As I stepped from the shower, I could hear them chatting animatedly. These two kind men who grace my life. I have no idea what they were discussing, but it was fun to be privy to their tone of voice. Dad had gone to a Family Home Evening organized for seniors at my church. He was in high spirits, all night long. His body doesn't seem to ache so much, when he feels good.
JE and I went running tonight, ten miles. That was a first. In reality, we went a bit further. Each time I stopped to stretch, walk or wait to cross the street, JE would pause to odometer/speedometer/calorimeter/chronometer. We had completed our seven mile loop, and were heading west on the trail. At mile eight, I was ready to be finished. But, when things are broken down into manageable sizes, it's tough to argue against it. We knew we had a mile and a half out, then the same distance back. So, when we got to mile eight, and only had half a mile of that leg, it was worth it to just keep keeping on and finish that leg. And then the return... But I had already run an mile and. half, and if that that was all that was left, I could do that. Except when we arrived at the trailhead and still had just under half mile to go. It took JE asking me if I was really going to quit with only .38ths of a mile left to complete our goal.
I did it. I finished. I am nowhere near comfortable with it, but I did it! In less than two hours.
Afterward, JE treated me to Chipotle. Getting in and out of the car was painful. Chipotle now serves brown rice, and not just white rice! Awesome
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
Plan for the Week
It is more difficult to write these days, and I'm not sure what shifted. Things feel so much more internal than external. And yet, as when I put forth the energy to run or swim or cycle, I am rewarded with the ability to see more clearly, be more vibrant in living, accept my life and see the beauty in it.
Writing is important for me, but publishing it, is becoming less so. And yet, one drives the other.
Last week I ordered a pair of pants, the same size I wore before I was married. They came last week. They are a bit tight, but by worldly standards they fit fairly well. This no sugar, no fried, whole grain thing is kind of awesome for that.
Wednesday to celebrate finishing his project, JE took me out for dinner and we tried what we thought was somewhere new. Several years ago, we went to a little place called 101 Noodle company in La Hambra on the recommendation of a foodie show on KCRW. They have these amazing beef sandwich rolls, unlike any beef sandwich I'd ever tried. The meat is dark and salty and there are lots of herbs and garlic. The whole thing is rolled into a Chinese pancake and cut into 6 big chunks. Amazing! Any time we were in the area, we dropped by for one of these rolls. This is also where I tried chicken feet for the first time (they are fine, except for the large talons...) Well, we now have a 101 noodle company within 10 miles of our home! We could bike there!
Loads to do this week and next. Work at home: list some of my projects on Etsy. I need to finish JE's suit, get a book done for my sisters (a mom photo album), order Nuni and Sassathorne books for JE's family, make a Christmas cd, write my annual newsletter (or not--no offense friends, but sometimes I get so many Christmas letters I can't read them all until I take them down to put them away. And who would really want to know about my year who doesn't already check in here anyway?), send out cards and cd's, and just plain cards, and get my groove on in my running. I also have a beautiful piece of black lace and a length of oyster colored silk I'd like to magic into a lovely gown to wear to my nephew's wedding in Utah this Christmas. I wonder if I'll have time. Where is my fairy godmother?
Friend BC recommended taking an ibuprofen after running to cut the inflammation. Friday, after we ran, I did a series of double dip walking lunges and added a triangle pose followed by a warrior two pose, then finished the lunge, really focussing on opening my hips and stretching my hamstrings, calves and quads. When I got home, I tried the ibuprofen trick and applied heat (probably should have been ice) to my trouble hip. No pain, at all. Awesome!
Plan for the week:
Monday: run 10 miles with JE after work
Dinner: turkey something... Probably salad
Dad goes to FHE for seniors!
