Well I LOVE this time of year in Florida – everything seems ‘new’! The trees are turning green and starting to bloom…is there ANYTHING that smells better than blooming orange blossoms? I don’t THINK so! It’s warmer now and the days are getting longer…

My favorite thing about spring is that it is such a great time to get outside and exercise. My exercise passion of choice (other than riding the whinnying critters) is to lace up the Nike Shox, click on the iPod and hit the pavement. I run mostly in my neighborhood, sometimes at Saint Leo and occasionally on a great paved bike trail up near my mom’s house about eight miles north of campus. Running is my therapy – it keeps me (semi-) sane and as the spring is my busiest time of year, anyone who has to work, live or interact with me is grateful for this habit.

Being a very competitive person (would those of you who know me well and are reading this please stop chuckling and commenting about ‘the understatement of the century’, etc.), running is difficult for me. This is because – well I have to be honest – I am not very good. OK, let me be completely honest – I SUCK. Literally. That spring breeze you think you hear blowing through the trees is really me sucking wind. But as one of my running mentors once said – it doesn’t matter if you go a mile in 15 minutes or in 5…what matters is that you are out there. If you are out running regularly and working to improve – YOU ARE A RUNNER. I like his philosophy. It has managed to carry me through countless bouts of shin splints and a few cases of road rash. I mean, seriously…I am my mother’s daughter – neither of us would be considered graceful. Who am I to think I can run on a clear day and a level surface without incident? But we’ll get back to that.

So the other best part about spring and getting out and running regularly again is the excitement of a race. Anyone who runs in Tampa has probably run in one of the Gasparilla races. I ran my first one in 2001. I was completely hooked and resolved to run a longer race by the end of the year. For most people that would be maybe a 10K or 15K. Not me. Being an overachiever, I decided to tackle a half-marathon in early December.
It came, I ran, I bled, I finished and I cried. Yes, me. I RAN 13.1 MILES.

But then asthma and allergy issues (not to mention semi-old age) kicked my tail and I quit running regularly. This spring I resolved to get back out there…and this time, I enlisted some additional help in the motivation department. My ‘trainer’ is my nine-year old daughter. She’s usually pretty sunny about the prospect of running with me, and there is nothing more motivational than your child blowing past you on a run. I mean, I just can’t let that happen!!!! It was depressing the first time it happened – now it just fires me up. So we decided to run this year’s Gasparilla 5K together.

'The Girls' after their Gasparilla 5K finish

The training plan was put in to effect (Robert Ullrey’s Couch to 5K plan is a godsend – check it out on iTunes). We were ready…or so I thought. Now, I should tell you that Murphy’s Law was written about me and any/everything I touch. One evening I had to run without my daughter, so I took my 90 lb. black lab, Jazz (she’s a Hurricane Katrina survivor – 29 days on her own in the Lower 9th Ward, but that is another story entirely!). It was a beautiful evening and I was sucking less wind than usual, so I decided to push it a bit. BAD IDEA. Dusk had arrived and I couldn’t clearly see the pavement. More specifically, I couldn’t see the uneven patch in the pavement. Long story short. Toe of shoe met rise in pavement. Runner (me) collapses on top of unsuspecting Lab’s back. Lab determines she is being attacked by crazy person and yelps as if near death. Hilarity (not to mention a nicely twisted ankle) ensues. Did I mention that this is SIX DAYS BEFORE THE RACE? Ugh. OK, so we do the ice, elevate, etc. stuff and wrapped it. Pretty much just crossed my fingers til race day.

The scene on race day - 15,000 runners!

The big day arrived – RACE DAY. Beautiful weather – gorgeous scenery. For those who don’t know, the Gasparilla race route begins in the heart of downtown Tampa and then takes you along the top of Tampa Bay on scenic Bayshore Boulevard with its gorgeous bay views and multi-million dollar homes. My only complaint? The Bayshore resident who insists on sitting in his front yard along the route with a big ol’ honkin’ box of Dunkin Donuts. I mean, that is just CRUEL to the competitors. Of course the serious racers are moving too fast to read the letters on the box. I am NOT in that category, so I find it terribly unjust.

So the bottom line is that I was able to run on race day, although my time was horrendous. Annie had a great time and seemed to just enjoy being part of the fun. The running gods were smiling upon me as we were in such a rush to drop our bags at runner’s storage and get our bibs pinned on that we forgot to put our timing chips on our shoes, therefore our terrible times (her time would have been fine, had she not been staying behind with her old, crippled ma) were not recorded for posterity and publication in The Tampa Tribune…at least we had the photos to prove we really did finish!!!! We got our finisher’s medals and headed out to enjoy the fitness expo. We met up with several of my Saint Leo colleagues who are ‘REAL runners’. Thankfully, none of them asked me about my finish time. BLESS THEM.

But I am happy to report that I think my little one has caught the running bug! We’re both looking forward to another race later in the spring. Hopefully the wind sucking won’t be so bad by then… Stay tuned!!!!

