Pole, Pedal, Paddle

Well, this time I sat out. Emily and I enjoyed helping the boys gather gear and make their transitions as they teamed up to finish 9th in their age group for men's pairs in Bend's Pole, Pedal, Paddle. It was an incredibly beautiful day in Bend, the boys looked good, and fun was had by all. We would all like to return for a second (or first...or 50 millionth for Kyle's dad and his partner who rocked it in their division) stab at this thing. Emily and I checked out our competition...we can take them. No prob. Thanks to the Erkkila's for putting us up at their place an hosting a great weekend adventure.


“One day your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure its worth watching.”
-?

3P: 3D: 30M

Day One- feelin good, beautiful forest

Three people, three days, and thirty miles in this third month of 2010 was the goal. Portland has lots of good coffee, beer, food, art, and community to brag about. But, Forest Park is the shiniest gem this place has to show off, in my opinion. The Wildwood Trail offers 30 delicious miles of meandering trail through the rainforest (in one direction! love that!). While access to the Wildwood is pretty easy from downtown Portland, once on the trail, you hardly know that half a million people are gettin it done just on the other side of the ferns, moss, and dense trees you are wandering through. In my mind, the trail running in Forest Park is to runners what the Wasatch is to skiers. So, to honor and completely saturate ourselves in this trail's greatness, we decided to run the whole thing from end to end in one weekend. Kyle joined Chip and I on this adventure. We are grateful he did because without him there I could have just made this whole thing up, and, he carried his camera all 30 miles and documented this adventure like a pro. Oh, and he is a really fun dude that you want along on just about any adventure you embark on.
PS- Kessler joined us for day one and three. She did a great job, but her herding instincts drove her to run a lot more miles than any of us humans. In two days, she probably ran 60 miles. We thought that was enough.

Day Two- muddier, longer, and a bit more pain.

Before you put us up on some pedestal about how healthy we are, let me complete the story by letting you know that part of agreeing to participate in this activity included a commitment to go out to eat each day after we were done running. We rewarded ourselves with treats like pizza, burritos, crepes, beer, and burgers. .. we ate our way through the weekend just as much as we as we ran our way through it. And, it was equally as enjoyable as the incredible trail. We discovered some really stellar spots in the city.

Thanks, to my husband for organizing our put-ins and put-outs ;)...and agreeing to do this adventure even though he has no time to run or train for anything these days (Pretty much we all "off the couched" this....that might explain the pain I am in right now). Thanks to Kyle and Emily for being our partners in crime again this weekend- pictures, shuttling, eating, laughing, and loving the city with us. So much fun. What's next?!

Day Three- 30.25 miles complete!

"A lot of people run a race to see who's the fastest. I run to see who has the most guts."
- Steve Prefontaine (link)

Snooze Button

Haven’t written in a while…again. I did some sand tray therapy as part of my social work studies and one thing that illuminated itself at that time and pops into my head often since then, is the idea that hibernation is good. It works for bears. However, my favorite example, and the one that came to life in my sand tray, was that of a tree. I love trees. I know, who doesn’t, right? But, I have always felt this affinity for them similar to that of my attraction to blooming flowers…or puppies…
(a sunny afternoon at our new favorite back country spot below Mt Hood)


I grew up around lots of trees, especially deciduous ones that put on a fantabulous color show in the fall…and then seemed to hibernate. They would stand there looking dead all winter, getting clobbered by snow, wind, and rain…naked. I felt sorry for them. But, then, come April, they would come back to life, and grow back not only the leaves that they dropped in the fall, but would extend their branches a tad bit further. That bright green tip reaching just beyond last year’s mark... hibernation made that possible. Trees are smart. Some of them give themselves an entire season to rest, shed the excess, and draw into their center so that they may have the energy and ability to grow that extra little bit, be that much stronger, stable, and able to support that much more life. So like a tree, I am…have been… in a bit of a hibernation, at least a blogernation (yeah urban dictionary, what do you think of THAT word?!). And, I trust that upon revival, I will extend my green tips further. In the meantime, doing my best to find center.



(an awesome weekend trip to the coast with Emily and Kyle- skim boarding on the warm, February, Oregon waters)



PS- Unlike the tree, I don’t have to stand still, or naked, to pull into center and regain strength. So, here are some photos from things of the past six weeks. Hasta pronto…mas pronto esta vez.

"Accept the present and intend the future."
- Deepak Chopra

Hear, hear!

Seriously, Ohio's tax dollars paid for this. I love it. Chip and I decided this would be our mantra for 2010.

Happy New Year! To be honest, there were some highlights in 2009, and at the end of the day, Chip and I recognize all the amazing blessings in our lives. Still, at the risk of sounding ungrateful and pathetic, in summary, it was one of those years where I hope to leave more in the past than will be remembered fondly. You want it straight- Good riddens 2009! It happens. I am, by profession and practice, pretty solution-focused. However, Chip and I found it more therapeutic this New Years Eve to shamelessly make a list of all the things that sucked about 2009 and burn it five minutes before the clock struck midnight. No longer bogged down quite so much by those things, we also took the opportunity presented by the full and blue moon to put our positive intentions for ourselves and loved ones for the coming year out to the universe.


So, we are back in Portland. It snowed upon our return and created some beauty. Find it.


We have a boatful of smiles in our pockets from recent travels. Embrace them.



And, we remain hopelessly hopeful about our future and the futures of our loved ones despite past and inevitable pain. Just do it.

This is an action shot from the bottle rocket escapade in Philly- blast off 2010!