Tuesday: swim with dad. Shoot for a mile
Dinner: sloppy joes (I have a terrible feeling beef will be the next thing to take out of my diet)
class
Wednesday: run, hill repeats 45 minutes
Dinner: vegetarian chili and corn bread
Thursday: cycle go for a nice ride somewhere pretty
Dinner: grilled cheese and soup
Laguna Beach Christmas fair, Creches from around the world with Kim and the kids
Friday: run, short and sweet and pretty, about four miles
Dinner: JE requested pork loin with baked apples, sweet potatoes, and salad/greens
Lisa arrives
Saturday: dry pac canning of wheat, choir at Segerstrom hall in the Arvo, and a fun run with JE at night. To the beach with dad if there is time.
dinner: out!
Writing is important for me, but publishing it, is becoming less so. And yet, one drives the other.
Last week I ordered a pair of pants, the same size I wore before I was married. They came last week. They are a bit tight, but by worldly standards they fit fairly well. This no sugar, no fried, whole grain thing is kind of awesome for that.
Wednesday to celebrate finishing his project, JE took me out for dinner and we tried what we thought was somewhere new. Several years ago, we went to a little place called 101 Noodle company in La Hambra on the recommendation of a foodie show on KCRW. They have these amazing beef sandwich rolls, unlike any beef sandwich I'd ever tried. The meat is dark and salty and there are lots of herbs and garlic. The whole thing is rolled into a Chinese pancake and cut into 6 big chunks. Amazing! Any time we were in the area, we dropped by for one of these rolls. This is also where I tried chicken feet for the first time (they are fine, except for the large talons...) Well, we now have a 101 noodle company within 10 miles of our home! We could bike there!
Loads to do this week and next. Work at home: list some of my projects on Etsy. I need to finish JE's suit, get a book done for my sisters (a mom photo album), order Nuni and Sassathorne books for JE's family, make a Christmas cd, write my annual newsletter (or not--no offense friends, but sometimes I get so many Christmas letters I can't read them all until I take them down to put them away. And who would really want to know about my year who doesn't already check in here anyway?), send out cards and cd's, and just plain cards, and get my groove on in my running. I also have a beautiful piece of black lace and a length of oyster colored silk I'd like to magic into a lovely gown to wear to my nephew's wedding in Utah this Christmas. I wonder if I'll have time. Where is my fairy godmother?
Friend BC recommended taking an ibuprofen after running to cut the inflammation. Friday, after we ran, I did a series of double dip walking lunges and added a triangle pose followed by a warrior two pose, then finished the lunge, really focussing on opening my hips and stretching my hamstrings, calves and quads. When I got home, I tried the ibuprofen trick and applied heat (probably should have been ice) to my trouble hip. No pain, at all. Awesome!
Plan for the week:
Monday: run 10 miles with JE after work
Dinner: turkey something... Probably salad
Dad goes to FHE for seniors!
Tuesday: swim with dad. Shoot for a mile
Dinner: sloppy joes (I have a terrible feeling beef will be the next thing to take out of my diet)
class
Wednesday: run, hill repeats 45 minutes
Dinner: vegetarian chili and corn bread
Thursday: cycle go for a nice ride somewhere pretty
Dinner: grilled cheese and soup
Laguna Beach Christmas fair, Creches from around the world with Kim and the kids
Friday: run, short and sweet and pretty, about four miles
Dinner: JE requested pork loin with baked apples, sweet potatoes, and salad/greens
Lisa arrives
Saturday: dry pac canning of wheat, choir at Segerstrom hall in the Arvo, and a fun run with JE at night. To the beach with dad if there is time.
dinner: out!
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Leftovers
Yesterday was Thanksgiving, here in the States. We celebrated with my Gram at her retirement community. The meal was typical, turkey with stuffing, candied yams, mashed potatoes and gravy, Brussels sprouts and some form of cranberry something. All followed with your choice of pumpkin, pecan or mincemeat pie. The company was extraordinary. There are few topics my Gram cannot intelligently converse. At ninety-two, she is still learning her art of watercolor, and told us about a painting class she recently attended. It make me happy to know her in my adulthood, and I can't help but think that if she and I were peers, we would have been cohorts mischief.
