Lately, I’ve been feeling less like myself, but more like myself at the same time. I’ve been doing the things I love to do, but never had the time/patience/motivation to do until now. I’m volunteering more. I’m going out more. I’m staying in more. I’m working less. I’m hanging out with new people. I’m attempting to keep in better touch with older friends. I’m focused on seeing my family back east, but I’m not letting it dictate my next vacation. I’m drinking more coffee. I’m running more, working out more. I’m doing things on a whim. I’m learning to let go. And I’m rock climbing (again).
Just like skiing, I took a major hiatus (even more so) from rock climbing. I used to climb quite a bit until I started thinking more about my second-cousin’s horrific rock climbing accident that happened when I was a kid. It started freaking me out more as I got older and I just stopped. One day, I said, I’m done with ropes, and just bouldered. Then I said, I’m done with bouldering and never looked back. Until now. Late at night one December evening, I was laying in bed and trying to think of a great present for me (ex) boyfriend (but then-boyfriend at the time). I thought rock climbing would be the perfect activity, so I bought this groupon for some lessons and passes to the gym. We broke up, but I still had these darn passes so I went last Friday night with a friend of mine and I’m hooked again. The feeling of climbing higher and higher, strategically placing your fingers and toes in holds, brought me back to a time where that was all I wanted to do. It’s Jenny 2.0. And I love the feeling that you have to push away that fear of falling. I think it mirrors life in a lot of ways, and the risks we have to take to achieve something great, and the hard work it takes to get there. Which brings me to my next Jenny 2.0 improvement.
I’ve started to volunteer more with a philanthropy group in the city. Technically, I started doing this about a year ago, but I have recently become more involved and I find it refreshing and rewarding. A good friend of mine from the group, Krista, is running for LLS Woman of the Year. Her campaign, Live.Love.Starr’s, namesake is another good friend of ours, Starr, who is a lymphoma survivor. Krista plans on raising over 100K in 10 weeks for LLS as part of her campaign and I’ve been crazy enough to volunteer to help. But I’m also stoked. As part of her campaign, I’ve been trying to bring a different edge to the fundraisers. I’m hoping to incorporate more “casual” events and “active” events, completely in line with my philosophy that women don’t have to always wear heels and order wine. We can bike and ski and rock climb and run and then enjoy a post-workout beer just like the guys. Since the Live.Love.Starr team is primarily women, I thought this would be a great opportunity to tie in the message that women can rock. They can also inspire, and we hope to do both in the next 10 weeks. Please support Live.Love.Starr any way you can. You can “like” us on facebook and follow us on twitter @ livelovestarr. This is a great cause and I’m strangely feeling more like myself these days, giving back.
Follow your heart and find your inspiration.
Chicks Like Sports Too 