Let's Go With "Chinua Achebe's Literary Classic" Here

Everyone kind of has their thing on our team. I'm not the best erger, the fastest runner, the best bencher, the most skillful. My thing? 


I'm healthy. Or at least, I am generally accustomed to a base level of pain and fix everything with band-aids and advil. They're starting to cut the crew team off because it spends about 4 times as much on athletic tape as any other sport.

But that's my thing. I'm not injured. When everyone else was destroying their knees on soccer fields and tracks, I was swimming and protecting my joints.

But then this week happened, and I think my body hit a wall. My shins BURN like they never have before. They're mad at me. My wrists aren't a fan of opening doors. My back has more knots than the shoes of a kindergardener learning to tie them. My body was fine, and it threw in the towel. Too early. This weekend is state championships. Next weekend is eastern conference championships. Then I have a week "off" for finals and will follow that up by a week of two-a-day practices while the varsity preps for NCAAs. 

Hear that, body? It's time to get yourself together.

Beyond my physical frustrations, I am getting things done. I have my master list of everything that needs to get done in the next week and a half of classes and for finals. I'm doing it. I just have to focus, which is difficult. Especially when the Ithaca students are all so preoccupied with the fact that it's February again and IT SNOWED ALL DAY yesterday.

SERIOUSLY.

But here's the thing. I get to see my sister, whom I haven't seen since January, on Saturday. It's probably the longest we've ever gone without seeing each other.

I can't guarantee that I won't injure her when I greet her via tackling. Sorry, RPI Crew.

I Absolutely Shouldn't Be Blogging Right Now

My life is quite crazy. I'm stuck in a tornado and wondering when in the heck I'm going to touch down in Oz. 

Anyway, you all just had to know that THIS was my award for crew this year. 

And yes, it did complete my whole existence. 

I don't even need to graduate college any more. I HAVE ACHIEVED SOMETHING IN LIFE!

Enough Said

This Post is Going to be About One of My Many Chocolate Bunnies

I did a lot of stuff today. The sad part is, the most interesting thing I can think of is the fact that I finally figured out how to go about eating chocolate bunny number one, and it involved slamming it into my desk repeatedly.

Cathartic.

And also delicious.

This morning I woke up in a blurry haze and somehow ended up at lifting. I must have walked there and I probably carried on a conversation with Ashley to some extent, but all I know is that suddenly it was early and I was running around a gym and also Erica was trying to get me to do some type of plyometrics that my hamstrings laughed at the idea of. They were called Spidermans. Spiderman and I do not have a lot in common beyond an affinity for spandex. I am not flexible, and am very bad at climbing things. In that I once ripped my pants climbing over a fence the height of my belly button.

Very bad at climbing. Also irrelevant to my day recap.

After lifting was my radio shift, at which I continued to fail at pronunciation. Kyrgyzstan, you are on notice.

After that I met with my Legislative Behavior professor and the Senate Majority Leader to determine the order of business for Saturday. Harry Reid is somehow trying to force a Don't Ask Don't Tell amendment on my immigration bill. IRRITATING. I was very happy with this bill so far. We'd had a lot of Republican victories with it. Yes, it includes a fence.

Then, off my environmental issues of the former USSR class. This class is also on notice.

After that, study abroad orientation. Shrill lady talking about health insurance that I already have and how small children will likely surround me and try to take my money during my experience abroad. This is good.

Lunch. Then extremely productive meeting with coach, who makes me stop hating myself for failing at erg tests all the time and is not upset that I am studying abroad. I guess all that pre-meeting FREAKING OUT was unnecessary.

Then, Legislative Behavior. The democrats are able to force through Reid's jobs bill, which was inevitable and everything, but I don't like losing. Too bad I'm a Republican. (IN SIMULATION ONLY. LET ME MAKE THAT VERY CLEAR.)

Then crew. Erg instead of going on the water because I'm missing this week's huge regatta, and Becky wants me to reacquaint myself with erging so I stop fearing it so much. This practice is supposed to be win-win. Instead, it's just kind of depressing.

Dinner. Procrastination. Breaking of bunny. Feminist media perusing. Blog.

I'm so eloquent today, aren't you glad you were able to be immersed so vividly in my chaotic lifestyle for a few fleeting moments?

Yes. Yes you are.

As I'm Living It

There was a Post Secret card up today that stopped me in my tracks.

It stopped me, because I realized I'd actually achieved that this afternoon. There was that feeling of untethered happiness in a hot, sun-filled car singing at the top of your lungs with your teammates. I'm miming a drum solo and laughing and the feeling that we won today is still with me, and this is my life, and I have papers to write and a television show to get to, but none of that matters because right now, I'm loving my life as I live it.

Because my life is crazy. Today, I had a race at the very same place I'd watched Claire race for the first time last year. You know, this one.  Sitting there, watching, I had absolutely no clue I'd be here rowing a year later.

Rowing down to the start, we suddenly heard a scraping on the bottom and jolted to a complete stop. A little panic. We were in the middle of the river, STUCK on a raised bank of sand. "Get out of the boat," said our coxswain. WHAT?

