Now, this is a PG rated blog so those that are overly sensual are not going get what you think you are....
Work has been difficult lately, being out of action with a false case of chicken pox, and other summer activities I haven't been exercising (or eating) the way I really want to. Some activities make up for it, like surfing for 2 and half hours until my arms and legs are raw and nearly bleeding from rubbing against the board, but not fully.
This morning I woke up early, stretched (which hurts now that I'm over 40), did some ab and back exercises, and then went for a run. I put my shuffle on under my shirt, started up a network security podcast, and began a slow jog through the early morning heat and humidity of southeastern VA.
Bliss.
It just felt amazing. Just 15 minutes, about a mile and a half. I needed it. I had been craving it for a while. No aches or pains, just a slow comfortable jog sweating bullets early in the morning. I won't say it is the best way to start the day...PG remember...but it certainly is a great way to start.
--
"Until you forget what you think you know and what you think is possible, you will never know what is truly attainable."
Friday, July 31, 2009
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Not Chicken Pox
But most likely chiggers. After a few days at home...which I needed...I still didn't have any other accompanying symptoms. I went back to the doctor and it appears chiggers is the most likely culprit. I have missed civilization! I am so happy to be able to go back out into public spaces!!!
My favorite cheese steak place, Philly Style Steak and Subs, has opened a new location just around the corner from me. It is called !GGLES though...so I didn't recognize it. Now I can go get one! :-)
SGG and I went on a hike at York River State Park Saturday. We figured it would be a good way to get out of the house and not really expose the public to what turned out not to be my illness. It is a really beautiful park on the York River. In addition to many miles of trails for hiking, they are supposed to be one of the top mountain bike destinations on the east coast. They also have trails for equestrian too. I saw a Bald Eagle fly past over the river, but SGG didn't believe me.
One of the beaches there is called Fossil Beach. They literally have thousands of fossils right on top of the sand there. They will let you take one. SGG found two predatory snail fossils so we took those. At one point we were sitting on a log just resting and the Bald Eagle I saw earlier dropped out of the tree it was in with a big WHOOSH, right over our heads. Every time the eagle flapped it's wings it made a loud whoosh sound. We don't see them very much around here and it was really cool to be so close to one in the wild. We saw some deer on the trail and a fawn on the way out of the park. No Chiggers this time.
York River offers canoeing and kayaking in the estuaries and on the river itself. Every two weeks they offer either a starlight kayak tour or a moonlight kayak tour. They also offer a guided fossil hike.
Explore your state parks, you may be amazed at what you find. Those of you that live close to national parks...I am envious!
Pictures
Slideshow
My favorite cheese steak place, Philly Style Steak and Subs, has opened a new location just around the corner from me. It is called !GGLES though...so I didn't recognize it. Now I can go get one! :-)
SGG and I went on a hike at York River State Park Saturday. We figured it would be a good way to get out of the house and not really expose the public to what turned out not to be my illness. It is a really beautiful park on the York River. In addition to many miles of trails for hiking, they are supposed to be one of the top mountain bike destinations on the east coast. They also have trails for equestrian too. I saw a Bald Eagle fly past over the river, but SGG didn't believe me.
One of the beaches there is called Fossil Beach. They literally have thousands of fossils right on top of the sand there. They will let you take one. SGG found two predatory snail fossils so we took those. At one point we were sitting on a log just resting and the Bald Eagle I saw earlier dropped out of the tree it was in with a big WHOOSH, right over our heads. Every time the eagle flapped it's wings it made a loud whoosh sound. We don't see them very much around here and it was really cool to be so close to one in the wild. We saw some deer on the trail and a fawn on the way out of the park. No Chiggers this time.
York River offers canoeing and kayaking in the estuaries and on the river itself. Every two weeks they offer either a starlight kayak tour or a moonlight kayak tour. They also offer a guided fossil hike.
Explore your state parks, you may be amazed at what you find. Those of you that live close to national parks...I am envious!
