Tippy Toes

Today awakened a distasteful childhood memory when I pulled into the east parking lot at the University of Utah, opened my car door and stepped right onto a BIG, FAT WORM! It took nearly every muscle in my body to refrain from throwing up as I looked down to see the squirming insect half alive. I couldn't hold back the gagging and the air REEKED a fowl smell of the disgusting creatures. I stepped to the side to avoid a second worm and noticed they were everywhere, all within inches of each other. Then my reflex kicked in -- I was walking on my tippy toes the entire rest of the way (100 feet or more to the building) and I didn't care one bit who was watching.

Worms are the ONE thing I HATE about rainy days. Why on earth do these nasty insects wiggle themselves all the way out to the middle of a bare gravel or cement surface, just to get squashed (unwillingly, mind you) by people like myself? I don't see the logic in it. Does it not make more sense for these worms to stay in the grass or dirt or wherever they came from? If they're looking for food, I can assure them all the other insects know better than to roam a large stretch of public, man-made land on any given day, let alone a rainy one.

The experience brought me back to my elementary years when I walked to school with my older brother and sister. I dreaded having to walk to school on days when it was raining, NOT because my hair would get wet, NOT because my shoes would get ruined, but because the WORMS were out and the thought of squishing guts under my feet literally made me dry heave.

And that's when I learned to tippy toe -- one of my many timeless childhood intuitions.

You didn't ACTUALLY think I'd post a picture of real worms, did you?
Be careful out there.

Choose Wisely

The next time you go for a Hershey's kiss, try the coconut kind. It's to DIE for. I'll be eating them for the rest of my life!

"Man imposes his own limitations, don't set any"

In less than a week, the 2009 Salt Lake City Marathon will be underway. If you've never run it, you should participate by cheering the runners on and letting yourself be INSPIRED as you watch thousands cross the finish line 26.2 miles later. You can do this at any marathon race, of course, but the Salt Lake City Marathon (starting at the University of Utah, ending at The Gateway Mall) draws an ElEvAtiNg crowd like no other.

I'm only speaking from partial experience. I've never run a marathon, though I hope to sooner than later. Last year I ran the Salt Lake City Half Marathon -- such a high! I've never felt so sore and so accomplished in a matter of two hours. I absolutely loved the entire experience and wanted to do it again the second I crossed the 13.1 mile-marker finish line.

I don't deserve the title "runner," but I dream of being worthy of such a label. I won't even allow the words "recreational runner" to fall in the same sentence as my name, because I believe I am capable of so much more than that. Reaching goals that are set with every mile reached in training, is part of the exhilaration that comes on race day. Putting in the time and balancing impatience with excitement makes every struggle along the way entirely worth the enduring process.

Last fall I set my sights on the 2009 Maui Marathon (a chance to return "home" to the place of my dreams). Discouragement set in early, with the start of a new semester in my undergrad endeavors, and I quit running altogether to pursue accomplishments with more pressing deadlines - August graduation and a real job afterwards.

For now, as I watch others around me grow from pushing themselves toward reaching this common goal, patience comforts me, knowing I will have my chance soon. Feeling held back, this desire to exceed the limitations I've set for myself will feed the flames at my tail when the chains of restraint are let loose. --Okay, it might not be quite as elaborate as I've described it, but I'm simply saying, I can't wait to start training, I can't wait to run MY 26.2 miles and truly remove any/all limitations I have imposed upon myself. I have no doubts I CAN and WILL do it.

Pre said it best, "Life's battles don't always go to the strongest or fastest man, but sooner or later the man who wins is the fellow who thinks he can."

GoOgLeD

Here's a creative idea. I found this on my lovely friend Sarah's blog and just HAD to try it out for myself. You go to google.com (obviously) and type in your FIRST name, followed by the word "needs." Then you write down the first 10 results to your search.

Here are the results for Matty and me:

MATTY needs...
...at least 7 blocks, and can add at most 10 extra blocks.
...a place to sleep.
...no screw ups.
...to draw.
...to stay on a maintenance level of hydrocortisone as his Adrenal Gland tests show little production of national steroid... (I swear I didn't make this one up).
...to know.
...some...no, tons of work.
...some pitchers.
..."Matty's Friends" to help with the organization, promotion, and running of all of these fundraisers, as well as all the others...
...to go.


