So I have to quit the swim team. Practically, it's just as well because that's $70 I get to keep instead of spend each month until I leave. It basically comes down to that I don't want to pay the 2009 registration for just January. PLUS, if I quit before December, I don't have to participate in the mandatory fundraiser that will inevitably end up in me eating $50 for not doing it. That's $190 I can spend on something cool in Europe.

Even more than that, I won't have to spend 2 hours in the car 4-5 days a week. That's pretty exhausting, and while I will say that it's been worth it, it will still be a relief not to do it anymore. I can get used to running, doing more strength training, and doing yoga regularly, since that's how I'll probably be working out in Prague (unless I can find a pool I can go to cheaply--fingers crossed!). I went running today actually (since I ignored my sub calls this morning to preserve my sanity...ssshhh), and it was fabulous. I'm feeling really good right now, really positive and optimistic. I think I'll probably be more healthy all around in Europe, because Europeans are generally just healthier, and I'll be living that lifestyle--walking more, smaller portions, etc.

Anyway, despite all of these positives about quitting the team, there are some negatives too. I have made a lot of new friends and reconnected with some old ones on the team. It's been a great way to stay in shape, challenge myself, and just do something I love in an organized way. (By that I mean not having to just go to the pool and swim laps by myself like I did in Corpus). I even got to compete in a swim meet, which I hadn't done in 5 years, and I'm sad that I only got to do one since I joined. I'm so glad I did that one. I felt like I was getting really good, and now I'm going to have to stop. There's nowhere for me to swim on my own in Granbury. I'm not a member of the Y, where the only indoor pool is, and I'm not going to become one. At least it won't be very hard for me to get in running shape since I'm already in swimming shape.

But still, FAST is like home. It was in high school, and it is now, though in a very different way. When I quit the first time (to go to college), it killed a little part of me that came alive again in the past 5 months. Now, it will happen again, and I have to be prepared for that. Swimming on that team was something I've always dreamed about, from when I swam there the first time and didn't even know if I could do it, to missing it the whole time I was away. I just have to remember the positives and that I'm working toward another dream, one that requires sacrifice. And I hope that I will find something even a little bit like FAST in my new phase of life.

I'm going to enjoy my last 5 days of practice like I have never enjoyed swim practice before.