Pictures
Slideshow
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
And....
I have chicken pox.
My best guess on how I contracted it is the theater I saw Transformers 2 in.
So I am working from home, not scratching anything, and trying to get better fast. It doesn't appear to be too severe....and I REALLY hope that doesn't change.
My best guess on how I contracted it is the theater I saw Transformers 2 in.
So I am working from home, not scratching anything, and trying to get better fast. It doesn't appear to be too severe....and I REALLY hope that doesn't change.
Someone I would like you to meet....
Percy is a 12 year old boy in Sixth Grade. He has some learning disabilities. ADHD and Dyslexia are chief amongst them. He has never known his father, and his mother has raised him since his birth. He lives in New York City. He has been kicked out of every school he has ever been in.
He doesn't sound like some kind of hero...
Percy is the main character in an amazing series of books that are called Percy Jackson and the Olympians. The first book is "The Lightning Thief" and the author is Rick Riordan.
Like many kids with issues, Percy isn't meaning to get into trouble, but for some reason he can't stay out of it. He really wants to do well, and he really wants to please his mom. Fortunately, she knows the source of his problems and loves him no matter what happens.
You see, Percy is the son of a Greek God, and what we interpret as impediments are really characteristics of his supernatural nature.
Rick Riordan has done an absolutely incredible job with this series. He has masterfully woven Greek Mythology into the modern world and created an amazing story. In the process he may be helping a lot of children regain some self esteem. Children with ADHD spend a lot of time in trouble. They really mean to do well, but often cannot control their impulses. Any child with ADHD will immediately identify very closely with Percy, the quandaries he finds himself in, and the expected punishment to follow. Percy gets bullied and punished a lot.
My son started reading the book to me out loud in the car and was cracking up saying things like "Who does that remind you of Dad?" And he is right, it did remind me of him.
Rick is able to then turn those traits from problems into assets as Percy realizes his true heritage and his destiny.
These books are great for any middle school child and I highly recommend all five. You may even be tempted to read them yourself, but I would warn you against it. You may find yourself drawn into the story and strangely unable to put the books down.
He doesn't sound like some kind of hero...
Percy is the main character in an amazing series of books that are called Percy Jackson and the Olympians. The first book is "The Lightning Thief" and the author is Rick Riordan.
Like many kids with issues, Percy isn't meaning to get into trouble, but for some reason he can't stay out of it. He really wants to do well, and he really wants to please his mom. Fortunately, she knows the source of his problems and loves him no matter what happens.
You see, Percy is the son of a Greek God, and what we interpret as impediments are really characteristics of his supernatural nature.
Rick Riordan has done an absolutely incredible job with this series. He has masterfully woven Greek Mythology into the modern world and created an amazing story. In the process he may be helping a lot of children regain some self esteem. Children with ADHD spend a lot of time in trouble. They really mean to do well, but often cannot control their impulses. Any child with ADHD will immediately identify very closely with Percy, the quandaries he finds himself in, and the expected punishment to follow. Percy gets bullied and punished a lot.
My son started reading the book to me out loud in the car and was cracking up saying things like "Who does that remind you of Dad?" And he is right, it did remind me of him.
Rick is able to then turn those traits from problems into assets as Percy realizes his true heritage and his destiny.
These books are great for any middle school child and I highly recommend all five. You may even be tempted to read them yourself, but I would warn you against it. You may find yourself drawn into the story and strangely unable to put the books down.
Thursday, July 09, 2009
Summer stuff....
Surfing.....
Sometimes it is the way the ocean looks. It is different in the morning, afternoon, and evening.
Sometimes it is the Dolphins.
Sometimes it is the big or little fish jumping. The minnows sometimes land on my board.
Sometimes it is the Pelicans flying high formations or skimming the water like bombers.
Sometimes it is the Ospreys.
Sometimes it is the taste of salt water, or the residue of it later on my lips.
