The weight loss Challenge

     We are nearing the end of week 3 of our Live Healthy Challenge.    I am feeling pretty great.    Both Rick and I are working out pretty regularly and the feeling of being fit and healthy is a good thing.   Rick,  who used to walk as slow as a turtle is hard to keep up with again.    I have muscles.    And I have dropped another 3 pounds.    I haven't measured lately, but I can tell by the way my clothes fit that I have lost inches all over.  I am so happy  to be healthy again.


    I am still just eating healthy foods in proper portions.   I stay away from almost all prepared foods and never eat fast foods,  but I never really did anyway.   Lots of veggies and lots of fruits.   I limit my carbs and the rest is history.   I am happy with this eating plan because I can basically eat anything occasionally,  even my pizza I can't live without.   And I have another reason to kick it up and lose weight.   My son is getting married in June.   I have lost 53 pounds total and if I really concentrate I should be able to lose at least 15 more by then.   Feeling so proud of myself I bought myself the little trinket above.   I love old vintage jewelry and this Weiss brooch was on sale and cheap.   It sparkles like mad.  I am always on the lookout for another for my collection.  Anyone have any they want to part with, LOL.


     So other then working out and taking care of myself not much more is going on.   Trying to survive the winter and dreaming of bike rides.  One thing I plan on tackling this year is riding the dreaded hills.   I hate riding hills on my bike but it would be so much easier to take off from here and go for a ride and then back.  It just is the pits though that going up so many hills at the end of your ride is the only way to do it.   If I could do it at the beginning it would be nicer.   Oh well,  such is life.


     The only health issue that is maybe a problem is I am having some trouble with irregular heart beats and chest pain at times.    Since my asthma has been under control I may have to get checked out once again on that.   I have always had trouble with chest pain off and on so it probably isn't anything to be concerned about but it a little different then it was in the past so can't be too careful.


     Zoey survived another birthday and is due to see her vet soon.   I have counted like 16 fatty tumors on her now.    Except for those she seems in pretty good health.  And Chester recovered from a 3 day illness that had me worried.   So things are going well.   Spring is right around the corner.  I am counting off the days.

Senior Scam, fraud

   I am at the age where the senior scams are starting to show up pretty regularly.   Beings I am a cynical if it sounds to good to be true it probably is type of person and beings I was in business for years and have almost every type of fraud attempted on my shop I haven't fallen for them.   And I know anyone who visits my site are way to smart to fall for them either.   But I thought it would be great to start posting these when they come.   It just makes me angry when trusting seniors,  or anyone for the matter, gets robbed by these bottom feeders.   So anyway this is the latest we got today.   Have any of you received this?   If you get any scam things post them.  Lets shut these creeps down.

 

New U. S. Seatbelt Law - March 1, 2011

This would save some lives.....

This becomes effective

March 1, 2011
The National Highway Safety Council   
has done extensive testing on a newly designed seat belt.

 
Results show accidents can be reduced by as much as 95% when the belt is properly installed.Correct installation is illustrated  below.......  


Please pass on to family and friends.
THIS MAY HELP SAVE A LIFE!  

This can really save lives and lower blood pressure by 40% 

I KNOW....YOU SMILED.

YEAH, YOU SMILED AGAIN!!!! 

The Bird Cage

There once was a man named George Thomas, pastor in a small New England town. One Easter Sunday morning he came to the Church carrying a rusty, bent, old bird cage, and set it by the pulpit.

Eyebrows were raised and, as if in response, Pastor Thomas began to speak....

"I was walking through town yesterday when I saw a young boy coming toward me swinging this bird cage. On the bottom of the cage were three little wild birds, shivering with cold and fright.

I stopped the lad and asked, "What do you have there, son?"

"Just some old birds," came the reply.

"What are you going to do with them?" I asked.

"Take 'em home and have fun with 'em," he answered. "I'm gonna tease 'em and pull out their feathers to make 'em fight. I'm gonna have a real good time.."

