First Bike Ride

Hello, We rode our bikes to the library this afternoon. It was windy and cool, but I managed. It felt a bit scary at first because it has been so long since I have ridden. I forgot which lever makes the gears go up and which makes them go low. I had trouble with that in the first place and it is not sorted out in my mind. I only moved it a couple levels so I am still not sure. It is more difficult for me to get started on this bike because I do not have toe clips which helped me to move the pedal into the position that I like. This bike does move so easily. It that good ball bearings? Leroy, who has ridden much more than I have, struggled more against the wind. I was not using the power of the battery, but just my power. I could easily keep up with him. My ears hurt a little because of the cold, but it was not as bad as I expected. I will encourage myself to get out more frequently. Leroy had over 5,000 steps after our ride. I had almost 3,000 steps. He gets quite a few recorded when he is riding while I do not. I am jealous. After we came home, I went out for a long walk. I have over 7,000 steps. Now Leroy is out walking, trying to get more. Are we competitive? I planted two amaryllis bulbs out by the garage which is where they usually spend the summer. I figure they can tolerate quite a bit of cold. It is too early for much else. I have more house plants to take out, but it will be a couple more weeks before that will happen. Paula

Volunteering

Hello, I will have to figure out my volunteering path. I helped several hours at the church yesterday and it felt good. We had a choir from a college present a short concert at noon. They were in town for another event and wondered if they could sing for us as well. I was involved in the setup, serving and clean up for the meal that was provided for them. I will admit to being tired and dragging, but there was definitely a feeling of satisfaction. The concert was quite fine and attended by more than 100 people at noon in the middle of the work week. My friend did a great job getting the word out. We also had choir practice last night so I clocked over 13000 steps. No wonder I was tired. I have now had 28 days of more than 10000 steps. I can do that for some more days, but I am working hard at not pushing myself too much. All the nice weather helps make it a good thing to do. I did check out a DVD from the library. It was shelved in the comedy section. I wonder who decides it is a comedy. I for one barely cracked a smile before I gave up on it. I have put another one on hold, hopefully it will at least be grin worthy. Paula

Amazing Things

Hello, Leroy is now totally well. He even commented that he can touch his cheek and it does not hurt. We were so impressed when his oral surgeon called to see how he was doing. That was more follow up than we anticipated. After a long hiatus, Leroy rode his bike to work today. He did say that he felt dizzy after he got off the bike. It helped when he ate a little something. Good thing he takes snacks and his lunch so he would have something available. We visited with our financial advisor yesterday. We are doing just fine even though I have retired. Actually, we thought it would be fine. We did get an increase in social security and my pension amount went up now that I have retired. Any lack of income was not very noticeable. We are rich indeed. We went to an orchestra concert at the college that is close to us. We raced in at the last minute because the clock that we had been using had a battery that was slowing down. A slow clock speeds us up. It was a nice concert with the final number being with a rapper! I would not have thought that the two could be compatible, but it was good. Mysteries of life. On Sunday evening we went to a concert at the museum where Leroy works. The person who sang was an opera star from the Czech Republic. It was quite fine. We are gifted with many musical opportunities. Paula

Remembering care of the earth

Hello, The store that we are members of had an earth day special where we could get a reusable bag for bulk products. I was happy to get that. It is a cloth bag so it can easily be washed and used many times. I do reuse my plastic bags, but I like the idea of cloth much better. Later, Leroy and I went to an area where there were many exhibits highlighting what can be done to help the earth. Some were things we can manage and some do not apply, especially those that involve home ownership. We departed with a bit of literature as well as some seeds for flowers and vegetables. We saw displays of native plants, a few were new to us. We brought home a bag of compost to put on our raised bed garden. We also have a nightlight, but I am not sure how that fit in the whole plan, but we could use a new nightlight. It was quite cold and windy with some snow in the air from time to time. I was happy to be a viewer rather than someone standing at the tables. Most, if not, all had on winter coats, hats, and mittens. When we left, the heated seats in the car were a welcome place to sit. Those seats probably do not help the environment. See we are not able to be as committed to the earth. “The spirit is willing and the flesh is weak.” Leroy and I are going to have a hard time getting our steps today as it is much more pleasant to be inside, but we are going to a concert tonight at the college which is close so that will take us out for a half mile walk one way. I intend to go out a bit more this afternoon as I want to get at least 5000 steps. Paula

More time with people

Hello, Yesterday, I went to tai chi. Six of us were there in person. We had a good time relaxing and breathing. After class I visited with people in the library. It feels so good to spend time with others. In the afternoon, I attended a study at church. Again, it was good to have time with others. I will have to figure out how I want to be able to spend more time with people. It is good for my spirit. Lifting my sense of energy and mood is so important. On the walk home from church I stopped in the college garden which is open on week days. It was beautiful, tulips were blooming as well as some others that I could not identify. I like time by myself, but I need time with people too. My job seemed to make that happen naturally. Now I have to figure it out. Leroy is healthy, but did not ride his bike to work. Guess that will be next week. After what seems like a lot of fussing around, we booked flights to Miriam’s home. We have not been there for more than a year so it is time. Paula

Almost Normal

Hello, Leroy is eating almost all regular food, just more carefully. He also went to the museum this morning for work with the stamp crew. We walked early in the morning and he moved right along. This evening he will go to a spirituality meeting on the psalms walking to church to get there. I will go tomorrow afternoon. His group is all men and my group is all women. We are planning to go visit Miriam in Utah. I can say that plane ticket prices are a moving target. We will have to check dates with her before we book, but it is a gamble. However, it has been a long time since we have been there. We will just say ok and do it anyway. I wish our daughters lived a days drive away rather than two days. We do not want to spend so much time in the car. If we tried to get the cheapest flights, we could spend a lot of time in one airport or another. So many of the trees look beautiful now with blossoms. It is to freeze tonight. I hope that does not do a lot of damage, especially to fruit trees. We believe in eating an apple and a half a day. We like to have a big crop so the prices are not so high. Plus, there are more varieties to choose from. Saturday we put the comforter away, today it came back. I was a little cool last night even snugged up against Leroy as he only heats one side of me. Paula

Less Pain Today

Hello, Leroy commented, “I feel so much better today than I did last week.” He certainly acts like a different person. He did go home right after church because he needed to take another pain pill. Now he only takes one pain pill at a time so that is good. He is still taking antibiotics since he has been instructed to take the full amount. We have decided he has been very lucky as other people have told some terrible stories about their experiences with an abscessed tooth. It seems to be nothing to ignore. Weather has been an adjustment. As much of the country we have gone from very warm to quite cool. It is hard for us to adjust as it is for other wild life and plants. Brian tells us his bees liked the warm days, but he does not know how they are managing now. I had taken some plants outside, but brought three of them back in for a few more days. Paula