A Year of Living the Life List, Part 1

At the end of last January, I took a two-session class in making a "Life List"--things I wanted to do, see, accomplish in my life. I thought that now would be a good time to reevaluate the list to see what I managed to do in 2009, and also add anything new. I'll cover half today and half tomorrow so as not to bore you completely.
1. Read 75 books in 2009. I only read 24. Hey! I had 109 other things on my list to do!!
2. Sell some more greeting card ideas. Nope, I didn't do this yet. I did spend enough money for three people at Hallmark stores, though.
3. Make money doing something I like. Still figuring out what that is.
4. Take a week-long Harley trip. We are planning to go to North Carolina this summer.
5. Visit friends/family I haven't seen in a long time. I got together with my college roommate Amy twice, saw Mary before she moved to China, and we'll see the North Carolina daughter and grandkids this summer.
6. Take my mother on a trip. She has to tell me where she wants to go!
7. Write letters to the troops every week. I haven't done it weekly, but still managed quite a few throughout the year.
8. Meet new friends in Rhinelander. I got to know my bowling team better, and also Cindy, my walking and coffee-drinking partner.
9. Bowl a 200+ game. This is still eluding me--181 has been my high.
10. Sell the Elk Mound house. Sigh. Many lookers, a few crummy offers, but still no sale.
11. Go to a Packer game. Maybe I'll wait till they retire Favre's jersey and take some rotten eggs and tomatoes.
12. Get new curtains. I keep procrastinating on this.
13. Try new recipes. I've done too much of this, which has caused failure of a couple other goals
below.
14. Watch 10 classic movies I've never seen. After watching "Citizen Kane" and "Rear Window", I was bored and in no mood to see any more oldies.
15. Get headstones for Beatle and Kimo. Done.
16. Join a community organization. Still looking.
17. Eat 5 fruits/vegetables a day. I'm at more like 3 a day--must do better.
18. Go fishing. I only did this once so far and didn't catch anything.
19. Learn to use my digital camera. I took a class for this and feel totally comfortable with it now. Next I need a better camera!
20. Learn more about using the internet. I'm on Facebook, does that count?!
21. Go to a play or musical. I've been to a musical, a play, and a concert at Nicolet College--all excellent.
22. Start keeping a journal again. I did try this, but couldn't get into it. I may give it another shot since I can't seem to remember anything these days.
23. Get in decent enough shape to do a 5K. I talked about this, wrote about it, and then didn't do it. Maybe this year.
24. Listen to more music. The radio is still my main source--while my CDs gather dust.
25. Go with Fred on more out-of-town work trips. This hasn't happened--I need a dogsitter.
26. Get to know our neighbors. We had dinner and watched a football game with one couple and plan to have them here soon.
27. Drink more water. It would be easier if the Pepsi Co. would stop making Diet Mountain Dew.
28. Eat fewer sweets. FAIL.
29. Visit all 50 states. Last year I added California to those I've been in, so my list includes CA, WI, IA, IL, MN, MI, IN, PA, NJ, OH, KY, TN, NY, NC, WV, VA, and HI. I have a ways to go!
30. Grow sunflowers. I had the seeds but forgot to plant them.
31. Get more birdfeeders. I got one from my mom for Christmas. The squirrels are enjoying it.
32. Do some genealogy research. I should really find a class to take for this.
33. Lower my cholesterol. See blog for Jan. 25th. I'm working on it!
34. Get an exercise tape and use it. Richard and I are getting sweaty together.
35. Pay for someone's meal anonymously. If I ever see someone in uniform in a restaurant, this will happen.
36. Watch a thunderstorm. We didn't really have any big ones last summer.
37. Visit veterans in the hospital. I didn't do this, but I did send 100 valentines to the Wisconsin V.A. hospitals last year.
38. See the fall colors in New England. Maybe a trip to Maine to visit my nephew Michael and his wife Anne.
39. Beat Fred in more gin games than I lose. Fred gave Katie the $50 that was in his gin jar before she left for Ireland. That was all money I had lost to him playing gin in 2009. We just got a new dining room table, and since then I have won over $10!!! The table obviously doesn't like him.
40. Get some plants and not kill them. I'm keeping two geraniums alive through the winter--so far.
41. Crash a wedding. I think I'll be invited to Erica's.
42. Go back to the Outer Banks. Someday...
43. Yell in the mountains and hear the echo.
44. Ride in the next Harley-Davidson anniversary parade. Have to wait till 2013.
45. See the midnight sun. Maybe Sarah Palin will have me over.
46. Take a cruise. I'd rather go to Ireland.
47. See another show on Broadway. The State Theater is on Broadway in Menomonie...
48. Go to State Street in Madison for Halloween. Who wants to do this with me??
49. Help repeal the Wisconsin marriage amendment. More people need to be educated about fairness.
50. Serve meals to the homeless on a holiday. Our friends Paul and Lauri did this on Thanksgiving--good for them!
51. Write letters to my Congressmen. I have sent e-mails in the past, but not in the last year.
52. Revise my will. You'd better be good, girls!
53. Learn to drive a standard transmission. I don't know who would teach me this--Fred tried before we got married, and I almost called off the wedding.
54. Volunteer at a nursing home. Another thing to look into...
55. Spend at least 20 days/nights at the cabin in '09. I spent 17 nights there--will try to do better this year. We are going over this weekend!
To be continued....