"But you'll get tired of those birds sooner or later. What will you do then?"

"Oh, I got some cats," said the little boy. "They like birds. I'll take 'em to them."

The pastor was silent for a moment. "How much do you want for those birds, son?"

"Huh?? !!! Why, you don't want them birds, mister. They're just plain old field birds. They don't sing. They ain't even pretty!"

"How much?" the pastor asked again.
 

The boy sized up the pastor as if he were crazy and said, "$10?"
 
The pastor reached in his pocket and took out a ten dollar bill. He placed it in the boy's hand. In a flash, the boy was gone. The pastor picked up the cage and gently carried it to the end of the alley where there was a tree and a grassy spot. Setting the cage down, he opened the
door, and by softly tapping the bars persuaded the birds out, setting them free. Well, that explained the empty bird cage on the pulpit, and then the pastor began to tell this story:

One day Satan and Jesus were having a conversation. Satan had just come from the Garden of Eden, and he was gloating and boasting. "Yes, sir, I just caught a world full of people down there. Set me a trap, used bait I knew they couldn't resist. Got 'em all!"

"What are you going to do with them?" Jesus asked.
  

Satan replied, "Oh, I'm gonna have fun! I'm gonna teach them how to marry and divorce each
other, how to hate and abuse each other, how to drink and smoke and curse. I'm gonna teach them how to invent guns and bombs and kill each other. I'm really gonna have fun!"
 

"And what will you do when you are done with them?" Jesus asked.
 

"Oh, I'll kill 'em," Satan glared proudly.

"How much do you want for them?" Jesus asked.

"Oh, you don't want those people. They ain't no good. Why, you'll take them and they'll just hate you. They'll spit on you, curse you and kill you. You don't want those people!!"

"How much? He asked again.

Satan looked at Jesus and sneered, "All your blood, tears and your life."

Jesus said, "DONE!" Then He paid the price.

The pastor picked up the cage and walked from the pulpit.

THE SHOEBOX

THE SHOEBOX

A man and woman had been married for more than 60 years.
They had shared everything. They had talked about everything.
They had kept no secrets from each other except that the little
Old woman had a shoe box in the top of her closet that she had
Cautioned her husband never to open or ask her about.



For all of these years, he had never thought about the box, but
One day the little old woman got very sick and the doctor said
She would not recover.

In trying to sort out their affairs, the little old man took
Down the shoe box and took it to his wife's bedside.
She agreed that it was time that he should know what was
In the box. When he opened it, he found two crocheted dolls
And a stack of money totaling $95,000.

He asked her about the contents.

'When we were to be married,' she said, ' my grandmother told me
The secret of a happy marriage was to never argue. She told me that
If I ever got angry with you, I should just keep quiet and crochet a doll.'

The little old man was so moved; he had to fight back tears. Only two
Precious dolls were in the box. She had only been angry with him two
Times in all those years of living and loving. He almost burst with
Happiness.

'Honey,' he said, 'that explains the doll, but what about all of this money?
Where did it come from?'

'Oh,' she said, 'that's the money I made from selling the dolls.' 

Aging

    Over the years as a nurse I have taken care of many many patients.   On the 28th of this month it will be 31 years.   I was so young when I started.   Just a baby.   And I would look at my older patients and try to think what they looked like when they were younger.   I watched with a detached interest the effects of aging on peoples posture,  their skin,  bones, and hair.  Many times I listened while they told me mentally some days they would pop out of bed feeling the same as they did when young only to be stopped cold by the reality of the mirror.  Sheesh,  who is that old coot.?  When the heck did that happen?

    Fast forward 31 years and it's me glancing in the mirror and being taken aback. Oh my.   My flirting days are over, LOL.   If I didn't have a mirror in the house and didn't have any aches and pains many days, heck most days I would feel no different then I did as a young nurse just starting out.   Well, a lot more cynical and a lot less gullible then I was back then.  But still loving the job I decided to do most days.  And like the young nurse I was then I find myself,  with a somewhat detached resignation, watching the aging process on my body.  

