Old Friends

This whole month has been a wonderful trip down memory lane. Two good friends from California visited me over the past few weekends, and just this week an old college friend stayed with me on her way through town. I hadn't seen her in 6 years.

While I continue to feel more and more settled here in Boulder, I am amazed at how much more at peace I feel when surrounded by these old friends. Whether we're hiking through the snowy Rocky Mtns, waking up at 4am for a triathlon, enjoying waffles on my back porch, or just lounging on the couch talking, there is something more complete about my life when I spend it with someone who really knows me. Its as though their very presence makes me more "me" than I am without them. I wonder if they feel the same way, and I wonder what it is that makes that happen. Is it just shared experiences? Is it a similar way of thinking? Similar interests? Or a serendipitous combination of all of the above? I suppose that is a small glimpse of what marriage is like. I could be into that.

In a few minutes, I'm heading to the airport to visit my old Berkeley small group in Boston for the fourth of July. Yay! More fun friend time.

I Tri'ed

After a slow start of nearly hyperventilating as arms/legs/knees/elbows were thashing everywhere during the wave start of the swim, I calmed down and really enjoyed the challenge of completing my first Olympic distance triathlon. The bike was my favorite part, as I knew it would be. I wish I could adequately describe the feeling of cruising down a country road at 20 mph, the feel of the wind and the sun, and the line of riders to my front and back. Nothing propels me forward quite like the thought of getting passed by another rider.

Speaking of getting passed, I continue to be amazed at the level of fitness people achieve here in Colorado. While I was happy with my times on each leg, I was certainly on the slow side overall. Which means, I have to train harder next year!

Thanks SO MUCH to everyone who gave to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Thanks to all of you, I raised $2,000 for the society. You guys are the best!