Sometimes it is that crusty feeling of dried salt all over my body.
Sometimes it is the smell of ocean and sand.
Sometimes it is the feel of the warm grainy water all over my body and the way I float and move in it.
Sometimes it is the sense of euphoria when I am physically exhausted at the end, strange as it sounds.
Sometimes it is because I feel like a sea otter in the waves.
It is always because of the way I feel when I have paddled the board just enough to get caught in the awesome power of an ocean wave. The way the board picks up speed as though pushed by Poseidon himself. The way everything becomes a blur and the wind whips past. The balance of the board, leaning for a turn, crouching, trailing a hand in the wave, pumping for a little more speed, the sense of accomplishment if I make it long enough to ride the second break, and sometimes even the ability to walk back and forth on the board.
Evenings on the beach are always so tranquil. One night SGG and I danced in that space where it isn't quite ocean and not quite land. Truthfully, it was because I herded a crab straight at her. :-)
Chichos at 29th street has a band, $1 slices of pizza, and $5 pitchers of watered down beer on Monday evenings. It also has a couple of the volleyball teams when we finish playing on the beach. Chichos is 20 blocks from where we play volleyball. We had to walk 20 blocks back too. I'll bring some water next week....or drive. :-)
Piano lessons for me are back in full swing. I'm going to conquer the metronome and eighth notes. Had I been seriously playing and practicing the last six months it wouldn't be a problem...but I haven't. However, I have really missed it and I'm mad I let it drop for a bit.
Lots of changes happening at work. I think they will all be good changes, it will be a little difficult in the short term though.
I don't really get to go on week or longer vacations at points during the year, so I try to make a little vacation/fun time each day. Besides, you don't even know if you have a tomorrow until it becomes a yesterday so try to make the most of moments you have right now.
Sometimes it is the way the ocean looks. It is different in the morning, afternoon, and evening.
Sometimes it is the Dolphins.
Sometimes it is the big or little fish jumping. The minnows sometimes land on my board.
Sometimes it is the Pelicans flying high formations or skimming the water like bombers.
Sometimes it is the Ospreys.
Sometimes it is the taste of salt water, or the residue of it later on my lips.
Sometimes it is that crusty feeling of dried salt all over my body.
Sometimes it is the smell of ocean and sand.
Sometimes it is the feel of the warm grainy water all over my body and the way I float and move in it.
Sometimes it is the sense of euphoria when I am physically exhausted at the end, strange as it sounds.
Sometimes it is because I feel like a sea otter in the waves.
It is always because of the way I feel when I have paddled the board just enough to get caught in the awesome power of an ocean wave. The way the board picks up speed as though pushed by Poseidon himself. The way everything becomes a blur and the wind whips past. The balance of the board, leaning for a turn, crouching, trailing a hand in the wave, pumping for a little more speed, the sense of accomplishment if I make it long enough to ride the second break, and sometimes even the ability to walk back and forth on the board.
Evenings on the beach are always so tranquil. One night SGG and I danced in that space where it isn't quite ocean and not quite land. Truthfully, it was because I herded a crab straight at her. :-)
Chichos at 29th street has a band, $1 slices of pizza, and $5 pitchers of watered down beer on Monday evenings. It also has a couple of the volleyball teams when we finish playing on the beach. Chichos is 20 blocks from where we play volleyball. We had to walk 20 blocks back too. I'll bring some water next week....or drive. :-)
Piano lessons for me are back in full swing. I'm going to conquer the metronome and eighth notes. Had I been seriously playing and practicing the last six months it wouldn't be a problem...but I haven't. However, I have really missed it and I'm mad I let it drop for a bit.
Lots of changes happening at work. I think they will all be good changes, it will be a little difficult in the short term though.
I don't really get to go on week or longer vacations at points during the year, so I try to make a little vacation/fun time each day. Besides, you don't even know if you have a tomorrow until it becomes a yesterday so try to make the most of moments you have right now.
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