Technically this is a screenshot, but I wanted to share it. This is from yesterday (1/13/17). I think I’ll call it, “Progress,” or perhaps, “Damn, My Thighs Hurt.”
Before bed I checked my progress and had logged 6.98 miles. Of course I then had to make a quick loop of the house to reach the seven mile mark.
Peace, people!
I’ve gained quite a bit of weight in the past two years. I’d be more specific, but who needs the depressing details? Let’s just say that the bathroom scales and I have climbed to previously untapped heights and leave it at that.
Early on New Year’s Day I was scrolling through Facebook and saw a post about a challenge to walk/run 2017 miles in 2017. The sign up deadline was midnight on 1/1/17, so I hesitated for only a moment before clicking on the link and paying my money.
I’m now committed (or perhaps should be). 2017 miles in 365 days means I need to average 5.5 miles a day this year, or 38.5 per week. I jokingly told a blogging friend that as of Friday I only have 2016.5 miles to go. The truth is, I’m kind of on track. With one and a half days left in this first week of January I’ve walked almost 32 miles!
Hopefully I’ll have more weight loss success than this guy ^^^.
Remember the scene in the original Peter Pan where Tinker Bell is on the verge of fading into oblivion and Peter, a.k.a. Mary Martin, begs the audience to applaud to bring her back? I used to clap so loudly that the folks next door complained to my parents. Well, I’m going to need your applause here if I’m going to succeed in walking 2017 miles this year. Exercise is not my first (or third or ninetieth) inclination, but with your help, as Peter Pan is my witness, I can do this.
Peace, people! Um, I can’t hear you.
These are my walking shoes. They’re so ugly, they’re cute. Or are they, as I call this one, “Just Ugly?” Regardless, they’re comfortable.
One of the best spots in Tallahassee for running, walking, playing, or just chilling is beautiful Cascades Park.
http://discovercascades.com
From the link:
Cascades Park is the newest social center of our community, enhancing our quality of life by offering one venue that brings together arts, entertainment, education, history and wellness. It is the perfect example of how the one-cent local option sales tax we pay is invested back into our community.
Located in the heart of downtown, Cascades Park offers a variety of outdoor and recreational amenities, including a state-of-the-art amphitheater, interactive water fountain, children’s play area, Smokey Hollow Commemoration and miles of multi-use trails. Constructed by Blueprint 2000 in partnership with the City of Tallahassee and Leon County, Cascades Park is a stormwater facility that doubles as a unique urban park. Designed to flood, the park will offer relief to nearby areas during major storm events. This park was built by the citizens of Tallahassee and Leon County through the use of a one-cent local option sales tax.
I’ve been driving across Tallahassee a couple of times a week to get in my 10,000 steps by walking in Cascades Park, and every time I spot something new.
On Saturday I discovered the Korean War Memorial:
The piece that gives the impression of having broken off lists the names of those from Leon County who died in the conflict.
I sat and read each of the names and thought about the loss to the families, the community, and perhaps to the world. We use the word moving to describe many things. This memorial moved me to tears.
The amphitheater, below, hosts concerts and plays in a beautiful setting. Every time I walk I make a detour through the stage area. Sometimes I dance a few steps, other times I sing a few notes, but I always take a bow.
I’ve still got a lot left to explore! I didn’t even realize how big the park was until I found this map while writing this post.
Come visit me in Tallahassee. We’ll walk.
Peace, people!
Remember the old story of the Princess and the Pea? The queen wanted to make sure her son’s new romantic interest was a true princess, so she secretly placed a tiny pea beneath a stack of mattresses to see if the girl could detect the pea’s presence. Of course, the girl got a terrible night’s sleep and was declared a true princess.
That’s me. I’m the princess, only in my case the irritant isn’t a pea, it’s the little poky part of the toe seam in socks. Even short walks in my athletic shoes rub blisters on my cute little toes unless I put preemptive bandages in strategic places.
You see, I’m a delicate little flower. No, really. Stop laughing. At 5’8″ tall and I’m not saying how many pounds, I hardly look the part, but it’s true.
I’ve spent many years and many dollars trying to find a sock with non-irritating seams. Finally, I think I might’ve succeeded in my quest. The brand is Balega, and the socks are made in South Africa. The key to their comfort is that the toe seam is hand linked instead of machine linked. Big difference!
I’m not saying this is the only sock with this feature, but it’s the only one I’ve come across in a light weight running/walking sock. SmartWool, I believe, has the same feature, but even their lightweight socks are just too hot for walking in the Florida summer heat, and this princess’s skin is too delicate for wool.
See, I told you I was a delicate little flower.
Peace, people!
I’ve done a lot of strange things in my life, but since strapping on a Fitbit I have to admit my list has grown much longer.
