Excerpt from email yesterday to my brother:
Our roof has a small leak - a cup of water the last rainstorm - around the furnace vent pipe. I was going to go on the roof today and look at it to determine what's the problem but I couldn't talk myself into it. I'll have to have roofers come out to give an estimate. Maybe if I study how they get on the roof, I could talk myself into it. I just had no idea about how to do the last part of stepping around the side of the 3' projection of the ladder over the roof edge. I have gotten on the roof before but that was long ago!
The extension ladder is a 16' one and to have 3' of the ladder above the roof, the ladder had to be fully extended and that didn't feel right. I wonder if I could have had less ladder above the roof and would have felt more comfortable. Spouse was going to steady the ladder. Now I have to research roofers with Better Business Bureau and ask hikers who they'd recommend and see who's willing to come out to look at it. I'm disheartened but maybe I'll get some one good and trustworthy who will fix it for once and for all. This problem was "fixed" after the new roof was installed but I wonder was it really.
Let small bird out of woodstove Saturday. It perched atop our photo frames singing until it finally could navigate out the open front door.
Spouse installed our digital converter boxes this weekend. Now there is a total of 5 remotes for the livingroom TV. Next year I won't be able to record shows off the big TV as it's too complex to have the signal hooked up to the VCR as well as the dvd player, the converter box, and the satellite receiver but I will be able to record off the little TV in spouse's bedroom. The TV in the bedroom now has a really good picture like it's on the cable or something.
All spouse's dithering with the digital converter box has made me want to get rid of all electronic devices. It's made me wish a lot for a simpler life.
Today we hiked the Coyote Call Trail. Spouse waited for me at Scooter Pass while I went out to the Alamo Boundary TH and back. I went up to several of the ponds to try to spot the peepers who were singing away but no luck. I could smell the wintergreenish smell from the much chewed upon downed aspen as I walked over it. The sun was bringing the smell out strongly. I would like to go up Misty Meadow to Rabbit Ridge and back down the RR Road to the Coyote Call TH, starting at Alamo Bdy TH. That whole area is so inviting. There are going to be a slew of irises when they finally start blooming. There were no vehicles parked at AB TH but 3 parked at CC TH. We only saw one couple on the Coyote Call Trail. Promising clouds were floating over Scooter Peak but they were stingy with their moisture.
Spouse was having premature ventricular contractions, probably from the coffee he drinks, and wasn't very talkative. He had to stop a lot going up the first hill to the upper Coyote Call trail loop. My right foot was hurting at the end but the left hip felt fine.
Oh, I have a heel spur but I don't think that's what's causing the instep pain. I had heel spur symptoms years ago but when the symptoms go away, the heel spur doesn't - your foot just gets used to it. I have some mild degenerative changes in the area of pain. I'm unsure what I'll do next but not happy that the pain won't just go away and stop harassing me!!
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Friday, May 16, 2008
FR181 Walk
I woke up at 8:15am, getting almost 4 hours more sleep than the night before! Before eating, I did over an hour of resistance work, both upper and lower body, foot and balance work, stretches and kegels. I cooked a gruel/dessert from cooked teff and raisins soaked in orange juice, with spices like cinnamon, adding a little almond butter. It's delicious - especially with some peanut butter! I made a kitchen sink smoothie for breakfast/lunch.
I didn't head out to MPL and BESC until after 1pm. I had a disk with my foot x-rays on it and the disk wouldn't work on our Mac so I took it to BESC's computer room where I was able to view my right foot and ankle x-rays. I didn't know how to interpret them - MANNM will mail me the report next week - but thought that my foot bones looked beautiful - slender and graceful.
I found spouse a bunch of Monitoring Times in the library lobby from 2006, 2007, and even through April of 2008! I also found him 2 Physics textbooks in case he teaches at UNM-LA. Earlier this week, I found two more Calculus books which I'm saving for now.
I didn't start walking on FR181 until after 2:45pm. I could see the snow covered backside of Pajarito Mountain and thought of all the people who would be up there playing in the snow and how happy they would be!
