shake that axe

 

I got my Pfirst hit of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine today, and I'm Pfeeling Pfine.  

So Pfar.

After receiving the shot, I waited the obligatory 15 minutes among the foliage.  At that point, I was reasonably certain that I was still alive, so decided to go back to working.

My second and final hit will ideally happen in three weeks.  I've talked with a few people who got their second shots this time around.  Their experiences sound similar to the Shingrix 1-2-punch.  First one's okay, second one hits harder.  We shall see.

While I awaited my turn at the shot juice table, the woman who'd checked me in told me a story:

"When I was at girl scout camp one year, I was learning to swing an axe and got stung by a bee.  My whole arm puffed up, and I was sent to the infirmary.

"The nurse in the infirmary told me she was going to have to give me a shot of Benadryl, so I said, 'okay'.  But then she proceeded to tell me that she'd never given an actual shot before.  She'd only ever practiced on an orange.  I really didn't need to know that!"

Then it was my turn for the vaccine, and I was inoculated without incident after getting my paperwork in order.  I told my inoculator that it didn't hurt, she'd done a good job...

... a little confidence builder just in case I was her first, after the orange.

Looking forward to hopeful immunity.

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Linking up this week with Mama Kat for the prompt:
4. Share something you are looking forward to.

don't be afraid of who you are

Magnum, Meego, and I saw Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker over the weekend.  I liked it.  It wasn't epic, it wasn't awful.  It was entertaining and told a good enough story.

Wait, what?

I found it pretty predictable, and there were parts where I think the creators tried to elicit gasps and/or cheers from the audience that had a rather ho-hum effect.  But it's Star Wars, and honestly, I didn't have high expectations.  I do have some slightly nitpicky thoughts regarding the ending but don't want to give away any spoilers, so they'll have to fester within.


Christmas week was rather low key for us.  We managed to gather with all the "chillen" on Christmas Eve.  Each of them brought something to contribute to our meal, so I wasn't solely responsible for the outcome.  Our rental house we've been in for less than a month was noticeably unfestive - no tree.  And I was reluctant to put up any lights that would require tape or hardware of some kind, so, no lights either.

Still, it was a nice day for us all to be together.  Through a certain chain of events, Chaco and Wolfgang had passes to go skiing on Christmas day.  And from that chain, Meego ended up with some passes for the season too.  I hear the snow in the mountains is good.  Sheesh, I haven't been downhill skiing in forever.

Since we celebrated Christmas a day early, I felt one day ahead for the remainder of the week.  Thank goodness it's Monday so I can recalibrate.

Speaking of recalibrating, a new year is upon us.  Got any resolutions?

Personally, I'm ready to hang up the tutoring biz.  It's served me well while we had kids at home and doing their extracurriculars, but I wouldn't say it's a passion.  I hung onto it for the past couple of years because we were planning on moving.  Right now, I have a grand total of 3 students I meet with regularly, and I'm not scheduling any more.  Not gonna lie, as a 50-something job seeker with a big gap in employment, offers aren't exactly piling up. But I feel that a change is past due.   

So there's that and other small details including selling a house and finding another.

You?  Any resolutions/goals to share?

a quarter in

Here we are, into the second quarter of 2019.  I came across this chart recently, so how are your resolutions going?

No big surprises here, and actually, like myself, most people I talked to didn't make any resolutions.  But we still think about these things, right?  Of this list, I've worked on 4 and 7 this year.  The save-more-spend-less was more of a nice side effect of the decluttering.  Of course, I did fork over some cash to haul some of that crap away.

And I'd say I've been reading more - so much better than scrolling social media.

On that note, I've noticed things popping up in my Pinterest feed that have nothing to do with things I've searched or pinned on Pinterest, but have searched elsewhere.  For example, I'm suddenly getting things having to do with dental surgery and root canals on my Pinterest feed?  Sheesh, the big eyes are all watching and they're all in cahoots!

Merlin is proving to be the best doggie.  I always wonder about these shelter pets of questionable beginnings.  All of our dogs have been shelter dogs with unknown backgrounds.  If only they could talk.

Penny is playful and affectionate, but also cowers on occasion.  If I bring out a broom or such, she takes off and goes into hiding mode.  She still gets pensive if I take her somewhere in the car - like I'm taking her away to abandon her.  Maybe I need to take her for rides more often and to more fun places?

It's clear that Merlin has spent time with humans who taught him a few things.  He readily sits for treats or to put on a leash, and he seems to be housebroken. Here he is after I put on his new harness.  He looked so proud and happy to be wearing it, all, "take a pic!"

