Roller Derby in the Movies!!!

OMG OMG SOOOO EXCITED FOR THIS! THIS TRAILER LOOKS AWESOME!

http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1810036665/video/14521961

ode to athena

athena decrime aka decrizzle aka amy smith has been a part of my life since 2005.

we met when i tried out for the windy city rollers. she was one of the first people to talk to me at the recruitment event and she hand picked me from about 30ish "skater tots" to be a part of her team.
she captained me for 3 years and i guess we started to get close which is par the course when you are around someone for 4-5 days out of every week.

i don't know what the turning point was though, where we went from being skating buddies to real life friends. it was probably when we started taking trips together for travel team about two years ago and realized that we were really the only people we could stand being around in confined quarters. whatever it was that made that friendship blossom, she is now one of my best friends and someone i would do anything for.

this year has seen it's share of ups and downs for us and somehow we have weathered all the storms. in all honesty i'm thankful because i'm not sure what i'd do if she wasn't around.

no one would really understand how she lights up my life but...
things like telling me i IM like i talk...thus making me uncontrollably laugh like she always does...
or indulging me when i'm having moments of mental clarity
listening to all my bullshit and giving me advice that only a black woman living in a white woman's body could lay down
telling me i'm prettier and meaning every word of it
saying things like "her hair looks like a weave" and not thinking twice cause she knows it will make me smile

as you can tell a true friend in ever sense of the word

she's smart, beautiful, witty, hilarious, dependable, honest, hardworking, dedicated and more fun than almost anyone else i know...

i'm not even doing her justice here but you'd have to be lucky enough to know her to know exactly how amazing she is

<3

finally an update

it's too late to be witty so bear with me

i've been back from portland/seattle for a week now and am still trying to wrap my head around a normal schedule
finally have a job...actually 2 and i'm trying hard to finish up with this semester of school
the eye tick is almost gone but a couple of things that weigh heavy on me make it kick into overdrive
i haven't been in the mood to update lately...but that always has a way of changing

a cliff notes version of my nationals weekend in portland and seattle
we took 2nd in the nation...fell to gotham...again...i just want to beat that team once
lots of crying, lots of laughter, a cookie shaped wood medal and tons of positivity
compliments galore
only got to see a fraction of what portland had to offer...it will be visited again
i had my first train ride across state lines...it was awesome & i even visited the dining cart
spent quality time with my favorite travel buddy...she loathed my nike rifts the whole time :)
fell asleep in the most comfortable bed i have ever slept in...thank you edgewater
my hotel room had a fireplace and the best shower ever
seattle fucking rules!
i'm in love with pike's public market
i wish we had produce like that in chicago
i had the best goat cheese i have ever tasted from a town that's home to the world's largest egg
damn there are a lot of hobos in seattle!
decrime and i made a commitment to move to the pacific northwest in 3 years if not sooner
fiction, diablo, decrime gossip session on plane ride home
larry our flight attendant who incidentally had a crush on me which resulted in free booze for fiction!
wishing i could spend a couple weeks exploring washington state

Portland Pictures


Seattle Pictures

Pikes Market Pictures

OMFG weekend

i haven't written lately because i've been mad stressed and super busy

getting ready for our eastern regional tournament has been draining

it's 7:15am and we're off in a couple of hours to madison to try and take the #1 spot in the east

it can be done...it will be done

if you want to catch any of my games over the weekend and sit in front of a computer, you can catch a life bout cast (detailed jam by jam report live) and a live video feed @ www.derbynewsnetwork.com/leadjammer

our first game is at 9:45 tomorrow morning and if we win that we automatically advance to nationals (thank god for byes - 4 games in one weekend is brutal)

after that we have to win 2 more games to place at the number 1 slot

if we win tomorrows game we will have another game at 8:15pm

wish me luck

8am

http://www.derbynewsnetwork.com/

this is what i have been doing since 8am this morning. watching a live boutcast of the western regional tournaments. i plan on being here all day/night...

roller derby is addictive...get into it!

hating stuff

i'm extremely frustrated right now...unfortunately i wish i could say it was just at one thing but it's so many things all balled up into a voltron of crappity crap

i broke down and cried at practice tonight...
my leg won't let me do what i want it to, and there isn't any time for it to get any better.

having been injured twice in the last 2 months i have really let my fitness go and it's showing.
i feel fat, i feel weak, i feel tired

to top it all off, my lack of employment has left me apathetic and i really want to do nothing all the time...
i'm probably a little depressed too.

i can name only a couple of things that make me happy right now...and at least 2 of those are mildly stressful.

derby is supposed to be my solace...it's supposed to be my retreat...something i'm good at that i can just do...

i can't just do it right now and it's bumming me out...

maybe it's my period...maybe it's my need for a personal pity party...
i'm sure i'll be fine tomorrow...
i hate it...and i want to cry...well cry some more...

they're coming...

kansas city is coming...the number one team in the county!
in less than 2 days i will be skating in one of the most pivotal games of my roller derby career.
this is a test...a test to see what type of progress we have made since last year.
a good marker for how we are sizing up for regionals...

i'm nervous and excited...tonight it's going to be hard to sleep...tomorrow will probably be worse.

the last couple of practices have been amazing, everyone has been pushing their bodies to the limits and wonderful things have been happening

kansas city might want this win but i can see it in my teams eyes...we want it MORE...