What's your motivation?

Motivation. We all need it, some more than others. For me it's easy. Challenge me to a competition or say I can't do anything and I have all the motivation I need. Like when I was 10 and a boy told me a couldn't jump off the playground and grab onto the monkey bars. Well, I had to accept the challenge and accomplished it. Only to lose my grip and fall to the ground breaking my arm in two places. But it was worth it. Another favorite was being challenged to graduate high school with a 4.0 GPA. You can sure bet I accepted that challenge and had all the motivation I needed for 4 years. Even though it was a struggle at times, I did in fact graduate with a 4.0 and got into a bunch of good universities.

But enough about those challenges, I have faced two more that gave me all the motivation I needed. During my sophomore year in high school, I suffered a shredded ACL and torn medial meniscus. Fun times. Once I realized that this injury would put an end to sports for a good six months and severely hinder my college athletic career I had dreamed of, I had my motivation. I had a goal of being back to sports in 9 months. Unfortunately, some minor setbacks did not allow me to accomplish this. After I got the bad news, I have to admit that I lost some motivation. But a few good long talks with my track coach and physical therapist and I was ready to be back. It only took two more months until I was cleared for everything. I had never been so happy for my first brutal track practice in my entire life.

However the next challenge was even more difficult. During my senior year I decided it would be fun to tear my ACL in the other knee just to have matching scars. I'm kidding of course. But this news hit me like a ton of bricks. I even believe that I did start to slide into a bit of depression because of it. I felt like I had lost everything; my athletic identity, the daily sense of competition, and my college athletic aspirations. Even though I felt lost, one person could talk me out of it and it was an unlikely source. I ran into my former middle school basketball coach and he had such a simple message for me. He told me just don't give up, when you want to stop fighting think of all the reasons you have to continue. This really hit home with me. Instead of feeling down, I began to look for the positive in the situation. For example, it introduced me to the world of physical therapy, which is what I may going to school for. I found my future motivation in terms of education, but my motivation to get back in shape was at about 0%. I didn't have a sport to return to or a deadline to meet, so I took my time. Now at just over two years later I finally am back to where I was prior to my surgeries. All it took was finding a friend just as passionate about sports to motivate me. I have to thank her because I may not be where I am today.

And because I lost a bet, I have to post a picture of me of their choosing. Unfortunately for me, they picked one of me after working out. I am sweaty and it's not pretty. But a bet is a bet. Just know that I will get them next time.



Until next time, "There is no finish line." ~Nike

AJ

A Long Time Coming

I have known my best friend since we were three years old. In other words, going on seventeen years now. We first met at dance class and then found ourselves at the same school the next year. Since they, we had spent every school year together in the same class until high school graduation. We were inseparable when we were younger. I think the longest we had ever been apart was one week when I was on vacation. I was at her house so much that her parents started calling me their third daughter and I treated her little sister like she was my know little sister. So needless to say, we have shared some incredible experiences. From her watching me get hit in the head with a baseball bat to both of us breaking our arms. And how could I forget the speeding to get back on time for a volleyball match and winning the county tournament. Those are just a few of the thousands I could list.

Well all those experiences have to make more for some new ones. Last week while she was on leave from the military, we decided to take a little trip to Chicago. We had a lot planned for only 2 days and boy did we have some fun. It all started with the train ride. Let's just say that one of the workers on the train carried bubbles in his pocket and posed for cameras. Draw your own conclusions. After getting into the city and making our way to where we were staying, the stories started. My cousin was fascinated about hearing my friend's stories from Afghanistan. We spent the whole rest of the day talking, laughing, eating, and drinking.

The next day was the exploration day. We headed down to Michigan Avenue, aka the Mag Mile. First stop was the Hershey store. After tons of free samples and the required pictures, we got our giant cookies and headed to the next stop. Another chocolate place! This time it was Ghirardelli. More free samples followed and a delicious chocolate later, we had our fill. Now that the chocolate was consumed, we went to actual stores. The staples were all covered. But the most time was spent at the Disney Store picking out stuffed animals to buy. Yes, we are both over 20, but are 5 years old at heart. Following the happiest place on Earth, we visited one of my favorites, Coach. Needless to say I could have spent my entire bank account there if I wanted too. Instead we decided it was time for more food. And what to you eat at a time like this? Gino's East Chicago deep dish pizza of course. Man that stuff is good. Now for the coolest part of the trip, heading up to the Sky Deck, 1003 floors off the ground. Even though I am not scared of heights, I wondered if i might be once I got up there. Nope, it was incredibly cool to stand and see all of Chicago, even out over the edge in the glass box. Next was our last stop for the day, the awesome Shedd Aquarium. If you are ever in Chicago, you must go. It is so interesting to see all the animals and if you can handle the crowds, you can witness some really cool things.