He's a bit awkward, though, going out for walks.  He's not quite sure what to do when we encounter others, but we're working on it.  The other day, we came across an older man pushing a couple of toddlers in a stroller.  Grandpa maybe?  I pulled over with Merlin and had him sit as they passed.  I could tell Merlin wanted to bark and investigate, but was working to stay put.  

Grandpa man looks at Merlin, and, "WOOF  WOOF!"

Dude, not helping.

doing poorly

This week's prompt at Illustration  Friday is "Fairy Tale", so I drew this castle, thinking of those fairy tales that involve a castle involving some sweet virgin girl held captive in an inaccessible castle tower by some sinister being.  For example:  Rapunzel, and.... Rapunzel?  HELP ME OUT HERE.

Oh well, good enough, which brings me to today's topic.  I recently read a short article encouraging the art of doing things poorly.  The article was aimed at perfectionists or those with perfectionist tendencies.

I wouldn't say I'm a perfectionist.  No, I can think of examples where I've been perfectly happy with my own mediocrity.

Really, the gist of the article was to encourage at least doing something because something is better than nothing.  Perfectionists (apparently) typically take an all-or-nothing approach to activities, so if there's risk of failure, they won't even begin.

The article did not necessarily encourage this behavior where safety, etc. is concerned.  It was more about not getting down on ourselves for not feeling up to doing something we know we should do.

• Said you'd get up and run 5 miles but don't feel like it?  Go out and run or walk one mile. Or one block.
• Planned to declutter and organize your desk, but all those papers - ugh!  Clean out one drawer.
• Intended to cook a balanced, tasty meal but not feeling like shopping, etc?  Throw a chicken in the crock pot and call it good.
• And so on.

Monday, I went back to the gym since I lost that fight with the ground a couple weeks ago.  My shoulder and rib are much better, but not quite 100%.  I went to the gym and did a few things poorly, and it felt good.

Today, I will do other things.  I will do at least some of them poorly.  And I don't need to do much for dinner because there are leftovers from that chicken I threw in the crock pot earlier.

Putting anything off because the task seems too daunting?  
What's one thing you can do poorly today?

day 1

Overheard yesterday at College Town Walfarts:

EMPLOYEE:  Today was going pretty good until about 10 o'clock...

Yup.  Yesterday was move-in day at the university for Meego and a squizillion other dorm rats.  We managed to fit all of Meego's worldly possessions plus our three selves into one vehicle to make the haul.  That was partially aided by the fact that he, unsurprisingly, forgot a few things, but all-in-all, the day went smoothly.

The university is a couple of hours up the road, and as we made the trek, I was noticing other similarly loaded vehicles, complete with young people.  I was mainly taking stock of the bicycles I saw.  Some nicer than Meego's, others not.  That was good.  You don't want to have the best bike in the bike rack, but you don't want a piece o' crap either.

At the bike registration tent

It was a good day.  Classes begin on Monday, so he should be settled in time to hit the books.  His roommate seems like a nice guy, and the two of them have things in common.  They met through a university app that's "kind of like Tinder" to pair up roommates.

A friend of mine posted pics on fb of her daughter's move-in at the same university.  Her daughter's room looks like something out of Good Housekeeping magazine.  Meego's room does... not.

I've heard that, as far as dorm housing typically goes, guys are slobs and girls create much drama.  The guys should have the slob part down anyways.

After we got him settled and made two separate runs to the aforementioned Walfarts, we met up with Wolfgang who, coincidentally, lives and works in College Town.  So we got in a nice visit with him and met his new roommate

That's okay, I didn't want to use the sink anyway...

So, our house seems strangely huge and quiet today.  My first order of business is to tidy up and see what's left in the wake of yesterday's move out / in.  Then I'll figure out what to do with the extra time in my life now.  This showed up in my instagram today:

Okay.  I'm on it.  😬

the late starters

Have you seen them?  The Resolutionists? 


It happens every year at the beginning.  All these new faces "out there" - running, going to the gym, power walking...  But, strangely, I didn't notice ANYone.  I'd even avoided the gym the first few days of the year, assuming it would be teeming with newbies for a while.  Then one day during that first week, I forgot and went on in.


And it was... less crowded than usual?  Plenty of room to move around, plenty of available equipment, what was up?  I thought maybe it was the time of day I was there - late afternoon - which isn't peak hours.






But I asked Wolfgang, who goes in the evenings which are peak hours, and he said the same thing.  Not only was it not crowded, it was actually less crowded than usual.  We were flummoxed.