The Art(ery) of Healthy Eating

Sorry if I'm boring you with several recent blogs about health, but once you reach 50 it sort of becomes more important to you. I realized that my mind and spirit are still young, but the old carcass could have me knocking on heaven's door sooner than I want if I don't take better care of it. In the past year I have set my sights on fitting into a stylish dress for Erica's wedding and adding some Victoria's Secret thongs to my underwear drawer. (Haha, just kidding) But now I realize it's time to get serious for better reasons than those.
I inherited my dad's curly hair, his sense of humor, and also, apparently, his genes for high cholesterol. When he died in 1986 he was on blood pressure medication, but cholesterol hadn't yet become the focus of heart health like it has today. The doctors told us that his arteries were so clogged that even with bypass surgery, he would probably have only lived six more months. In 2008 at my annual check-up, my cholesterol was 234. The doctor said we'd give it a year of trying diet and exercise, then check it again. Uh-huh. She obviously gave me more credit than I deserved. At my annual check-up in December, I had lost two whopping pounds, but my blood pressure was borderline high for the first time in my life. I had blood drawn last week, and she called me Saturday to say my cholesterol was at 270 and she wants to start me on medication right away.
Wow. That was the shock I needed to really give this some thought. I know millions of people take something for cholesterol, but it's scary to know that it's programmed into your genetic code. Thin people, others who exercise all the time, people who never touch a piece of cake or a Friday night Wisconsin fish fry--they can all keel over from arteries that are blocked by plaque just because the tendency has been passed down through their families. So if people who are consciously trying to overcome the cholesterol curse still die young, where does that leave me?!
Here's my public proclamation: I'm going to continue walking the dogs 5-6 times a week; I'll "do Richard" at least 3 times/week; no more baking goodies whenever the urge strikes; lots of fruits, vegetables...and isn't red wine in mass quantities allowed, too??!
I'll report back in three months when my numbers get checked again and let you know how I'm doing with the medication. And in the meantime, if you suspect you might have heart attack potential yourself--find out and do something!! The good may die young, but I don't want to be one of them.