My walk was very good. I tried out a new pair of exercise shoes that I had in the closet - not trail running shoes or hiking shoes but ordinary New Balance road running shoes. My left leg mostly behaved but I did notice that I seemed to be weak going up slight hills. I don't know whether to attribute that to being hungry or to perhaps having some kind of deficiency. At any rate, I think I may experiment and take some iron pills. At least now I can blame the flautus on the iron pills! I'm also going to experiment by adding 3 more Vitamin D capsules a week. I read in the People's Pharmacy email newsletter that a lady was having lots of joint pains and they disappeared when she began taking Vitamin D, 1600 IU a day. I'll try taking 10,000 IU's a week and see what happens.
Oh, last night I tried to watch the Storm Over Everest show but it apparently didn't tape as there was just black and white static for 2 hours. Oh well!! Maybe another time.
I took a slight detour off FR181 going out to the overlook from Red Tail Hawk Point or whatever it's called. I always forget and take the first distinct left turn after Water Canyon but that road quickly dead ends in a quagmire of fallen dead trees. I have to try to remember next time to take the second distinct left turn. The deadfall is easier to get around on that road.
Anyhow, the view at the end is spectacular. You don't want to slip because it's a long way down. You're looking down into where Water Canyon diverges into Vault Canyon. I could hear the water racing out of Vault Canyon. I also walked to where I could see the Vault Canyon Overlook platform. It is so worthwhile to take the detour to the Water Canyon Overlook. I'd like to go there for a picnic one day but none of my family would want to fight the deadfall for the payoff at the end. I ended up walking 5.11 miles per my GPS. I saw a vehicle parked at the Water Canyon dip. I took a few photos of clematis on the way home. I saw lots of red columbine and valerian growing on the hill above Water Canyon before you get into the dip. Lots of elk and deer tracks crossed the road. I didn't get done until 5pm and when I came back home, spouse had just gotten home. It's so pretty in the mountains in the late afternoon.
I didn't head out to MPL and BESC until after 1pm. I had a disk with my foot x-rays on it and the disk wouldn't work on our Mac so I took it to BESC's computer room where I was able to view my right foot and ankle x-rays. I didn't know how to interpret them - MANNM will mail me the report next week - but thought that my foot bones looked beautiful - slender and graceful.
I found spouse a bunch of Monitoring Times in the library lobby from 2006, 2007, and even through April of 2008! I also found him 2 Physics textbooks in case he teaches at UNM-LA. Earlier this week, I found two more Calculus books which I'm saving for now.
I didn't start walking on FR181 until after 2:45pm. I could see the snow covered backside of Pajarito Mountain and thought of all the people who would be up there playing in the snow and how happy they would be!
My walk was very good. I tried out a new pair of exercise shoes that I had in the closet - not trail running shoes or hiking shoes but ordinary New Balance road running shoes. My left leg mostly behaved but I did notice that I seemed to be weak going up slight hills. I don't know whether to attribute that to being hungry or to perhaps having some kind of deficiency. At any rate, I think I may experiment and take some iron pills. At least now I can blame the flautus on the iron pills! I'm also going to experiment by adding 3 more Vitamin D capsules a week. I read in the People's Pharmacy email newsletter that a lady was having lots of joint pains and they disappeared when she began taking Vitamin D, 1600 IU a day. I'll try taking 10,000 IU's a week and see what happens.
Oh, last night I tried to watch the Storm Over Everest show but it apparently didn't tape as there was just black and white static for 2 hours. Oh well!! Maybe another time.
I took a slight detour off FR181 going out to the overlook from Red Tail Hawk Point or whatever it's called. I always forget and take the first distinct left turn after Water Canyon but that road quickly dead ends in a quagmire of fallen dead trees. I have to try to remember next time to take the second distinct left turn. The deadfall is easier to get around on that road.
Anyhow, the view at the end is spectacular. You don't want to slip because it's a long way down. You're looking down into where Water Canyon diverges into Vault Canyon. I could hear the water racing out of Vault Canyon. I also walked to where I could see the Vault Canyon Overlook platform. It is so worthwhile to take the detour to the Water Canyon Overlook. I'd like to go there for a picnic one day but none of my family would want to fight the deadfall for the payoff at the end. I ended up walking 5.11 miles per my GPS. I saw a vehicle parked at the Water Canyon dip. I took a few photos of clematis on the way home. I saw lots of red columbine and valerian growing on the hill above Water Canyon before you get into the dip. Lots of elk and deer tracks crossed the road. I didn't get done until 5pm and when I came back home, spouse had just gotten home. It's so pretty in the mountains in the late afternoon.