I recently told my dad about a story Gram shared with me. She attended art school in Boston during the Depression. She and her rebel friends were called into the dean's office for smoking corncob pipe at one of the public fountains. Dad said he had never heard about any of this. Not really something you tell your kids, no. But your grandkids? Heck yes!
Today I singlehandedly made a complete turkey dinner for three. I'm good. I'm really good. All my prep time was about two hours, scattered here and there. I even brined the bird and made my own stock for the gravy.
The food was really good, and even reduced fat and sugar free. Some tricks I picked up in my prep:
Don't mash the potatoes. Serve them whole, boiled, with the gravy you'd be serving with them anyway. No salt, cream or butter- we did not miss it.
Yams: pre bake and peel them. I squeezed an orange over them and melted a tablespoon ( or two) of butter in a saucepan. I added chopped pecans, toasted unsweetened coconut and a couple minced dates. That mixture went on top of the yams while they reheated. Best candied yams I have ever eaten.
Stuffing: I added fresh chestnuts this year and a handful of dried cranberries to my traditional stuffing. It was amazing what a difference that addition made. I also used less than half the butter of my usual recipe.
Turkey: it brined for an hour in two cups of kosher salt, two cups of white wine, and about a gallon of water. Then I dried it and basted with butter. The gravy from the dripping turned out really well.
Brussels: I treated them the way I treat my collard and chard: sauté onion, bacon, and garlic. Add balsamic and stock, bring it to a boil and add the sprouts. Cook until tender.
Pumpkin pie: sprinkle 1 tsp unflavored gelatin over 2 tablespoons water and microwave for 30 seconds. Whip one package low fat cream cheese with half a cup of Stevia in the raw, one teaspoon vanilla, and 3/4 cup pureed pumpkin. While beaters are still blending, add the gelatin, all at once. Fold in whipped cream (from 1 cup whipping cream, whipped). Pipe into pre baked mini pie-shells. Refrigerate for a few hours before serving. I took these down to Gram's as a sugar free option for dessert. They need to sit overnight, so the Stevia can mellow a bit. I also made pecan tarts using date syrup and coconut sugar, but I cannot vouch that they were really glycemically sound, but they were damn good.
So much for no-moving movie day. While the turkey roasted, we all went shopping and picked up a large area rug for the now movie room.
Thanksgiving bellies are stressful. So much rich food and nowhere for it to go. JE and I waited a few hours and went for a 10k run. My time per mile is down half a minute per mile. Partly because he took time-outs when I walked--less than half a mile. Awesome. We each burned over a thousand calories. Nice.
I recently told my dad about a story Gram shared with me. She attended art school in Boston during the Depression. She and her rebel friends were called into the dean's office for smoking corncob pipe at one of the public fountains. Dad said he had never heard about any of this. Not really something you tell your kids, no. But your grandkids? Heck yes!
Today I singlehandedly made a complete turkey dinner for three. I'm good. I'm really good. All my prep time was about two hours, scattered here and there. I even brined the bird and made my own stock for the gravy.
The food was really good, and even reduced fat and sugar free. Some tricks I picked up in my prep:
Don't mash the potatoes. Serve them whole, boiled, with the gravy you'd be serving with them anyway. No salt, cream or butter- we did not miss it.
Yams: pre bake and peel them. I squeezed an orange over them and melted a tablespoon ( or two) of butter in a saucepan. I added chopped pecans, toasted unsweetened coconut and a couple minced dates. That mixture went on top of the yams while they reheated. Best candied yams I have ever eaten.
Stuffing: I added fresh chestnuts this year and a handful of dried cranberries to my traditional stuffing. It was amazing what a difference that addition made. I also used less than half the butter of my usual recipe.
