Then a fabulous afternoon!

OH what a great day this turned out to be.

Kayaking in Smith Lake

I love to have these different adventures during my day---  all sorts of them.  Now some people may just think of this as "life" or "the weekend" but I like to frame my days in terms of adventures....  because that is what  a joyful person such as moi likes to do.  

Little cabin in the woods

I was really happy to have my good friend the Mad-Science teacher come and visit and go for a walk.  I gave her a mostly complete tour of the ranch, but for actually entering the Way-Back field (as opposed to the field and the back field) and the Pine Plantation.  Mostly she wanted to see the cabin.  

woods road

She was very impressed with it, which the MA was pleased to hear, and I hope she and her hubby can come back soon where they can be given a detailed account of the making of it by someone who paid attention, which was not me most of the time.  HAHA.  

Retaining wall by the cabin

She loved the stone fence thing here and all various pieces of craftsmanship that have gone into it.  I guess it is fine, but I really preferred the rustic path up to the cabin that was there before....  but since it is not mine (HA well technically it truly is, but that is another story)- I guess I should say that I don't feel a lot of ownership in it, it's all good.  I also say that if one is going to nag at ones spousal unit about taking cabin photos, one should clear the crap off of one's porch so it looks picturesque and photo worthy, but someone is not a particularly visual person so he doesn't see that sort of thing.  

Anyway, it was so nice to walk with someone!!  And no bugs and no mosquitos (which are their own category of irritating) and lots of singing birds and of course the spring peepers.

So!  Back to my adventures:  I got to kayak!!  It was a perfect day, even if a little windy.  And yes the water was cold and I was careful.  I got a wetsuit to wear so I can go this early for my paddles, and I did not regret having that on at all.  It was plenty warm, but I wasn't too hot.  I did get really thirsty, and I am glad I had water.  Turns out when I took it off, the suit was soaking wet.  Go figure, right?  Lol. 

I did find myself starting off with some major claustrophobia, as this thing - as it is supposed to be- is tight!!  and right up around my neck.  eeeeekkkk!!  I have issues.  But as I was sloshing around in the water, with my crocs and my little neoprene booties I was surely grateful for the protection.

This is not nearly as cute as my bare feet sticking up out of my kayak!  

Paddling was just awesome.  To be out in the quiet - NO boats were out- and all of the wildlife that I tried to sneak up on to with no luck.  I saw lots of ducks- Mallards, wood ducks, mergansers and some others I couldn't see well enough, but that was in flight.  Now that I have a feel for where they hang out, I will be prepared for them.  And I will try to be even more quiet....  I can be if I want.  And I thought I was, but they must sense the vibrations or something.

I cannot begin to describe the peace that I feel on the water or the way that my muscles immediately remember what has to be done.  My brain slips into a calm that happens very rarely, and I never have the thoughts of being insufficient, or that I am not doing enough for myself or others, or worrying about things that I have no control over.  It is the perfect meditation and I am in my artistic zone.

Getting a new camera is a blessing and a curse.  When I see something I want to just capture the image, and not have to stop a moment to remind myself to check the settings and figure out which button to use to change the f-stop, or all the things that are not quite automatic yet.  The blessing is that the images that are emerging from this camera make me smile.  And my new editing program is absolutely amazing.

But I still do have this wonderful phone camera that doesn't let me down either- sometimes I just have to use it for the speed!  

Smith Lake county Park

I got off the flowage after just and hour and 20 minutes as the wind amped up and I decided to call it an afternoon.  It was a lovely thing, but sometimes you just have to know when to say when.  The good news is that today I am picking up my new baby kayak!!!  And so people who want to go 'yaking with me- I have a second one meow!!!  And I have dry bags, PFDs, paddles and may (if I have something in the house) provide snacks as well  Lol.

So, after returning the MA's truck to him and found that he was going to be gone AGAIN until 8 or 9 pm (I don't care if you think I am being selfish and uncaring- I'm tired of tax season.  And he gets lots of sympathy, so don't have too much pity, lol)  I put out a pathetic text to my mad-second son and asked when a good time to come over would be!!  I miss those babies, and haven't seen Greg and Sarah for a couple weeks and I missed their faces.  As well as needed some company.  So the next adventure: holding babies and playing with Greggy!!

