New and improved..

I am switching over to Wordpress.

Correction:

 

I have switched over to Wordpress.

It took me over a year to make the final decision, but I did it.

And I am moving on.

 

Why? Because it is time for change :)

This one will still exist, don't want to lose what I have, but I won't post anything on this blog.

 

For you nothing will change, you will only need to update the link in your Favorites ;-).

 

So, I hope you will join me in my move to Wordpress.

 

The new link is:  http://jazzbam.wordpress.com/.

 

See you there!

 

 

Jazz.

When in Bruges..

Ik ben weer op een heerlijke road trip geweest! Niet voor werk en ook niet alleen!

Ik ben met Mr. Boyfriend op pad gegaan and I loved it!

 

Zoals jullie inmiddels door mijn verhaaltjes wel weten mag ik geregeld op pad met mijn mooie roze koffertje. Ik ga niet bijzonder ver, over het algemeen naar Brussel.

En vriendjelief mag mij ophalen wanneer ik thuis kom. Of op een treinstation of op de luchthaven. Hij reist dus ook wat af, maar meer om mij op te halen.

Om ons vakantieleven een goede start te geven besloten we een weekendje weg te gaan. Wij hadden het advies gekregen eens lekker naar Brugge te gaan. Net over de grens met België en zeker in het voorjaar nog niet extreem toeristisch. En de 2 magic words waren "bier" en " chocola". Iets voor hem en voor haar dus.

Prima!

Gezien meneer nogal een hoge standaard heeft als het op de accommodatie aankomt, heb ik het aan hem overgelaten om een leuke slaapplaats voor 2 nachten te regelen. Dat doe ik graag nog een keer! Zo fijn als je als vrouw zijnde de organisatie een keer aan de man kan overlaten. Sterker nog; ik heb van tevoren nog niet eens foto's ervan gezien. Ik moest alleen ja of nee zeggen op de prijs en de rest werd voor mij geregeld. Hier kan ik wel aan wennen…

Op dag van vertrek mocht ik gelukkig ook even uitslapen. Geen overbodige luxe, gezien ik de avond tevoren terug ben gekomen van een tripje Brussel. Ik had iets van 3 uur om mijn koffer uit- en opnieuw in te pakken.

Drie uur lijkt veel voor twee nachten en drie dagen, maar ik heb gemiddeld even veel tijd aan inpaktijd nodig, als dat ik daadwerkelijk ook wegga. Dus voor mij was het echt een uitdaging!

Ondanks mijn uitslapen was ik weer eens het beste gezelschap onderweg; binnen no time lag ik weer te slapen. I just can't help it. Zodra ik even niets doe wil ik een dutje doen. Aan mij heb je trouwens ook niets, omdat ik waarschijnlijk 's werelds slechtste oriëntatievermogen heb. En nee, dit heeft NIETS met vrouw-zijn te maken. Ik kan zelfs in een parkeergarage verdwalen. Geloof me, dat is al meer dan eens gebeurd..

Anyhow. Gelukkig was het mooi weer en daar aangekomen bleek vriendjelief goede smaak te hebben. We verbleven in een te schattig hébèrgement. Het had maar twee slaapkamers, ieder met een eigen kleurenpalet. Op de deur hing een krijtbordje met onze namen (eigenlijk zijn naam, mijn naam werd voor het gemak veranderd in 'and company') en op de kamer stonden complimentary flesjes wijn en water klaar. Complimentary als in; je mag het opdrinken en er komt niets bij de prijs bij! Dat is leuk!

Nadat we alle spulletjes hadden afgegooid gingen we het spannende Brugge in. Meneer had mij al uitgelegd dat ik niet kon verdwalen omdat het centrum omringd was door water. Een geruststellend gevoel.

 We zijn eerst lekker gaan rondwandelen waarna we bij een aanbevolen restaurant gingen eten. Ik had maar 2 voorwaarden; ik wilde pannenkoeken en mosselen eten, maar gezien de luxe cuisine liet ik die wens tot de volgende avond.

We hebben bij Bistro de Eetkamer gegeten. Een schattig klein restaurantje dat door een mannelijk echtpaar met grotze zorg wordt gerund. It was a bit pricy, maar het was het echt dubbel en dwars waard!

Nadat we ons buikje hebben volgegeten, wandelden we lekker terug richting "huis". Zo lekker was het niet, want het was wel een beetje koud en Jazz en kou = no match!