“Peace out- one love.” - Mortified author

National DuRoss' Christmas Vacation

I have to slip in a special Christmas entry. Our trip back east was epic. We flew into Cleveland to spend the first four days with Chip’s family. This was epic in that we had not seen Chip’s parents for a year- our longest separation since….I can remember….ever? I guess we knew that was a possibility when Chip started school, but it was other complications as well that contributed to the time between visits. AND, we got to meet Derek and Hope’s newest family addition, Mercy. She completes their adorable family perfectly. The pictures accurately depict the warmth and joy shared with family in Cleveland.




Then, we hopped in the car and headed further east to Philly to spend the holiday and four more days with the Mulliken/Voss family. This was epic in that it was the first time in SIX YEARS that my family has been together in entirety. Not only was this exciting, but then we also had a mini family reunion (for the second time this year) as extended family joined us for an evening of great food, company, and drinks at Tina and John’s. The collages from this part of the trip capture the laughter and energy of our time in Philly.




We are so grateful to the hosting homes and family members in both locations. Mindy put it well when she said, “ I feel like you guys put WAY more effort into making this happen then we did in getting here.” I couldn’t agree more.

Lookin’ forward to the next time.

"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas... perhaps... means a little bit more."
-Theodor Seuss Geisel, "The Grinch"

As Promised and More

Man, it has been a while...again. But, here are the promised pictures from my visit to San Diego. Uncle David and Aunt Noreen took us to this Mexican restaurant they have been going to for 11 years or something. They knew everyone's name, exactly what dishes to order, and tequilas to sip. Preceded by a round of Noreen's famous (and surely infamous at times) margaritas at their place made for an excellent time catching up with family with which we don't often get this kind of time. Most excellent. The rest of the weekend was also full of incredible food and romantic walks on the beach, in the city, and myriad adorable small beach towns around SD.

One day before I arrived for our special weekend together, Chip had a surfing accident, split his head open, and had to get seven stitches in the middle of his face....making it impossible for us to surf or get in the water at all aside from a skinny dip on the nude beach (which was also the best beach for running...our initial reason for going....I swear....it was pretty creepy otherwise). But, as it turns out, that was perfect cause surfing is sort of an independent sport and this way I got more time with my best friend.

We snorkeled and kayaked in Lahoya Cove. We didn't get to see the leopard sharks like Chip and Chris did the following weekend, but did catch glimpses of some cool fish, sea lions both on land and in the water, and of course, seals.

Chip's been home now for almost five weeks. Very nice. He caught the end of fall, which he reports was a nice change from the consistent sunny bliss of California. I am glad I got to share at least part of my favorite season with the family back together.





I have been blessed with the most incredible orchid in my life. She has more blooms than any I have ever had the pleasure of enjoying for more than only moments at a store. Aunt Noreen (orchid owner extraordinaire) turned me on to the fact that one of my favorite plants might thoroughly enjoy Portland's cloud filtered sun and humid climate. So far, SO good.





This last photo is just a reminder that Christmas is right around the corner. What happened to Thanksgiving? Well, Chip and I had about the most mellow long weekend together we have ever had. I committed to trying new recipes all weekend- I believe I fit in seven over the weekend (caramelized onions, baba ganoush, bourbon sweet potatoes, sage white bean dip, turkey enchiladas, warm chocolate puddings, and my personal favorite of the run- turkey phu). Next update will probably be the yearly summary. Until then....

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”

-Howard Thurman

Tennis to Tap

I have not posted in a long time. Partially because there hasn't been too much exciting going on....but just typing that feels wrong....cause it IS wrong. More truthfully, Chip hijacked the camera and I have never considered posting without pictures. It feels like a cookbook without photos- I am sure there are some good recipes, but it is going to take a real visionary to give it a whirl without the photo to motivate. So, hopefully someone motivates to read this, but if not, I don't blame you. :)

What has been exciting?, you ask. Well, Chip has been in Roseburg and now San Diego on rotations. Three months of only brief moments together for the most part, means lots of time for Audrey to herself. An idle mind is the devil's playground....for me anyway. Depression, anxiety, loneliness...they all smell boredom from a mile away and come set up shop, build playgrounds, and act like they were invited. So annoying. Knowing this, I planned ahead.
Let's just say that next time we visit, perhaps we should fit in a game of tennis, or perhaps, I could perform a tap routine for you. Do you want to know about meditation, or how to raise city chickens? These are also topics I now (or will soon) know something about. Maybe you just want to sit on the front porch and play some blues on the guitar. I am making it sound like I could actually make any of these experiences enjoyable for us. However, in actuality, I think I have tried out so much and only scratched the surface of so many things in the last few months, that I recommend checking in with me in a few more months and seeing what I actually remember or still do (my prediction- tennis and tap). But, for now, it has been fun to explore so many fun things and, although I have missed my husband so much I haven't figured out how to explain it in words yet, I also have managed to keep away unwelcome guests and help the time pass quickly and enjoyably.

There have been other scary and exciting things (cancer, newborns, incredible strength and love) going on in the DuRoss clan in general that have helped me distract from deciding to throw myself a grand ole pity party about my partner being gone temporarily. Oh and, I don't think I have previously mentioned that at the end of August I also got a new job- same agency. I am now the full time child and family therapist at Milwaukie High School. This is a new program which means I have been responsible for growing a caseload and defining routines and roles within the new working relationships. So far, so good for the most part.

I get tired....and also excited...when reading this entry! There HAS been a lot going on. Life is so abundant. I feel so grateful.


"Sorrow shared is halved, and joy shared is DOUBLED!"
-Native American Saying

PS- also fit in a trip to San Diego to visit Chip and my Aunt Noreen and Uncle David- SO great. Will wait to post something with pictures when Chip gets back....next weekend! Yahoo!