Ruthie!!   

A typical Oswald type day- get all the projects started!

This child is obsessed with tractors!!

I got to see the animals and pet the doggies and see the new berry patch being fenced in....  just so much fun to hang out with them for a while.

Anyway, that was my good day yesterday- I am thrilled to say that I do not feel the effects of kayaking in the LEAST.  I am so grateful for the school gym and my weight lifting- it really gives me the ability to do whatever I want and do it well- well at least well enough!  So off to a new day, it is about time for me to go get the truck, pick up some tax returns from the Phillips office, get my new kayak and pick out some accessories for it, get horse feed, and then get home for lunch.  Lol!  Ambitious I know. #haveanadventure

But that is the joy of the weekends and spring!

1000

A couple days ago I sort of quietly did something for the 1000th time.  That thing is an activity on Runkeeper, which is an app on my phone that I installed quite a long time ago, really.  I have covered a lot of ground, really, and if every one of those thousand posts was for walking or moving forward in some way, I would have covered a lot more ground.  I keep track of my weight lifting on it too.

So let's say that I am not a big numbers person, which I am not.  I can fiddle around with numbers in my head and have some success, but I still have to set up percentages by using the whole numerator/denominator thing, and things like that.  I CAN do the math, but seriously I just don't want to.  Hahaha.  I got through trig in High school and then got out of math as a second semester senior with my life and gradepoint intact.  I prefer to leave that sort of thing to - oh, I don't know- let's say an accountant who is comfortable with that stuff.  :) I have said for years, that is why God gave me an accountant, so I don't have to ever  EVER in my life worry about things like tax forms.  shudder.

However, if you REALLY know me, you know that there is definitely a geeky person that lies deep within.  If allowed to rise to the surface this person likes to play around with things like computers, and know scientificky thing (yes that is a word, shut up) and gasp- enjoy interacting with mathematics..... PLEASE do not tell the "MadArtTeacher" that, she gets a little antsy and her eye starts to twitch.  This person can get carried away and wants to live in a world full of numbers that used to make so much difference to her, and she did find out recently that they really don't matter...

Anywho, back to Runkeeper.  #1000 activity.  I find it pleasing that I did a walk on that activity, because it is certainly the way I began.  It seems like something cool like a kayak would have been in order but it is November, though until this morning, November forgot what she is supposed to be acting like.  No, it was just an ordinary walk, that I shoved into the period of time between school and sunset, which is getting distressingly shorter and shorter.  But we do all know that will change in about 6 weeks, so its all good.

Numbers to go with the free version of Runkeeper- I have fought off the urge, successfully, to pay for the Runkeeper elite that will tell me all sorts of cool things, that I really do not need to know and really, again, do not matter.  My first activity was only a 2 mile walk, or else I did not finish the walk or had some sort of issue with the app- idk.  It was in June of 2011, and I was way worried about all sorts of numbers.  Since then I have traveled 3,239 miles, burned 373,000 official calories, have gone through at least 8 or 9 pairs of really expensive shoes,  overtrained myself into: an ouchy knee, carpal tunnel and possibly a broken limb or two; plus gained a lot of confidence and entered into some really fun events and activities that include hiking, biking, and kayaking.

I do not use Runkeeper for the numbers anymore, I use it to keep track of where I have been through posting the event and taking pictures.  I have referred to the app several times to remember what adventure I went on and when.  Fortunately or not, I almost never venture off on a walk or hike without the app running, I hope that didn't annoy too many people.  I have it totally muted now, except if I decide to use music.  I do not have the pace cues, I do not have a trainer in my ear telling me to do whatever, I only have it to mark where I am via satellite for future use.  It is a relief to not be worrying about whether these calories being burned are enough for the food that I ate on any given day, because it just doesn't matter.  I am not my weight, nor do I reward or punish myself with exercise.  I am me and not a number.

What I am, that is amazing, is a much fitter person than I was in June of 2011.  By fit I mean that I can pretty much do what I want to- I can hike where I want, including up any landform that I would be brave enough to climb on (granted that is somewhat limited by the terror factor), bike and kayak.  I am game for most any physical activity, and I can do it without a lot of whining..... though there are those that might argue that fact!  :)  Am I as in "good of shape" as I was at the height of my obsessing over numbers, why yes I am, I am just not as light!  And I am so so fine with that.  At any given time I may be a little heavier, lighter, stronger weaker, have amazing cardio-vascular endurance or not, but I am not worried about that at all.  Except for broken things, I worry these days about not breaking things.

