Being a phenomenal indoor soccer player and an expert trail runner is so tough, I need a vacation.

This month has been a blur. Being a shorter month, February always comes and goes way too quickly. That being said, I feel like a bunch of things have happened these past 3 weeks. Let's recap.

I started playing arena soccer with my best friend from middle and high school. She and I played soccer together from the ages of about 10-18. Then we went to separate colleges and stopped playing for awhile. There was a summer during college where we played full field coed soccer. It was fun but once I got obsessed with running and krav, I just couldn't make the time for it each year. Until this winter when Eliza told me to join her weekly "indoor" soccer team. The games are outside but in an uncovered arena. You play off the walls and it's really face paced. Using the walls is exciting, because you can get awesome rebounds and goals by intentionally passing to another player off the walls near the goal. But you can also get duped on defense by players who wall pass to themselves and get around you. I am pretty familiar with this second example. 90% of the time, I'm the one getting duped. We aren't the best team out there but we aren't the worst either. I think we've won about half of them so far, but the weather has forced us to cancel some too. Ain't nobody got time to play in 30 degree downpours. #nothankyoupneumonia #gohome Anyway, it's been really fun spending time back on the "field" and catching up and reminiscing about soccer days with an old friend. (Our team name is the Pattaters in case you want to be a fan an follow the standings.)

Me attempting a wall pass.

I recently signed up for the Palmetto 200, which is a 200 mile team relay race from Columbia to Charleston. I'm on a team of 12 and we each run 3 legs, all with a few hours in between each leg. So there is only 1 person running from each team at a time. The race starts Friday morning and ends Saturday afternoon. That being said, there will be some runners who get night runs. Exciting! (Read as terrifying!) We meet soon to assign our legs. Speaking of legs, the way they broke out the legs is illogical. You would think they would divide 200 miles by 12 and get 16.67 miles for each runner. Right? Makes sense to me. But based on the "worksheet" I got via email, it's like leg distances were created arbitrarily. Some runners are running 12 miles total, while others are running 24. Say whaaat?!? If I get assigned to 20+ miles, I will kill my friend who pressured me into this. Anyway, I'll keep you posted mom and dad.

Krav life has been good. I'll start teaching my own Wednesday night class at 7:30 in March. It's going to be basic krav skills from level 1 and level 2 with a bunch of cardio throughout, because Lord knows I love cardio. Doesn't everyone? I am hoping to have a good steady following of students. I've had several women come up to me and tell me how excited they are to have a female instructor and to see a female that knows how to defend herself and fight if she needs to. I'm hoping to inspire more people to become more confident in self-defense techniques and also more prepared mentally and physically to do whatever it takes to get home safely.

On to more fun things...my family is going on a cruise this weekend. It's a five dayer out of Jacksonville. We have two days at sea, a day at Nassau, and a day at Half Moon Cay private beach. It should be nice little getaway and an escape from this awful and wet 30 degree weather we've had here. Counting down the hours to sunshine, cocktails, and a midnight chocolate buffet...less than 24 hours. BOOM. Can't wait.

cruisin'

Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit

"My two daughters are in the habit of saying 'Rabbits!' on the first day of each month. The word must be spoken aloud, and be the first word said in the month. It brings luck for that month. Other children, I find, use the same formula." -- Notes and Queries, 1909

"Why," the man in the brown hat laughed at him, "I thought everybody knew 'Rabbit, rabbit, rabbit.' If you say 'Rabbit, rabbit, rabbit'—three times, just like that—first thing in the morning on the first of the month, even before you say your prayers, you'll get a present before the end of the month." -- Robert Lynd, Solomon in All his Glory, 1922

Yesterday was the first day of February, hence the title and allusions to start the post. The tradition of saying RRR has always been a thing in my family since I was little. My mom would remind my brother and me before going to bed that we had to say "rabbit rabbit rabbit" first thing when we woke up the next morning or we'd have bad luck all month. And even to this day, at the ages of 26 and 29, we will get a text message from her with the reminder, sometimes it's simply the three rabbit emojis. My mom is becoming quite the savvy tech and social media guru. :|

This past weekend was  Super Bowl XLIX, which means Super Bowl 49 for all you normal people. My parents came over to watch the game, but my bro and I had been sick for the last few days and he fell asleep at like 8:30. So our Super Bowl "party" was more of a boring coughing/dozing get together. And I was the only one rooting for Seattle. #cheatershouldntwin #ughwhy'dtheywin? 

Even if he lost, he'd still be winning. LOOK at that family. 

Monday was Groundhog's Day, and Punxsatawney Phil predicted six more weeks of winter. Womp Womp. But from my research, I've learned that Phil is pretty much an idiot. His accuracy rating is a  39%. He's made 119 predictions (even though groundhogs only live about 6 years). Because Phil is failing predictions class, I'm not banking on this cold continuing. But during my research to prove that Phil is a furry fat dolt, I came across the history of Groundhog Day, as well as several sites in honor of the Bill Murray movie. I actually think I had to scroll through an entire page of Google search results to find the holiday. Anyway, the Groundhog Day celebration is rooted in a Celtic tradition that says if a hibernating animal casts a shadow on February 2, the Pagan holiday of Imbolc, winter will last another six weeks. If no shadow was seen, legend says spring would come early. So now I wonder, why a groundhog? I suggest we choose a smarter hibernating animal or reverse the rule. 

Punxsatawney Phil pondering seasonal change.

Well, welcome to February. Let's hope spring gets here soon!