Stuff

I haven't found too much to blog about lately. Since my last post, I finished the UNC Get Real and Heel (GR&H) program, and have been going through "withdrawal" to some extent. It was so comforting to have people encouraging and cheering me on to become a better person, physically and emotionally, and now I don't have that 3 evenings a week and I have to motivate myself, which is ever so much harder to do.

I got back out on the soccer field a couple of weeks ago, playing in the Over-40 Rainbow Soccer league, and soon afterwards got a muscle pull in my inner thigh, even though I was trying to take things easy. I guess that was at least ONE muscle I didn't strengthen during GR&H! I've been resting it for the past week, plus the rain has caused some cancellations, but I've been walking, riding my bike and I've gone swimming once since then.

This morning I did something out of the ordinary for my lifestyle...I learned some basics of golfing. Happily, although the GR&H is officially over, they are still going to plan occasional activities for former participants, and this is one of them. I've never been much of a golf fan, and am not even very fond of playing Putt-Putt, but I'm trying to keep an open mind and went out this morning mostly for the social component. We didn't actually go to a golf course today. We met at the GR&H site and learned how to hold the club and practiced with some light practice balls. You have to be able to hit the ball at least 100 yards before they will let you onto a golf course. Next, we will go to a driving range after we get a bit better at hitting the practice balls. It was OK, but I don't know if golf will ever be my "thing". Here's a picture of me swinging...Notice the ball still lying on the ground...I don't know if this is because I was practicing my swing or just plain 'ole missing the ball...most likely the latter - HA HA.



Medically speaking, I had a recent mammogram which was fine, and last week I got blood drawn for genetic testing. Next week I have my annual physical, and I'm going to have an appointment with the surgeon to schedule the removal of my intravenous port. After that, besides having mammograms every 6 months and checkups with the oncologist, I will not have to think about cancer much, except maybe to try to find some way to help other people.

This past week at work, our manager from the UK came for a visit, and we went to lunch at the Washington Duke Inn. The hotel is absolutely gorgeous, but the food was really disappointing. My grouper special looked as if they had plated it hours ago and stuck it in the oven to warm it up, and it was rather dried-out looking. The lobster sauce that I pictured the fish being covered with was a thin reddish line on the edges of the plate of something that had absolutely no flavor, and could have been watered down food coloring for all I know. So now that I've been there, I realize I have not been missing anything in not ever having gone there all these years. Maybe back when my neighbor was the chef, it might have been good, but it's not NOW.

I've been enjoying this beautiful weather. I hope it stays warm, but cool, (ha ha) for a long time.

Whght Id Yjou Shay?

My lower lip and jaw are so numb from Novocaine that I can barely talk, but that's OK because I'm the only one home right now. I had my temporary crowns removed and the permanent ones cemented in this afternoon. I didn't want to have conscious sedation and be knocked out for a day and a night again, so the dentist tried nitrous oxide (N2O), and I got numb...Hallelujah! It's amazing how quickly the oxygen reversed the effects of the N2O, and I walked right out of the office when they were done "playing" in my mouth.

Good thing I had a substantial lunch, too, 'cos I won't be eating for awhile either (unless I want to risk burning myself or chewing my tongue). Oh the joys of modern dentistry! Hark well, all ye who read here (note...language inspired by my daughter's blog about sonnets : ), brush and floss and practice good dental hygiene so you won't have to have these kinds of dental adventures, and so you will be able to munch happily with your own teeth to a ripe old age!

Hiking at the Eno

Today I went hiking at the Eno river with a couple of friends. This was at the Eastern part of the Eno, and I'd never been there before.



It was quiet and peaceful and shady, and I got a good workout while enjoying the scenery and chatting with friends.



It was nice in the shade, but still a rather warm and muggy day, so I cooled off and tried to float down the river, but it was too shallow, and I sort of just got stuck in one spot, caught by rocks and the sea-weedy stuff, despite my efforts to paddle. HA HA - don't laugh too hard. Anyway, the water was cool and refreshing. Even though it looks kinda murky, apparently the water quality is the best it has been in years, and we saw families and kids wading and enjoying the day.



Thankfully, it did not rain at that end of Durham. We found the deluge on the way back home in the car.

Get Real & Heel - #2

On April 2nd I described the Get Real and Heel program, so I thought I'd take a few pictures of the facility and some of the trainers/therapists who have worked with me over the past four months.

I'll be done with the program in mid-September and although I have not had any significant weight loss, I do feel stronger from an hour of exercise 3x/week (most weeks), and I think that I've turned some fat into muscle. At the end of the program, I'll have an assessment where my previous measurements will be compared, and I'll be able to find out whether (and if so, how much) I've lost in inches and fat, and gained in strength.



I've also benefited from learning meditation and biofeedback (half-hour sessions 3x/week). I think it is a very useful tool for handling stress and being more at peace with myself and the world. The woman in green in the photo below is the Recreation Therapist who has been the main person working with me on biofeedback, and I've really enjoyed getting to know her...she's sweet and patient and kind. She works with the elderly during the day at either an assisted living facility or a nursing home. The woman on her right is a student who is learning how to be an Exercise Therapist.



The photo below shows the exercise room in the building. A long time ago, this building used to house the Chapel Hill Country Club, and is on Country Club Road (duh). I didn't even know it existed before I started the program. It is also used for the UNC Outdoor programs, and has a lot of tennis courts, a very small climbing wall, and a volleyball court and some scenic open space behind the building.



