Tag Archives: Happy

Meg Pickert, Rodeo Runner

Today I did something. I completed the Rodeo Run 10K. It was a pretty terrible showing, but I did it.

This morning I was an anxious mess, it seemed like a pretty big mistake to sign up for this run. Although I had planned on doing a lot of training, it didn’t really happen. My longest consistent run before today was a little over 3 miles. Leah told me, that someone in a bar told her, that you get caught up win the excitement and you can do more than you think.

We did get caught up in the excitement, but we did a pretty steady combination of walk/run/ and then some walk even more. We finished, albeit we were no where near running the entire 10K. When we first got there, we came upon the costume contest. Obviously, we had to stop and watch the whole thing go down. There were an entire crew of people from an insurance office (that I didn’t catch the name of) that dressed as Alice and Wonderland folk. The Mad Hatter there, in the back left hand side of this picture won.

Costume Contest

After taking in the contest, we made our way to the starting line. There were 13,000 participants, and below you can see the ones that were ahead of me. There were a lot. The people in the front were clearly in shape. We were asked to try to find our way nearest to the sign that most accurately described our mile time. Leah and I took our place past the 10:00 minute mile sign.

Photo

The start was scary, most people seemed like regulars, and I felt pretty confused. While we waited, Leah and I made a list on my phone of running gear that we would need when we become regulars.

My favorite part of the whole thing was all the people at the sides of the course. They had noisemakers and signs and screamed, “You can do it!” The thing is, they have no idea if I can do it or not, but it felt really good to hear. Strangers screaming for me was oddly motivating. Those people motivated me to finish. Leah’s boyfriend was also our ride, and he was at the finish (another motivating factor). I really needed motivation. Usually, my runs are on gravel, and I my knees were not into the concrete. I got tired quick, and starting thinking of lunch pretty early in. We did discuss many lunch options while making our way through the course. Lunch, the cheering spectators, the fabulous water tables, and the car at the end are the things that helped me do it.

Champion

There I am, in all my sweaty, tired, whiny glory. I did it. I completed a 10K. I may have been passed up by small children, grandparents, and pregnant ladies, but LEAH AND I DID IT!!

Thank you Leah for pushing me.

 

, ,
Posted on

Happiness Project Progress (January)

For 2011, I made a plan to get happier. Although January has 2 days left, I decided that I would count those days as part of February because they start a new week. The first month I decided to focus on getting enough sleep and getting myself in shape. Now, I wasn’t able to achieve my goals 100%, but I feel proud of my tracking and of my achievement.

This printout of the month of January sat on my desk. Both goals were written at the top. I also tracked my weight (as a girl, this is extremely awkward, but I put it on the calendar so I can try to improve it. I’m going to attempt to own it). This number has not changed either. I wanted to work out 4 times a week, and out of the 4 weeks, I met that goal twice. Overall, I should have worked out 16 times, and I worked out 15 times, which is a 93% rate of success. My body is no slimmer than it was before, but I feel good. Boot camp has been HARD, but I feel more in shape than I have in years. My endurance has definitely improved. Completing a boot camp is on my life list, and crossing that off seems like a serious accomplishment. Leah and I are also signed up for a 10K (which is also on the list), and we are really going to be able to finish! My fitness is greatly improving, which I do believe leads to an overall feeling of health, which is a definite happiness booster.

Sleeping 8+ hours a night was not a goal I met. I had a good night’s sleep 16 out of the 30 days (53%). I am busy, and this was tough. My body needs sleep. This needs to be a priority in another months. I will refocus on this a couple months from now.

Friend night happened! We made pizza, Mikhail came to town, I watched a dog, and Leah and I played Rummikub on the floor. All and all, quite a success. Christine has agreed to take on a February night, so I think we are in business.

We just got back from Dallas a couple of hours ago. This month’s mini adventure was a wedding in Dallas. Now this didn’t really take extra effort, we would have done this either way. I did not go out of my way to plan something, but oh well. I’m counting it. The wedding was a full mass, and honestly one of the most beautiful ceremonies I’d ever attended. (Congrats Jeff & Amanda!)

January 2011

Now it is time to focus on February. My primary goal will be BUDGETING. I’m going to listen to dear old Dave Ramsey and carry some cash and pay for my goods. The frivolous spending has gotten a little out of control. Especially on things for my classroom. I throw pencils in my shopping cart constantly, and I am fairly embarrassed to share how much I’ve spent on books.

The secondary goal will still be working out. Although I am proud of the last month, I still need to keep track of my work outs. The habit hasn’t quite been made yet.

And in the month of love, for that extra boost of happiness, JMO and I are taking cooking classes.

*Gretchen Rubin was definitely right about the satisfaction of tracking happiness.

