another weekend passeth

It has been a rather eventful Sunday. I offered to make potato bake for Sunday luncheon and managed to chop a slice into my finger. I thought it was minor until I realised that the blood wasn't oozing but rather making tiny rivers down my arm.

I should be proud that it took over a year of living on my own to inflict a semi-serious injury to myself (barring burning my thumb on the oven elements.) and since I am a strong and independent woman... I called my mother and proceeded to have a freak the $%&! out moment over the phone. I tell no lies for the sake of drama when I tell you that I said "Mom, I have cut off my finger, well actually I have sliced the tip of my finger off, well actually sliced into the tip of my finger. But it is bleeding a lot. Like fountaining all over the place."

My mother advised me to tell MrT to hurry over and save me and that it was okay to be scared.

MrT arrived (eventually) and took one look and took me off to the hospital. The nurse at the hospital told me in no uncertain terms that my wound could not be called Not Serious even though I was correct that stitches were unneeded.

So after a medical practitioners opinion, I felt less silly for having a tears and snollies melt down after letting the knife slip while chopping potatoes.

My mother offered to take a look 3 hours later after luncheon when it was still bleeding through the bandages. So I proudly eased off the bindings to show my fresh scars of the war with my kitchen knife. She took a look at the flap of skin waving from the C-shaped incision into my pinky finger and went "eeeeh it's not so bad. What was all the fuss about?"

BOOM! It seems I am a drama queen after all.

Now almost 12 hours later it is only leaking that clear plasma stuff through the bandage... typing is amusing and driving is not. I have the rest of the evening to come up with a convincing back story before I go to work.

The funny thing is that the knife I cut myself with is part of the set that MrT gave me for my birthday. I have actually managed to inflict a flesh wound on my fingers with 3 of the 5 in the set... I fear the other two lie in wait in the box for their opportunities to demand their bloody sacrifice from my digits. I am not even normally that accident prone, except when it comes to really really sharp knives. This sounds like the premise for a horror movie.

"BLOODY KNIFE SET
FEED THE KNIVES BEFORE THEY FEED ON THE LIFE COURSING THROUGH YOUR FINGERS"

Last word for today

A Softer World is awesome. You should check them out.

... that is all.

Anyone else check out the eclipse?

The real moon eclipse... not the movie with shirtless lads and expressionless gals.

I borrowed MrT's tripod and we set up my little camera on his balcony last night and we actually got some pretty nice (I admit amateur) pictures of it.

The public holidays...

...they pass too fast. Oh wonderful Youth Day. We awaited your arrival for so many long hard work days and now that you were here and with us we feel you slipping away. Please won't you stay a little longer?

My youth day was actually not primarily spent on Youth - We went to spend the morning with my fathers Mother. (We called her Granny Far Away when were little because she lived in Parys with my late grandfather). MrT and I arrived early to show off our "We are engaged" glow before my sister and baby nephew arrived and stole all the attention. (I have long since made peace with this fact of life: Cute Babies are more interesting than just about anything else.)

After, MrT and I went grocery shopping and browsing the shops. Thrilling stuff really - but when you have that magic ring on your finger, everything you do together is a novelty.

Then, like old people, we hurried home for an afternoon nap.

We had to source some supplies for dinner (left over boerewors goes well with fresh rolls) and MrT decided to let me drive his car. My suspicions are that he wants a new bigger car sooner or later and wants me to take over his car and sell mine. He had a HUGE smile on after the ride - I think he wants a Fiance of the Year award for letting his woman sit in the drivers seat of his semi-new vehicle. I am sticking with precociousness and acting like it was nothing. Secret is, it's a pretty darned awesome car to drive. ssshhh...

At the end of this glorious day of non-work, I must be returning home for an early night and teh frosty early morning that follows to be running and not puking.

Huzzah to Youth!

Lessons in Exercise: Unfit people have Limits

...with a capital letter and underlined... twice.

I went off for my fourth RWFL session this morning. It was VERY difficult to get out of bed and I only had time to gulp down three mouthfuls of OJ before skipping across the road. Now in the previous session I had impressed the others with my ability to pick up on a sprint after 15 minutes of training. (I wasn't as impressed - astonished perhaps that my body still remembered how to almost instantly evacuate one location for another further away one - but I am well trained in dodging water pistols and water balloons - 3 Brothers will train you in that.)

So I figured I was well on the path to a better body. So I pushed myself a little today. Jogged a little faster, jogged for a little longer, pushed my sprint lap a little harder. I completed my new longer training time and was more than a shade out of breath... I felt good at being able to push my self to a limit.

 My body waited while we were chatting over the log books and right as I was making ready to leave and walk home my body tapped me on my hypothetical shoulder and said "Nay, No more of this Frank. I refuse to supply energy to your knees and legs any more. Gravity! Take over!"

I, in reply said "BLEEEUUGGH... BLEEUUGGHH...groan... BLEEEUUUUUEEEUUUUUGGHH... pant pant ... bleugh"

For the record: green grass and (digested) orange juice make a nice contrast...

Oh the shame! The horror! the pity on me! the mess on the grass! The aching diaphragm!