And a moment later, we're standing thigh deep in the freezing water, hands grasping the boat, and straining against a current, pushing the boat off. One by one, we got back in, a little dazed by what had just happened. Then we kept warming up.

The race. Binghamton's second varsity boat.

Lined up, ready to go.

We're jumped off the start. Always. DAMN it.

Our coxswain's screaming. We've never had her before. I'm not sure I understand what she's saying, but I'm pulling. 


We're walking them. Seat by seat. Lined up. Fighting side by side.

The 1000 mark. There's our team on the bank. They begin to cheer.

A rush of adrenaline. We make our move, pulling a boat length ahead.

The coxswain's yelling more.

It's the boat ten. We're pulling for each other.

ONE for Jillian. TWO for Maddy, THREE for Dakota, FOUR for Regina, FIVE for Abby, SIX for Sara, SEVEN for Lizzie, EIGHT for Danielle, ONE for the Kearing, ONE FOR THE BOMBERS.

And by pulling together, making our comeback, and never giving up, we got one for the Bombers.

One win.

Guys, the Situation is Perilous

CHECK OUT MY STASH.

I mean, it's ridiculous. Two chocolate bunnies. Untold amounts of Reeses. A huge, already kind of worked-through bag of Amma cookies.

Good thing I will work out twice a day and look exactly the same.

Today: The Breakdown

4:30 a.m. Alarm goes off. Grumbling and stumbling ensues.

5:15 a.m. I wonder how I am supposed to row if I can only see the faint outline of my hands in front of me.

7:40 a.m. The lady at the Park cafe is probably wondering why I look so sweaty and spandexy this early in the morning. I decide I deserve medium instead of small coffee. And bagel.

8:25 a.m. Am unable to pronounce word "succession" on internet radio station during news cast. Sigh.

8:46 a.m. Get it this time on WICB, which people actually listen to. Am relieved.

9 a.m. Advisor is very excited I am studying abroad in Amsterdam. Also is probably wondering why I am wearing wet spandex at 9 a.m. I hope my crew sweatshirt is somewhat explanatory. I also had to dig my study abroad packet out of my smelly crew bag to show her. It was under my shoes. I obviously succeed at life.

9:45 am. I am showered. Run back to Park to pick up camera for interview. Hygiene has significantly improved, but am still wet.

10 a.m. Yeah, you KNOW I made it to my class on time.

11:40 a.m. CRAP I FORGOT TO BRING BATTERIES FOR SAID CAMERA.

Noon. Yeah, you KNOW I made it to my class on time despite mad dash across campus looking like an insane person.

1 p.m. Interview number 1. Ask man in office if he is Alex. No, I'm Dan, but, um, Alex is a woman. Oh, that's great. Blushing occurs.

1:30 p.m. Call mother to inform her of interview win and social niceties fail.

2:00 p.m. Consume lots and lots of food. Regret excessive food consumption. More sighing.

2:30 p.m. Begin hike to Red Cross.

3:00 p.m. Arrive at Red Cross. Google maps walking estimate freakishly accurate. Begin interview.

3:20 p.m. Still have questions. Bother other lady, who is extremely nice and humors me. People at the Red Cross are super nice. Not such a surprise. Lady comments on Ithaca Crew shirt. She's known Coaches Robinson for 15 years. Of course she has.

3:40 p.m. WHY DO I GO TO SCHOOL ON TOP OF A HILL WHYYYY

3:45 p.m. Call father during walk. Question my sanity for only considering walk DOWN the mountain. Huffing and sweating does not suggest am college athlete. Should not have worn jeans and boots. It's 75 degrees out and sunny. Ithaca, I love you, but it's hard to remember that your weather isn't always horrible.

4:00 p.m. Am pretty sure father is wondering how I am still talking. I'm probably not coherent at this point, and he's probably wanting to like, actually work at work. But I have decided he needs to know every detail about my life plus all my theories and projections about the future. Immediately.

5:08 p.m. Check time as I finish up blog post detailing day that is not even over yet.

5:09 p.m. Decide I am very satisfied with having completed most required activities of the day. Now just working on papers, dinner and a radio meeting to go before I can pass out in bed.

5:10 p.m. Yes, I'm already thinking about bed now.

5:11 p.m. Publish blog post.

Sunshine!

Two days after the worst practice ever, featuring all kinds of natural high-jinks, we rowed in sunny, 70-80 degree temperatures for the next three days. Yeah. It's been awesome. And, well, certainly strange.

In fact, it was so sunny and hot yesterday at our regatta, I got my first ugly uniform tan/burn! At our race we lost to the University of Rochester, but we also dropped 25 seconds off our time from last week. You can't ask for much more than that.

After the race, I headed to my roommate's house, where I was fed amazing food. This evening I'm going back to eat even more, despite my being in a semi-coma from all the insane amount of candy I've received in the past couple days. It is awesome. And also terrible, because I work out practically twice a day and AM STILL GOING TO GET FAT. Maybe.

Or maybe not. Maybe if I close my eyes, those delicious Reese eggs have zero calories.

I'm going to go with that one.

Also, tomorrow is going to be one of the busiest days in my entire life. I'm sure it'll deserve its own post after the fact if I am still alive after it.

Hint: It begins promptly at 4:30 a.m.