Need Zinc

Caught a cold---the painters in my home hid my vitamins so I couldnt take em ...so..BAM...a sneaky upper respiratory germ slid in! Well, I've been slammin zinc & Vit C down my throat, sucking on Coldeeze and pouring chicken broth and tea down there too...and the germ is almost all gone. A 2-day virus......that'll teach it!!! So my running, biking and swimming has been on a hold til I shake it off a bit....unfortunately I got those damn Girl Scout Cookies in the cabinet!!! ( why can't I create new paragraphs on here??!!--this formatting stuff kills me)

One of my favorite patients, Roy, gave me a cutting of his amarylis plant and pussy willow tree. I have two amazing flowers that just bloomed on the amarylis. Unfortunately, Roy passed away last week while I was gone. His wife called to tell me and when I told her about the flowers she said it's like they came out just for my Dad and Roy. I don't know how that part of the world works, but I like the thought.

Home Again....naturally

It has been both a rough and tender week. My Mother followed the Orthodox customs of Jewish burial and sitting shiva, she is sitting the whole week, even her Rabbi said he never hears that anymore. Needless to say, I'm very proud of her. Watching her being strong with her new wig, her hair hasn't grown in yet from all the chemo, was an amazing lesson for all. We had three cousins read eulogies, two cousins in Israel emailed a eulogy and my sister-in-law read it, my brother read one and four of Dad's friends read a beautiful tribute. At the cemetery, my 20-year old nephew read his tribute. I tell you...there is absolutely nothing in this world like good friends and family....May we all be blessed with that!!

As for running, I ran 9-miles one day and 3-miles another day while sitting shiva. Luckily, Mom was okay with that as those sitting shiva aren't supposed to do any kind of work. I came home and went to the gym that night to hit the bike for 50-minutes. So I feel a bit better after all those incredible deli trays and deli cookies that were delivered to Mom's house. Again, I feel blessed to have my health and a wonderful support group. That's all that really matters in life. And I thank you all for your comments--every wish went straight to my heart. Thanks again!

The picture is my sister, Mara, who lives in NJ, me from Chicago, and my brother, Joey, who lives in North Carolina. Life goes on.

And so it goes....

Dad passed away peacefully this morning. He put up quite the good fight. So, we're all heading out to New Jersey tomorrow. I'm taking my running shoes....I'm sure I'll need the soothing I get from my runs. In the meantime, my heart is broken.

Temptations

Got this emailed to me today by Godiva Chocolates.....why, oh why, didn't I ask them to take me off their mailing list!!??

A Tease at Ice Age

I decided to spend the day hiking.....I really wanted to see what the big difference on a "real" trail felt like, and the closest one around was 1 1/2 hrs north. So up my honey and I went. Since I did my long run of 12 miles yesterday and today was a rest day, I figured hiking was safe for today.

We got decked out!! Wearing our new trail/running shoes, new backpacks stuffed with goodies, a flashlight, doorags, tissues, mucho water, cell phone and an all-in-one knife-gadget--we were ready for anything!!! Bring it on!!!

Well, first we got lost...where the hell is this trail??...the directions looked easy enough...ok, a few wasted minutes (alright..it was about 30 in all) and a stop at the gas station and we found our destination. We jumped out of the car and got our gear on, checked out the trail map and decided to take the 3-mile trail. All this gear for 3 miles??? Silly, aren't we....but we had fun....saw a runner going by and thought he's training for the Ice Age 50k, two couples hiked by with their dogs (hey..they dont allow dogs here) and that was it! How peaceful!!

We hit the bathrooms, scrape the mud off our new shoes and jump back in the car....just a taste. Enough to make me realize this is my next goal for sure. Next year tho......still got some training to do to earn this title of UltraChick.

I'm not doing well with my diet....it's my only vice--sweets, especially chocolate. But I'm trying to be kind to myself cause this is a tough year for me....Dad's illness, selling my home, moving, kids leaving......lots for one year. So I keep talking to myself that maybe I have to allow this vice...a more realistic goal is to not gain any weight...give up the goal to lose. That's probably more sensible during stressful times. I'm trying to be ok with that.