Year Motto

June is right around the corner and that's when I change up my daily mantra or motto or shorthand for the intention of the year -- birthday month to birthday month. It hits nicely around the halfway mark of the year and it's much less rushed than a January change. 

It's not always easy to figure out and it usually comes down to the last minute.

It needs to have metaphoric meaning (and sometimes also literal meaning), framed in the positive (i.e. do something, not don't do something), can be done on good days or not good days (works for pushing and for resting) and has to resonate with a direction that I want to explore. It also can't be too focused on actual tasks (like a goal) -- it's more of a reminder of a state of mind. A shorthand that I filter decisions through.

I write it in a journal most days as the first of 10 goals I want keep top of mind even though it's not a traditional goal.

Past years' -- I think there are a couple I'm forgetting:

    Something for FS today

    Keep going

    Choose the bigger life (repeated this one because I like it so much)

    Say yes

    Happiness project

    Walk until the day becomes interesting

I keep notes in my phone when inspiration hits because I will absolutely forget.

My phone notes:

    Do it anyway 

    (even if I'm afraid or bored or buffering - FS will be proud)

    Embrace the quirky

    (show up as myself -- live with color, not just beige)

    Truth is always the right choice

    (be authentic and what is meant for me will find me)

    Quirky curious kind

    (how to live each day)

    Trust yourself

    (I KNOW what is next, what is true)

    

    "Will this make the boat go faster?"

    (will this decision take me closer to who I want to be or further away)

I like all of these and they fit my criteria EXCEPT for resonating as THE ONE for this year.

I have one more day until June, but I think I have the winner -- coming in just under the deadline is ... {drumroll}

       "The beauty is in the walking."

Why I like it:  

I want reminder to not just learn things, but actually DO things

Walking is peace

Movement is important with aging

Slowing down to walking means I see more -- enjoy the present moment

A little like saying yes

A little like keep going

A little like choose the bigger life

Ta-Da (!!) I think this fits all the criteria. 

Tomorrow begins my birthday month and all the fun that goes with it. Mostly things I do for myself this month -- a quiet, private celebration of another year. I'll keep you posted on the secret birthday fun.

Hanging on ...

Hanging on by a thread -- I think.

The hike was the hardest hike I've ever done. Technical (not scary though), 6 massive technical climbs (and the subsequent technical steep downhills). I made the cutoff by 1 minute and 10 seconds. Everything was worn to a nub. There was a point I wondered if I could finish -- it was that hard for me. My legs aren't in the same shape after 2+ years of a back injury.

What I'll do differently to make it more manageable: Camel Back so I can drink regularly. I could only drink when I stopped and that wasn't enough. I need to have well rested legs before the hike -- no hard hike the night before, or even the day before. And the hike will move to an earlier morning slot so the heat should be better (although it wasn't horrible yesterday).

I felt okay this morning. Up a lot with Monti last night -- he had a bad cough and then a seizure this morning. Helping him while he was seizing (and I hadn't done my back stretches yet), my back spasmed. I have no idea how it will progress this morning. I have a hair appointment and I'm going to call for a vet appointment -- neither great for my back. Pretty please let it settle down.

I withdrew from the hike tomorrow -- as soon as I finished yesterday's hike. I played with fire doing 2 hard hikes in a row and that's enough. It's a balance to get stronger while respecting my limits. 

It's frustrating because I can't tell if these are hard limits and I should work within the parameter and be happy -- or can I get stronger and push past? I want to start working with a trainer, but finding someone who understands my body is tough. I've only had one trainer in all the years who individualized programs -- really individualized. Not just starting slow with same routines, but building routines based on me. 

That's a quick update. Hope you're having a good week. Later gators.

Hike #1 and #2

Hike #1 -- done and dusted and much harder with a new hike leader. She paced faster and a different route with more elevation. I'm tired and a little sore.