De volgende dagen hebben we een hele hoop rondgewandeld en geshopt. Oh, how I love shopping!

Heerlijk!

Lekker rondwandelen, (window) shopping, drankje hier en daar doen. The good life!

Mr. Man was helemaal gelukkig omdat hij zijn Belgisch bier voorraad weer kon aanvullen. We zijn met 43 flesjes de supermarkt uitgewandeld. Dat was voor mij al voldoende workout voor de hele week!

En ik… ja, ik heb ook mijn hartje kunnen ophalen!

Er zijn in Brugge denk ik wel 100 chocolatiers, maar het is ons gelukt om the finest of the finest te onderscheiden.

Als je ooit in Brugge of Antwerpen bent, kan ik je alleen maar aanraden om naar The Chocolate line te gaan.

Waarom?

Heb jij ooit chocola met bacon of met Coca Cola geproefd? Je denkt zeker dat het niet lekker is?

WRONG!

Goddelijk!

Saffraan, kalkoen met cranberrysaus, cannabis, lavendel, framboos, je kunt het echt zo gek nog niet bedenken en ze hebben het. Echt, het smaakt goddelijk.

Ok, de prijs is er ook naar, maar we hebben toch een doosje mee naar huis genomen om de herinnering aan de trip levend te houden.

Elke avond mochten we van onszelf een bonbonnetje opeten, HEERLIJK! Ok, niet allemaal, sommige zijn echt niet heel smakelijk, maar over het algemeen was het prima te doen!

Als je lekker romantisch wilt doen, maar niet helemaal naar toeristisch Parijs wilt gaan, kan ik je zeker aanraden om naar Brugge te gaan. Good food, niet te ver weg, gezellige mensen, van die lekkere knusse, pittoreske straatjes, hartstikke leuk!

Als je een spannend uitgaansleven verwacht, don't get your hopes up. Maar dat is volgens mij ook niet de bedoeling voor een romantisch weekendje weg ;-)

 

Enjoy!

 

Jazz.

 

The perfect match - Red lipstick

Online you can find many reviews about make up. Lately mostly about lipstick. Red lipstick.

 

Yes, I too started the quest for the perfect red lipstick. I searched high and low, cheap and très expensive and I did find some pretty colors. But none were the one. I had to apply layer upon layer to get what I wanted. So when I went out I dragged about 4 different lipsticks along to keep my lip tan up.

 

For someone like me it was too much work.

I am a girl that likes to look pretty at times but doesn't want to spend too much time on her looks. When me and my girls go out I am usually the one that is done the quickest. Hair, outfit, make up, nails, heels, done. Most of the time picking my shoes take up most of my prepping time.

 

So no, I do not like to spend that much time to get lucious lips.

The first color I bought was bright bright red from an old skool brand everybody knows; Miss Sporty. The price was low, the color even brighter. Like the beautiful red pin ups from the '50ies used to wear. I was in love!

Luckily the color matches my skin tone so I don't look sick. It doesn't make my teeth look yellow either.

And this is a point I really want to stretch to you: the color HAS to match with you. Not just your skin tone but also with your teeth.

As you already know there are various red lipsticks and all these different colors have different under tones; e.g. brown, pink, purple or even orange.

If your teeth aren't Colgate-ready (let's be honest, most of us don't have a toothpaste smile), avoid the orange undertone! It makes your teeth look very yellow. And so far that hasn't been a fashion statement ever!

So I was over the moon. I thought my lipstick quest was over even before it started.  Quel joie!

WRONG!

Eventhough the lipstick turned my lips bright red in one go and they did not feel dry, there was this big issue. Well two actually.

One was that the lipstick stained. A lot. Clumsy me had smeared red all over the place in no time (glass, hands, cheeks, you name it).

The other issue was that it wasn't what you call 'long lasting'. After an hour or so half of it was worn off (it was probably somewhere on my face or clothes) and the rest had gathered in cracks on my lips. Which meant I had one big dried out red line running across my lower lip. Charming.

 

So I continued my quest.

The next one was a burgundy red from Max Factor. The casing is pretty, but the smell! Like someone burnt their Barbie dolls on a barbecue. Ugh. The color is pretty too, but I can only wear it in the summer. In the winter this color makes me look really pale.

It has a velvety feel on the lips and is a bit longer lasting than the Miss Sporty stick.

But, I still wasn't too satisfied because I want a color to wear during the day, all year long.

