Signs of spring

Here are some of the flowers blooming right now in our garden. Inside I've been forcing paperwhites for a couple of months in recycled glass candle containers. I've always got 6 or so such candles on the atlar, and once they're done the container has a 2nd life as a vase! They smell heavenly.

These crocus are planted around the popular bird bath, and besides the new daphne that is blooming, these are the first flowers of the season. Purple is my passion, so look forward to a lot more purple in the months to come!

Beautiful song

While listening to Pandora I came upon this lovely song that takes me to my college days when Phil Collins was one of my musical idols.

I couldn't really appreciate the words back then...but I can now. I only wish the single tear part was accurate.

Enjoy...

Lent and Catholic guilt

So Lent started, and unfortunately I missed the boat, so to speak. I was on the other side of town for a meeting, went to the gym (got sweaty), and felt like it would be too uncouth to show up for Ash Wednesday in my gym attire. I kinda of feel like I'm confessing this...that powerful Catholic guilt phenomena at work.

So what is a Catholic to do, with Lent underway and not having started off on the right foot, so to speak?

I also am at a loss about what I should do/give up for Lent. Being more forgiving and less judgemental sounds like the place for me, but it is too hard. Like starting off with running a marathon rather than walking a mile.

Little sis is giving up electronic communication, which seems like an impossible thing. Ridiculous even. I'm not God cares whether I blog or not. IMHO.

Ok, let me list all the hard things that seem...beyond me:

1. Forgiving everyone I'm pissed with right now.
2. Not eating chocolate or sugar for 40 days.
3. No lies, esp. little white ones.
4. Being patient with others.

Funny bones

I'm still keeping up with my post-operative effort to laugh everyday, and here are some of my strategies. I've been mining the library's collection for more comedy DVDs and audiobooks. Free and funny. How can you go wrong?

I've been watching David Chappelle's episodes, and he's brilliant. I sure wish he was still doing standup, because I think he'd have a lot of interesting and funny stuff to say about Obama and his impact on how Americans handle race. I watch it in the morning as I do my ROM. While driving I'm listening to David Sedaris's "When you are engulfed in flames." I'm wavering between finding him hilarious in parts and not so funny in others.

There is something about building in daily moments of laughter that is really different and wonderful. I've got my almost daily workout and prayers, my vitamins, and laughing.

Soup report

After an hour long workout I headed into the kitchen to finish up the root vegetable soup I started yesterday. It is a keeper...sunny and spicy (thanks to a chunk of minced ginger and a cinnamon stick), this soup is also very low in fat and vegetarian (although a bit of chicken would be nice too). I think that some lite coconut milk would give it a Thai flair, but I tend to stick to the recipe for my initial debut of a recipe. Now let's see if Federico likes it. He wasn't wild about the spinach soup. He did love the spicy Dutch lentil soup. I know that he enjoys vegetarian food, as many of our meals are meatless.

My foot is doing ok. Not great. I feel a fair amount of tightness and the occasional twinge of pain, and I wonder if this is just part of the healing process and my increasing activity. Every week is a new physical experience, so I'm trying to just be open and not freak out.

Good news is that my plantar fascia is subsiding, thanks to daily ice baths (oh, you can't imagine the discomfort of submerging your foot is a big bowl of ice and water!). I realize that I haven't blogged about my other foot problem (in the foot that didn't have surgery), because I only seem to be able to mentally focus on one problem at a time.

Dreams and such

Being off of caffeine and in the land of herbal tea has been doing interesting things to my sleep. I dream more or remember my dreams more (not sure which). It's been kinda of weird to suddenly have my dream-life more accessible, and I don't know why. Sometimes I have kinda of nightmarish ones, somethings just odd, sometimes just goofy. I went from zero dreams to definitely having them weekly, if not daily. I miss drinking diet sodas and decaf, but I know I'm saving $ by sticking to water and herbal teas, not to mention much healthier.

I was at the gym when the President was giving his speech, so I'm now on the White House site watching it. More on that later.

