Reading and Eating- 4th of July Edition
Meh. I wasn’t really into celebrating this year. Part of it was laziness- I do have 4th of July decorations but it seemed like too much of a hassle to get them out, especially since it was only my daughter and me (my husband was out of town all week). Another part of it is all that’s going on in our country. Don’t get me wrong- I’m not letting anyone steal my joy. If I really wanted to throw a huge party with patriotic food and fireworks, I would have. But I didn’t- I was happy to have a low-key day of relaxing and eating. On the most recent Girl Next Door podcast, Erica and Kelsey talked about patriotism. They discussed the idea that “patriotism” seems to have been hijacked by one political party, and that if you disagree with the current administration, you “hate your country.” You can love your country, AND want it to change and improve. It’s sad that I don’t feel comfortable putting up an American flag right now, and when I do see a house decorated for the 4th I think, “I know who they voted for!” How did this happen? ANYWAY. I did do one thing for the 4th, which was make a special breakfast for my daughter- 4th of July waffles! Now, I had my own concept for these, but she chose to decorate them herself (sigh). She put the whipped cream on the warm waffles and let it melt into a puddle while she placed the berries on with excruciating slowness. My day was nice. I didn’t have to work, so I got up early to run, ate breakfast and then started the festivities… er, that is, I decided to clean out the refrigerator. This was a task that was long, long overdue. How long? Well, I found a container of PUMPKIN, which has obviously been there since November. I have to admit that I just couldn’t deal with it. I threw the whole thing sway, container and all. My apologies to the planet Earth and everyone who lives on it. I promise to do better from now on. I also had a moment when I found a bottle of ketchup stuck way, way in the back. Just a few days ago a friend of Angie’s asked if we had any, and I said no. I felt like Otto from The Simpsons- gold start to anyone who can identify the episode, “I had MUSTARD???” As you can imagine, it felt really good to get that task done! At night, my daughter went to see fireworks with a friend, and I happily read my book: Allison mentioned that she liked this one better than Night Film by the same author. This book was REALLY interesting, but I also found it wordy and complicated. The narrator is a brilliant and autistic teenage girl, and it’s a mystery. The ending is great, and I’m glad I read it. But I liked Night Film better. Speaking of Allison, she tried to “boss my TBR” (as they do on Currently Reading podcast). She saw that I have Holly by Stephen King, and recommended that I read The Outsider first. I was going to take her advice, but when I read the description of Holly on the back of the book, it sounded so good, I just had to read it. I started it today! But I am bringing these two books on my trip next week: Or, if I finish Holly and need a break from Stephen King, I’ll bring this instead: And I also have two library holds ready! I better get reading. Did you celebrate the 4th? What are you reading now? For Stephen King fans- Holly, or The Outsider? Top photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash
Weekly Rundown- Humidity, Side Planks and Fireworks
Hellooo! Thanks for stopping by the Weekly Rundown, hosted as always by Kim and Deborah (thanks, ladies!) My husband was out of town this week, so it was just me and my daughter, and we had a good time (and, I had a “good time” chauffeuring her and her friends around…) Overall it was a nice week. Let’s get into it! Sunday 5 mile run outside! This was the longest run I’ve done since my race in April, and also my first run outside in over a week. Luckily it was overcast and I brought along water, so I didn’t overheat too much. The last mile got hard but overall I counted it as a success. Monday Leg day at the gym! Focused on squats, and here I am doing the glute push machine… I finished the workout with side planks with leg lifts- I can now do 3 sets of 15 reps on each side! When I started these I could barely get through five on my left side. Tuesday Rest day! Wednesday 4 mile run at the nice, air conditioned gym. I threw in some tempo intervals, and it felt pretty good. Thursday In the morning I did the Caroline Girvan deadbug workout, and after work I did my hip stability exercises. Friday Woohoo! I had the day off- Happy 4th! I got up early to do another 5 mile run outside. Luckily it was overcast again, but the humidity just about killed me. I was so tired in the last mile (well, that’s what you get when you do half your runs on the treadmill at the gym!) BUT!!!! This was the first run where I didn’t feel my hamstring AT ALL. That hamstring pain has been plaguing me since February, so this was a major win. I finished this run exhausted and elated. Before dinner I did an upper body workout at home, knowing that I wouldn’t get to the gym the next day. And then, I spent the evening reading on the couch, while listening to fireworks go off all around my neighborhood. Saturday It was a complicated day of work, driving my daughter to the gym, and picking my husband up from the airport. I also didn’t get to sleep until late on Friday night because our neighbors had a huge party with loud music and fireworks. Sigh. In the morning I did a Caroline Girvan abs workout, and then before dinner I did a lower body workout at home, including all my hip stability exercises. I’ll never complain about them again! I’m convinced those exercises are keeping my hamstring happy. Sunday On tap- work. Ugh! I hate working on Sundays, but I’m just going in for a few hours since I had Friday off. Then… a trip to the gym with my daughter, where I’ll run on the treadmill. Hooray- I feel like I’m back on track. Oh, and I officially registered for the race on my birthday- March 21st. I’ll be turning 60, and will be aiming to run 60 miles! It’s a big goal but I have plenty of time to train for it. How was your week? Did you see fireworks? Do you have a big goal right now? Top photo by Ray Hennessy on Unsplash
July Ultimate Coffee Date!