,
Posted on

The Mystery of the Autographed Copy

As I’ve mentioned lately, I have a renewed zest for kid lit. I adored Cabinet of Wonders by Marie Rutkoski and wrote about it on my classroom blog, pickertskiddos.blogspot.com. Anway, I purchased the second book from Amazon and it came signed! So, I decided to do a little investigating!  The rest can be told from the email train below….

________________________________________________

Meg Pickert

to Marie
show details Jan 16 (7 days ago)

Marie,

I’m a 4th grade teacher in Houston, TX and I was introduced to The Cabinet of Wonders by a student. Now, half my class has read it. My kiddos and I were very excited to get The Celestial Globe. I ordered it from Amazon, and it came signed. I tried to find a copy of your signature on the internet (to see if it was real), but it just seemed strange that it came signed! Could you, would you, be able to help my students and I solve this mystery?

Thank You!

Meg Pickert

________________________________________________

Marie Rutkoski

Marie

to me
show details Jan 19 (5 days ago)

Dear Meg,

I’m so glad to know your students enjoy my books! As for the signature, that’s a little strange that Amazon has a signed copy, but not impossible. I’ve signed a lot of books, and my publisher might have sent some signed copies to Amazon. I guess I could try to send you images of my signature to compare, but the way I sign my name can vary a great deal; I have my sloppy “I’ve got to sign a ton of these fast!” signature, and I have my careful “Even though my penmanship sucks, I’m trying hard for this to look nice,” one. If you send me an image of the signature you have, I can tell you whether it’s mine or not.

Does that help?

Best,

Marie

Meg Pickert

to Marie
show details Jan 20 (3 days ago)

Marie,

I told my kids all about the new development in our mystery today. Now that they know an author may write back, they want to look up every book they’ve ever loved and email the author. It is highly entertaining. Thank you for writing back. We really do appreciate it!

Attached is a photo of the signature. Let me know!

Take care,

Meg

photo

Marie Rutkoski

to me
show details Jan 22 (1 day ago)

Dear Meg,

How wonderful that your kids are now eager to email authors! I loved writing to authors when I was a kid, and was so excited when Beverly Cleary sent me a postcard in response. I still remember every word she wrote (not hard, since it was just “Dear Marie, I’m glad to know you enjoy my books!”).

That signature is mine!

Best,

Marie

________________________________________________

Watching children get excited about reading is one of my favorite things about being a teacher. Corresponding with an author over a mystery involving a book brought a lot of excitement to my classroom (and to me). Thank you so much Marie Rutkoski for writing such an awesome series and for helping us solve the mystery of the autographed copy.

, ,
Posted on

The Happiness Project – Goals for 2011

It is time to get serious about making room for happiness. Six months ago I wrote about The Pursuit of Happiness, I had high hopes, but I did not make a way to track it. Tracking it, makes it real and concrete, which also makes it happen (per The Happiness Project). Here is my plan.

Step 1: Pin pointing what makes me happy. I like these things, so these are the things I need to make more room for in my life.

  1. Physical Fitness. I do not like to exercise, but I love the feel good effects. PLAN: Leah and I are going to do a bootcamp to kick start the year of getting in shape. I am also going to add sleep to this this goal. I need more of it, and I believe if I make it a priority then it can happen.
  2. Financial Security. I realize that this is a life long goal. This year I will focus on making a budget and sticking to it.
  3. Mini Adventures. I love the zoo, museums, and visiting out of the way places. There is so much to see in do in the Houston area that I just haven’t had time to do. It is time to make time. Once a month, I’m going on a mini adventure.
  4. Friends. I have amazing friends. Most of them live locally, and how often do I see them? Not so often. PLAN: I have told my friends they have no choice, we are making time for each other. Each of us have a month, and we are responsible for planning a fun friend night.
  5. Books. Reading makes me happy. I love children’s books and I love discussing them and collecting them. For Christmas I got a Reader’s journal that I’m excited to put to use, Goodreads.com helps me track, and some of my new favorite coworkers discuss books with me. This year I won’t waste time with books I don’t like.
  6. Clean House. I let the house get a little away from me. When it is clean, it is such a happier place to be. It is time to keep it that way.
  7. Shopping. Shopping makes me very very happy. The thing is, I often splurge on many small items. I would like to start focusing my funds on saving for more expensive, quality items.
  8. Journal. I have always enjoyed reflecting and documenting. My journal has become a place where I rant, and I’m not so pleased with that. This year I want to go back to recording happy things, small stories that make me smile, and reminders of how blessed my life is.

