Finally!!!

I have been wanting to get a bike for about a year and a half now. Well, Friday was the day that I finally got one! I am now a proud owner of a Trek 3700 women's specific bike. It was in the price range that I wanted to start out on. Unfortunately I don't have a digital camera and I'm having problems accessing the pictures that I took on my camera phone, so here is a picture courtesy of the Trek website:

Isn't it pretty? Nathan helped me name it. It is now known as Polka Dot, but I like to call it "Ol' Polky".

Nathan and I went riding around my neighborhood on Friday. We rode about 5 miles. Surprisingly I felt like I could have gone more, but it was getting dark.

On Saturday we decided we were going to hit the trail. I was hoping to go on the Pig Trail because that is the one that I always ride because I totally love it. Well, Nathan took me to Thomson. I got discouraged at first because he took me around the hard part and I walked the majority of it. I guess that now I know what I can eventually try and do. After the hard part, he took me to an easier part. I barely got off the bike at that part. There was one hill that I wasn't comfortable going down and then there was another one that I almost made up if it weren't for a root that was sticking out of the ground and caught my pedal. I also had my first crash on the bike. I saw a big root and thought that it would be better to stay to the left, but there ended up being a tree and I headed right for it. I ended up walking/riding 3 miles. I think that I can end up liking Thomson some.

So now I'm not as scared any more. I did get a little whiny with fear at some points, but I'm just going to have to suck it up. Also, Nathan really helps me because he is always encouraging me. He's really been helping me out and helping me stay positive. He told me that he was very proud of me on Saturday.

At the Tour...

On Sunday I went to the Tour de Georgia with Nathan, Karen and Renee. Karen and Renee were determined to stalk-I mean-to meet some cyclists. They got to meet David Millar, Freddy Rodriguez, Ryder Hesjedal and Tyler Hamilton. Karen even got to take a quick picture with George Hincapie. They took some awesome pictures with these guys. Check out Renee's blog to see them. My goal was to get a picture of Dave Zabriskie. Did I meet that goal? No. I did what I do best-I chickened out. What is sad is that I chickened out for the second year in a row. Last year I was determined. I had my sister Karen walk up to where Dave was signing autographs and taking pictures with me. I got next to Dave and just stood there. As he was going back into the RV to get ready for the race, my sister had to get his attention and ask him to take a picture with me.

This year was classic. I found out where team CSC was and was determined that I would not do a repeat of next year. It was worse this year. I walked toward a group of three riders-among them Dave, and I stopped and turned back around. My boyfriend even offered to go up there with me. I just couldn't do it. Pretty sad.

Other than that, the day was good. We walked around the Live Healthy Georgia Expo. They had lots of neat things. I got sunburnt-but that was my fault for being stubborn and not wanting to put on any sunscreen. Overall it was a fun day!

Fear

I have a few friends who are cyclists. Every now and then I would go riding with them and my sister Karen. I had a weird pattern-I would so totally be into it and then I would get lazy and not go. I was doing so well around September-October about riding. My boyfriend and I would go to the Pig Trail and ride or we would ride around my neighborhood. I was doing so much better on the trail. In the past I had to walk the trail a bunch of times because I couldn't do some of the climbs and then I started getting better to where I wouldn't have to get off as much. I loved going down the hills and riding over roots. Then something weird happened-I got scared. I just cannot think of why. I fell twice (in one fall I went over the handle bars), but I thought that it was the coolest thing and kept riding. I tried to overcome that fear about two months ago. Nathan and I went to the trail behind the church by the Russell Parkway extension. I mostly walked the course. I was even scared of going down the hills.

Now that the weather is getting nicer I have decided that I need to beat that fear. I am going to beat it one step at a time. I'm going to start with a little bit of riding around my neighborhood and then I'm going to try and get back to the trail. I will not let the fear get to me. I need to conquer this.

The Tour is Here!!!

I always look forward to this time of year. The Tour de Georgia has officially begun! The last several years I've gone to see the last three stages. This year I'll only get to see two.

Today Nathan (my boyfriend) and I went to see Stage 1 end in Macon. I left school today the minute the bell rang. I was able to beat the traffic from the kids leaving. I wanted to leave the school the quickest that I could because I determined to get to Macon at a decent time. I was also paranoid about finding parking when we got there. Luckily, that was not an issue. I parked at a bank and we walked to where they had the finish line. We got there just in time because the riders were already starting on the circuit part. We were able to get a good place to stand and watch. It's always a problem for me to find a good spot because it never fails that someone taller than me decides to stand in front of me and then I can't see. I did not have that problem today. Here is the best picture that a took:
After the race was finished Nathan and I walked around a little. I got to see Dave Zabriskie, which was awesome. He's my favorite rider that is on the tour. He was riding away with his teammates. I tried to take a picture, but I was too late. Oh well-another time.

On our way back to the car, Nathan and I walked through where they have the Live Healthy Expo. They were already packing when we got there. I was able to go to the Jittery Joes display where I bought a travel mug and some coffee. The coffee is excellent might I add. I wasn't too worried about not seeing the rest of the stuff at the Live Healthy Expo. I'll be headed to Atlanta on Sunday to catch the end of the Tour with Nathan, my sister Karen and my friend Renee so I'll be able to see more then.

Burnt out

I am so glad that it's the weekend! I'm in that stage in my job where I start going through "burn out". I teach Spanish in a high school, which I totally enjoy. I've been teaching for about 6 years now. The beginning of the school year is an exciting time-new students, I'm all rested from Summer vacation and new teaching stuff to try out. Mid-year through I'm doing alright. I'm still trying out new things, the students have gotten used to me and I have my little system so that I can get organized. Around this time of year all hell breaks loose. I'm tired, I have no motivation to teach, the students are driving me crazy, and I take forever to grade things. Also, my organization system is totally forgotten. Now its to where I just stick papers wherever.

The count down to summer vacation has officially begun! At the moment there are 34 more days of school left (not counting weekends). Wish me luck so that I can make it!

My mind went blank...

I've been reading some blogs and found them interesting, so I thought to myself "self, why don't you start one too?". So here I am-starting a blog. The sad thing is that right now I'm just sitting here thinking about what to write. I had all these things to write about before and now I cannot think of a thing. Go figure. My first post and I have a brain fart. :)