| Happily
running through Europe Saturday, December 28, 2013 23 comments When DH suddenly decided we should see the Christmas Markets along the Danube, I quickly packed my running gear. My goal was to run a few miles in each city. Here I’m... Read more Thinking about “Old” – Two articles Friday, December 13, 2013 22 comments While scrolling down my Start page this morning, I came across the article “Nutrition and the Elderly” www.sparkpeople.com/reso urce/nutrition_articles.as p?id=869 It contains Important information but somewhat sc... Read more Avoided the rear end collision – now back to rehab Thursday, December 12, 2013 15 comments Neither of us was in a car. My “near miss” occurred in the 5K last Saturday. About 2 minutes into the race as the pack was running downhill, a woman in front of me suddenly stopped to walk. I twisted my body to squeeze around her and thre... Read more Red dot, yellow dot, green dot repeat – So goes my Internet connection Tuesday, December 10, 2013 16 comments Planning a healthy day without Sparkpeople. I’m watching the status light monitoring the strength of my satellite connection this morning. It hasn’t been green long enough for me to actually access any websites. We’ve had heavy rain all ni... Read more My 911 call – City Girl Goes Country - again Monday, December 09, 2013 21 comments We didn’t get much snow here in my neck of the woods, just ice and freezing rain since Saturday night. During a break in the weather yesterday afternoon we were driving a short distance from home when we encountered obstacles on the road – 3 la... Read more Racing ahead of the storm – a 5K report Saturday, December 07, 2013 24 comments We’re under a winter storm warning here in VA and the temperatures are dropping fast. Our town’s annual “Christmas Classic” 5K was held this morning. 400 runners and walkers ages 6 to 89 came out for this tradition that’s been held for 34 ... Read more My Afternoon as a “Lab Rat” Monday, December 02, 2013 23 comments Spark articles have some interesting effects on me. I learn a lot and most of the time I find myself in total agreement with their recommendations. Yesterday morning my daily spark email directed me to an article that included several link... Read more Nutrition Tracker Food Groupings – Good for speed, bad for points Sunday, December 01, 2013 21 comments Since I eat the same breakfast and snack every day, I finally decided to save time and enter both into my nutrition tracker as food groupings. There are 3 items in my breakfast (WW toast, peanut butter, OJ) and 4 in my afternoon snack (a ... Read more Sabotaged at the gym Saturday, November 30, 2013 19 comments I’ve learned to disregard the comments about running ruining your knees. I’ve been doing this for over 25 years. I ignore the references to flat chested women. I like my “squash-um down” sports bras. What I couldn’t ignore was the ... Read more Preserving History Thursday, November 28, 2013 16 comments On Thanksgiving Day 1997 I found a big box of photos in my parents’ house. I sat with my Dad for hours while he told me about each one and I wrote the names, place and date on the back of each. Eventually, I included these photos on my website... Read more My first 10K in 8 years – the good, the bad and the ugly Sunday, November 24, 2013 36 comments I felt so well prepared for this race. I trained well and felt really good. I even bought some new winter running gear as I described in a previous blog. DH agreed to go with me since, as I explained, at my age somebody should be there t... Read more The Omega and the Alpha (A City Girl Goes Country – recap) Friday, November 22, 2013 20 comments I’ve purposely written that common Greek alphabet reference in reverse - “The end and the beginning.” Since April I’ve posted a series of blogs about this city bred couple attempting to grow their own food. There have been successes and fai... Read more LSD and Me Thursday, November 21, 2013 13 comments If you’re a child of the 60s, you may think I’m about to confess a drug problem. If you’re a runner you know that today I’m writing about my “long, slow distance” workouts. My current fitness goal is to break out of my comfort zone and inc... Read more An unfortunate acronym Tuesday, November 19, 2013 23 comments As I was deleting the mail that had accumulated in my junk folder, I noticed one from UTI. Maybe it’s a health site about the causes/treatment of Urinary Tract Infections? That’s what UTI means to me. No, I was being advised of the oppo... Read more What’s