Step 2: Find a way to track and document these goals. This is the tricky part. JMO and I have talked at length on how I will document this. I made a spreadsheet I was pretty proud of, but it would be difficult to make sure I record daily on it. As of now, I made a calendar. Each month has a spot for my goal. January, for example, I will focus on my physical fitness. The plan is to work out four days a week, and to sleep 9 hours a night (I function best at 9 hours). On the calendar I will mark a “S” for days I meet my sleep goal. If it is one of the four days I am working out, I will record the length, and type of activity. At the end of the month, I will scan and post my calendar. I will also post my mini adventure and my friend night.

Step 3: Understand that this is an ever evolving process. Making goals in January for the entire year is just more likely to fail. If the calendar doesn’t seem the best tracking method after a few months, I will think and reflect and come up with a new method. If I decide that fitness needs to be the primary goal every couple of months, then it will. If I realize I really need to work on something in June, then that will be my goal for June. Resolving to be a better person for a year is just to much. One month at a time.

,
Posted on

Bob Schneider – HOB

We almost recreated Christine’s bachelorette the other night. We saw ol’ Bob at Gruene Hall and Sandra snagged us tickets for us to see him again. Leah and I went once in college too, so basically Bob is getting up there with Dave Mathews concerts now.

Girls @ Bob

Christine, Sandra, and Leah met at my house and we ate blueberry muffins for our pre-concert event. Sarah just happened to be there with a coworker, adding to our Gruene Hall recreation (we never did run into Kim, I guess living in Dallas makes that not so likely).

Bob @ HOB

This is Leah and her friend Bob. His music is just fun, so listen to it. She also remarked that he never looks the same. His hair was crazy jelled up at Gruene Hall and I think he was a skinnier man when we saw him in college.

Bob @ HOB

We were a little confused on the time of this event, so we were early. We really thought that it wasn’t going to be that crowded, but we beat the crowd. Beating the crowd allowed us to get a sweet spot. Leaving this spot and coming back to it was pretty difficult, potty breaks were tough, but it was a great view. The gals and I were super close. It was a fun night and it makes me crave some more fun nights. I need more concerts in my life.

Thank you Sandra for the tickets!

, , , ,
,
Posted on

The Pursuit of Happiness

I just read Maggie Mason’s recent blogpost, “20 Things I wish I’d known at 20” and it reminded me of all the key points and goals I’d made for myself when I read  The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. This book took me some time to read, I read a chapter or so and made notes. I had to think on her thoughts and how they applied to my life. While reading other books, I would feel like it was time for a dose from The Happiness Project.

From the start, I was struck by her words, “What you do everyday matters more than what you do once in awhile.” Somehow, I have come to be 25 years old and my life (like most) is a collection of memories of family vacations, parties, and milestones. This may be that a camera is only present at important events and thus their is only photos for reflection of milestones. So what do I do everyday? Well of course I have to read Twitter updates, check Facebook to see what all the people I’m not actually friends with are doing, and waste a good deal of time. I feel successful in my career change, and I do go to work everyday. Hanging out with kids everyday is far superior, for me, than sitting in front of a computer.

Some other gems from The Happiness Project:

  • Most decisions don’t require research
  • If your not failing, you’re not trying hard enough
  • No deposit. No return.

These lines bring up different feelings and memories. I have often been guilty of running things by my friends and relatives before making a decision. While their help is appreciated, what am I doing? Where is this fretting getting me? I could be taking action. Why aren’t I? Albeit that some decisions are major and require others input, but there are many simple things that I would be far better off going with the first thing that comes to mind.  On the flip side of that, everything that I am truly proud of in my life has taken a great time investment, hard work, and sticking to who I am. NO DEPOSIT. NO RETURN. I may need to write this large somewhere. Deposit: working through the summer, Return: having the funds to buy a car.

Maggie Mason’s post struck a few chords on things I want to work on in pursuit of my own happiness. #4. “When in doubt, shut up.” Ummm… I do the opposite. I know that I shouldn’t, but I just keep talking. I am guilty of telling people more than they should know or want to know. Her #5 ties right into that, “Don’t Complain” in her explanation she says, “Maybe venting makes you feel better, but letting off steam can also lull you into maintaining the status quo.”  And then, “If you’re frustrated, turn that energy toward fixing your problems, not bitching about them.” ACTION. I think Maggie Mason wants me to get into action. It easier to just spill out my problems. Do people perceive me as a complainer? If so, how can that be good for me or for my relationships? Her list is great. Maggie makes other points about how good I look and how I shouldn’t be intimidated. It is a good reflection tool. Please, read this list and read this book (I will loan it to you if you promise to give it back).

Happiness is my goal. It can be easy to find or it can be difficult. Maybe I need to make some signs at home as reminders or write these things on my arms. It’s funny how thinking of ways to make myself happier, is satisfying (thanks Gretchen Rubin!). These are goals I can reach. I can be proud of what I do everyday, what I do everyday makes me who I am.

, ,
,
Posted on