Turkey: it brined for an hour in two cups of kosher salt, two cups of white wine, and about a gallon of water. Then I dried it and basted with butter. The gravy from the dripping turned out really well.
Brussels: I treated them the way I treat my collard and chard: sauté onion, bacon, and garlic. Add balsamic and stock, bring it to a boil and add the sprouts. Cook until tender.
Pumpkin pie: sprinkle 1 tsp unflavored gelatin over 2 tablespoons water and microwave for 30 seconds. Whip one package low fat cream cheese with half a cup of Stevia in the raw, one teaspoon vanilla, and 3/4 cup pureed pumpkin. While beaters are still blending, add the gelatin, all at once. Fold in whipped cream (from 1 cup whipping cream, whipped). Pipe into pre baked mini pie-shells. Refrigerate for a few hours before serving. I took these down to Gram's as a sugar free option for dessert. They need to sit overnight, so the Stevia can mellow a bit. I also made pecan tarts using date syrup and coconut sugar, but I cannot vouch that they were really glycemically sound, but they were damn good.
So much for no-moving movie day. While the turkey roasted, we all went shopping and picked up a large area rug for the now movie room.
Thanksgiving bellies are stressful. So much rich food and nowhere for it to go. JE and I waited a few hours and went for a 10k run. My time per mile is down half a minute per mile. Partly because he took time-outs when I walked--less than half a mile. Awesome. We each burned over a thousand calories. Nice.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Groggy this morning, and barely aware. JE left while I was still snoozing. Sleep and sleep and a melancholy heart.
Nasty little virus took up residence in my nose, but finally gave way after I flooded it with elderberry tincture and sleep. Feeling better and like I could really be on the mend.
Tonight, I introduced dad to a board game called, The Farming Game. He loved it. We drink a lot of herbal tea around these parts, lately. It's pleasant with him here, it makes thing more real. Delial stage gave way...
It's after one in the morning and JE is still working. They moved his deadline up by a day. He might be home at a normal hour on Wednesday. Strange st see him in the daylight, these days.
Nasty little virus took up residence in my nose, but finally gave way after I flooded it with elderberry tincture and sleep. Feeling better and like I could really be on the mend.
Tonight, I introduced dad to a board game called, The Farming Game. He loved it. We drink a lot of herbal tea around these parts, lately. It's pleasant with him here, it makes thing more real. Delial stage gave way...
It's after one in the morning and JE is still working. They moved his deadline up by a day. He might be home at a normal hour on Wednesday. Strange st see him in the daylight, these days.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Plan for the week
Nights have suddenly grown cold enough that the cat wants to sleep under the covers in the morning. He knows better than to wake me up during the night to beg his way under the duvet. Lately, I've been waking with Moncha, our twenty pound cat, curled in a snug ball at my feet. This still surprises me; how many times have inadvertently kicked him off the bed while he slept. Be careful, kitty...
JE is on his final count down. Three more days, one big push. In honesty, it has been a good thing that JE has been working so much lately. Dad likes to watch JE work and offers advice at each turn. If JE weren't the patient, kind man that he is... Tonight, while JE was changing the taillight on our car, dad was standing in the garage offering all sorts of advice. Finally, I rounded dad up the stairs and gave him the assignment of making us all tea. He forgot his assignment by the time he was at the top, but JE was back inside within five minutes, task complete. He just needed a bit of quiet. I'm not sure how this whole thing is going to shake down once I have a husband back in the house. This Thanksgiving weekend should be interesting.
In preparation, I've reclaimed part of our storage area in the tomb,the basementy part of the condo which sits behind the garage. It's an unfinished area, with floor joists for the ceiling, plumbing pipes though out, and ten feet of subfloor which runs into a dirt wall. I've never been so excited to have this space, but with a bit of work, some serious dejunking, a good rug and an air purifier, the giant beanbag chair will have a home again! And JE will have a little place to claim as his own again.
