Friday, January 13, 2012

Not a sipper

Last week, I met someone new, and after we talked for an hour or so she declared, "You seem like a really laid-back person."

Huh. I'd never been accused of that before.

In fact, those who know me well would probably argue that "intense" is a better way to describe me. It seems that everything I do is done in a big way. I like to say that I am not a sipper (literally and figuratively). If I make coffee in the morning, it will not be in a dainty little cup with hand-painted curlie-cues. No, I make a tank of coffee - a giant mug that must be held with two hands and is responsible for my toned biceps for sure. And I stand at the counter chugging it down like a cheap college beer until it is empty.

There is nothing relaxing or leisurely about the way I drink my coffee ... or do anything else for that matter. I find something I like and go for it, all out.

Sometimes this is a good thing, like when I started hiking again, remembering fondly the family hikes we had taken in New Hampshire when I was a kid. It felt so good to get back onto a wooded trail that I suddenly wanted to hike at every opportunity. I even got the kids involved, taking them out every chance I got, and we discovered that Nathan has quite a knack for being sure-footed and quick on even the most rocky, rooty paths.

Chug.


It was also a good thing when I discovered Zumba fitness classes. I'd never been consistent about exercising until I discovered this class that let me dance for an hour and called it a workout. I immediately started going every day, driving 30 minutes each way to class if there wasn't one closer-by. And now I am scheduled to take the instructor certification course so that I can teach the class myself.

Chug.

Sometimes, though, not being a sipper can be problematic. Take music, for example. I don't think my friend Brian - my roommate 13 years ago - has forgiven me yet for my obsessive overplaying of the song "Never There" by Cake when it first came out. More recently, my son had to be the one to tell me that it was enough Wiggles already.

And I'll never get those two days back that I spent reading the entire Twilight series continuously.

Still, I have to believe that chugging my way through life has got to be one of my charms...'cause I won't be switching to small, dainty sips anytime soon.