For me!

I began this blog for me.  If someone out there reads it, that is Ok.  I wanted a place to record my thoughts and feelings.  What about a diary?  I have one or two of those, but when I write here I can share if the moods strikes me.

Now I have embarked on something else for me.  Change!  A change of the way I eat, the way I move and a change of attitude.

For the past 8 days I have been grain-free.  Not just gluten-free, but free of all grains.  I have been edging toward this for the past couple of years, but now things have changed so that I want to make this a way of life.  I may not be grain-free for the rest of my life, but that could happen.  For now,  I have promised myself 90 days. 

Several months ago I developed Frozen Shoulder Syndrome.  I have lost range of motion in my left arm and when I push past those limits I am in pain.  Sometimes pain and then there is PAIN! 

I go to a chiropractor, but I have had little or no relief there.  I have taken countless supplements (I don't do drugs - perscription, over the counter or recreational.), but again little relief.  I have pored over countless web pages looking for information to help, done yoga specific to this syndrome, gotten massages, stretched...hmm, there may be other things I have tried, but none come to mind right now.

So, here comes the change!  I began a cardio kickboxing class a couple of weeks ago.  I go twice weekly and I am having a blast!  I am overweight, out of shape and have a bum arm, but I am there jabbing, kicking and doing everything the rest of the class is doing, although sometimes with slight modifications.  At times there are even things we do in class that make my shoulder warm.  I equate that with more movement!  Time will tell!

Now for the big change, no more grains!  I have limited my intake of grains for the past two years because I don't think they are a healthy addition to any diet and certainly not mine.  Grains add weight and I want to weigh less, not more!  Grains can lead to tooth decay and as I get older I am more intent on keeping all my parts! 

Last Saturday was Day One.  Since I have been reducing grains in my diet it was not much of stretch to figure out what to eat and be happy with what was on my plate.  Here is a compilation of what I ate in the past 8 days.

Eggs (every morning!), salad with homemade dressing, lean meat - chicken, beef, pork, fish, scads of veggies, some potatoes, nuts, cheese, coffee, tea, water (of course!) and a small amount of fruit. 

I tried to get inventive with the ingredients allowed and I was happy with the results.  Pot roast on Sunday gave me a couple more dinners and some lean meat to top a couple of salads.  The fruit is mostly as a dessert.  The veggies were mostly raw, but some were cooked to add variety.  I want to be successful, so I really put my thinking cap on!

Here is what I have noticed in these 8 short days.  Almost no digestion, my runny nose is not so runny, my feet are softer and less ithcy and best of all my joints are not as achy.  Good thing too, since doing cardio kickboxing with achy joints saw me hobbling a bit and generally being in more pain than I like.  I know, I know...no pain, no gain.  Well, that saying seems to be losing ground and I am making gains and having less pain!

I am making these changes because I want more out of life.  More dancing, more moving, more walking and hiking.  Just MORE!

Now it is time to get to the kitchen to make a fritatta for dinner.  Shhh, don't tell my hubby, but he is participating in the change, too.  He just doesn't know that he is! ;)

The Hopeful Romantic

Enemy vanquished!

DEAR HOOMAN CARETAKERS,

I SPID TEH ENEMY.  I HAS SEEN THEM IN DA BAFROOM BEFORE, BUT THEY WUZ ALWAYS RESTRAIND.  ITZ CLEVR DISGUIZE DID NOT FOOL ME 4 WAN MINIT.  THAR WUZ LOTZ OV DIS INVADIN CREACHUR SO I HAD 2 BE SURE 2 ATTACK TEH LEADR.  IT WUZ NOT EASY.  THEY APPEARD 2 ALL BE TEH SAME, BUT I KNEW.  THEY WUZ STILL IN THEIR VEHICLE WHEN I CAME UPON THEM.  TEH SHINY BUBBLE KEPT THEM CLUSTERD CLOSE TOGETHR, BUT THEY WUZ NO MATCH 4 ME.  I POUNCD, BIT AN KICKD TEH LEADR INTO SUBMISHUN.  IT WUZ NOT EASY, BUT IM SURE THEY R NO LONGR THREAT.

