Kristine Joy, Writer

1. Athleteing.com

Coming Soon! 🤫

The url will currently take you to THIS website because I own the domain, but suffice it to say, the website is in the works!

(this is a quick AI drafted brand philosophy)

Most people think being an athlete is something you do.
A workout.
A session.
A game.
But that’s not it.
Athleteing doesn’t turn on.
It doesn’t depend on a schedule.
It shows up in how you move,
how you think,
how you recover,
how you choose.
When it’s inconvenient.
When it’s quiet.
When no one is watching.
That’s the difference.
Not training.
Athleteing.

2. Seriously?!?

Pickleball instructor retires.

I’m ON STAFF and one of the most competent at pickleball—as an instructor and player—in the organization city area state midwest country.

Without asking me or consulting me on the matter, college chooses a staff member to teach pickleball that has never played and doesn’t know how to keep score (“No (insert student name), the initial score is 0-0-1 because you are the first server.”).

3. Is That Necessary?

While in Florida, I saw a billboard advertising The Big Bang Theory show and I couldn’t help but question the necessity of this, but if so….

For all of you living in a hole, The Big Bang Theory is in fact one of the greatest shows of all time and also, someone tell Tom Brady that he may need a dating profile in order to get the word out.

4. In My Defense

Years ago, I was doing an interval workout on a track—structured, timed, and focused. A well-known local coach was on the track himself and shamed me, in the presence of quite a few others—“YOU ARE SUCH A SHOW-OFF!”

That moment stayed with me longer than it should have. For one, I immediately quit the training program (3-4 weeks in). And, I internalized the comment. I began to question how I showed up in training and in other areas of my life—whether I was doing things for the right reasons, whether I was “too much” and in subtle ways, I pulled back.

What compounded it was this—no one came to my defense.

Today, I found myself in a nearly identical situation—on the same track, doing a similar interval workout, but alone, when I noticed that same coach watching from the lobby. And it clarified something I should have recognized years ago—my effort, then and now, had nothing to do with him.

Even if the comment came from a bad day or a passing judgment, it had an outsized impact. And it was unnecessary. I didn’t need to be humbled. I needed to be left alone to grind—or, at a minimum, not diminished for doing so.

Looking back, it’s easy to see how often people are held back not by their own limitations, but by careless words and the absence of support. It doesn’t take long to count the people who consistently encourage, advocate, and show up. There are far fewer of them than there should be.

And this raises a simple question—what would be possible if, more often, we chose to build people instead of curtail them?

5. Slush Fund

Parlor City — a local ice cream stand — opened up for the year, which means that my life is full again; of slushes in every flavor of the rainbow.

6. UNtrue Sacrifice

I know of a situation in which the marriage lasted 40 years, he worked throughout, she not and the marriage ended because she had affair (and related or not, some other personal issues that resulted in civil and criminal convictions). And then, I happened to be in a place in which I overheard a conversation of her telling it this way:

“I even left him the house. And it was a pretty nice house.”

That said, I certainly don’t know the whole story and as such, should stay out of it (you know—now that I got the thought off my chest and in an online forum).

7. Plot Twist

While we worked in a different climate over Spring Break, Grannie Jannie was supposed to stay with Em, but blizzard conditions prevented Grannie from making the trip. Our daughter held down the house, dogs, another house and their 2 dogs and more than one job for 9 days.

“We left a kid at home and came back to a fully operational adult running a small corporation.”

8. YOU Are The Answer

Real confidence—the kind that sticks—isn’t taught.

It’s built.

No shortcuts.

No substitutes.

“Self-trust is built by doing what you’re not sure you can handle—then handling it.” – K.J.

9. Closing Credits

I appreciate you.

And I appreciate your readership. 😘