Sincerely,
Beth, who didn't have wet feet! (and clearly doesn't get the concept of Wordless Wednesday)
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
Wordless Wednesday
Keep your eye on where you WANT to go! Important in mountain biking and running!
Sincerely,
Beth, who didn't have wet feet! (and clearly doesn't get the concept of Wordless Wednesday)
Sincerely,
Beth, who didn't have wet feet! (and clearly doesn't get the concept of Wordless Wednesday)
Monday, January 15, 2018
Week 2: 1/8/2018 - 1/14/2018
And here we go again, I feel like I just published this silly thing... I can totally see why the whole blogging what you did every day kinda gets to suck...
Not a lot of pictures from this week, I'll unearth some oldies.
Monday: Ro and Mark are off to CO on Tuesday, so this is our last hill workout until she takes a vacation from their vacation in February. Wow, that sounds weird, a vacation from vacation. We had a good, albeit a little sloggy with the layers and the mash potato snow and unshoveled walks. A great endurance workout for 90 minutes for sure!!
Bummer, no Gus walk, I can't really go out by myself, poor guy, I think he'd be even sadder than he is now?
Tuesday: Spin day! Spin class was canceled but on Strava Premium I have access to a few Sufferfest videos, I think they are called something different now. CTS had a 64-minute interval workout the scenery was the Amgen Tour de Cali and the riders. It was good, really good actually. I may sub this in another time for a spin class. The extended intervals 3 minutes, were challenging! It would be easier on a trainer with a cadence sensor to follow along with the recommended cadence. I gave myself a few extra miles for the full hour of hard work, I think I earned them!
Gus had a bit of a setback, poor guy. It is a bit more than the anaplasmosis. It probably was in his body for a while and causing havoc on his spine, causing the fall down the stairs making even more problems. Ugh. I feel like such an ass. We both do.
Wednesday: Run day! That was fun! Not fast, but good to get out and get in a 5K. I think I'll stick with that distance until I feel like it's 'easy'. Ugh, no Beth, you hate that term. I'll stick with that until I feel like I need more of a challenge and add on another mile. Maybe when I can get my pace down into the low 11's? I'm not sure. Maybe never. Who knows.
As I type this I can't remember much of Wednesday except the note from my Uncle undergoing chemo for his third cancer. He has a warped sense of humor, and it is still intact, which gives me hope!
Thursday: Typically a spin day, however, I had the WTAC Board Meeting and while it's ok for the guys to come in after a run I'd be biking, a non-running activity, on GASP stationary equipment, and risk offending the delicate sensibilities on what constitutes an appropriate activity of a few of the board members, I opted for Boot Camp. Besides, I have to wring out my hair after spin class, no one wants to deal with that!!
Addy is cray cray, there is no two ways about it. I always feel like I am in the worst possible shape when I am in these classes. I think that is how you are supposed to feel, because if it wasn't challenging what is the point???
We did a set of 10 exercises three times:
10 push up to side planks
15 jump lunges
20 (10 each side) one-legged deadlift with an overhead press
20 jump squats
Who bloody hell knows - I've blocked it out
80 mountain climbers (with gliders)
2 hallway sprints
15 TRX Chest pulls
15 Tri
20 Hammer Curls
And because we finished a bit early we got a bonus round three times:
Full arm plank to elbows and back 10 each side
10 Running man sit-ups
10 Toe tap leg raise
By the end, most everyone feels like dying or they didn't work hard enough? My abs hurt just thinking about this.
Friday: A running day! For some reason, I was anxious about this run. I promised myself I wasn't going to push myself I was going to let this return unfold naturally and enjoyably. WTF Beth, why were you anxious? The pain would come back? You are slower? Get over yourself, for christ sakes! It was warm out, albeit a bit misty and cloudy. I had a nice bright shirt to wear ensuring I could be seen by traffic, or whoever came looking for my dead shriveled body in the event this was my final undoing (drama much?)
It was a great run, a few seconds faster per mile than my run on Wednesday. I wasn't feeling any pain during or after. Ahhhh... it was good. Plus the local wellness center had a massage opening at 2 p.m. and I knew that would be a lovely reward as I haven't had a massage in months and really needed one. I'm not so good about pampering myself.