NOT easy about the Spark Activity Tracker? Thursday, October 03, 2013 27 comments This morning I’m revisiting the “Parole Officer” analogy of my Jan 29th blog post. /www.sparkpeople.com/myp age_public_journal_individ ual.asp?blog_id=5228238 At that time I compared the recidivism rate of prisoners ... Read more Where I've Been Wednesday, October 02, 2013 21 comments I’ve been missing from SP for 5 weeks. Those are the High Tatra Mountains of Slovakia behind us. Notice how angle of the ski jump is at the same angle as the peak ... Read more Castles of Slovakia - they are everywhere! Sunday, September 01, 2013 23 comments Each has their own special character, but all had a defensive purpose so you get to do a lot of walking - UPHILL. Bojnice Castle has room after room of elegant furnishings. ... Read more War and Peace - It depends on where you live Wednesday, August 28, 2013 10 comments The mountains of central and eastern Slovakia were battlegrounds near the end of WWII, but this village survived intact - probably because it’s so high up, accessible only by a very narrow road and few people live here. Now tourists come to vis... Read more Eastern Slovakia is beautiful Tuesday, August 27, 2013 13 comments Now we’re in eastern Slovakia where my grandparents were born. This is the view from Stara Lubovna castle. From here the nobles could observe all their lands and defend themselves against attack. My Grandma’s village is nearby. I think it’s t... Read more Course Completed! Sunday, August 25, 2013 22 comments The celebration is over! Now we’ve left Bratislava and are driving east, all the way to the bor... Read more A day in our Slovak class – week 1 Sunday, August 11, 2013 24 comments Our university is located in the city center along the Danube. Bratislava was experiencing an unusual heat wave with temps 20 degrees F above normal. So we walked... Read more The bee and me – Not a spelling bee or a singing bee – a REAL bee. Friday, August 09, 2013 14 comments “ Be prepared” isn’t just for Boy Scouts. Walking back to the dorm last night a bee stung me on the inside of my upper arm. I think it must have been on my purse strap and when I tossed it over my shoulder, it bit me hard enough that DH nee... Read more “ No Soup for You!” Anyone remember the Seinfeld episode? Thursday, August 08, 2013 21 comments I had a similar experience in the university cafeteria yesterday. First all the good stuff. I like Slovak food. There’s lots of carbs all the time, but somehow the population looks remarkably fit and trim. I’ve had all kinds of potatoes ... Read more Sometimes being a good test taker isn’t beneficial. Tuesday, August 06, 2013 21 comments Today we were assigned to our Slovak language classes according to our performance on the placement test. After studying sporadically for several months on my own with a Slovak textbook purchased on the Internet, I was assigned to intermed... Read more Our dormitory along the Danube –many possibilities for workouts Monday, August 05, 2013 14 comments Walking, running, biking, kayaking, - bungee jumping? So far only the first two are on my plan for early in the morning or after sundown. It’s still very hot - better than yesterday but still in the 90s. Maybe there’s some truth in the ... Read more My new world – no AC except in McDonalds Sunday, August 04, 2013 22 comments We arrived in Vienna to find a massive heat wave, 37* C which is 12* above normal and our final destination, Bratislava, Slovakia (45 min away) is exactly the same. The high temp yesterday reached 97* F. It’s 20* cooler back home. Thi... Read more City girl goes country (part 12) Abandoning the garden? Thursday, August 01, 2013 27 comments Not exactly, but for one month we’ll be out of the country - not our rural countryside - the USA. DH & I have been rewarded with beginners luck. A typical trip to the garden yields this ... Read more My 3 days in a “welfare” hotel Wednesday, July 31, 2013 26 comments Some years ago the principal of our school took a group of us teachers who were also department heads and curriculum coordinators to a conference in Baltimore which was about an hour’s drive away. She got a “great deal” on a hotel which was... Read more Doesn’t this look like an inviting road if you’re out for a run or a walk? Tuesday, July 30, 2013 31 comments Some years ago all of our roads were known only by route numbers and our mailboxes were just numbers along an RD route. We didn’t have a real street address. Then t... Read more“ Good morning, you old crow” Monday, July 29, 2013 23 comments As I went outside my house today, I saw a big old crow that was chasing away all our pretty blue birds, cardinals, finches and morning doves and was chowing down on our bird seed. I yelled loudly “Good morning, you old crow!” and looked up to s... Read more What can you buy with food stamps? Two