Shown above on the treadmill is one of my fellow Get Real and Heel participants. Behind her is the director of the program, who has a Ph.D in Exercise Physiology and is on the faculty at UNC. He is from Brazil and went to college in Colorado. I haven't met anyone as bubbly and enthusiastic and positive as this guy in a long time! He'll be going to Australia at the end of September to help set up a Get Real program there (poor thing!...I think I missed my calling!) Just kidding - apparently he works like a dog, teaching and writing grants during the day and working with the Get Real program in the evenings. The guy in the forefront in the red shirt is one of the trainers, and is a (?doctoral) student in the Exercise Science program at UNC. I've also had several female trainers, and there are two other female Rec therapists who have filled in on a few occasions.

I'll really miss this program and the wonderful people when it's over - I feel so lucky and I'm so grateful to have found it! By then, I hope to be running around the soccer field again : )

Long Beach, NC, weekend of the dancing queens

I had ANOTHER "girls" trip to the beach, but this was only for a weekend, and with a LOT more "girls". We relaxed on the beach, ate great food, partied at the beach house, and some of us went to see Mamma Mia (2nd time for me). The theater was completely empty except for us, and we talked and laughed before the movie and we stood up and sang (LOUDLY)and danced during the movie - it was a HOOT! Here are just a few pics of us being silly on the beach.





We may be older, but we're still limber!

meme

My daughter tagged me for this game where you answer the questions below with only one word, and then you tag other people, but since I don't know too many people who have a blog, I can't do that until I get home and find my brother's blog to tag him. Right now I at another girls beach weekend using someone else's laptop to post this.

1. Where is your cell phone? purse
2. Your significant other? home
3. Your hair? short
4. Your mother? heaven
5. Your father? gone
6. Your favorite thing? music
7. Your dream last night? vivid
8. Your favorite drink? tea
9. Your dream/goal? achieved
10. The room you’re in? kitchen
11. Your hobby? soccer
12. Your fear? roaches
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? retired
14. What you’re not? warm
15. Muffins? yes
16. One of your wish list items? health
17. Where you grew up? Jamaica
18. The last thing you did? talk
19. What are you wearing? mumu
20. Favorite gadget? none
21. Your pets? lovable
22. Your computer? works
23. Your mood? relaxed
24. Missing someone? hubby
25. Your car? cluttered
26. Something you’re not wearing? bra
27. Favorite store? Walmart
28. Like someone? friends
29. Your favorite color? blue
30. When is the last time you laughed? today
31. Last time you cried? move

zzzZZZZ Crown me (twice) the Queen of La-La Land

Yesterday I had dental work with sedation (placement of two crowns on lower back molars on either side of my mouth, and a re-filling of another lower molar that had an old mercury filling). Man, oh man, did those tiny, little (was that redundant?)pills knock me for a LOOOOOP!!!

My instructions were to take 10mg of Valium the night before the procedure. In the morning I took 2 capsules of hydroxyzine (Tradename, Vistaril, class: antihistamine) and 2 sublingual tabs of triazolam (a.k.a. Halcion, a sleeping pill)an hour before my appt. The Valium didn't seem to affect me much, and as a matter of fact, I did not sleep as well as I usually do and woke up quite a few times the night before the procedure. I don't think I was particularly anxious, and I didn't seem to benefit from any "good" feeling from the stuff (DARN!- when I had intravenous Valium once in the past, it was a wonderful happy, peaceful, "I feel so calm and carefree" feeling.

The only reason I was having sedation is that the last couple of times I've had dental work, the Novocain has been totally ineffective. I asked the dentist how these sedatives work, since none of them are actually pain relievers. She said that somehow they affect the pain threshold, and in treating over 300 patients, no-one has ever reported feeling pain. I guess I was secretly wondering if I would be the first! I could just picture myself being totally "out of it", but in excruciating pain, but unable to communicate my agony (My imagination is way too vivid...)

Apparently, this type of sedation allows you to be awake enough to follow commands and communcate, and the Halcion also has an amnesic effect. The only things I vaguely remember are going out to the car from home, seeing two faces above me while hearing the dentist say "Open" several times, and the dental hygienist poking and jabbing(and HURTING) my gums with her sharp pointy instrument (I had a dental cleaning at the end). I was so sedated that I slept all day Friday and all night too, except for a few trips to the bathroom, my dear hubby waking me at about 4pm to take tylenol and ibuprofen, and (according to him) around midnight to make sure I was still breathing (i.e., NOT DEAD).

I woke up around 5 am this morning and still feel groggy after a short walk and several cups of tea and a couple of hours of watching Ellen and Oprah (which my hubby very thoughtfully taped for me). My jaw is very slightly sore when I open my mouth, but otherwise I have no pain. I have beautiful eye-dazzling WHITE temporary crowns, but I can't chew hard stuff yet, so maybe I'll eat less and lose some weight while waiting for the permanent crowns to arrive in about 3 weeks. These fake teeth are so white in comparison to the yellowish real teeth beside them, it really makes me want to have my teeth whitened. Of course, after paying through the teeth (OH NO - BAD PUN) for this work, it will be a zillion years before I can afford that; meanwhile, I'll ask my dentist if she will take me for a ride in her new yacht, or whatever she buys with what I paid her for just a couple of hours of work!

Seriously, though, I'm thankful to have a very pleasant, competent dentist whom I trust, and I'm very happy that everything went so well. I'd recommend her to anyone who needs sedation dentistry. (But I'd fire her hygienist in a heartbeat, or give her a remedial session where I poke and jab HER painfully in the gums many, many, times till she understands what the word, "gentle" means). Hopefully, I won't have to go back to the dentist for this kind of work for a very long time. I'm also extremely grateful to my dear hubby who chaffeured me, kept me from falling, and checked me on and off just to make sure I wasn't dead : ) Life is good, and so is being able to chew, i.e. EAT. Speaking of which, I think it's way past time for lunch!