Screw the calendars. I say it's spring.

So, technically spring doesn't officially start until another month... But have you been outside? (I'm specifically talking to people who live near me. I know the rest of the country is up to their eyeballs in snow. Sorry.) The last few days have been SO beautiful... I went to the beach on Monday. Worked on my tan. Read a book and listened to tunes with Carly. Then we went on a beach bike ride and went for happy hour sushi at RA. I mean, seriously, it was like a summer day.

Today I was able to throw open all my windows and let the breeze in. Spring breezes have always been one of my favorite things. It's one of the blessings I get from living by the beach. For some reason having the windows open and just sitting on my bed in my room makes me think of my childhood. I sit there in the quiet and feel the cool breeze... and I just get taken back. It's my own personal time machine. Today the sun was literally shining and the birds were literally singing.

Something else great and spring-like happened today... pitchers and catchers reported to Spring Training! To me, and many hard-core baseball fans, this marks the beginning of the season. The training stadiums have employees working. The clubhouses are open. Balls will be thrown and bats will be broken... starting today. This is a great thing, people. I can't explain how much I'm looking forward to some warm summer nights... listening to the sounds of the game. Seeing the boys play the game they were made to play. Feeling the excitement and electricity of being at the stadium. Watching the sun set under the ballpark lights. It makes me want to cry... tears of joy!

Also, I went for a sunset drive today. Windows down, music blasting. Soaking in the sunshine and breeze. Hey friends and family... will you remind me of this day next time I say I want to move to New York? hahaha...

xoxo

[ j. ]

OMGosh! The "holidays" are almost over! (one more for good measure)

I just realized today that with the upcoming brutal V-Day, also comes the end of the miserable-to-be-single "holiday season!" On February 15th, I can celebrate yet another year of making it through the lovey-dovey months intact, scar-free, and with my heart still beating. AND... (drum-roll please) it means it's almost time for BASEBALL to start! Glory, glory, hallelujah!

The long, cold, lonely winter season is wrapping up. Pitchers & catchers report to Spring Training on February 18th, which means my life can yet again be dedicated to the sport and team that I love with my whole heart. GO ANGELS! World Champs Twenty-Ten, baby!! Woooo!!! I'm getting my vocal chords and exclaimation points warmed up for the following 8-9 months of what is sure to be another exciting season.

Although, I am a little bummed that the Spring Training trip doesn't look like it's going to happen this year. Finances and a traveling partner are both in short supply... but who knows. I might go crazy and just book it out there at the last minute. It might be a spur-of-the-moment type of season. I currently own ZERO tickets for Angels games this season... something that hasn't occurred before the start of the last few seasons. But, trust me once tickets go on sale, I'll be buying a few choice games. Opening Day. 4th of July. Fan Appreciation Day. Bobblehead Nights. BoSox. Maybe Yankees. Maybe. I don't know how to express in words or symbols how excited I am that baseball is starting up again. I NEED this.

I need it like the sunshine. Ever hear of SAD (seasonal affective disorder)? No? Here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seasonal_affective_disorder Well, I get O-SAD. "Off-Season Affective Disorder." It causes mood-swings, random fits of pacing, obsessive Angels Baseball online viewing, overplaying of the song "Calling All Angels" by Train, and sudden "woo-ing" &/or loud clapping at things on the TV that normally elicit no fan participation. Such as Oprah. And "The Soup." And "How It's Made."

Once baseball season starts up again I can turn this fan energy back into productive uses... such as "woo-ing" at Mike Napoli, stat memorization, and sign-making! Jumbotron, here I come! Look for a serious increase of the number of times I'm on there this season. I caught the "I wanna be on the big TV" bug last year. And signs do the trick. I'm planning on spending a small fortune this year on posterboard & markers :D

In addition to the wonders and magic that is baseball season... This Friday starts the Winter Olympics! I know not many people get pumped for the Olympics like I do... but oh well... I'm really looking forward to it! Ever since I was little I always had a secret dream to be an Olympic Champion Skier. (Some dreams are never meant to come true haha!) But one of my best memories in LIFE was when Picabo Street won the gold medal for the Super-G in the 1998 Olympics.

I think my love for the Olympics is partly because skiing and swimming were the only two sports I would consider myself to have been "a natural" at when I was a kid. When I watch the Winter Olympics, I can feel the skis on my feet, the slip of the snow, the wind... I don't really know what it's like to play other sports. Even baseball or softball... I was never good at team sports as a kid. I would always panic at the thought that other people depended on me performing well. I would buckle under the pressure. Plus, I wasn't exactly the first one to be picked on a team. Kids my age knew not to expect much from the chubby girl wearing leggings tucked into her sneakers and an over-sized t-shirt with a picture of an elephant on it. Solo sports, competing against myself... that's what I've always been better at. I sure would love to go skiing again... I haven't been since snowboarding took over, though. And apparently people would "make fun of me" and "yell things at me" on the slopes. So I'd have to make sure to wear gloves with good flexibility in the middle finger area.

Bottom line... I am a sports nut. I'm picky about what sports I am fanatic about... but when I love a sport, I LOVE it. The sports fan passion runs in the family (have you seen G-ma's Jeff Gordon/Jimmie Johnson room?!) but for me I know one of the reasons I love to follow sports is because I wasn't athletic as a kid. I was never on a team of any kind growing up... except for what the P.E. teachers force you to play. Skiing and swimming I was good at, yeah, but even that stuff ended after middle school... partly due to my foot injury but also because I just wasn't passionate about sticking with it. I always had it in my mind that I was going to be physically incapable my whole life. I wasn't a sporty person. I'd be good at other things. Painting. Math. You know, being smart and stuff. So watching athletes in their prime appeals to me. I know how hard it is for me to run a mile... so watching them is like watching real-life superheroes to me.

And, side note: Now, more than ever, I want to prove to myself that sports, athleticsm, CAN be my thing. I CAN be in shape. If I work hard at something, I have the ability to accomplish it. Sure, the chances of me being a world-famous downhill skier are probably around as likely as me winning the lotto or getting struck by lightning... but there are other things that I can accomplish. Things that if I work hard enough... they're within my reach. For example... on my bucket list I have a goal. This goal is to run a marathon. First of all, I can't run for 30 seconds straight without feeling like I'm having a cardiac incident or asthmatic attack at this point. Actually, I'm not sure if that's true anymore... I haven't tried in quite some time. And I'm pretty damn capable on the elliptical these days. And I'm stronger now, too. And I can't even remember the last time I needed an inhaler. But either way, let's just say running isn't my thing. In fact, I'd rather eat my own feet than go for a jog. Which is precisely why I have to do it. It'll take a lot of hard work. I'll have to get there very slowly. But someday. I will. Run. And complete. A marathon. And, c'mon... if Oprah can do it, I can do it.

Baaa-zing! Two Oprah references in one blog. Damn I'm good.

Thanks for reading :)

[ j. ]