Fly Away, Little Bird

This morning I saw Katie off on the first leg of her journey to Ireland. As I write this, she is winging her way to Newark, NJ where she will have a five-hour layover before taking off for Shannon and then Limerick.
We have known she was going to study abroad for 9 months now, so there has been a lot of time to get used to the idea. However, it didn't start seeming real until the past few days--days that were stressful, "crisis"-filled, and loaded with last-minute travel advice for Katie from the parental units. She did more than her share of eye-rolling, I'm sure.
We happened to see the movie "Taken" on HBO, which was a second viewing for all 3 of us. It stars Liam Neeson as a CIA agent whose daughter talks her parents into letting her take a trip to Paris with her best friend--when she's really planning to follow the band U2 around Europe on their concert tour. She ends up being kidnapped, drugged, and sold into the sex trade. Neeson, of course, heads to France and does some major butt-kicking until finally rescuing her before anything really bad happens. At the end, Fred and I looked pointedly at Katie, hoping she'd absorbed the life lessons in the film: don't lie to your parents, don't trust strangers, use good judgment. She looked back at us and said, "If that happens to me, I'm screwed."
Fred left early Thursday morning for Florida, so he said his goodbyes Wednesday night, again giving her a list of dos and don'ts as she sighed heavily and nodded. That night the WORST (to her) happened: her laptop came down with a bad virus. "What are we going to do?" she wailed. "I leave on Monday!!" Trying my best to be the voice of reason, I told her we'd get it fixed on Friday, and if worse came to worst she could take my computer with her; getting so bent out of shape over problems that are "fixable" isn't the best reaction. She should save her meltdowns for bigger things. (Like losing her passport!)
On Friday we took the computer in and had several hours of shopping and errands to run. The pharmacy gave us trouble over dispensing multiple months' worth of medications, even though the insurance company okayed it, so we had another hassle to deal with. Katie was getting fed up with my shopping suggestions, and I was getting fed up with her attitude. Both of us were grappling with the suddenly imminent idea that we wouldn't see each other for 4 months and would be 4000 miles apart.
The computer got fixed. The pharmacist reversed course and gave us all the prescriptions she needed. We had a nice dinner together after getting through a difficult day.
Last night after we got into our beds at our friends Paul and Lauri's in Eau Claire, I gave in to the emotion and the tears came. It didn't take much and Katie was crying, too. With that out of our systems, I figured we'd be good to go this morning at the shuttle. As I hugged her one last time, the driver asked, "So where are you going, young lady?" "Ireland," she croaked out as she struggled not to cry. And then she was off to begin her adventure.
We raise our kids with the intention of them becoming independent and leaving the nest, but that doesn't make it easier when it actually happens. However, I will be visiting Katie in Limerick, probably around her 21st birthday in April. (Flights for St. Patrick's Day are already booked!) And I'm sure she will be happy to know that I'll have 3 months' worth of motherly wisdom stored up for her when I get there.
Have a wonderful time, sweetie! We love you!!

Colonoscopy, the Final Chapter

I'm now a certified member of the Colonoscopy Club, and I can't believe what a breeze it was! Getting up early to be there by 6:45 this morning was the hardest part. Upon arrival at the hospital, I was taken to a room to change and have an IV started. Then I met the multiple people involved in the procedure: a nurse, the anesthesiologist, a nurse anesthetist, somebody controlling an instrument panel, and the doctor. By 8:00 I was in the surgical suite being told to roll on my side and bend my knees. Seconds later I was skiing through my colon, what looked like a big pink tunnel with wind noises swooshing around me. As I slalomed happily along, I became aware of someone calling my name. I opened my eyes and found myself back in the room where I'd started. Wow, what a dream! I felt normal except for a little grogginess, and was thrilled when they brought me a blueberry muffin and some orange juice. Katie brought me home and I had some pancakes; now it's time for a nap.
Anybody out there who is due for a colonoscopy, GET ONE!! It's so easy a cave man could do it!