different solutions Sunday, July 28, 2013 23 comments Yesterday I read about two different responses to a difficult problem – how to get people to use their food stamps for healthy food. Darly55 described one state’s Restrictions on Food Stamp Purchases www.sparkpeople.com/mypa ge_pu... Read more Christmas in July Saturday, July 27, 2013 20 comments Some people keep Christmas lights up long past the holiday season. I have a bell that is displayed in my house all year long. It plays Silent Night and is 50 years old. ... Read more It’s always in the last place you look. Friday, July 26, 2013 25 comments Thank you sparkers for the support and advice about my missing notebook. After blaming pixies, fairies and time travelers from the future, of course the culprit was ME and in a small way my blog. I wrote about my “score” at Goodwill fi... Read more I’m a list-maker. I’ve done this for decades. Thursday, July 25, 2013 27 comments I have 2 plain spiral notebooks. One is for fitness. I record my workouts - activity, time, mileage, the route and since joining the “Virtual Walk/Run Challenge” team, even my location as I trek across the USA with other Sparkers. The ... Read more No need for a stair step machine. I just have to go outside. Tuesday, July 23, 2013 30 comments The view of our dock doesn’t look so bad from here. That’s because I’m only halfway down. Here’s the view looking back up ... Read more " Jak na thrutz" – Thinking in a foreign language Sunday, July 21, 2013 20 comments If any sparkers were fortunate enough to grow up bilingual, I hope you hang onto that skill forever. Traveling through Europe I was amazed at how easily our guides and those in the hospitality industry slipped from one language to another. ... Read more Spreading the “Goodwill” and my 6th sense Saturday, July 20, 2013 23 comments I’m a thrifty person and don’t care about having the latest fashion. I want to be comfortable and still appropriately dressed for the situation. That’s why my 1st stop i... Read more Essential SP – Minimalist SP Friday, July 19, 2013 26 comments I love to begin my day here. Yet sometimes life intervenes and others things take precedence. Recently my photo project limited my time on SP. I wasn’t able to read everything I wanted to. I couldn’t check in with groups to see wh... Read more Lessons from the Food Network Channel – not always what they expected Thursday, July 18, 2013 26 comments Cooking to me has always been simply a necessity. Cookbooks and TV shows that have “The Joy of” in their title are meant for someone else. I remember buying the “I Hate to Cook Book” and “30 Minutes Meals” and just accepted the fact that t... Read more City girl goes country (part 11) My new friend - the pressure cooker Wednesday, July 17, 2013 21 comments We always had a pressure cooker in our house when I was a child. Before crock pots, that was one way to get a meal on the table when there wasn't a lot of time immediately beforehand. Dad always told me that it was the best way to insure that ... Read more Photos can be misleading even when not “photoshopped” Monday, July 15, 2013 25 comments I’ve explained my temporary absence from SP in my last blog entry. When I took this photo in Bucharest, Romania. I was so excited to see such a large symbol of our children’s university (Virginia Tech) in this unusual location. It was e... Read more Where are your photos and where will they be? Thursday, July 11, 2013 25 comments I'm pretty sure everyone here has some pictures of their grandparents and maybe even their great-grandparents. They are extremely helpful when doing genealogy research and individually cherished because there are comparatively few of them. ... Read more This belongs in the “where does the time go?” file. Tuesday, July 09, 2013 28 comments Here are our 6 grandchildren in 2005 (ages 3 to 10) This week our “boy scout” (above 2nd from the left) got his boating license at camp. ... Read more How hard would you work-out for food? Monday, July 08, 2013 26 comments First you have to leap from a nearby tree and catch the bottom of a “squirrel-proof” bird feeder with your feet. Then maneuver your body upwards ... Read more If you oppose GMOs (genetically modified food) are you condemning millions to death by starvation? Sunday, July 07, 2013 18 comments This appeared in the June issue of Fortune Magazine “Why the March on Genetically Modified Food Hurts the Hungry” You can find the article online at: http://money.cnn.com/201 3/05/23/news/economy/genet ically-modified-food.pr.... Read more Too much healthy food? Good thing I have a “parole officer” Saturday, July 06, 2013 27 comments Sometimes you just have to get back to basics. I’ve