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July 31, 2005
Knitting
The highlights from last night:
My brother and sister proclaiming they WILL google the blog. I am expecting visitors any moment now.
A former co-worker of Becky’s announcing she is taking me to the knitting store with her. She thinks it would be a good hobby for me. I AM looking for new hobbies (especially ones that don’t require my body so that if I get hurt I can fill my time) but I just don’t feel the love for knitting. What is cool is that this woman has serious passion for knitting so it is nice to know people can have passion for non-sports things. I just have to find one I do have love for.
Meeting Nanda’s friends. They are super nice and fun and they were outside at a bar by the water last night. It was absolutely gorgeous weather. However, by this time it was the latest I have been out in weeks and I was falling asleep…Sometime around 12:30 AM I was rambling about sororities (a book I am reading), knitting, and dual citizenship.
This morning I got the first swim lesson I have had in about 11 years and it was the BEST swim lesson ever. For starters, I was the only student so I had all of the instructor's attention. At first I was self-conscious b/c I am not good and my friend definitely is but then I figured that was why I was there in the first place. Some quick tips include: don’t spread my fingers out when I swim, my left arm should be closer to the water when I do crawl (to match my right arm which does it correctly), and I should be rotating my body more with each stroke. Also, I am supposed to kick more. My friend and I had a discussion about “triathlon” swimming in which I explained tri swimming has less kicking and he thought that was interesting-but he still wanted to teach me how to swim correctly! I had NO idea that correct swimming uses so much leg strength. The pool was 33.3 yards long and I definitely got a hard workout during the lesson. I am SOO grateful he took the time to teach me b/c even by the end of the one hour lesson my stroke count (number of strokes it takes to go from one end of the pool to the other) had gone from 24 to 21. Before the lesson I was, quite simply, a mess. {PS. I also learned how to do flip turns!}
Later a former co-worker and I are going to see Murderball, a documentary about wheelchair rugby and the people who play it.
Posted by Audrey at July 31, 2005 02:26 PM
Comments
Knitting is such a joke between my mom and I! My grandmother was a proficient knitter who tried to teach my mother many many times and failed miserably. My grandmother then tried to teach all three of us local granddaughters how to knit and that did not work either. Know I think that it could be kind of cool, but I am so inept. I told my mom that she should taking the knitting class that is offered at the Y, but she says that she could never learn so it would be a waste of time, but that I'm younger so that there is still hope for me to learn.
Swimming is so much about technique. The things that your friend mentioned sound like some of the common fixes. Many of my tri friends ask me for advice on swimming because there are so many things that competitive swimmers know about from the years and years of pool time. It is surprising, but your kick does drive your stroke. Good luck with your new pointers!
Blondie
Posted by: Blondie at July 31, 2005 07:18 PM
Sometimes its wierd when people I know find my blog. It makes me kinda self conscious about saying things that I'm thinking (especially if its something odd). I guess there could be alot of people reading it and I haven't really noticed.
Glad that swim lesson helped you so much. I probably could use a few myself. No triathlons for me, but it would be nice to know how to swim well.
Posted by: Jon in Michigan at July 31, 2005 07:23 PM
I need to take a swimming lesson too. I've become a better swimmer over the last year and a half, but I am so inefficient. (I haven't had a lesson since I learned how to swim as a kid.) I am real bad at not using my legs much. That's awesome that you can do flip-turns...I tried them a few months ago and just got all turned around and dizzy. 33.3 yard long pool, eh?! That's an usual length.
Let us know how 'Murderball' was...I've heard lots of good reviews.
--Steve S.
Posted by: Steve S. at August 1, 2005 09:14 AM
You were not rambling! I'm glad you were able to stop by! I had been yawning since about 11pm and my legs were so tired by the time we left. I can't believe I get more tired standing now than before I ran, I guess it makes sense but still.
Posted by: Nanda at August 1, 2005 11:31 AM
Hmm, knitting? You don't seem like much of a knitting girl to me, but if you learn, maybe you could teach me a thing or two. :)
It sounds like you had an excellent swimming lesson. Congrats on learning to do flip turns!
Posted by: Leilani at August 1, 2005 11:52 AM
Audrey:
I'm still up for taking you for to the yarn store! Just think of knitting like running a race without trying to win.
Posted by: Jennifer at August 1, 2005 04:50 PM