Runkeeper has taught me many things, well sort of.  I am using it as a metaphor I suppose.  I have learned that I can walk literally all day long if I need to.  I have learned, though I knew it deep inside, that I am NOT a runner.  Running seems to be held up to all as the standard for all truly worthy people to be working on, but that is such bull shit.  ugh.  Save your knees people, unless you are one of those people who really ARE able to do it without constant injury, why abuse yourself like that?  If you are, yay for you, but if you are not, do what you like, not what the rest of the world thinks you should like.  I won't credit Runkeeper for making me realize that I am a really good weightlifter, I am going to thank my amazing friends from the former Triple B gym for that, and of course me, because I kept at it and still love it so much.

But you can not disregard ill-advised activities that you have gone through to get to where you are right now.  I have done many things that I will not do again, but that doesn't mean I wish I wouldn't have done them.  That is a bit of a waste of time, don't you think?  I am so glad, though, that now I am getting my activity doing the things I love to do.  Because beating the crap out of yourself for the sake of getting exercise, especially if you detest that activity (yes I am talking to you elliptical), well that is crazy and I won't do it any more.

I have deleted all of the "fitness", "health" and "weightloss" apps off of my phone.  They and their numbers are not important to me any more.  But I do hold onto my Runkeeper.  It reminds me of the journey I have been on and the people I have been with and the amazing things that I have done, and will record the cool things I plan to do in the future.  Book Across the Bay, I am headed your way!!

Find the joy  in your day today, and be a joy GIVER for heavens sakes, it is Friday after all.  Though I don't think you should wait for any particular day to give that joy away.  They all work equally as well.  Rock on every one and MWAH!

Snowmobile trail walking and the perils within...

Now before you get all worked up, the perils of walking on a snowmobile trail did not in the least involve a snow mobile.  And also, there wasn't much actual peril, but it got YOUR attention, didn't it?! Let me go back.....

Well, it wasn't sunny today, unfortunately!

I headed out for my walk today about 8:30 or so, and I headed to the west to The Outhouse bar on the corner of E and B, which is where I take a right to be able to walk past my beloved Stone House.  The Stone House, by the way, is kinda inaccessible, because the snow is ridiculously deep.  I have learned my lesson from snow shoeing and don't plan on tromping through possible hip deep snow without snow shoes.  And even then it might be a bit dicey.  Anyway, I was trucking along, watching my feet almost the whole time, with full intention of hitting Maple Ridge road, go right and complete the loop and head home on Hwy E.  This would be about 5 miles and easily fill my desire to do some distance walking, in  preparation for this.

As I was walking along, having to be very careful to keep an eye out for cars and an eye out for slippery spots on the road, I did not see, until I heard her shouting, my neighbor Rita.  The ear buds were in and I was enjoying one of my awesome playlists that I got from my friend the Mad-Marathoner Samara.  So I stopped to chat with Rita, who was over on the snowmobile trail about 20 or 30 feet off the road.  She was telling me how fun it was to go on the trail, and the days that the groomer went through (Thursday and/or Friday) , and therefore which days were best for walking on the trails (Friday, Saturday and Sunday).  She told me that I just needed to catch the trail over on Mapleridge (to the left instead of the right) and then walk through the beautiful woods etc.  Of course I know the area and so mapped out in my mind where the rest of the trail was, including the part that runs right through our property. She described in detail the path between where we were standing and my house, and this was DOABLE.  Well this is pretty cool, she assured me that the walking was good and she and I went on our way!  Awesome, right?  I LOVE finding new places to walk.  And of course you-know-who has her cameras with her!!!!!  WA HOO.