Colonoscopy, Number Two

I just read Dave Barry's 2008 column about his first colonoscopy. I had read it before, but today it is more timely for me. I figured that laughing out loud about it would be better than dreading it. Today is "prep day." I already screwed up the process by forgetting to drink 8 oz. of water at 9 and 10 AM--I was out walking the dogs then. At 11:00 I mixed up a tasty 8 oz. glass of "LO-SO Prep." It's a supposedly low sodium combination of magnesium carbonate, citric acid, and potassium citrate. After it stopped fizzing, it looked like a glass of milk. That's not what it tasted like though. Actually, it was the smell that gagged me--like salt mixed with something burning. I tried holding my nose to drink it, but discovered then I couldn't breathe. So I took a deep breath and chugged it down, Katie watching and encouraging "Go, Mom!" I burped a couple times and prayed I wouldn't throw it all up. A few deep breaths later, it seemed to be settling ok--and here I am. It's supposed to produce results in 30 minutes to 6 hours. I can have all the clear liquids, jello, and broth that I want today. At 1:00 I have to take 4 horse-size pills, and early tomorrow morning use a torpedo-shaped suppository. Katie didn't know what that was, so I explained and said "I hope you can get it in there far enough." The horrified look on her face was priceless.
If you are hesitant about having a colonoscopy, just suck it up and get past the embarrassment. Everybody has a colon, and doctors get paid big bucks to do these distasteful things! And lucky me will get $50 from our insurance company to have it done--money I can use for my soldiers. So read Dave Barry's column; I posted it on Facebook, or just Google "Dave Barry colonoscopy" and it will take you right to it at the Miami Herald. No one should die of a preventable cancer because the screening process for it is disgusting. There are a lot worse--oops, gotta go!

Father of Kingsport soldier killed in Afghanistan: 'There's no better way of dying than dying for your country, for your people' - Kingsport Times-News Online

Below is a link to an article about the death of SFC Jason Hickman from his hometown newspaper in Tennessee. I still don't have information about the funeral or a memorial, but will update when I do.

Father of Kingsport soldier killed in Afghanistan: 'There's no better way of dying than dying for your country, for your people' - Kingsport Times-News Online

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Honoring a Lost Hero

Today I learned that one of my soldier contacts in Afghanistan was killed by an IED last Thursday. I am in shock from this news. He is the first person I've lost in five and a half years of sending packages to the troops, and I always wondered how I would react. I feel like I've lost someone dear to me, even though we had never met.
Jay was a Sergeant First Class in the Army, married with 3 little boys ages 6, 5, and 2. He was born in Alaska, raised in Kingsport, TN, and currently living/stationed back in Alaska before deploying to Khost, Afghanistan--right on the Pakistan border, one of the worst places in the country. He was a combat engineer, a member of a "Sapper" group whose job was to clear roads of IEDs, build towers and bridges, and "destroy anything in our way," he wrote in one e-mail. He was also a paratrooper. He wrote, "Being paratroopers, we have to rely on each other a lot and be ready to parachute into any hostile area in the world and kick butt."
The packages and letters he and his guys received from home meant so much to him. "Thank you from the bottom of our hearts, and may God bless everyone a thousand times over. We are truly grateful for everything you have done for us. It is really hard to imagine what it is like here for us, and when we receive care packages from people such as yourselves, it means the world to us." He showed what he was made of when he later said, "My dad was a Vietnam veteran, and the things he told me about his return trip home almost kept me from joining the military. But I wanted to follow in his footsteps and serve my country, and be part of something bigger than myself."
The last package I sent to Jay was before Christmas. He was home on leave in early December, and I'm not sure how long he was back in Afghanistan before he died. Last summer he e-mailed: "I can't wait to get back to Alaska to take my boys camping and fishing. I plan on taking them to Disneyland next spring." He would have been home for good in March.
If I find out more information about a memorial for him and his family, I will post it here. The main message I want to convey besides honoring this brave young man is that we ALL can make our troops' time away from their homes and families more bearable by showing them that they aren't forgotten and that we care. E-mail me if you want to know how you can get started. The one thing consoling me right now is that Jay knew there was a family in Wisconsin who appreciated his service and cared for him until the end. I hope it helped.

