She was once a runner

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I agree wholeheartedly. My parents said things that, taken out of context, would have been perceived by today's standards as cruel. They set a low bar for me. However, they were just passing on the flawed wisdom of both their generation and their personal experience. It was up to me to break the chain, and along the way I fouled up quite a bit until I figured out that I needn't be a product of my environment...you have a say in your destiny.

That's what I constantly tell kids I coach, and that's what I want to pretty much scream at this girl. She's gotten into negative thought patterns because she can't see that mom and dad and coach and teammates don't define her, and she's just lost. Sad stuff.

Serenity Now wrote:

That's what I constantly tell kids I coach, and that's what I want to pretty much scream at this girl.

She already has way too many people screaming at her.

calm down wrote:

Serenity Now wrote:

That's what I constantly tell kids I coach, and that's what I want to pretty much scream at this girl.

She already has way too many people screaming at her.

Way to take a figure of speech out of context.

I'm afraid I don't quite understand the latest post. Someone help me. Was the father drinking for the 35 minutes, thus thinking it was an hour and a half?

i'm guessing he was just not keeping track of time, got worried about the storm, and wanted to yell at her for something (i'm wondering if he was disappointed that she didn't get any calls and was ready to yell at her for just about anything).

I wondered about the father too. Was he drinking while she ran? There are too many one dimension and outrageous people to make this blog a truthful account. I hope she spends more time blogging about her dorm and running life relationships and developing her own character. This will make an awesome book. Keep it going.

zamboomba wrote:

I'm afraid I don't quite understand the latest post. Someone help me. Was the father drinking for the 35 minutes, thus thinking it was an hour and a half?

And why did he drive her to sit in the car while she ran? Is that not really weird?

asdasd wrote:

zamboomba wrote:

I'm afraid I don't quite understand the latest post. Someone help me. Was the father drinking for the 35 minutes, thus thinking it was an hour and a half?

And why did he drive her to sit in the car while she ran? Is that not really weird?

Wait, it says that "we" went for a run. How did they get separated then? Is he that much slower/faster than her?

Was wondering about "we" as well. She mentions she's been wonked out on cold medicine the last few days, so maybe she'll clarify this post by re-editing it when she's better.

Her story rings true. What a painful experience for her. It is no surprise that her father began acting out on scholarship day. Like my own father, the last thing he wanted was to take on the burden of paying for a college education. Really, it is not easy, and to do it (I say this as a parent of two daughters going to two of our nation's best private schools) requires a true dedication to looking out for your kids best interests and not your own. Some parents support their kid's goals and aims effortlessly - "getting" that being supportive can create a positive cycle for generations. But not in my case - my father left home and my mother was destitute - and while he made good money - the last thing he wanted was to support something that wouldn't benefit him or enrich his entertainment oriented lifestyle - like college expenses. No real complaints from me at this - he was not someone I wanted to be around and poverty was a lot better deal than dealing with him - and I was fortunate to be in a pre-Title IX era where full rides were available to 4:08 high school milers and while living merely on scholarship with no parental help was pretty lean, the freedom and developing the capacity for self-reliance was great. The hard part - and I detect this with this wonderfully talented author - is coming to grips that your parent doesn't really give a darn about your welfare. It is not easy to digest, and it took me until my 30's and having my own kids to realize that it was healthy to accept my parents immense limitations and work on what I could control - breaking the cycle - so to speak - for my kids and hopefully my grandkids. I hope others are enjoying this blog.

Sorry to inform you gullible louts, but this is a work of fiction.

Often fiction is based on real circumstances, but events, people, and their actions are invented, exaggerated and plain made up.

You would have learned this is fifth grade if you'd paid attention.

One of the things that has made this blog so intriguing is the fact that some have claimed to have identified the authoress, so it is quite likely that she has been privy to the discussions of the LetsRun readers but, as of yet, has remained anonymous on this board. That would demonstrate an extremely thick skin for someone to unveil their traumatic life's story in blog form for the LR faithful to digest and critique. I think I admire this young woman for that as much as I do for her story and writing ability.

To whomever you are, you have giving young female runners something to think about and despite whether it was your intention or not, have become an internet role model for these very same girls. I, too, hope that this blog will become a published piece.

pre841 wrote:

One of the things that has made this blog so intriguing is the fact that some have claimed to have identified the authoress, so it is quite likely that she has been privy to the discussions of the LetsRun readers but, as of yet, has remained anonymous on this board. That would demonstrate an extremely thick skin for someone to unveil their traumatic life's story in blog form for the LR faithful to digest and critique. I think I admire this young woman for that as much as I do for her story and writing ability.

To whomever you are, you have giving young female runners something to think about and despite whether it was your intention or not, have become an internet role model for these very same girls. I, too, hope that this blog will become a published piece.

I'm sure that it will.

orange - I don't agree - and am far from naive. I have conducted large investigations in the course of my work involving some of the world's largest companies. While there is no way of confirming whether some facts have been stretched or changed for any number of reasons, there appears to be a fundamental core of truth to the experiences she writes about. Admittedly, her credibility is enhanced because she is a very effective writer, but what strikes me about this blog from a general veracity perspective is the strikingly accurate way she describes some of her immature reactions to her plight. Her reaction to the physician drinking a diet coke was revealing - reflecting a narrowmindness and some insight into the mental prison to which she was subject. There are any number of similar vignettes that appear to spring solely from painful personal experiences. Sure, it is possible she is a poseur or a faker, but this is an uncomfortable subject, and she writes with a compulsion to make the readers experience a lot of that discomfort.

I think this is a true account also. Remembering that this is from her perspective, how she thinks, how she feels, the way she takes the things others say. A memoir is never going to be a story from all points of view simply the writers. This all rings true for someone of her age and maturity. 19 is not an adult it is still a kid, and this shows is how she describes feeling and thinking. I see as others have stated this is not only a story of how Division 1 running has impacted her life but of how she is learning to deal with the disappointment of parents who are far from perfect(no parent is perfect). Hopefully we will see her turn things around for herself and accept the support and tools counceling can give her.

I can't believe some people still think this is fiction.

this is fictional memoir. most of this stuff happened to her or her associates, and she has distilled it into this story, maybe adding here or there to strengthen the effect.

kinda like "a heartbreaking work of staggering genius"

There was an early comparison, I think by TxRG, to Sylvia Plath. I remember reading Plath and other Confessional Poets in a college lit class and recalled their exploration of the self in such a powerful way.

I can't help but think this blog is a modern, internet version of the very same Confessional Poets. Her writing reminds me a great deal of Plath, Sexton, Levertov and Rich.

whirledpeas wrote:

this is fictional memoir. most of this stuff happened to her or her associates, and she has distilled it into this story, maybe adding here or there to strengthen the effect.

kinda like "a heartbreaking work of staggering genius"

Why would it be anonymous? Reading this blog has made me remember a lot of things I've been through, heard people tell me, etc., that are very similar to her story. Most of these things I didn't want to remember, and I certainly wouldn't go into detail or name names without anonymity.