Road thoughts

I just returned from my tour of south east Australia.  My husband and I took a motorcycle 3,200 miles/6,000 kms in 16 days. It was BRILLIANT! What a wonderful adventure.  We saw desert, beach, rain forests and rivers.  We met up with some good friends, made new friends and met some nice dogs along the way.  One of the things I love most about riding is that you get into your own head and travel there as much as you travel along the highway.  So over then next few blogs I will share some of the things that popped into my head on the road.

This is my new pal Mo. 

Where our trip took us! 

See it all

Surely you have a bucket list.  Hidden in your fb notes, tucked away in your underwear drawer or on the back page of your journal.  And I bet at least one of the items on your list involves travel. Probably somewhere exotic, Paris, Tahiti, Hawaii maybe Russia.  Are you actively working toward getting there?


I've been really fortunate in my life that I've had the opportunity to travel a lot.  I'm originally from the US but I've lived in Australia for the last 7 years.  I started to travel when I was in high school. My parents sent me to Europe the summer before my senior year.  England, France, Switzerland, Italy, Austria and Germany.  It was a whirlwind tour.  Also it was amazing and opened the eyes of this small town girl.  I have also been to Mexico, Canada, 38 US states (including Alaska & Hawaii) and of course Australia.  A layover at the airport doesn't count.  


Last summer my husband and I got on a Harley-Davidson Roadking and went along old Route 66 from Las Vegas to Illinois.  We continued to Milwaukee, then across to Sturgis South Dakota, through Yellowstone National Park (The best!) and  through Idaho back to Nevada.  It was brilliant, 5500 miles/8,800 km in total.  We called it the Miles and Memories trip.  As Australians we get several weeks of paid holiday each year.  Something that seemed very strange to us as Americans.  We have quickly learned to enjoy it.  However it seems that each year we go back to the US for our holiday.  We have an annual business event that we attend there and then we see family so we plan our fun time around that.  So here I am living in one of the most beautiful, diverse and vast continents on the planet and I've seen very little of it. 


The time has come to see Australia.  I wouldn't want to go in 344 days without having been to the outback would I?   So tomorrow we leave.  We are packing up our Streetglide and heading west.  We have one schedule event that we need to attend to and the rest will be random.  Heading to South Australia and Victoria.  We will be in tiny little towns in the middle of no where and then on to the beautiful city of Melbourne to return home up the Great Ocean Road.  I don't have a name for this journey I'm sure it will come to me on the road.  


So I guess the point of this post is, why do you have to go so far for it to be considered travel?  Have you ever been to a local hotel and had a look at all those cards in the lobby?  You know the ones that feature all the local events, sites and landmarks?  Well, have you seen all of them?  


In his Instructions for Life the Dalai Lama says, "Once a year, go someplace you've never been before." it doesn't have to be far.  Pack up the family and go to the next town for the strawberry jam festival or go to the top of the tallest building in your city.  Be a tourist in your own neighbourhood and remember why it's a great place to live.  Take a different street, eat somewhere random, walk into a shop with an interesting window display you never know what adventure will be started with that one step.




I leave you with one of my favourite things:

The Dalai Lama's Instructions for Life 

• Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
• When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
• Follow the three R's:
  - Respect for self.
  - Respect for others.
  - Responsibility for all of your actions.
• Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
• Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
• Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
• When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
• Spend some time alone every day.
• Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.
• Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
• Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time.
• A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.
• In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.
• Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality.
• Be gentle with the earth.
• Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.
• Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.
• Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
• Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.

Live like there is no tomorrow.  

Day 7

If the world ends in 348 days would I wish I'd gone back to derby? Would I have been grateful if didn't and was cautious? Perhaps without further injury? 

I find that screaming rap lyrics at the top of my voice is the best cure for a case of the nerves. So I was driving down the highway and Eminem is reminding me "this opportunity only comes once in a lifetime, yo"  Last night, with medical clearance in hand, was my triumphant return to roller derby.  Triumphant because I actually went back.

It was 3 days short of 9 months off.  4 days in hospital, 12 weeks in plaster, 6 weeks in a walking cast, walking stick for a few more. It adds up.  Funny thing about laying on a couch with a broken leg, you get a lot of time to think.  I have been through all of the emotions. Why me? I deserve this. I'm too old for this shit. I'm too young for this shit. I can't go back. I MUST go back.  What if? OMG I must have worn out my thinker.  It's weird because all your body needs to heal is time.  But the damage to your psyche is more complex.  No pills, no surgery, no amount of time is guaranteed to work.  Some people may think it is easier to just not go back. I'm not so sure.  The days of wondering what you could have been, missing the family that is a roller derby league and being part of something that you love.  It may be harder to walk away from derby than to strap skates back on.