Park and Ride to Albuquerque
I was dreading all week having to get up at 4:30am to catch the 6:35am Park and Ride bus to Albuquerque to meet spouse. I also doubted how I was going to catch the correct ABQ RIDE buses over to REI. ABQ RIDE, though, has a neat system where you email them where you're starting from and where you want to wind up and they email the exact buses to take. I printed out the schedules and carried them with me. Knowing the exact times of the bus routes was extremely helpful.
It was drizzling and the mountains were shrouded in clouds when I got to the bus stop at 20th and Central. A handful of people got off the bus and only I got on. We picked up a couple more people over at the lab and headed to Santa Fe. The driver made a quick stop at the Totavi gas station for coffee. After 3 stops in Santa Fe, the bus ended up having almost 20 passengers going to Albuquerque. I read magazines the whole time and used the bathroom once. It was a very enjoyable way to get to Albuquerque, especially since the bus wasn't completely full.
When we arrived at the Alvarado Transportation Center in downtown Albuquerque, I was at first flummoxed at not knowing where to stand to wait for bus #10, the 4th Street route, but I eventually figured out, by consulting the posted route map and my printed out schedules, that each bus route pulls up to a stop posted with a letter of the alphabet.
Bus route #10 took off from the Alvarado around 9:30am (the Park and Ride arrived around 9:10am, which gave me time to use the bathroom in the Alvarado). I was worried about making the 10:02am connection for the #157 route, Montaño Road, but the driver dropped me off near 4th and Montaño about 9:50am. The deal was that if I missed the 10:02am bus, another wouldn't be along for 47 minutes and standing in the rain holding an umbrella and a big shopping bag just didn't seem to be the ticket! It's only 1.9 miles to REI per Mapquest from the corner of 4th St. and Montaño but the rain and the big golf umbrella complicated things.
REI wasn't too productive a stop as I couldn't find some things (out of stock) and the shoes that I was trying to exchange for were road running shoes instead of the trail running shoes that I wanted. Turns out that Asics makes the GT 2130 in both trail and road running versions. I didn't make it clear when paid for the shoes over the phone that I wanted the trail running version. I tried on a stack of shoes but none of them were quite right. I'm ordering some Brooks in a larger size than the ones they had in the store and we'll see how that works. REI must think I have some kind of strange shoe fetish where I like to order shoes and immediately return them! I ended up buying six pairs of the black polyester gloves I wear for $8.83 each - they're usually $12. Spouse bought yet another shirt. He says a lot of his are tight. Well, I'm not surprised! : )
After REI, we went to Whole Foods. I bought some broccoli, cantaloupes, baby carrots, tomatoes on the vine, bananas and avocados. I love to buy and eat lots of colorful produce! Lunch was yellowtail avocado sushi which I ate on the car ride home.
We both were surprised that the Jemez had gotten snow Wednesday night. The mountains looked very pretty. I did my 4 miles on the La Mesa Trail and walking to the library. I saw a beautiful pink sunset. My left leg got stiff and the sciatica or whatever it is acted up.
It was drizzling and the mountains were shrouded in clouds when I got to the bus stop at 20th and Central. A handful of people got off the bus and only I got on. We picked up a couple more people over at the lab and headed to Santa Fe. The driver made a quick stop at the Totavi gas station for coffee. After 3 stops in Santa Fe, the bus ended up having almost 20 passengers going to Albuquerque. I read magazines the whole time and used the bathroom once. It was a very enjoyable way to get to Albuquerque, especially since the bus wasn't completely full.
When we arrived at the Alvarado Transportation Center in downtown Albuquerque, I was at first flummoxed at not knowing where to stand to wait for bus #10, the 4th Street route, but I eventually figured out, by consulting the posted route map and my printed out schedules, that each bus route pulls up to a stop posted with a letter of the alphabet.
Bus route #10 took off from the Alvarado around 9:30am (the Park and Ride arrived around 9:10am, which gave me time to use the bathroom in the Alvarado). I was worried about making the 10:02am connection for the #157 route, Montaño Road, but the driver dropped me off near 4th and Montaño about 9:50am. The deal was that if I missed the 10:02am bus, another wouldn't be along for 47 minutes and standing in the rain holding an umbrella and a big shopping bag just didn't seem to be the ticket! It's only 1.9 miles to REI per Mapquest from the corner of 4th St. and Montaño but the rain and the big golf umbrella complicated things.
