A Life Less Ordinary

An Experiment

by Helen

I have decided to take up snowboarding. I actually started trying this a couple of seasons ago, but this season I am really going for it.

I remember my first lesson that I took at Steven's in 2008. It was a beginner package (great deal by the way, $89 and you get a lift ticket, gear and a 2 hour lesson). The instructor was no older than 20 or 21 and clearly did not just smoke cigarettes in his free time. When he was trying to teach me to do something on that first day - I remember him telling me "you can't be this uptight when snowboarding, you just gotta relax and go with it." And then he walked up the hill with difficulty to meet me because I couldn't get up and he struggled with his smoke filled lungs to walk up hill.

Well needless to say, I am not the most relaxed person you've ever met. Going with the flow is something I can sort of do, but not when it involves doing something new that I'm not very good at and could result in broken bones. So the direction of relaxing seemed absurd to me.

Then I bought a pink and blue patterned jacked. Also something that I would really never embrace, but it gave off a good vibe and looked like something a snowboarder would wear.

So slowly but surely, snowboarding has become this thing for me - it is everything I am not. It is slightly dangerous, it attracts hipsters and it involves bright colors.

But I've finally linked my turns and I have bought my own equipment. As someone who always strives to improve at everything I do, I will also do that for awhile with snowboarding, but only until I can get down a black diamond in a comparable way to people who know how to board or ski. And then I will stop trying to improve. I will just go up to the mountains to be in the snow and enjoy people's company. I am not going to perfect snowboarding and learn how to jump or do tricks or stunts.

As a result, snowboarding is this activity in which I push my boundaries - I wear pink, I try to "loosen up" and I aim to just be good enough but not to excel and embrace that.

I am not sure if I will succeed, but I am going to do my very best.

Back in the saddle!

By Helen

(first post off my mobile device so we'll see how it goes)

This weekend we are in a cabin between Leavenworth and Stevens with three other couples.

It's been a fun weekend so far getting out of the city and getting back into winter sports.

Winter sports and I have a love/hate relationship. I skied for a couple of seasons in the past and then bought an unsuccessful pair of ski boots. Now I feel too guilty renting ski boots so I'm learning how to board.

Boarding started for me two years ago when my manager gave me a choice on a couple of Fridays to board or to work and in an effort of overcoming my fear of new sports, I chose to try boarding.

Last season I was training for the half marathon and afraid of injury so I didn't board.

This year I have no excuse and got back to it, met some nice people during my lesson and enjoyed wearing my brand new blue helmet.

Here is to getting better at snow boarding!

Bike Purchase!

by Helen

I bought a bike yesterday! I don't think I've ever actually owned one past the age of 12.  It's Trek blue, hybrid 2011 bike.  I bought it at Gregg's Cycles which I was super intimidated by (in all fairness I'm pretty intimated by all bikers because they seem to be so hard core about what being a biker is all about and I am none of those tihngs right now).

Anyway, it's a starter bike.  It *only cost $400 but after I bought a helmet, a lock, a water bottle holder - it was a little more expensive than that. But it's a good place to start before I decide that biking is my future and need a $4000 road bike or something ridiculous like that.

MSFT gives an allowance for a bike too if you are an intern so really, it was quite subsidized, which was the reason to buy it.  Now I have to use it!

Dedicated to My Parents

by Helen

I sprained my ankle today while hiking.  Everything is fine, it just made for a somewhat painful 2000 foot decline from the mountain.  

But afterwards, Adam went to get me an ankle wrap and ice.  Here is the conversation we had while he was wrapping my ankle:

Adam: I think it takes a medical professional to make sure the wrap doesn't wrinkle.  You don't mind if it's wrinkled do you?

Me: I don't know if I mind or not...I've only ever had my ankle wrapped by medical professionals....

Silence in the room followed. 

Snowboarding

by Helen

Recently I tried snowboarding and I was of course terrible at it. The lift and I did not get along (it hit me three times of the three times I got on it).  However, once I figured out how to get up toe side up as opposed to heel side up, life did get a little better.  Luckily I had a helmet - otherwise I think I would have gotten a concussion or two.

Regardless, the moral of the story here is my instructor kept telling me to relax and not to tense up.  He finally asked "are you a stressed out person?" Let me think about that one for a second...yes! I mean I don't think anyone would think that I am the epitome of relaxed.

So in order to defy my personality and my limited world view, I am going to continue trying to snowboard so that I can prove that you don't have to be laid back to snowboard.

But I am still trying to think of a single up tight person I know (other than myself) who snowboards. I don't think I know any.

Motivation

by Helen

I'm a total group person/joiner.  My boss is very into fitness and talks about it a lot which is great because it makes me think about it and reminds me to work out.  I have been meaning to get back into morning work outs because I feel that they make me more productive.  So lately, my boss has been doing spinning classes, and the joiner that I am, I decided to take that up too.  Luckily for me, my gym has those classes three times a week at 5:30am.  So today I went to my first one. 

It wasn't so bad. My instructor was awesome.  She showed me how to adjust my seat and adjusted it for me and kept checking in on me throughout the class.  There were five of us total.  I definitely worked hard, but I think I could have worked harder.

So in order to keep motivated, here is the list of reasons why I am going to work out at 5:30am three times a week:

-Free up my evenings to work on b-school apps
-Get more energy throughout the day (this is more of a long term plan i think)
-Look good for Hawaii in November
-Give myself more time in the morning to get ready
-I will feel like I am more organized and together if I work out in the mornings

Here is to hoping that I can sustain this!