HOWEVER, it seems they are just late.  This week has brought a noticeable increase in unfamiliar faces, both at the gym and on the walking/running paths.  Better late than never, I suppose.  But every year, the same thing happens. The increase in traffic lasts a couple of weeks, and afterwards, it's like it never happened.  Will that be the case again this year? 

More power to 'em, I say.  For the people who decide to take up running or walking or bicycling or some other outdoor activities, this is actually the worst time of year to start in North America.  Maybe that's a reason why the numbers drop off so quickly. 

I didn't make any resolutions - well, other than the one I make every year to cook better - as in healthy and balanced - meals. I'm doing okay.  We'll see where I am in a couple of weeks.  Frozen pizza, anyone?

onward

Outside looks like the setting of The Thing.  Grey/white and blustery.  Not inviting at all.  But after last week's wind, I'll take it.

I plan to venture out to the gym in a little while.  I haven't been there since the start of the New Year and am hoping the horde of resolutionists has decreased to a small herd. We shall see.  My lame foot has been a limiting factor, but I'm optimistic that it's on the mend.

I saw the... foot fixer doctor... for a third time last week.  Technically, she's a Chiropractor, and also does this particular therapy that is helping my nagging case of plantar fasciitis.  She introduced me to this torture device that uses ultrasonic waves to shake things up, similar to the way kidney stones are broken into little bits.

It was rather uncomfortable, but I think it did positively shake things up in there.  No pain, no gain, right?

Now that I'm finished with school, I'm catching up on such things.  I went in for a dental checkup last week too - after a five-and-a-half year hiatus.  At least Magnum is good about going on a regular basis, so they had a vague idea of who I was.

Also, now that I'm finished with school, I'm pondering next steps.  We are seriously talking about moving once Meego graduates high school, so I don't want to take on some new position only to hit the road in a couple of years.  In the meantime, I'm keeping one eye open for opportunities that could be characterized as (1) telecommute friendly and/or (2) dream job.  Seen any?

(1) or (2) has yet to materialize.  I did take on a new tutee, so I'm not a total freeloader at the moment, but I am looking to move on from tutorhood soon.  And I've been busying myself with neglected projects around the house.

I finally painted Meego's bedroom, a muchly needed activity.  It took me a while since I had to clear out a bunch of clutter that has accumulated in there since we've lived here - various "action figures", posters, sports ribbons and plaques from high school and middle school, other miscellaneous awards and paraphernalia...

All three boys lived in there somehow for years, now it's just Meego.  The actual painting of the walls was quite easy.  Getting to them was major!

In other advancement news, Chaco turned 23 last week.  He was here for a while yesterday.  I acknowledged that I have no memory of MY 23rd birthday.  Once you turn 21, they're all kinda the same.

for the love of Rosa

Mount Rosa is a lovely cone-shaped mountain in the Colorado Springs skyline just south of Pikes Peak.  It's named for Rose Kingsley who lived here in the late 1800's.  She was an avid hiker and the first woman known to have climbed the mountain.

Pikes Peak sits right about here where these words are  It's understandably cropped from this photo because it gets enough attention.  This post is about Mount Rosa.









As I mentioned before, Pikes Peak is named for explorer Zebulon Pike, but he never made it to the summit.  He set out from the south trying to reach the tallest point in the southern Front Range. Mount Rosa is believed to be the mountain he actually climbed.  When he got to the summit, he saw Pikes Peak to his north and west and said something like ,

"Aw, sh*t".

When Chaco and I were on Pikes Peak, he mentioned that Mount Rosa was another on his list of hikes to do.  He'd attempted the summit four freaking times, but he and his companions had been turned back by approaching thunderstorms each time.

Looking down on cute Mount Rosa, I knew I wanted to hike it too.  So we did.

The trailhead serves a few other shorter popular trails in the area, so parking is a real issue on the weekends.  Chaco's job nicely allows some flexibility on work hours, and my class this semester is pretty flexible too.  We dubbed Monday as Mount Rosa day.

Monday was still unseasonably warm and sunny, but the winds were a-whipping.  Wind gusts of 90 mph were recorded from the weather station on top of Pikes Peak, the attention hound.  We knew Mount Rosa would probably be about the same.  But... what the hell.  No lightning!





The trail begins on the enchanting  St. Mary's Falls trail, which is very popular.  By the time we got to the falls, there was no one else around, but Chaco informed me that it's a popular place for stoners to hang out and smoke pot while shirtless.

Maybe we were there too early in the morning to rendezvous with shirtless pot smokers, but now I think of it as "St. Mary Jane Falls".













