Yay! A new year, a new day! What goal do you intend to be accomplishing this year?
I still have a multitude of unfinished projects that I’d like to continue working on (I am happy with the progress I made in that area last year). Plus, I have new project ideas to do…
My big goal is to build up my physical strength over the next three months in order to work on my horsemanship goals once the weather warms. I don’t know how I’m going to achieve it with needing to work with other people’s schedules to get to the barn. However, if it is meant to be this year (it’s been a goal for a very long time), then it will all work out.
JAN 1
With a heavy heart, we say good-bye to Bob’s 12 yr old kitty, Doobie. A few months ago, he started loosing weight and was diagnosed with diabetes. We switched him to a grain free diet and he perked right up and started gaining weight. Then, a few weeks ago he caught a cat cold. He recovered from that, but then lost his appetite completely last weekend. It’s been a rough week.
JAN 2
Last night was disgraceful! I think there were plenty of Trump supporters. I think there were also plenty of people out that just wanted another reason to riot. But, mostly, I think it was a result of uninhibited rioting allowed last year because some people were “fed up”. Well, plenty of people are “fed up” with politics (both sides), so after being shown it’s ok (and even encouraged!) to act this way then it should not have been a surprise – especially with a short handed police force (thanks to the defunding platform) that can’t use any kind of riot control any more or face more rioting, termination, legal battles, and death threats. It’s sad.
But, hey, while we’re on the topic of police and rioters, I saw an awesome commercial about a possible solution! (I’ve been waiting a week to share this one ) … We just need to replace the police force with drones! Completely free of racism and human error and “approved by world leading security experts”… of course, these particular units are a sci-fi fantasy from Doctor Who and their favorite phrase is “EXTERMINATE”; but, at least, they are free of racism.
JAN 7
Severe cases of COVID-19 could be associated with poor gut health: scientific review
Interesting article but even knowing that most of our immune response hinges on gut health, and that these observations are true for most viral attacks, I’m still surprised to read it. If these findings are correct I am even more thankful for having Plexus as part of my daily gut health protection.
JAN 12
The phrase “push through the pain” is often referred to in fitness… however, I have old injuries in my shoulder, back, and hip. I REALLY do not want to re-injure myself, but I do want to strengthen every thing. I am currently doing 10 minutes of exercise at a time. It is rather frustrating that I am left breathless so quickly, but that is another problem.
I can always slow down. Back to the pain… I did two 10 minute sessions yesterday and feel it in my shoulder and hip this morning. It’s not debilitating, I don’t need pain meds, but I don’t want to push it to that point. Would this be an indication that I’m not quite ready to do two sessions a day? Or is this that spot that strengthening starts at?
I would love to jump in and do a 30 minute workout twice a day and see the changes in my body in 3 months, but I’ve tried that before and ended up barely able to do stretches for three months. So, I know I have a breaking point… just how do I know I’m getting there before I cross it?
JAN 13
If Trump Is Guilty Of ‘Incitement’ Then So Are Half The Democrats In Congress
The scripture comes to my mind “by thy words thou shalt be justified and by thy words thous shalt be condemned”. Every member of congress that encouraged rioting and violence this past year should be tried for the same reason they’ve used to impeach Trump. Many regular people lost their jobs for participating in the riots and even just for their words on social media platforms. The members of congress should be held accountable as well. That would be justice instead of the hypocrisy shown now.
JAN 14
There has been quite a few people in my circle recently feeling like it’s time to stop trying to have discussions and go into isolation. I understand the feeling all too well… it happened to me again just this week…
When I’m feeling overwhelmed by all the negativity in the news and online (especially if I’m bombarded by some friend of a friend of a friend spewing hatred!), I am tempted to delete my social media accounts, scrap my dreams of online financial success, and return to life before I had the internet… as an introvert, I could easily do it. I could just quit talking to people, quit dreaming, and enjoy a lonely existence without friends, without knowing my extended family, without caring what the world outside my walls is doing. I’ve been there before… I could go back…
However, I’ve come to accept that that is not a healthy response. It is a response triggered partly from my personality and partly from past experiences.
This last time that I felt like closing the world out, I was reminded of Enoch, who eventually walked on up to heaven, and other Bible characters. Many of them were introverts and were bombarded by negativity (even death threats!). They had to take time out for themselves to recover and ground themselves in prayer. Some, like Enoch, disappeared for days. But, they didn’t completely shut down and remain isolated.
