Well it’s not real original but…
YOWZA!! That’s HOT! 101.3 degrees F at 2PM on 6/7, here in the ChicagoLand area. That’s pretty high for us. In June. ZERO to 100, that’s how we roll out here. Wednesday was a little cooler (only got to 98 so no one cares too much about that) but today—Thursday, it’s back down to 65. And it’s storming again. Raining and flooding. The usual. I have to go to school now, so I’ll be outside breathing in all of that good pneumonia atmosphere. My chest is NEVER going to feel better.
Rest the brain, rest the body. Running will have to wait a few more days.
Sunny and hot followed by dark and violent. The day is just oppressive as hell until it suddenly isn’t. The Earth is surely trying to tell us something. Spinning wildly and throwing storms all over its surface. Tossing more limbs into my world anyway. Luckily most of the big ones are gone now. The winds are going to have to try a bit harder and go for a whole tree, although I’d appreciate it if they all just stayed where they belong. Anyway, this was after our walk in the woods. Temp dropped about 25 degrees, wind picked up, sky went dark and kind of green, and the rain poured down. Sideways, actually. It was bizarre. But it was fast. The camera didn’t even really capture how menacing the sky looked. The auto focus kept lightening up the pictures. I don’t have the right equipment for the really threatening storms. I can only catch my views from under a shelter. It was nice after though. Humid still, but cooler. Just getting us ready for yesterday.
The thing we learned from this last week of rainfall is that our gutters are crap. They are full of so much junk that water can’t even collect in them, it just pours over the top and makes a nice waterfall around the perimeter of the house. And I had steel, mesh guards over the tops. They were being slowly destroyed, one by one, due to the basketball hoop in the driveway. Seems the roof and gutters are easier to hit with the basketball then the net. The house and garage looked like they were missing teeth.
Thanks to another day of heat and boredom, we decided to take all the guards down and clean the gutters, finally. Should have done it about five storms ago, but it’s such a pain and I can’t reach them without a ladder, and isn’t that really a man’s job?? It is.
Before I get a nasty comment here, let me just clarify that by “we”, I mean, the BF. He, and he alone, did the actual gutter cleaning. Climbing up and down, hands in the muck, removing the soggy, stinky, rotting leaves and whatever the hell else sits in there and blocks the drainage. He even had to dismantle one of the downspouts to get it unclogged. But they do all flow so nicely now. So thank you. I do appreciate all the hard work you do. And we didn’t spend any money! That’s a good weekend project right?!? Now I can hardly wait for the next rainfall!
I did do some stuff to help. I did accessory things, like move the garbage can closer and hand him the hose to flush out the small debris. I think I even moved a ladder at one point. Don’t judge. I am sick. I can’t breathe remember? Besides, I also pulled my dead daffodil and wildflower plants out. I raked the dirt and fixed the border so we can put something prettier there. What I like to call my “wildflower” area in front of the house, most everybody else calls weeds. Things grow in that spot so well, that they just look weedy.
At any rate, we accomplished a lot and the front of the house doesn’t look like like derelicts live there anymore. It’s plain, but we can add some pizzazz next weekend. That’s when we’ll spend some money. Timbers, rocks, flowers…I have pics of all the “before’s” and I’ll get the “after’s”. You know I will. And hopefully, I seem to be getting a little more consistent posting lately, so hold onto your hats people, it’s going to be a crazy summer! I guess it’s not as exciting as some things, but this site is free and you can feel better about your house by comparing it to mine!
I need to get some “going out in public” clothes on before my kids get here. My son has another doctor appointment today to make sure he’s cured and can participate in the last two weeks of “school”. Which is basically field trips every day. He’s going to Springfield tomorrow. It’s the whole history-Constitution-Land of Lincoln thing. Very exciting. Hopefully he’ll take good pics and you can see it too!
I’ve got a few other ideas to spice up this site and get it flowing faster. More pictures, less words. Here’s a few small teasers: “Benches. 2011.” “Stevie Shadows.” “Target Summer Fun.” “Nerf Guns.” “Stink Bug.” Oh yeah. It will be as thrilling as it sounds. Until later.
5 and 6
After 2 nights of barely breathing I think I’ve recovered. At least good enough to go back to school. Boo. Seriously, whatever my son had, has transferred itself fully to me now. My chest was tight and burning and I was struggling for those deep breaths. I feel like an old lady, propped up on a stack of pillows because I can’t lay flat, trying to sleep. The worst appears to be over now. I loved having that one-week break of school just to stay home with my son every day and then get sick anyway! And now I have to go back tomorrow. Boo and boo. I shouldn’t even complain. I need to study. I have been really avoiding any type of school and I need to focus. Only a few more weeks now and then I can rest the brain.
