Sunday Rambling 11/25/07

From here in rainy Memphis and beyond:

First things first: Congratulations to Trainer Rachel, who placed first among women in the Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot here in Memphis. Way to go, Rachel!

Speaking of trainers, Fitness Together – Germantown is hosting two open house nights this week. Stop by on Wednesday (11/28/07) or Thursday (11/29/07) to meet the trainers and the new manager. As I understand it, they’ll be doing mini-fitness assessments and, perhaps more importantly, there will be snacks! Oh, and I’ll be there, too, sharing tales of my journey so far. You’ll find all of us (and the snacks) at 7655 Farmington Blvd, Germantown (directly behind Autozone).


Shanna Thompson at LifeScript.com published this great little workout when you need something on the easy side, as I do just now


Memphis blogger Paul Ryburn had this interesting idea for downtown Memphis. I only wonder why we couldn’t expand it to points east of downtown as well.

I’ve been following an interesting story around the ‘net today. It started when I found this article on 3 Fat Chicks. I’ve never heard of Kimkins or her diet, but it’s looking like a lot of unhappy people are now unhappier. I find myself conflicted between feeling sympathy for the desperate people who bought into this woman’s ridiculous scheme and feeling something closer to anger toward them.


And something on the silly side, I had my blog “rated” and here’s the result:

I don't know what it means, but I’m sure it’s about as scientific as Kimkin’s diet. :)

Happy Thanksgiving

Catchy title, huh? I'm all about creativity. :)

I had some deadspace at work today, and it occurred to me that a post highlighting the things for which I'm thankful would be appropriate. Because I have a whole lot to be thankful for.

I have a family who loves me, who has always loved me, who will always love me. No matter what. I have never breathed a single breath without having that and without knowing I have it. They love me without restraint or restrictions. My family is a blessing.

I have friends who love me, who care about my health, who care about their health, who generously share their wisdom and guidance and successes with me. I love them back and strive every day to match their successes, in effort if not in achievement. My friends are blessings, each and every one.

I have a warm home, cluttered and funky with age (not a gracious age, just age) that somehow suits me well. It has trees that guide cool breezes my way in summer and rain orange and gold and russet in late autumn winds. My home is a blessing.

I have a job that provides all my material needs and more, a job that alternately aggravates and invigorates--but never bores--me. I work with people I like. My job allows me to occasionally put my feet up and ponder life, even when my feet look ridiculous wrapped up like some Goth ballerina.

But that's another good thing about my job: it provides health benefits that allow me to take care of what hurts me. My job is a blessing.

There are so very many blessings in my life, far too many to list here. Quite often I forget about one or more (or all) of them, and yet, they're still with me, waiting to comfort me when I need it or to shame me when I realize how rich my life is.

But this time of year I remember these blessings and give thanks for them, and I wish for all people to find the blessings in their lives, too.

Happy Thanksgiving to the people I love and to anyone just passing through.

The Woes of the Developing Athlete

Alt. Title: The Toes of the Developing Athlete

For years I've had horrible toe pain caused, I thought, by ugly corns on both pinkie toes and lately by corns between my toes. You can imagine how much the addition of extensive walking and workouts helped the problem. On my long Sunday walks, I can hardly feel my toes at all by the time I'm finished. The process of getting to numbness is excruciating.

But, no more! I saw a podiatrist a few weeks ago and he diagnosed bone spurs on both pinkie toes. He recommended a procedure I can't pronounce, but basically it involved making a small incision on both pinkie toes (5th toes in podiatrist-speak) and shaving off the bone spurs. Ooh! Ouch! The whole idea of it made my stomach churn, but the idea of pain-free walks was really appealing. Throw in the concept of corn-free toes that might look semi-attractive in sandals, and my decision was made. On last Thursday, I went to my podiatrist's office and had my toe bones shaved. Ooh! Ouch!

The past two days have not been fun. I'm supposed to stay off my feet as much as possible, and I have to wear goofy black sandals thingies. They may protect my feet, but they're killing my legs. (Apparently there are muscles in my legs Ashley and Rachel haven't found yet. But let's let that be our little secret.) Vicodin helps during the roughest times, but I don't like the groggy aftermath. Today, I've managed with Tylenol, and I'm hoping to continue that.

When the podiatrist suggested the surgery, my first question was, "How long before I can work out?" (Which goes to show the difference six months and 56 pounds can make!) Dr. K. says it will probably be three weeks before I feel like doing anything in the way of exercise. That's a little scary. I've stocked up on fresh fruits and low-cal snacks and so far there haven't been any food melt-downs, but I'm a little nervous about it. I'll have to come up with some distractions.

That's all for now. If anything exciting happens, let me know. I'll be sitting here with my feet up.