My Stories » Page 12 of 28

“Are you alone?”

It sounds like a really simple question, right? I’ve been asked “are you alone” a handful of times while out on the trails and I never know how to answer. I mean, the person asking me sees only me on a wide open trail or next to an empty mountain hut…obviously I’m alone.

Every time I’ve been asked I impulsively answer with the truth. Yes. Yes, I’m out here in the middle of no where all by myself. There is no one to pick me back up when I fall, no one to navigate for me, no one to defend me against hungry critters or crazy humans…just me.

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By Heidi Kumm, 3 years ago

runventure

#GameOnPGH Update: Running…Uphill.

So, running + marathon training. I’ve actually been doing it, lately. With varying levels of success…but considering everything else going on in my day-to-day life I’m feeling pretty good at where I’m at with running. I’ve been getting #GameOnPGH 4+ days of running in each week, I’ve sprinkled in a few days of snowboarding/hiking to spice things up and I feel pretty good about the amount of effort I have to put into my runs, physically + mentally. Not bad, right?!

I’ve only topped out at 12 miles, so far. And while I had a minor “gah, that’s not enough” spaz the other day I’ve done a little counting + scribbling and I feel pretty good about it. My upcoming weeks of training [only 10 left!] are going to look something like this, in terms of long run mileage…14, 10, 16, 18, 14, 20, 22, 16, 14, 12, race day. Seems like a solid #GameOnPGH plan, eh?

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By Heidi Kumm, 3 years ago

friends + feelings

Moments in Time

We kind of live in a world of all the photos. Between Instagram, Snapchat and plain ol’ texted photos there are a lot of reasons to take photos. And, yes, I take photos for all of those reasons. I have tens of thousands of photos floating around Google Photos, Dropbox and other nooks of the internet abyss. Sometimes they get shared, sometimes they just sit around feeling lonely until I get ambitious enough to scroll through them.

When I decided to make the move onto this site [rather than run.around.aroo, where my oversharing used to live] I started scrolling through old posts…and then through old photos. Holy drunk monkeys, a single photo can spark so many memories! If you already follow me on Instagram you’ve seen these photos but I really like them + the stories they come with so I’m re-sharing them here. Oh, the things that can happen in two years…
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By Heidi Kumm, 3 years ago

runventure

The Four Mile Warm-up

I’ve spent the last few weeks in a mental rut of sorts, but I’m not about to start complaining about that. Instead, let’s ponder the cause/solution for my rut. Since I started training for the Pittsburgh Marathon I had not made it past 7 miles in a continuous run. Heck, that one 7 miler I did get in was the longest 100% run/no hiking distance I’ve gone in…months? Considering a marathon is nearly 20 miles further than my current “longest run” I needed to get my act together! I needed to run…longer.

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By Heidi Kumm, 3 years ago

friends + feelings

Why I Customer Service

I think it’s a pretty safe assumption to say every “average” American out there has worked in customer service at some point. Whether it’s in a restaurant or call center or hospitality or retail…nearly everyone has worked in a “make them happy, even if they are being stupid” position at some point in their life. Yet, 90% of the population quickly forgets what it’s like to be in that position. They forgot that we really are doing everything in our power to make their life better and we don’t actually hate them…until they become ungrateful jerks.

I’ve worked in customer service since I was 16. I started behind the front desk of a hotel when I was in high school. It was my job to make sure people enjoyed their stay at a franchised hotel in a small Midwestern town. I quickly realized it’s all in how you delivery news…good or bad. I learned “hotel common sense”, found ways to portray myself confidently so guests trusted my words and discovered the value of the back office where I could roll my eyes while cursing at the unreasonably stubborn idiots.
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By Heidi Kumm, 3 years ago

runventure

Running The Numbers: Zero.

My story-worthy runs are very rarely the picture perfect, everything-went-as-planned, no-misery-could-be-found events. Nope. Those runs are boring. Or at least I think they are — it’s been a very long time since I’ve had one of those runs! Instead my runs usually come with random bouts of drama, excitement or whining. Either I’m squishing a run into a tiny window of time or I’m getting lost in random Denver neighborhoods or it’s just too damn cold…there’s always something keeping any given run from being spot on perfect.
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By Heidi Kumm, 3 years ago

trails + tents

Getting Snowy

Welcome to the new version of my little snippet of the internet. Whatcha think? You best like it…because I kind of do so I won’t be changing much. BUT, if anything isn’t flowing/working for you let me know, I’ll whip it into shape!

I’ve been living in Summit County — the home of 4 big Colorado mountain resorts — since December. My mountain job came with the perk of a season pass. It takes about 15 minutes to get from my bed to the base of a ski run. Yet, somehow, I’ve only been on the mountain 6 times this year. That’s sad. Really sad. Especially when you consider the fact I managed to get nearly 30 days a few years ago when I had to drive up from Denver every stinking day!
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By Heidi Kumm, 3 years ago

friends + feelings

Currently.

Life has been crazy…a different kind of crazy than I’m usually giddy about. The “adulting” kind of crazy where everything revolves around going to work, working, washing clothes for work, making lunches for work and sometimes sleeping. Not exactly glamorous but I’m surviving and finding a way to enjoy it.

I’ve also found a little snippet of time to make a few changes here in my little corner of the internet! As of today runaroundaroo.com will be fading away while I spend my time writing + oversharing here, on heidikumm.com. I’ll give you no “growing up” or “moving on” explanation simply because I don’t have one. I wanted a change and this just kind of happened! You’ll notice both Instagram + Twitter have switched over to @heidikumm, too. Of course, run.around.aroo won’t be going anywhere, it’s fun to scroll back through old photos + recaps + stories, it just won’t be updated from here on out. Update your readers and all that jazz…because, why not?!
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By Heidi Kumm, 3 years ago

runventure

Balancing Life, Sort Of.

Some people seem to have that perfect balance of life — everything in order, everything at ease, everything balanced out. I am usually not that person. I prefer chaos. It’s harder to be upset about the outcome when you’re not really sure what to expect because you’re honestly not really sure what’s going on. All this chaos I let into my life is awesome — it’s energizing, it’s motivating and it’s exciting. It also makes planning difficult, which means my life very rarely has any sort of consistent structure. It is extremely difficult to balance anything in life when you are just bouncing from a motivated morning to an overworked afternoon without so much as a lunch break.
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By Heidi Kumm, 3 years ago

friends + feelings

Missing City Life

Every time someone asks how I feel about cities I always say “oh, I’m a country girl” because I truly am. I love the space, the freedom, the silence and the ability to leave your blinds open because there are no neighbors nearby. The country is awesome, whether it’s a flat grassland or a lumpy mountain range, it’s where my heart truly is.
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By Heidi Kumm, 3 years ago