February 04, 2017

The most spontaneous thing I've ever done

Hola from San Diego!

This trip was decided on Thursday morning, and I was on a plane Thursday night. Crazy, right?! I had a string of bad days as far as my depression goes, and I really just felt like I needed to get away for a couple of days. I thought about driving out to my sister's with the kids, or something like that. But then I had the (insane) idea that maybe I could visit John.

John is a friend of mine that I met through my blog and SparkPeople, and then asked to join my Ragnar Relay team. He was Runner 12 for the Florida Keys Ragnar, so you can see him in the From Fat to Finish Line documentary. Then, in 2014, John and I captained another Ragnar team, Strangers to Sole Mates.

Anyway, John is very understanding of depression, and I knew talking to him would be therapeutic in itself. As a bonus, he and his husband Ric live in San Diego! Could there possibly be a better place to escape from Michigan for a couple of days, considering it's February and 12 degrees at home? I can't think of one ;)

When I asked John about it, he said the timing would be perfect for a visit, because he's walking the Surf City Half on Sunday and Jen and Angela will be there. Jen and Angela are the documentary's producers (and Jen is one of the runners in the film). It'll be fun to see them today when we drive up to Huntington Beach!

Anyway, John was thrilled for me to visit (John and Ric host people at their house a lot--otherwise, I don't know that I would have asked). My sister-in-law, Becky, listed me on a flight Thursday night using a buddy pass from Brian (Brian was on a trip in Paris). Without a buddy pass, the ticket would have been $1500! There is no way I'd have been able to go without the buddy pass. The flight had 40 open seats, so the chances of getting on the flight were really good.

I made it onto the flight and arrived in San Diego late Thursday night. Yesterday, I got in 15,424 steps while walking around San Diego! John took Ric to an appointment in the morning, so I walked Ruthie, their dog, around the block (she doesn't like to walk far); and then I walked on my own for a few miles to just get some sun. I was amazed at how good I felt--the change of scenery instantly made me feel better.


John, Ric, and I went to the beach where I walked out on a pier, and it was amazing. It was fun to watch people surf.


Me, Ric, and John
We went to Hodad's for lunch, which is a burger place, and the atmosphere there was awesome! When we were leaving, I saw something lying on the sidewalk--and it ended up being a fairly large amount of marijuana. Haha! I felt like I was on a hidden camera show.



Then, we went to Cabrillo National Monument, where I saw the most amazing view of San Diego. I took a photo, but photos NEVER do sceneries justice. I couldn't get over how gorgeous it was!



I was cracking up at all the people wearing winter coats. It was in the mid-60's, which is shorts and t-shirt weather in Michigan! I was wearing jeans, but wished I'd brought shorts because I was really warm.

Then Ric dropped John and I off at a fun bar for afternoon margaritas. We were able to catch up with everything, and it was awesome.


I also got to meet Colin, who is a fan of the film. What a nice guy! He's lost 100 pounds and is training for his first triathlon--an IRONMAN. He is going to be going up to Huntington Beach for the race as well.

Colin, me, and John
The three of us were chatting at John's, and I literally fell asleep on the couch at 7:30. The time change is definitely an adjustment! It was 10:30 at home. But the long day with lots of walking tired me out.

Anyway, I can't believe I didn't think to do this sooner. This trip has been so therapeutic and I know I am going to go home in a much better state of mind. I'm really grateful to my family for being so cool with this, too. It's amazing what nice weather and great friends can do :)

13 comments:

  1. Love to see your beautiful smile again!!!! Have A blast!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a fun trip! I'm so glad you were able to go! and it's so good to see you smiling that again and that you have such awesome friends to lean on. <3

    ReplyDelete
  3. Welcome to CA! Glad you are enjoying yourself

    ReplyDelete
  4. Wow, sounds like an awesome time! I'd love to be able to just hop a plane over to a far away friends to get away for a bit.

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a brilliant idea! The best medicine in the world is a FRIEND.

    ReplyDelete
  6. So very glad this trip helped you! Such a good read and thanks for sharing! Cheers to happier days!

    ReplyDelete
  7. good for you! a change of scenery always helps me too! have a great time!

    ReplyDelete
  8. good for you! a change of scenery always helps me too! have a great time!

    ReplyDelete
  9. OK...I am sooo jealous!!!! This is totally something I have been wanting to do (although I would have to suck it up and pay some crazy price b/c we don't have airline connections......anyway it would be so worth it!!)

    Looks like a great time and Jon and Ric look like fun guys to visit....win/win!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Fantastic. Sometimes getting away and the company of a good friend is the best medicine in the world! <3

    ReplyDelete
  11. I saw a picture on FB of a group of people and I thought that looked like you next to John but I didn't think it actually was you! So, you met Nora! I met her through the FFTFL FB group and then in person in Vegas and we've kept in touch since and we're both going to the vegas half again this year! I'm so glad you had a wonderful trip. Now that my kids are grown, I've taken a few spur of the moment trips and it's the most fun ever, it really does pick you up and keep you going!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Maybe not that different from Michigan; I hear San Diego has a hockey team now. Hope you had a good time.

    ReplyDelete
  13. That is actually funny, I had to run away this last weekend myself. My depression has been out of control and I was even considering homelessness as if it were some sort of good option. I have seen my doctor and gotten some perspective, but my small trip to the river helped me realize that I was having a depression issue. I'm glad you were able to get away!

    ReplyDelete

I used to publish ALL comments (even the mean ones) but I recently chose not to publish those. I always welcome constructive comments/criticism, but there is no need for unnecessary rudeness/hate. But please--I love reading what you have to say! (This comment form is super finicky, so I apologize if you're unable to comment)

Featured Posts

Blog Archive