Anyhow, at last post, my daughter and I did go for the walk in the woods. It was lovely, hot and humid. Very still and pressing. But my chest didn’t feel so bad. It’s really more bothersome with the back and forth from heat to cold, like with air conditioning. But it’s staying on now, even if it’s just to keep the peace. And anyway, we are about to be steamed in a three day, 90+ degree pot of boiling summer fun, so I’ll just keep it on.
Here is a pic of my daughter, on a rock, amid the trees and mosquitos:
Holy Heat Attack!
Day 3 and Day 4 of the race to the Warrior can just hold on one minute here. It is HOT. 95 degrees as I type this. It was pretty warm yesterday too. Needless to say, not a lot of outdoor running was accomplished. In fact I would even go so far as to say that NONE was accomplished. I am hoping for a nice walk in the Forest Preserve with the kids today at best. Trees, shade, wind, it’s not ideal, but it’s better than baking like raw chickens on the asphalt running trail. Plus, less chance of heat stroke. My son has already declared he is NOT going outside. He has volunteered himself for a day of sitting in his room playing xbox. My daughter initially said she would go with me, but is trying to get out of it by pretending to make dinner. For the next 6 hours. Except she is also in her room playing xbox. Looks like me and the BF, although he’s not home yet, and since he was outside already he may not want to go back there! It’s always me that wants to do such stupid things. I even said we could get something cool after! Like ice cream or whatever. Oooh! I bet I could get them with Slurpees! For some reason my kids love those nasty things! I am clearly in the minority of Slurpee love. I never really had the taste for them, but I don’t really like soda either so that could be a factor.
Anyway, who cares. I’m sick anyhow and I don’t even know why I want to go outside. Whatever my son started his week-long cold with, I get to finish. He ended up missing school for a week, going to the doctor with double ear and a sinus infection, a bunch of meds and some chest TX. But I have classes next week and no time or interest in going to the doc. I always get it in my head that fresh air will somehow make me feel better. I feel like heat and sweat somehow burn and leak the toxins out of you. I shall put my theory to the test and report back. I am not running though because I’m going for a slow heal not a fast, fainting, ambulance ride.
I also find it interesting that I had been slurping down the wine all week until a few days ago, and when I stopped, THEN I got sick. Coincidence? I don’t know. The heat was making it hard to drink. I bought Malibu and some tasty juices to try and counteract the wine effect but the sickness got me first. Probably should have muscled through and at least drank the juice. It has vitamins and stuff. At any rate, I have the wine bottles to post so you can share in the goodness if you’d like. I’ve been trying different kinds and I’ll give my totally unprofessional opinion on the various varieties.
And fyi—the air conditioning is on. It’s been on since yesterday afternoon. I’m not that crazy. This heat will do.
June Two. Day Two to the Dash.
National Running Day is over, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still get out there and run! If you did it yesterday, go do it again today! Here in Chicago it’s pretty nice right now. Not too hot, and perfect for going outside and working up a sweat! I will be leaving the house shortly to do just that. Thank goodness the Warrior Dash has obstacles to break up all that running! Yesterday was not my proudest day of exercise. The good part is that I managed to get my son out there and moving, but, the sad and pathetic part is, that I struggled with a measly ¼ mile. Really. I was a plodding old lady. Apparently running once a week for varying distances and so inconsistently is not the way to train for anything. Maybe my theory about eating all the junk in the house and drinking all the wine before starting the summer shape up was not as brilliant as it seemed. I probably should have just threw all the crap away. Oh well, too late now! We did manage to squeak out 2 miles though. So we are about to go do again. I really only need about 3.2 miles in a row. Easy peasy lemon squeezy. Be back later.
So, kids have a way of getting right to the heart of the thing
My lovely daughter just told me that she saw the, “younger, skinnier, more beautiful version of me” on the beach in Michigan. She was wearing a black bathing suit and had clear skin and the skinny body with the same kind of black hair that I had, when I used to get my hair colored black. My daughter said she saw this woman, and was so surprised because it looked so much like me, that she just stared at her until the woman started looking back at her like she might be crazy.
So I guess that’s nice. (?).
However…since I was eating at the time of this news flash, and I caught a completely unintentional glimpse into my fattiness, I proceeded to go ahead and finish all the crap in the house that I like (that would be White Castle’s, Kettle Cooked Potato Chips and Oreo’s–luckily there was only a little of each). And now I will finish the bottle of wine I opened 2 days ago. Because tomorrow, in addition to my RUN (National Running Day! Click it or check the next post and get in on the fun!), I have to re-boot my dietary intake. And by re-boot, I mean drink only water and starve myself for 3 weeks or so. I have 18 days to become the younger, skinnier, more beautiful version of myself!
