Not such a loser after all.....

As Adele would sing...."Hello.....it's me....."

Today is the perfect day to catch up on business as we are snowed in.....Yep.....no one is going anywhere...no Starbucks......errands.....gym....food store....nothing...nada......It's called Jonas, for some reason. Since when did we name snow storms? As a kid this would be amazing except it is snowing on a Saturday....as an adult, this is also amazing AND it is snowing on a Saturday!

Dad and the big kid worked on the snow blower and it is ready for action even though the snow removal experts in my home are still in bed. Nevertheless, they are ready....although......

The driveway has already been plowed! It seems that the man who mows our lawn took it upon himself to remove the snow. I watched as he did it even though I never ordered it. Guess what? I am really happy that he did it. The last thing dad needs is to go outside in a blizzard and try to remove snow from the driveway with wind gusts up to 50 mph. And the big lefty is still limping, so he does not need the extra work out...and so...I watched and applauded the guy as he went up and down the driveway removing the first layer of snow. I have to admit that when dad finds out, he will verbally express his displeasure then look outside and be relieved.....

On another note, I joined the Biggest Loser at my gym this month. My goal was to fit in my pants without needing a crow bar. It took a great deal for me to decide to do this since I have a distorted view of how my body looks. I wanted to think that I was a size zero, but I cannot live in this state of denial so, I bit the bullet and convinced a friend to join with me.

When I was weighed and measured, I asked the trainer not to tell me the weight. After all, the number does not reflect how I physically feel and would depress me, so I kept my eyes closed.....he did not gasp or gulp when he wrote the number on my measurements sheet.



Anyway, the first night of the competition, I looked around at the 30 people who I am competing against....of the 30, there were 2 whom I thought should be there. The rest were like me with their pants size on their minds. We were divided into three teams and given tee shirts with our team colors on them. I am on Team green...also know as kiwi.....I looked at the other kiwis and figured we were doomed as a team. A kiwi  raised his hand and asked if he got points for working out at hotels when he traveled for work. The answer was 'no'. Another kiwi asked if playing tennis would help to accrue points. Again...another 'no.'

Doomed...our team is doomed!

Anyway, that night the trainers worked us out and I felt the feeling of doom again. Dang! I really do need this program as I tried squats, crunches, jumping jacks, treadmill running, stair climbing, and burpies. My kiwi colored shirt was drenched by the end of the night as I looked forward to a very hot shower.

The weeks have gone by and I am feeling the results. In fact, I wore slacks to work on Wednesday and did not need any vaseline around the hips.

Here is how the competition goes...we are to work out, attend nutritional counseling, create a wonderful low fat dinner, and wear our tee shirts while at the gym. Each event has a point total. For example, if you attend an exercise class with your tee shirt on, you accrue 3 points for yourself and the team. Ok, this works...so I have been fairly steady attending a class and hitting the treadmill until it happened......

A member of the purple team was in the gym more than I was. In fact, the big lefty works at the desk at the gym while rehabbing and he would text me with the words.."you're screwed...the ringer is here. Better get here....." Dang. just what I need.....more competition, so I upped my workouts to daily with an extra exercise class. Thinking that I was going to be the winning 'loser', a team mate said to me..."this is my third class today."



Huh? What? You are going to more than 1 class a day? Seriously? That's three hours in the gym, lifting, running, and squatting....seriously? How often do you do this?

Her response was 'every day."

Like the big lefty said...I am screwed.....

And so, here I am...in a biggest loser contest and there is no way that I can possibly take the trophy. No way in the world. I don't have three hours in the gym to give to the kiwis. So, I am going to have to reconcile that I am not a big loser but a little loser....



With that, I am going to work today and maybe hit the treadmill in the basement for a bit.....

Stay warm and dry!

Peace!

A Trip to Wawa

I'm back and sorry that I have not posted this week after the surgery. With the big guy laid up on the second floor, it was my job to run errands, feed him, and keep up with the enormous amount of trash that accumulated from his granola bar and rice krispie treats wrappers. Oh yeah....breakfast is always a fresh bagel, egg, and cheese. Lunch consists of a chicken cutlet hoagie, and dinner is whatever I have the energy to make. Oh yeah, let's not forget....I have to work, too. Tink has been wonderful and is spoiling him. Me? Not so much...after two days, I was ready to move him to the first floor, which he balked at for some reason.

I sort of get it. He has to be in a CPM machine for 6 hours a days while lying in bed. Therefore, he cannot move, weight bear on his right leg, and is stuck in a hip brace that looks like a torture device. His next appointment with the surgeon is on Friday when he gets further orders as to his rehab. Until then....he does not walk, drive, or hobble to the first floor. I have been able to get him out of the house a few times, otherwise, he sits in bed or watches ESPN in my bedroom. He also has an odd reaction to his pain medications and literally becomes loopy.