Sweatin' to the Oldies

Last week I ordered the 20th anniversary collection of Richard Simmons' Sweatin' to the Oldies from Amazon. The 5-DVD set arrived on Tuesday, but this morning was the first chance I had to give them a try. Fred had told me he wanted to reinforce the living room floor boards before I started, but too bad; I decided to risk ending up in the basement for the sake of fitness.
Anyone familiar with Richard Simmons knows that he wears a tank top and way-too-short shorts to lead his merry band of chubby people, dressed in various attire, through aerobics accompanied by music from the '50s and '60s. I was wearing shorts, a Brewers T-shirt, and my glasses, accompanied only by cats with assorted looks of puzzlement on their furry faces. Thankfully Katie was still in bed and missed the spectacle.
The first song was "Dancing in the Street." Not too fast, just a good warm-up--but I heard body parts popping and cracking almost immediately. Richard's moves are easy to learn and follow, and in the more up-tempo songs like "Peggy Sue" and "Great Balls of Fire," the sweatin' he promised was definitely delivered. I looked like I do after an 8-minute performance of "Paradise by the Dashboard Lights." I noticed that the really overweight people in Richard's back-up group seemed to sit out every other song to catch their breath. The only short breaks I took were to get some water, turn down the thermostat, and answer a call from Fred. I was huffing and puffing into the phone in the middle of "Wipeout"--a song I'd last performed solo at a teacher's union Christmas party in 1983.
I completed the first DVD in about a half hour, feeling like I'd really gotten a good workout. The living room floor is intact, and I hope it doesn't start to smell like a gym in here. I'll probably have sore muscles tomorrow--the cool-down stretching gave me a charlie horse. Fred says he's going to join me doing this on weekends. I hope I won't be laughing too hard to do the routines.
If you're interested in a fun way to exercise at home, I recommend these DVDs--the complete set was $35.99 on Amazon with free shipping. It's also a trip down memory lane, reminding me of the bad dancing we used to do in high school. Tomorrow I'll try DVD #2, which includes "Jailhouse Rock". I'll try to do it justice on Elvis' 75th birthday--maybe I'll wear a jumpsuit.

Colonoscopy, Part One

Right before I turned 50 in September, I received a card from our insurance company that said: "You're 50! Celebrate with a colonoscopy today!!" Yeah, right. Just how I wanted to "celebrate" an already traumatic birthday. But I read through the material and discovered that they offered a $50 incentive for having the procedure done within a year of turning 50. I knew it was inevitable, just another one of the sucky aspects of getting older--so at my yearly check-up last month, I scheduled a "consult," a pre-appointment for the actual ordeal itself.
That appointment was this morning. My doctor is a woman, and I liked her right away. She asked if I had come in because of a specific concern, and I explained that I was really there to earn the $50 (which I'll use on my soldiers!) "Wow, that's a great incentive," she said. "I suppose now you want a cut?!" I asked her. She laughed and seemed like a normal person--so I didn't ask her what would inspire a doctor to specialize in this particular field. She assured me, "I look at butts all the time, so you don't need to worry about that." I assured her that after a woman has gone through pregnancy, all embarrassment and modesty fly out the window anyway. I was already thinking about what I could write on my butt the day of the procedure to make her laugh. "Be gentle"? "Born to Ride"? "Go Packers!!" ??
After she left the office, the nurse came back in to go through paperwork and schedule it with me. I was thinking it would probably be a couple months before I could get in for one, so when she said, "How about next Thursday, the 14th?" I gulped, Oh crap!! (Haha) At least if everything goes ok, I won't be subjected to this again for another 10 years.
She gave me the "prep kit" and explained it, my disgust level rising rapidly with each thing she said. Then she put it in a little brown bag so I could walk back through the waiting room without people pointing and laughing.
So now I can be dreading this for the next 10 days. I will write Part Two on Wednesday as I endure the prep phase of the process. Fred leaves for Sarasota, Florida on the 14th, so Katie is going to have to be my chauffeur and nursemaid for this. Now if I can just talk her into writing the message on my butt!
To be continued...