And the saddest part about chucking my guts this morning? I made a nice lunch to make me feel better and now I am not hungry :(

 

The new immediate challange is to arrive at the next traing session and not hide in bed with my shame. (I told The Englishman and he high-fived me for my puking efforts)

Wedding Planning Joys

Today, MrT and I, at long last, had time to go browse wedding venues. We booked appointments at a couple of venues and early (...for a Saturday...) we set off with high hopes.

The first venue was splendid. Quite a lot splendid in fact. We were almost too scared to get out the car and find out how many kidneys they needed to secure a booking of such a magnificent spot.

unfortunately for the rest of the venues we visited, this place set the bar very high for the day... (barring a few minor concerns) We drove across North Western Joburg and stopped of at a few ad hoc venues along the way. Some were so dismal we turned around in the parking lot and drove away 2 minutes after arriving. Some were surprisingly great and are backup plan venues for future reference.

We also collected a fat stack of brochures and now I have adverts for all the unimaginable things I never knew a wedding would fail without.

By 6pm today we have a provisional booking at a dreamy venue, a business card of a perfect photographer and pictures of the exact wedding dress I want that is being sold in a shop in western Johannesburg.

I am almost afraid to ask, When does the bubble pop and reality make things crash?

Frankie is getting fit - session 2.

 So the first visit to RunWalkForLife was relatively uneventful. The greatest achievement being that I actually got out of bed almost 2 hours earlier than normal on a frosty winters morning and arrived in time. The friendly lady went relatively easy on me and I managed a mild glow on my brow. The mild glow may have been more from remembering all the instructions. Tits Out, Chin Up, Arms Swing, Loose Fists, Abs Stiff, Push Back Knees, Lift Feet, Lean from Ankles, Tuck In Tails (that's my butt... I think) and maybe a few other instructions that slipped my mind.

 

And so, full of vigour and enthusiasm and the burning feeling of the hole in my pocket from paying the years membership upfront, I managed to again achieve the meritable success of arriving on time this morning. Dreams of toned and shapely arms under my wedding dress sleeves were dancing in my eyes. (I am aware that results only follow after 5 – 7 months)

 

This time there was another new young lady (in this club, mid forties counts as young) to train with me. (The other members do hard(-er)core stuff like run along the road.) And we worked SO much harder today. I was proper sweating after 20 minutes of training. (What can I say – I really am unfit). Yes, I was beaten by someone closer in age to my parents than me.

 

In the end I feel pretty good even if my arms and legs are warning me of future aches to come.

 

The current goal is to run the 10km Spar Ladies in October this year. My maths tells me I need to gain 2km per month to be ready. Yip, I need to be able to run 2km by the end of June without collapsing .. Honestly, I am mostly scared at this stage of wanting to give up and stay warm and cosy in my bed.

 

But in the end what will be the most rewarding will to know that I can wake up on a winters morning without nightmares of oversleeping, throw on some stretchy pants, stretch my legs and come home for a wickedly hot shower and feel like I am going to live to 100... three times a week.  

 

(A wedding dress that doesn't have to contain parts to "mask" my figure would be nice too...)

After a long hard Saturday....

... We do lunch :)

Vida e caffe, I love you :)

Good bye old life - Hello new life

I have decided to make a change to my life style. After an almost 12 year break (actually more like an 8 year break) I have decided to take up road running again. Indeed friends, believe it or not I used to compete in races like the Spar Ladies. (that isn't really such an achievement)

I used to run 5 km a few times a week when I was at school and I was terribly ridiculously fit (teen age bodies are wonderful dynamic under appreciated devices). Then I gave it up to be captain of the chess team (honestly we mostly played cards). I was fine without the regular running because I was still catching the bus home from school (minus one tog bag of running kit) and taking a brisk walk between bus stops and home. Even into my university years I was sprinting between classes as well as the bus stop run.

But now I am no longer a student and have entered into a professional career and I own a car which willingly carries me to all sorts of places that buses just won't do. I am well aware that I am no longer as fit and spry as I used to be. And so, I was spurred on by MrT and have decided to make a change and take up some exercise before my blood pressure drops so low that standing up from a chair will make me see stars.Before I develop premature flappy arms and a pot belly. Before my metabolism packs up and goes on an extended holiday. Before I can not longer play racing games with my Brownie Guides. Before I have to buy too many more pairs of elasticated pants.

I look at photos of myself in those fitter days and I feel a little tragic to notice that I really was a gloriously slim creature. Not that slimness is the only acceptable form, and not that I am really that dramatically much fatter but having to change trouser size after 12 years of wearing the same size is very damaging to the ego. In fact, my butt should hopefully not vanish to much by this endeavour because I have my heart set on a mermaid wedding dress skirt. My bootahay is part of my beautahay.

I found out, by some strike of luck, that there is a Run Walk for Life crew that meets in close walking distance from my front door. Oh Joy!

...They meet at 7 in the morning. (For reference, I usually only wake up at 8am most days.)

And so today, I am in mourning because tomorrow I will be conscious and out of my warm bed for much more of the early (freezing chilly cold dark dreaded painful dreary winter sub zero cold) morning.

And let us hope that I will be persistent and focused and start reaping some benefits in three to six months time. (I hope my body forgives me of my laziness and gives back the other 90% of my lung capacity)

 

Here's to good health! (and more veggies and fruit and less fudge and chocolate)