I'm Back!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sometimes I just lose interest in things that I've been doing like this blog. I don't know why this happens but it does. Maybe it's that I'm busy doing other things or I just get lazy but whatever the reason is I stopped blogging. I was very surprised when I logged on and saw that my last entry was on August 5. Oh my, that's almost 7 weeks ago. That's not good. One of the reasons is Facebook. I spend a load of time on there, checking the status of my friends and family, playing the slots and playing Treasuremania. I am going to make time to blog more often especially now that I am once again trying to lose the 18 pounds that have been driving me nuts.

Recently, I pulled out my old Deal A Meal. It's kind of a symbol for me. It's a symbol of what worked for me when I lost my weight the first time. It's really a sad sight being held together by tape and falling apart but I know it worked before and I know it will work again. Yes, I have a foodmover but there is just something about the DAM that works better for me. Maybe it's because it has Richard's autograph on it. I don't know but whatever it is I've taken it out of the drawer that it was sleeping in and started pulling my cards again. Yay!!

I'm also exercising again. I'm totally out of shape and unable to do some of the things that I used to do especially now that I'm having physical issues. My heel still gives me some problems and as much as I hate to admit this, my back has been talking to me too. I had the MRI on my back and was told that I have a multitude of back issues and I guess I'm paying more attention to it now so I have been feeling some mild back pain. I am not going to let this stop me. I've started going to the track again but only twice a week for the time being. I've also been doing Richard's new video Boogie Down The Pounds. It's got great disco music and I enjoy doing it. Today is yoga day for me. Yes, I'm still doing my yoga classes. I still love it more than anything. I've started toning again too. I've been doing Tone and Sweat, Blast and Tone and even some work with free weights.

Now for motivation. I was talking to Laura the other day and she said that it helped her to have Richard there to talk to for even 2 or 3 minutes a week. I said that I wished I had Richard for a few minutes a week to talk to when *BOING* it hit me. I DO have Richard here for a few minutes a week. Actually I have him here with me every day in the form or his old Day By Day tapes. I started watching them again and they have really helped me alot. They help me focus on my weight loss efforts and also remind me that I have Richard Simmons as a good friend and cheerleader. Whatever would I have done without him?


So that's where I am now. I've lost 2 pounds so far and that leaves me 16 to go. I'm glad that I realized all this before I had 50 pounds to lose. Blogging helps so I'm back. Hopefully I will be reporting more weight loss soon.

Burn, Baby, Burn

Leaving my job at Curves may have been the best thing I have ever done for my health. I woke up this morning and I can truthfully say that my heel pain is better than it has been for a very long time. I guess standing up for 4-5 hours a night was not helping my Plantar Fasciitis and Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome. I even worked out to Sweatin To The Oldies 4 yesterday without any heel pain. Things are looking up for me and my foot issues. I think I am going to do something I haven't been able to do for months and months which is workout two days in a row. When I finish this post I am going to go inside and crank up Disco Sweat which is one of my all time favorites.

It's amazing how easy it is to stop exercising. Why is that? Excuses come and I embrace them. "Oh, I can't workout today because of my heel pain" or "I can't workout today because I don't have the time" are two of my recent favorite excuses. Why is it so easy to stop doing something that has so many health benefits? You would think that knowing all I know about exercise that I would continue doing it no matter what. But no! I was busy thinking up excuses not to do it. Well, I'm done with that now. No more excuses for me. Hear that Richard?

I am going to take my time getting back to the track. Outside power walking is extremely hard on my heel and I don't want to set it off again but that's no reason to sit on my butt and not workout at all. I have large collection of workout DVDs that will raise my heart rate and make me sweat. I have enough Richard Simmons' DVDs to use a different one every day and that's what I'm going to do.

I used to say that I exercised every day because it gave me a calorie cushion. If I worked out hard for an hour a day I could pretty much (dare I say it?) eat what I wanted within reason and not gain weight. I want that cushion back and not hanging off my butt. I'm going to get back to exercising each day starting with cardio. I actually do yoga almost every day anyway but I need more so I'm cranking up my DVD player until my foot is completely healed (or heeled LOL) and then hopefully get back to the track soon. Maybe I'll go one day next week if I am still feeling good but for now, today, it's Disco Sweat in my living room. Burn, baby, burn.

So I'm back baby and it feels great.