Tomorrow I've got a new recipe to try - Molly Katzen's root vegetable stew. It looks fantastic - ginger, garlic, parsnips (I LOVE parsnips!), etc. etc. I'm still eating that spinach soup of hers with a dollop of tofu sour cream. This is my daily greens quota. I'm realizing that salads in the winter are a hard sell for me. I'm not big on cold food, especially when it's cold and dark outside.

More on the Prez and cooking later.

Happy dreaming!

Rude dog people

I've tried to refrain from using this blog to air my "issues," except when talking about big topics and events, like politics or economics.

However today while Gladys and I were hanging out at Alberta Park I encountered this incredibly rude woman with a small yapping dog, who proceeded to jump on me and bark. I'm afraid of dogs and stopped in my tracks, and then asked her to get her dog off of me/under control. She snapped at me and cooed at her dog to come to her (which he continued to ignore her and jump/snarl at me). I then insisted that she restrain her dog. She got mad at me and told me to "Go!" I retorted back that she needed to keep her dog on a leash if she couldn't control it and move it herself. Now the whole time she's pushing a jogging stroller encased in plastic wrap (I think there was a kid in there) and talking on her cell (which is probably why the whole dog/master communication thing wasn't happening). I've had this happen before, but the dog owners apologize when their dog starts to bark (let alone jump). Astute owners even pick up when someone (i.e. me) is nervous or frightened of dogs and reassure me that the dog is friendly, etc. etc.

No such luck with clueless cell-phone momma.

It highlights the much discussed arrogance of dog-owners here in PDX, who often think that 1. everyone likes dogs like they do 2. dogs have the run of public spaces (as if my body is a public space). It has surfaced in community conversations in this part of town around gentrification and tensions that dogs symbolize between African-Americans (who have traditionally lived in NE Portland) and White people (who have moved in and brought their dogs).

I was really glad that Gladys was playing far off on the jungle gym, as I was making my loop around the park. Too bad the baby encased in plastic had to witness her snarling momma and pet in action.

Sweet sunny Sunday

This weekend's been a good one...started with accupuncture on Friday. Then we took the pizza fiend (oh, I mean Gladys) to Dove Vivi, a sweet deep dish pizzeria tucked away in a little strip mall in NE. The service was friendly and helpful, as Gladys asked assorted questions about pizza ingredients (she's very particular). She squealed with excitement, and fortunately the wait staff were totally cool with that...

Fede and I ordered some fabulous salads, and then the pizza was fantastic. I'm not a huge pizza fan, but this was awesome. We ordered 1/2 of a vegan pizza, and it was SO GOOD. The carmelized roasted vegetables and creamy tofu were delectable, so who needs cheese and meat? Gladys had her pepperoni, mushroom and cheese pizza....bliss would be about the right adjective.

http://www.dovevivi.com

Saturday was a good one. We went swimming, and I'm definitely getting faster and less fearful in the pool. Later on I had my first ever private yoga class, which exceeded my expectations. There is a team of 3 instructors who are working together to design a yoga practice for my tight and healing body...Anastasia was low-key and encouraging, and the class was a good mix of challenging and relaxing. I'm trying not to be judgemental about where my body is at or compare myself to past yoga-days in my 20s or 30s when I was more flexible....though it is not easy.

I love the studio itself -- cozy, with plants and big windows. Of all the things I'm doing to get myself back to full mobility and health, I think this class is going to be one of the most important things. It's interesting to compare it to PT (which I do once a week), which is great, but doesn't look at things holistically enough and doesn't address breath or relaxation. Yoga is also WAY cheaper, so I'm contemplating backing away from PT.

Thursday sniffles

Well, it's been a bit since I shared an update on the Foot, so here it goes. My doctor visit this Monday was tough. The doc is not pleased with my range of motion and reduced me to tears by bending my toe beyond what I could bear. I was imploring him to stop, begging really....and he didn't stop. I've decided that he's modeling some tough love approach (either that or I should stop working with him, though it is rather too late for that). He could also just be an asshole. I have no point of comparison, as this is my first surgery and real interaction with a surgeon. Maybe they are all like this?

