Electronic Mayhem - It Doesn't Rain But It Pours - Sunday, November 28, 2010

I am definitely feeling better physically though I am still on this very restricted
diet until December 7th, after which I will have my colonscopy and, hopefully,
the findings from that will be such that I can, once again, resume a normal diet. 
It wasn't much fun spending eight hours cooking on Thanksgiving day and not
being able to eat all the goodies I prepared.  The boys, however, loved everything
and  have made certain the leftovers didn't linger long enough to tempt me.  Today,
I made turkey soup with the last of the bird and they finished everything else
that remained.  I just watched sadly and ate my chicken broth and noodles.

Somehow, I seem to still have a dark cloud hovering over my head.  In the last few days,
I've been having an electronic meltdown.  My very expensive laptop, has been going
haywire, and is giving me all sorts of error messages which should not be happening. I
really can't spare money to take it in to the doctor right now. 

However, the worst of all possibilities happened!  My desktop crashed completely. 
Not even the recovery disc was able to resurrect it and all my files, photo and otherwise,
are contained therein.   Fortunately, I did subscribe to Carbonite backup a few months
ago so I don't think all my information is lost forever - but, since my laptop says it is
full ( it should have plenty of room ), I can't put the files there.  It will all have to wait until
I can afford a new desk top and that may be months from now. 

Another wierd thing has been happening with my fancy Panasonic four extension
phone system which is only about six months old.  Suddenly, I can't access the
voice mail on any of the phones so my messages can't be retrieved, nor can I use
the phone book feature.  The phones are all fully charged.  It is so frustrating to be
at the mercy of these electronic devices on which we become so dependent.

For a little while, I am sad to say, I may be missing photos with my posts.  I have so
many pictures stored on my desktop, for months of blogs to come.  I guess one should
not come to depend on these computers so much but they become so totally essential
in our lives.  I have some essentials tasks coming up in the near future and all the work
pertinent to them is on that darn desk top.  Yikes!!

Exercise - Where Have All the Endorphins Gone?

Many of you have heard me talk about Jeremy, my 25-year-old, who graduated with a degree in kinesiology from Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo.  He's a bright handsome young man who was a high school football and track star.  In college, he was a decathlete, both at the College of San Mateo and Cal Poly.  Needless to say, he's tall and lean and in great shape, after years of hurdles and leaping over poles, running, lifting weights and the like.  Lo and behold, he returns home, takes one look at his ancient, overweight, sedentary mother and begins to seriously take me to task about my health.  Briefly, he had me going to the track at Skyline College, with my walker, and, huffing and puffing, I'd do a mile while he ran five.  Then he'd have me on the ground, while I did the exercises he requested.  Now, I know that Jeremy really has my best interests at heart and he wants me to live to a ripe old age in the best of health - but I have to get myself motivated first - and I guess I'm not yet.

I've read dozens of articles that talk about endorphin release and the related feelings of euphoria that happen with exercise.  I just never seem to reach that state!  It is well documented that exercise helps people cope with mild depression more easily, especially as people age.  It even creates new neurons in the brain!  So I know I need to get off my duff, spend less time at the computer and more on the treadmill which is less than three feet from me as I type!  Jeremy isn't even an ogre.  He's asking me to get on for four ten minute sessions a day.  

I've started and, for the last three days, I've done it...but, I have to admit, it doesn't take much to lure me from my committment.  In the meantime, I've found some cute cards to send to Jeremy.  I hope he still has a sense of humor!!

Shannon Martin, Girl Designer at Madison Park Greetings

Design & Artwork by Tony Cresswell, Published in the UK by urban graphic ltd

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