Music for Mother and Me

When mom was visiting, we took atrip over to the library and checked out 20 CDs, everything from Madame Butterfly to Loretta Lynn. I now have the job of copying them and mailing them to her. She did the same thing when visiting with my brother. In fact, this has been going on for about a year. When my brother was visiting her, he took her to buy a new VCR and she said she wanted a CD player also. She bought 2 or 3 CDs and has not looked back. I have no idea from where this interest in music has sprung, but I'm all for it. I took it upon myself to nurture this and copied a few things I thought she would enjoy. Now she makes requests, I try to find them through the library system, copy them and mail them to her. She even bought herself a portable CD player which she keeps on her night table for when she has trouble sleeping. We found this case for a CD player and about a dozen CDs in the basement and offered it to her and she was so happy. Now she can take her music with her when she travels. As happy as I am that she is enjoying all this music, it is difficult to fathom. I think my parents had about 10 record albums in the house when I was growing up, and I played them far more often than they did. I didn't care what I was listening to, I just played them and learned to appreciate them all, from Tchaikovsky's piano concertos to Man of LaMancha. If she had any computer savvy, I would buy her an iPod! That would be a hoot.
Yesterday I endulged my own music habit on iTunes. Those Apple people got it right. It is so easy to explore and buy music. I ended up buying a mix of old and new. Here's what I added to my playlist:
Taylor -- Jack Johnson (Live)
Better Way-- Ben Harper
Tom's Diner-- Suzanne Vega
We Belong, Promises in the Dark, Love is a Battlefield-- Pat Benatar
Take on Me-- a-ha
Cruel to be Kind-- Nick Lowe
Ain't Nobody-- Chaka Khan
Everything Falls Apart-- Dog's Eye View
As I Lay Me Down, Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover-- Sophie Hawkins

BTW, I ran 4.5 miles today indoors. I got tired of waiting for the weather to improve so I went to the gym and got on the hamster wheel, uhhhh, I mean treadmill. Got it done. A few minutes after I got home a friend called looking for someone with whom to share a big pot of vegetarian chili. How lucky am I? I made the salad and the rice and prepared some "mix-ins" (cilantro, cheese, scallions), found half a bottle of wine and we had a wonderful dinner.

More Core

I so love being on the bike.  Apparently lots of other people feel the same way.  I went for club rides on Saturday and Easter Sunday and both rides drew about 20 riders.  Saturday’s ride was not the prettiest, but I felt strong and it warmed up to 70 by the time we got done.  Sunday’s ride was perfect—the perfect distance, the perfect terrain, the perfect weather and the perfect blooming landscape.
I have been thinking about where I want to go with my “program.” If I could quit working and workout several hours a day everyday, I would do it all! Ride, run, lift, hike, pilates, urban rebound, swim, maybe even yoga!  But the reality is that I’m going to have to establish some goals and fit the program into my available time.  So 10K and a Trek is going to be my mantra for the next few months.  I also need to strengthen my core.  I have no doubt that strengthening my core will have impact across all activities, beyond running and riding.  During the week, I am going to focus on core, lifting and running.  On my day off, I am going to aim for a nice bike ride.  On weekends, I will mix riding and hiking.  This still sounds like I’m biting off more than I can chew, but I’ll see how it goes.  
I have been very inconsistent with workouts over the last few weeks.  I have not been as good about my nutrition as I should be.  Then there was Passover and Plattsburgh cinnamon buns and jelly beans everywhere!  I have gained a pound or two, which is not a big deal.  It will come off once I get back on track.  
And I am back on track. I got back to the gym last night and it felt good.   I did a series of pre-exercise activities, ran 30 minutes, prehab activities, and lifted.  It took me 90 minutes to get thru this workout.  I did not have to drop my weights.  This morning I am a little sore through my core, which is a good sign.  Shoulders, back, glutes, obliques, I hit them all yesterday.  I’m downing the H2O, the lunch bag is packed with good food.  
DH had an Achilles setback.  He started stretching it and it got very sore.  So he is back on the clogs, no stretching.  The good news is he has taken out his bike a few times and been pain free.  I just hope he doesn’t push the bike.  

I Am Cranky

Last night I had too much to do around the house to go to the gym.  I made dinner.  I cleaned up the kitchen.  I hemmed a pair of pants for son #1 who needs "something nice" to wear 1 night during school trip to Mexico. I watched American Idol.  Most of the contestants were mediocre. I folded several loads of laundry which had been sitting in laundry baskets for several days.  I prepared 2 more loads of laundry with specific directions so son #1 can get it going when he gets home from school.  I tried to set up TIVO to record final episodes of Sex and the City but other scheduled recordings plus son #2 needing to watch Yankee game made this impossible.  I stayed up until midnight to watch final episodes of Sex and the City.  The reconciliation of Carrie and Big was unrealistic—fairy tale ending was a disappointment.  DH’s alarm woke me up at 5:30 am (now I know how he feels 4 days a week when I get up before him, but usually I wake up before my alarm goes off and turn it off), fell back to sleep only to have my alarm go off at 6:00. I’m tired.  The weather sucks. Tonight is likely to be more of the same.  No gym--library, food shopping, preparing DH to prepare son #1 to pack for Mexico, reviewing carpooling and food for the 3 days I will be away.  I am not looking forward to driving 5 hours tomorrow to Plattsburgh! Ahh well, this is the way life works.  But I still have the right to be cranky.      

50 is a BIG Number

"You're only as old as you feel." That's what they say. I don' think I feel fifty. I don't think I look fifty. But I think I think like I'm fifty. And that means I think about what a big number 50 years is, and sometimes that freaks me out. Well, I have decided I will be the fifty year old lady that I want to be, and not your "typical" 50 year old lady. So onward and upward, to 51!
I did have a really great birthday and first weekend of my 51st year. DH sent me a dozen roses, and on Saturday night sons #1 and #2 took DH and I to dinner at a very nice but not real fancy restaurant. I enjoyed the dinner and watching them open their wallets when the check came!

I picked out a couple of races and events-- the 5 Boro Bike Tour is May 7, Mothers Day 5K on May 14, and a 10K on June 10. I'm going to ask Niece A if she will enter this race with me. I don't expect her to run with me, just to wait for me at the finish line!! I entered the Spring Fling Challenge at Pink Dumbbells, and set goals of 10 miles/week on foot and 25 miles/week on wheels (spinning and hiking will count). I am excited that the Daylight Savings Time has started and the weather is warming up and I can take it outdoors. On Saturday I ran 3.4 miles on the road and on Sunday I hiked 7 miles. I took my bike out for a 2 mile ride just to check the alignment on my new saddle. If I didn't have a ton of things that needed to get done, I would have taken it out for a 10 mile ride. It felt so good to be on the black Trek. DH took his bike out for the first time since we returned from Hawaii last summer. So far, so good.

On Saturday I donated an old bike to Pedals for Progress. I got there a little early and they already had at least 50 bikes that they were getting ready to pack. What a great way to open the bike season.