{"id":379450,"date":"2014-08-11T04:24:00","date_gmt":"2014-08-11T04:24:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/index.php\/2014\/08\/11\/heating-things-up-slowing-them-down\/"},"modified":"2014-08-11T04:24:00","modified_gmt":"2014-08-11T04:24:00","slug":"heating-things-up-slowing-them-down","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/index.php\/2014\/08\/11\/heating-things-up-slowing-them-down\/","title":{"rendered":"Heating Things Up & Slowing Them Down"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Phew! Is it ever hot and muggy on this Tennessee morning!<\/span><\/div>\n
Though I knew it was wishful thinking, I hoped that those dark clouds blowing in last night would have brought with them a little cooler air.<\/span><\/div>\n
Um, no<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/div>\n
This morning\u2019s air is stifling, muggy like a swamp.<\/span><\/div>\n
As I walked across the parking lot, wiling my mind to think about this post, all I could think about was how freaking hot it was, how gummy my skin felt at the end of the long day in a sweatbox gym yesterday.<\/span><\/div>\n
It\u2019s seven-thirty and the morning and it\u2019s already heating up.<\/span><\/i><\/div>\n
Voila!<\/span><\/i><\/div>\n
Though that will be one of this week\u2019s last Happy Moments, it\u2019s a great way to start. Titles and words and wondering how we\u2019re ever going to string them together to make some sort of sense are like our best friends and worst enemies.<\/span><\/div>\n
And aren\u2019t we in our glory when those thoughts pop into our head?<\/span><\/div>\n
Could those Moments be the creatively genius sprites Liz Gilbert says we all have access to?<\/span><\/div>\n
If you haven\u2019t seen her <\/span>TEDTalk about our universal brilliance<\/span><\/span><\/a>, it\u2019s a must see.<\/span><\/div>\n
Thanks to Madame Liz, I\u2019m feeling happily brilliant this morning!<\/span><\/div>\n
That expression about things heating up is relevant in so many ways, Journeyer.<\/span><\/div>\n
As you know, we are definitely warming our tires and burning up the highways as we make the roughly three thousand miles trip to help our son relocate from Shreveport to Charlotte.<\/span><\/div>\n
The landscapes thus far are spectacular and scenery changes provide a fresh look at an otherwise ordinary life.<\/span><\/div>\n
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Imagine this gloriousness if your view wasn\u2019t filtered through a bug stained windshield!<\/span><\/div>\n
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Fortunately for Fave and Warren and I, our seven day marathon trip is being broken up into several components.<\/span><\/div>\n
Warren and I have been working feverishly in preparing to leave, so we welcomed our nice first respite.<\/span><\/div>\n
We made a stop in my hometown of Raleigh, where six of our family members were able to join us for dinner.<\/span><\/div>\n
Thanks to Yelp, I found this fabulous place called The Poppyseed Market.<\/span><\/div>\n
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According to our delightful waitress, Emily, the restaurant began in one small room and then took over two contiguous spaces as it grew. The owner named the establishment after her grandfather, whom she called \u201cPoppy.\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n
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Our delightful waitress! Look at those dimples she inherited from her mom!<\/span><\/div>\n
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Sign over the Kitchen Door<\/span><\/div>\n
If you\u2019re ever in the Raleigh are, this place is an absolute must for great ambiance, local brews, and food that is unparalleled, whether it be a sandwich\u2026<\/span><\/div>\n
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\u2026an authentic Philly Cheesesteak\u2026<\/span><\/div>\n
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\u2026beet salad\u2026<\/span><\/div>\n
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\u2026or the most scrumptious North Carolina raised Butternut Squash lasagna\u2026<\/span><\/div>\n
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I\u2019m drooling just remembering how each bite of that deliciousness tasted\u2026<\/span><\/div>\n
Following that meal, we popped in to see my dad and stepmom; they weren\u2019t supposed to be in town but ended up canceling their trips due to a health issue. No matter how brief the visit is, spending time with family is always a good time.<\/span><\/div>\n
Heck, and I say this jokingly and with all the love in the world, but sometimes with families brief is even better.<\/span><\/div>\n
And when you have a sis who stays up all night with her partner preparing a delicious send off breakfast, life just gets better and better.<\/span><\/div>\n
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The second leg of this trip is broken up by a training seminar that Hubby and Son are putting on in Tennessee.<\/span><\/div>\n
For any of you Crossfit enthusiasts, this magnificent building has everything you need to heat up those muscles and maximize your workout.<\/span><\/div>\n
I, myself, don\u2019t like sweat running down my bra or my back, or dripping from my forehead for that matter!<\/span><\/div>\n
I guess you could say I\u2019m a little bit spoiled since all of my exercise growing up was either in or near a pool.<\/span><\/div>\n
The thirty people I\u2019ve been watching and photographing these past two days certainly don\u2019t seem to mind a sweaty body, but then, they do come prepared with gallon jugs of water and sweat rags and appropriate clothing.<\/span><\/div>\n