REI wasn't too productive a stop as I couldn't find some things (out of stock) and the shoes that I was trying to exchange for were road running shoes instead of the trail running shoes that I wanted. Turns out that Asics makes the GT 2130 in both trail and road running versions. I didn't make it clear when paid for the shoes over the phone that I wanted the trail running version. I tried on a stack of shoes but none of them were quite right. I'm ordering some Brooks in a larger size than the ones they had in the store and we'll see how that works. REI must think I have some kind of strange shoe fetish where I like to order shoes and immediately return them! I ended up buying six pairs of the black polyester gloves I wear for $8.83 each - they're usually $12. Spouse bought yet another shirt. He says a lot of his are tight. Well, I'm not surprised! : )
After REI, we went to Whole Foods. I bought some broccoli, cantaloupes, baby carrots, tomatoes on the vine, bananas and avocados. I love to buy and eat lots of colorful produce! Lunch was yellowtail avocado sushi which I ate on the car ride home.
We both were surprised that the Jemez had gotten snow Wednesday night. The mountains looked very pretty. I did my 4 miles on the La Mesa Trail and walking to the library. I saw a beautiful pink sunset. My left leg got stiff and the sciatica or whatever it is acted up.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Beautiful Rain
I woke up around 9am but then again, I didn't go to sleep until after 1am so that's not excessive. I didn't finish breakfast/lunch until 12:30pm. I finally decided on the Sungrubbies.com order, returning the UV Big Brella because it's so hard to close and not really very windproof. I ordered a replacement sun hat for daughter because she lost hers recently and a Golf UV Brella. It's huge - 60" in diameter. It's a stick umbrella that manually opens and closes so it should be easier to use than the Big Brella.
I don't know why in the world the Dr. Church wanted the foot and ankle x-rays delivered to him today. They took 5 x-rays of my foot and ankle in various positions. The triage nurse, said to get the preliminary results and the x-rays on a disc to the doctor right after I had them done. I did but he said he couldn't really see the x-rays on the disc - something about how his laptop computer screen was. I'll get the final results on Friday but the preliminary report says that I will live. Dr. Church gets a little excited! : )
I didn't get done at MANNM until 3:30pm and I was determined to get my exercise done during the day since I have to get up so early tomorrow morning to catch the Park and Ride to Albuquerque. I went to FR181 and got my 4 miles done in a splendid 1 hour and 15 minutes. I say splendid because while I was wasting time getting exposed to x-rays, it rained and everything on FR181 looked rinsed-clean-new. It reminded me so much of another walk along FR181 taken on a rainy day. There were little islands of innocent green young aspens, loads of Wooton's Senecio, a patch of red columbine and of golden smoke. I really liked the contrast of the sweet, new green of the aspens against the reddish colors of last year's oak and shrubs along with the golden grass. To top off everything, the sky alternated between clouds and sunshine and drizzling raindrops which really made the atmosphere beautiful.
I don't know why in the world the Dr. Church wanted the foot and ankle x-rays delivered to him today. They took 5 x-rays of my foot and ankle in various positions. The triage nurse, said to get the preliminary results and the x-rays on a disc to the doctor right after I had them done. I did but he said he couldn't really see the x-rays on the disc - something about how his laptop computer screen was. I'll get the final results on Friday but the preliminary report says that I will live. Dr. Church gets a little excited! : )
I didn't get done at MANNM until 3:30pm and I was determined to get my exercise done during the day since I have to get up so early tomorrow morning to catch the Park and Ride to Albuquerque. I went to FR181 and got my 4 miles done in a splendid 1 hour and 15 minutes. I say splendid because while I was wasting time getting exposed to x-rays, it rained and everything on FR181 looked rinsed-clean-new. It reminded me so much of another walk along FR181 taken on a rainy day. There were little islands of innocent green young aspens, loads of Wooton's Senecio, a patch of red columbine and of golden smoke. I really liked the contrast of the sweet, new green of the aspens against the reddish colors of last year's oak and shrubs along with the golden grass. To top off everything, the sky alternated between clouds and sunshine and drizzling raindrops which really made the atmosphere beautiful.
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