 

Next test subject: Sephora lip color. The color holds between bright red and dark red, it has a shimmer and is some sort of a crayon. I do thin that is pretty handy, most of my lipsticks are ruined because the stick broke off or I crushed it in the cap.. Clumsy me..

It smears pretty smoothly, not too muh staining, except for on the glass.

The durability is not really great, but doable. I had to retouch once during a night out.

It is getting better but still not exactly what I want. The color is very pretty, but the shimmer makes it an evening lipstick for me.

On to the next..

 

During my Hunt for Red lipstick I cheated. I found this lovely velvety long lasting lipstick. Only thing was: it is pink.

I am still in love with it. The color is this deep, rich, lucious pink. Yay! I am happy!

Only it's not red. Otherwise it is perfect. Except it isn't red.

And thus my quest continues.

I never knew it would be this hard to find the perfect match for me. I know I can be picky, but I just know what I want. I think...

Since I know I am not the only one with this dilemma I started googling. I google everything. I love it. And so I found Red Velveteen from Lime Crime. It is supposed to dry on your lips but won't dry them out. And 'they' say it will stay on for 8 hours straight. Hmmm...

Now,I must add a side note here; Lime Crime is not the most 'valid' brand out there. If you are interested in the full story, look it up yourself, but the bottom line is that this particular brand seems to have 'copied' the products from other make up brands. I do not know nor do I want to get involved in make up politics.

What I did do, in order to calm my concious, was googling. Again: I love google. I checked to see if there were any other brands with a similar product: no there are not.

So that calmed my nerves a bit and, judging the raving reviews, this is THE product when it comes to lip coloring.

 

Ok. I had to try it so I ordered it. It is not available here in the Netherlands. You can order it through Germany or Amazon.com. Amazon.co.uk also sells it, but somehow it is cheaper on the US website and the delivery time is also shorter. The price is a wee bit high: EUR 16,- but that isn't much if it really is the holy grail in lipsticks.

So after I ordered it I was antsy as hell. Just like a kid on Christmas eve. After what seemed like an eternity (ok, maybe 2 days?) it arrived. The color is velvet red (there is also coral and pink) and it comes like a lipgloss. But it really is a lipstick.

The packaging is pretty, the casing is elegant and the smell... Heavenly! It smells like toffee!

The color is a vibrant red, no shimmer or glitter. Perfect for day and night for me.

Ok, on to the ultimate test. Will it fulfill all my expectations?

When getting ready for one of my fav concerts I decide to put it to the test; drinks, diner, boyfriend, warm surroundings and me 'singing' all night long.

It does take some time to dry, but when it does, it's lovely! The color stays alive the entire time you wear it, no smudging or smearing, it really does what it promises!

I am used to putting my lip balm on very frequently, so it took some getting used to, but they don't feel really dry. Ok, they do feel a bit more dry than usually, but nothing in the regions of a dried plum.

 

Ladies and gentlemen: I HAVE FOUND THE PERFECT MATCH!

 

Now, you go try it!

 

Love,

 

Jazz. 




 

I made it.

I have never been so damn proud of myself as I am now.

Sure graduating a couple of times is something to be proud of and learning to stand on your own two feet is an accomplishment for everybody. But I did something I never thought possible.

 

Remember I told you some time ago that I entered this Business run in a moment of sheer giddiness without really knowing what I signed up for? Well I completed it.

I ran like my freaking life depended on it and I made it to the finish line. And I wasn't even last either!

Not even last from my own team!

I think you understand that my bubble is getting bigger and bigger and nothing can make it go 'pop' right now.

It's a good day; the sun is up, very little wind. I am loving it.

For a very untrained person like me(I never made it further than 1.5k during practice) I did pretty damn well. I have to admit that I couldn't run the 5k straight; at times I walked a bit. But overall; damn proud of myself!

The last kilometer, right before the finish everybody was cheering you on. Made me feel good.

The only big disappointment was when I thought I just had to round the corner to cross the finish line.

Wrong. Very wrong.

I had to round the freaking corner and run alllll the way to the end of the road to cross that line I came to love and hate at the same time.

When I did I felt everything at the same time; exhiliration, disbelief, pride, the urige to pass out. The last one did get switched off with the urge to vomit.

When I was done gasping for oxygen I did not know how to compose myself; I did something I thought was impossible!

