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Introduction Text HI ! July 27, 2020 It's a HOT ONE !! No Doubt !! I have retreated to the office, which has an air conditioner, but when I got up this morning and went downstairs to our kitchen, hubby was all ready to help me make the bread and butter pickle chips that I have been talking about making since last week. He had the sugar all measured out, the gallon of vinegar that I had bought at Agway on Sat out, opened, and ready to go. We got out bowls, both of our Mother's old "canning kettles", and the food processer for slicing the cukes --- of which by the way were all grown in our garden. Got the brine made, processed the cukes as the heat in the kitchen increased. Got the 12 pint jars washed, dried and back in water to warm. Once jars were warm, got the jars packed with chips, brine ladeled into jars, sealed and put into the water bath to boil for 12 minutes --- the temp outdoors kept increasing to what i saw as a high of 99 degrees by the time we were done ---- about 88.5 in the kitchen (we do NOT have air conditioning - only window A/C units on our 2nd and 3rd floors). HOT. Got another cortisone shot in my left knee Thursday -- we'll see where that takes me. It will be interesting to see if I am able to do any walking on the sidewalk or road -- usually I am not able, as I can feel my knee swell inside by the time a get a few hundred feet down the road --- aggrivating. I will be looking into procedures called visco-supplementation and PRP for the fall to see if those give me any better relieft -- for perhaps up to a year. I am simply not ready for a knee replacement yet. Gardening has been wonderful this year --- it has been THE BEST year/season for gardens that I have seen in years ! Tremendous flowers. Tremendous vegetables !! WOW !! ENJOY All --- though the heat is not my best friend with all of these pounds on me --- I still love summer and its freedoms !! March 10, 2020 Saw this on a Spark People post and loved it -- it is SO ABSOLUTELY TRUE and still is today, some 4 months later !!! "Choosing ways to improve yourself is not the hard part. What’s difficult is maintaining the enthusiasm and having the self-discipline to make self-improvement part of your daily routine. There is no easy way around it. It takes consistent daily effort to get results." I so hope to up my enthusiasm and motivational levels...and hold firm and keep trying and working --- it has been very challenging since the beginning of this year !! Wed, 5/15/19: Just back from 2 wks in FL ! Weather not as good as some of the other times -- lots of thunderstorms while I was there -- but at least it was consistently WARM !! I am so tired of being cold, here is MA. Enjoyed floating on the pool in the sun whenever I could, but am now back, and ready to get back to working on my healthy lifestyle...making better food choices again and getting back to getting more steps and activity in daily via my Fitbit !! Sun, 9/9 Today finds me back in FL...yay !!! Time for me. Time for a walk before it gets too hot...going now !! Friday -- August 10th -- well, over 7,000 steps on my fitbit so far, the lawn is mowed, the deck boxes watered and deadheaded, the sprinkler has been set out on the lawn and has now been pulled in -- all I have left to do outside (tomorrow) is to deadhead the yard plants and the rest of my gardens. I am off to the shower now -- hubby and I are going to attend the Billie Joel Concert at Fenway Park in Boston tonight in celebration of our 27th wedding anniversary which is today !!! Cheers !!! Enjoy !!! Update - July 22, 2018 -- What a great day today was !! Went on a guided 3 hour kayaking trip in the Essex River Basin, in Essex, MA. 3 guides --- 14 customers --- what a great time I had. Absolutely loved being outdoors for most of the day, enjoying the weather, the sights, and birds, the back side of Cranes Beach -- beautiful, and enjoying the kayaking !! So uplifting !! Hubby had a good time too, but not as much as I did. Would our way through the basin and up and into the marshes-just spectacular !! May 1, 2018 --- Happy May Day to ALL !!! Great news to share -- I went to my doctors appointment this past Friday, and had a blood pressure of 120/80 right there in her office !!! WHOOT WHOOT !!! Considering I seem to get that "White Coat Syndrome" when I am there, and my blood pressure increases -- it was good enough for her to tell me that she was not going to put me on any BLOOD PRESSURE medication at this time -- but just to keep up my good work !! { I also brought my blood pressure log sheet that I have started keeping since late last year which shows BP is much lower when I am regularly taking it at home}. Thanks to all of my Spark friends for the love, motivation, inspiration and votes of confidence you have shared and bestowed upon me !! You have all helped me to stay stronger -- now to continue the progress !!! The weight loss showing on her scale didn't hurt either !!!! :-) Update - April 9, 2018 -- The 2018 Spring Challenge with the Awesome A's has just begun. As I sit here and type, while doing laundry, I think that I need to be up and moving rather than sitting. I have promised myself that today, I will walk - it is sunny and supposed to get into the 40's. I want to achieve a goal of 10,000+ steps in today. I did it yesterday ---- I can do it again today. The yard needs raking -- why not take a small section and do it ? MAKE IT HAPPEN!! Don't just sit by the side of the road and wish that it did !!!! That is my biggest problem -- sitting and wishing, and not getting up and taking the action needed. I see my nutritionist tomorrow --- and I go back to the doctor at the end of April, for another blood pressure check --- she is threatening to put me on a high blood pressure medication, which I am still resistant to. Am I finally taking this all seriously ?? I need to. Update - 12/01/2017 -- I have been exercising more !! My physical therapy ends next week - success !! My right leg is much better, thank heavens !! My left knee is still a problem and my left leg is still weaker than the right. I will begin private exercise (like a personal trainer) with my same physical therapist after my PT ends -- I am excited about this !! Need to strengthen my core, left leg and upper body !! My back has been bothering me from driving the bus, I believe -- I can jokingly say that I need a makeover !! I am still driving the COA 14 passenger van 2 days a week, lately on Wed and Thurs -- I like those 2 days but they want me to pick Tues/Wed or Thurs/Fri, so that the other part time driver can get 2 days in a row also -- though I understand, I am not happy about having to make that change...she is working Tues/Fri now. I enjoy seeing different people on those 2 days - not being limited to lunch duty pick up and drop offs only, if i drive on Tues/Wed.... Sorry for the venting !!! Thanks for listening !! 8/27/2017: I have been having a horrible problem getting motivated. This encompasses my entire world -- eating healthy, calorie intake, exercising, happiness and contentment. I just went to my primary care for check up, and will need to go on high blood pressure meds in 3 months if this more recently added 20 lbs isn't coming off !!! SCARY !! I have rejoined Weight Watchers yesterday for some local accountability. Will continue with Spark People --- I need the motivation. You guys are all great !! Truly I need the help and the motivation. Just back from vacation at my sister's in FL - great to have a full week of blue skies, warm temps and the pool at 90-92 degrees --- aaaahhhhhhh !!! Wonderful !! Now that I am back, I am trying to better organize my time. I have taken a part time job as a Van Chauffeur for the Council on Aging in my town, and I am now driving a small bus two days a week - we provide rides to Seniors who come to/from the Center for lunches, or whom need rides to/from doctors appointments in town and in surrounding towns, nursing home visits, grocery shopping, outings, errands, Rx refills, or whatever !! I have been enjoying it very much, but it has thrown off my entire exercise schedule (of course also in conjunction with vacation). Now - trying to get myself back up to the Center to get in some exercise classes and get back on the Elliptical Bicycle again !! I retired in January, 2016, from 40+ years of full time employment, handling insurance claims. I'm looking forward to the challenge of this Spring Challenge to take off 5%, about 10 lbs for me !! That would be so motivational and such a great start. I'm on the mend from arthroscopic surgery to my left knee on June 13, 2016, as well as last year in September, 2015 -- issues with arthritis now, which has been a problem with mobility for me. Weight loss would certainly help my knee, though since July 2, 2016, I seem to have gained an additional 17 lbs, bringing my weight up to 210. !! It's time for me right now --- time to lose weight and to get into better condition after all of these years of sitting !! Now, Jan, 2017, I am still at home, and finding it very hard to get motivated to move, which is why I have joined Spark People -- Need to feel some excitement and find commrodery, not just alone and depressed.