I haven't been as diligent in doing my ROM - work, doing my PT, going to the gym.....you know, all the usual excuses. So I've recommitted myself to doing the ROM and broken them into 2x a day so I can truly get in the 1000 repetitions.

Besides that he made it clear that some pain was a good thing, so that when I'm on the elliptical at an incline and it hurts I need to keep at it. My toe needs to bend and hurt. Lovely. I had been avoiding pain, but clearly I'm on the wrong page.

So I'm carving out time in the morning and evening for this, on top of walking about a mile up a hill a few days a week, plus gym visits and PT. I definitely notice I'm getting stronger and quicker on my feet, but still have a way to go to "normal." However I'm so happy to be walking mainly pain-free that I'm not going to be greedy. Walking is a HUGE friggin' thing.

To top this off, I've caught a bug and am feeling crappy right now. So I skipped the gym tonight and am going to turn in early.

I did have a pretty brilliant day at work today, so there is a residual buzz in spite of this cold and the Foot. At least my brain is operating at full tilt.

Side note: one of my co-workers made me the sweetest of gifts....she knitted me mittens with an Emily Dickinson poem knitted into the mittens. She knows I like her poetry (I mentioned this ONCE). I don't know that I've ever had someone be so thoughtful and work so hard in creating a gift for me (aside from my parents, of course, who have given me so many remarkable gifts....favorite handmade gifts - mom made me a sweet sweater with bunnies on it, and dad a fab tree house). There is something about gifts made by some one's two hands.

I'm so excited tomorrow is Friday, and we get to enjoy the light that is Gladys for a few days.

6 billion others

http://www.6billionothers.org/main.php?Lng=en&File=homePage


Since 2003 French artist Yann Arthus Bertrand has filmed an increible human quilt of 5000 stories from all over the world.

About 40 questions were asked to each person: What were your children's dreams? What is joy for you? What is your biggest fear? Do you feel free? Do you believe in god? When is the last time you cried? "Are you happy?" ''How do you define love?" or "What would you like to change about your life?"

Some of the exhibit (currently on display in a museum in Paris) is on the Net. As the creator of the show notes: "In this globalized world when we all depend on each other, we have to listen to each other," he said. "There is no message: it's the people who have something to say."

I happened to click on the question: When is the last time you cried? What range of responses. One woman in India talked about her alcoholic husband, a British senior talks about a sick son, a middle-aged Syrian man says he cries on his birthday and doesn't know exactly why. Each person opens their heart and lets you in.

Thinking about it, I can't precisely remember when I last cried. Definitely in the last month...probably talking on the phone with a friend. During one of my doctor's visits when he bends my toe hard.

Unsung heroines

When people ask me why did I become a librarian, I point to my mom, who made sure I grew up reading and hanging out in libraries, the equivalent of the candy store for me. The second most influential person was my school librarian, Sister Saint Edmund. When I was in grade school she was already "old" - a full head of white hair, a bit bent over, like a grandmother.

She was the welcoming nun who nutured my love of reading by introducing me to Caldecott and Newberry award-winning books and having me join a "Great Books" book discussion group that I loved. She treated me with respect and had high expectations, mixed with affection.

Once I moved away I kept in touch through letters, and eventually her letters stopped. She had passed away, and another sister finally wrote me to tell me the news. I remember how sad I felt, that I never got a chance to see her again.

I think she'd be very happy that I became a librarian and nuture reading in children too.

Here is a NYT video about another stellar school librarian and the impact these unsung heros make in the lives of children.


http:://video.nytimes.com/video/2009/02/15/arts/1194837851726/the-twenty-first-century-librarian.html?th&emc=th

Garden stuff

The weather has been awesome (for a Portland winter, ok?)...and so I had to get a bit of gardening in.