Why? I mean, for the most part, it doesn’t seem like they were appreciated much!
Jesus gave us the answer: “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 5: 14-16
The Lord has given each of us a voice and something to share. How can we let our light shine if we don’t say anything? We need to let that light shine and we can not do that in isolation.
Plus, how can we grow in character if we don’t interact with others? A pool of water that doesn’t have a flow of water coming in AND going out becomes stagnant. Sometimes, we just need to rant and have our friends give encouragement. On occasion, we need to be told that we’re over-reacting. That is a give and take and sometimes it feels like storm waves beating on the shore, but those are important moments of character, and spiritual, growth.
From time to time, we will fall under those waves. We’ll feel pretty beaten and nearly drowned. We will need time to recover, but we must always, ALWAYS come back and shine the light we’ve been given.
Galatians 6:9
Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
James 1:12
Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.
JAN 15
I am so thankful for the owners of the barn where our horses are stabled.
Sometimes, reviewing the events of the past and asking myself “why did I do that?” can be frustrating, because it shows exactly how lazy I really am and how little effort I put into taking care of myself.
Yesterday, I posted about being frustrated about my fitness level and wanted opinions on what I should be doing to differently so I don’t re-injure myself. The general consensus was that I need to back off a little, which makes sense – though it is not what I want to do.
One idea was to start walking again… I was like oh, yeah… I can do that… I have a Gazelle…
The question was posed: what is a Gazelle? I’m posting the picture here.
While searching for this picture, I was reading my past posts on the subject and found that I injured my back in 2019, but managed to work up to walking a mile within a month. Yay me! Further investigation showed that I continued walking a mile several days a week for a year. At that point, I was back in shape enough to clean the barn (a very dirty job, with lots of heavy lifting).
After that, I spent a few months with my eldest, tangled with a baby gate, and lost. I had wrenched my back again. But, the pain only lasted a couple of weeks because I already knew what stretches worked the last time and had started implementing them as soon as I could.
I then had to ask myself: why didn’t I start walking again? I realized that that was also when my youngest moved back home, was working the over night shift, and I didn’t want to disturb the much needed sleep by using my squeaky machine…
Today, I look at that and realize that that was a lame excuse! I know how to oil the machine to make it stop squeaking. It was pure laziness and shows how little worth I have been placing on myself. How sad is that?
However, this self-reflection has also encouraged me in knowing I’ve been here before and can move forward again!
Thank you all for the encouragement and suggestions you’ve offered – they have fortified my resolve to continue the pursuit in my fitness goals (and in more creative ways).
JAN 16
Today I’m thankful for our neighbor who cleared the snow off the sidewalk.
Bob and the kitties having fun. The kitties are doing their best not to look at each other.
JAN 17
Huh. Nearly a year ago, President Trump was saying stuff like we don’t need to shut down the economy… if we don’t panic and use common sense we’ll be alright. In a panicked rush to do any thing and every thing contrary to a person they don’t like, states shut down, ruled with an iron fist, and blamed Trump for their plights. Now, these same states are wanting to reopen as soon as possible – even before the vaccine becomes widely available. Suddenly, the science shows that, in fact, the best thing to do is follow common sense (wash hands, social distance, don’t go out when sick, etc) and there is no need to shut the doors of every small business, limit large businesses, and plunge ourselves into a depression. Finally! The sad thing is that, had Trump been going to serve another term, I believe these same people would be screaming: “LIES! He’s twisted science to say what he wants!” and finish running their states into bankruptcy just because they didn’t like him. Fine. Biden can “save” America from a depression that didn’t have to happen in the first place.
JAN 18
My youngest has been in an accident and Bob is out-of-town. I don’t know more than that, but I do need prayer.
9:12:26am
Safely home already. Thank you for the prayers! It’s going to take awhile to get over this.
10:27:46am
JAN 19
The 10 Incredible Ways Your Cat Shows You Love
guess our cat loves us… he does all 10!
His “gifts” are my stuffed animals… he likes to bring one to bed or dump it in our laundry basket.
JAN 20
nothing happened. Any where. Just as the FBI expected. Scheduled peaceful protests were even canceled to prevent targeting. Just more fake news hype for the media. When will the media have to use fact-checkers again (they used to) instead of speculation?
