Bad Blood

If you've been keeping track, I have a few topics to finish posting on...

As my next race nears, I am beginning to feel beat up. The littlest, most inconsequential things can lead to nagging discomfort. (Case in point: I currently have this calf thing, but I have no memory of doing anything to strain or tweak my calf... Annoying.)

Thankfully the human anatomy was meticulously designed and wonderfully made.

PDA: public display(s) of affection. Of course the general connotation insinuates romantic affection. It get such a bad rap. A rap that I tend to agree with, to be honest. As much as I am happy that you're happy, I don't need to spend my afternoon seeing just how happy you are... Enter stereotypical comment: "Get a room!" But has the negative view of public displays of affection in romantic relationships devalued displays of affection in non-romantic relationships? When's the last time you hugged your best friend? When's the last time you had any physical contact with a loved one other than your significant other? I realize it is a slippery slope. That perhaps there is a fear that if non-romantic displays of affection are considered appropriate, "aren't we just telling our kids that it's okay to show affection to their boy/girl-friend?" [To this argument, I would point out that I'm not going to make out with my best friend so I would hope my child wouldn't assume it's okay to make out with their boy/girl-friend.] I suppose it goes back to parenting preferences, but the topic of showing romantic/non-romantic affection is something to ponder...

Without affection our spirit begins to wither. I know mine certainly does.

When I'm feeling especially beaten up after a long run I take a nice cold bath. An ice bath. Nice is a relative word in this context... Body heat increases with activity and then you induce vasoconstriction by taking an ice bath after said activity you induce minor hypothermia in a controlled setting. The vessels constrict. They shrink. They want to preserve the body and so they shrink so they can pump the blood away from the extremities, to the abdomen and back to the heart. In an emergency situation, this would prolong life, giving your body more time to wait for the "arrival" of different surroundings or rescue. In training, it simply removes as much blood as possible, within reason, from the area. When you warm up again the area is immediately flushed with fresh, oxygenated blood. The advantage of this is to a) minimize injury b) improve healing time and c) reduce lactic acid buildup.

I don't always like running. I don't want to wake up early to run. I don't want to leave the comforts of my house to go outside to subject myself to hard work (on a good day) or torture (on a not-so-good day.) I run because it's good for my body. Physically I feel stronger. I can perceive changes in my body. Psychologically I feel clearer, emotionally invigorated and relaxed at the same time. It helps me keep things in perspective. Vasoconstriction is not comfortable, but I know it helps my body in the long run. Old blood out, fresh blood in.

I woke up earlier than I usually do on a Sunday. I am trying to accept certain truths in my life, whether I like them or not. My first step is to just not think about them. I rearranged my collage boards. I switched out pictures in frames, and put a fun scrapbook paper print in one frame that I couldn't find another picture for. Just to make things feel fresh and new. I don't know exactly what inspired it, but I was thinking about memories today. How many of our "good memories" are merely memories that we associate with positive emotions - but are not actually positive, or even notable, events in our lives? That's tough. This fall I hope to distinguish between postive memories and memories that just happen to have a positive mood association. Old blood out, fresh blood in. As a Christian, I'd like to learn to appreciate the events that God would also appreciate. The small acts of kindness and the struggle of forgiveness. Old blood out, fresh blood in. And I'd like to make choices that will make this easier. Like signing off now and relaxing - and going to sleep early. Old blood out, fresh blood in.

"In Him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace."-Ephesians 1:7 [NIV]