I've got a couple of small plots of garlic and read that they like to be amended with blood meal at this time of year. There are small little green shoots coming up, and so I went off to our wonderful local nursery Garden Fever to get advice and blood meal (I don't know exactly what this comes from, but I suspect it is....blood). I went off and scratched it around all the garlic, which gave me a chance to notice where all the bulbs are peaking up. This is the exciting antsy time of the year, when things are on the verge of blooming, but not quite yet.

Federico transplanted some strawberries that I had packed into a pot over a year ago. They need more space, and we need the strawberries.

Besides all that, we've got a new squirrel-proof bird feeder that I adore. The birds are more visible on these perches, and we've gotten lots of birds visiting the feeder...

I promise to take pictures of the bulbs when they bloom. Look forward to many colors of tulips, crocus, daffodils, hyacinth, and some others I don't know how to spell. We might have a small garden, but I have packed it full.

Oh, I also went to Costco with Debbie and got more bulbs to plant - hostas and tuberose. I couldn't resist getting the fragrant beautiful tuberose, although I don't really need more fragrant sun-loving bulbs in the front yard. I'll do a whole post on all the fragrant plants in the garden.

V-day

Had a really nice one....

Started it by having a facial at a new spa that I read about...
It is a tiny place tucked in the basement of a bungalow in the Hollywood neighborhood. The facialist gave me a lot of good advice and used yummy essential oils. I especially like that the owner is an herbalist and aromatherapist who uses her own natural product line that uses essential oils rather than chemicals.

http://www.spawillamina.com

During the day Fede was surprised by a bike-delievered valentine that Gladys and I ordered last weekend. A cute bikey valentine with her message (poorly transcribed) and some vegan chocolate. Very Portland. He loved it. Gladys called later in to find out what he thought. She's a very considerate 9 year old (I like to think I've played a part in that).

We had dinner at my favorite Indian restaurant - Vindalho. My parents gave me a gift certificate for my birthday, and I finally used it! Thank you!!! It was one of the best meals ever, and we got seated up in the balcony area...quieter and more intimate than the noisy dining room.

We ordered a lamb curry and chicken stew...both fantastic. However the lamb was literally melting in my mouth. I kept wanting to ask - how do you do that? The chutney sampler is amazing too, and our crab cake appetizer was yum. I know I'm going on and on....but truly it is such a great place to savor flavors of India. Not mouth scorching, but complex and clean. The chef uses local ingredients, so each season the menu changes...very Portland. I took a cooking class here last fall, and that was my fine introduction to this restaurant. Now I've got Fede hooked too.


http://www.vindalho.com


Definitely did my part to support the local economy today.

What I'm reading

Wade Davis is a tremendous ally to Indigenous people...an anthropologist who has traveled the world and captured something really critical in his studies. Human diversity is one of the richest treasures of our planet, like an old growth forest or a mountain range.

Reading his lyrical account is to travel the planet and see what is magnificent and endangered about our species. He reaches far beyond his field of study, taking on oppression, the disappearance of languages, racism, spirituality, the entwining of the natural world and the human race.

"Were societies to be ranked on the basis of technological prowess, the Western scientific experiment, radiant and brilliant, would no doubt come out on top. But if the criteria of excellence shifted, for example, to the capacity to thrive in a truly sustainable manner, with a true reverence and appreciation for the Earth, the Western paradigm would fail....."

Here is a video of Davis discussing his work and vision:

Love

I love the way you laugh out loud while you dream.

I love how much you love your daughters and me.

I love how playful and goofy you are...

I love how tender and sure you are when I need to lean on you...and boy have I had to lean this past year.

I love you.

Happy Valentine's Day sweetie pie!

Getting ready for V-day

I stopped off at Alma chocolates to get Federico a Valentine's day chocolate - an edible heart that says amor. They make exquisite edible works of art - laughing Buddhas, the Virgen de Guadalupe, etc.---all made out of dark chocolate and coated in gold.

I treated myself to a tiny chocolate - a lavender salted caramel. It was fantastic. They have these amazing combinations...one had chile de arbol. I almost got that one.

