Dawn

I went for my walk at 7 o'clock this morning and walked the entire course--straight up and down the main road and all the loops--two miles.  I am slow and would lose my breath if I weren't stopping to take pictures!  I am pleased with my progress and wonder how long it will be before I try to go further.  

I received Dawn's race report this morning!  She wrote, "The quick facts: 2.4 mile swim in a fjord after jumping off a car ferry; 112 miles of biking involving about 10,000 vertical feet of climbing up to the highest mountain plateau in Europe and then 4 mountain passes; 26.2 miles of running including over 4.5 miles at a 10% grade up Zombie Hill..."  Dawn is 40 years old!  She continues "It took me over 19 hours.  I was on my bike saddle for over 10 hours.  I vomited multiple times and passed and was re-passed by a group of three  begging sheep. Yes, sheep.  Sheep with bells.  And no, the sheep were not a hallucination."  It was a 6 page typewritten report of her performance during the race.  

I am very proud to know her and even prouder to know her as a member of our family.  She was the 212th finisher out of 215.  And ten competitors did not make it to the finish line.

She made it with the help of a good support team.  Dean managed to overcome my resistance to walking and all my children support me.  Chuck, Dean, Cheryl, and Missy.  I have, when younger, 
liked certain athletics--horse back riding and skiing--but fate intervened and I had to give them up.  Now I am trying to walk in the hope that my brain will become stronger.  That is my goal!  The greatest difficulty for me is to walk in all kinds of weather and to not
make excuses because of rain or snow or other kinds of inclement weather.   

Dogs I Have Met

I have just returned from my morning walk.  I covered the two mile regimen and am a bit tired.  Only now is the sun coming out.  It was overcast at 7 o'clock.  

My camera is proving to be a great incentive to walking!  I am not only anxious to take pictures, it gives me the opportunity to stop and catch my breath without appearing to need to do so.  And it has caused me to notice things that I never would have noticed before.

My neighbor, Lisa, drove by on her way to work and stopped to give me some blueberry coffee cake that she had baked.  We chatted for a few minutes.  I told her that Dean, my son, had called the night before to tell me that he and Dawn and my grandchildren, Travis, Charlie and Kady, were planning to come up for the Labor Day week-end.   I am thrilled!  They want to visit all their favorite places--Kimball's Farm, the Bonsai Store, the New Balance store!

My new friend, Linda, was being walked by her dog Scooter and we chatted for a while and I took another picture of Scooter.  She would like to have a copy of the pictures.

As I walked the second half of my walk, the bottom half of Merrimack Meadows, everyone seemed to be asleep!  No one as yet was stirring.  When I had almost completed the distance a woman came out of her house and greeted me.  She was very friendly and I asked her what breed of dog she was walking.  A "Sheet Tsu" she said in an accented voice.  I didn't recognize the accent so I asked her what country she was from.  She answered, "Persia." Her dog's name was Coco (it sounded like Cocoa) and she was very amenable to my photographing her dog.

I have, in a very short time of walking, met Scooter, Curly (Earl Gray), Freddy, Buster and Coco!  That's not bad!

“Petting, scratching, and cuddling a dog could be as soothing to the mind and heart as deep meditation and almost as good for the soul as prayer.”
― Dean Koontz, False Memory

Retrospective on Modesty

When did we, as a society, begin to find pictures of women in their scanty underwear acceptable?  Pictures that reveal women in the tiniest of brassieres and bikini pants!  Pictures that, in my lifetime, were considered to be pornographic?  And when did women start revealing so much of their breasts?  Men used to pay for such pictures.  

Many women, rich or not so rich, dress as if they were porn stars. Traditionally, it was considered provocative in arousing men's sexual desires.  Today is it some perverse statement of "look, but don't touch?"  In an era of women demanding equal rights, are women degrading themselves by flaunting their sexuality?

I wouldn't be so concerned if I didn't have two daughters, eleven granddaughters, and three great granddaughters.  My daughters are working as well as seven of my granddaughters.  They are a working pool of nine women.

When I was growing up and learning about the ways of the world, I was taught that  "modesty" was a virtue.  A highly regarded virtue. Modesty has lessened in value and now "keeping  up with the times" means wearing very revealing clothes.  The picture gets a little bit fuzzy because a woman's age becomes a factor.

How does a woman of 79 give up her cultural conditioning and learn to adopt new ways that contradict her values?  Not in the way she dresses, but in her attitude to others who dress provocatively.     

Moon Over Merrimack Meadows

Honey Badger posted a great video on Facebook that followed a young girl on the Scottish Extreme Triathlon.  It was fascinating to watch and inspired me to go on my walk.  What is the opposite of extreme?  The OED defines it as 1 to the highest degree.  2 highly unusual.  3 very severe or serious.  4 not moderate.  5 furthest from the centre or a given point.  I will have to think about it!

