Sunday, September 22, 2013
Poster
Russ has been working on making over one of the bedrooms for a study. And encouraging me to set up an office in another one, partly because for a while we thought that next year I might have to work from home. So far I've mostly just thought about what to do in the old guest room. But one day I was looking over quotes I have written down and decided I'd like to make a poster, that would eventually go up in "my" new room. I designed the poster below, and today I picked up the finished copy. (Well, copies - yes, Karis, I have one for you.) I took the photo in 2010, after Karis and I climbed the bridge. I processed it in Lightroom, then added the quote and re-sized it in Photoshop. I'm really happy with how it came out. It's kinda hard to see in this post, but on the 3 ft by 2 ft poster, you can easily see the people on top of the bridge.
Monday, August 26, 2013
On being a grown-up
I found this post in my drafts. I started it 5 years ago, and for some reason, never finished it. But it still applies, so here's what I wrote then:
I've been thinking lately about being a grown-up. After all, my youngest child is in college. I attended my 30th college reunion (and I fear I was NOT a child prodigy who graduated at the age of 8). Recently celebrated my 31st anniversary. Am 5 years into my second (or third) career. And have my own internal, though erratic, furnace system, if you know what I mean. One would think that if I am not a grown-up now, then I never will be. Certainly when I was in my teens and twenties, I assumed that by the time I was 50 I would be mature, confident, etc.
But I don't FEEL that old. And in certain situations I act like a 15-year-old. I like to read teen novels and go to see teen chick-flicks. On a hot summer day, I still feel like going to a water park. And is it really my job to take care of a whole house?? That's waaayy too much housework, she whines. Confident? No, I still second-guess every important decision. And even many unimportant decisions.
5 years later, Russ is now 60 and we are starting to think about what retirement will be like. I still feel pretty much the same way I did 5 years ago. And now I'm listening to my kids talk about the things that make them feel like adults, or not. So here's to you, Jason and Karis! Don't ever lose that kid inside.
I've been thinking lately about being a grown-up. After all, my youngest child is in college. I attended my 30th college reunion (and I fear I was NOT a child prodigy who graduated at the age of 8). Recently celebrated my 31st anniversary. Am 5 years into my second (or third) career. And have my own internal, though erratic, furnace system, if you know what I mean. One would think that if I am not a grown-up now, then I never will be. Certainly when I was in my teens and twenties, I assumed that by the time I was 50 I would be mature, confident, etc.
But I don't FEEL that old. And in certain situations I act like a 15-year-old. I like to read teen novels and go to see teen chick-flicks. On a hot summer day, I still feel like going to a water park. And is it really my job to take care of a whole house?? That's waaayy too much housework, she whines. Confident? No, I still second-guess every important decision. And even many unimportant decisions.
5 years later, Russ is now 60 and we are starting to think about what retirement will be like. I still feel pretty much the same way I did 5 years ago. And now I'm listening to my kids talk about the things that make them feel like adults, or not. So here's to you, Jason and Karis! Don't ever lose that kid inside.
Sunday, August 25, 2013
On getting in shape
For the last 4 months, I have been working on losing weight, which includes joining Weight Watchers and exercising more. It's been going pretty well, and I am fairly happy that I am down 30 pounds. Though of course I would like to have lost more, that's pretty reasonable. Also, I haven't given up peanut butter, ice cream or chocolate. I probably wouldn't have lasted if that had been required.
I'm at that point where I need to buy some new clothes, but I still need to lose more weight, so hesitant to buy too much. The first thing I bought? New bras. Went to Nordstrom's last weekend and used a fitter, who helped me pick out very nice, very expensive bras. Fortunately I found out you are only supposed to wash them every 4-5 times you wear them (unless you sweat heavily), because I only bought 3. Band size was 4 inches smaller! But cups were 2 sizes larger, which was a huge surprise. I also bought a couple of shirts for my trip to Chicago. Which I didn't end up wearing. Next will be pants, because I only have a couple of older ones that I can wear now. Yeah, I know, terrible problem to have.
The exercise part is a mix of highs and lows. After a few weeks, I got the ActiveLink, which is a device you wear and every so often you plug it in to the USB port on a computer and it tells the WeightWatchers online tracking system how many extra points you get. I found out that I am so sedentary during the day that my 40-50 minute walks in the morning didn't even get me to baseline on the ActiveLink. I have to add at least 30 minutes at lunch and a stroll in the evening to get to the 4-point target.
The high part is that agility is way more points than I expected. I mean, each run is only a minute or less, and there are a maximum of 5 runs a day. Of course, there's also warming him up and walking him out afterwards, plus I usually work 2 or 3 classes. But still. My first agility trial was 7 points for one day. The last one, I was a leash-runner for half of the first (really large) class on Saturday and ended up walking fast back and forth for over an hour. That day I got 11 points.
On the other hand, the exercise video I got doesn't seem to earn me as many points as walking for the same amount of time, even though I feel like I am working a LOT harder. Consequently, I don't use it as much as I probably should.