The first thing I do each morning is look at the number of steps I’ve taken in the night. With a goal of 10,000 steps every one counts. I know exactly now how many steps I take going to and from the toilet with a stop off at the sink on the way back (25).
Then I check the quality of my sleep. My Fitbit indicates how many times I was awake during the night and how many minutes I spent in a restless state. Finally I have evidence proving that I don’t sleep. Studly Doright has to believe me now!
I also have become efficiently inefficient. Take laundry for example. In the days B.F. (Before Fitbit) I would carry arm loads of folded laundry from the chaise lounge in the den, dropping off various items in their appropriate places.
After Fitbit (A.F.) I make a separate trip for each grouping of items. Studly’s boxers get one trip, his socks another, and so on. I do the same with clothing I’ve hung to dry in the laundry room, sometimes making a dozen separate trips.
You don’t even want to know my new grocery shopping technique. Suffice it to say that by the time I’ve completed purchasing basics like milk, bread, and beer (yes, beer is a basic) I’ve crisscrossed the nearest Publix a dozen times. And parking has become a game to see just how far from the store I can park.
Since the Fitbit also counts the number of flights of stairs I’ve climbed I’ve found myself walking in strange patterns at both of our malls. I never thought I’d say it, but I’ve become a mall walker.
I can get all of the flights climbed in my own neighborhood just by walking up my side of the loop three and a third times, but until fall comes along it’s just too darned hot and humid out there. I did buy a small container of pepper spray so that some day in the future I’ll be brave enough to walk the entire loop again.
Have any of these machinations paid off? I don’t know yet, but if they allow me one beer in the evening, they’re worth it.
Peace, people!
Dogs are among my favorite people, but a couple of evenings ago as I was taking my evening walk an unknown dog made a charge at me.
Doright Manor sits at the bottom of a loop and many evenings when Studly and I have been out and about in the car I’ll have him drop me off at the top of our loop so I can get a walk in before darkness sets in. On the occasion of the charging dog, the weather was so nice that I decided to walk the entire loop, bypassing the manor and trekking up the backside.
It’s a nice walk and great exercise as the loop has a long steady change in elevation. About halfway up the back side of the loop I caught a flash of brown out of the corner of my eye. I knew there was a dog waiting to ambush me, if not to attack, just to assert its authority over its territory.
I continued walking, grateful that I’d seen the dog and wouldn’t be taken by surprise. Then he rushed me, a large apparently angry dog barking a deep growly baritone that caused me to stop dead in my tracks. I commanded him to stop, and he did, while continuing to bark.
The driveway he came running out of belongs to a home that’s set way back on its property and there is no house directly across from it. I raised my voice in a “hello!” hoping the dog’s owner would come and corral him.
No response. I had my phone and dialed Studly. No response. I tried again. Nothing, and I figured he was in the shower. All this time the dog continued to bark. I took a tentative step forward and he came closer and growled more loudly. I knew better than to turn my back, so I began walking slowly backwards. He took another step towards me. Again I sternly commanded him to stop and he did. Finally I heard a female voice as his owner came out to the road. The dog was still barking furiously.
“He won’t hurt you,” she said, sounding miffed.
“I don’t care!” I responded. “I don’t know your dog, and he scares me.”
It took her several minutes to get the dog back up to the house. He kept turning back to bark at me and I’m sure my fear was encouraging that behavior.
She never apologized, just herded the dog back to her home. I continued my walk and at the top of the loop Studly returned my call. He offered to come get me, but the crisis was over by then.
Now I’m reluctant to walk my loop. I have a walking stick that would provide some defense, (I didn’t have it that evening) but I’m really nervous. Not long ago a Texas friend was attacked by two large dogs while on a walk, and is still dealing with a nasty bite from that incident.
No punch line in this post. I hate being afraid.
Peace, people.
The weather this week in Tallahassee has been just beautiful. Temperatures have been in the low 70s with no wind, so I’ve been walking every day, which happens to be real exercise, or so I’ve been told.
Most days I just stroll around the neighborhood, but yesterday afternoon I left the crockpot on low to cook Studly’s much-anticipated dinner and drove into town so I could walk around Lake Ella.
Just about a mile from the Florida capital building sits this scenic little lake surrounded by gigantic oak trees dripping with Spanish moss. Lake Ella is a popular destination for walkers and bird watchers.
Above is pictured my favorite feature of Lake Ella, a huge oak tree that spreads its generous branches near the ground for children to climb on and around. Such a sweet tree!
Little parks like Lake Ella are just a part of what makes Tallahassee so appealing to a girl from the arid southwest plains of The Texas panhandle. When I die, don’t bury my heart on the lone prairie, just spread my ashes somewhere near a lake. The little fish will love feasting on me!
Peace, people!
Praying for Eyebrowz 