Saturday: Clearly Gus was backsliding massively. I called Ocean State Vet to schedule a consult with the veterinary Neurologist, we go Thursday and explained to the intake person what was going on and that I really wanted to bring him in today. She explained Dr. Marini wouldn't be in but they would be able to do something for him.
They assessed him quickly and rushed him back to pump him with some pain meds so they could examine him. They put me in an exam room. For this I am eternally grateful, it is quiet there and I don't have to watch the emotions unfold, or look through their book which features our Diesel as a successful cancer patient. Successful as we had 20 additional months with the Big Guy.
The vet came in to talk through what was going on and I explained my screw up (1/2 the dosage of the Doxy) and asked could that possibly be the problem? She said, well sure, only 1/2 the antibiotics fighting against the Anaplasmosis, and the Anaplasmosis realizing they had the upper hand... both Dave and I are fixated on that as the issue.
Some additional blood work produced more questions and blood work, we will know more in a few days.
The big win was adding Gabapentin to deaden the nerve pain. Diesel was on this and it worked wonders.
I loaded him back in the car 4 hours later and we were off home, he was less anxious and seemed to enjoy more staring at the drivers behind us.
He was begging for dinner by 6 p.m. and after the obligatory trip outside, willingly using his ramp, he curled up on the bed in front of the fire and zonked out. Gabapentin is pretty cool. As is dosing medication properly.
Sunday: First race in the Off Rhode Racing 4th Season Trail Race series, Resolution Beach and Trail 5K, I went into this with no expectations, it was a fun race, and we didn't have the mile on the beach with the sand and the wind beating into our skin, so it was even better. I finished, didn't fall, and took home some beer thanks to my much faster female teammates!
I didn't do much the rest of the day. Spent it keeping an eye on Gus, he is doing much better! I miss our weekend hikes, I should take Jax, but I feel like I'd be cheating on Gus... it is quite a quandary I've put myself in.
Mileage:
I may want to review my goals, but we are only 14 days into the new year and I've had a lot going on...
Feet: 24/1,500 37 miles behind pace
Saddle: 39/3,000 84 miles behind pace (this isn't unexpected)
Honestly, I haven't felt this physically good in a while, other than what seems to be a cold coming on, not wincing in pain getting out of bed and hobbling down the stairs is probably a good thing.
Knitting:
I totally forgot to take a picture of the Wild Child sweater before I sent it off or the one for Dave's friend... whoopsie. So maybe my mind isn't completely out of its fog, close though!!
Finished the sweater for Andrea at the same time MAC finished the blanket in matching yarn, how's that for timing! Just need to get that through the wash to get out the slobber Jax deposited on it this morning!
Started a sweater with no recipient at this time, it's purple, is purple OK for a boy? I'm finally making a noticeable dent in my baby sweater yarn stash!!
Books:
"Big Little Lies" by Liane Moriarty
A little more than halfway through, a very interesting way to present a murder mystery! I'm still not sure who's dead!
Summary:
Below average activity combine with Gus' health kinda made for so far not my most favorite week of the year. The Resolution Beach and Trail 5K and seeing runner friends made my week!
Sincerely,
Beth, may we all find peace, somehow.
Not a lot of pictures from this week, I'll unearth some oldies.
Monday: Ro and Mark are off to CO on Tuesday, so this is our last hill workout until she takes a vacation from their vacation in February. Wow, that sounds weird, a vacation from vacation. We had a good, albeit a little sloggy with the layers and the mash potato snow and unshoveled walks. A great endurance workout for 90 minutes for sure!!
Bummer, no Gus walk, I can't really go out by myself, poor guy, I think he'd be even sadder than he is now?
 |
| April 1997 - Utah My last ski trip. |
Tuesday: Spin day! Spin class was canceled but on Strava Premium I have access to a few Sufferfest videos, I think they are called something different now. CTS had a 64-minute interval workout the scenery was the Amgen Tour de Cali and the riders. It was good, really good actually. I may sub this in another time for a spin class. The extended intervals 3 minutes, were challenging! It would be easier on a trainer with a cadence sensor to follow along with the recommended cadence. I gave myself a few extra miles for the full hour of hard work, I think I earned them!