The First Day Of The Rest Of My Unemployed Life

Today is my first real day of being unemployed. I gotta tell you I am lovin' it. LOL I've decided that my new job will be taking care of me so for my first day of work I am going to report into my new office (my living room) and I am going to TRY to do one of Richard's videos. I say try because I am still dealing with heel pain due to my Plantar Fasciitis and Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome. I'm going to put in my orthodics and see what I can do. I'm thinking that I'll do Sweatin' To The Oldies 2. It is probably the easiest of Richard's videos but it also has some weight training and ab work at the end. Yep, I'm gonna start there.

I'm planning my meals today (thanks to Ang's summer challenge) so they will be as follows:

Breakfast-1/2 cup of eggbeaters with scallions and green onions, one piece of whole wheat toast and an orange.

Lunch-1 cup of veggie chili (lot of beans) with carrots, green peppers and one tbsp of low fat dressing.

Dinner-1 Morningstar Farms Chick Pattie, one cup of pasta with tomato sauce and cauliflower with ICBINBL spray.

Snacks-10 almonds and dried cranberries, an apple and string cheese.

Oh, this is good. A healthy plan for food and exercise will be done too (I hope). I may even throw some yoga in there for good measure.

What's the best part, you may ask? Well, there are two best parts. Best part number one is that I lost 2 pounds participating in Ang's Summer Challenge and best part number two and a really close second is that I don't have to go to work tonight. I'll be in Richard's chat. It's been a really long time since I've been able to make chat. Oh man, life is good.

On another note, I want to take a minute to congratulate Roger Federer for winning the French Open Tennis Tournament. I'm very happy for him. He's offically the best that ever lived and I am a fan. I also want to congratulate Tiger Woods for winning Jack's Tournament at Memorial Golf Course yesterday. He seems to be better than ever. Roger and Tiger are two of my guys and I'm happy to see them both win. I'm winning too!

Thank you, Ang

I had a good food and exercise day yesterday. Committing to Ang's summer challenge has really made a difference in my eating habits over the last couple of days. I am eating real healthy meals instead of just grazing all day and I even did a hard toning session yesterday that I am feeling today. I guess that's a good thing. I am planning to do some yoga a little later today. Maybe it will help my mental status which sucks.

I just finished up my healthy breakfast which was an egg cooked with Pam, a piece of whole wheat toast topped with some ICBINBL and a very tasty orange. For me, this is a definite improvment over what I was eating. Now, if I can just keep it up....

Exercise is hard to do. My foot pain is still there and not being helped by having to stand up at Curves. The doctor visit didn't really help much and I'm feeling very down about all of this. Yeah, I know, exercise in a chair. Yeah, I know. The reality is it's not going to happen. If I'm going to exercise I have to enjoy what I do. I loved going to the track and walking but I can't do that now. I loved doing Richard's tapes but I can do that now. Exercising in a chair? I am not feeling the love there. I'll just do the best I can.

Each decision, whether it be about food or exercise, is made taking Ang's challenge in mind. Once again, thanks to Ang for going to all of that trouble and keeping me in line...somewhat.

Wednesday Check In

I kept my promise to Laura and called my podiatrist Dr Tanner for an appointment. My heel pain is back in a big way and it's getting in the way of my life again. I can't walk, run or do one of Richard's videos because the pain is too much to bear. It's frustrating and depressing. I'll never lose the 15 pounds if I can't exercise. I have enough trouble losing weight when I'm feeling well and not in pain. I will welcome the cortisone shot that is probably coming. Anything that will allow me to get back to the track and back ON track is on my list of things to love.

Today I am starting my day with Joy's Hatha class at the Yoga Source. I can do most asanas without foot pain. Note I said most. Pushing back into down dog is painful as is plank and some others. I'm hoping most of the class will be laying down or sitting. That I can do. I can aways do yoga.

Downward facing dog in Juliana's studio

I'm off from work today so after yogaI think I will crank up my Ipod and do some strength training. I can sit and lift weights. Yeah, I can do that. Maybe a good weight lifting session will help me with my motivation which has left the builiding now that I can't exercise. If nothing else it will give my metabolism a needed boost. I'm busy needing boosts and kicks in the butt. Please... feel free to take aim....rear back....and kick me in the butt.

Hey Ang, thanks for making me your blogger of the week. I am honored that you feel I actually have something to give to the world. That helps. You are the best.

Now I Have No Choice

I'm feeling much better since my doctor took me off the statin drugs. I know he is going to want me to go back on them but I really don't want to. I need to find a better way to keep my cholesterol under control.