Luckily one of my colleagues kept her end of a silly deal we made; I run the 5k and she would be standing at the finish line with a cold glass of wine for me. She thought I did such an amazing job (the people who know me will understand that for me, this Day will go in the top 10 best moments of my life) that I deserved a complete bottle, just for myself. It tastes like sweet victory.

 

After a quick shower in the hotel I went back to cheer the pro's for the 10k on. They all think I will join them next year in the 10k run. Yeah.

No.

Maybe the 5k again to see if I can improve my time and skills. MAYBE.

We'll see...

 

First I need to deal with the sore muscles and polishing my medal.
My Precious...

 

Oh by the way: my time?

36.11mins.

 

BOOYAH!

 

 

Now where is my wine?

 

Love,

 

Jazz.

When I grow up..

I love my job. Did I mention that already?
I know I am talking a lot about love lately. But I do, I love my job.

I am sure the people who know me cannot imagine me in a "teaching" kind of position. And certainly not loving it.
But I do. I do, I do, I do-o.
When I was little I used to dream about becoming a princess when I grew up. When I was about 8 or 9 years old that dream was not really abandoned, but I set more realistic goals for myself, me being practical as ever: flight attendant, hair dresser, professional swimmer, professional ballet dancer or astronaut. The sky is literally the limit.

As I got older my life's purpose became more and more unclear. Of course, I still had the princess thingy in mind but I had to have a back up plan in case that one failed.
Hmm.. I like the way I look. I mean, I do know how to put on some decent make up and throw a halfway decent looking outfit together. So I started to think along the line of hairdresser. Nah, too limited.
All-round stylist then? I could see the captions already:
'Jazz, stylist to the stars has released her latest perfume. A must have!'
Mweh.. That did not really do it for me.

Since my mother was a flight attendant for almost 10 years and has the most amazing stories of that time, I started to think along the line of "something" in tourism. "Something" yep, the perfect plan.
I enrolled in Tourism college in the hope that my life's purpose would reveal itself magically to me.
Not exactly. At first I wanted to become a buyer for one of the bigger tour operators, but then I found out you must have mad negotiating skills for that. * Think… Think… think real hard..* Yeah, strike that. I could not negotiate a good deal even if I was bargaining for my own sweet life.  So that's a big no-go.

In my senior year I did my internship in the sweet Caribbean where I could imagine myself becoming a General Manager for a big fancy pancy five-star resort. The upscale thingy. Hmm.. Maybe, sounds interesting.
Due to the lack of having a real plan I decided to extend my schooling career and went to Tourism university. Lucky me, I got to skip the first year due to my previous education.
There, the plan of moving to the Caribbean kept lingering in my mind, but the plan of becoming a GM, not so much anymore. And I still did not get even one step closer to becoming a princess.
Where is the fairy God mother when you need her? Or a long lost aunt that I do not know to inform me of my great-uncle that left me as heir to the throne of some unknown teeny-weeny island (in the Caribbean of course, I don't do Dutch islands)?
I bought several pumpkins, but none of 'em turned into beautiful glass carriages. And I refuse to kiss a stinking frog!
I don't want to become a princess that bad.

So I decided to abandon ship and become a diva instead! And that works perfectly for me!
I am not a pro like Prince or George Michael yet, but I'm fine just as the little Diva that I am.

Na, na, na, diva is a female version of a hustla

Of a hustla, of a, of a hustla

Na, na, na, diva is a female version of a hustla

Of a hustla, of a, of a hustla

-Beyoncé, Diva, I am… Sasha Fierce(2009)

Me? Diva? Yes honey. Not the fabulous kind, but the awesome kind. The one that can (read: must) walk around in high heels and can do "the eyebrow".
The who?

The eye. Brow.
You know you've got this friend who can give you a dead stare in the face and can raise just one eye brow without even breaking a sweat. And give you the sarcastic look.
Yep, that's it. And I am blessed to master this trait. It's my favorite!

But since I cannot make a living of being a diva, eyebrow-raising is not a skill I can add to my resume and I actually want to do something with my life, I just started a random job. It was fun, but as you can read in "Super Jazz en de sollicitatie" I grew tired of it and was ready for something new.
With that being said (and some difficult questions and a bit more sweaty arm pits... uhm palms) I got myself another job.
One I really liked.
Liked.
Yes.
Past tense.

Because Ms. Thing over here landed herself a promotion. A promotion which requires me to be very patient and explain stuff over and over again with the patience of a kindergarten teacher trying to prevent a child from eating Play-Doh.

