Yes, I’m still alive.
It was just an over-nighter at the house but we managed to get in a quick afternoon trip to Shenandoah National Park .
Back at the house, we spent the evening playing games and watching old episodes of “Ren and Stimpy” and “Mystery Science Theater 3000”. Seth got Dave and Andy caught up in a high stakes game of Monopoly while Caleb introduced me to the nuances of Pass the Pig.
The next morning Seth wanted to go for a walk down to the pond. In the past I would have insisted that someone else go with him but since he’ll turn 11 next week, I made the faith leap to just let him go by himself. Letting go seems more difficult this time. I’d have let Andy go that far when he was younger than that and I know my range of exploration at age 11 was considerably larger than the 500 yard distance to the pond. For some reason, each generation just seems a little younger and more vulnerable than the last. My next big event in my “quiet” time was that I finally painted my bedroom! Dave was gone on a three day Cursillo retreat so I seized the opportunity to get ‘er done. My plan was to paint half the room each day but once I got going, with Andy’s brawn to move the heavy furnishings, I finished in just one day. My hours in the gym with Lorenzo prodding me along are paying off; my stamina has increased and I had few aches the next day. When Dave came home Sunday evening he began to sneeze – a lot. There has been so much pollen in the air, it was difficult to determine cold or allergy at first. It was a cold and I got it too. So, I spent the next couple of days hunkered down on the couch watching Netflix and dozing. By the weekend I was feeling better. Monday morning,. when it was time to go meet Lorenzo again, I was worried. I felt crappy and began to worry that I wasn’t up for the new intense cardio sessions we’d started. It was too late to cancel, so I decided to drag myself in and see how at least a warm-up would make me feel. I started slowly. My legs felt very heavy. After ten minutes on the elliptical, I grabbed a mat and elastic band to stretch. When Lorenzo came in, I told him I would try my best to get through the session, but had no guarantees. He took me to the treadmill and we got started. With my hands gripped onto the bar for dear life, I walked, trotted and began to jog as Lorenzo worked the controls. He never said how long I would be running but after six minutes, he said, “I think we’ll shoot for ten minutes.” Last week he’d had me running in circles for ten minutes over various obstacle courses of gym steps and ladder ropes so the duration was a length of time I was mentally prepared for. In comparison, jogging on the treadmill was a piece of cake. After the treadmill, Lorenzo led me through the rest of my workout. With a good sweat going, I felt so much better than when I arrived. When I’d completed my workout, he smiled and told me I’d done a good job. It’s amazing what that man can get me to do just to see his smile and hear those words! When I got home I was a dynamo! I cleaned up, went off to meet with a friend, came home, baked a pie, cleaned the kitchen floor and began supper. I never even really sat down to relax until after the dishes were done. Incredible. Yesterday I met with my new doctor for my annual physical. She was over the top with the blood work I’d had done last week. Except for slightly elevated triglycerides and a minor Vitamin D deficiency, I am the poster Nana of good health. So, that is some of what I’ve been up to. Thanks for worrying about me…..