June 2012

My biggest strength and my biggest weakness are one in the same. ADHD

I think I was probably born running from one thing to the next wanting to see it all, testing every boundary, and needing to know “why” about everything.

I have never been very good at the balancing act of life.

At the age of 50 (following some really high blood pressure readings and depression) I decided it was time to figure it all out. I am not saying I ever actually will, but perhaps I can get a bit closer if I approach it with the same passion that I do everything else.

Yes, I would like to lose some weight, but I am not really dieting.

See, I have been on a gazillion diets over the last 10 years or so and failed every single time. The fact is, I don’t just like chocolate, I absolutely LOVE it. I just really never want to be that person that can’t enjoy an iced coffee at Starbucks now and then, or have an ice cold Smirnoff Ice after a good old fashioned Texas BBQ on a hot summer day just because it isn’t on my diet.

So what is the answer for me?

It’s that balancing act I have been talking about.

It’s about making choices.

It’s okay to enjoy eating at a BBQ but you don’t need to refill your plate. It’s okay to have a cold one at the end of a hot summer day, just don’t choose to have a dang 12 pack! I don’t actually count calories, but I am making myself aware of them so that my choices are more educated.

Walking is helping me find balance. With every step I take, I feel the stress and depression lifting. There are those who may say that I am going overboard with the daily walking, but ya know what? It’s working for me, so I am going to keep it going for now. Why? I kinda like living. I think I would like to do it for another 50 years. 🙂

Life is good…

20,782 steps taken today
8.39 miles traveled today
20 laps water jogging

I was losing the light fast and still didn’t have my picture for the 30 day challenge.

I was tired and more than a little hungry.

It would have been so easy to turn around and go back home. In fact, the little voice in my head was daring me, all the while assuring me that I had already done “good enough” for the day. I was soooooo tempted.

Didn’t I deserve a break and maybe some chocolate?

And then I saw that stupid little bird staring at me.

He was sitting on the reserved parking sign mocking me. It was as if he was telling me, to go ahead and go back home as long as I didn’t mind the fact that I would end up needing that parking spot if I didn’t keep focused on getting physically fit.

I cranked up the tunes and kept on walking.

I exceeded my goal today and that is more than good enough.

18,121 steps taken today
7.32 miles traveled today

“I don’t know where I’m going, but I’m on my way.”  Carl Sagan

Several years back, while swimming in the Gulf of Mexico, I got totally slammed by a huge wave. In a moment of panic, I couldn’t figure out which way was up or down. My heart was pounding and my lungs were aching for air. When I finally let go of the fight and relaxed, the wave brought me back to the top and into the sunshine.

I think maybe life is a little bit like that giant wave.

Perhaps sometimes we need to let go and just be…

As with most things in life, I started to over think the photo challenge to take one photo a day for 30 days. I wanted to have this fabulous theme. My mind raced with all the different things I could do. Since I am on a quest to improve my health, I thought maybe I could take a picture of a smoothie every morning. Or, maybe I could take a picture every morning on a daily walk. Oh, oh, oh! What if I had a color theme, like 30 days of pictures that involved the color red?

The problem with complicating the things we want to accomplish is that we end up never starting! We can plan all we want, but until we actually begin to take action, nothing is going to happen! (That is exactly why my kitchen is such a disaster!)

In the middle of all my frustration over what my first picture was going to be for this challenge, I decided I really needed to spend some time at Starbucks where I could think it all through. It was then that I saw my first picture right in front of me.

Yeah, I don’t need a theme for this. I am just going to shoot what I happen to see in front of me every day. (Yup, that is passion tea!)