Honey Badger and my son Dean just returned from Norway where Dawn ran the Norseman Extreme Triathlon.  She did not win but she completed it and won a T Shirt!  My son coached her and ran the last 10 miles with her.  It has the reputation of being the most difficult extreme triathlon in the world.

I suppose I could  say that my Walking Project is 1 to the lowest degree. 2 highly usual. 3 very moderate.  It is furthest from the centre or a given point in the opposite direction!  I walked two miles this morning.  I don't have a goal other than increasing my distance and my stamina.  I hope to improve my health and most especially improve my brain!  

Walking this morning was very pleasant.  It was very cool and quieter than usual.  I started at 6:30 a.m. and there was very little traffic since it was Saturday.  Linda was walking Scooter and we chatted for a few minutes.  

It was after 7 o'clock when I reached the second half of the walk and I was surprised to see the moon shining in a clear blue sky!  The sun and the moon were both shining! 

"We are sun and moon, dear friend; we are sea and land.  It is not our purpose to become each other; it is to recognize each other, to learn to see the other and honor him for what he is: each the others opposite and complement."

Herman Hesse, Narcissus and Goldmund 

Meet Freddy!

Meet Freddy!  He is the first dog I met

as I started my walk at 6:45 this morning.  He was very friendly and cooperative at posing for my camera.  His mistress was also very friendly.  I wonder if dogs take on the personality of their owners?

I was very happy because Cheryl (my daughter) rescued me from the discouragement I felt (at losing 2 days photographs).  She recovered the photos I thought I had lost yesterday and led me through how Picasa works.  A feat that isn't easy on a long distance call from Arizona to Massachusetts and considering that I am trying to remember the workings of a former computer with impaired memory! 

I continued walking to the entrance. It is slightly uphill so I look forward to an easier downhill walk on returning.  The loops I take are a mix of up and down hill.  I am wondering if I will see anything to photograph today.  I planned to retake some of the pictures that I think I lost, although Cheryl thinks they may be hiding in an as yet unknown file. 

The birds are singing their songs and I wonder if they have any awareness that their form of communication is so lovely.  It reminds me of a musical play in which most dialogue is sung.  "Oh what a beautiful morning!  Oh what a beautiful day!  I've got a wonderful feeling, everything's going my way!"  (Oklahoma!)

Nothing extraordinary occurs to me so I decide to photograph the flowers that appeal to me.  I have reached my starting point now (my condo) and have walked one mile.  I take a deep breath and pause long enough to take a picture of my open garage which I agreed to rent to the company that is residing the condos.  Then I begin to walk the second half of the complex.  There are three loops on this walk.  There must be some way of drawing on this blog but I don't know how and don't feel like tackling it just yet!  I haven't entirely figured out how to post my pictures!

I am once again impressed by how tall the trees have grown.  And how well they preserved the landscaping when they built this complex.  When I reached Myrna's condo her husband Earl was standing on the porch.  Myrna joined him and I gave her the photographs I had taken of our walk together behind the condos and in front of the river.  She liked the pictures and we chatted for a few minutes.  They are a lovely couple and I am very blessed to have met them.

I completed my walk and have completed my blog and without pictures again because of my lack of computer-ease.  I'll try to sort it out before tomorrow!

The Hills Are Alive

"The hills are alive with the sound of music..." was my first thought when I went walking this morning at 6 o'clock.  It is already growing darker but the trees were filled with birds chirping!  It was a lovely chorus of sound and the surrounding of trees reminded me of "The Sound of Music" and Maria.  I took my camera again and wore my purple Nike's.  It was cool for walking at 6 but it promises to be warmer weather again.  Based on my success yesterday, I decided to try walking the second half of the complex.  I made it except for the last loop!  Very close to two miles!  

The body, which can be very fragile when ill, is amazingly resilient to exercise.  And the fringe benefits of becoming aware of that is a new awareness of your surroundings.  I have been walking for a very short period of time and I am truly surprised by the improvement in my sense of balance.  A friend commented that I was also speaking faster and more fluently!  I still have memory black-outs but they seem to be age appropriate.  They may occur less frequently  if I become more active.  

I only encountered two other walkers today and met one dog named Buster.  He was a small black dog and his name suited him.  On returned to my condo the black and white cat was in my yard.  I attempted to photograph him but you have to snap the shutter fast with a cat! 

Frustration!

The Oxford English Dictionary defines it very well!