JAN 21
Don’t most grandparents love their grandchildren as their own? Then shouldn’t they just be able to bypass whatever mom says no to… you know… in the name of love and fun? Does it matter if it is food, toys, fur babies, movies, books, who to hang out with, hair cuts, make up, clothes, jewelry, what time to go to bed, internet, smoking, drinking, drugs… have I missed any thing?
The fact is moms have reasons for every decision – whether it makes sense (or is agreeable) to the other billions of people on the planet or not. Grandparents (friends and other family members too) who don’t care what mom says, and blatantly do the opposite, are showing their disrespect and teaching the kids that its ok to be disrespectful by example. Then mom has to come in and be the bad guy reminding every one of the rules.
Me, I have enjoyed having the BEST parents! My kids came with A LOT of rules! My Dad would often tell my kids: “go ask your mom”. My parents may not have always agreed with our rules and my mom would sometimes work out a compromise with me, but I always felt like I was respected by them. Thank you, Daddy!
Today we say good bye to my youngest’s truck. He was in an accident a few days ago. The cab is scrunched in a way that we can’t replace the windshield, so there is no salvaging it. The good news though is that the insurance company says the cost will not go up much as there was no one else involved and was deemed a “no fault” accident.
Now the search for a replacement begins! Do you know how hard it is to find a used 4×4 that is worth the asking price here in the middle of winter? We will certainly be relying on God’s grace to find one!
JAN 22
I love my family so much! They graciously told me I could stay home while they go look at possible truck replacements.
I feel a little guilty not wanting to go, but they are going places that spike my anxiety and doing stuff I’m really not interested in. They said they understand and didn’t expect me to come. Once upon a time, I didn’t have an option to stay or go, so this means a great deal to me.
JAN 24
In the rush to turn over any thing and every thing that could have Trump’s name on it, the new administration has put our nations national security at risk by reopening the nation’s power grid to China, shows their lack of respect for our Native American tribes, put hundreds of thousands of Americans out of work, removes a long sought after relief for vital medication in low income populations, and put us on the fast track to high priced fuel and extreme inflation. So much for the big speech of unity. Congratulations! I sure hope they have a better plan than just being anti-Trump.
JAN 25
New Study Shows Cannabis Reduces Inflammatory ‘Storms’ Caused By Covid-19
The power of plants to the rescue! Of course, this isn’t the CBD oil available… it would be a specific medical grade product. But, isn’t it exciting to have the long overlooked world of plants available as our medicine again?
Here are the 30 executive orders and actions Biden signed in his first three days
Just to be clear… although I don’t agree with some of the actions that have been and will continue to be done by those in power, I must acknowledge that I appreciate a man that “hits the ground running”. It is one of the things I liked about Trump. It would be highly hypocritical of me to not like that about Biden. Just because we don’t agree on which direction we should be running doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate the enthusiasm.
That said, I found this image thought provoking and amusing. The link is a list of the signed orders (some of these I thought were already in place).
JAN 26
Biden says he will replace the entire federal fleet with electric vehicles
This is ambitious! I’m certainly not against the jobs this will create. I’m not even against electric vehicles, per se. But I do question the feasibility of the military relying on electric vehicles with only 200 miles to a charge… might be fine for those that never leave a US base.
Since this will, undoubtedly, be just the beginning, I also wonder how the electric grids will handle the extra burden. I mean, there are still areas that experience black outs when everyone turns the AC on. What’s going to happen when the already over-burdened grid gets thousands of vehicles being plugged in at the same time? Are there enough wind generators and solar panels up for the supply since hydro, oil, nuclear and other options are being closed down? I hope they have plans in place for that.
Of course, with no time line given, it could be a decade away from happening any way. wink I also hope that they fixed the emissions problems of making these vehicles. It wasn’t that long ago that the emissions to make the batteries were more than that of the lifetime of burning fuel.
And, I really want to know… will Air Force One be next? It will be interesting to see what the future holds! Onward! Forward! Let’s Go!
JAN 27
For years, I have made very detailed, specific goals for myself and am disappointed and feel like a failure when I can not achieve them – especially when the same types of goals work fine for other people! This year, I’ve ditched the “SMART” goal setting and gone to a very broad approach. For the first time, I’ve achieved MORE than I set out to do and feel like I’ll be able to do it again!
JAN 28