Hike #2 a little over 12 hours later. Eeek. I'm worried I bit off more than I can chew. Turns out this is a self-paced, timed hike. Geez. I have no idea where I'm going and where to turn around. It's hard terrain (lots of big rocks to step up, down and around) and lots of elevation. Good news is it's the same hike leader as last night and 3 of us are doing both. As long as I don't get injured, I can muscle through the tired without a problem and probably stick with someone to find the route. If I get disqualified and don't get credit for the hike, oh well. I can try again.

The hike with friends would've been canceled -- from this perspective, I made a good decision. Maybe, hopefully -- we'll see if my old body holds up.

I'm mentally treating it as though it's one hike with a 12 hours rest in the middle. Neither hike is long -- just fast and hard. The total mileage is 12.5 miles for both. I think it's the recovery from the fall that's causing my concern -- a bit too much, too soon.

Oh -- almost forgot. I saved the group (and especially the hiker in front of me) from a copperhead bite. It was across the trail. The hike leader missed it as she walked by and the snake moved to strike the next hiker. I was behind her, shouted "snake" and yelled for her to keep going forward, fast. Stopped the rest of the group. No exaggeration that I saved her from a strike. She was really grateful and we were all shaken. It took a minute for the snake to move off the trail. Remembering this right now, I can add SNAKE to my list of worries today lol. 'Tiss the snake season. But very happy with how I reacted -- clear, concise and no "panic" until after it was over.

Am I being a little brave or a little stupid?? That is the question I'm asking myself as I push into harder hikes. 

Fingers crossed. I'll report back tomorrow ... later gators.

A Little Crafting

Yesterday was a good day. 

I finished getting the house together and spent time working on ME. I make a list every month for things I want to do -- usually something social or fun or goal minded. Sometimes I do the entire list, and sometimes not. It's not a high pressure list, more a reminder to take time for me. Kind of "what fun can I add to this month." I wrote up June's list -- birthday month so it's extra good. 

I finished the quote jar for the LFL in Asheville. Cut a page from an old book, laminated and clipped to the jar. I'd like to redo the handwriting, but it's too late and I don't want to waste laminator paper.

I also set up a the flower drying kit my DIL gave me for Christmas. I tried a few and I'll see how it turns out. It takes a couple of days. Flat flowers are the key and most of the ones I have aren't flat. Using the little flowers from hydrangeas seems to be a popular choice -- hopefully those work. I clipped some other ones and they fell apart. YouTube suggested taking individual pedals and then assembling them on the craft. I'll play around with it. I hope it works.

I used a bunch of leftovers to make a chopped salad. I'm into those all of a sudden. Chop everything very small and mix. It's so flavorful and looks like nothing special. Now I'll repeat this until I'm sick of it.

I'm hiking tonight and then first thing tomorrow -- experimenting for 2 in a row. The hike tonight is easy enough, but tomorrow will be hard. Fingers crossed.

So much good, and I woke up in a rotten mood. I have no idea why and I'll try to turn it around this morning. I'm spending time in the garden to tame the crazy tomato plants and plant some new seeds -- that usually makes me happy. Always could be hormones -- I haven't had a cycle in 2 months. Could this be the end?!?!? 

Have a good day. It's cool and crisp this morning after the storms -- good time to be in the garden. Later gators.

The Comfort of Monday

Ahhhh ... Monday is here. 

Massive morning storms -- went into the basement because the wind was so bad. Still storming, but the worst is over. I hope the garden faired okay. And, bless the underground utilities ... power is on.

The family BBQ was a lot of fun, lots of work and well worth it. What's left is a lot of flowers, some leftover food (most went to the kids), and a me-day ahead.

Added some to my office.

Past ME hooked a girl up. I can't stress enough how happy I am to have the court report finished and submitted. 

I have a big hiking week coming up. Tuesday night, Wednesday morning and Friday all day. Pushing to challenge myself and build endurance. I hope I'm not pushing too fast after the fall -- still recouping a bit. And I hope I don't get a cold this week. It's a possibility since the baby has a little cold and I spent a lot of time holding him (worth it though).

