Booty-calls and Spandex Memories...

I just recorded the Bachelor and Real Housewives of Atlanta.
This is what my life has come to and somehow I feel the need to confess.
Combined with no afternoon coffee today, its a low point lets be honest...

Well, my weekend began with a girls night on Friday,...Aunt Mena, P-Diddle and her sidekick Peanut.

It was a busy night between breakfast-for-dinner, Jake and The Neverland Pirates, undressing and redressing Rapunzel, ice cream cones, and me trying to read The Little Mermaid in such a way that masked any dyslexia or learning disabilities.
It was tough.  I don't come from a gene pool of speed readers...Sound. It. Out.  I hated that advice...I am sounding it out, and it sounds like a nightmare. 
A nightmare on paper.  Scrape these calluses off my hands and pass the braille...

We had a blast as always and of course it doesn't end when you tuck them in bed.
Nope, I had a booty-call a few minutes later.  And by booty-call I mean a 4 year old yelling "Menaaaa!!!  Come wipe my bottom!!!"....I think I broke my 40 time running up those stairs to handle the post ice cream deuce situation.
I was 3 more steps from an asthma attack, but all bodily fluids taken care of.  Friday complete.

* * *

On a more serious note, it was an honor to attend the retirement party for my high school volleyball coach this afternoon.  It was only after I hung up the ankle tape, knee pads, and spandex shorts (Siiiike), that I truly realized her impact as a coach.

Its been 13 years and I can still hear her yelling at me for being a smartass to the ref.  Shocking, I know.  I just wanted to make sure he knew he was, well, wrong, and that unfortunately a 17 year old had to be the bearer of bad news of his momentary poor judgement.
It never went over too well....especially with this one ref who threw out yellow cards like bills at strippers.  Tool bag.
But seriously, it was great to see her and a host of other coaches and teachers I hadn't seen in years.  When I think about coach Clements and how she influenced my life as an athlete and now trainer, two things really come to mind: her consistency and belief in her players.
I'll never forget when she called me up to varsity as a freshman, and I was excited, nervous, scared, and everything in between, but under all that confidently knew she believed in what I brought to the game.  That is a powerful message for a 14 year old girl, and I am genuinely grateful.
And God bless her consistency.  There are some coaches you know operate differently if they're in a good mood, bad mood, tired, etc....yeah, that didn't really matter with her.  Sprints at 5:30am for pre-season 2 day practices were void of any affection, good or bad.  They were happening.  She believed in the fundamentals and doing what was necessary to get better.  I have tremendous respect for that and see it playing out in my own career.

So when I decided to stand up and speak at the party I considered the MANY stories I could tell that were funny or perhaps embarrassing,...but it soon dawned on me that 99% of those same stories involved me doing something inappropriate or ridiculous.  Believe me, several coaches/teachers quickly reminded me of this as I circulated the room.  Damn their memory.
So despite not going into detail about some of those moments, it was wonderful simply to be able to share her influence and impact years later.
Thank you Coach. :)