Gus had a bit of a setback, poor guy. It is a bit more than the anaplasmosis. It probably was in his body for a while and causing havoc on his spine, causing the fall down the stairs making even more problems. Ugh. I feel like such an ass. We both do.
 |
| I'm not sure, probably 2012? John on my right and Mark on my left They also think their older sister is looney. |
As I type this I can't remember much of Wednesday except the note from my Uncle undergoing chemo for his third cancer. He has a warped sense of humor, and it is still intact, which gives me hope!
 |
| 2014 Rhode Warrior Triathalon Festival |
Addy is cray cray, there is no two ways about it. I always feel like I am in the worst possible shape when I am in these classes. I think that is how you are supposed to feel, because if it wasn't challenging what is the point???
We did a set of 10 exercises three times:
10 push up to side planks
15 jump lunges
20 (10 each side) one-legged deadlift with an overhead press
20 jump squats
Who bloody hell knows - I've blocked it out
80 mountain climbers (with gliders)
2 hallway sprints
15 TRX Chest pulls
15 Tri
20 Hammer Curls
And because we finished a bit early we got a bonus round three times:
Full arm plank to elbows and back 10 each side
10 Running man sit-ups
10 Toe tap leg raise
By the end, most everyone feels like dying or they didn't work hard enough? My abs hurt just thinking about this.
Friday: A running day! For some reason, I was anxious about this run. I promised myself I wasn't going to push myself I was going to let this return unfold naturally and enjoyably. WTF Beth, why were you anxious? The pain would come back? You are slower? Get over yourself, for christ sakes! It was warm out, albeit a bit misty and cloudy. I had a nice bright shirt to wear ensuring I could be seen by traffic, or whoever came looking for my dead shriveled body in the event this was my final undoing (drama much?)
It was a great run, a few seconds faster per mile than my run on Wednesday. I wasn't feeling any pain during or after. Ahhhh... it was good. Plus the local wellness center had a massage opening at 2 p.m. and I knew that would be a lovely reward as I haven't had a massage in months and really needed one. I'm not so good about pampering myself.
 |
| I'm the queen of bad ideas, this topped the list. Probably two calm dogs attached at the harness would be ok. We made it to the end of the block, barely. |
Saturday: Clearly Gus was backsliding massively. I called Ocean State Vet to schedule a consult with the veterinary Neurologist, we go Thursday and explained to the intake person what was going on and that I really wanted to bring him in today. She explained Dr. Marini wouldn't be in but they would be able to do something for him.
They assessed him quickly and rushed him back to pump him with some pain meds so they could examine him. They put me in an exam room. For this I am eternally grateful, it is quiet there and I don't have to watch the emotions unfold, or look through their book which features our Diesel as a successful cancer patient. Successful as we had 20 additional months with the Big Guy.
The vet came in to talk through what was going on and I explained my screw up (1/2 the dosage of the Doxy) and asked could that possibly be the problem? She said, well sure, only 1/2 the antibiotics fighting against the Anaplasmosis, and the Anaplasmosis realizing they had the upper hand... both Dave and I are fixated on that as the issue.
Some additional blood work produced more questions and blood work, we will know more in a few days.
The big win was adding Gabapentin to deaden the nerve pain. Diesel was on this and it worked wonders.
I loaded him back in the car 4 hours later and we were off home, he was less anxious and seemed to enjoy more staring at the drivers behind us.
He was begging for dinner by 6 p.m. and after the obligatory trip outside, willingly using his ramp, he curled up on the bed in front of the fire and zonked out. Gabapentin is pretty cool. As is dosing medication properly.
 |
| Look closely. |
Sunday: First race in the Off Rhode Racing 4th Season Trail Race series, Resolution Beach and Trail 5K, I went into this with no expectations, it was a fun race, and we didn't have the mile on the beach with the sand and the wind beating into our skin, so it was even better. I finished, didn't fall, and took home some beer thanks to my much faster female teammates!
I didn't do much the rest of the day. Spent it keeping an eye on Gus, he is doing much better! I miss our weekend hikes, I should take Jax, but I feel like I'd be cheating on Gus... it is quite a quandary I've put myself in.
 |
| One of his perkier moments hopped up on painkillers. |
Mileage:
I may want to review my goals, but we are only 14 days into the new year and I've had a lot going on...
Feet: 24/1,500 37 miles behind pace
Saddle: 39/3,000 84 miles behind pace (this isn't unexpected)
Honestly, I haven't felt this physically good in a while, other than what seems to be a cold coming on, not wincing in pain getting out of bed and hobbling down the stairs is probably a good thing.
 |
| Cute buttons from my Mom's collection |
Knitting:
I totally forgot to take a picture of the Wild Child sweater before I sent it off or the one for Dave's friend... whoopsie. So maybe my mind isn't completely out of its fog, close though!!