We were suppose to hike with friends on Wednesday with plans to confirm time this weekend. I reached out because I had a feeling ... turns out I was right. They need to postpone. I preemptively reached out so I could register for club hike on Wednesday. "Old me" would've passively waited until they made the decision. "FS me" decided to be assertive and speak up. There's a small chance they're still available, but I canceled the plans so I don't get left out of a hike on Wednesday. I offered dinner instead if they end up being available. 

I don't want to over blow this decision, but it was big for me. I'd much rather hike with friends and I was really looking forward to going, but it became clear the chances were low that we'd actually go. So I prioritized myself. When we made plans, there wasn't anything else for Wednesday so waiting until the last minute wasn't a big deal. Things changed -- on both our ends. 

I say all the time, people don't respect my time. They cancel on whims, leave cancelation to last minute, think it doesn't matter. But the truth is I am the one who doesn't respect my time. The decision yesterday was me respecting my time. I hope we're able to go hiking with them soon and I'm really glad I'm signed up for a hike with the hiking club for Wednesday. 

Enough on my soapbox, but I like to remind myself I can speak up and the world doesn't end. And in speaking up, the potential resentment is squashed too. People get to make decisions and I'm "people" too. Had I not spoken up and the hike didn't happen, I would've been resentful -- and that's on me.

Happy Memorial Day. Hope you are enjoying the long weekend. Later gators.

Unexpected ...

Looks like I have updates in an unexpected direction.

Kids feel well. BBQ is proceeding with fingers crossed nothing between now and tomorrow. 

I FINISHED the court report!! Woo hoo. I got close enough that I decided to push through another hour and get it off the table. That felt so, so good. I might have edits on Tuesday, but that's no big deal.

I realized I'm growing indeterminant tomatoes. What does that mean?? They are gigantic. They're taking over my garden. Wild is one thing, but this is something else. Google and I have a meeting this morning to figure out what to do. They GROW feet every night -- no exaggeration. I checked the garden this morning and they've overrun all the neighbors. Poor cucumbers and peppers don't stand a chance. 

Big news -- I spoke too soon about no flowers on the peas. Yes! But, man, I'm worried about the Japanese beetles. They can destroy it all.

I'm using cilantro tomorrow (guacamole) and letting the rest go to flower (maybe I can get coriander seed out of it) -- I need to attract the bees. The wildflowers are behind this year -- my fault. Next year I'm planting some companion flowers in the spring garden.

And BOOKS. Here's the latest -- in reverse order for lord knows why. I'm next up on 2 library books so I'm picking fast reads from my home TBR.

Up next from my home TBR

My own book -- fast and fun.

Library -- DNF.
It was sappy and very predictable.
With a big TBR, I gave up.

We watched Dune 2 last night. Long, but I liked it. I should've reviewed the first movie though. It took forever for me to remember what was going on and you MUST watch the first to understand the second.

My sister recommended this shoe brand for good city walking shoes. They have cork support inside so they look flat, but are comfortable. I needed a canvas shoe so my feet don't get so hot on our next trip. I ordered in kelly green too because why not have a little fun. I feel like I'm having a color moment in my fashion choices. 

Lots and lots to do in the kitchen today. I'm actually not upset about it (although my back will be screaming by tonight). Podcasts here I come. Nothing I'm making is hard, just lots of steps.

First, final trips to the supermarkets. Wish me luck -- I'm going first thing. 

Hope you're set for a good 3 day weekend. Later gators.

The Holiday Weekend

Everything is on hold for this weekend -- kids are sick. My eldest is getting over something (and will be fine for Sunday), but my DIL and grandson are possibly catching it (and it's a bad one). The worse part (for me) is the waiting. I'm in limbo -- so much to prepare ahead of the BBQ, but it's likely to get canceled. Hikes I passed on because I have too much to do to get ready. Dang. Nothing but waiting. 

We plan to make a decision today -- if it's canceled, I'll see if I can get on some hike waitlists. If it's a go, it STILL can get canceled if things turn by Sunday. I'm almost routing for canceling today so I can make other plans if there's any chance they're catching the bug.

Oh well.