I'm not going to deprive myself of a treat now and then....becoming a food Nazi is not my idea of happiness or health.

Here is a link so you can get an idea of the artistry:

http://www.almachocolate.com

Kale chips!

I'm exploring new and kinda weird ways to get more veggies (esp. greens) in my diet. Today I tried a new recipe for kale chips from a Mollie Katzen cookbook I've had for years (and frankly have underutilized). They came out pretty good. Crispy and baked for 15 minutes at 350 degrees - it can't much easier than that. I could see them sprinkled with chili flakes or a bit of cheese (if I was doing dairy, but I'm not)....

I've got a spinach soup lined up for tomorrow from the same cookbook, and a great spinach dip recipe from New Seasons that I made vegan with tofu sour cream. Great with rice crackers or chopped veggies or bread (if you were eating it, which I'm not). Sprinkled on top of a soup would be delish.

We took a class on the anti-inflammatory diet this week at New Seasons, offered by their lead nutritionist. It was packed full with a lot of great info, some which was new to me. Crisco is EVIL. You should not cook at a high heat with olive oil. You can bake with olive oil instead of crisco. Lard is better than crisco. She handed out a folder full of info and an awesome 20% coupon for supplements.

A factoid I learned - you are supposed to eat 10 servings of fruits and veggies, and for an anti-inflammatory diet only 2-3 should be fruit. Average American only eats 1/2 serving of greens per day.

I confess that sometimes that average American is/was me. Argh.

A parish growing

My parish is currently undertaking a capital campaign to expand and improve its campus. It is very exciting and hopeful to see the campaign evolve, and I can hardly wait until we break ground...

Right now the parish activities are crammed into spaces too small to accomodate the growing needs. We'll have more space for religious education, a plaza for safer movement between buildings, a green roof, ADA accessibility....

Check out this beautiful video that captures the spirit of St. Andrew's so well:

Taking stock

I am a reforming news junkie and this economic meltdown has juiced up that addiction, so to speak. I read analysis from the NYT mainly and listen to KBOO, our community radio station that offers alternative points of view....

After reading that the stimulus package passed the Senate and the market is wobbling downwards, not confident that this will fix anything, I really really wish someone, i.e. the President whom I so admire, would start talking about the utter failure of capitalism this whole debacle represents.

I don't really think that change around the edges is going to do much. The players (i.e. the Lords of Wall Street and Congress) run a system so corrupt and so ridden with greed, how can we the people trust that throwing more money at them will fix it? That someone could possibly design a regulatory system to control that level of avarice? A system that allows for extreme poverty and exploitation as part of its business model, so to speak.

I don't think so.

That old Chinese curse about being born in interesting times is really applicable here, and I actually think that this whole mess presents a great opportunity to really talk about capitalism and class in new ways.

From what I was listening to on KBOO and know from reading La Jornada, the left in Latin America is far ahead of us in terms of thinking and acting out new models. I'm going to try blogging more about what I can find/read/listen to (I have the wonderful gift of being bilingual, so I get double the access to info).

Stay tuned for more in posts to come.

Stronger everyday

It's cool to notice the daily improvements in my body's healing. In the past 48 hours I did a solid 30 minutes of laps and then 35 minutes of intervals on the elliptical. I keep adding on time and intensity to my workouts, and my foot is handling it well. Best of all, my knee is getting better, so I'm handling the stairs more normally. I barely have a limp or hobble at all. [side note: Gladys beat me during a race, so that shows you how much slower I am in the pool.]

Ok, I'm still not so quick when it comes to walking, and I feel the pins in my foot at odd moments. Swimming in the pool is when I can feel the stuff in my foot the most...it is a very weird sensation. I hope this goes away with time.

The nearby yoga studio has a special one on one offering for people who are healing/have chronic pain. It's pretty reasonable in terms of price, and that way I can ease into yoga in a supportive environment. My body is very stiff from the inactivity, and no amount of massage is really going to get in there. I know yoga does. This Sat. I hope to meet the director to figure out next steps. It is a short walk from the house, so I'm psyched that this is really accessible too.

