you spin me right round baby right round

i just got back from my first spinning class since working at the Y. this was not my first spinning class, and although i am almost postive my crotch is broken, all in all it was a good time. it reminded me of the first time i tried the painful sport of crotch breaking back in lugano with my dear swiss friend jennifer. so, i am bringing back and oldie...but goodie... an email i wrote to my girlfriends after my first spin class in switzerland, for your reading pleasure!

ok girls....i have to share a truly unique experience with you.... tonight, my super swiss friend, jennifer and i attended our very first class at our gym....spinning. if you know me and you know jennifer, you know this was a big stretch for us. jenn is not a big fan of the bike and i certainly don't like to wear shorts in front of people, especially not black spandex biker shorts.

this is not just any spinning class, this is emotional cycle. when i hear emotional cycle, i think more about the few days before that lovely time of the month not a fitness class. basically, there is a big screen that plays a movie of the country side and the road passing through it while you cycle to the beat of the music. sounds fun, right?

so we get in there and first off we have to put these heart monitors on. of course, knowing me and jenn and every time we try to do something for the first time, we could not figure out how to put them on. after some yanking and adjusting, we were ready for the bike. paolo was the teacher. he was the same guy who helped us on our very first day at the gym so we feel comfortable with him. the big plus, he speaks english. he got us all situated on our bikes and as soon as we sat on the seats of the cycles, as if we were riding the same brain wave, jenn and i looked at each other and knew we were in for an experience. not to mention that fact that we most likely won't be able to walk in the morning. it's a pain something similar to falling down on a balance beam and horseback riding combined. ouch!

anyway...the music starts, we peddle and we peddle and we peddle. paolo is motioning for us to peddle faster, then slower, then steady...sinistra, di destra...left, right. then a new word...saldo (basically stand up and peddle like a crazy person). we of course don't really know what the words mean so we are cycling standing up while others are sitting down and naturally we are in the front row. i am sure that the people behind us thought we were insane. my heart was beating so hard in my chest and sweat was dripping from my face like a waterfall. then we rest...well peddle slower and to nice relaxing music. then the beat picks up and we are off again....20 more minutes of this madness. all of a sudden, we were done. 45 minutes of emotional cycling in south africa summed up with the sound of pachebel's canon in d techno style.

paolo shook our hands...we looked at each other...i think in a little but of shock that we actually did it. we stretched, cleaned our bikes and then walked with jello legs back to the locker room. not to bad for a night's work. it makes it even better that we conquered a fitness class taught all in italian.

we ran into my trainer on the way out the door and he said that the class was a great way to melt many many calories away so i think i will try the class again. i hope jenn will too...i mean afterwall, two people walking like they have a stick up their butt is better then one :) cheers!

*i just laughed out loud reading this again! good times! now all i need is jenn to walk around with me tomorrow :)

permed mullet...in the flesh

ok, after last week's post about the permed mullet, i have been on mullet watch.

a group of friends went to the sand gnats game on saturday to celebrate aaron's birthday (pictures to come later) and it was there that i spotted the prize.

A PERMED MULLET!!!!!!

Happy Birthday Aaron! Hope you have another year full of exciting opportunities, interesting adventures, incredible memories, tons of laughs and ice cold beer!

we pray for the children

for those of you who know me well, you know i am very passionate about my work as a fundraiser. after a couple of years of feeling lost and unmotivated in a position, i found a new home at the YMCA. the Y is an incredible organization, doing so much for so many and changing people's lives on a daily basis.

i was at a board meeting this morning and one of the program staff shared a "mission moment" about a family at one of our branches. the family is really struggling. there are four children, the oldest is 11 and acts as the caregiver for her younger siblings. the mother is very sick with depression and battling a substance abuse problem. because of our scholarship program, the Y has been able to help these kids out with a full scholarship for sports, day camp and childcare and give them a safe place to go and be kids.

after the story was shared, she read this poem. not a single dry eye in the room.

We pray for the children who sneak Popsicles before supper, who erase holes in math workbooks, who can never find their shoes. And we pray for those who stare at photographers from behind barbed wire, who can't bound down the street in a new pair of sneakers, who never "counted potatoes," who never go to the circus, who live in an X-rated world.

