Angie Swims

I'm calling the open water swims I did in North Carolina over the week of Christmas sandwich swims since I got to swim on Christmas Eve and the day after Christmas. The Christmas Eve swim was at Jordan Lake (supposedly too cold for swimming...hahaha not true.) It was a bit on the windy side but 6 to 12-inch chop isn't so bad. The bonus side of this location was it was only half an hour from my mom's house. I see a great deal more open water swimming here in the future, especially since the pool hours suck and it's about the same cost in gas to drive to the lake as it is to pay for entry into the stupidly nice indoor 50-meter pool near her house. Here's the photo dump from that swim: Yesterday I got to swim in the Atlantic ocean for the first time since I was a teenager. That's almost 20 years. And it made me feel really old. However, I was not cold. The air was around 72 and the water was definitely 60 or a little bit above, I

Longest swim at 42, 14 minutes 38 seconds- 674yards. This swim felt really good, strong and in control. Annnd I was able too tell when my bikini top came untied AND my fingers worked well enough to retie it! 👙😳🤣 But... It took longer than it should have and I lost valuable heat and distance. I was hoping to get in 800-850yards. Oh well. Lessons learned. Double knot bikini in the future. The Yeis were hosted today by the Hood River Tri Club- added bonus: post-swim hot tub and homemade cookies! Not a bad way to start the long trip across the country to spend the holidays with my family. (I briefly considered telling them my flight was "canceled" but then I realized I didn't purchase trip insurance.) My partner is staying in Portland with his family, our family, I will miss spending the holidays with them this year. It will be good to see my mom, sister, and the kids- at least that's what I'm telling myself.  Swim dump: I swams this week!  12/

Quick cold water swim today. Just a hair over 10minutes at 43 degrees. One would think that being out of school would make it easier to post immediately after swims but... Not so much. 🤷 On the plus side, I got to do shore support for my buddy Swimemma, and got to present her with a custom Yeti hat. So much 💙. Later in the day we decorated our hats together. It was a craftastic mess!

Today, was one of those rare days or swimming did absolutely nothing for me. I gave myself the best shot I could I getting out of this funk. I went to an outdoor 50-meter pool I swam for an hour. The whole swim felt like dragging myself through a pool Jell-O pudding. My body and my mind felt stuck not on anything in particular but just like I was pushing through a barrier that only yielded was stubborn persistence.  After getting out of the pool I don't even have the mental fortitude to work up a good solid cry in the shower. The saying that in the water they can't see you cry is only partly true. People can see you cry. If you have ever cried with your face just barely below the water's surface then you know how hard it is to not choke on the water as you're choking on your own sobs, how your goggles fill up quickly with tears and the way saltwater eventually stings your eyes. You stop to empty your goggles so frequently that your teammates or lane-mate knows are not l

After today's swim, I felt right and proper cold. Before we got in the temperature reading was 45 to 46 degrees Fahrenheit at the dock in Sellwood Riverfront park. Once in the water and swimming under the Sellwood bridge it felt a lot colder. I know from experience (and warmer temperatures) that it is definitely 2-5 degrees colder under the bridge. I don't know why this is, whether it's because the water is deeper around the pylons and the eddys churn up cold or water, or because that area is just creepy in general, but I felt way colder under the bridge today. The kind feeling where the pin pricks of cold are the size of dimes on my skin. I think of this feeling of cold as mermaid scales come out. 🧜🧜🧜❄️❄️❄️

Well, it's been awhile. I passed all my finals I hardly swim at all but I am still exhausted. It might have something to do with the fact that I've started swimming more. This happens whenever I have a lull in classes especially over breaks. I finally got over 10,000 yards this week. I used to aim for 20,000 a week. But such as life is a graduate student. I suppose swimming isn't that important right now. What is important, is that the 24-hour relay in San Francisco is happening this year, and I'm going! It will mean taking a day off campus and telecommuting in for my Friday morning class but it will be well worth it. I am so excited I can hardly stand it, I've been looking at flights hotel rooms and picking out the suits I'll take with me. The swim today felt like my arms and legs for each 5 lbs heavier and like I was moving through pudding. I definitely swim a bit more than I should have the last couple days, it's just so hard to rein it! My body and my mi