I think this is a really awesome way to start out a new year...focusing on my health.

Sunday mornings

I love Sunday mornings. We've got this sweet big king-size bed that I got in advance of the surgery and 6 weeks in bed. Add toasty down comforter. The whole room is done in this dreamy robin-egg blue, and we get the eastern sunshine through the wooden blinds. It is just a very relaxing and peaceful space.

The three of us hang out - cuddling, reading, chatting about breakfast and the day ahead. Sometimes we chat with Elvia on the laptop, but today the village's Internet signal is down.

Today we noshed on gluten-free pancakes, and ahead of us is swimming at Dishman. We've got a big olla of chicken soup in the fridge, so we don't even have to cook. I don't have a single chore or "thing I have to do" on my agenda today.

What a treat.

Vacation plans

One of my fun daydreamy activities has been thinking about warmer weather and summer plans. On the horizon is an August weekend trip to Breitenbush hot springs for Fede and I, sans child. It is one of my favorite places in Oregon...beautiful old growth forest, hot springs tucked amid the trees, and a rustic hippy lodge and cabins with veggie food served (so no lugging a camping stove).

I'm also planning on a trip to the Oregon coast, to Kanetah Resort (in the OR high desert) - which is Gladys' favorite vacation spot. She loves it because it has her 2 favorite things - horseriding (see her and her dad enjoying the ride) and a big pool with an slide. I love the pool and horses too, and I plan on checking out the spa this time around.

Of course, day trips to Sauvie Island for picking fruit and corn are a given. We love visiting the farms and eating berries in the fields.

The weekend arrives

The excitement of the day was getting Gladys and going out for pizza, her absolute favorite food. We tried a restaurant in our neighborhood I'd be wanting to try for ages...Firehouse. They have a wood oven for the pizza and a wood-fired rotissiere for the chicken (my food of choice). One of the cooks is someone who knows Federico, so she comped up a lovely pizza margherita as a starter. Gladys devoured more pizza than I thought possible for a 9 year old. It was all delicious -- I loved the argula salad, and I'm not easily wowed by salads. I definitely did not follow the anti-inflammatory diet today. I ate some pizza, a decaf with cream, and some of the dessert...an orange currant cake.

We talked about what we are going to plant in the garden. Rather I asked Gladys what she wanted to plant, and she listed off a long list of plants -- she wants a butterfly and hummingbird garden, plus a cherry tree, watermelons, melons, potatos, tomatos, zinnias, roses, sunflowers, tulips, daisies...She also told me she wanted to grow water in the garden....Other things on the wish list include: dog, birds, parrots, trampoline, slide, a little sister or brother, a puddle...gosh.

Another day

It's pretty cool to notice daily leaps in my healing. I feel like since starting PT and going to the gym each day I'm moving more quickly, with less pain/stiffness...more normal me. Today was way better than yesterday. Even co-workers noticed and commented.

I went to the gym and pushed myself to do level 10 and even 11 on the elliptical, in fits and spurts. I did my PT, which are still hard to do. Then I headed to accupuncture....

I'm really grateful for my body's remarkable capacity to heal. It's almost been 2 months since the surgery.

I've learned so much about my body and about healing.

22 random things about me

1. If I weren't Catholic, I'd be a Jew. I went through a Jewish phase as a kid that lasted a few years.

2. I learned to swim when I was 5 years old and haven't stopped since.

3. I once guarded Pete Seeger's guitar.

4. I loved going to Catholic school.

5. I don't know how to dive.

6. I had my first real boyfriend when I was 24.

7. I have never tried any illegal substances and have zero interest in being around people who use them.

8. I've had 4 proposals of marriage.

9. One of my favorite songs as a kid was "Brick House" by the Commodores.

10. I love bellydancing. Love to do it. Love to watch it.

11. If I could live anywhere in the world, I think it would be Paris.

12. If I could be a millionaire I would travel all over the place and then settle down somewhere warm.

13. I want to publish a book before I die.

14. I've run 4 marathons.

15. I've traveled to every country in Central America. Every single little country.

16. I speak 3 languages.

17. I can swearing fluently in 2 of them.

18. I always wanted a big brother growing up.

19. I've self-identified as a feminist since high school.

20. I do not understand people of color who vote Republican. Do not get it.

21. If I could date any celebrity, it would be Viggo Mortensen.

22. I will not color my gray hair.

Yeah!