His loopiness means that I want him on the second floor until the medication wears off since there is no way that I can catch him safely if he falls on the stairs. And so...we wait....talk about rehab...plan for more baseball in Seattle....watch football on ESPN, and feed him.....I have to go to the food store at least once a day since he is immobile. He claims that the first thing that he will do when he can drive is to drive to the Wawa (our convenience store) and buy a barbecue chicken hoagie. That's all this guy wants for now....a trip to Wawa....

As far as other news is concerned, we had planned a big surprise party for Dr. G's birthday. The secret was safe...until....yeah...until......a colleague of his texted him on Friday afternoon (mind you, this colleague is a doctor) and told him that he was sorry that he could not make his party that night. Dude! Didn't you read the invitation that specifically said "SURPRISE PARTY"!

Oh yeah, as I drove him, Lil A and Tink to the party, it was Tink's job to text Scooby to tell her that we were two minutes away and get the gang ready to shout 'surprise'.

Imagine my surprise when he walked into the room and no one noticed nor shouted 'surprise!' Apparently Scoob did not receive the text so......no real surprise....just a party....which was still a great deal of fun.

Now that that is over, I have to concentrate on work. Like the rest of the world, I have to perform certain tasks to be paid.....although, there are days when I am at work that it does not seem like work. In other words, it is more of a lifestyle.



I do tell dad that I would LOVE to retire to try my hand at something else. However, I am not sure what I would do. But there has to be more out there where I can do something, be paid (or not), and feel fulfilled....Who knows. Until I find that elusive job, I will continue to teach, grade, and share our adventures on the road to the majors....oh yeah....and drive to the food store for more bagels, hoagies, and rice krispie treats.

Peace!

Primordial scream

Greetings! Yes, it has been a while since I posted, but I have lots of excuses beginning and ending with that crazy four letter word...W-O-R-K.

Yep, I have lots of excuses...let's start at the beginning......

Last Thursday, I was told at 2 pm that my class that begins on Tuesday night would be completely offered online.


That's right. I was prepared for weeks to step into the classroom and begin and end as I do every time I teach this course....with my Fitbit on trying to hit 10,000 steps by the end of the four hour class. Administration made the last minute decision to teach it in the virtual world.

How does this work? Well, anything that I would have done in the classroom must suddenly be uploaded online, which means my lectures and explanations of concepts, assignments, and the virtual world.

This decision created a panic and an emergency as I worked for 5 days to create and upload videos for the class. Here is where my patience was tested over and over and over and over and over again.....

As I recorded the class, I hit the red 'record' button. Once finished with 15 to 20 minute sessions, I would hit 'save'. Looking to upload it onto the virtual classroom site, I would search all my files for the recorded sessions. Not finding the recordings, I would record again and again and again and again......I finally got in touch with IT. My little friend helped me and suggested I needed an 'add-in'.

OK, where do I get an add-in? Well, BPM.....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.......

And so, I finally downloaded the add-in.....all is well, right?

Not in my world.....

Six more recording sessions later, I was throwing things...cussin'.....ready to jump out of my second floor window. It was not pretty.

I walked away and the next day, I started again.

Picture this....the recording would have my video in the corner with my presentation on most of the screen. During the last recording, there was no video, so I assumed the student would hear my voice and not see my face. I was cool with that.
So, as the recording continued, I took off the scarf I had around my neck which hid my tee shirt that I got for the tennis sectionals and drank a glass of wine to keep my nerves from getting the best of me.

Afterwards, I re wound the video and listened....something wonderful and horrifying happened....

The recording finally took and was saved on my hard drive...this was amazing! After 5 days, I finally have 1 recording....

Now the horror.....the video did turn out as I scratched my nose, removed my scarf to reveal the tee shirt, messy hair since I had not brushed it, dirty glasses, and the wine glass in my hand. Yikes!


I had a fast decision to make....do I re-record the orientation or leave it as is?

I left it and the rest is history. My online students now see the real me...tee shirt wearing....messy hair lovin'...wine drinking instructor who was at the end of her rope.

I was able to show the video at an orientation on Thursday night. The students laughed and all is well. However, my angst and lack of IT savvy is going to be an ongoing challenge where I will be doing a primordial scream on a weekly basis as I try to teach this class.


On to the big lefty...yes, life is a challenge having him at home with his mess and lack of responsibility when  it comes to putting away his clothes, shoes, dishes, and gear. Oh well, I love him more than I hate the mess.

