Mark Twain

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do ...
Explore. Dream. Discover." Mark Twain

Wednesday, April 7, 2021

A "Don’t Fence Me In” Update

The habit of writing seems to be lost on me of late!  The thought of writing pops up at regular intervals but the action seems absent.  Lately, if there is a structure to anything in my life - I seem to resist it!  Regardless, I am here now, so update time.

COVID-19 VACCINATION update

I am within a week of being fully vaccinated - meaning that I will soon pass the 2 week waiting period after the 2nd shot.  I won’t be barred from seeing my family anymore (specifically my dearest grand daughter.)  FREEDOM!  But I have been fortunate in this pandemic.  No illness and little to no reaction to either shot.   But I will continue mask wearing and social distancing until we are closer to herd immunity ... because that is the sensible, logical and the “adult” thing to do - until we ALL can be free!!

DIET update 

I spent time thinking about my diet - not for weight loss but mostly for health.  I finally settled on a mostly Mediterranean diet.   But it isn’t really ‘mediterranean' if you aren’t being semi compliant!  In the end I settled on listening to my body’s needs! And what is needs are smaller meals, more veggies, less meat, lower carbs and no 'no-nos!’ That is as much limitation as I am willing to do.

EXERCISE update

I miss walking.   Walking "my way."  And during this pandemic,  any kind of walking has been scarce.  I refuse to blame the pandemic. Nothing has kept me from going outside and walking during these months.  Nothing but myself and one small deterrent.

What is most satisfying about walking is the solitary time, walking by myself.  Setting my own pace, viewing the scenery, thinking about things - mind drifting, no socialization or expectations.  But my husband also needs to walk and due to is disabiity, he cannot walk alone.  Oh I know there are blind folks who can do absolutely everything independently, but those kind of people are very rare when you lose vision as a senior.  That means when I walk (with him) I am "on duty."  I have to be on alert the whole time to make sure the obsticals are announced or avoided, always checking our pace since he has exactly one speed - fast - but he doesn’t have the heart and lung capacity for that speed any more.  His mind drifts, he forgets to “listen” to the messages his cane gives him.   I know it sounds (and feels) a little selfish to want to have some alone time on my walks.  But the only fix for this is to find time for 2 walks a day.  Working on this.

CLEANING OUT update

I joined a blog event last fall called Making Space. But as I suspected, I found the discipline of blogging about it hard.  I enjoy reading the posts of others, but I am happy to clean out on my own when the spirit moves me.  

My current decluttering has focused on exercise tapes and cook books.  

I get absolutely NO satisfaction out of exercising indoors.  If I am forced to exercise inside, I prefer to have a list of exercises that I can do while I watch some sort of distracting TV.  And yet I had a shelf and a half of exercise disks - each one I thought would be “the one” that helped me get in shape indoors. I am down to about 5 disks.  Big declutter there.

I hardly ever crack open a cookbook.  Same logic - I buy the book thinking this is “the one” that will help me enjoy cooking.  I will make wonderful tasty things from that book. Never! When I want a new recipe, I just hop on my computer and print something out.  I have several loose leaf binders of recipes I have pulled from the internet that I use when menu building.  I have donated a great number of cookbooks, and now I am in the process of cannibalizing a few - pulling out any recipes I made that were good, but never repeated because ... well ... hardly ever crack open a cookbook.

Funny, I never thought I would get rid of exercise tapes and favorite cookbooks.  And here I doing both.

KNITTING AND CROCHETING update

Scarf - my only knitting project right now. Finger weight yarn and it will take a long time finish because ...



... I started an Annie’s Club project called Plumberry Sampler Afghan in crochet.  


This is an indoor shot of the first 6 rows of this Afghan.  The colors are hard to capture correctly.


This is an outdoor shot and the colors are closer to normal.  
And even with natural light, the colors don’t show as true.

I am enjoying working on this - it is a great crochet learning project.  And the yarn they use for this is wonderful stuff.  Acrylic, but hard to tell without the label.


Queen blanket, also crochet, is well underway.  This is the most satisfying project I am working on at present.  No pictures to share yet but the finished object should look something like this.

My colors will be somewhat different, but you get the idea.  It really is a fun and easy project.


And then there is this little lady, Aja.

Yes, that is a smug and self-satisfied face.  Don’t those eyes say it all.  

She has made large strides with my husband.  And he has put great effort into it.  Several times a day, he goes into the bedroom to “visit” Aja.  He sits on the bed and she jumps up and rubs and rubs and rubs - and he pets - and usually it ends peacefully.  She gets herself over stimulated ending in a hiss or a swipe, but that is more rare now.  Oh, she does come out of the bedroom and wanders around the condo regularly, but she is most comfortable where her two beds are and food and litter - and she has safety behind the gate at the bedroom door (it has a cat door in it - and no one but her can pass through.) So she can come out any time she wants.