After looking around on the internet for information on this subject I found that once again it all comes down to the same old same old. Diet and exercise. Hear that Richard? Diet and exercise. Is it ever anything else? No. It never is.

Now I have a really important reason to stay on track and exercise every day. Not that wanting to lose weight isn't a good reason but now I have a real health reason that is staring me in the face. I have to lower my cholesterol. My test reading was 256 with LDL of 182. These are high numbers for someone who is a vegetarian but as Dr Bob reminded me both my mother and my father had high blood pressure and high cholesterol. It's in my genes.

So...It will be oatmeal every morning for breakfast now because I have read that just eating oatmeal every day can bring those numbers down. Lunch and dinner will have to be filled with fresh and crunchy veggies. Back to salads. Easy on the bread (kill me now) and snacking will be fruits and nuts. Boring but healthy.

I will get back to exercising every day. Yesterday it was Party Off The Pounds (Hi Laura) and today it will be Disco Sweat. Doing videos in my living room seems to work better for my plantar fasciitis. I'm hoping to get back to the track once I get my new $400 (that is not covered by insurance) orthotics. They should be ready on Friday. Every time I don't feel like exercising I will think about my very high cholesterol and do what I have to do. Now, I have no choice.

The Podiatrist And Food Sheets

I have the podiatrist appointment at 9:00 this morning. I hope something can be done for my heel pain so that I can exercise again. My weight is skyrocketing. Not good.

I got the rowing machine from my brother the other day. I haven't been on it yet. My plan is to try it out today after my doctor's appointment. I hope I don't hate it as much as I remember hating it the last time I did it. I plan on setting it up in front of the TV which I'm hoping will help pass the time. Maybe I'll put some Paul videos on. It's always nice to watch young Paul singing My Love or Silly Love Songs. Yeah, that should help.

On another note, I was reading my fellow Fabbie Laura's blog and once again she mentioned that she fills out Richard's food sheets which mimics a food diary. She has always said that it helps her look at what and how she is eating. I have never been one for food diaries. Maybe it's because I don't really want to see what I am eating in writing or maybe I'm just lazy but either one of these two reasons is not good enough. I have to do something to stop the upward trend in my weight. I've made a momentous decision. OK, maybe not momentous but a decision none the less. I am going to download some of the food sheets from Richard's website and fill them out for a week and see how it goes. I probably should have picked a different week because my work schedule is going to be crazy for the next two weeks. One of my co-workers is going away and I have to fill in. Crazy week or not I am going to fill out some food sheets and really look at what I am eating. Maybe I really don't want to know.

Foot Trouble

My heel pain is back big time. I can't do any real exercise without feeling really bad pain either later that day or the next day. I finally decided to go to a podiatrist for help. I got some suggestions of good doctors from my Curves ladies and I looked them up on my insurance plan. I found one that is pretty close to home and on my insurance too. The only problem is that I won't be able to get in to see him until a week from Thursday. Consequently, that is my birthday. Happy birthday to me. I hope this guy can help me because if this doesn't stop not only will I weigh 900 pounds I'll be out of work. I am finding it increasingly difficult to stand on my feet for hours at Curves even when I am only working three days a week. Next week one of co-workers will be leaving for 10 days and I will have to work at least one shift each day. I am not looking forward to this.

I'm actually surprised how much I miss my daily exercise. I miss going to the track to walk each day especially during this beautiful weather. I miss doing a Richard Simmons video in my living room. At this point the only thing I can do is weight training which I am going to do today. I think I will work on my legs, chest and back. I did my biceps and triceps the other day. I'm hoping that I can keep my weight stable by working with weights even though I can't do any cardio.

Keep your fingers crossed for me.

High Blood Pressure

It's still dark as I post this blog entry. It won't be light for another half an hour or so yet and I don't go to the track in the dark. Too scary. Once it gets light out there will be people out there to keep me company.

High blood pressure this morning. 145/90. This is the highest it has been since I started taking my blood pressure meds. I don't know why but my pressure is always highest in the morning. I wake up and roll out of bed with the highest blood pressure of the day. You would think that sleeping wouldn't be stressful enough to raise my pressure but it does. I've been on Lisinopryl for about a month now and when I started taking it it worked really well and my pressure was low even in the morning. Little by little it has been rising but only in the morning. I've noticed that my pressure is high after a night of vivid dreams which I had last night. I dreamed about my dad who has been gone almost 25 years and I never dream about him. I'm not sure what that is all about.