U R WELCOM.
SIGND,
TIPPY TEH (KITTEH) KAT


The above is the note I found with these photographs.

I am glad for the note because I was sure to be confused by the state of the roll of toilet tissue without an explanation. 

Is this enemy living in your bathroom?  If so, please keep it "restraind" or your cat may be called into service protecting you!

The Hopeful Romantic

Things I Am Thankful For

So, I wrote the title of this post first and began a list.  Yup, I am thankful for most of the things we are all thankful for...family, friends, my health, etc.

All true, but pretty boring.

I am not here to entertain anyone, except maybe myself!  I just like to get my thoughts out into the world. 

So, on this Thanksgiving morning, I am thankful for so much.  Including anyone who stumbles upon my blog and finds a moment of worthwhile distraction.

Happy Thanksgiving!

In celebration of Fall!

Yes, I know it is not Fall if you are checking your calendar, but the cooling weather is promising all the things that Fall bring.


Some of the leaves on the trees here are already putting on their decorative colors.  I am looking forward to a coo, but sunny day when they will be most beautiful.  I know that right after that I will be trudging into the yard with my rake and bag to collect said leaves, but the lovely show makes it worthwhile!

Bundling into sweaters and sweatshirts to go outside gets me out the door for a walk quickly!  My dog will be more bouncy after his walks in the cool air and a trip to the Bark Park will see him stretching out and running for all he is worth instead of trotting off to the shade trees.

Soup!  As much as I love gazpacho, a lovely bowl of hot soup cannot be topped!  (Except with cheese, crumbled bacon, green onions, chopped tomatoes...well, you get the point!)

There is so much more to love about Fall, but right now I am going to join my dog in the backyard for a little night air, cool night air, that is!

The Hopeful Romantic

My Brother

This post may not be of the same tone I generally try to live my life by.  We all get down and the best way I know how to deal with hurt is to write.

My brother died last week.  He was too young to pass, but his health just never could catch up to his spirit.  He always made me laugh...always!  He was quick to find the funny in a situation and I have to think very hard to remember him being cross or angry.  It just wasn't in his nature.  He was not perfect, but none of us are.  He was my brother and I loved him.

You will notice that I call him my brother.  Not my step-brother, just my brother. 

It may be just me, but "step" can still carry a negative connotation.  His father and my mother blended our families when I was 7 and he was almost six.  I can't remember ever introducing any of my siblings as anything other than "my sister" or "my brother".  When we were young most of the people in our small town knew how we became family.  Mostly, I didn't want to put any negativity into the situation.  (Guess I was the Hopeful Romantic way back then even!)

Since my brother died, I have heard some people refer to me as "the step-sister".  They may not mean anything by it, but I feel it detracts from the memory of my brother.  And, yes, it hurts my feelings. 

I don't want this to be about me, but I know Phil never said "step".  I was just his sister.

To borrow from the Bard, A brother by any other name would smell as sweet.

The Hopeful Romantic

One Calmer Dog and One Happy Mama!

The list of things my dog, Mack, likes is simple. 

• He likes to eat.  Mack, being like so many dogs, will eat most anything.  Save for broccoli tops and liver, he gobbles it up without nary a second thought.  Raw liver, that is!  That is a story for another time!
• He likes walks.  What dog doesn't?
• He likes car rides.  So many new things to see and smell. 
• He likes going to the Bark Park.  Correction, he LOVES going to the Bark Park.  For him it is a two-fer, it is a car ride and the Bark Park!  Lots of new friends, plenty of room to stretch out and really run and a whole lotta sniffing going on!
• He likes Dr. Sheppard, the veteranarian.  We have trained Mack to not lick people, but try as I might, he covers Dr. Sheppards face with wet kisses every visit.
• He also likes us, and the feeling is mutual!  Ah, puppy love. 

Thankfully, the list of things he does not like is even simpler (read "shorter")

• Going outside in the rain.  He will cross his knees and wait, given the choice.
• Baths.  Lots of rain, all in one place.  This boy does not like to get wet!
• Thunder.  Fireworks.  These two get lumped together.  For Mack the loud noise of either is just more than he can handle.