That’s healthy right?
I’m not really going to starve myself. That would actually be impossible. I really like food. And I get really hungry and pretty crabby when I’m trying to be “good”. So I’ll just make better choices in the next 18 days. (I picked 18 because of the Warrior Dash. It’s in 18 days so I’m going to use that). It’s a short, attainable amount of time. And if I want to eat a bunch of crap I can do it after the race!
First side note: I also want to clarify, that even though I suggested that my daughter was calling me fat by using some kind of psychologic, mind-bend to passively indicate beauty is equated with thinness and youth, she DID NOT intentionally mean to make me feel bad. She was just telling a funny story and I added all the rest! She even said, “I guess that lady couldn’t have been more beautiful than you, because she looked just like you.” And that’s a direct quote.
Healthy. Unhealthy. Exercise. Sloth. Water. Alcohol. This site is all over the place. I can’t decide to be good or bad. Everything in moderation and add some activity! That’s probably good enough.
**On a second, side note: I had to have lost a few pounds today just from pure sweat and suffering. That rainstorm never did pan out for us and it’s been sweltering here all day. It’s good and hot in the house now. Everyone looks droopy, like water starved weeds. Still not turning it on though. That’s probably going to be a fight later when the BF gets home. Hopefully once he gets going on the topic, the heat will press down on him, crushing his urge to argue and squashing his ability to fight back. He will collapse in a heap of wilty protestation, and me and the kids can drag him to the bedroom and let him sleep it off. It’s always cooler at about 3 am so I don’t know what everyone is complaining about! All that whining about winter and how cold it is…blah blah blah…well, it’s HOT now!! Enjoy!
Alright I better go. I have to call in a take out order for dinner. So healthy!
National Running Day is June 1!
You may run alone, but on National Running Day, we celebrate together! On this day, runners everywhere share their passion for a lifestyle that is one of the best, and simplest, ways to stay fit—and so much more. You can head out solo to clear your mind, gab with your regular running buddies, or turn an unsuspecting friend into a running fiend. This day is for us!
One more serious thing! I promise! Let’s all get fit for life, or at least a summer! No pressure! One day at a time. And let’s make that day tomorrow!
Click it here to find out more: National Running Day!
It’s hard to start (I know…) but it feels so good when it’s over!
And, I almost forgot…Warrior Dash is coming! 18 days! Thanks for the reminder sissy! You just started a HEALTHWAVE!!
Now get out there and run!
(Fyi–picture and text above is from the website runningday.org listed above). Get involved if you can!!
Hope your Memorial Day was a good one! It’s officially summer now by the holiday calendar!
Despite all the gloom and doom I was posting about for the last few days, the weather took another drastic turn and became sunny and warm! We really do get it all here in the Midwest!
By 4 or 5 pm Sunday night, all the clouds cleared, the sun came out, and the temps started rising. By Monday morning, holy cow!, nothing but sun and 90 degrees. Everyone gets pneumonia!! It’s the motto of “summer” here in Chicago.
At any rate, my kids were back and forth all weekend too. They were in Michigan, and everything here just trots its way right up to the North and East, at a slow enough rate to give me mini-heart attacks all day and night. And I wasn’t even with them! I can only watch it on the radar. Their dad assured me they were fine. Minimal tornadic activity. Dad and his brother were able to tarp the area and manual hold it until the winds died down. Just standing in the rain making sure no one blows away. Now that’s camping! And that’s why I choose to city-camp. It’s where you pick someplace with an ocean or a lake, and things to do, like fishing, museums, zoo’s, parks, etc, but, it also has a place to go inside. Like a hotel or a cabin even. You get the outdoors but you don’t have to sleep there! You can go in a structure. with a bathroom. That’s all. It’s still camping. You still have to pack stuff. Anyway, we all have our own things!
Of course with that nice weather comes beach time. So both kids are a little sunburned, and my son has a chest cold, but it just wouldn’t be the start of summer without those kinds of memories! Today is going to be hot, then rainy for a brief hour or so, then back to hot. As usual I am unpopular in my household because I refuse to turn the air conditioning on. Sorry, but I am against using the air when it’s not really hot yet. It’s still fake hot, ’cause it goes back and forth, and I hate opening and closing the windows. I like to save the air for July. Then everyone will really thank me AND appreciate it. Now it’s just indulgent. Besides, it’s windy outside, and some of it gets in the house! Free breezes! Spoiled!
Alright, let me go pretend to study a bit and check e-mail and I’ll be back to post some fluff and get this site back to it’s usual silliness for the summer.
just shy of pretty 