I'm going to call my doctor today and ask him if maybe I should be taking the meds at night instead of first thing in the morning. Maybe that will work better. I'm sure my extra weight is not helping my blood pressure. That's always in the back of my mind too but I can't seem to do anything about it yet. As I posted in on our Fucking Agreement blog my food starts out great with healthy choices in the morning and degenerates into junk food and crap as the day goes on. I also need to exercise one or two more times a week. It's what I need to do for my health so why do I have so much trouble doing it?

Kerry's UT infection is back again and that worries the crap out of me. Bob(our doctor) told her to call him as soon as she feel any kind of symptoms and it started again yesterday. It seems that she is allergic to many of the meds that are prescribed for this so that's a problem along with the fact that she seems to be prone to these infections.I will be speaking to Bob about this too as she is in Gainesville and has classes all day.

Pat and Rigby are fine and that's really good. At least one half of the family has no issues.

Hey, Hey, I'm On My Way

I'm on my way. Yes I am. I got on the scale today and I saw 145.5! Yeah!! I really wanted to see 145 again and although there is a .5 attached to it I'm still there. I feel as if I am on the right track again. You know, there seems to be something that clicks inside of you when you are on track and I'm feeling that click. If I can stay the course I should be in the 130's in a few weeks. I would really love that. As I've often said 139.5 would be fine. For me, being in the 130's means I'm at my goal weight. It also means that my life is good. It seems that I can judge how my life is going by how much I weigh. Hummm.....

I know that ramping up my exercise is partially responsible for the downward moving scale. I have been going to the track and also doing a lot of yoga which although Richard doesn't consider it toning I sure do. I'm happy to say that I have continued my yoga practice even though Juliana has gone away for the whole summer. This is the first year that I have done this. I have been going to The Yoga Source which is a studio that offers all different kinds of yoga. I found Joy who teaches a wonderful Hatha Yoga class and I have really been enjoying her style of teaching.

Me in wheel pose

I have been posting on the clubhouse boards a lot more lately. I have been posting on the exercise boards and on Laura's thread every day. I always do well when I am consistently posting on Richard's website. It's good to keep in touch with others that are going through the same thing as me and the other Fabs in particular. I've been weighing in and posting it on Laura's thread. I've noticed that this keeps me on track. Bethy started her own thread there too. I hope it helps her. I'm not going to start my own thread. Someone needs to be there to answer everyone. :)

Hugging Richard

My eating has been really good too. I have been eating 3 meals and one or two snacks a day. Kerry being home has been a double edged sword. Having her around stops me from grazing and that has helped but Kerry likes ice cream at night and she loves to eat out and that is not good. I guess I just need to make a commitment to continue on the healthy lifestyle path and as my mentor Richard Simmons (and Nike) says just do it.

Why do I do these things?

OK. I have decided to get back on track....again. I stepped on the scale this morning and I am one pound away from a weight I haven't seen in a long time. Yes, I knew it as I was doing it. I know that I shouldn't be eating ice cream every night. I know I shouldn't be eating out all the time. I know I shouldn't be eating black and white cookies but I do these things anyway. Why is that, do you suppose? Why is it that even though I know I shouldn't be I am drinking the coffee with the crappy for you and caloric Hazelnut coffee creamer I do it anyway? Why do I do that? Why?

Why is it that I get up in the morning and the first thought I have is "What excuse can I use so I don't have to go to the track and exercise?" Why is that? Once I get there I actually enjoy my powerwalks. I love the music that I listen to (thanks Paul) and I love being outside in nature. I even enjoy being all smelly and sweaty when I am finished. Why would I not want to go? Why would I look for excuses? I even look for excuses to blow off yoga and you all know how much I love yoga. Why would I even think about not going?

Why would I not want to exercise here every day?

I need to exercise every day and eat more healthy food. I need to do these things so that I can bring down my marginally high blood pressure and cholesterol. I need to do these things so that I can fit into my clothes. I need to do these things so that I can be alive to see Kerry graduate medical school and become a doctor. I need to do these things so that I can enjoy my retirement years with Pat. I need to do these things so I can be here for my family and friends when and if they need me. I need to do these things to be happy.

One of my main reasons for stayng on track

So here I go again. Wish me luck.

Monday, Monday

It's Monday today. Back to work and back on track. I am down 5 of the 15 pounds that I had gained and I'm feeling good. I've been good with food and consistent with exercise. I went to the track this weekend as well and a Friday yoga class and a Saturday yoga workshop.