1 prevent a plan or action from succeeding.
2 prevent someone from doing or achieving something.
3 make someone feel dissatisfied or unfulfilled. 
frustrating - adjective
frustration - noun

All three definitions are very succinct and describe perfectly how I am feeling.  For two days now I have tried to download photographs on my computer.  Something I have done successfully many times.  But for the last two days I have hit a wrong button and my photographs have been deleted from my camera.  Grrrrrrrr!  I am very unhappy!   Yesterday Cheryl tried to help me and we were on the phone for at least two hours to no avail.

I am feeling unfulfilled because I cannot remember some of the information that I know is in my brain.  I am wondering why God would create us to become senile in old age.  I am feeling stupid and worthless.  My blog is not finished for yesterday (part of my walking regimen) and now I want to be cheery and upbeat and I'm anything but!!  I have adjusted to many changes with good humor and grace but frustration is my waterloo.  I do not handle it, it handles me. 

Increasing My Distance

I didn't get started as early as usual this morning, but I left with my camera around my neck, looking forward to my adventure.  It was a few minutes after 7 o'clock.  And I learned that the experience was very different at 7 than it has been at 6.  I prefer the earlier hour.  There were no other walkers walking their pets!  Probably because they were getting ready for work.  My first encounter was with a cat!  He walked over to check me out but, as usual, he (or she) ignored me and sauntered on his or her way. I am a dog person but I do have one cat friend.  A beautiful long haired white cat who lives with my friend Julie.  

Several cars drove by as I walked along, one of whom was Sue, a friend that I play dominoes with.  She slowed down and stopped for a few minutes and, as she drove off, I realized I had missed a good photo op!  Oh well, I'll catch her another day.

I followed my path walking to the entrance and returning by taking all the loops (five in number).  I took about 20 pictures trying to capture the beauty of our very tall trees.
Just as I was returning to my condo I saw Myrna, another member of the Domino Group, walking up the hill.  I joined her and decided to try the back half.  Her husband, Earl, had driven through all the possible side loops and the main thorough fare in his car and discovered it was 2 miles of walking.  Myrna and I walked down the street to the end and decided to explore the back of the final row of condos, on which she lived, to see the river which is the end of Merrimack Meadows.  It is called the Mighty Merrimack because it provided the power to support all the fabric factories that put Lowell and Lawrence on the map.  It is really very beautiful and we leisurely explored the area.

 

Then we started back towards my condo which is located about half way down the main road.  

It was a great walk!  Tomorrow I will try walking the longer distance 
and  add the loops on to the other half!!  And I will try for 6 o'clock and meet the dogs again!

Blogging Is A Lot Like Walking

Blogging is a lot like walking.  It should be done every day and early in the morning.  I have started a regimen of walking in order to overcome my bout with leukemia.  I have never been a very athletic person.  It doesn't come naturally to me.  And I blog intermittently.  This morning, during my walk, I had the idea that perhaps blogging about my progress might prove to be an impetus to walking.  My two sons were also helpful. Chuck ran a hundred mile race and won on his first try!  He also ran the Boston Marathon twice.  And Dean has run triathlons and ironmans.  So, at the age of 79, I am hoping to train myself!

The first thing that I bought was a pedometer.  My first goal was to walk one mile, the approximate distance of walking to the entrance of Merrimack Meadows and returning, taking all the loops along the way.  Three on the left and two on the right.  It is the distance of one mile.  I am amazed that I can now manage a mile!  I added a "loop" this morning by going past my house.

My pedometer read 74 this morning.  I don't have a clue to what that means!  My pedometer measures distance or calories.  I will be spending time today reading and trying to understand my instruction manual.  I feel certain that knowing how far I've gone will add incentive to walking.

I am walking in black knit trousers and a t-shirt and, on days that are cool, I wear a gray sweatshirt.  I have bought two pairs of athletic shoes, a black, red, and fluorescent green from New Balance, and a pair of silver sneakers by Calvin Klein, from Marshalls.  I also have a pair of New Balance light weight, light gray sneakers, and purple Nike's.  It always helps to look good!

I usually start from my condo at 6 o'clock in the morning.  It is a very pleasant time to walk.  A few cars leave for work at that time and there are always other walkers.  One of the benefits is meeting other people and meeting their dogs!  I frequently meet a woman named Linda, who lives right behind me and who has a small black dog who is very friendly.  Yesterday I met a man who was walking a beautiful brindle colored greyhound and had a very interesting conversation.  His dog was named "Earl Gray" but called Curly because of his tail.  He was adopted from the greyhounds who race at Salem and Earl Gray had been a winner at the track.  He is now eleven years old and his racing days are over.  Today I met the man's wife who was walking Curly this morning.

The birds are still singing in the morning which is very pleasant  and I am making progress.  I am able to walk without my cane and am delighted that my balance is growing stronger.  I am also walking at a faster pace.  I hope that walking will help to improve my memory!  I am enjoying nature, the lovely trees and beautiful flowers and a serenity of spirit.