However, we finally have a diagnosis and plan of action.

As you may recall, he had a MRI and was referred to a well known surgeon in the region....not a Michael Jordan, but someone who was pretty good like Scotty Pippin.


Anyway, he is diagnosed with a hip impingement and labral tear needing surgery. He will be on crutches for 6 weeks and not able to throw for three-four months. He has to have the surgery to have any quality of life. It seems that he has a genetic defect.....I told him that my side of the family has great hips....fully aligned and ready to run or stand in line for hours waiting to see the Pope. We must blame this defect on his father. Done!

The surgery is scheduled for early November and this will offer a logistics challenge as he will have to go to PT and have doctors' appointments and not be able to drive. I guess converting my classes to online will offer me flexibility to put my chauffeur's hat on like the old days when I drove him to preschool, baseball, basketball, parties, school, football,......singing off key to any Mowtown song on the radio....

Hey, he will be dancing before we know it....

More later....thanks for hanging in there with me....

Peace!

Opportunity knocks

Good morning! Please forgive the lack of posts but September is always a tough month for a parent and educator. It's true that I do not have school age kids any more so I cannot blame them. However, trying to work my way back into work clothes and a regular schedule is not an easy endeavor. I wish that I had just one more hour in the day.....OK, two more hours....OK, perhaps having one more day in the weekend.....maybe two.....

On to other topics...the big kid is home for two weeks and is still questioning his choice of careers and his sanity. It would not bother me if he was calmer but he has this edge when he is stressed which makes being a therapeutic presence all the more challenging for a parent. When does this end? Would you believe never?

Anyway, he is upset that his leg hurts....he has so many openings to hit the "bigs" yet his body is failing him. For example.....

On Saturday night, just through luck.....Dr G stopped by a friend's home to celebrate the daughter's birthday. While eating cake, he met the friend's neighbor and quickly told them that he had to run because he was meeting his nephew, the big lefty, for dinner to chat with him about his leg and mood. As fate, luck, or life would have it, the neighbor's brother is a pitching coach in the minor leagues, former major league player, and wants to meet the big kid. Really? Is this for real? The brother, the coach, will be in town next month, so the big kid now has a goal and is back throwing....thanks Dr. G.



The trainers in Seattle sent him home while they moved their facility. They want him to come back in October when the professional pitchers are working out for him to meet them and to learn from the guys who made it. Another huge opportunity for the big kid.

These chances are great and unbelievable, yet he remains silent and is not talking. This can mean a few things.....

1. he forgot how to talk and complain
2. he has nothing to say
3. he is a bit intimidated that he is going to meet these people
4. he is questioning whether he wants to do this for a full time job
5. he is centering himself to prepare for battle (remember the sentence that he uttered to his dad and Tink in Illinois: "I don't talk before I pitch.")....wellll...

How do I feel about this? I am happy, thrilled, and frightened. Why?



Where do I begin?

What if he has his chance and does not make it? What happens to him as a person whose entire identity is based on his ability to throw a ball? What if he does make it but lands in the minors for a number of years and never hits a big league field? What if....what it.....what if.....



Here is where I have to go as a parent....support....listen....trust in the process...be there to lift him up, pick up the pieces, or celebrate.....any way that you look at it, the time has come. Keep your fingers, toes, and eyes crossed!



Off to work.
Peace!

Oh my!

Greetings. I am sorry that I have not posted this week, but jury duty has taken all of my time. I cannot discuss the case, but I can tell you the following:


1. There were 106 people in my group that were contacted for a trial


2. The odds of me being chosen were approximately 1% at this point.
3. Then they divided us into two groups for two different trials, my odds went up a small percentage.
4. They took us into a room to see the judge, lawyers and defendant, then the judge asked questions....


5. This increased my odds to 50-50 when he asked if anyone had a criminal record. Only a few answered the question until an Einstein raised his hand and asked if a DUI was a crime. Seriously? Hands went up.


6. I knew that I was in trouble. Yes, I may joke about "Merlot moments" but I do not drink and drive and generally cut off alcohol consumption after a glass and half (if I am not driving).


7. Over half of the potential jurors hands went up. I went from 1 % to almost certain to be chosen...and....



Yes, I am in the jury...front row....learning a great deal about the judicial system and court proceedings.

I cannot say anymore because I took an oath. However, I will chat about some aspects at a later date.

Hopefully  I will finish tomorrow after the lawyers' give their closing arguments. However, we still have to agree on a verdict....talk about 12 angry men closed up in a little room with one bathroom.....more later.



BTW: The big kid called yesterday...he's lonely in Seattle :-(
Peace!