Anyway, I actually started this post to talk about what I did this morning. It is supposed to be hellish hot later today, so I decided to walk Bravo when I got up. Russ has been running every other day, and so he decided to go along. We went down to Lake Normandale just as the sun was coming up, so it was really pretty. Russ took off running and after a few minutes, I started to run as well. I've done that a little over the past few weeks. This time I ran most of the way down one side of the lake. Then I had to stop and walk for a while. I picked up running again for maybe a third of the next side, then walked the final part. It's supposed to be a total of 1.9 miles, and I'm guessing I ran at least 3/4 of a mile. Which is much more than I would have run if Russ hadn't been ahead of me.
The thing that annoys me is that Russ only started running again about 5 weeks ago. Before that, he had been going on our evening ambles for maybe a month. He now runs every other day - started with half a mile and built up. Today, though, he ran nearly the whole lake path, while I was exhausted after less than half running, the rest walking. And to add insult to injury, he came home to do pushups and lift weights, while I collapsed in a chair.
Guess it's good that now I have someone to push me.
I'm at that point where I need to buy some new clothes, but I still need to lose more weight, so hesitant to buy too much. The first thing I bought? New bras. Went to Nordstrom's last weekend and used a fitter, who helped me pick out very nice, very expensive bras. Fortunately I found out you are only supposed to wash them every 4-5 times you wear them (unless you sweat heavily), because I only bought 3. Band size was 4 inches smaller! But cups were 2 sizes larger, which was a huge surprise. I also bought a couple of shirts for my trip to Chicago. Which I didn't end up wearing. Next will be pants, because I only have a couple of older ones that I can wear now. Yeah, I know, terrible problem to have.
The exercise part is a mix of highs and lows. After a few weeks, I got the ActiveLink, which is a device you wear and every so often you plug it in to the USB port on a computer and it tells the WeightWatchers online tracking system how many extra points you get. I found out that I am so sedentary during the day that my 40-50 minute walks in the morning didn't even get me to baseline on the ActiveLink. I have to add at least 30 minutes at lunch and a stroll in the evening to get to the 4-point target.
The high part is that agility is way more points than I expected. I mean, each run is only a minute or less, and there are a maximum of 5 runs a day. Of course, there's also warming him up and walking him out afterwards, plus I usually work 2 or 3 classes. But still. My first agility trial was 7 points for one day. The last one, I was a leash-runner for half of the first (really large) class on Saturday and ended up walking fast back and forth for over an hour. That day I got 11 points.
On the other hand, the exercise video I got doesn't seem to earn me as many points as walking for the same amount of time, even though I feel like I am working a LOT harder. Consequently, I don't use it as much as I probably should.
Anyway, I actually started this post to talk about what I did this morning. It is supposed to be hellish hot later today, so I decided to walk Bravo when I got up. Russ has been running every other day, and so he decided to go along. We went down to Lake Normandale just as the sun was coming up, so it was really pretty. Russ took off running and after a few minutes, I started to run as well. I've done that a little over the past few weeks. This time I ran most of the way down one side of the lake. Then I had to stop and walk for a while. I picked up running again for maybe a third of the next side, then walked the final part. It's supposed to be a total of 1.9 miles, and I'm guessing I ran at least 3/4 of a mile. Which is much more than I would have run if Russ hadn't been ahead of me.
The thing that annoys me is that Russ only started running again about 5 weeks ago. Before that, he had been going on our evening ambles for maybe a month. He now runs every other day - started with half a mile and built up. Today, though, he ran nearly the whole lake path, while I was exhausted after less than half running, the rest walking. And to add insult to injury, he came home to do pushups and lift weights, while I collapsed in a chair.
Guess it's good that now I have someone to push me.
Friday, July 5, 2013
Challenge 2 - low light
Last week's Challenge was low light photos. I decided to try a photo by candlelight. I need more work on this...
Russ and Bravo
*This was supposed to have been published on 6-23. Oops.
Playing with my new camera
I'm exploring the world of DSLRs with my new Pentax K-30. Having lots of fun!
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| Self-protrait with shiny blue camera. It now has a black & white floral strap with soft pink lining. |
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| First outing was to Bush Lake at dusk. |
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| The iris at the lake were gorgeous. |
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| I missed the deer that was about 20 feet from me at the lake, but saw several the next day at Richardson. This was the first - a young buck |
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| Then the doe. |
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| finally the fawn hiding in the grass |
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| On the Fourth, I visited the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden. But didn't see too many wildflowers. |
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| Next stop was the Sculpture Garden where they had another installation of Artist-Designed Mini-Golf |
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| And of course, the iconic Spoonbridge and Cherry. |
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Live like a dog
Live simply.
Love generously.
Care deeply.
Speak kindly.
Remember, if a dog was the teacher you would learn things like:
When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.
Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure Ecstasy.
Take naps.
Stretch before rising.
Run, romp, and play daily.
Love generously.
Care deeply.
Speak kindly.
Remember, if a dog was the teacher you would learn things like:
When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.
Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure Ecstasy.
Take naps.
Stretch before rising.
Run, romp, and play daily.
Thrive on attention and
let people touch you.
Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.
On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.
When you’re happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
Be loyal.
Never pretend to be something you’re not.
If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.
ENJOY EVERY MOMENT OF EVERY DAY!
Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.
On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.
When you’re happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
Be loyal.
Never pretend to be something you’re not.
If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.
ENJOY EVERY MOMENT OF EVERY DAY!
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