Finished the sweater for Andrea at the same time MAC finished the blanket in matching yarn, how's that for timing! Just need to get that through the wash to get out the slobber Jax deposited on it this morning!
Started a sweater with no recipient at this time, it's purple, is purple OK for a boy? I'm finally making a noticeable dent in my baby sweater yarn stash!!
 |
| After all this time I discovered it's better to sew on the buttons then sew up the sleeves! |
Books:
"Big Little Lies" by Liane Moriarty
A little more than halfway through, a very interesting way to present a murder mystery! I'm still not sure who's dead!
Summary:
Below average activity combine with Gus' health kinda made for so far not my most favorite week of the year. The Resolution Beach and Trail 5K and seeing runner friends made my week!
 |
| Peacefully sleeping, finally. |
Sincerely,
Beth, may we all find peace, somehow.
Sunday, January 7, 2018
Week 1: 2017 Goal Review, 2018 Goal Setting and Weekly Recap: 1/1/2018 - 1/7/2018
I set a few goals for 2017, they weren't especially elaborate, as 2017 unfolded they were exactly right.
Mileage goals on Strava:
Run: 1,600 1,467 Missed by 133 miles - this taunted me in November and December when I watched it go off the rails and did nothing about it.
Bike: 2,017 2703 Blew it away by 686 miles!
If you take the adage: 1 running mile = 3 bike miles I came out ahead by 96 miles. I'm calling this a win. I will admit I felt like the bike mile goal was a slight sandbag as my 2016 miles were 1,598, not a total sandbag though!
The goals I laid out in my blog post, here.
1. Every race is fun. I'm not going to place, I don't have the drive to do the work to achieve this. I do think that races are for everyone, from the top 10 to the bottom 10. If I can't enjoy it, I'm not doing it!
Highlights:
I bailed on 7 Bitches when it was getting horrible, one day you bitches, we will meet again!! Plus really I felt horrible watching that poor trail gets so destroyed, it made me very sad what we as humans can do to something so beautiful in the name of what? Chasing a PR? Conquering a fear?
My biggest challenge was the Newport Christmas 10K, I signed up for it because it is a fun race. And now I can say I’ve been chased by a cop car in a race!
My favorite race was the Dirty Girl 10K in New Hampshire. Looking forward to doing this one in 2018, wonder who will be the Dirty Dude?
Nailed it!
2. Run, Walk, Ride, Hike, explore and enjoy the great outdoors every single day, in one way or another.
I didn’t get out running, walking, hiking, or riding, every day, most days. There were days I was stuck inside because of work or driving to MI. However, there wasn’t a single day where I didn’t leave the house, so that counts right?
My favorite times are being in the woods with the dogs, the imaginary husband, friends, and alone.
Mostly nailed it!
3. Rest when I need it, and try and not beat myself up for it.
This was a stretch goal for me. It will always be a stretch goal for me.
Something to continue working on!
4. Drink good beer.
Oh yes! Lots and lots of good beers consumed, and if it wasn’t good, I learned the art of the drain pour, Cinci Cougar, Founders Lizard something or another – WTF were they thinking - or finding someone who WOULD appreciate it. The Dirty Girl Mint Stout from Right Brain, Rachel enjoyed that, I know I didn’t!
Nailed it!
5. Read books.
Lots of them, 44 according to Goodreads, across all sorts of subjects!!
My favorite was “A Man Called Ove” by Fredrik Backman
Nailed it!
6. Knit.
I am most proud of all the sweaters, 15 going to keep babies warm, and yes, the sweater I knit for myself that I actually like and wear!
Nailed it!
So what about 2018?
I think I made a pretty good list and will carry it forward to and add in:
Be present. I allow myself to get very distracted playing WWF and I can waste hours on Facebook and Instagram. Time to limit my screen time, I did make an effort towards putting the fing phone down or closing the lid on the laptop in the last quarter of 2017, I still need some work. I noticed how much it bugged me when I was out with friends and they couldn’t put their screen down or kept checking them, what was so much more important or interesting? I think it is really a habit/addiction and less not being interested in the company you are with.