Today is less-than-fun day. I have a court report due on Tuesday for my volunteer position so I have hours of work ahead. I'm going to try and knock out most of it today.

Wednesday's hike was excellent -- maybe top 3 of the hikes I've done with the group. It gave me the bug to challenge myself for harder hikes. So many mountain flowers on the hike -- here are a couple. I hiked with 6 "my-aged" women and it was fun. Fast, hard, great conversations. These are some incredible women. One walked over 2000 miles doing multiple Caminos. One is a competitive speed skater for 15 years. One is an ironman athlete. Seriously -- incredible!

Summer purple

Flowering cactus in GA
-- so beautiful at the top
of the mountain

My garden is unruly and wild and I'm here for it. I probably over planted so I need to figure that out for next year if things struggle for resources. Beetles are any day now and that will suck. Otherwise it's lovely to watch the plants grow. I have a first cucumber growing and a few cherry tomatoes forming. Everything is blooming except the peas (I shouldn't have fertilized them because it halts flowering -- now I know). I keep picking the pepper flowers to let the plants grow more. I'm letting a few form now. Excited for a summer veggies. 

Best get moving today. Today is one of those "productive" days that kind of suck but will feel really, really good once the things get finished.

Happy Friday. Later gators.

Phew

I made it. 

Nothing worse for wear after the hike. This bodes well for tomorrow's hike (fingers crossed) which is shorter, but a big climb. I have a hiking bug right now as I'm move into the higher level hikes -- a bit scary, but a lot more fun.

I got to the park early and checked out a community garden.

My peas are no where near this
level. Dang. Maybe they need
to be fertilized?

Type of Brussel sprout
according to my app

Next spring inspiration --
didn't know cauliflower was a spring plant

Today and tomorrow are full-life days. I'm reminding myself that this is good -- no need to feel overwhelmed (it's half working). 

Errands galore today. I'm going to try for as many as I can fit in to offload the rest of the week a little bit. Also, a bunch of house chores. 

I finished another book. This was Twilight-ish with some detailed, open-door romance. I liked the book, but I didn't like one of the main characters. That rarely bothers me, but this time it did -- enough to say one and done in the series of 3 books. I've read this author before and I like his writing a lot.

I watched the half release of Bridgerton the last few days and I loved it. I also watched the final season of Billions last week -- the ending wrapped in a neat little package, but I was happy about it. My up-next is Gentlemen in Moscow (one of my favorite books) and Hacks new season.

I feel FS coming forward again and I like it. I needed a bit of a re-group and reminder of the basics. 

Hope you're having a good week. Later gators.

Monday, My Friend

No pickleball yesterday. My son has a cold and the morning weather was iffy. Probably best for my back, but bummed to miss out seeing my grandson.

I worked on planting a container garden for my youngest. He was suppose to collect everything yesterday, but wanted to wait another weekend. Things need to get growing so I setup the containers that were still with me. He has a couple at home to plant once he gets the seeds from me. I couldn't give him plants from the grow room because he was taking the long vacation with us and everything would've died -- trip to Pike's for a few things.

Porch cucumbers (seeds)

Snacker tomatoes (Pike's)

Peppers (Pike's)

Parsley (seed)

Cilantro (seed)

Purple basil (seed)

I made a last spring salad from the garden -- pulled the lettuce plants. I have a lot of basil and cilantro so I made an herb salad dressing (tastes very fresh -- not sure if that's in my mind or it's really this good lol).

Used the new paint pens -- they work well. Much better saturation on the rocks. I'm back to rock painting and it feels good to tap into that creativity again. I also am gearing up to make a couple of journals for fun -- I like to keep notes on things.

It's a Monday with a "normal" week ahead and I want to use this week to get back to FS mode. It's not that I'm completely slipping, it's more that I've had "special" things that are taking precedence. FS is the reason for the special things, but I'm slipping a little in the day-to-day. 

Spanish, meditation and crafting are sorely missing in my days and I feel it. I feel off and what do I do when that happens?? You guessed it -- SNACK at night. That's going away this week. I need a bit of a big breath and a slow down and a return to some basics.

