheriarmour

Yesterday, as I was still sitting in DC, I found myself, once again at Pound the Hill, to finish up some work I’d kind of let go the wayside while I was running around and having a great time.

Now, if you’ll recall, Pound the Hill was home to the Nutella Latte that I’d enjoyed so well.

photo 1And of course, as I was sitting next to these two women, I was 1000% eavesdropping on their conversation, and my mouth was dropping at the things they were saying.  I actually took notes on the conversation I was so shocked.

So green shirt lady was talking about her live-in boyfriend.  And here’s what she had to say.

  • She had been crying and yelling at him for the better part of the last week.
  • He has been acting really really weird in front of her friends.
  • I don’t think he pays rent – he gave her money upfront for his stay there (at her home), but that’s about it.
  • She changed her eating habits for him, as in went from vegan ->non vegan for him, not for herself.
  • He does not have a “real” job.
  • She hates his friends.
  • She wants kids, he does not.

She explained the aforementioned behavior by this.

  • Maybe he would “change” once he got a real job and got some confidence, because she could tell that when he was confident, he would be better.
  • He worked for PETA and because he was around so many PETA people, he did not know how to act around her friends.
  • That even though he didn’t want kids, a friend suggested that she should have an “oops”.
  • That he was an only child, and maybe this was why he did not know how to act.
  • And in general, she explained away all the behavior that pointed to the fact that he was not interested in her.

All the while, he friend listened, and just made affirming noises.

I sat there in horror, wanting so badly to turn to green shirt and to tell her to run far away, and never look back at the guy who was living for free in her home, but I didn’t , because the woman didn’t know me from Adam and was obviously not asking for my advice.

But why, why why, do women do this?

What would you tell this woman?