been happily busy lately with family activities. I’ve been running and walking and kayaking and being just plain active. My fitness tracker reflects all of this. I’ve been preparing ... Read more City Girl Goes Country (Part 10) – Look what we grew! Friday, July 05, 2013 24 comments Now what do I do with it? No problem - SP provided me with several options. I roasted some of the zucchini and squash – very easy and very good. I’ll steam th... Read more “ Mudslides, flooding cause evacuations and road closings” Thursday, July 04, 2013 17 comments and BTW, today’s race is canceled too. You can’t argue with Mother Nature. That downpour that soaked my shoes on Tuesday continued through Wednesday and the river is 3 ft above the 10 ft flood stage. The trail is under water as well as som... Read more Ladies, pretend you have time traveled back to 1965 and must buy some clothes Wednesday, July 03, 2013 37 comments You don't want to stand out. So, click here to find your size. www.simplicity.com/t-sew ing-measurement-charts.asp x#misspetite The fact is that back then if you made some of your own clothes, the pattern you bought... Read more You can’t find a lumberjack when you need one, so you have to improvise. Tuesday, July 02, 2013 13 comments This huge tree trunk was floating by our house, a casualty of the last storm. Since it would be a definite hazard to boats, we lassoed it and dragged it into shore. No... Read more How many calories can you burn doing this? For an hour! Monday, July 01, 2013 33 comments None of this could be entered into a fitness tracker unless there was a category for joy in movement. ... Read more No adult needed – No license either Sunday, June 30, 2013 29 comments They’re not old enough to drive a jetski or a boat, but they can still explore the lake. Fortunately our cove is large enough that they are always in sight of us as we ... Read more Mother nature – both beautiful and destructive Saturday, June 29, 2013 21 comments Recent storms have raised our lake level significantly. The depth at the end of our dock is about 20 feet. Sadly, our neighbor experienced nature’s full fury. Their dock is now gone thanks to a large uprooted tree. ... Read more I call this “cross training” and just plain fun Friday, June 28, 2013 24 comments This is one of the benefits of living on a lake. That’s me and our granddaughter. She’s 11, the youngest of 6, and the only girl. We’re off to explore way back into ... Read more “ Who do you think you are?” A search for roots. Thursday, June 27, 2013 14 comments If you’re a celebrity you may be highlighted on a TV special. If you’re not, you’re on your own. I’m writing today to explain my recent 1000 mile journey to the coal regions of Pennsylvania. After my recent blogs from Europe (Vienna, Brat... Read more Incident at the buffet Wednesday, June 26, 2013 24 comments This is in the “none of my business” department but several days later I’m still wondering about the implications. DH loves buffets. He likes to “get his money’s worth.” I like them too and usually can find a variety of options that work ... Read more A woman – A soldier – 150 years ago Tuesday, June 25, 2013 62 comments Now this was one strong woman, Kady Brownell Here’s a little bit about her ... Read more A Tale of Two Dinners Monday, June 24, 2013 11 comments I learned a lesson last night as I tried to eat healthy while on the road. There are more options available than there used to be, but you will pay more comparatively than will your less cautious traveling companions. Last night we were fi... Read more From the Danube to the Susquehanna – Rivers of the World Sunday, June 23, 2013 22 comments DH & I are on the road again, but this time much closer to home. Yet, looking at this photo, if I didn’t put a caption on it, I might think it was somewhere along the Danube ... Read more “ I was so much older then, I’m
younger than that now” A “course PR” is
definitely a victory A
city girl goes country (part 3) – discovering new
vegetables
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The impact of the baby boom - society was never ready for us