The falls provide a good view of Stove Mountain, which is pretty much a sheer cliff face.




Just off the St. Mary's Falls trail is yet another memorial to a fallen hiker:

       "IN MEMORY OF EAMON MURPHY
                          1948 - 2008
WHO FELL TO HIS DEATH HERE ON MAY 24, AFTER SOLO CLIMBING STOVE MOUNTAIN ABOVE THESE FALLS.  HE WAS A DARLING MAN, LOVED BY ALL WHO KNEW HIM."


Yes, apparently, Eamon made it up Stove Mountain, only to fall down the steep rocks near the falls afterward.  Like the 88-year-old woman who died on Pikes Peak after her 14th climb, I think Eamon would have thought it a fitting way to go if he could choose.









Continuing onward, we were glad to learn that, although it was a very windy day, the trail was buffered, so it was actually the pleasant side of the mountain to be on.  It really wasn't until we neared the summit that we became aware of the winds because it sounded like a freight train was going by through the trees above us.  But... what the hell.  No lightning!

the view to the east was very hazy because of a raging wildfire to the south of us

The elevation of Mount Rosa is 11,499 feet and doesn't get beyond treeline. But just below the approach to the summit is this barren area that seems kind of like Mars.  Here, we were greeted by the wind.

But, the trees thicken up again, so we forged onward for the final ascent.

It was a very satisfying hike.  The trail is pretty steep in places, but not terribly so.  And until reaching the Mars surface, we were very protected from the winds.  Reaching the summit is very obvious, unlike some other mountains that have a broad mesa on top.  Mount Rosa is a true "peak", and when you're on top of it, you know, because it's a relatively small diameter.

I wore my hood up there, not because it was cold, but to keep my hat from sailing off to Kansas at 90 mph.








Chaco didn't have a hood, so just tucked his hat into his pack to keep it from sailing off to Kansas.

This pic shows Zebulon's "Aw, sh*t" view of Pikes Peak to the north.

Yes, the wind was a byotch at the summit, but this was really a super nice hike.  Of course, Mt. Rosa is  not the tourist trap that Pikes Peak is, so you have to get your own self back down again - no roads, no trains, no t-shirts...  But that's what makes it all the more alluring.

Round trip is 14 miles.  We took eight hours - five up, three down.

Great ditch day!
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walkin' with Zeb

Pikes Peak was named after Zebulon Pike, an explorer in Colorado in the early 1800's.  Good old Zeb tried to reach the summit of Pikes Peak, but ended up having to give  up the arduous task.  Today, people can drive a paved road to the top or ride the cog railway.  OR, they can hike it since there is the lovely 12.6-mile Barr Trail that Zebulon didn't have.

Katherine Lee Bates wrote "America the Beautiful" (originally titled "Pikes Peak") after taking a train ride up and being so inspired.

For years, I've thought about hiking to the summit and knew that "someday" I'd go.  I FINALLY got around to it yesterday.  And, OMG, it was beautiful.  I know just how Katherine felt!

A view of the summit from the trail, once the sun came up

I went  up with Chaco, who's hiked it twice before with friends.  Wolfgang has also gone up twice when participating in The Ascent.  The three of us originally planned to go in early September, but that was right when my allergy-induced balance problems hit me.  It was a task for me to just walk out to the mailbox, let alone climb a mountain, so we kept moving our trip date out.

Wolfgang, in the meantime, used a couple of those "lost weekends" to instead take mountain biking trips with the university.  He ended up coming down with a bummer of a cold, so thought better of making the Peak trek this weekend.  Chaco and I decided to go ahead with it, though, as the nice weather days are slipping away.  Meego would've gone, but he's deep in the throes of marching band season, and alas, Magnum wasn't sure if his knees could put up with it.

So, Chaco and I hit the trail in the wee morning hours, temperature around 35 F.  The stars were still out, and it was actually kind of awesome hiking in the dark.  Despite our headlights, I did bite it once when I forgot to watch where I was going and tripped.

It was a beautiful fall day to be out.  We took our time enjoying the trail, and Chaco shared with me stories from his previous hikes and information he'd learned while researching.

After about 9 miles, we hit treeline at around 10,000 ft.  In a lovely clearing just off the trail is an A-frame shelter that, I think, the forest service built in case of getting caught in storms or just wanting a way cool spot to hang out on the mountain.

A plaque there is dedicated to this woman who died near this spot just shy of her 88th birthday during her 14th hike of the mountain.  I thought a lot about her as I worked at dealing with the hike and the elevation, thinking she'd died doing something she obviously loved doing.