So today I had a great workout....30 minutes at level 8-9 on the elliptical trainer, weights (upper body and then my PT), closing out with 10 minutes of laps (breaststroke). I loved being in the pool....I only looked longingly at the jacuzzi.

I faced down feeling slow and weak, worrying what people think, whatever. I pushed myself to sweat, gingerly walk to the pool and just move. Just do it.

I know that exercise is going to help me heal quicker, and I need to start getting my cardio fitness back too.

Ana is pushing me to walk a 5K, and I'm contemplating it. It is a goal, and I've always been very motivated by concrete goals. Stay tuned.

Happy Anniversary

My parents celebrate 52 years of marriage today. Amazing. They are on a cruise right now....so I'm toasting them in absentia. Hats off to a very remarkable couple. You model the stick-to-it-ness that I aspire to....Lots of love and respect.

Music of the heart

Researchers at the University of Maryland, in Baltimore, showed for the first time that positive emotions aroused by joyful music have a favorable effect on the endothelium.

"We believe that the brain plays a pivotal role in vascular health," lead author Dr Michael Miller said. "High cholesterol and high blood pressure are very important, but some individuals lacking these risk factors develop significant heart disease, and that may be partly related to their response to stress."

If music can evoke positive emotions to counteract negative stresses of everyday life, it could have a very important influence on vascular health, he said. "It should be incorporated into a healthy lifestyle, just as we might incorporate other healthy habits."

How cool that something so fun and easy is good for you. My playlists as stress-relieving medicine. Crank up your favorite song on the stereo. FYI, this new playlist has a real diverse mix from all over the planet, so explore. A few of the songs were recommendations from a NYT blog of music people listen to when they need inspiration and hope. Most are just selections of my favorite groups...

Here is the citation if you want to see the research for yourself:

Marlene Busko. Music, like laughter, benefits heart health . theheart.org. [Clinical Conditions > Clinical cardiology > Clinical cardiology]; Nov 14, 2008. Accessed at http://www.theheart.org/article/921307.do on Jan 13, 2009

Weekend wrapping up

So we had a fairly quiet weekend. Here are few things I accomplished. Most stuff I haven't done since the surgery.

-worked in the garden and planted up one of my pots with some winter-interest plants from Garden Fever. Yeah!!! Strolled around to inspect the plants. You can see the tiny garlic coming up. Very exciting. We are going to have a lot of garlic.

-went to church and saw our new temporary priest-helper. He is very cute. I don't think this is a sin. I hope not. God was the one who made him so cute. Maybe it is because I'm so used to seeing old men as priests that to see some young hunky Latino guy is a shock.

-brought flowers for the Virgen de Guadalupe to thank her for the successful surgery and healing.

-went to the gym for the first time in ages and did 30 minutes on the elliptical trainer. It was not too bad, considering.

-made a fantastic chicken soup with veggies and orzo. Fantastic is Federico's assessment. It is pretty darn good. Took some soup over to Amanda's with one of my blooming paperwhites.

-went to library to get very funny quirky HBO comedy "Flight of the Conchords"....loved it. One of my staff comedy picks.

-did moxa on my foot, did my PT exercises (can we said a bitch?), put ice on my ankle, which is a bit swollen.

All in all, it was so wonderful to return to my routine, even though I'm not back to full strength, as they say. I appreciate the ability to walk and use my body. It is humbling and hard not to be able to walk at my normal speed (which I always thought was not terribly fast, but now I consider to be lightening-like). You have to resist the urge to look backward when you are recovering from surgery. It only brings frustration and disappointment. Not useful emotions.