I'm also working on getting rid of The Great Pile in the garage. Dad has been parking out back and using the back door in our bedroom to get to his car. Saturday morning, JE was getting ready for work, I was sleeping, when dad walked into our bedroom without knocking. Understandably, he was trying to get to his car, but not really ok. So the removal of the crap in the garage just got expedited. Stairs, or no stairs; bad hip or no hip; our backdoor just became off limits.
I'm excited for this week. Thanksgiving day, JE and I will start out with a big run. I hope. I'm fighting a tiny little cold, which keeps trying to sneak into my lungs. My hope is to be done with this nasty thing before Wednesday.
Monday: plan food for week and shop. Finish organizing garage, and tomb. Little run, four miles or so.
Dinner: Thai curry
Tuesday: bike ride if it isnt raining. Work on suit for class.
Dinner: veggie soup and walnut bread with cheese
Wednesday: swim a mile. prep low GI pie to take to Gram's
Dinner: chipotle
Thursday: run a lengthy run, eat a lot of food and be so very grateful.
Friday: watch movies and eat yummy, healthyish snacks and leftovers. Bike if we feel like it. Swimming is also a possibility. Whatever we like for the next couple of days.
Dinner: leftovers
Saturday: enjoy the day. Set up the Christmas tree.
JE is on his final count down. Three more days, one big push. In honesty, it has been a good thing that JE has been working so much lately. Dad likes to watch JE work and offers advice at each turn. If JE weren't the patient, kind man that he is... Tonight, while JE was changing the taillight on our car, dad was standing in the garage offering all sorts of advice. Finally, I rounded dad up the stairs and gave him the assignment of making us all tea. He forgot his assignment by the time he was at the top, but JE was back inside within five minutes, task complete. He just needed a bit of quiet. I'm not sure how this whole thing is going to shake down once I have a husband back in the house. This Thanksgiving weekend should be interesting.
In preparation, I've reclaimed part of our storage area in the tomb,the basementy part of the condo which sits behind the garage. It's an unfinished area, with floor joists for the ceiling, plumbing pipes though out, and ten feet of subfloor which runs into a dirt wall. I've never been so excited to have this space, but with a bit of work, some serious dejunking, a good rug and an air purifier, the giant beanbag chair will have a home again! And JE will have a little place to claim as his own again.
I'm also working on getting rid of The Great Pile in the garage. Dad has been parking out back and using the back door in our bedroom to get to his car. Saturday morning, JE was getting ready for work, I was sleeping, when dad walked into our bedroom without knocking. Understandably, he was trying to get to his car, but not really ok. So the removal of the crap in the garage just got expedited. Stairs, or no stairs; bad hip or no hip; our backdoor just became off limits.
I'm excited for this week. Thanksgiving day, JE and I will start out with a big run. I hope. I'm fighting a tiny little cold, which keeps trying to sneak into my lungs. My hope is to be done with this nasty thing before Wednesday.
Monday: plan food for week and shop. Finish organizing garage, and tomb. Little run, four miles or so.
Dinner: Thai curry
Tuesday: bike ride if it isnt raining. Work on suit for class.
Dinner: veggie soup and walnut bread with cheese
Wednesday: swim a mile. prep low GI pie to take to Gram's
Dinner: chipotle
Thursday: run a lengthy run, eat a lot of food and be so very grateful.
Friday: watch movies and eat yummy, healthyish snacks and leftovers. Bike if we feel like it. Swimming is also a possibility. Whatever we like for the next couple of days.
Dinner: leftovers
Saturday: enjoy the day. Set up the Christmas tree.
Friday, November 11, 2011
Dreams
Each time I wondered if I could do this in such a short time period, it stopped me mid-stride. Less than six months. Part of this is planning, part of it weighs in heavily on my conscious of doing things wholly and well. Is six months enough to make this a comfortable part of my being? To allow this to be more than a crash course? It took a year to earn this four miles, and to suddenly and wondrously lunge forward into my now comfortable seven mile run. But twenty-six point two? Careful planning is required to achieve this dream.