SOURCE

I knew that the final three miles were pretty much a boulder field, and expected it to be a rather desolate place of no vegetation.  Oh, how wrong I was!  That portion of the hike proved to be the best part for me.

What looks like a lifeless area of grey rocks and dirt from below is  actually a beautiful environment of unique geological formations.  It was absolutely breathtaking, and I'm pretty sure it wasn't just the lack of oxygen making me feel that way!

Taking in the scenery

Cell phone photos can't do justice to the area.  The rock formations are like nothing I've seen before.  Couple that with the amazing views to the east, and it was a sort of magical place.  Everything even sounds different.  We weren't sure if the thin air has something to do with that, or if it's just that it's just so quiet there.

We definitely felt the effects of the elevation by this point.  We continued to slog along the trail's many switchbacks.  Our movements would easily qualify us for jobs as extras on "The Walking Dead".

With about two  miles left until the summit, the trail skirts the deep Cirque, to which my acrophobia doesn't allow me to give the appreciate it deserves.  Chaco said it's a great view into the 1500' glacial formed bowl.  I'll take his word for it and instead take a pic with the sign while facing away.

Note my vice-like grip on that sign!

Continuing onward, we eventually made it to the "16 Golden Steps", the final series of switchbacks until the summit, so named because the climb becomes a bit steeper.  Nothing like scrambling over rocks at nearly 14,000' with legs that just say, "Stop already!" into your oxygen deprived brain.  But I thought, "what a lovely name".

Here, Chaco warned me that there were "a lot of false summits".  Just when it looks like we'd made it, we'd switch back and realize we hadn't (I wasn't bothering to waste energy on counting golden steps).  "You're not at the summit until you see the train", he continued.  This the cog railway train that we would ride back down.

And soon enough, there it was - the train!  We'd made it.  Thank you, baby Jesus, and much thanks to Fred Barr, whatta guy!

What an amazing day.

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new beginnings

Even though it was my choice to leave, I've missed my ex over the years.  We had many good times together, laughing, celebrating, working toward common goals.  Oh, it was work, but it was all very fulfilling and worthwhile.  But, then it just seemed it was time to go.  So I went.

We've kept in touch, my ex and I, over the years.  But after a while, the cards, letters, facebook updates, etc. just weren't enough.  I was ready to put myself out there again.

So I started dating, playing the field.  I was going out nearly every week.  I met some really great people, and I also admit that there were some nights when I realized I would be enjoying myself better at home.

Eventually, I got tired of the whole dating scene.  So exhausting, really.  Okay, so it was kind of fun watching them all fight over me, but enough already.  It came time to make my intentions known, so I did that, hoping I wasn't being too cryptic.

Then I just let it float out there, gave them all some space to think it over and hash it out, whatever they had to do.  And then this arrived:











Yep, they've popped the question.

lights over Mouse Town

They're here.  Have you seen them?

It mainly started over this past weekend.  Magnum and I were out taking China for her beauty walks and noticed more traffic on the trails and pathways.  Unfamiliar faces.

The Resolutionists.

This morning, I was out for a run in the dark and Mouse Town  was lit UP!  Kinda like this:

Okay, maybe they weren't quite that packed it, but considering that I hardly ever see any other humans in Mouse Town at that hour, the presence of all those headlamps was notable.  

Personally, I never wear a headlamp when just traipsing around town, even in Mouse Town (patch of undeveloped preserve in the middle of the suburbs where endangered mice happily live) .  There's usually enough light pollution to get me through, and I'm  not wearing glasses anyway so...  In fact, about the only times I've seen headlamps while running around the suburbs have been during the resolution month of January.  

So there they were, and other people were out along my route too.  Some headlamped, some not, some with pooches, some not.  I wonder what the dogs think of being part of their masters' resolutions.  Paws up or down?  

As for me, my resolutions are

• Be in bed by a decent hour each night - at least on weeknights.
• Get hitched up with a local P.E.O. chapter

Uhm... that's pretty much it.  

So far so good (at least I'm thinking about it) on the first one.  Nearly at the honeymoon stage with the second one, so yeah.

And a (53 years old and fast) woman I met at the Rescue Run coaxed me into joining the local running organization, if for nothing else, the discounts at local stores.  Two pairs of shoes would "pay" for my annual dues.  

I got my membership card in the mail last week.  My name is spelled wrong.  

Figures.

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take me away!