at any stage 3 bad habits that hurt your knees Thursday, March 21, 2013 6 comments This is an addendum to my Tuesday blog entry A brown eyed girl’s search for a brown eyed doll (circa 1955) www.sparkpeople.com/mypa ge_public_journal_individu al.asp?blog_id=5290657 Ironically, on Tuesday afternoon... Read more Now THESE are strong women! Wednesday, March 20, 2013 11 comments “ Women prove themselves in grueling Army course” I’ve written a lot recently about choices and opportunities for women past and present, so this story immediately attracted my attention. (Link to the full article is at the end) DH was ... Read more Womanly or manly pursuits - how do we spend our time? Tuesday, March 19, 2013 19 comments Today I salute all the women AND men with the courage to be themselves. A comment on my blog Saturday prompted today’s thoughts. When she mentioned “womanly pursuits,” we all pretty much understood which activities she meant, even before... Read more A brown eyed girl’s search for a brown eyed doll (circa 1955) Monday, March 18, 2013 22 comments 12 years before Van Morrison’s song, I knew that it was blue eyes that were beautiful. I didn’t need a commercial, TV show or anyone else to tell me that blue eyed blondes hit the genetic jackpot and I didn’t. All I had to do was look at m... Read more Gifts for women – more of a poll than a blog Sunday, March 17, 2013 20 comments Ads like this were common when women were the only ones expected to use household appliances. You wouldn’t see such a campaign today. ... Read more Media images of women – more thoughts on expectations – past and present. Saturday, March 16, 2013 15 comments I can always count on the thoughtful comments of Sparkers to get me thinking beyond my original blog entries. As someone who has lived through a lot of the history being remembered during Women’s History month, I’ve witnessed the changes in... Read more One more piece of advice from Mom Friday, March 15, 2013 29 comments When she told me or any other family member to “cover your cough,” she really meant it. I’m more aware of this right now since I’m finally recovered from the respirator... Read more “ Teachers who become pregnant will resign their position before the end of their first trimester” Thursday, March 14, 2013 31 comments That was the reality of pregnancy past. This was actually in the contract I signed in 1968 in a large urban school district in Virginia. Of course, the application also included a line where I was to indicate which “church” I attended. ... Read more Advice from my mother (1922-2011) Wednesday, March 13, 2013 18 comments “ Have something to put on that resume every year. People say they value the work of housewives and mothers, but employers forget that when you apply for a job.” Obviously, I’m paraphrasing. It was 1957 and it’s unlikely I can remember M... Read more The way it was, is now, and perhaps will be? Tuesday, March 12, 2013 15 comments “ Women won’t be equal to men in the media until 2085.” Articles like this always grab my attention. I’ve listed the links to the articles at the end, since it’s not so much the general results of the study that interested me, but one... Read more “ Take with food” – “Something to go with my tea” and other excuses Monday, March 11, 2013 25 comments My “parole officer” brought me back to reality this morning. In the last 10 days I gained nearly 3 pounds. That’s not a lot compared to the fluctuations I’ve read about here on SP, but for me it’s significant. Since reaching maintenance... Read more Sugar levels in drinks - not just a USA concern Sunday, March 10, 2013 9 comments This isn’t news to anyone on SP nor is the “Rethink Your Drink” campaign. However, it caught my attention when it was posted on my Facebook feed by my cousin in SLOVAKIA! ... Read more Isaac Newton was right. Saturday, March 09, 2013 17 comments Unless acted on by an outside force, a body at rest tends to stay at rest and a body in motion tends to stay in motion. At least that’s what I remember from my HS/College Physics classes. My body was in motion just about every day until ... Read more “ I thought they would be more attractive” said my cruise-mate. Friday, March 08, 2013 32 comments We were on tour of the “Red Light District” in Amsterdam in December. Yes, this is a popular walking tour especially for Americans. I have no pictures to verify or negate that one man’s opinion because it’s illegal to take pictures of the wome... Read more Imagine me running toward you in this shirt. Thursday, March 07, 2013 22 comments Wouldn’t you think I’m one tough Grandma? No, I haven’t suddenly started to run “ultra” races. This is the program I described at the beginning of the year designed... Read more When “something going around” finally