Lose the 20 lbs I have gained since July 2, 2016, and and get myself back to 194 lbs, then work to continue on to lose more, down to my ultimate goal of 185 lbs.

I am working on Living a Healthy Livestyle. I need to find a new way of tracking that motivates me - I have rejoined NOOM -- I like their tracking capabilities. They also track my FitBit steps...which I try to get between 6,500 and 9,000 per day per the recommendations of my physical therapist -- which I will be going back to as soon as I get to his office with my script to get a new sessions set up. I am not supposed to walk for longer than 20 mins a day, per his recommendation last year.

64 years old, married. Love to read, play on the computer, socialize with friends, counted cross stitch, kayak, drive the bus for our town's Counsel on Aging, go to the beach, garden, float on my sisters pool in FL, walk (depending on how my knee feels), and would love to get back to taking muscle conditioning classes and riding the elliptical bicycle at the COA. Have stopped doing both of those things. Need to refer to this list often !!!

I joined our local Council on Aging in late January, 2017 -- can't believe it !! It had been really good for me --- I used to go to a 45 min long Muscle Conditioning class there Mon, Wed and Friday and then ride the elliptical bicycle for 30 min until I started driving the van/bus for them -- then I stopped going to the classes and riding the bike !!!! NOT GOOD !! I need to make a change and get back to this exercise pattern that really helped me to feel better. I really need to get back to that muscle conditioning class and the lateral elliptical machine.

Add a Link Laurie / LJENKIN-B MA - Eastern Standard Time <link>My Ticker</link>
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