Throw Back Thursday and Sticks and Stones

I love love looking through old pictures! It really just makes my heart so happy and I think it is so special when you can look at a picture and remember exactly how you felt in that moment.  With that said, I obviously love seeing everyone's "Throw Back Thursday" posts on Instagram and Facebook.  Sometimes, I just wish I knew the story behind the pictures.  (I'm nosy...I get it from my mama)  Therefore, I decided I'd start posting some of my favorite "throw back" pictures with the story behind the picture.

If you know me at all, you know most of my pictures will be from my Pom Squad days - those 4 years hold some of my fondest memories!  What I wouldn't give to go back and cheer a few more games...  With college football kicking off today, I thought I'd share one of my funniest (aka most embarrassing) gameday moments.

On November 18, 2006 (my sophomore year), Tech was playing OSU in the final home game of the season.  After coming back from a 17-0 deficit, Tech was up 30-24 and with 2:40 left on the clock - Darcel McBath (Texas Tech safety) intercepted the ball and ran it back to the 3 yard line.  After throwing the ball in the crowd (which resulted in a 15-yard penalty), Darcel jumped on the back of Joe Garcia in celebration.  Well apparently Joe was not anticipating this celebratory piggy back ride and fell.  On top of me. With my back turned toward the end-zone cheering, I did not see the approximately 420 lbs of sweaty, smelly football players coming at me.  Their defensive skills were on point though - it was a great tackle, which resulted in the breath being completely knocked out of my body and a pretty nasty ankle.  I was not cut out for contact sports.

In one of my finest moments, I was carted off the field as the crowd cheered.  HU-MIL-I-A-TING! Our director kept telling me to put my guns up.  I told her to make the cart go faster.

Luckily we won, which made the tackle worth it.  (Not so luckily - Lubbock decided that it needed to snow 587 times that winter.  Snow/Ice + Boot = No.)   I like to believe that Joe and Darcel's extra tackle practice assisted Tech in the largest comeback in Division 1-A bowl history during the Insight Bowl against Minnesota. [Kliff - if the team is needing some extra practice or tackling lessons - I will sacrifice myself again.  Team work makes the dream work. Die-hard Red Raider fan right here.]  

If you are wondering, I forgave Darcel and Joe.

On another note...you know the saying "Stick and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me?"  Well, that's crap.

Today at work, we had a meeting with our entire team.  After our ice breaker question (one thing we don't know about you - I enlightened the team of my tackling skills), I decided that I was going to update everyone with what has been going on with me.  My boss has known for a while, but for the most part, no one else I work with really did.  I help manage our team and am constantly being asked questions.  I definitely struggle throughout the day, and at times have a really hard time thinking of what I want to say/how to say it.  I also sometimes forget if I have already asked people things or if they have already told me something.  It's overwhelming and makes me so frustrated, but I've tried to mask it and work through it so that the team didn't feel like I was incapable of doing my job and leading effectively.  However, I know that it is going to get much harder for me as we get busier.  To take some of the pressure off of me, I wanted to be upfront with what was going on so they weren't confused by my reactions or when I ask the same thing multiple times.

So after sharing my "one thing" story, I shared that I had recently been diagnosed with narcolepsy.  Now, I didn't have any expectations of what they would say and I certainly didn't want anyone's sympathy - I definitely wasn't expecting laughs though.  I work with great people and I know that no one was trying to be rude, but my goodness...in that moment, I just so badly wished I could take it back and never had said anything.  Someone asked if I had seen the narcoleptic dog videos on YouTube...because, you know, they are pretty funny. Ouch. I know I am probably over-reacting but I couldn't say another thing about it.  And it took everything I had to make it to my car at the end of the day before I burst into tears.  (After a short cry session, I shook it off...Thanks T.Swift)

Like I said, I know that there is not a person in that room that was intentionally trying to be rude.  And believe me, I know that there are times that you are presented with tough/sad situations and you really just don't know what to say. In those situations, I'm gonna agree with Alison Krauss..."you say it best, when you say nothing at all."