Now what?

I feel like over the last year and a half, my posts have mostly centered around my upcoming 40th birthday. The excitement of that milestone has died down, and now I'm left wondering...what's my next big thing?

I'm going to talk about my 2026 plans, but first I need to look back on February one more time.

When I restarted therapy a few years ago, I told my therapist that one of my goals was to make real friends in Seattle. Specifically, I wanted to have friends I could invite to dinner for my birthday, because up to this point my birthdays in Seattle consisted of just Matt, Scott, and Robby, and when Scott and Robby were traveling I felt the impact of not having made close friends.

The Thursday before my big birthday weekend, I hosted a birthday dinner at a local Thai restaurant and then invited everyone back to my place for cake. I invited ten people and they all showed up. I can't describe how happy and fulfilled that dinner made me feel. I am so lucky to have actually created a little community around myself here.

She got my request for desert-sunrise colors down perfectly.

I ordered from Linden Park Whisk and the cake was gorgeous and absolutely delicious.

After the race, I was struck with the post-race blues, despite my attempt to stave them off. Jennifer pointed out to me that the elevation at The Lost Dutchman was noteworthy, and probably a factor in my bonking so badly at mile 9. I hadn't even considered the elevation, and once I saw how it compared to Seattle, I felt even prouder of my performance and mental fortitude.

As you can see, the difference is pretty staggering.

I ended up taking a week off from running (partially due to a mole removal along my bra-line). I still felt good about my performance on race day and had been thinking about running another half in March, but that didn't pan out. During my time off, Melissa came over and we made 2026 bingo cards. Mine includes a few exciting goals for the year, including running a half in each season this year.

The boxes on the right that are hard to see say "Ignite my creative spark" and "Love more."

As I complete each box, I'll color them in. The goal is to have a fully colored-in card by the end of the year. I'm excited—some of these things are a little scary, some are challenging, but they're all things I truly want to tackle this year. I think a danger people face as they age is getting complacent. Life becomes stagnant and uninspired. I hope having this bingo card serves as a reminder to keep my goals in the forefront of my mind.

My spring half is May 3 in Kirkland, WA. It's a hilly one, so I'm already changing up my training routes to include more hills. Nick has agreed to run it with me, so I am trying to push him to add some hills to his training, too.

First long run done!

Now that 40 has arrived, I need to reevaluate "fit by 40" and make some changes to achieve my 2026 BF% goal. Running is great exercise, but it doesn't actually build muscle at all and I want to make sure I'm still prioritizing lifting weights and building strength. This probably means changing things up at the gym. 

One of my big "initiatives" this year is to be less dependent on technology in places where it doesn't serve me. I've found myself missing the days pre-smartphone, when I filled my free time with physical books and used my laptop for writing more than anything else. Phone-less Fridays (basically, observing Shabbat-lite) and exploring some brick-and-mortar bookstores are meant to help me disconnect.

My first phone-less Friday, I finally finished my first book of the year!

With each square I fill in, I'll know I've done something to better my life and make this year special. I hope that will make 2026 feel like more than just another year gone by.

Ali