Stone house from a different angle

Well I get over to MapleRidge and hit the trail and it is just gorgeous. The trails go through the properties of various people and you get to see things that you don't ordinarily. You go through areas that would be wood tick and mosquito ridden in the spring and summer, and besides, most property, including ours, is not accessible during the rest of the year.  The woods are wonderful, the trail is groomed and I start walking.  My issue at first, as was the entire walk, are the big clunky boots I am wearing for traction.  It is hard to get proper ankle flexion and so it is hard to attain any speed.  Besides my ankles, and hip flexors were a bit fatigued from the snow shoeing yesterday, but wah.  whatever debi.  Anyway, the thing that didn't occur to me and Miss Rita neglected to point out is that the snowmobile trails are HILLY.  I mean HILLY, man. Which ordinarily I would have been all over and celebrating for the extra calorie burn......  oy. And then of course there is the trail which gets ruffled up from the machine tracks- and yeah that makes for interesting walking.  Step step slip step slip.....

I love that there is this little bit of color left from when the house held some life.

So I was following Ritas footsteps, because she was picking through and finding the areas with best traction and all.  This was good, Rita was still in my good graces for getting me on this new route, and then as I crossed the one road and set off for the next section of trail, Rita's footprints (with her dog's tracks as well) are no where to be seen.  Apparently Rita knows what the next section is like and stayed on the road then!  Thanks a LOT!!  LOL. It was HILLY again and I encountered some machines, which was fine, and I strayed off the trail like by a foot's width and wham. Down I went up to my MID THIGH.  The misleading things is that the snow that is soft and the snow that is groomed are the same height, weirdly and cruelly.  So yeah, don't get off trail to text someone or you will find yourself suddenly up to your tushie in snow.  And then you have wet pant legs.  Between the slow gait, the picture-taking, the new route and blah blah blah, I was out there for 2 HOURS and 5 minutes- WHEW!!!!

So, I am in reality grateful to Rita, as this will be a lot of fun.  There are tons of possibilities for routes and variations on that theme, but I need to rethink my footwear.  Tennies might be better with a few pairs of socks.  Idk, I'll try some things out.  I have to remember that this won't be a fast walk, more for endurance and it really does give you a workout with all the little foot slips and balance readjustments.

This is the house that is across from the Stone house

 My day was totally thrown off from what I had stated earlier.  I got home much later than I thought I would, so I decided to hold off on the gym until tomorrow, go upstairs and clean a while (it was a good thing to do!), then go back to the cabin on snowshoes (I question my sanity sometimes) and then whip up a yummy Enchilada Casserole that has black beans and butternut squash.  HOLY SMOKES was that ever good!  I have plenty of goodies to eat this week!  YES!

So, I think I need to go get my stuff ready for tomorrow, as we do not have a day off for MLK day. We have a Records Day this Friday, which amazingly enough means that the school year is half over.  HOLY CRAP.  It is always nice to have things ready to roll in the morning, and I am thinking a skirt or dress might be in order, as the rest of the week is supposed to be getting colder.... surprise surprise.  But that's what winter is in WI, and I will try my best to find some joy.

Walking and shooting and things going on

This was a bit of a monochromatic weekend, as you can see by the pictures here!  I did notice the sun was out while I was in the gym (of course it was) but by the time I got home, threw on additional layers of clothes and clicked into the snowshoes- it was gone.  Oh well.  It was OVER 0 so that was a plus.  In fact, I ended up changing my clothes a lot as I really did get pretty sweaty- under all those wind proof outer layers.  It was a pleasant change of pace.

The MA and I went snowshoeing on Saturday night and I have absolutely no pix of that as I left the phone by accident in the house and I am such a putz getting all of my stuff on anyway, I didn't want to take the time to go get it.  We used the head lamps that the kids gave us and off we tromped around the field.  We have a really nice trail made, so the snowshoeing will continue!  

The other interesting thing I did this weekend was take a concealed carry class.  I debated about telling people this, and did not post it on facebook.  But as this was my decision and it affects no one else in the world (well other than the guy who has all the ammunition!) I thought it was somewhat blog worthy!  :) My main motivation is not fear of people- it is fear of walking in remote areas with lions and tigers and bears, oh my!  Seriously.  I am assuming I will never use it, but I am practicing so at least if I have to I will accomplish what I need to.  I do enjoy the target practice.  It is pretty fun to be able to improve my aim in a very short time.  I am apparently a pretty quick study.  

