RAMBLINGS VOL IX

Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. Phillippians 4:11

“Be very careful about the goals you set because quite often you achieve them.”  Thomas Powell

It is 4:49 AM Friday morning.  I’m up a little extra early after a good night’s sleep and am ready to go.  I just decided to work out in the gym instead of going for a run; but I’m going to do a load of laundry first.  My body feels rested and there is no pain!  My mind is sharp.  I’m not hungry yet, but I know that the kitchen contains a bounty of healthy food choices.  I’m comfortable knowing that right now I am making a lot more good decisions than bad ones.  I like mornings like this one.

My fantasy baseball team (the Allfive Fingers) is holding its own in the league playoff semi-finals.  We’re up a couple of dingers with three days to play out.  Win or lose, I am proud as a runway mom!

I’ve got Ziggy Stardust by David Bowie in my head at the moment.  I could do a whole lot worse.

Laundry is done, folded and put away.  It’s 7:06AM.  I have decided to skip today’s workout and take a run tomorrow morning.  It is nice to be in a position where I can make that call and not feel the slightest bit of guilt or worry.  Time to say a short prayer of thanks.  I’ll be back….  Okay, I’m back.  It’s about 50-somethng degrees this morning!  AC is turned off.  There is a nice crisp smell to the air.  Summer is turning into fall, and it feels good.

Crazy karma - the social worker at the dialysis ctr just used the

Shakespearean phrase "slings and arrows". That's the name of my fantasy football team. I told her this and she informed me that Visanthe Shiancoe (Minnesota Vikings) is her son!

I was in armchair paradise last night!  I was watching two football games on TV (Boomer Sooner!) while playing two online Scrabble games and also checking on my fantasy baseball team's progress.  And my teams won!

I tested my smartphone’s Internet access from a Starbucks today.  It works as advertised even outside of the store.  This will come in very handy when I am traveling.  And by no means will this be used as an excuse to start wasting money on those frappucinos again.

Today I got super-crabby towards the end of my dialysis session.  Why?  Hunger.  I had a solid breakfast, but had it a little earlier than usual.  And instead of a half-sandwich, piece of fruit and a good-sized snack, I packed only a half-sandwich and a small snack, so I was ravenous by 3PM.  It took a lot of willpower to come directly home, but it was worth it.  I immediately ate a couple of chili dogs (my best batch of chili yet!) and a cookie, and then grabbed the Chinese takeout menu.  I ordered the General Tso’s chicken combo platter and a gyro (no tomato).  The stuff arrived at 6:30 and I got busy immediately.  I made it through the gyro, the egg roll, and a good helping of Gen Tso chicken and fried rice before I stopped.  I can’t pretend that I don’t know why I was so hungry; one look in the mirror tells me why.  I am still adding muscle.  I have to tell the medical staff at the dialysis center to bump up my “dry weight” another kilo to 104 kilograms (about 229 lbs).

Even *nothing* can be done well….

I may have reached the point where I can throttle back a little on my training.  If I do not train today, I will still have worked out 10 of 20 days this month.  I definitely see more definition in a lot of places on my body.  And the success builds on itself as my ego starts to kick in.  It’s a lot easier to turn down that donut now.  As hungry as I was when I arrived home yesterday, I focused on eating good food instead of the big chocolate chip cookies that Hilva left for me.  The important thing now is to find a comfortable training level.  I am famous for my “all or nothing” attitude, and if I don’t watch it I’ll be looking at myself in the mirror in six months wondering what the hell happened.

Sometimes while in the kitchen I think up something that I want to write down, and by the time I get back to my computer I forget what that one thing is.  This is one of those times.

It is almost exactly one week after I started this volume of ramblings.  Today is my dad’s birthday.  RIP David White Sr.  I love to think about why he taught me to play chess instead of basketball.

Among other things, during this morning’s workout I did 40 push-ups, took a quick break, and did 40 more.  That was pretty cool. 

Just like last Friday, so far I am having a damn fine morning!

My fantasy baseball team, the Allfive Fingers, won last week’s semifinal by outscoring the best team in the league.  As of right now we have a 20-plus-point lead in the finals with three days to play.  Anything can happen, but I just know that the Fingers are going to win.

I am currently playing “Hip Hop” by Dead Prez.  It is a thug beat.  I like it a lot.

So far this has been a very interesting Saturday.  It is 1:30PM and I have not yet watched a single minute of college football.  I’m not exercising today because I’ve worked out four days in a row and my body has put the brakes on exercising for at least a day or so.  There’s little food in the pantry simply because it’s that time of the month, but I still have food to eat.  I have a couple of sources of money if I really need to buy something, but I’m pretending that I don’t.  The big question:  do I brave the rainy weather and take a trip to the supermarket?  The answer:  Yes, of course I do.  I need protein.

It is Sunday morning and I am in rare form.  Well, I am in what used to be rare form; it is now a more common occurrence.  My neck still hurts, but my mind is razor-sharp and I am in a good mood regardless.  I’ve already solved one mystery, and also discovered that my B-complex vitamin supplement bottle has a pop top – I no longer have to unscrew the cap every morning.  I did not go to the supermarket yesterday, and I just decided that I’m not going to go today either.  I will make do with cold cereal, cold cuts and scrambled eggs until hunger sends me down to the convenience store on the “terrace” (read basement) level of the apartment complex.  So what’s next?  A big bowl of Corn Flakes and Frosted Flakes and a game of Scrabble.  I’ll be back….

My big brother Owen told me two things that stick out in my mind.  Number one:  You have the rest of your life to cross the street.  Number two:  When you get older, you will notice all the ladies looking at you in a certain way.  I understood number one immediately, and it has saved my life at least once.  After many years, I now see evidence of number two every single day.  And it feels pretty good.  But where they hell were they when I needed them?

Answer:  they were right there.