gets around to you Wednesday, January 16, 2013 17 comments While sitting in my cold house yesterday, I read the SP article “Can Money Buy Happiness”? www.sparkpeople.com/reso urce/wellness_articles.asp ?id=1776 It’s strange how SP often emails me a link to something I real... Read more It was a dark and stormy night as she drove the twisting country road toward home Tuesday, January 15, 2013 18 comments That’s how mystery novels used to begin and they rarely ended well. Fortunately, nothing dire occurred, only very disappointing. After a day of healthy eating and excellent workout, including navigating several potential hazards, I ate 1200 ca... Read more 100+ years of Clairol – self image isn’t only about weight Monday, January 14, 2013 16 comments My blog entry on Saturday included the admission that I didn’t diet in the past because I didn’t feel I had to. In spite of my weight gain, my body image was fine. Case in point: When at a family gathering my aunt remarked to my mother th... Read more Seeking a distance run – the twists and turns and ups and down of my day Sunday, January 13, 2013 15 comments As my status says, I have new motivation to increase my distance running. As I wrote last Sunday, I discovered a beautiful running trail 25 miles away from me. I haven’t run a race longer than a 5K since my retirement 5 years ago since my... Read more The ultimate oddball admission – I never dieted during 25 years of carrying the extra weight Saturday, January 12, 2013 11 comments Not once from age 35 to 61 was I ever tempted by diet plans or programs or pills. I just accepted it as normal. I was getting older, my metabolism was slowing down and hormones were to blame. I didn’t need to diet. This is what I would b... Read more The admission of an oddball – part 2 – I like to exercise Friday, January 11, 2013 13 comments I don’t see it as a chore. Fitness never was my problem, eating was. So much for all those ads – just walk and lose weight. When I decided to get serious about my weight, I was already RUNNING 20 miles a week and hauling around a bunch o... Read more The admission of an oddball – I love tracking my food Thursday, January 10, 2013 28 comments It’s not a chore. I know I can manage without it calorie-wise at least short term. I’ve done this during the entire month of December with a cruise and the holidays and no Internet. Yet I look forward to online tracking. So many weight... Read more Hybrid crops vs GMOs (genetically modified organisms) Wednesday, January 09, 2013 7 comments Last week when I wrote about my supersized potatoes, I was mainly interested in calories and portion control. SuzyMobile mentioned the possibility that they were genetically modified. That’s something I wanted to investigate. According to ... Read more All living things can thrive given the right environment Tuesday, January 08, 2013 7 comments Even in winter I still want to have fresh herbs. Here’s my happy little basil plants. There’s oregano and parsley too on another shelf. After much trial and error and experimentation, I finally found the right location as well as amount and f... Read more The power of community and resources to increase motivation Monday, January 07, 2013 14 comments I’ve written once that change has to come from within and that’s still true. However, a community of like-minded people provided with resources can fuel that change and keep it recharged. Since retirement 5 years ago I’ve lived in a rural ... Read more A 100 mile challenge? Sunday, January 06, 2013 17 comments Yesterday when I visited my local running store, I saw a notice for a “100 Miler.” At first I dismissed it as another of those “ultra” events for elite endurance athletes. Then I saw that the store has a “team.” Huh? There aren’t enough endu... Read more A visual reminder of miles traveled Saturday, January 05, 2013 13 comments My local running store collects our old shoes to donate to the city’s rescue mission. Yesterday while tripping over stuff in my closet, I realized that I had forgotten about this for quite awhile. I replace my running shoes every 500 miles (ab... Read more Yet another sensational headline –“Is Fat Good for You?” Friday, January 04, 2013 17 comments This popped up on my screen this morning. www.slate.com/articles/h ealth_and_science/human_na ture/2013/01/if_fat_is_unh ealthy_why_are_overweight_ people_less_likely_to_die.html I’ve always believed that a... Read more The super-sized potatoes vs the info on the bag Thursday, January 03, 2013 19 comments Last week I bought a 10 lb bag of Russet baking potatoes. They were on sale; we were expecting family during holidays, and we are descended from sturdy, potato eating, peasant stock. I was surprised to see nutritional information printed on th... Read more Even our alcohol has become supersized. Wednesday, January 02, 2013 15 comments I did not know this. I’ve compared life today with my childhood in the 50s in many different areas. This article describes the sizing creep of our mixed drinks. online.wsj.com/article/S B1000142412788732383040457 814323199... Read more Days of cupcakes, cookies, ice cream and TV
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