The other shooting I did this weekend is I FINALLY WENT FOR A LONG WALK!!!  and of course that involved a camera as well.  I MISSED the stone house and my favorite tree so much!!  It has been at least 6 weeks, but I think more, since I have walked on the road.  Winter has not been kind for that.  It hit hard and with a vengeance.  If the weather wasn't terribly cold, the roads were awful.  Things shaped up out there quite a bit with 2 days of just barely above freezing.  YES!  

I made sure I got pictures of my landmarks, plus included here are a couple from snowshoeing. The house from across the field is quite fetching, and then the MA likes it when I take cabin pictures.  I don't think he has ever even seen this blog, other than the rare times I show him something on it, so he won't see the cabin here, I'd venture to guess. BUT I try to get it on facebook occasionally.  Makes him feel important and proud.  Lol, he and the Barber are working on bed frames for the cabin now.  Busy little beavers that they are.

My pretty grey house and the garden shed

Little cabin in the woods

Favorite tree 

The old abandoned house across from the stone house

Stone house

I really wanted to hike up the side of the hill to get up by the house, but it really is deep snow.  REALLY DEEP However, I have a feeling that will not work next time.  I want to get up there again and shoot it in that snow.

I am in "training" with my snow shoes for the "Book Across the Bay" from Ashland to Washburn in a month.  It is a walk/run across Lake Superior- which scares the heck out of me. But I'm going to do it!! So I am needing to get in some long walks to repair my endurance and work on the snowshoes for the muscles needed.  I like the idea of this bookin', I will be a skeered skeeter when I am walking though!!

I got in a lot of activity today, sort of like I used to when I was losing.  I have definitely let myself relax in that whole obsessive watching every morsel I eat and exercise until I want to drop thing. It was awesome to get such a great workout - I truly love it.  I just question this whole idea of starving yourself to become a replica of things/people that are randomly chosen as ways that you are supposed to be and ways  you are supposed to look.  It seriously breaks my heart when sweet, wonderful people are hurting because they don't live up to an ideal that is in their head when they are strong, gorgeous, handsome, amazing, intelligent people. WHY do you need to be 120 instead of 130?  Who came up with this idea that you should exercise for HOURS a day and then not go home and feed your hunger??  How is this logical?  If you have kicked your own ass and had a great workout and you are so starving that you are weak and desperate, I think you should be eating something, the hell with the number on the scale.  Obsession is a wicked, insidious thing. It still haunts me.  Scale obsession lives deep inside me.  I have not stood on a scale since my last major weight freakout.  A lot of things have happened since then, I have come to terms with this idea or at least come to my senses and I am very happy not to know.  It is my way of coping and it is my way of being at peace.  I have been told that it is just a number and I agree- TOTALLY- but I am not able to be happy with or at least not care about whatever that number may be.  Ignorance is bliss for me in this regard.

We are still the same people no matter what we weigh.  I know I may be more self confident, but I am the essence of me still.  I am still the same person who gets distracted by clouds, who loves photography, children, art, animals, smiles, sunshines and lions, reading and gardening and food and cooking.  And whether I am one weight or another really makes no difference. Our character and the way we treat others is far more important than any physical trait that we might have.  I'm having one of those reflective moments apparently!  This type of subject has been rolling around in my mind for quite a while and it has the need to be mentioned again.

But I am beginning to get sleepy now and while there is more to be said - I don't think I am capable of continued coherence.  If I ever had that in the first place.

Anyway, I have to be off to dream land- so I hope that this day has brought you some joy and that you brought some joy and smiles to others!

Slow down and take another look....

Every so often I face one of those "hang on a second" moments in life.  This particular one occurred during the busiest time of my year- and that of course is play season.  It is a perfect storm of painting, practice, long, LONG performance days, the end of the third quarter, imminent art shows and frequently, Easter for good measure.  I, like the silly thing I am, thought nothing of adding in a full livingroom renovation as well.  You throw in day to day life and it's challenges and joys, and you have someone who set herself up for a set back and that would be back to back viruses in my case.  

I got to lay on my bed, highly uncomfortable and sleeping fitfully- without a TV for noise or company, I might add- for an entire day while my kids went on stage without me.  It was an instructive moment in time, no one (not even me) is irreplaceable.  It made me still my mind, slow down my body and gave me a chance to sort of pull my self together, as I was not really together at all.  I have rethought some things that I have going on and have noticed a shift in my priorities and some of my ways of thinking.  