Also returning (fingers crossed) are some hikes this week. I hope my foot, knee and back hold after the fall on Sunday. Today will be the test -- 10 miles with some technical in the beginning. If all is well, I'm set for the hard hike on Wednesday and maybe a hike on Friday too. 

We're having a group over for a Sunday bbq for the holiday -- lots of planning and cooking to do for this too. Certainly not a slow week, but hopefully a full life, FS one.

Hubby is leaving for Asheville today. Stocking the LFL for me. I miss Asheville -- planning a solo trip in a few weeks.

Let's start this week off on a good foot (2 good feet, 2 good knees and a strong back). Later gators.

Trying to Get Back in the Swing

Happy Sunday. 

I've had a fun couple of days. Friday was a big gardening "stuff" clean up on the porches, planting some herb seeds and trying to grow tubulars for sweet potatoes (might have started this too late this year).

I got seeds ready for my son to get his garden started this weekend and he postponed until next weekend. I guess I'll get some things started for him because it's getting late to plant.

Tried a new French cafe with a friend -- she gave me a bunch of books for the LFL and a promise of some baby toys she's giving away. 

Yesterday I went with a few of the weekend hiking ladies and walked a Mushroom Fun-guy 5k race. Up a mountain, down a creek and back to a mushroom farm. I didn't take pictures this year. It was rainy and super muddy (like sink to your ankle muddy). The sun came out just before the walk and it was miserable -- hot, humid. Thunderstorms on the way home. I'm grateful for the rain, but it's a sloppy mess out there. We got the bag of fresh mushrooms again -- that made a good lunch.

That brings me to hiking this week. I have a 10 miler with some technical parts tomorrow. I'm really unsure of my back though (after the fall). I'm going to give it a go with fingers crossed, anti-inflammatory on board and lots of PT stretches ahead. I have another HARD hike on Wednesday -- 6 miles, but big elevation with lots of rocks. It's a wait-and-see game. If anything changes significantly, I'll cancel the hikes. I'm super bummed. I swear I just get back in shape and something stupid happens to set me back. My finger is still a mess BTW. Geez Louise. 

Today is babysitting while everyone plays pickleball (assuming it's dry enough). I'll be at the courts so it's going to be boring (aside from helping with the baby). Taking my own car so I can leave early. I don't need to spend 2 hours just watching. There are 5 of them so someone rotates out each set. 

I'm trying to ease back into my FS routine and it's been a bit of a struggle. I'm in a real fog -- everything feels hard. And I want some downtime for crafting and such. Looking to do that this week. I'll see where it gets me. I got a new brand of paint pens for rock painting that should work better than what I have (most of my pens are dried up now anyway) -- excited to try it.

This is how I rested my back after the 5k yesterday. Monti cuddles and finished the first library read.

Good -- 4/5

Love this little bubble butt.

Hope you have a good Sunday. Later gators.

Bots, Books and Watches

The bots are hot and heavy these days -- reading numbers up like crazy. Who knows -- maybe it's always been bots reading. I write like I'm talking to other people, but it's just one of the ways I like to journal about my day and it feels easiest to write like I'm talking to someone. I don't know if I should be concerned about bots, but it's enough that I don't post pictures of my grandchild or some other family pictures. Usually after a break, the bots slow down, but they didn't this time.

So hello, bots. Or hello, people. Welcome to random ramblings about nothing exciting.

Today is a bit about books. I read a few on my trip. Nothing that super wowed me and no pictures because they're on kindle.

"The Christmas Bookshop" (Jenny Colgan): Best of my reads. Cozy little predictable fun read.

"The Six Deaths of the Saint" (Alix Harrow): Strange 30 page book. Interesting though.

"Fellowship Point" (Alice Dark): 600+ pages. Long saga. Just okay to me. Had a lot of promise, but I got bored about halfway.

I started this from the library. Has promise -- good so far.

A couple in the mail that I'll read after the slew of library holds waiting.

Switching subjects ...

I looked for a vintage watch on our trip. Found 2 that I liked, but both were overpriced so I passed.