Back on Campus!

We’ve moved back on campus this week. For those of you not in the know, the Admission building suffered some flood damage last fall that necessitated our relocation to other facilities while this building was being repaired and remodeled. Despite the challenges of being located just off campus, we all endured our time in our temporary home quite well.

The building is in great order now, and I have a nifty new (bigger) office to call home. The move into the new office came at a very busy time for me, however. I was a little worried that the time that I would lose while actually executing the move would put me behind with the many projects I seem to always be juggling. With the help of my student assistant, I pulled out my ‘hot’ items and packed a special box with those files so that I could quickly hit the ground running as soon as my desk had been reassembled and my computer all hooked up.

The reality is that I found I was practically incapable of working until I had established some semblance of order, comfort and familiarity! Of course, I started by getting my phone, computer equipment, printer, etc. all hooked up. I pulled my everyday desk items (pens, scissors, stapler, post-its, etc.) out of the box and had them all ready to go. I even had my mini-fridge plugged in and chilling several cans of Diet Coke (I’m addicted…I admit it). But looking at my blank walls, empty display shelves, spartan desktop and so forth – I realized that I wasn’t going to really be able to work well until I got things ‘back to normal’.

OK, so anyone who knows me will tell you that ‘normal’ is probably not a word that they would readily use to describe me. Visitors to my office seem to be confused, entertained, etc. by the wide assortment of STUFF that I seem to have collected to define my work environment. Perhaps that is why I was unable to focus when I sat down in a still mostly empty space and tried to concentrate, create and generally do what I do.

Although I do occasionally love to be a girly-girl and wait for my hubby to do manly things like hang my pictures, connect wires and the like, I jumped right in and within two hours had hooked up everything myself and had managed to hang pictures, degrees, certificates and other things all by myself – all this without so much as a chipped fingernail! I was proud – my hubby seemed hurt that I’d managed to do that without him. But he’s a tough one – he’ll recover!

Most importantly, I realized that I couldn’t get back to work until I was surrounded by my creative inspiration – my girls…the Dolly Mamas. How do I explain the Dollies? Well, they are these amazing colorful metal sculptures that are gloriously decorated with fur, feathers, hats, glitter, ribbon, etc. Each Dolly Mama is holding a sign that says something simple. I began collecting them several years ago and think it is safe to say I have a bit of an obsession with them! There are currently six of them in my office. My favorite is the first one I acquired – her sign simply says “WooHoo!” She is decorated with lime green, purple and pink glitter, fur, tinsel and quail feathers. My friends all thought she was perfect as when things go well, I am frequently overheard asking ‘Can I HAVE a WooHoo?’ with the zeal of an evangelist! Other Dollies sport signs with messages such as ‘Drama Queen’, ‘Because I Said So’ (I love that one!), and ‘High Maintenance’. On good days, they seem to celebrate with me. On bad days, they manage to cheer me up enough to get through the day.

Me with the girls...happily ensconced in our new office!

So I left the files in the ‘hot’ box and spent some time carefully setting up the Dollies and my many pictures of family, friends and travel adventures in Africa…

There. All done. Now I can get back to work…

OK, so I realize that no one wants to read about sad stuff, but it is part of life so here goes...

Caty O'Donnell

This past Sunday, we had to put our beloved Jack Russell terrier Caty to sleep. She was about to turn 15 years old. Right after Thanksgiving, we noticed a suspicious lump crop up on her back and of course took her to the vet. He was hopeful that it was a lipoma, and recommended that we remove it as soon as possible. She had the surgery just before Christmas, and it was very hard on her. But after the first week, she seemed to be feeling much better, and returned to her usual 'Jack Russell-ness' (any of you that have owned or been around a Jack Russell know that you can't help but laugh when the vet says, "You have to keep her quiet and still." Yeah. Right. NOT. Once her incisions began to heal, she was running around the farm, leaping on and off of things, chasing any and everything...acting like a puppy again. It seemed that taking the pressure off of her spine had restored her to her puppy-hood.

The pathology report revealed very bad news. It was a very aggressive cancer known as hemangiosarcoma, and the prognosis was extremely poor. The vet advised against chemo at her advanced age, and assured us that the one bright spot was that the cancer was not particularly painful. He told us to expect 6 weeks to 3 months. Unfortunately, it turned out to be more like 4 weeks. The blessing was that she seemed to be feeling better and acting younger than she had in some time, and we had some wonderful time together over those last few weeks.

Just as the vet told us, she would let us know when it was time. She did. We made that dreaded final trip to the vet, and then laid her to rest that afternoon on the farm. She had to be near the oak trees, but as it was her habit to find the one ray of light shining into the house to lie down in, we found the sunny opening between the shade of several oaks for her spot.

