Getting back in shape for the holidays.

Last month's participation in Walk For The Cause was pretty great. Yeah, it took me 90 minutes to walk the 5K, but I am ramping up my game. On Thanksgiving I am walking in another one, but this time I want to do it in less than an hour. So walk more daily and be very hydrated when I walk. Yeah. I can do this. Then I can go home to chow on some great T-Day food and fall into a food coma. Just a couple of friends over. No family. No obligation to watch football, no kids screaming, no need for using the good china when paper plates are available. Still, I miss family. I could stand for a little football and kid screaming now and again.
By my reckoning, the calories burned while walking will be equivalent to the ones ingested at lunch. It is a nice trade off, I think. Part of my goals in life are to get healthier, do more things that I want to do and to not feel guilty or obligated. I think this pretty much fulfills those goals. 

Wait...why did I come in the room?

Have you ever walked into a room, fully knowing that there is a reason for it, and then totally forget what that reason was? I used to chuckle at my mom. Now it is me and it isn't so funny. I used to have a kick ass memory. I could remember the capitals of at least 75% of the world capitols. I could correctly repeat the US capitols in alphabetical order. I knew random, stupid trivia. Now I can't recall why I walked into the room. I go back where I think I started on my determined walk and start over in hopes that I can remember. No luck. But I know what a monotreme is. I know the square root of pi.

At the end of the day one of the partners asked me to do something. I was in the middle of typing something up, so only half way listened. It used to be that I would have a perfect memory of it. 5 minutes later I had totally forgotten about it until someone asked a question about it and then I only had a vague recollection of what he said. I had to go to him and say that I had been busy and just wanted to "confirm" what he said. I blame it on my lack of coffee.I would have had a full cup, or two but I put it to the side and forgot about it.

I have been fighting aging. I haven't had my eyes lifted or my lips plumped. I have just had this inner struggle for the last few years where in my mind's eye I am young, but then reality slaps me with things like gray hair, menopause, and a knee replacement. It is kind of hard to deny it after that. So, I decided to embrace it. I am going to be glad that I am 47 because I know people who didn't make it to 40. I am going to stop whining (mostly). I will look forward to my maturing. I am still going to cover the gray hair. I'm just not ready for that yet. Maybe after I have forgiven Mother Nature for those freakish hairs that keep coming out of my chin... then maybe I will accept the gray hair.

So this is me. I work hard and I play hard. I love my friends, family and furry kids. I am going to rock my age.

 I bought my dream car, a VW Beetle. It isn't the old Bug like my parents had, it is the new hip one. I like the way I feel  when I drive it. Is is weird to feel better about yourself because you like your car? Maybe. Superficial? Maybe. But guess what. I don't care!

 I can still hang with my bestie of more than 30 years, and we can still dress up so that we feel like a million bucks and go to concerts and rock out. Of course, this time we took a toddler (it was family friendly). It was a great girls' night out with a second generation loving it with us. I NEVER would have imagined doing that 30 years ago!

 Goat love. I love goats, grew up with goats, and some day will have them again. Any particular reason? Yeah, because they make me happy. I think if something makes you happy then by all means, include it in your life!

 I will never be too old to dance. I hadn't danced it in years, but here I am getting my Michael Jackson on, doing the Thriller dance with a bunch of strangers. I couldn't remember half of it, probably was very laughable, but I DON'T CARE! I had a great time!

Who would have thought that a little over a year after a knee replacement I would walk a 5K? And guess what? I am walking in another one in 2 weeks. Yep! I may not be fast, but my ass is out there chugging along. It makes me feel good to do it and I have the added bonus of doing it with friends.








This is me. I love my life. I am learning to live it to the fullest. I want to be one of those old farts who is out working in their gardens at 80 and tending goats at 90.