1988 men's watch

From 1950s -- I loved this one.

Turns out hubby has a couple of old watches. He took them to be fixed (one is still getting repaired that belonged to his dad). Both are too small for him. I bought a vintage watch strap from 1950s that reminds me of a man's tie and paired it with the watch. I really like it -- fun to wear with jeans. A little quirky too.

It's special because it was his
first watch when he was in school
(gift from his parents).

This satisfies my want for a watch that is different from my other one. I'll show you the other one when it fixed. I like mixing up and wearing a man's watch style -- the older ones are the size of most lady's watches now.

I had a really nice day yesterday catching up with a friend and then babysitting my grandson. Man, he's a cutie. 

Hope you're having a good week. Later gators.

Plants and more Plants

The garden grew -- phew. The only thing I lost was a pot of mint because it got flooded with too much rain and watering (I left it in a bad spot). I'm replacing them this week because I like mint in the summer for drinks.

Basil from seed (grow room)
cilantro from seeds.

Peas and carrots from seed.

My peppers and one from the farm

Cucumbers and onions

Cabbages, tomatoes and greens

Filling out

I picked the greens this morning to bring a Cobb salad to the kids for dinner (I'm babysitting my grandson for the afternoon -- very excited) and sharing the garden is one of my ongoing goals. Although I was temped to keep them for myself -- fresh and crunchy.

It's a lot more than it looks.

My indoor plants survived too. Makes a difference to move them away from the strongest sunlight -- slows their water needs up enough to survive such a long stretch. I ended up rearranging some plants and got two new ones because (like books) I have a problem.

I'll replant soon. It needs time to adjust.

I liked the color of the leaves.

One my my favorite spots in the house

I'm staking the tomato plants -- they grew more than I expected. Time to help them out. I got the wooden stakes yesterday (hence some new plants). I need to watch my back today because I'm babysitting so it has to wait until tomorrow.

Hope you're having a good week. Later gators.

I'm Back :)

Hello (!!)

I'm home (since Sunday) and am back at regular life today. I needed a couple of re-entry days to get going. 

The trip was really good. I loved Lucerne especially. We had a few hiccups -- train strike (so no Lake Como), Ascension Day (so all shopping closed on our Zurich day), fog/rain (so no trip up Mtn Rigi) ... but everything else was fantastic.  

We ate and ate and ate -- so much (too much) good food. I drank a few nights too -- not much, but a couple of glasses of wine with dinner. 

Took food tours, vintage clothing tour, day in Bologna, chocolate tour, Duomo (with roof tour), boat ride, museum for Picasso exhibit, quick trip to Zurich. Rode so many trains. Our hotels were right in the thick of things -- made the days easier. Weather was a lot of rain, but it wasn't a big deal. I was happy for the cooler temperatures. 

Really long travel day on the way home -- 2 trains, 2 planes and a drive from the airport. Flight delays, heavy traffic at midnight (construction and an accident). 27 hours later we got in our front door.

The next morning, in a rush to water plants, I fell on water drippings. Took out my foot, landed hard on my knees and hands. Finally able to put full weight on my foot today. Geez. And my finger is still a mess. Typical life with me these days.

Here are a few highlights. 

Lucerne

Swiss fondue

Picasso

Lake Lucerne

Train from Milan to Switzerland

Love a train and a book

After a hike up the forest mountain

Signs in time, not distance

Lunch on the river

Best hot chocolate recommended
by my friend whose husband is Swiss.

Fundicular

Pretzel with Lucerne cheese.

So much good food

Watch shopping

Old Town Lucerne

Window view from our hotel room
in Lucern

Another dinner

Yes!!!

Food tour in Bologna

Vintage book fair

Doing my thing

Dairy free

Bologna

Rooftop bar in Milan

My earlier pictures from Italy are still trying to load for some reason, but this gives the idea.

I need to get moving this morning. Early HVAC appointment and I want to see if my foot is okay to workout on the bike. 

Have a good day -- I'm glad to be home. Later gators.