I've started to run hills, in an attempt to pick up my speed. Yesterday, JE woke early with me and we ran up and around the hills in our neighborhood. We passed a trash truck, and realized we hadn't set the garbage cans on the curb. We raced up the hill with a new found urgency with the truck making it's way up somewhere behind us. When we crested the hill and started down, we ran hard, leaping the speed bumps on along the way. We could hear the truck close behind, and getting closer. We ran big, trying to keep him from passing us. As we rounded the corner to our front door, and hauled the trash cans out, the truck passed our place. It was not our truck. Our truck came five minutes later. We stood at our entry, breathing hard and laughing. JE told me that I can really haul ass, when I want too...
My tulle skirts complete, I was able to leave work early today. All this rain that we have been promised over the next couple days is taking it's sweet time to get here. It was warm and sunny, with clouds that herded like sheep across the sky. Perfect for a mid arvo run. I added a hill to my six and a Half miler, and ran though a lemon grove and a field of sage, scented heaven.
About a mile from my goal, I stopped and watched those clouds for a few minutes (when was the last time I did that?), and calculated. If I add three and two thirds miles each month... But that thought is what kept halting me in my run today. Could I run some of the twenty-odd miler routes I have been cycling over the past couple years? Do I want to? How bad do I want to achieve this crazy dream?
I've started to run hills, in an attempt to pick up my speed. Yesterday, JE woke early with me and we ran up and around the hills in our neighborhood. We passed a trash truck, and realized we hadn't set the garbage cans on the curb. We raced up the hill with a new found urgency with the truck making it's way up somewhere behind us. When we crested the hill and started down, we ran hard, leaping the speed bumps on along the way. We could hear the truck close behind, and getting closer. We ran big, trying to keep him from passing us. As we rounded the corner to our front door, and hauled the trash cans out, the truck passed our place. It was not our truck. Our truck came five minutes later. We stood at our entry, breathing hard and laughing. JE told me that I can really haul ass, when I want too...
My tulle skirts complete, I was able to leave work early today. All this rain that we have been promised over the next couple days is taking it's sweet time to get here. It was warm and sunny, with clouds that herded like sheep across the sky. Perfect for a mid arvo run. I added a hill to my six and a Half miler, and ran though a lemon grove and a field of sage, scented heaven.
About a mile from my goal, I stopped and watched those clouds for a few minutes (when was the last time I did that?), and calculated. If I add three and two thirds miles each month... But that thought is what kept halting me in my run today. Could I run some of the twenty-odd miler routes I have been cycling over the past couple years? Do I want to? How bad do I want to achieve this crazy dream?
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Warm ups
Running through the trails of Irvine at night with my sweet JE is one of my favorite things to do these days. Six and a half miles later, and I'm feeling so good. Tired and tight, but good. The Great Park Balloon shown its orangy self, like a great big harvest moon with a flashing red beacon attached at the top.
It is a strange thing to me, that four miles is a warm up for me. My peak run happens after four miles. I feel lithe and strong after a long warmup. How like my whole life...
It is a strange thing to me, that four miles is a warm up for me. My peak run happens after four miles. I feel lithe and strong after a long warmup. How like my whole life...
Friday, November 4, 2011
Mile markers
I'm not quite sure when, during my race in May, I stopped freaking out and just started swimming. But I remember lifting my head out of the water to see those big yellow buoys so close. Rounding the second buoy, I remember thinking that I was more than half way done with my swim. There were two more legs of the race, equivalent to a couple hours, and I intended to enjoy the experience.
Some things are not so easy to see the immediate direction, nor the mile marks. Progress is slow, but the journey can be enjoyable. My circumstances have changed drastically in the past month (I can not believe it is one month tomorrow since dad came to stay). My freakout session is over and I find that the journey is enjoyable (though I'm still finding it a challenge to keep my temper when I see dad running around my house in his underwear, or worse... Especially since I have had ro reliquish my right to do the selfsame thing--and in my own house! But some boundaries will keep us all happy.)