Making healthy food choices will be my challenge today as I have already been to the track and powerwalked 4 hot and sweaty miles. I will be moving tonight at Curves. It's all about the food today. It's all about the food every day. Oh yeah.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my blogging friends, Laura, Beth, Vennie and Ang. Your blogs give me motivation, make me laugh, and let me know that I am not alone.

Happy Birthday to you yesterday Bethy. I hope you had a great day. Laura, Vennie and Ang I love you all.

It's Great To Be Back

I am feeling much better about myself. Over the last few days I have been consistent with my exercise. I have been getting out of the house very early and that seems to be one of the keys to actually getting it done. On weekdays I get up with Pat at 5:30am. I have a cup of coffee with him and give him his goodbye hug, kiss and obligatory "wear your seatbelt both ways". Then I take Rigby aka The Criminal out for his early morning walk over to the pooping grounds. As soon as I get back in the house I MUST get dressed in my workout clothes, get my water and ipod together and get the hell out of there. If I sit down for another cup of coffee or boot up the computer I am dead meat. I won't go. I've also noticed that I actually fight with myself with an inner dialog of "OK, get up and go", "nah, I don't feel like it", "you've gotta go", "It looks like rain so I won't go". I go back and forth with myself from the moment I wake up until I actually find myself at the track walking. That's exactly what happened to me this morning. It happens every morning. Lately Good Claudia has been winning that fight.

Pat and I out for dinner

Rigby aka The Criminal

My eating habits have also been much better lately. I am sure most of that is due to the fact that The Kid came home on last Friday night. I always eat better when she is around. I'm not sure why that is and I must figure it out. I think it is partially due to the fact that I am not alone much any more. I have noticed being alone always causes food indiscretions. Is it boredom? Maybe. Is it loneliness? Maybe. I have also noticed that I am more willing to cook when Kerry is home. I actually make lunch instead of grazing from noon to dinner. I am sure this is part of my new found will power.

Kerry and Mac

Another decision that I made to help me get back on track was to start posting on the Richard Simmons boards again. I have been missing in action for a couple of months now. Actually, now that I say that I realize that I stopped posting right around the time that I started working. The ladies at work are very different from my Richard Simmons clubhouse friends. The ladies that I work with at Curves look to me for motivation. I go to my clubhouse friends for motivation. Its a different thing. I felt better after my first post on the boards. There is an accountability there that is not there at work and what a wonderful welcome back I received. I had no idea how much I was missed. Everyone was so happy to have me back and the PM's (private messages) were really wonderful. It is great to be back.

In LA with my mentor Richard Simmons

OK, so I've had some interesting revelations about myself and my behavior. I realize that I am really just a work in progress and I am progressing here and there. Now keeping it up......

Back in the saddle again

Lately I have not been going to the track as often as I should. I have used the excuse that I don't have to go because I work at Curves and get a lot of exercise there. While it is true that I work at Curves it is not true that I get that much real aerobic exercise while I am working. Usually, I am standing in the circle and moving but not enough to get my heart rate up and certainly not for the 50-60 minutes that I need to keep my weight under control. I have finally come to the realization that I need to go back to my old exercise habits and go to the track every day or at least 6 days a week. I started back on Wednesday and walked 3-4 miles every day so far.

My favorite place to exercise-"The Track"

I also have to start weight training in my home again. Yep, I stopped doing that too. I always found it easier to stick to my walking regiment than to the weekly weight lifting sessions. I know that yoga definitely helps with toning but it is not a substitute for 3 good, solid, hard, weight training sessions every week and I need to get back to that as well.

So.......I am here to say that I am getting back in the exercise saddle again. I have already started going to the track again and it feels great to be back. My attitude has improved and the scale is already moving in the downward direction albeit very slowly.

My weight training sessions will be starting today. I will be working my shoulders, chest and triceps with free weights while watching the Grey's Anatomy DVDs that the kid bought for me on my birthday. Oh yeah, I am totally addicted to Grey's but that's a subject for another blog. LOL

The cast of Grey's Anatomy

It feels great to be back in the saddle again. I guess I never should have gotten off the horse but we all have to learn our life lessons in our own way. I'll let you know how it goes.

Before And After

Any of us that have lived or are currently living in the diet world have "before" and "after" pictures. I know I do. They are still right there on Richardsimmons.com for the world to see along with a quick synopsis of my weight loss journey.