One: I never in my wildest dreams thought that I would get myself a job like that.
Two: I never ever thought that I would actually enjoy doing it.
Three: I could have NEVER EVER EVER thought that I would be remotely good at it. Or so they say.
I did receive some compliments that really made my lil' ol' heart melt. Softie that I am.

All kidding aside; I basically never thought I was a people's person. I can be a people's person, but only when I have my moments. And my moments were very slim and rare. And this was known in a very early stage in my life. My mom decided not to speak to me for the first 15 minutes every morning. I was too grumpy. I also get grumpy when I am hungry. Which is often. Or when I am sleepy. Which is just as often. So basically I used to have some (yes, some) people's person moments.

Despite all the issues I do manage to keep my grumpiness to a minimum when I am in public. Makes me pretty damn proud of myself. As if I am an adult and can function as one should behave. And seeing my 'babies' do great in the big corporate world that is our office jungle, makes me even more proud. Of both myself and them of course.

I still keep the little flame called my princess dream flickering. Since Prince William is not as cute as he used to be and Harry not ready to commit, I found my own Prince Charming.(yes, really!!) Not one of royalty, but it will do just fine. Another thing I can cross off from the 'grown-up-to-do' list. I am on fire.
But still I am secretly hoping for my own fairy God mother or uncle to make me a real princess.
I know I am destined to be one!

Love,

Jazz.
 

Ik ben verliefd!

Heb je ooit dat gevoel gehad dat het gewoon klopte?

Dat je gewoon je soulmate hebt gevonden, waar je al die jaren al naar opzoek was?

Nou, dat is mij dus overkomen! Het klopt allemaal gewoon, echt een aanvulling op én een weergave van mijn karakter. I feel so lucky! Zevende hemel, roze wolk, roze bril, roze alles!

Ik heb perfectie gevonden! En niet eenmaal, nee, tweemaal!

 

Tweemaal?

Ja, tweemaal!

 

En de hele wereld mag het weten!!!

 

I HAVE FOUND THE PERFECT SHOES!!!!!!!

 

I am totally and utterly in love, it's amazing!

 

Normaliter word ik zelf een beetje misselijk van al dat onpasselijke geklef. Ook als het om schoenen gaat(behalve als het om Christian Louboutins gaat), maar dit is gewoon meant to be!

Ik ben er helemaal klaar voor:  Timberlands for the casual me en kick-ass heels voor de… uh...rest of me :).

Het afgelopen jaar werd ik wat meer casual in mijn outfits, maar ik heb de liefde voor killer heels weer volledig hervonden!  

De voetjes moeten er ook weer even aan wennen, but I'm back! Dat gevoel van kick ass en all feminine is immeasurable. So worth de voetenbaden en -massages!
My loves zijn schattige zwart leren enkellaarsjes met een ruitstiksel aan de zijkant en een klein riempje op de buitenkant. Oh ja, en een not-so-cute heel van 12 cm. Size does matter ;-). 

Zoals jullie weten is er bij mij op werk de regel van 'Casual Friday' ingevoerd. Dat betekent dat ik de rest van de week dus niet casual mag zijn. Althans, niet op werk. Wat voor mij soms heel lastig is, zeker in het kader van 'ik heb nieuwe schoenen, dus ik moet ze gelijk aan'. Ik moet 4 hele dagen wachten tot ik mijn Timberlands aan mag. Dat is gewoon gemeen. Dat is hetzelfde als tegen een kind van 4 zeggen dat ze een snoepje mogen, over 4 dagen. Of een wortel nét buiten bereik van het paard hangen. Vier dagen lang. That's just cold.

 

Maarja, helaas weinig aan te doen. Tot die tijd overleef ik het wel door rond te hobbelen (soms bijna letterlijk) op mn pretty lil' boots. Jazz in boots! Lijkt bijna letterlijk op Puss in boots, only less furry..

 

Zoals jullie ongetwijfeld ook weten, ben ik niet gezegend met extreem lange benen. Of lange benen, period. Veel mensen op mijn werk wel. Het was voor hen een beetje vreemd toen ik ook ineens in de lange-mensen-regionen (alles boven 1.70m) kon meespelen. It's not much, ze kunnen net niet meer de bovenkant van mijn hoofd zien, but it’s a start!

