Where time ends...

Looking back, it's hard to believe that it has been over a week now since I've posted. Surely, there have been many a thing happening worthy of mention... but I forget all the relevant items. Mom came into town on Wednesday, which really explains where I have been; there has not been a whole lot of time to really sit down and write anything... we went shopping, to the Art Fair, cooked, went out for dinner, went to Monroe, watched a movie, moved a loveseat and table out to the trash, visited my garden, Farmers Market and generally just visited. It was a nice time and since she left this morning, I've gardened, did 5K worth of speed walking and very little jogging, made my 500th trip to Target, baked and cleaned. Now, I'm tired.

In the last week, I also started physical therapy. Seems that strained hip from the Avon 2-Day walk has not gotten any better. And I am really beginning to question a form of medical intervention that causes more pain. Thursday was my third session, and I left in some amount of aggitation to the afflicted area. By 5 p.m. I was physically ill from pain. I downed a few Tylenol and did some stretching, then went out for a walk with mom. I was sleeping by 730 on the floor and in bed by 830.

PT also provides you with exercises to do daily. What they fail to understand, no matter how much I tell them, is that this isn't new to me. The name for it might not be the same as what I call it, but once I learned what they wanted me to do, it was a no brainer. Try to do 2 sets of 10 they said, and if you can, do 30 total. I did 50 and still had no difficulty, no tiring, nothing they said would be an indicator to stop. Thursday, she said, OK I want you to walk at a normal pace on the treadmill for 5-10 minutes... no incline. Do at least 5, but 10 if you can handle it. I truly do not think they understand that despite this injury, I am very active and I am very good at not letting myself feel the pain. I've explained this in a few different ways. I've explained that I have spent the last 2 years training for marathon distance walks plus and have had personal trainers at least once a year to consult with and that I work out sometimes hours at a time... and they just nod and say yeah, okay, so can you walk at least 10 minutes a day? Very frustrating.

Aside from that bit of aggravation that will continue for at least the next 3 weeks; I did manage to splurge and buy myself a very sweet Wonder Woman purse at the Art Fair. Basically it is a box with handles and has vintage images of Wonder Woman from comics, promos featuring Lynda Carter, and other paraphenilia. A bit pricey, but entirely worth it.

On that note, I shall return later... possibly even this evening. In the meantime, I have yet to eat lunch and it is coming on dinner time.

Inked.

Yesterday, after a mere three week wait, I got my latest tattoo. I sketched the main part myself and worked with the artist to design the rest and clean up my sketch. This is the result. It does wrap around the side of my leg--just above the left ankle... and does wrap around an older tattoo that was there before.


And I cannot speak more highly of the artist that did the work... Leo Zulueta. He'd done some work on a friend of mine last year, and I loved it. Knowing what I wanted, I went to Leo--an appointment on his calendar takes some time, and I was lucky to get in as soon as I did due to a cancellation.

What I did not know was the extent of Leo's work and influence as an artist. He's worked with Paul Jeffries, whose work I've known for a while and loved... he's been dubbed as the father of modern tribal tattooing, though I get the sense from Leo he'd just say "yeah yeah" and change the subject. I wish I'd had more of a chance to talk to him, but when someone is down by your feet and you are near your head laying on a table--it's not conducive to conversation... then there is the needle cutting into your skin.


I can barely draw a straight line free hand and coloring inside the lines has never been my fortay, so I have to say, those that can make such permanent marks in the skin with such seeming ease and utter confidence amaze me. And watching as Leo sketched on my leg, checking for evenness and balance and the numerous other factors that go into the process -- well, let's just say, it was pure genius at work. I was tempted to make my next appointment with him since he's probably booking into August by now and I leave in September. But I will be back there... I can't see myself doing a color tat again and I am fairly convinced there are not many who could take my sketches as Leo did and create something as beautiful as he did.


Mahalo.

On the Road: Catskills

On Wednesday evening, I arrived in Kingston, NY. It was dark and all I really cared about at that point was eating my dinner (I had picked up a white slice) and checking into my hotel... and not in that order. By Thursday morning, I just wanted a nice, quiet little place to have some coffee and breakfast. After driving through Woodstock, I ended up in Kingston at a quaint little diner; the kind that have individual juke boxes on the tables. It was the kind of place that you felt compelled to order the "special" from the menu and if you decided you didn't want the juice that customarily came with it, they deducted it from the price. Of course, I found myself amused by the conversation at the next table: all the natural supplements that they used for their various ailments...

As it turns out, I wasn't feeling that well, and there were thunderstorms called for the area, so the hiking I'd planned on was nixed. I was just fine with that. I spent a good part of the afternoon walking around historic Kingston and then Woodstock. They are artists communities and quite. There was a definate dynamic between "old hippie" in these communities and the new "revolution." First, there was the strikingly thin 16ish girl with more piercings than seemed possible for her tiny frame to hold who got out of a car and gave me a very menacing glare before smiling and complimenting my tank. Then, there was the guy standing barefoot on the side of the road, hitchhiking... from the looks of it, he'd been there since 1969. I have to say, it has been a LONG time since I've seen anyone hitch hike. Generally, it was weird... Woodstock capitalizes on the music festival that beared its name, even though the festival was eventually held in Bethel. Still, it was a nice time.

Thursday evening found me tired, not feeling great still and in bed reading early. It also found me no longer able to handle eating in restuarants, and I stopped by the local grocery to get some cereal, soy milk and strawberries. It was much better! Friday would find me heading home.

On becoming a hula champ and other Friday endeavors

By this morning, I was up to a full minute on the hula hoop, and by this evening, the skills are coming fast... I'm up to about 2 minutes. I love the challenge of it.

The cats are less afriad of it now, having managed to turn it into some kind of spotlight by which to be admired. All except Vinnie, who eyes it with suspicion, but not as much suspicion he reserves for the ceiling fans. And Bowie, who, as it was falling from my last hula round swiped it with his paw, and pulled it into the papazan chair so he could lick and bite it.

I've had an idea in my head for a painting for about 3 weeks, so I took the time today to put it to canvas... or at least start to. It is far more formal of an abstract than I've done in the past and therefore took some thinking, sketching and a lot of thought about whether I still could color in the lines. And, I'm very happy with how it has come along so far. There is a poem in that painting when it is done... I can feel it, and for me, that it a good sign.

Took some mental health time today, and it has made a world of difference. It has felt good to be at home by 4 rather than just getting home right about NOW... I got in a decent workout--nothing extreme or lengthy, just about 45 minutes... did some grocery shopping... ran an errand and came home to make dinner. An actual dinner, cooked in the oven... tomorrow will be cleaning and a much bigger workout before my brother arrives. I'm excited to see and spend some time with him this weekend.

The Evil Bunnies Approacheth

Here we are, on the edge of religious holidays galore... Passover, Easter... but what does it REALLY mean? Evil bunnies.

Yep, evil bunnies hopping all about, leaving random eggies, stealing chocolate. It is a little known fact that these evil bunnies appear once a year... mostly, to taunt cats. My one cat, Vinnie, is scared of his own shadow and he seemed frightened by an Easter Bunny that flashed on TV on night, and since he likes it when you talk to him, I made up a story about Evil Bunnies... which causes his ears to lay back flat to his head and his eyes to bug out. I have no idea what he's thinking... but I think it is the premise for a children's book. Some might argue that it is blasphemous... they'd probably be right. I'm no Shel Silverstein, but it isn't as whacked out as some of his works, which can be downright scary and are considered children's poetry... well, except for his work in Playboy. It's all in the illustrations... I just need someone for a knack for illustrating... and since I doubt Ralph Steadman is willing and available, I know some guys.