We pray for children who bring us sticky kisses and fistfuls of dandelions, who hug us in a hurry and forget their lunch money. And we pray for those who never get dessert, who have no safe blanket to drag behind them, who watch their parents watch them die, who can't find any bread to steal, who don't have any rooms to clean up, whose pictures aren't on anybody's dresser, whose monsters are real.

We pray for children who spend all their allowance before Tuesday, who throw tantrums in the grocery store and pick at their food, who like ghost stories, who shove dirty clothes under the bed, who never rinse out the tub, who get visits from the tooth fairy, who don't like to be kissed in front of the carpool, who squirm in church and scream in the phone, whose tears we sometimes laugh at and whose smiles can make us cry.

And we pray for those whose nightmares come in the daytime, who will eat anything, who have never seen a dentist, who aren't spoiled by anybody, who go to bed hungry and cry themselves to sleep, who live and move, but have no being.

We pray for children who want to be carried and for those who must, who we never give up on and for those who don't get a second chance. For those we smother and...for those who will grab the hand of anybody kind enough to offer it.

thank you, God for giving me the skills to do what i do.

i just permed a mullet...

ok...mullets have always been on my radar. for as long as i can remember, i was aware that the mullet was a strange cut, spotted them on strangers and even sported one myself once.

the other day i was posting something on a friend's facebook page and i came across this comment:

" i just permed a a mullet... and it was a woman!!!"

PERMED A MULLET!

i guess it's good to know that even those who have mullets want to make their hairstyles better. i mean a perm and a mullet, what else could one person need?

and i found this website...you have to check it out! its like a collection of the best mullets out there uploaded by people just like you and me.

just saying...you might want to check it out!

http://www.mulletjunky.com/

50 degrees in may

woke up to another rainy morning in savannah. it's monday...gross!

this week is going to be hard to top after the excitement of last week. a deep sea fishing trip, the arrival of an extremely cute baby, my sister graduating from college and my mom coming to savannah. what a week!

instead of trying to beat last week, i guess i will just start off this new week with high expectations for a good time. when i was dreaming last night, i kept hearing hank williams songs. that means that when my alarm clock went off this morning, i thought it was just hank williams on the radio in the car i was driving in my dream. interesting....

that being said...have a great week!

some hank for the road:

if heaven ain't a lot like dixie
i don't want to go
if heaven ain't a lot like dixie
i'd just as soon stay home

dear spencer...

dear spencer,

happy birthday! welcome to the world little man! i can't believe you have finally made your appearance. it seems like just yesterday your mommy called me to tell me that she was going to have a baby and now, here you are and man are you cute!

your mommy looked so pretty today. she couldn't keep her eyes off you! she loves you so so much already. but seriously, why did you have to give her such a hard time the last nine months? i think all of her bad memories and sleepless nights went away the moment she set eyes on you. your mom is a rock star and one my personal favorites. you are one lucky boy!

your daddy is pretty extreme too! he was so helpful to your mommy while she was waiting for you. he even got to tell mommy that you were a boy. how cool it that? i think your nose looks like him and i enjoyed watching you take a look at his face yesterday. i know he has got all kinds of plans for you!

all of your aunts and uncles in charleston were super excited to see you at your birthday party last night! everybody wanted to hold you and look at you...you are loved so much! we have all been waiting to see you and learn about you! you can bet that we will all be there to watch you grow and celebrate life. plus, since you are the first kid, i bet you will be pretty spoiled too!

i close this letter with a thought from me. the first time i saw you, you were just about only 20 minutes old, brand new and beautiful. i have never seen such a brand new baby before. you are so tiny! i was so honored to be there! when your daddy called me at 3:00 in the morning to tell me you were on your way, i could not get to the hospital fast enough! the security guard told me to calm down but i told him not to worry, that i was calm. i told him "sir, this is just how i live my life." so i hope that as you grow and evolve and become a person that you live your life too. i live mine with passion, energy and fun which, as your aunts and uncles can attest, leads to a lot of tears! i cried when i saw you but i couldn't help it! i knew how excited your mommy and daddy were to finally meet you! you have two amazing parents!

I'm so glad you are finally here and that i was one of the first ones to meet you! please don't grow too much before i get to see you again. your uncle bowman will be coming next time too and i know he can't wait to see how cute you are.

we love you so much!

love,

aunt rachel

your birthday party

look how precious you are!