 

Nog steeds vinden sommige heren van bijna twee meter het af en toe vreemd dat ik op bepaalde dagen 'zo lang' ben. Automatisch dwalen hun ogen af naar lagere regionen… en nog lager, langs mijn benen…. Lager….. Tot… BAM! Now they get it! High heels! The secret for all short people. Ha! Love it!

 

Momenteel draag ik ze alleen op werk. Ik alleen buiten op hakken van 10 tot 12 cm, dat is gewoon vragen naar problemen. Ik bedoel mijn hak kan vast komen te zitten (check), een hak breken (check), struikelen over mijn eigen ineens-veel-langere benen (kan ook zonder verlenging, maar ook check) of ik kan worden aangehouden omdat ik ze op mysterieuze wijze heb weten om te toveren tot lethal weapons. Bij die laatste kan ik (nog) geen 'check' zetten, maar Gosh, how I wish sometimes.. Zeker in de spits. Pushy people. Oh ja, nog een reden waarom ik buiten nog geeen hakken aan mag: I'm a bit wobbly.. Ik moet daar nog mijn examen voor doen.

 

Ik moet wel toegeven dat ik tegen het einde van de werkdag blij ben wanneer ik toch weer mijn oude vertrouwde zeer platte All Stars aankan. Those are just heaven on a rubber sole.

 

SHORT PEOPLE:

God only lets things grow until they are perfect...

Some of us didn't take as long as others.

 

En voor de andere dagen: my Timberlands! Niet die iedereen heeft, maar die bijna iedereen heeft: de sneaker versie. Vroeger vond ik Timberlands echt totaal niets. Mijn moeder heeft de eerste 10 jaar van mijn leven een paar gehad die wij allemaal "Trepkeks" noemden (don't ask, geen idee  wat het betekent, it just was). Dus aanvankelijk dacht ik dat het "mommy-shoes" waren. Totdat ik in de pubertijd raakte en "fan" van Murder INC. werd (again, do not ask). En toen vond ik ze ook niet leuk omdat ik dacht dat ze voor gang members en rappers waren. Maar die hele hoge versie vond ik wel leuk, alleen ben ik niet gezegend met een schattig maatje 36, waardoor dat al gauw een no-go werd.

 

 

 

 

En toen - fast forward 10 jaar- was mijn smaak veranderd en dacht ik dat ze wel heel leuk bij een spijkershort zouden staan. En ik had gelijk!

Ik moet eerlijk toegeven dat een vriendinnetje ze mij onder de aandacht heeft gebracht. Ik hadd ze al eerder gezien en toen leken ze mij wel leuk, but I didn't give it any second thoughts. Toen gingen we samen de stad in en wilde zij beide modellen passen. Terwijl zij model 1 aanpaste, besloot ik model 2 te passen. En het was voor ons beide liefde op het eerste gezicht. Ze zitten heerlijk, een tikkeltje stoer, maar niet al te stoer dat mensen bang van mij worden. Casual, maar niet zo casual dat het weer niet geschikt is voor casual Friday. En ze staan gewoon ontzettend leuk!
Needless to say dat we binnen een kwartier beide vrolijk de winkel uit huppelden met een grote tas aan onze hand. Helemaal happy.
Tegenwoordig gaan we geregeld op dubbeldate. Hartstikke gezellig!

 

 

Jazz.

My first goal of twenty-fourteen

This year is not even a month old and already I'm surprising myself!

I have set my first goal. I'm so proud of myself!

This is so unlike me. The goal is so unlike me!

Why I'm so over the moon?

I worked out! And I know, about a year ago I wrote a similar blog, about working out and getting in shape. And it ended.. Well I don't know how it ended. Because it didn't really start.

But this time I have a goal. A real goal. And without a goal I'm not moving an inch from my comfy couch.

 

My goal: A 5k business run and I have 45 days to train for it.

Why I signed up? I don't know. Well actually, I didn't sign up myself.

I was chatting with a sweet and over enthusiastic colleague who is a wee bit crazy (she gets up a 6AM to run 10k before work!) and she got me so worked up that she signed me up!

And I let her.

You may think I'm such a push over, and in some cases you would be right, but this girl.. Whenever she's in her zone she could sell heels to a person without feet! Trust me, She's that good.

So yeah, I willingly let myself get pushed over. Not all the way, I let her sign me up for the shortest route: 5k. The longest is 21,5k and I could never, in my wildest dreams imagine myself completing that route alive. With my lungs still in my body. And still be able to cross that finish line on my own strength. Scratch that; And still be able to cross that finish line period. So I felt somewhat confident about the 5k. After all, I still had about 5 months to train for it.