Weekly Recap: 1/1/2018 - 1/7/2018
Monday: Happy New Year, took a zero to start the year. Not a harbinger of things to come, more I feel like crap and it's cold and it's my last day of vacation to hang out with the dogs and why don't I tick a few more things off my to-do list.
Tuesday: Back to work, still cold, Tuesdays aren't running days, so yeah! I took the Bootcamp class at lunch and then Spin after work. My body was not at all thrilled about this and decided to 'flare', after starting to feel the coldness come on and my hands and face feel like they were on fire, I turned up the heat and hunkered under a quilt till the imaginary husband called timeout after an hour and turned the heat down. I NEVER turn up the heat and am always telling him it is hot. Things got all sorted out and I felt like myself by morning. Clearly, I overdid it. Clearly, my body said, um bitch, no. Lesson learned. I can do double workouts, just not the first day back after a week off!
Wednesday: Back to hills with Ro. It was warmer out, 20F, which is warm compared to the temps of late. We had a great hill work out and my continuation on the road to normal continued. Something to be said about 90 minutes with someone who gets it and gets you and has her own hurdles to overcome. She turns 59 in a few weeks and it is not sitting well with her, not at all. I'm not sure what to do to help her, other than remind her she is more active and fit than most 30-year-olds.
Thursday: Well how about that a snow day! Work closed! I was planning on "working from home" anyhow. Now I didn't have to stay uber tied to the computer and could get a few things done around the house. Like laundry, it was going to be warm enough to do laundry in this drafty old house, it is a real thing, I'm not making it up. A few meetings and some documents to proofread and that took me till about 4:00 p.m. and I was ready to get outside and do some shoveling. Not that it was going to amount to much of a savings of effort on Friday morning, however, it was good to be out and doing some core work!
Friday: The neighbor, Bob, was up and out by 7:00 a.m. snow blowing, we were out by 7:10 a.m. to get the little bit left over shoveled out, the front walk and to the street shoveled out, and get a path dug to get Dave's truck out. Yes, my shoveling was purely window dressing, however, it was necessary for me! Still, we could help Bob with the shoveling around his wife's car and the front walk while he took care of the across the street neighbors sidewalk. This is kind of the whole community thing. Plus I think men have a thing about moving snow around, just sayin'.
I did a 5K on the elliptical, what a weird machine, definitely low impact and I worked up a good sweat. Better than freezing my face and other parts outside.
Gus got a short walk, he was very excited for a walk and to put on his sweater and we got 0.05 of a mile and he was not at all happy with his cold feet. We turned around and logged a whopping 1/4 of a mile. I found some boots for him, and he tried them on later in the evening, completely unimpressed, but I think once he puts the full picture together it will be much better. Certainly once Diesel put the picture together he was sold on the boots for any treks to the beach. Jax gets it once he is out in the snow and his paws aren't freezing. The tiny mincing steps Gus was taking clearly mean the problem was with his feet. Gizmo only cared if he got snow between his toes otherwise, he went wherever whenever. Sage was the same way.
Saturday: It was pretty clear something is wrong with Gus and it's not just the weather. Off to the vet. Some neurological tests showed inflammation in his discs, his feet weren't responding correctly to some simple tests. The vet pointed out the swelling on the back of the spine. His sweet new coat was pressing on this, making him super uncomfortable, my assumption. They gave him a shot of carprofen, drew blood for some tests, Lyme panel being one. I was sent home with a couple bottles of pills (carprofen (pain) and methocarbamol (muscle relaxer)) and the instructions limited activity for 4 - 6 weeks and NO STAIRS, crate him when you go out so he stays very sedentary. A lot of tears was the result of this, I was injuring him further by walking him. Those of you with pets totally will get the guilt induced beating about the head and neck. He likes having a downstairs Gus Hut so that wasn't an issue. The stairs, well he can't take himself to the bathroom so there is no poop eating, and he gets to go out the front door and use the front yard, which is something Diesel, Sage, and Gizmo before him all got to do. Pretty soon after Gizmo died Gus started waiting by the front door for before bed potty time. 18 months later his dream has come true.
I didn't do a lot, but I did get all my activity time per my watch, let's call that good, shall we?
