Let’s Talk about the Positives

Not to be a downer, but I’ve had a really bad week. Last Friday through this Friday was probably the roughest week of my life. That’s all I’m going to say for now. I’ll fill you in someday. Until then, I’ll leave you (and myself!) with some good things that happened this week!

Positives:

  • Currie (2 years old) has successfully learned to race. She’s always been a runner, but she’s tactical now. She’s particularly interested in cutting people off and boxing them in if they are likely to beat her. I can see this helping her perform well in her college conference championships and also in the 2032 Olympics. (Heh…)
toddler running at myrtle beach

The kid loves to run!

  • We live 2 blocks from Starbucks and some combination of Jeff, Currie or I go there every day. When I walked in alone on Tuesday and ordered a pumpkin spice latte my barista asked, “where’s your Short Blonde?” I went into a long story about my mother-in-law being in town and all the reasons Currie was staying at home with her. I had to blush when I realized she was asking about my normal drink order… short blonde (veranda blend).
starbucks blonde roast

Short Blonde. Cue heavenly music… ahhhhhhh!!!!

  • My mother-in-law brought gifts, including an OSU shirt, some dark chocolate covered pretzels, and a pumpkin cookbook. She has also been complimenting all of my outfits and hairstyles. Flattery works, people!
trendy braid

Just a simple braid I wore this week. Thanks for the inspiration SarahOUaL!

  • If you follow me on Twitter (@jenbigham) or know me IRL, you may know that I see deer on my trail runs almost daily and love to shout out “Go Bucks!” when I see a male deer. (Cheesy Ohio State humor, always funny to me!) Yesterday, I FINALLY got to share that cheesy joke with Jeff as it was happening. We ran past a buck and a doe together on the trail and I shouted “Go Buck(s)” about 7 times. I pretended Jeff was laughing along with me. You were, right honey?
  • Trader Joes opened here in Rochester! When we moved here 3 years ago, one of the first things I did was email Trader Joes, asking them to come to town. I obviously have a lot of influence (ha) because they came! YES! I’ve been there 4 times in this first week. I had to stock up on grains, freezer goods, oils, and of course, Halloween Joe Joes.
trader joes rochester

Opening day groceries!

halloween joe joe's cookies trader joes

If you haven’t had these, you are not living a full life. Please go buy some. Now.

  • And finally, this isn’t exactly positive, but it’s something to laugh about. Jeff and I went out to dinner at Good Luck on Wednesday night and one of the specials was sweetbreads. Being the crazy-running-carb-lovers that we are, we eagerly ordered them, thinking cinnamon bread style goodness. Boy were we surprised when we (a couple who rarely eats meat) bit into the sweetbreads. We called the waitress over to say there must be some mistake, these weren’t sweet and they weren’t breads. “Oh yes” she said. “Sweetbreads are cow thymus gland.”
sweetbreads

Not sweet, not bread. Cow thymus gland. Barf. Yes, we ate it all.

And with that, I’lll ask…

How was your week? Ever order something at a restaurant and find out later it was VERY different from what you expected? Tell me some good stuff about YOUR week! Any racing this weekend?!

 

21 thoughts on “Let’s Talk about the Positives

  1. Hate to hear you had a rough week Jen! My 10 year old son told me he joined a run club at his school because he wants to be a runner like me. That was definitely the highlight of my week! I absolutely love the braid! Please tell me how to do it. I hope you have a fantastic weekend!

    • I read that on Facebook Regina… very cool! It’s even better because he’s 10 and old enough to know what he’s saying!

  2. My parents have a very similar story from one of their early dates! My dad ordered sweetbreads, my mom said “oh, you’re adventurous!” .. he didn’t get it, and then didn’t own up to not knowing what it was and ate it anyway =p

  3. I’m hitting The Scarecrow this weekend. I couldn’t find a babysitter so I had to go buy a jogging stroller that would fit my 5 year old. It’s the first time we’ll be racing together. I don’t think I’ll be expecting any PRs but it’ll be fun!

    • Yes, a PR is probably out of the question, Karen, but it will be a fun experience! I’ve raced with Currie a few times and it’s slower but fun! Nice chilly morning for a race! :)

  4. Hey Jen, Sorry you had a bad week. You can only go up from here, right?…. I love your blog and even though I don’t often comment, I read. Head up wings out, friend.

    • Helen! The cookies are like Oreos but way better! Right now the filling is orange, but it tastes like their regular Joe Joe cookies. At Christmas time they have peppermint filling ones. SO GOOD! I seriously eat a box in 24 hours. Dangerous!

  5. :( hope all is OK Jen – always let us know if there’s anything we can do for you.

    oh Sbux baristas are the best, I’m sure that if they weren’t asking after Currie, they will be soon enough!

    YAYYYY for trader joes! you’re supporting my nieces and nephew :)

    • Thanks Andrea! I’ll be ok!
      One of the reasons I thought the barista was asking about Currie is because they always ask about her when she doesn’t come! Of course, this time they were asking about me, and I immediately thought of her anyway… parenthood!

  6. Your captions were funny in this one. I liked it. Total Teri moment telling your life story to a stranger when a much simpler answer would suffice! Haha!

  7. I had beef tongue this past week as part of a delicious seven course tasting menu I did :)

    Hope next week is much better for you!

  8. Sorry about the bad week Jen! Glad to see the positives you found in the middle of it all! Ok well maybe not those “Sweet Breads” …what did they taste like?

    Ahahah

    Your Sister in Sport,

    Mo:)

    • Thanks Mo! The sweetbreads tasted like the fattiest piece of meat I’ve ever eaten. I would say it was similar to a super fatty piece of chicken. It didn’t even taste like the “good fatty taste”! It is hard to explain. You will have to try it for yourself. 😉

  9. I’m sorry to hear you had a rough week and whatever is going on, I hope it is on the upswing… sending positive thoughts your way!

  10. Sorry you are having a bad week ;( Hope you get an upswing soon! Before we went to China to adopt our daughter my Husband and I were vegitarians for 5 years. One of our first meals there was some “onions” from a buffet. Little did we know they were stuffed with some sort of meat. We continued to eat meat on that trip though as a means of survival, lol

  11. Like everyone else, I’m sorry that week was crappy, and I’m glad that things have gotten better since. And the short blonde story…love it.

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