We have tried acclimating him to loud noises by feeding him with booming noises in the background.  He only seemed more stressed.
We gave him supplements meant to calm him.  We did see some change in his behavior, but not enough for us to not worry about him.

Mack in his "thunder shirt:"

Lately, I have heard about using a thunder shirt.  So last night, just before the fireworks began in earnest in our neighborhood, I found an old tshirt and decided to give it a try.  Couldn't hurt, right? 

My daughters are both very slim, so I dug through what my eldest had not taken with her and voila!  A shirt I was sure she would gladly donate to her boy!

Mack was very helpful in getting the shirt on.  He ducked his head through the opening and allowed me to get his front legs through the arm holes.  I think he thought I had given him a new toy.  He turned in circles and tried to bite at the collar.  He only did this for a moment and then he lay down with a sigh.  The fireworks had just started and before I got the shirt on him he was getting a bit antsy.  But now with the shirt snuggly swaddling him, he calmed right down. 

The fireworks continued for about 3 hours.  Only once or twice did Mack pace briefly and whine.  Other than that he lay peacefully on the floor in front of the couch where my husband and I sat.  Not sure why it worked, but it did!

We did take the shirt off before bedtime.  The fireworks were done by then and I wasn't sure putting him to bed with the shirt was a good idea.  

Today as soon as I heard the first boom of thunder in the last afternoon, I slipped the shirt on and once again it worked its magic.  Now it is my turn to sigh!

The Hopeful Romantic

Mental Block

Some things make me laugh out loud!  Not just lol, but really laugh.  It can be silly video, corny jokes, sitcoms (love, Love, LOVE The Big Bang Theory!)  But what made me laugh just now was none of those.  It was a game I was playing.  You know, the kind where you have a bunch of random letters and you have to make as many words as possible before time runs out?  I had played several rounds and was picking up speed.  Something in my brain kicks into gear when I do something repetively. 

I had guessed all the 3 letter words; they are pretty easy to get quickly.  The longest word in this game is 6 letters long and there only seem to be so many ways to re-arrange the letters into words that qualify in this game.  So I had the 6 letter words done too.  I always seem to struggle with the 4 and 5 letter words.  There are certainly some obscure words in those lengths.  I especially have a block on words that begin with vowels.  Even though I know I have this challenge, they are the words left too often at the end of the round!  I am working on that!

So, like I said...I had all the 3 letter words, all the 6 letter words and even all the 5 letter words!  I was cruising!  I was typing frantically against the diminishing timer and there was just one word left.  I glanced at the timer...10 seconds left!  Think, THINK!  I started typing in words that were not really words and getting the friendly message about how they were not playable.  The timer ran out...Dang!

As soon as the timer expires all words not previously guessed are filled in.  I like this.  It helps me learn new words and reminds me that typing fast is not always the most accurate way to play this game.  Didn't I just a type in a few of those words now taunting me as missed?

Anyway I digress.  The one and only word I did not guess that game was "obey".  Not such a big deal, but it made me laugh.

My husband and I wrote our own wedding vows before our marriage a bit more than 11 years ago.  At one point we were comparing notes and he told me I had left out "obey".  Ha ha, I told him I had not left it out, it just wasn't part of wedding vows in this modern world.  With a silly grin he persisted to insist I insert the word.

Fast forward to the big day.  We are standing with the pastor getting ready to recite our vows.  He mouthed "obey" and I, being the charming and well bred lady I am (ha ha ha!) stuck my tongue out at him.  It was a small chapel and all of those in the audience saw very plainly what had just transpired.  They did not know why I had stuck out my tongue, only that I had.  I am a big fan of silliness and fun.  It just seemed to fit.  You did see the picture of my wedding shoes a post of so ago, right? 

Nowadays whenever my dear sweet and silly husband reminds me I should obey,  I remind him that he was the only one who uttered that word on our wedding day. 

And that is what made me laugh!

The Hopeful Romantic