      I don't understand the tatoo fad.   If I had young unflawed un-sundamaged skin I would never deliberately mar it.   My poor old surgery ravaged body would kill for some of that tight non saggy skin.   If I could go back I would never go in the sun without skin screen,  I would buy the best lotions,  I would not have stretched it out repeatedly with yo yo dieting.   But I must admit I had some fine fun damaging it in the past.   Maybe it was worth it in retrospect after all.

   Lately my legs are developing road maps.   This is new since I started working out so much.  The ole body objects with physical evidence these days when I put it through a pounding.   And putting on eye shadow is a challenge.  The skin wrinkles up as I put the brush over my lid. Brother.  I find myself wearing make up seldom.  

    And my hair.   Never a thick mane worthy of tossing wildly to drive men mad it still had it's redeeming qualities that I appreciated.   But over the years it has gotten darker and darker and thin.  Oh yeah, thin.  I would rather go gray then go bald.  I said that so many times so what is happening now?  I am getting gray also.  Be careful what you ask for.

    In my youth by now when I worked out at the gym as religiously as I do now I would have had some impressive results.   But nothing really seems to work on the bat wings under my  arms or the abs of flab.  My legs however look pretty darn good,  road maps and all.

     Actually though for my age I look pretty good.  No one usually believes me when I tell them my age and compared to many of my patients I am not showing the wear I should be considering the wear and tear I put my body through.   And even though I get a pang of sorrow at times about things not changeable I am for the most part content with where I am at this point in my live.   If I could change anything it would be the speed of time.   Because even the winters don't seem very long anymore.  It is like someone has sped up my clock.   But I am determined to enjoy every minute of it, wrinkles and all.

Let the Challenge begin

           I started our the Live Healthy America Challenge at work with 6 of my co-workers on the 20th.    I had gained back 5 pounds and needed something to get motivated again because for me it's so hard in the winter.   I just want to stay inside and eat comfort food.    So this is just what the doctor ordered.   So far I have lost 1.2 pounds.  Not bad.   And shortly we are going to the gym.   My knee is being tricky today so I am going to be careful on the treadmill and leg lifts but I am determined to exercise every day.


    Let's see,  whats new.    Today is my youngest son's birthday.   He has some weird uncanny ability to age while I stay the same young age I have always been.  Oh yeah.   But the way the gray is finally showing up in my hair this year I am slowly getting convinced.   Time marches on.


      It is the time of year where I look at Rick and ask the same old question.   Why the #$@% are we still in Iowa this winter.   It's cold and snowy and cold and snowy and cold cold cold.   We must be nuts to stay here year after year.   The only good thing is we don't live in International Falls, Minnesota where it was -25.   Here at least we are +2.   A heat wave by comparison.   And North Dakota with their 25 feet of snow,  Yikes!   I am yearning for Spring and the bike trails.  And flowers.

 

And butterflies

 

And bike trails.

     Well,  it is the middle of January and it will be here soon enough.     


     I heard about Detroit closing a ton of their schools.   They only have a 25% graduation rate as it is.  Why are they closing them?   To pay for their pension plans.   That is so much more important then teaching the future of our country how to do the most basic things like read and spell and do math.   This is what your tax dollars go for in that state?  And did you know 95% of union dues go to Democratic programs or campaigns.  No wonder enrollment in unions is at a all time low.   The unions of the old days are long gone.


      Lets see,  what else.   I have been re markedly healthy and well this winter.   Nary a cold or flu symptom at all.   I think it is all this healthy eating and my daily green monster.   I also added in some extra vit D since I never get to see the sun on my nights I work.    I am a happy camper about that.  You take your health for granted until it is gone.   Course I still have my aches and pains but without them I might question if I was alive.  But even that is just normal aches and pain and not anything going out on me.  


    I am behind getting to everyone's blogs but will make up for it this weekend since I am off work.   Ta all and take care.