I'm sitting here in full long underweared glory and not happy about that.  I mean, I appreciate the long underwear serving its purpose, I'm just not happy with my needing its services on April freaking 10th.

Oh well, we typically get days like this in April.  Winter's way of thumbing its nose at us, not willing to just leave quietly.  It started Monday night.  In fact, I was tuting up north a few miles.  Coming home, I was practically able to just put the car in neutral and let the wind blast me all the way to my house.

Then we got a snow/wind day on Tuesday, which was appreciated, but I still came down with fever.  Cabin fever.

Magnum and I have been dreaming and talking about travelling lately.  To someplace sunny and warm and non United States.  Not any time REAL soon, but it's fun to think about and plan.

Remember I've never been anywhere.  Magnum's rich Uncle Sam sent him traveling around the world during his days in the Army.  I've never really been out of the US other than the Canadian side of Niagara Falls and Acuna, Mexico.    But I have been to The Corn Palace.  After that, what is there?

The last time I even flew on an airplane was just a few months before 9/11.  Air travel has changed since then.  And it just so happens that I share the maiden name of a known white supremacist nazi US citizen.

So there's another reason to go someplace warm and casual.  I'll be able to leave the long underwear behind in place of clothing that's easily shed for the TSA...







Earlier this week, the tutoring site asked students where they would like to go for spring break.  They got a lot of responses from tutors as well as students.  Seems like recreational travel is on a lot of people's minds.  I didn't answer because I couldn't narrow it down to just one destination.

I'll take suggestions, though!  In the meantime, I'll settle for a warmer Colorado.
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keeping it raw

I went to the post office today.  I actually had to stand in the line in order to deal with a real postal person.  I can say that after the strange 12-minute dealings at the DMV recently, the post office has now restored my faith in the uncaring inefficiency of government.  Whew.

Another stop was the health food store.  I go there about every six weeks or so.  This isn't a trendy store like Whole Fudds or Trader Josepe's.  This is the store for the die hards, the serious.  The little store where half of it is vitamins, supplements, and "colon care", and the other half is mostly strictly organic-don't-even-think-about-having-conventional-in-the-same-building produce.  What little meat they sell is from happy, free range, yogic type animals.  Plus, it's strictly BYOB - bring your own bag.  Paper?  Plastic?  Neither.

So I go there about semi-quarterly.  I like to buy my baking stuff there because they have a great variety of pre-packed bulk items.  I know that "pre-packed bulk" is a bit of an oxymoron, but that's what makes it so great.  Bulk foods without scooping around in some big old bin that's been exposed to who-knows-what?

The main thing I noticed was how crowded it was!  I know they have a good flow of clientele through there, but the place was noticeably hopping today.  I wondered if there was some special event, but none that I could see.  I concluded that maybe it's New Year's resolutions still going strong?  People gonna eat healthy!

One thing I thought I'd try is to not eat any "white" food - well, grains that is.  I hear bleached flour is nutritionally weak, so I'm trying to eat the unbleached only.  It's harder than I thought it would be!  What can I say?  The bleached stuff just tastes better.  Plus, it's everywhere.  Plus, my kids tease me.

But okay, I can do this.  One day at a time.

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have you seen them?

Have you seen them?  The Resolutionists?

Last Saturday morning, I was out for a run and saw a troop of runners streaming from the karate place.  It reminded me that I typically witness such a thing on the first Saturday of the year.  I did notice that the group was noticeably smaller than in year's past.

Same goes for other similar outings so far.  Three or four "extras" and that's about it.

But one area that has ticked up this week is the bicyclists.  I'm getting more traffic in my crosswalk.  Not kids, but adults on bikes.  Resolving to commute more on the bicycle?  Less in the car?  More power to them.  I'll keep a mental record to note how long it lasts.

However, one noticeable gap in the action is Bike Lady.  Remember?  Bike Lady?  In all my two years as a crossing guard (just passed my anniversary), Bike Lady has commuted through nearly every morning, exchanging a quick friendly "hello" before continuing on her way.  Rain.  Snow.  Ice.  Wind.  Nothing deterred Bike Lady.

And I haven't seen her since just before Thanksgiving.

I'm a little curious as to where she's gone.  I KNOW she didn't give up the bike for a car.  I just know it in my bones.  She's quite tough, so if she was sick or injured, she likely would've recovered by now.  She was also a safe rider, so I feel reasonably certain that she's not been lying by the side of the road in a heap.

So I've deduced that she's moved or gotten a new job or a new shift or some combination of those.

...or found a Sugar Daddy.

I, for one, plan on sticking around.  I do want to mention that I didn't sign on for the blog-every-day this month.

