Just because I haven’t been around for the last two months doesn’t mean I haven’t been busy – Forgive me but this is going to be a marathon blog post! So…what’s new?

• I’m now a landlord!

It was a huge deal for me to be able to buy a house at age 25 and I’ve spoken several times about how much I love my little house. But I knew I wouldn’t be there forever and when the time came, I had always planned on renting it out. I’m now living IN Raleigh, just a few minutes from Downtown and I’m loving being close to work. Plus, this is the first time I’ve lived in the “big city” so that’s been a blast too.

• Go to a concert alone
  

  CAKE concert at the Raleigh Amphitheater

I’ve never had a problem doing things alone. In fact, I often prefer it. I’ve never thought twice about going out to eat or going to the movies alone. I definitely prefer shopping alone. When it was announced that CAKE was coming to the Raleigh Amphitheater, I wanted to go but didn’t really know anyone else that wanted to. I didn’t know how I’d feel about going to a concert alone but it shouldn’t have surprised me when I found it to be one of the best concert experiences I’ve ever had. I arrived when I wanted to, went to the restroom when I wanted to, and left when I wanted to; I wasn’t beholden to the group’s majority vote. And the concert wasn’t sold out so I was able to sit down for much of the concert, spread out and sit back and enjoy the music of my high school years.

I’ve done little day trips by myself but now I think I’ll have to see if I can travel alone, especially internationally!

• Visit Every NC Brewery: Big Boss

I’ve had Big Boss beers and really enjoy them. The brewery was a bit like a frat house but a cool little chill place for hanging with friends and drinking some beers. Pretty much what you want in a brewery. Seven more breweries to visit for the year.

• Donate Blood

I’m on pace with 3 pints donated so far for the year. 3 more to go for the year. (I’ve donated 7 total pints for lifetime).

• 40 before 40 List: #38 See a Movie in a Drive-In Movie Theater: Completed

I took advantage of The Avengers making its way to the nearby drive in.  Unfortunately, I was disappointed with my experience. After being spoiled with high-definition everything, there isn’t much to write home about in regards to the picture quality.

I’m sure back when everyone drove cars, a drive in would be the way to go. Nowadays everyone has an SUV or a mini-van and although there were signs and announcements to the contrary, every one of the behemoths kept their back hatch open, effectively blocking part of the screen. I drove into 3 different parking spots until finally finding one behind a Honda Pilot that only blocked the bottom right fifth of the screen.

Within these SUVs and mini-vans, numerous children tumbled out and quickly dispersed around the area, continuing to run, jump and yell throughout the movie like I was on the set of Lord of the Flies. Since the movie’s sound came through on a radio station rather than a little box that you attached to your window, and the fact that the night was quite cool, I was able to roll up my windows, which blocked much of this noise and distraction.

What it didn’t block was the constant flashing lights of people’s cars as they opened doors, locked doors, started cars, and turned cars off. There are so many flashing lights, beeps, and honks when you do anything to a car these days, there’s really no way to avoid this but it doesn’t make it less annoying.

So I was glad to have had the experience of a drive in movie…if only to know I never need to go back.

• Warrior Dash #2

I enjoyed the Warrior Dash so much last August, I signed up to do it again this year. I felt the course was even better this year with many of the obstacles built into the landscape, taking advantage of the natural terrain, rather than simply building structures that could be found anywhere. However, because of the way many of the obstacles were structured, it meant for a lot of waiting and standing still while other participants made their way through.

Unfortunately, as I was heading into the last stretch with just a few obstacles to go, a problem I’ve had since middle school reared its ugly head. You see, I’ve had this undiagnosed heart problem since I was 12 where my heart, with no warning, will begin beating very fast. Like, 220-beats-a-minute-fast. The problem is, it never lasts for longer than a few minutes and by the time I get to a doctor, the EKG looks normal.

For much of my life, this has simply been a nuisance, bothering me no more than a couple times a year. But sometime this spring, despite being in the best shape of my life, it began acting up, happening every couple of weeks and becoming more worrisome. After a lot of hemming and hawing, I finally went to see a cardiologist and got outfitted with my very own heart monitor.

I had been wearing this attractive hunk of plastic and wires for two weeks when the Warrior Dash came around. As I couldn’t get it wet, I had left it in the car and now I was lying on the ground beside the race course having an episode I desperately needed to record. An EMT rushed over and at first all I could think of was finishing the race. However, I soon realized it wasn’t going away and I finally acquiesed to a ride in a gator to the medical tent.

From that point on, it was a blur of stress and worry as I desperately willed my heart to slow down. I had never had an episode in such a public way and with the threat of an ambulance ride to the emergency room, I couldn’t calm down enough. A friend managed to get my monitor from the car and we recorded my heart beat just as the guys with my ambulance arrived (Did I mention I was THIRD in line for an ambulance ride? There was another person with the same issue I had and another that had fallen into the fire and suffered serious burns, not to mention over 75 sprained ankles that had occurred in the first 4 hours of the day). They hooked me up to their super huge monitor, slipped oxygen up my nose, and then it was time to get on the stretcher for my first ever ride in an ambulance. As they were preparing an IV medication to slow my heart rate, I managed to choke while sipping on some water; while coughing and sputtering, I “converted,” making a very tired heart immediately slow down to a normal rhythm.

My cardiologist got the report and called while I was at the hospital, officially diagnosing me with supraventricular tachycardia and immediately calling in a prescription that I may now have to take for the rest of my life. While not what I had in mind for the day, I managed to get something diagnosed that had really begun to interfere with my ability to be active. While I’m not excited about taking medication, if it’s the difference between being able to live life or sit on the sidelines, I’ll do what I need to do!

What’s new with you?