I started putting weight on when I was 9. My dad had opened an insurance agency and needed a full time secretary. He didn't have the money to pay someone to do it so my mom had to work full time for my dad.

Before Mom went to work I would come home from school and hang out with her. We would talk, have a snack, laugh, and go places together. I had been a happy kid. Once she started working I found myself alone after school. Looking back on it now I realize it was at this time in my life that I started to use food as company something that I continue to do on occasion to this day. I would eat from the time that I came home from school until Mom and Dad would get home for dinner. Once they got home and settled, we would all eat dinner. Needless to say I started gaining weight and a lot of it.

I continued my terrible eating habits well into adulthood until one day I woke up and there I was at 225 pounds taking Kerry to her first day at daycare. It's almost as if I didn't really see it until that day. That was the day I knew I was in trouble. I felt as if I was never going to lose weight. I felt like that was the way I was supposed to be. Fat!



Shortly after that day of self realization I saw a friend who had always been overweight come home from a year long stint at Duke University on the "Rice Diet". He had lost over 100 pounds. I was SO jealous I could hardly speak when I saw him. THAT was one of the two defining moments in my weight loss. I knew I had to do something and it had to be right then or I was doomed to be fat and jealous for the rest of my life.

That night I was watching TV and I saw Richard Simmons on an infomercial for Deal a Meal. I had been watching Richard on General Hospital and loved his tell it like it is kind of style. I decided to order his life plan that night. THAT was the second defining moment in my weight loss journey.

I jumped on the exercise and positive motivation parts of Richard's plan as soon as I received it. I just couldn't get a grip on the food. I found that just adding an hour of exercise every day made a big difference. I actually lost 21 pounds. Just by exercising. I was thrilled. So thrilled in fact that I wrote a letter to Richard just to say thanks (this was in the days of snail mail). Low and behold I received a reply from Richard himself. It was the beginning of a friendship that still means the world to me today.

After receiving a few letters from Richard I finally got my love of food somewhat under control. It took me over a year but with Richard's help, I lost my weight. I lost 95 pounds and I have kept it off for about 15 years with one brief relapse. It was hard but I did it and I did it the right way. Portion control and daily exercise. If you are reading this for motivation please know that you can do it too. If I can do it, anyone can do it. Oh by the way, in case you are wondering, my friend who had lost over 100 pounds on the rice diet gained all of his weight back and to this day is still very overweight.

I am happy to say that I have a really good after picture with or without Richard.


Tomorrow's blog will feature another before and after story complete with pictures

Outside Versus Inside

I am off today. Yay!! I say yay because I haven't been to the track since I started working last week. It took a week for me to get comfortable with my new schedule so when I woke up today I decided that today was going to be the day that I get back. Get back to where I once belonged.

I have been getting all of my exercise inside lately. Inside the gym at work, inside the yoga studio and inside my home. I had forgotten how much I love my walks at "the track".

It isn't really a track in the traditional sense. It's more of a walking park. It is one mile in length with each tenth of a mile marked off. This makes it easy if you want to incorporate some jogging into your workout. You can walk a tenth or two and then jog a tenth or two. That's what I usually do.

It is a gravel track which has allowed me to power walk consistently for over 15 years. My left knee is screwed from a motorcycle accident many years ago and power walking 4 miles every day would have been impossible if not for the gravel track. The pain would have been too great but the gravel makes the surface much more pliable and I don't feel much pain after walking.

It really is a beautiful place. It is a little piece of the country hidden in the hustle and bustle of Coral Springs. There are trees and plants growing all over. There is also a canal along the back of the park with turtles, ducks and fish living there. We even have 6 resident cats. They are always on the prowl for a lizard or stalking the ducks. We make sure the cats are very well fed. We don't want the ducks don't become sitting ducks for the cats.

It was cool this morning with clear skies. The air was crisp and clear. The birds were singing and the cats were waiting for Rose to come with their breakfast. As I was walking the sun was rising and the sky was turning from black to pink and orange and then blue. My music of choice for today was the soundtrack from The Beatles Love show. I suddenly realized that I had really missed this place that I call "the track" which is really named Ralph Diaz Memorial Park. I missed my outside exercise. I had decided that on working days I would skip the track as I don't want to burn myself out. I am rethinking that decision. I'm thinking that even if I am getting my exercise at work I should still be going to this place that helps my spirit fly. OK, outside wins.