I still plan to write blog posts obnoxiously often, maybe even daily.  I'm just not committing to every day.  My year of daily blogging was fun and I enjoy the discipline of it.  I just want to try an open relationship now.   Plus, the spring test cycle is coming around, so my tutor schedule is starting to feel the strain.

And now, I must run a quick errand before the afternoon crosswalk and tutelage.  On my bicycle.  In memory of Bike Lady.

I hope it's the Sugar Daddy scenario.
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can you feel it, baby?

The secret to getting ahead is getting started 
Come on come on 
Feel it feel it
Feel the vibration
~ Marky Mark Twain






The world is still here.  I guess we'll have to pay the master card bill for this month after all.  Darn Mayans anyway.

I've been busy this morning taking care of bidness, and we are currently still Christmas treeless.  That status should change within the next few hours.  If not, we may have to uproot one of the baby trees from the backyard.

In the meantime, how 'bout those New Year's resolutions!?  Got any?

Last year, my main goal was to cook more real food.  I think I improved on that.  But considering where I'd come from...

I've not got Marky Mark Twain abs, but I keep trying anyway.  And my records show that I've logged 1,084 running miles so far this year.  I'm happy enough with that considering I didn't run a step for 10 weeks while waiting for the bum foot to heal.

For this year, I haven't fashioned any specific goals, but I've been thinking along the lines of future employment.  The tutor/crossing guard combo works out well with the family dynamic for now, but it's not a long-range vision.  Since the lottery gods aren't likely to shine on me, I would at least like to have a formulated plan in place.

I'm just in the thinking-about-things stage for now.  As far as immediate goals, a Christmas tree would be nice.

Since the world looks to be sticking around, got any plans?
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today

You ever have one of those days where things just go according to plan?  When you wake up feeling fresh and ready and productive?  Your mental clarity is strong, your emotions high yet stable?

You have a to-do list that, even if a mile long, manages to be completed?  Your work is detailed, crisp, and organized?  You're on time for appointments and appointments are on time for you?

Your interactions with others are jovial and sincere?  The other people and things you regularly want or need access to are available and humming?

You have good hair?

Today wasn't one of those.

• Shoes then socks then feet got drenched.
• Laundry left on the clothesline became wetter than when it was hung.
• Printer cartridge dried up.
• Tutor student was late.
• Scissors.  Where are the scissors?
• Package for UPS was forgotten.
• There's more laundry.
• There's not much food.

But the hair actually looks pretty good.
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get your fash ON

And then it was down to just one. Another resolution runner - the only one I would see that morning. They have a way of making themselves known.  She was dressed all wrong, but she seemed enthusiastic.

Her obvious mistake, in my opinion, was that she was wearing a big parka.  Like, BIG parka.  And I was thinking, "oh no, she's gonna get overheated/bogged down and she'll think that's what running is and she'll never come out again". 

I do think it's a rather cruel irony that resolution time coincides with the dead of inhospitable winter - for us in the northern hemisphere anyways.  People resolve to be more active, go run outside and freeze and hate it, or join a gym and run on a treadmill and hate it.

If only they knew - it's really just another excuse for FASHION!

Wolfgang runs cross-country in the fall and track in the spring for his school.  He doesn't do a winter sport, so the track members get together during this "off season" and do training runs together to keep in shape.  It's cold and inhospitable outside now.  He needed some new compression tights, so he and I went shopping.

And, you know when you have a coupon that says something like "$10 off your next purchase of $50 or more!",  so you rationalize buying more stuff so you can ratchet your total up to 50 bucks so you can save the 10 bucks?  Yeah, it was like that.  Wolfgang's compression tights were on sale, so I checked to see if the women's tights were too.  Lo and behold...

If I bought two pairs, I could use my coupon :). 




Plus, these compression tights were really really cool looking.  OH, they would probably be good performance-wise too...

But they were really really cool looking.  Even Wolfgang was jealous that the men's were just solid black. 




I got them.  I "saved" 10 dollars by getting them, right??  Plus, I consider it my duty to be a fashion and function example  to the resolution runners...

 if there are any left. 
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this year I'm gonna do it

I have this resolution that I've made for several new years.  I've also sometimes made it when it wasn't a new year.  Then I notice that it's gone and I need to resolve again. 

I'm going to cook.  Like real food. 

Now, I DO do this every once in a while.  Get out my cooking toys and prepare a real meal that the family actually likes and chows down.  But it seems like those occassions get few and far between or maybe just have some annual special occassion tied to them.


