Monthly Round-Up: Rose & Thorns – August 2022

August Rose & Thorns – A monthly recap of the highs and lows experienced each month.

Rose/Thorn: Take the Good with the Bad

It would be easy for me to write August off as a terrible month, but I’m combining the negative stories with the silver linings this month. Coming up with a highlight reel of each month’s good and bad things is like a teeter-totter. Trying to balance both good and evil equally, but ultimately putting my finger on the scale to lean on the positive side. I feel I have no right to complain about the small bumps in the road when I can easily fix a flat tire and keep moving. 

Hospital Hangouts: As I looked at the caller ID, I knew something was terribly wrong. Through broken reception, the other end of the phone said my father was in an ambulance on his way to the hospital. The following eight days were a rotation of procedures, making friends with the nurses, and watching the summer showers pass through the window.

A hospital is a less than ideal place to spend your days off, but I was grateful to have my siblings there with me to take turns talking to the doctors and ensuring there was always someone to advocate on our dad’s behalf. In between the difficult moments, we passed with time by making my sister a baby registry and continuing to cross names off of the potential baby name list (although we did come up with the top two contenders. Unfortunately, Poppy, Hattie, and Clementine did not make the cut). 

We made the best of the time we had together. The positive takeaways were getting excited for the upcoming fall season, prepping for a spooky baby shower, and a clean bill of health for our dad. The day-to-day noise seemed to come into sharp focus during this time. I took a much-needed social media break and realized the most important people in my life are here with me now. Spending time with my siblings is when I feel the most normal. This stent in the hospital was not only a reset for my father’s health but a reset for what is truly important to me. 

Promotion Denied: While coordinating a hospital visitation schedule and driving back and forth to my hometown, I somehow made it to the second round of interviews for a potential promotion. This time, I was preparing a presentation for the interview panel. The interview when really well. Walking out of the conference room, I felt confident that I had given my all. 

I didn’t get the job. Most people would be upset after receiving this news. I truly felt nothing but happiness that I would be staying with my current team. The person who was selected was the best choice. It was worth going through the interview process; in the end, I have nothing but positive takeaways. I’ll be more experienced with the questions and have even better examples in the future. Showing the initiative to apply for opportunities as they come along is the reason I moved to the job I’m in now. Not getting this job wasn’t a thorn for the month; instead, not applying for the position at all would have been.

Running Nowhere Fast: August is a miserable month to run outside in Florida. Running has been intermitted at best between the triple-digit heat and pop-up thunderstorms. My long runs have felt like death marches, leaving me unmotivated to leave my house. The focus on adding two minutes to my runs each week is up to 1:46.00. These long runs take three to four hours to complete when you factor in the 45-minute warm-up and cool down. For many weeks I have beat myself up, forcing myself to check the box. Suddenly I found my relationship with running starting to sour. To course correct, I stopped running in the last week of this month. I shifted to home workouts with a kettlebell and yoga. This break isn’t a vacation from exercise, lord knows my brain can’t go cold turkey on working out, but I’m shifting to a different workout for a few weeks while the weather (hopefully) transitions into the fall season. 

August Favorites

Pit-Viper-esque Sunglasses – Sunglasses are a must for me to have every time I go outside. I’m hard on the sunglasses I wear to work, and I don’t like spending a lot when I know they will get beat up. I was looking for a new pair of glasses for work and wanted to try something new. I came across these flashy sunglasses. These sunglasses are unisex and also come in tons of colors. While they look a bit ridiculous on me, I’m not trying to be cool, but I’m trying to bring a bit of a smile to the people I interact with at work. 

Plant Clips – I’ve been a very good plant mom lately. My pothos plant is so healthy; its long tendrils needed to be propped up. These plant clips were the perfect solution to clip the vines across the top of my door. This has encouraged them to keep stretching onward. 

Car Phone Holder – I don’t know how I’ve managed to drive around so long without a place to hold my phone while I drive. I went on a bit of a shopping spree buying small items to upgrade my car, and I found a phone holder that clamps to the air conditioning vent—a total game changer (even if I was late to the game). 

August Blog Post Recap

In case you missed any posts this month: 

DOS & DON’TS OF KAYAKING THE WEEKI WACHEE RIVER – Kayaking the Weeki Wachee is a great way to spend a summer day on the water. But make sure you know the dos and don’ts of the river before setting sail. 

DIY: MODERN WOOD SLAT DOOR – This was my most challenging DIY project, but it also has turned into my new favorite. Go from a builder’s grade (boring) closet door to a modern wood slat door.

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