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Hmmmm<\/span><\/i>\u2026I wonder if there\u2019s something out there that would disguise the tomato red flushing that comes with strenuous exercise and makes my face look like a salad topping\u2026<\/span><\/div>\n
Guess that\u2019s another problem for a different day!<\/span><\/div>\n
Speaking of this group, they have been one of my week\u2019s fondest, happiest memories.<\/span><\/div>\n
In a few short hours a number of them have become like a part of our big extended family; they are warm and generous and interested and totally interesting people, people who aren\u2019t afraid to share their stories and their lives and their vulnerabilities.<\/span><\/div>\n
That sounds weird, right, that these strong, athletic individuals would be vulnerable? But aren\u2019t we all that way when we are first leaning something new? When we are tackling something we\u2019ve never done before?<\/span><\/div>\n
The smiles on their faces as they set new personal records and learned something they didn\u2019t previously know or the excitement they exhibit when something they didn\u2019t quite understand before coming to this seminar suddenly makes complete and total sense\u2026all of those Moments have fed my happy, Journeyer.<\/span><\/div>\n
Isn\u2019t it great how happiness spreads like that?<\/span><\/div>\n
Other moments that made me smile include the boxes of donations I delivered to the Salvation Army and the chocolate chip cookies I made for Big Guy and Beauty before leaving home, sort of like sweet forget-me-nots.<\/span><\/div>\n
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I delivered a few of these treats and a card to an elderly, widowed neighbor who would be undergoing surgery to remove a segment of her cancerous bladder in two short days.<\/span><\/div>\n
And I dropped off a few to the auto body guy who is ready to repaint Zee! I am so excited about this first phase of restoring this little car to her glory days. And there\u2019s nothing like buttering up the guy who\u2019s going to paint your car.<\/span><\/div>\n
Talking about sweet, there\u2019s nothing like spunky and playful ten-week old kittens to brighten your day. The young couple Fave is staying with rescued these felines from the dumpster in their apartment complex.<\/span><\/div>\n
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The sight and scent of these fresh blooms was a welcome reprieve when we stopped for a potty break after so many long hours in the car.<\/span><\/div>\n
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And then there\u2019s this little bit of bittersweet joy\u2026<\/span><\/div>\n
Bessy, named after the handle my grandpa gave his automobiles, has safely transported our family all over these United States for more than seven years.<\/span><\/div>\n
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Though her exterior is starting to rust from years of New York\u2019s salted winter roadways, her heart still chugs along\u2026<\/span><\/div>\n
Fave commented numerous times over the seven hour trek from Charlotte to Tennessee about how comfortable the seats were.<\/span><\/div>\n
Happy happens, Journeyer, whether it be sitting on a comfy chair inside a 2004 minivan, staring at the landscape around us, waking from a good night\u2019s sleep, or in the conversations we have with others.<\/span><\/div>\n
That said, I\u2019ve even had a few delightful (some might say delusional) exchanges with myself.<\/span><\/div>\n
One other glorious side effect of this trip lies in the fact that Warren and I have a break from the heavy conversations we\u2019ve been having since beginning therapy.<\/span><\/div>\n
That sort of work is equally necessary, exhausting, and frustrating, for there is always tension and trauma when we have to revisit our old painful stories.<\/span><\/div>\n
Who knows, maybe this little diversion, this bit of slowing those discussions will heat things up in an entirely different context. <\/span><\/div>\n
What about you, Journeyer? What sorts of events or Moments heated up your joy this past week? I\u2019d love it if you\u2019d share any or all of them here!<\/span><\/div>\n
Yours in healing, hope, and happiness.<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/span><\/span>Soon\u2026<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n

~AE<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Phew! Is it ever hot and muggy on this Tennessee morning! Though I knew it was wishful thinking, I hoped that those dark clouds blowing in last night would have brought with them a little cooler air. Um, no. This morning\u2019s air is stifling, muggy like a swamp. As I walked across the parking lot, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3287,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[316,1207,317,63,320,728],"class_list":["post-379450","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-happyhappens","tag-crossfit","tag-finding-happiness-in-your-day","tag-parenting","tag-random-happiness","tag-travel"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/NC-Mountain-View1.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379450","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=379450"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379450\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3287"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=379450"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=379450"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.annahelizabeth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=379450"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}