Every day I walked past that list my name on it. And every day I looked at my name on that list. With the 5k behind it.

It might sound like I am exaggerating, but for the record: I basically donate my tuition to the gym. I still went occasionally, but ever since I got the promotion I started working til late and then I didn't have the energy anymore to go. And then it got colder, and darker. And, and, and...

Until it was the new year and there were only 45 days left, instead of 5 months!

Trust me. Many times I thought of taking myself of that damned list, but I didn't want to seem like a drop out. Or at least not the first drop out. But all of the other "victims" were too psyched about it, so I left things as they were. As time passed I tried  make up excuses or even tried to plan a concert the night before so I could wiggle myself out of it but the odds just weren't in my favor. I even tried to mentally stall time, perhaps I had this undiscovered gift. But no. I'm just plain ol' Jazz that has to get her a** off the couch and in some sweat pants and out on the street.

I have also said many times "Tomorrow" (Just like the song). And then it became tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after... But my couch has such a great attraction on me...

On the presumption of " be the best I can be" I already, totally unrelated, started to change my diet. Less snacks, less sweets, less fast food. I even gave up my ultimate snack: salted popcorn. More veggies, dairy, wholesome food and breafast!

I'm not a breakfast type of girl. I prefer lying in bed for another 10 to 15 minutes than to get up and put some energy in my body. My bed has that same attraction on me..

Breakfast can be indeed fast! So I bought me a cute little blender (0.5 liters) a ton of fresh green veggies at the market and a pack of yoghurt.

I really do love fresh spinah, but didn't it could be that tasty! Blend it up with some yoghurt, banana an chia seed and you got yourself a halthe, filling and easy breakfast in literally 3 minutes.

Holy ***, I start to sound like a sales person from Tell Sell!

Ok, rewind. No, it doesn't make you instantly lose weight, and it doesn't give insane abs overnight. It's just tasty. Really tasty. And it lasts me all through lunch. What more can a girl ask for?

So. Besides me blending up everything I can lay my hands on I still had that teeny weeny issue of having absolutely no stamina. And my personal D-day growing closer and closer. No excuses.

So I did the unthinkable. I went to the gym. I can't even remember the last time I went! I signed up for a class in Body Combat. Nothing serious, just an hour of kicking and punching in the air and women under the impression that they are the next Jean-Claude van Damme. Yeah. Ok, I can do that. The warming up started pretty intense, it's all on a high energy level. So I gave it my all. The running and the jumping and kicking and screaming, I loved it. The kicking and screaming came very easy, I was already a pro at this by the time I was ten. I think it was hard to see I was completely new at this sporting thingy.

 

 

After a good while there was this little 30 second break. I drank a bit of water, I have to stay hydrated of course. And I made a futile attempt in wiping away all that sweat. Man, I have never in my life sweated as much as during that class.

Partially because of the amount of sweat I thought the time was almost up. I checked the time: only halfway.

ARE YOU SERIOUS? Did time stand still? This can't be! Damn you time!

Because of this the second half hour was double so hard. I am proud of myself because I stuck with it. Like a pro. (Even when an old lady mooned me, that was very disturbing).

All proud I returned home, took a hot shower and went straight to bed. Well, almost straight to bed...

A couple of days later, I surprised myself even more! With my D-day only 1.5 months away I knew I had to get busy. I came home from work, changed my outfit, blended me a spinach-carrot shake and went out the door. Music in my ears, my running app on stand by and there I went. A slow jog, all good. But this was much harder to keep up than the body combat class. I thought it was especially difficult to get my breathing under control in the cold weather. Yes,  I think it's cold here in the Netherlands! I know it's not nearly as cold as it should be and there are other parts in the world that are being tortured by blizzards, etc. But I have Caribbean blood! Anything below 15 degrees Centigrade is cold to me!

But despite the hardship I persisted and I ran. Okay, I jogged.

And why I am so happy you ask?

I jogged my first kilometer in 7 minutes!

Stop laughing!

Last time I jogged it took me 10 minutes to complete 1k! And I didn’t even practice in between!

So I think it's something to be very proud of!

I'm no Speedy Gonzalez. Not yet. But I have good faith in crossing that damned finish line!
On my own strength.
With my lungs still inside my body.
Alive!

To be continued…

Jazz.