AMANDA needs...
...you to map yourself.
...to pee.
...to read Barbara Bush's speech to Wellesly graduates.
...help?
...the game.
...to be able to do multiple genres in order to be considered talented.
...food right now.
...more ink.
...to know the truth about KYLE. (Coincidentally that's my brother's name. Hmm).
...your vote!


If any of you can help us with ANY of these needs, please inform us via blog comment. We'll return the favor.

KNOW. LOVE. INSPIRE.

It all started after a few eye-opening months living Illini-style with my older sister (and best friend) Brooke. I guess I was on the hunt for collecting experiences I had never had before, truly searching to expose myself to different cultures and views - Champaigne, Illinois was my first taste of extended-stay living outside of the "Utah Bubble."

When May rolled around, it was off to the place of my dreams for a color-changing, island experience like no other. I spent the next four months in Maui, Hawaii selling T-shirts, making family out of roommates and getting to know myself a little better.

From the moment I arrived, there was so much to see, so much to experience and accomplish. Life was intriguing, curious and relaxing - well, at least until the cockroaches showed up. I immediately developed my independence, taking risks and trying new things. I parasailed, surfed, jumped off waterfalls, snorkeled near sharks and viewed the sunset and sunrise from the top of a 20,000-foot dormant volcano way above the clouds. Now, I'm not saying I'm a daredevil, but each of my new experiences transformed my personality as I embraced the accepting, easy-going Hawaiian culture.

A life lived on Maui (at least under my circumstances) is not hard. Perhaps that is the reason for my inability to move forward at times. Not a day goes by that I don't reminisce, picturing myself, secluded in my mind, looking off into the ocean, my bare feet hiding in the soft, warm sand. So many of my moments alone were spent contemplating the significance of my very existence, my future and my aspirations. It was in Maui that I truly FOUND myself, LOVED myself and INSPIRED myself to celebrate life. 

An experience like this is impossible to convey to others unless they've experienced it themselves. I can speak of its impact, the excitement of specific journeys and how incredible it all was, but because my experience uniquely influenced the person I've become, it cannot be translated to others who would reach different conclusions from the same encounters.

And so I will leave it at this: 

Take the time to separate yourself from the NOISINESS of the world. Be in your OWN head. Love the life you are faced with and remember that you have control over where you place your significant self. Open your mind to different cultures and points of view. You don't have to embrace them, just know of them. Let your experiences and observations lead you to thoughts of deep contemplation and discovery. KNOW yourself. LOVE yourself, and let your heart be INSPIRED by the people around you. We all have a story to tell. Make your story one that can't be contained inside your heart alone. Share your thoughts and beliefs - we all have something to learn. Don't ever let FEAR hold you back. 

CREATE

My beautiful sister, Brooke, just shared this empowering message with me. I am constantly in need of pick-me-ups and reminders about who I am and where I came from. How quickly I forget. I hope you enjoy this and pass it along. We could all use the reminder that our divine nature and potential gives us the strength to accomplish all that we desire.

I'm Back

I didn't realize how much time had passed since I first attempted to start blogging. Wow. Well, since July 2008, I have been more loyal to my blog Sanchez Thoughts, however, I'm not sure "loyal" is the best word to describe it - I've posted twice.

I wanted to resume my efforts to blog on Chocolate Pukini, because I've had a few issues with our Sanchez Thoughts blog. Mainly, I've been lazy and allowed Matty to manage it and do all the posts, therefore making a name for himself as the blogger in our family (even though posts say "by Matt and Amanda"). When people comment, like our friend Kelly for example, they assume they are having a conversation with Matty because he is the one who posts the most. I started feeling left out and a bit camouflaged by the whole thing and wanted to break away to show my individuality. There really was a lot more to it than that, but to keep personal things personal, let's just say it ended in a very important lesson on marriage.

Without much intended direction for this post, I'm feeling like I can get back in the swing of things to share my own thoughts without confusing Matty's groupies.

More to come.