Goodbye June- I won’t miss you (being sick for almost two weeks put a damper on that month). Let’s move right along to July! It’s the first Friday of the month, which means I’m linking up with Coco and Deborah for their Ultimate Coffee Date. Let’s start with a discussion about what we’re drinking. I’m still on my anti-candida diet, where all I can drink is green tea. I can say it’s grown on me. I don’t HATE it. But I don’t love it. The main thing I miss on this diet isn’t sugar, gluten, alcohol, fruit, or grains… it’s Earl Grey tea. I’m already planning a couple “cheats” while I’m on my vacation later in the month- I’ll be having some Earl Grey, and no one can stop me. On the subject of this diet, I had a doctor appointment yesterday and found out I’ve lost five pounds (I only weigh myself when I go to the doctor). If only the entire five pounds were from my stomach! Wow, that would be incredible, but sadly it doesn’t work that way. I’m not trying to lose weight- I’m eating as much as I comfortably can, and keeping up with my strength training so my arms don’t get too scrawny. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just take fat from one part of our body and put it somewhere else? Ha- I’m pretty sure I’m not the first person to have that thought. The appointment was a “well woman” visit, with a pelvic exam and pap test. That’s always fun! I have to admit I haven’t done it in a long time (oops). The doctor said everything looks good, and pending the results of the pap test, I won’t have to come back for several years, or possibly forever. REALLY? Am I really that old? It made me a little sad… but then I came to my senses. Getting too old for pap smears is not a tragedy. If we were having coffee together, I would ask if you have plans for the 4th. I have NOTHING planned, and I’m pretty happy about that. I’m off of work, so I’ll get up early and run. I’ll spend the rest of the day relaxing and reading. At night my daughter has plans to go see fireworks with friends, so that lets me off the hook. I know! I’m really boring, but I’ll have a good day. Are you seeing fireworks tonight? – I’m glad I’ll be home to comfort the cats. Do you keep up with your regular screenings? – I’ve been doing well with my mammograms, but had neglected my pap test. My next colonoscopy is in one year (can’t wait for that!) Top photo by Jingda Chen on Unsplash
Halfway Day
Hooray! We’re halfway through the year. I say “hooray” because the second half of the year has so many of my favorite things- football, pumpkin season, and Christmas. This led me to ask myself a bizarre “would you rather” question- would you rather get rid of January-June, or July-December? January and February are our best weather months, and March is my birthday- but I would still choose to keep July-December. Obviously. ANYWAY. On Best Laid Plans and Best of Both Worlds this week, Laura and Sarah did a mid-year goal check-in. I figured I should do that too, but then literally couldn’t remember if I set goals. Did I? I know I had a word of the year, which was… er… it was… engage. Yes, that’s it. I looked through an old notebook and found a half-finished list of goals for 2025 (I really should start taking this more seriously!) Interestingly, I did accomplish many of them. In the “Health” category- I got a mammogram, I’m getting a pap smear today, I took my daughter to the dentist. Still haven’t gone to the dermatologist, or read Why We Sleep (I own the book, but haven’t read it). Under”Fitness” I had “run a 50 mile race.” Check! I also had “train for and run a 5K.” Well… that could still happen. I also had “set a strength training goal”, and I definitely haven’t done that. I mean, I’ve been strength training, but I haven’t gotten organized about it like I had hoped. Reading! Now here’s an area where I’m succeeding. I had a goal to read 60 books this year, and I’m now at 28. My goal was also to read one long book per month, and I’ve done that (although I have no long book picked out for July yet). Lately I’ve really picked up the pace of my reading, so if I continue like this, I should reach 60 books for the year. I also had “make a will” on this list, and we did it! Did you know you can order a will online, fill it out, and bring it to a notary? The notary actually provided the two witnesses we needed to sign it. It was almost too easy… we definitely should have done it a long time ago. Under “Fun” I said I wanted to do two mini adventures on my own. Hmm. Does going up to Ocala to run my race in April count? Let’s say yes. My upcoming trip will be mostly with my son, so I can’t count that. I’ll have to think of another one. I also said I wanted to send out postcards every month, and that has been an epic fail. But I do OWN postcards, so hopefully this will nudge me to start writing and sending them. In spite of the fact that I half-assed my goals list and then never looked at it again until now, I’m not really doing that badly! Think what I could accomplish if I put a little more effort into it, and did a monthly or even quarterly check-in. But, this mid year check-in was definitely worthwhile. Did you set goals for 2025? Have you done a mid-year check-in? Which months would you get rid of- January-June or July-December? Top photo by BoliviaInteligente on Unsplash