For instance, somewhere along the way, it was decided that we would have steamed crab legs on New Year's eve.  Here are some of the latest ones steaming away.  I don't remember how many batches I steamed, but they disappeared in a frenzy of flying crustacean exoskeleton garbage.

I'm not saying that we will be having crablegs every week.  But note that I do have a bamboo steamer - one that I enjoy using.  I hadn't used it since LAST New Year crabs! *sigh*

I made much loved scalloped potatoes on Christmas.  What is so special about scalloped potatoes!?  Well, for one thing, around here, they seem to only appear at Christmas!  *sigh*  While I like keeping the crablegs special for new years, I think I can manage some freaking scalloped potatoes once in a while other than Christmas!

And really, my recurring resolution isn't just about certain dishes to prepare, but it's the whole big picture.  Part of the reason I don't cook real food as often as I'd like to is because I don't plan.  As good cooks I know know, meal planning is our friend.

To help me, I read an article this morning titled "Eat Some Lucky Foods for a Prosperous New Year".  Well, prosperity!  That's inspiring.  It mentions a tradition of eating pork on new year's day since "Pigs are considered good luck because they root forward, symbolizing progress..."  I never heard of that and missed the boat this year as we just scrounged some boring food yesterday for the first of the year. 

Other tips include: 
Eating food shaped like coins (for obvious reasons)
Eating folded greens (looks like money)
Eating fish scales (symbolize silver)
Eating long noodles (long life)
Eating ring shaped foods (the year coming full circle)

Okay, so I am going to do this thing.  Or at least, I'll do it better, right?

Although I'm not quite willing to chuck my emergency stash of Kraft Mac 'n' Cheese just yet...
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the aftermath

Okay, the day of languishing is over.  Yesterday's sloth and indulgence are history.  Now we start the headlong rush into the new year.

I haven't made any New Year's resolutions.  It's certainly not because nothing needs improvement. It's just that I need to sit down and reflect a bit to see what's next and why.  I've got 5+ days.

I will admit that I'm having trouble forming a "picture".  Other times, before, I've been able to do this.  Picture finishing college and getting a job.  Picture the family and the lifestyle, etc.  Now at this point, though, it's all a bit foggy.

But I'm fresh from life coach land and that's given me some strategies.  In fact, just thinking on that now, I'm able to form a bit of a vision.  I'm envisioning lunch. 

And after that?  Well, it IS Boxing Day.  Anyone up to throw down?

I need a skilled and worthy opponent to knock me around good for a bit! 

moving forward looking back

Here we are in December and I'm looking ahead to the New Year.  Don't assume that, because I said that, that my Christmas is in the bag.  It most certainly is NOT (as in, I've done nothing), but I'm avoiding that little detail.

No, I thought I would take a moment now to reflect on my resolutions I made for this year.  Did I make any?  As per usual, I made some and then promptly forgot what they were.  Thank goodness for blog archives.  I dug around and found some:

I will gain weight.
According to last year's list, I was looking to make my arms "a little less noodly".  Beings that I took no measurements whatsoever, I have no idea if their dimensions have changed from thin spaghetti to regular spaghetti.  I have been sticking to my strengthening regimen, however,  and I am, among other things, up to a whopping 8 pullups (on a good day).  Not to mention, I wield a mean crossing guard stop sign.  I'm checking that one off as Done!

I will drink more.
This was made in relation to my and Magnum's wine drinking program of a glass a day.  I don't even remember what, but supposedly there's health benefit in drinking a glass of red wine a day.  I think we've done it, but it's all a little foggy...

I will work harder, not smarter.
This time last year, I was teaching classroom classes, online classes, and filling in the blanks with tutoring sessions - all of which made family time pretty sparse.  The pay was good, but I was burnt out.  I left that place.  Today I've got more control over my teaching schedule and the crossing guard moonlighting is a nice and easy income trickle.  This was probably the resolution I did the best at.  Yay me.

I will volunteer less.
I enjoy volunteering, and I'm grateful that I have the option to help out for free.  This resolution was made with specific focus on my elementary school volunteering.  I'd been doing that since Chaco was in kindergarten and was ready to call it a stint after Meego's last year.  I'm happy to say that I found worthy suckers for both my positions as PTO treasurer and Run With Lumber chair.  That said, I do still have 4 large boxes of Run With Lumber crap taking up space in my house.  I give myself until the end of the month to offload them!


Okay then!  I'm satisfied with my resolution report card.  Nothing too daunting there.  Now to think up some new ones for 2012 to promptly forget until next year about this time.
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