unloading

I finally renewed my membership at the gym. I should have just sucked it up in the first place and continued the yearly membership but I thought I was saving some money by going to a different facility. The pool at the other gym gives me the willies and then I never seem to make it there at desired times. So basically I didn’t do any gym activities for two months. Friday I got in the good “cleaner” pool for many laps and expect to make use of the cardio equipment today.
The dog has gained quite a bit of weight ever since the kid started school. Only two daily walks and even shorter runs with me made her pudgy. We need to get out for longer walks and play time. This is our first dog so I didn’t realize they gained weight so quickly. We took her out to play in the snow yesterday which she really enjoyed. She chased snowballs and got to play with an Irish Wolfhound that was taking his human for a stroll. Keeta looked like a ratdog standing to the wolfhound.

Dad’s hip is healing well. He is much more mobile than a month ago. Sister hid the Yamaha keys from him because he wants to ride the ATV. Despite his hip feeling better he still has other health issues that worry him A LOT that he panics easily now thinking he’s going to die. I guess it doesn’t help that many of the friends have already passed on with another one going just a week ago. Recently he has had to have oxygen tank next to his bed at night which has him very frustrated. He body has become significantly weakened this past summer. When I visited a couple of weeks ago he was in good spirits and glad that he could shower independently. Still he was having some trouble bending over to pull on his shorts and pants so he covered his lap with a t-shirt while I helped him dress.

Mother is completely oblivious to everything and despite the advanced dementia she still thinks she’s in charge. It’s sad because she behaves like an obnoxious child trying to get her way. The rest of the time she just jumps into conversations as if taking charge in some planning process so we have to discuss things when she is not around but then she gets upset saying we are conspiring against her. Damn Alzheimers! It might be because of the disease but when any of her siblings passed on or more recently when one of her nephews died, she didn’t display any emotion or even sadness. She did become a bit pleasant while I sat with her and let me bathe her and change her clothes. I didn’t know that I now had to completely dress her as opposed to just laying out her clothes so I went off to do something else in the midst of this activity only to find out the next day she was going commando. As her condition advances everyone has to stay alert just in case. A couple of my nephews live nearby so they help out by checking in on her a couple of times a day which is a great help to my sister.

let me tell you, after that visit - old folks in birthday suits are not a good visual.

grateful

On Veteran's Day a sincere thank you to the warriors in my family-
Grandpa Percy, Cousins JR, Harve, Jimmy, and Eddie(RIP), Brother Ollie, Nephew Josh, and The Hub. God bless all the veterans as well.

more jolt than coffee

Most mornings I still take a quick jog around the neighborhood and along the greenbelt with the dog. She gets very excited when I start lacing up my sneakers and goes to stand next to her leash. Most of the time it's fun but I'm really hating the rabbits that hop around in the neighbors' yards. She bolts after them with me at the end of the leash as if i weighed not a pound. This part is not so much fun but it might help with my pace though. I'm glad for the lack of early birds at five in the morning to see me being pulled down the street and across yards while pubby chases a rabbit. It's a quick wake up call if i'm feeling a bit sluggish.

Kill the Wabbit sound bite  Elmer Fudd sound bites

it's a good day

So this morning during my frantic rush from the parking lot to office I nearly stepped on a penny. I suppose that is not a huge deal for some but, yay, it was heads up. I smiled and was about to reach for it when I decided to leave it for someone else to enjoy. As in pay it forward. I left a one cent good luck for the next person.

When I got to my work space the silly computer was blinking at me that I had to be at a meeting in five. Ugh! I stomped my feet because I wore heels and still had more walking to do and sincerely hoped they were serving coffee. Half way to the meeting I found more coins on the ground. Pennies and dimes. These I picked up and skipped (not really, but I felt like it) all the way to the meeting.

That was not a bad start to a Monday but early meetings especially at the start of the week really disrupt my routine making my work day feel out of balance. To put my universe back in order I went for a quick four mile run at lunch break. I went at a faster pace than usual which was good since my fingers were getting cold with no gloves. Probably due to the weather there were only a few runners out which made the vagrants that much more apparent.

sometimes it's funny watching someone trip

When I stopped to stretch today after my run it was near a construction site. My run friend who did not join me today met me and we chatted briefly there before heading back to our offices. There were man workers at the site and one of them kept looking over in our direction while we ignored him. Suddenly there was a minor crashing sound and when I looked up I saw the man stumbling forward while holding a large slab of rock or brick. He hit the ground flat on his belly and slid forward a bit. All of this was in seconds but it was like watching in slow motion. He let go of the brick and looked around as he got up while we watched. It was funny but I asked if he was alright and he said he was fine. He was wearing coveralls, gloves and hard hat which might have been plenty of insulation. Cheap entertainment at the end of today’s four miles.