Sunday: Gus is up and at 'em looking spry and happy, a little wiggle back in his brown nub of a tail too! Always a good way to wake up in the morning. The vet called, two things popped on his blood tests, first: he has anaplasmosis a tick-borne disease causing the symptoms he is exhibiting, neither of us remembers him getting bitten, but who knows and one of the protein panels was high inflammation or cancer, we are going with inflammation. If that mass on his heart were cancer, it would have shown it's ugly head in some way or another and nothing. Off to the vet to pick up some Doxycycline and start him on a course of that. Gizmo used to have Lyme flares from time to time and his flares were usually him limping on his back left leg, so this doesn't seem unusual at all. Hopefully, we aren't being viewed as horrible dog guardians for having dogs with tick-borne diseases, sometimes you just don't get all of them and the medication schedule gets off by a week...
George Ross posted that he was looking to ride fire roads in Arcadia, doubtful anything would be packed down enough to get on single track. I raised my hand and met him at 1 for a 6ish mile ride. We tried some of the snowmobile tracks, the snow was not packed down enough. It's nice to be out with another newbie to the mountain biking in winter experience.
Mileage:
Feet: 10
Saddle: 22
Not stellar...
Books:
" Norse Mythology" by Neil Gaiman
Finished. Excellent book on Norse Mythology. Very entertaining. I'll be looking for more by this author.
"Buddha in the Attic" by Julie Otsuka
Finished. I wasn't sure what to think about this book, so I thought about it. It wasn't the story of one woman coming to America as a 'mail-order bride' being surprised the picture of the man and the occupation of the man did not match what their letters said and their lives until they were met with suspicion and deportation after December 7, 1944, it was the story of many women. Some tragic, some inspiring, some meh, all of them told by a list. Really an interesting way to tell a story, or rather stories. I'd like to know more about these women and their experiences.
"Big Little Lies" by Liane Moriarty
Started
Knitting:
Finished a couple sweaters for a friends grandbaby and another friend's first baby started a sweater for a friend first baby.
Summary:
Not a bad week, not a great week, a week. It was cold, I was nervous about going out in the cold, and every time I didn't feel any worse for it.
Sincerely,
Beth, looking forward to what this year holds!
Mileage goals on Strava:
Run: 1,600 1,467 Missed by 133 miles - this taunted me in November and December when I watched it go off the rails and did nothing about it.
Bike: 2,017 2703 Blew it away by 686 miles!
If you take the adage: 1 running mile = 3 bike miles I came out ahead by 96 miles. I'm calling this a win. I will admit I felt like the bike mile goal was a slight sandbag as my 2016 miles were 1,598, not a total sandbag though!
The goals I laid out in my blog post, here.
1. Every race is fun. I'm not going to place, I don't have the drive to do the work to achieve this. I do think that races are for everyone, from the top 10 to the bottom 10. If I can't enjoy it, I'm not doing it!
Highlights:
I bailed on 7 Bitches when it was getting horrible, one day you bitches, we will meet again!! Plus really I felt horrible watching that poor trail gets so destroyed, it made me very sad what we as humans can do to something so beautiful in the name of what? Chasing a PR? Conquering a fear?
My biggest challenge was the Newport Christmas 10K, I signed up for it because it is a fun race. And now I can say I’ve been chased by a cop car in a race!
My favorite race was the Dirty Girl 10K in New Hampshire. Looking forward to doing this one in 2018, wonder who will be the Dirty Dude?
Nailed it!
2. Run, Walk, Ride, Hike, explore and enjoy the great outdoors every single day, in one way or another.
I didn’t get out running, walking, hiking, or riding, every day, most days. There were days I was stuck inside because of work or driving to MI. However, there wasn’t a single day where I didn’t leave the house, so that counts right?
My favorite times are being in the woods with the dogs, the imaginary husband, friends, and alone.
Mostly nailed it!
3. Rest when I need it, and try and not beat myself up for it.
This was a stretch goal for me. It will always be a stretch goal for me.
Something to continue working on!
4. Drink good beer.
Oh yes! Lots and lots of good beers consumed, and if it wasn’t good, I learned the art of the drain pour, Cinci Cougar, Founders Lizard something or another – WTF were they thinking - or finding someone who WOULD appreciate it. The Dirty Girl Mint Stout from Right Brain, Rachel enjoyed that, I know I didn’t!
Nailed it!
5. Read books.
Lots of them, 44 according to Goodreads, across all sorts of subjects!!