I arrived 40 minutes early.  My knees were shaking, I had to pee and I thought I might throw up. Weird because I'd been skating a few times already. I knew I could skate. But this wasn't just skating this was standing up and shouting from the roof tops, "I'm BACK!" This was about committing to do it.

If the world ends in 348 days I want to know that I did what I could, when I could. I tried my best and didn't hide when things were scary.  Courage is the thing you get after you do the thing that scares you.

I didn't participate in the regular training. I'm not confident enough for falls, contact and transition moves yet.  I skated on the neighbouring court and did my own work.  I hit several milestones, skating on one leg, cross overs, turns & blisters.  I found myself getting more stable with each lap.  Muscle memory is a real thing.

The best part of the night was that I walked in and no one looked at me with that sad, "Oh you're the girl that got hurt" look.  I have moved into the "You're the girl that came back" look and it's much happier.   While I skated I looked around the room I could see the others were watching me. I could see the smiles. I could see that they were genuinely pleased to have me back.  A few girls came over to skate beside me.  There are a few of us coming back from injuries we talked the philosophy of injury and how awesome it is to be a woman.  It is awesome.  The women I have met through roller derby never stop amazing me.  It is a beautiful thing to have the support, genuine loving support from a group of women.  Skating is just transportation but roller derby is a world of wonder, love and power.

How the heck could I have walked away from that?

Me in the last bout I played in more than a year ago.

5 of 355

What an amazing week! On Monday I taught skatenance and had great time. That evening I did the scariest thing I've ever done! I went down a ramp at a skate park. Seriously it was harder than jumping out of an airplane.  Probably because when I went out of the plane I was 23 and had no fear.  I'm a little more suspicious of these sorts of things now.  I went down three ramps and totally stacked it each time. But as they say at the Oscar's it was an honour just to be able to show up.  I did get to skate forward and backward on a half pipe and that was fun.  I am really noticing how much my centre of balance is off.  The best part of the day was getting to spend time with the girls from my league. We started this league in February and in April I broke my leg.  The league grew up without me.  Even though  I was included in the decisions I wasn't there to form relationships so I am playing catch up.

On Tuesday I met up with a couple of the girls at the roller rink for a bit of fun.  It turned out to be a 38/96 degree day so we were really working hard.  That day was about just getting  a bunch of laps under my belt.  I discovered that it is very hard for me to skate on just my left leg and (this part not for the squeamish) I can feel the pins that are in my leg.  That is I feel the heads of the bolts rubbing on the inside of my skin.  It's unsettling. But I did skate for a good hour and a half without any major pain and didn't swell up much that night.  I am super muscle sore all over and my butt didn't take those drops at the skate park well but all in all a successful start back to skating.  Today I went to the doctor and got medical clearance to train with my league.  Training starts tomorrow.  BRING IT!

A few months ago we had the amazing Bonnie D. Stroir come out and train us. I was still off skates but really took a lot from our discussions.  She said you have to visualise what you want. Not just wish for it but see yourself doing it.  Understand how it feels while you are doing it smell it, touch it, taste it.  I went home and photoshopped a picture of me skating against SRDL.  I know how it will feel when I make the travel team and feel the floor of the Sports Centre under my wheels.  2012 is my year.  It has to be since I am treating it like the last one right?

Be bold and mighty forces will come to your aide!

Day 2

Today I am teaching a class in roller skate maintenance.  This is my third time teaching this class but still I'm nervous.  Why do I question my own knowledge?  There was a time when certain businesses were competing for me now I doubt my own ability.  BUT in this, the last year I must act and not question.  This is why they teach surgeons and soldiers to just react and not think.  No time to question yourself just accept that you are well trained and respond accordingly.

Tonight I am going to the Skate Park I talked to one of the other girls last night and she's scared too.  Being scared in a group is easier I think.  It's called the Monster Skate Park!  Monster!  I will choose to think of the Sesame Street Monsters instead of something truly terrifying.   Elmo's skate park, Oscar the Grouches skate park, Cookie Monster Skate Park.  See that's not so bad.  Perhaps if I stack it will be into a wall of red, green or blue fur that comes with a hug and word of encouragement.   "Elmo says that was a good try!"

Thanks Elmo, I'm doing my best.