Hello! It has been years since I have posted on this blog, and if this is the only way you have connected with me, we have a lot to catch up on. Since my blog had a microscopic following, though, shrunk even tinier by time and changing email addresses, I am guessing you, dear reader, know that now I am a lawyer. And maybe you know that our family bought a property, and had a house built there. The house is finished, and it is stunning:

The house will get its own blog post later. For now, I’ll just say that being in this house – our forever dream home – is better than I ever imagined. And it has motivated me to do things. For example, start my day by jumping into the lake.

I have revived this blog mainly to tell you that, shortly after I moved into the house, I set myself a challenge: jump in the lake every day for the next year. Since there has been some confusion, I will clarify that “the next year” means every day from July 31st, 2025-July 30th, 2026.

Some rules my friend Jon helped me come up with:

• When I am away from home, I have to swim in an available swimmable body of water, provided there is no ice on it. If no water is nearby, I can skip.
• I can get in however I want.
• I have to submerge my head, and only have to stay in that long.
• No wetsuits, but no other rules about what I can/cant wear.

It’s all fine and well to make this pledge in summertime, but how will I motivate myself to get in the water in the endless gloomy winter months? Here again Jon was helpful:

Jon has this check, made out to the RNC, ready to mail to them if I fall short of my goal. I’m hoping when I am feeling unmotivated I will think of my clients, past and present, and what ills will befall them if I fail. And then I’ll get my ass out of bed.

There are many benefits to a cold plunge. The one that most motivates me is the mental health boost it offers.

For now, it’s easy, and look at the views I am treated to during my morning dips:

And last week I got to commemorate the 10-year anniversary of my last triathlon that I did with my friend and former trainer Paige by going for a morning swim instead of just a dip.

Paige has gone from badass trainer to badass realtor who, among her many kindnesses, invites us to watch the Mariners from the comfort of a suite at T-Mobile Park. So after my swim we got to recreate our triathlon photo from the suite:

8/23/2015, Lake Meridian Triathlon

8/24/2025, living the good life

I am planning to post stuff here semi-regularly, so subscribe if you want to see how the challenge is going, hear random Janet stories, and catch the retro blog-subscribing vibe :-).