Mile markers for my life all seem to involve getting my father into some sort of fitness and social level. Weird. Is this how moms feel? Like they give up most of themselves, as a sacrifice for the betterment of someone else? Strange that it's my father. In reality, things have tempered around here. Dad's blood sugar is now in the normal range, nearly always and he just weighed in at 298 (as opposed to 315 when he got here). What we eat is how I have always thought would be a happy healthy way to eat: homemade bread with tons of seeds and cracked grains, fresh produce galore, lean proteins, no sugar nor fried foods, most meals at home at the table together. My exercise routine is engrained in me, my body doesn't function well without the expenditure of energy, and I need those endorphins to stabilize me. Socially, I finally reached out, and guess what? Friends were there, reaching back. Tuesday and Wednesday, I had lunch with friends I'd not seen in ages, so fun and good for the soul! Work is good--sixteen remakes of the same exact costume, ballet skirts with extra layers sewn in. I'd say ick, but I'm kind of enjoying it. My Christmas "shopping" is in progress (I usually only make gifts, and this year finds a couple of my gifts well under way--as opposed to my usual procrastinated state of frenzy).
It wasn't a long run this morning, in the predawn hours, and the rain began during my last 100 yards. I did one lap around the neighborhood, then scared the cat at the backdoor as I opened the door to snug my JE, who was still warm in bed. Time with him is scarce and has become more important than anything else. He took off early from work, and took me and dad out to Korean tofu soup (soondubu). This is now one of dad's favorite meals--this from a man who, until one month ago never tried kimchi nor ordered anything but fried rice at any Asian restaurant.
Some things are not so easy to see the immediate direction, nor the mile marks. Progress is slow, but the journey can be enjoyable. My circumstances have changed drastically in the past month (I can not believe it is one month tomorrow since dad came to stay). My freakout session is over and I find that the journey is enjoyable (though I'm still finding it a challenge to keep my temper when I see dad running around my house in his underwear, or worse... Especially since I have had ro reliquish my right to do the selfsame thing--and in my own house! But some boundaries will keep us all happy.)
Mile markers for my life all seem to involve getting my father into some sort of fitness and social level. Weird. Is this how moms feel? Like they give up most of themselves, as a sacrifice for the betterment of someone else? Strange that it's my father. In reality, things have tempered around here. Dad's blood sugar is now in the normal range, nearly always and he just weighed in at 298 (as opposed to 315 when he got here). What we eat is how I have always thought would be a happy healthy way to eat: homemade bread with tons of seeds and cracked grains, fresh produce galore, lean proteins, no sugar nor fried foods, most meals at home at the table together. My exercise routine is engrained in me, my body doesn't function well without the expenditure of energy, and I need those endorphins to stabilize me. Socially, I finally reached out, and guess what? Friends were there, reaching back. Tuesday and Wednesday, I had lunch with friends I'd not seen in ages, so fun and good for the soul! Work is good--sixteen remakes of the same exact costume, ballet skirts with extra layers sewn in. I'd say ick, but I'm kind of enjoying it. My Christmas "shopping" is in progress (I usually only make gifts, and this year finds a couple of my gifts well under way--as opposed to my usual procrastinated state of frenzy).
It wasn't a long run this morning, in the predawn hours, and the rain began during my last 100 yards. I did one lap around the neighborhood, then scared the cat at the backdoor as I opened the door to snug my JE, who was still warm in bed. Time with him is scarce and has become more important than anything else. He took off early from work, and took me and dad out to Korean tofu soup (soondubu). This is now one of dad's favorite meals--this from a man who, until one month ago never tried kimchi nor ordered anything but fried rice at any Asian restaurant.
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