So that was basically our whole trip, other than the last day when we went out for brunch before heading home. All in all, it is definitely an experience that I will never forget. Of all the stuff my best friend and I have been through, it was awesome to just spend time with her and have some fun. We already have our next trip down there planned. I hope the city is ready.

Til the next time, "There is no finish line."

AJ

Oh the Places We Go!

So I have this tradition that I try to have dinner with my grandparents at least once a month while I am home from school. Now I prefer to just have my grandmother cook as anything she makes is fantastic, but I recently went out to eat with them for a change. While the food is wonderful, the part about these meals that I love most are just talking to them about their travels and the crazy stories they can share. Since they are retired, they have a great deal of time to travel. But the traveling bug started when their children were little and really kicked in after their kids were all off at college. In the past 23 years, they have both filled 3 passports full of stamps from other countries. They have been all over this globe and I am amazed at how much they do. So of course every time I eat a meal with them, the topic of travel is guaranteed to come up. I happen to have an inquiring mind on the topic and they love to share stories. For example, I still like hearing the story about how their crystal collection started, what kind of unusual jewelery my grandpa finds for my grandma, and even about the time my grandpa and his friend were robbed at knife point by pirates while on a cruise around Africa. But this meal shifted from stories when I brought up an interesting question. I asked what 10 placed or things I need to see during my own travels. They looked at each other with a puzzled look, then my grandpa said, "That is a fantastic question. Let me think about it for a minute, but I am positive I will have more than 10." While after much discussion, I now have a new list to accomplish. Now presenting the TOP 10 PLACES to VISIT in no particular order.

1. Cape Town, South Africa. I am told this is a must at least once in my life. My grandparents have been I think 4 times at this point and have always loved their visits. And while I'm there, I have to go on a real African safari as well.

2. Paris, France. Yes this is probably cliche, their words not mine, but they had rave reviews for the food and the shopping of course. The Eiffel Tower is on the must see list there, and they know me so well that they said I should plan it around the French Open so I can catch some tennis while I'm there.

3. Norwegian Fjords. Judging from their pictures, it is truly breathtaking scenery.

4. Panama Canal. This is one of those things you do just to say you did. They passed through it while on a cruise around South America. I rather like that option.

5. Egypt. The Great Pyramids, the Sphinx, Camels rides, etc. This is still my grandfather's favorite trip they took. He has many of the pictures in his office and dreams about going back.

6. The Great Wall of China. This is the only item on the list that they haven't visited. My grandpa has wished for years that they would make it there, but sadly with their declines healths, the trip is no longer possible. But this doesn't stop my grandpa from raving about it and telling me all these great stories he knows about it.

7. The Grand Canyon. The one place I will get to in the near future, next year to be exact. Simply beautiful from everyone I know who has been there. Plus I enjoy hiking so it's right up my alley.

8. Peru. Probably more specifically Macchu Picchu. I will probably have to train for this trip as my body is not used to that much altitude, hiking, and camping. But if they can visit, I sure as heck will too.

9. Alaskan Cruise. My grandparents highly recommended this one to me. They said it was one of their all time favorite, and coming from them it says a lot. Waking up early to do some whale watching doesn't sound so bad to me.

10. A very small village in Germany. I always spell it wrong so I won't attempt it here. This place isn't known for anything overly special. There are no great monuments, well-known museums, etc. However it is the village that my great, great, great grandparents came from when they immigrated to the United States in the 1860s. So while others may not find it interesting, it is part of my history and I hope to visit there.

And a few extras to visit if I have the time:
Barcelona, Spain
French Quarter, New Orleans
U.S. Virgin Islands
Seychelles
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Athens, Greece (Jealous my sister is going next summer)
Westminster Abbey (Need I say why ;))
Switzerland
Hershey, PA (Again my chocolate obsession strikes)

So I now have every trip planned I could probably ever take thanks to my grandparents. And our next meal will involve the best restaurants I need to eat at. All I can say is that I am very thankful to have my grandparents and their inspiration to go out and see the world/experience new things. Now if only I had the money I would start tackling this list tomorrow. Until next time, "There is no finish line."

~AJ