Not a week later, I found myself coming down with a rhinorvirus and I was ticked.  I had had an enjoyable break, but it was far from relaxing.  And to find myself getting sick with a cold on the Friday before Easter was deflating.  No wonder I was not feeling the ambition to clean up the house after The Builder finished it on Wednesday.  Again, I had no choice but to cut my exercise back and get done only what I absolutely needed to, and let the Mad Middle son and his lovely wife Sarah Jane take over the food on Saturday while I sat from my sniffling throne, half heartedly offering suggestions and basically not caring what was going on.  We got part of the livingroom stuff hung on the walls, and that was a job well done.

I was barely functioning this past week, though I felt better each day, I still had little energy to get through my workouts and certainly did not do nearly as much as usual.  But again, I found some hidden silver linings to this; I got to hang out in my beautiful livingroom and really rest and relax.  I was able to turn my attention to a few things that I hadn't had time to for a while.  And I again had time to rethink a few things that I have going on and am adjusting my reactions to them.  

So I was apparently primed for looking at things from a different angle again, and I spotted an opportunity during my sunny Thursday walk to the Stone House.  I had wanted to get over there for a few days, we had I think 4 days of sunny all strung together in a row, and I had planned to get there every day, but finally GOT there on Thursday.  It was sunny but COLD out, my hands did not warm up for 2 miles. 

Along the way...

In a swamp

I was searching for a different point of view, but that is difficult as I was not willing to walk up the bank in knee deep snow.  I had my tennies on and did not feel the need to get my feet wet with a 35 minute walk home. 

BUT an idea occurred to me - I noticed the snowmobile trail that crosses the road just North of the corner of Hwy E and B.  Even though I pass by that trail all the time, it came to me that I could and should walk on that trail.  It was the perfect time to do it- still frozen and snowy, but not deep and not too slushy.  AND it would lead straight up to that other old house that is across from the Stone House. And I did not quite anticipate the awesome change of the familiar that I was about to see!  I love this viewpoint- the hill that leads up to this old place is fairly steep and makes for an interesting shot, I think at least!

Notice the stone house and this one in the same shot!  

All these shots just demanded a little moody editing.

The snowmobile trail was a little jaunt off my usual path, and one that was welcome and instructive.  I solidified some thoughts that I had been pondering, allowed me to see things again from another side. I tend to get caught up in the whirlwind that is the MadArtTeacher and forget to stop and enjoy the view!  And then take pictures of it!

Even the ducks are standing around waiting for the snow to melt on their resident pond

Spring melt- looking down

And then I noticed this reflection in my camera's view screen and turned my lens up!

I am hoping the weather clears up this afternoon so I can take my camera and go looking for my joy.  I need it.  I have to find it.  And I am sure spring is coming.

Snow-shoe baby!!!! Picture post

I LOVE to snow-shoe!!!  It is a fantastic exercise and it gives me the mode of transportation that is right up my alley- walking, nature, raising the heart-rate, as I go for the deeper snow, not any sort of trail.....  I don't listen to music when I snowshoe usually, as I like to listen to the woods and the sounds or lack there of.

I get my gear together which includes my camera and not as many clothes as when I go on the road.  The forest has much more cover and the terrain makes me warm fast- I have found an unexpected thing that is pretty awesome too!  My hiking boots that I purchased from eBay last year, ones that were slightly tight and a touch too small, are now PERFECT!  Who'd have ever thought that I would have skinny feet???  I also could get in and out of the snowshoes so much easier. Stronger legs?  More agility?  Just used to it?  Idk, but I was really pleasantly surprised just getting dressed and outfitted.

YAY for snowshoes!

Heading out

In the way-back field

It had snowed here a few days ago, so I had my little point and shoot camera with me, and depending on the weather I might take my SLR out today.  We will see what that next winter front is going to be doing.

And the walk is done

So here is a nice selection of lovely winter photos, including one kinda cool spooky full moon picture from Friday night.

spooky moon

Instagram sunrise

So to quote one of my favorite blogs in the world- Here is your pretty for the day, kittens.

I hope to add to the pretty later today!  And I WILL be finding some joy.

Until next time, be a joy giver, and remember - DON'T sweat the small stuff, and you guys, really, it is all pretty much small stuff.  ;)