My favorite was “A Man Called Ove” by Fredrik Backman
Nailed it!
6. Knit.
I am most proud of all the sweaters, 15 going to keep babies warm, and yes, the sweater I knit for myself that I actually like and wear!
Nailed it!
So what about 2018?
I think I made a pretty good list and will carry it forward to and add in:
Be present. I allow myself to get very distracted playing WWF and I can waste hours on Facebook and Instagram. Time to limit my screen time, I did make an effort towards putting the fing phone down or closing the lid on the laptop in the last quarter of 2017, I still need some work. I noticed how much it bugged me when I was out with friends and they couldn’t put their screen down or kept checking them, what was so much more important or interesting? I think it is really a habit/addiction and less not being interested in the company you are with.
Weekly Recap: 1/1/2018 - 1/7/2018
Monday: Happy New Year, took a zero to start the year. Not a harbinger of things to come, more I feel like crap and it's cold and it's my last day of vacation to hang out with the dogs and why don't I tick a few more things off my to-do list.
 |
| I was having some peanut butter on a banana for breakfast and these two strolled in. Gus will have some banana and peanut butter Jax thinks bananas are gross and only wants the peanut butter |
Wednesday: Back to hills with Ro. It was warmer out, 20F, which is warm compared to the temps of late. We had a great hill work out and my continuation on the road to normal continued. Something to be said about 90 minutes with someone who gets it and gets you and has her own hurdles to overcome. She turns 59 in a few weeks and it is not sitting well with her, not at all. I'm not sure what to do to help her, other than remind her she is more active and fit than most 30-year-olds.
 |
| His new coat. While he looks dapper he won't get to wear it again for a while. |
 |
| Gus snuggles |
I did a 5K on the elliptical, what a weird machine, definitely low impact and I worked up a good sweat. Better than freezing my face and other parts outside.
Gus got a short walk, he was very excited for a walk and to put on his sweater and we got 0.05 of a mile and he was not at all happy with his cold feet. We turned around and logged a whopping 1/4 of a mile. I found some boots for him, and he tried them on later in the evening, completely unimpressed, but I think once he puts the full picture together it will be much better. Certainly once Diesel put the picture together he was sold on the boots for any treks to the beach. Jax gets it once he is out in the snow and his paws aren't freezing. The tiny mincing steps Gus was taking clearly mean the problem was with his feet. Gizmo only cared if he got snow between his toes otherwise, he went wherever whenever. Sage was the same way.
 |
| My out of control yarn collection housed my old ski goggles! This is a big score! They will be perfect riding the bike in the cold temps to keep my eyes warm and prevent them from freezing shut! |
I didn't do a lot, but I did get all my activity time per my watch, let's call that good, shall we?
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| Jax needed some blog time! Love his little snaggle tooth! |
George Ross posted that he was looking to ride fire roads in Arcadia, doubtful anything would be packed down enough to get on single track. I raised my hand and met him at 1 for a 6ish mile ride. We tried some of the snowmobile tracks, the snow was not packed down enough. It's nice to be out with another newbie to the mountain biking in winter experience.
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| Photo by George Ross He kindly asked I give him a second so he could get a shot of my riding over the bridge. Thanks, George, he always does make me look like I might know what I'm doing. |
Mileage:
Feet: 10
Saddle: 22
Not stellar...
Books:
" Norse Mythology" by Neil Gaiman
Finished. Excellent book on Norse Mythology. Very entertaining. I'll be looking for more by this author.
"Buddha in the Attic" by Julie Otsuka
Finished. I wasn't sure what to think about this book, so I thought about it. It wasn't the story of one woman coming to America as a 'mail-order bride' being surprised the picture of the man and the occupation of the man did not match what their letters said and their lives until they were met with suspicion and deportation after December 7, 1944, it was the story of many women. Some tragic, some inspiring, some meh, all of them told by a list. Really an interesting way to tell a story, or rather stories. I'd like to know more about these women and their experiences.
"Big Little Lies" by Liane Moriarty
Started
Knitting:
Finished a couple sweaters for a friends grandbaby and another friend's first baby started a sweater for a friend first baby.
Summary:
Not a bad week, not a great week, a week. It was cold, I was nervous about going out in the cold, and every time I didn't feel any worse for it.
Sincerely,
Beth, looking forward to what this year holds!
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