Now I tell you all of this as it is part therapy, but partly because it brought me occasion to think of the wonderful animals that have shared my life. Honestly, that was the hardest part of going away to college for me - leaving my animals! I found a barn where I could ride within a week of arriving at college. I spent lots of time loving on their dogs while visiting there. I volunteered with a service group that took dogs from the local animal shelter to visit with senior citizens in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. I even took the opportunity to have my dog visit me for the weekend while I was away. Now, keep in mind that it took me 10 hours to drive home to pick him up and another 10 to take him back, but it was absolutely worth it.

I was newly married and only about 18 months out of college when my mother called to tell me that our Bull Terrier (yes, Spuds McKenzie, Target dog, etc.) Hercules had to be put to sleep. Even though I was an adult, it was still impossible not to spend a few hours curled up crying like a child. Caty's loss was no easier for me. This friend was my baby before I had my daughter.

Caty meets her baby sister Annelise, 1998

Because so many families end up buying pets when they deem their children are old enough to help care for them, the life cycle naturally means that many college students will end up facing the death of a beloved childhood friend, often while they are away from home. I can only hope that they are able to vividly recall wonderful memories with their four-legged friends and that it helps to get them through one of the hardest lessons of growing up.

Well, I have had a wonderful but busy holiday. It's been full of family, friends, FOOD, fun, FOOD and oh yes, did I mention FOOD?

The staff is all back to work here at SLU, but the faculty and students don't have to be back for a few more days. Consequently, the campus is pretty quiet - the calm before the storm!

I'm sure that the returning students will be feeling just as I do - somewhat glad to get back to the structure of the day to day, but still longing for those few treasured mornings where I could sleep in!

There will be some new students coming to start their careers here at SLU so for them this is a new beginning AND a new year. We will look forward to welcoming them to campus this weekend as they go through the Spring term orientation for new students.

But although I enjoy being back here, it just isn't the same until the heartbeat of the university - our STUDENTS - set foot back on campus. THEN I can really get back to work, with the wonderful noise of Saint Leo all back to normal around me!

Well it is that time again, time for the holidays. I was remarking to someone the other day about the fact that I know I'm old now because I count down the days to the holiday in a panic as opposed to looking forward to it. A child says, "Only one more week until Christmas" and is genuinely sad that the week in question is sure to seem like an eternity. The adult says, "Oh no - I've only got one more week until Christmas!" and is in a complete panic about how she will fit in work, holiday shopping, cooking, houseguests, beauty appointments, holiday parties, etc...and the list goes ON!

Of course, nothing can stop the inevitable moments of simple reflection and joy on the season. I had ZERO problem turning off the TV, the computer, and the BlackBerry in order to decorate our Christmas tree with my husband and daughter. I even spent part of that night just lying on the couch watching the lights and recounting the significance of every ornament on the tree.

One of my treasured Christopher Radko ornaments.

I watch the students here at Saint Leo approaching the holidays with the same love/hate relationship...the kid in them is looking forward to spending time with family and friends and enjoying their many holiday traditions. But the newly formed adult in them is now having to adjust to some serious pressure - final exams, projects, presentations and the like. All of this stress takes a bit of the shine off of the time leading up to the holidays. But I am confident that, just like me, when they do finally get home and turn everything else off so they can just enjoy the time that they have with their loved ones, they will find the same thing I do....you can appreciate the festive and carefree moments of the holidays even more when you have had to do so much to get ready for them!

Well this is my first blog entry for Saint Leo University. I suppose that I should take a moment to introduce myself. I'm CJ, and I have the honor and the pleasure (well, most days anyway!) of working in the Office of Undergraduate Admission here at SLU. My job is never dull and definitely keeps me pretty busy. I spend my days figuring out how best to communicate with our prospective students and their families.

These very blogs are just one of the things I get to investigate and set up for us. Online chats, text messaging...the list of fun stuff just goes on and on! I also work to help our amazing admission counselors figure out how to stay in touch with the many students interested in Saint Leo. Personal attention is important to us here at SLU, even before students are admitted to the university, so it's my job to help the counselors manage to stay in touch with their students while also maintaining a grueling travel schedule.

I love the fact that I get to spend so much time interacting with students and helping them at a time that is going to do much to shape the people they will ultimately become. Saint Leo students are an amazing bunch of young people and I'm glad to call so many of them my friends. Their mothers all apparently raised them right, because they all seem to start off calling me 'ma'am'. However, their self-preservation instincts quickly kick in when I express to them that if they want CJ to help them out, they HAVE to stop making her feel like an OLD LADY! Thirty-something isn't old I suppose, and I give credit to our students for keeping me young...

What else should I tell you about me? Well, when I'm not working here, I'm probably at the barn with my beloved show horses. I'm a fifth generation horse person and am thrilled to say my daughter has inherited the horse-crazy gene.
My daughter Annelise and I with our American Saddlebred, the aptly named Answered Prayer

I also spend time traveling around the country and around the world (hello AFRICA!) promoting the American Saddlebred horse and my particular style of riding, which is Saddle Seat Equitation. I'm sure I'll have more to tell you about that in some upcoming blog, so I'll say goodbye for now...