Here she is behind my recliner.  And if you look close, Milo is in the recliner.  Guess she felt the coast was clear if he was asleep.

Next month it will be the first anniversary of her adoption.  She has come sooo far since that skinny frightened and distrustful cat came to live with us.  Change is hard for her.  Not everyone could give her the time and distance she needed to adjust.  I kind of feel like she was just meant to be with us.  We love her so much and she has shown in her own way that those feelings are returned.

I think I hit all the topics.  Until next time ... 





11 comments:

Cynthia said...

I love the colors in the Afghan you are working on. So pretty. Aja is also pretty, or I guess I should say handsome. You have been so patient with him and letting him show you the way he wants to be loved. I’m glad he is reciprocating more and more.

Michelle said...

I don't know if you hit all the topics, but it sure is a nice update on lots of things! Have you made a date with dear Eskarina and her parents? Surely we will get another blogpost out of that!?!

Terra said...

Sweet story about your cat joining your family. I take two walks a day with my dog, he loves the walks so he inspires me to go. I like the colors you are using in your projects, the brown/rust/tans.

happyone said...

Nice to read an update.
I can't imagine not going out walking. I've done it for so LONG that it has become part of me!

Leigh said...

Has it really been a year since Aja became a part of your home? Time flies! Maybe she's plotting to ambush Milo. And in that one photo, that shoe looks like it might be in trouble!

I love the colors and textures in your afghan. You look like a pro!

Hopefully, this summer everyone can get closer to a more normal lifestyle.

Marie Smith said...

It is good to read your blog again. So many positive things going on with you, especially your vaccine status. How wonderful when you can finally see your grandchild again.

Love your knitting and crocheting work. Show us the finished products?

Take some time for a walk by yourself. It is so important to give yourself that time to recharge.

Puss sure has settled in nicely. Kindness wins again.

Take care.

Leftycrafter said...

The Annie's afghan has such pretty colors. And the different stitches really give it great texture. I have the Queen Mosaic pattern printed but have yet to start it. I even have all the yarn for it. But it is already in the 90s here so toonhot for a blanket on my lap. Aja has come a long way. She is such a pretty cat. I can't belive it has been a year since her adoption. I am so glad you let her be her. You truly seem to understand felines. That is a special talent.

Sandy said...

Had to laugh when you said the scarf you're knitting will take time, well because. I'm sitting here nodding even as I type that. I'm with ya big time on that. Congrats on decluttering. I did well a few years back, but...somehow I never finished and there's need again. I did more walking during the pandemic, as it was one of the few things I could do. Even bought a really warm coat to walk through the winter and I did pretty well, but then have had a few weeks of nothing, so trying again to get back into the routine. Something I've really gotten into that helps me walk or did, and hopefully will again....audio books. Like you, I like to walk alone. I don't think it's selfish you say that. Is it possible for you to walk to a park or specific destination with hubby, where he could sit on a bench and relax or listen to a book, while you do some walking on your own and then collect him up for the walk home? At our parks you can do laps, so you could walk longer or your pace and then pick him up and head back home. I've not crocheted in awhile...the afghan you're enjoying looks difficult to me with the color changes.

Sandy said...

I just typed a rather long comment, but yikes...looks like it didn't publish. Argh. I was laughing when I read your knit scarf will take time, well because. Working on one like that myself so relate. Haven't crocheted anything in awhile, but the project you say is fun and easy looks difficult to me in the picture. I find listening to audio books helps me want to get out and walk because I want to continue the book. Is it possible for you to walk with hubby to a destination (park perhaps), where he could sit on a bench and listen to a book while you walk through or around the park on your own, then collect him back up to return to home?

M.K. said...

Hello, Elaine! As usual, I'm way behind in blog reading. But this was such a delight to read, and catch up! We as so alike. I'm also a few days past my 2nd Covid vaccine. So very thankful. I hope to go up to visit with my elderly mother in a couple of weeks, whom I haven't seen in well over a year.
I also need to declutter, but don't much. I also ought to exercise, and get back to my solitary enjoyable walks in the morning ... but I haven't. I also loathe utterly any indoor exercise. Ugh. I do not have a cute adopted kitty like you do, but I have a grumpy Pomeranian. That is nearly the same thing :)

M.K. said...

Oh - meant to say: there is absolutely nothing wrong with your needing, and wanting, and finding, some alone time each day. We all need that even if we aren't caregivers, and caregivers need it more than the rest of us. Please do try to carve out some time, and enjoy it fully knowing you are taking better care of your hubby by taking better care of yourself :)