Day 232

Last week was good for me. I worked out every day and was productive at work. So win - win. 

A couple of weeks ago, I decided to give Crossfit another try. I had done it for about 3 years back in the mid teens (circa 2015 – 2018). I don't remember exactly why I quit going but suspect it was a combination of being burned out and irritated with some of the coaches and other members. Since leaving Crossfit, I worked out, off and on, at home doing a lot of the same exercises that I did while still a member. I now have a small Crossfit gym at home with much of the same equipment...that I have rarely used since Damian died. I was mostly content to see it gathering dust until I got back the results of my last physical three weeks ago. 

I go in for a physical every 2 years, always on my even birthdays. Turning 54 (back in June) it was time for another one. The exam itself is kind of a joke – a few general questions ("Does anything hurt?", "How are you sleeping?"), a stethoscope to the back (lungs) and chest (heart), and a check of the blood pressure and pulse – the real test is in the form of a comprehensive blood panel. 

After waiting a few days, the results of my blood work came in. And they were...alarming. My overall cholesterol had jumped by nearly 40 points since my last physical in 2020. Reading the report and the doctor's notes, the recommendation was to eat more fruits and veg, stay away from foods high in fat and exercise more. Message received. Time to make some changes. 

The first thing I did was stop eating bread and butter every evening with dinner. I've fallen in love with, or possibly have become addicted to, Lake O'Lakes butter with canola oil. I don't know what else is in these tubs, but this is the best butter I have ever eaten. It is delicious and possibly addictive. Bread has really just become a delivery system for getting the butter from the tub and into my mouth. So no more bread and no more butter. 

I have also started eating more greens. A LOT more. I'm now going through a bag of baby spinach every day and half. I eat it every day, either for breakfast or for lunch and sometimes both,  along with peas, cucumber, apple, strawberries, bananas and pineapple. I'm also eating a lot less red meat and fewer carbohydrates, and eating more fish and chicken. It's been a welcome change. Without getting into the specifics, I'll just summarize by saying that my digestive system seems much happier of late. 

Which brings me full circle to the issue of exercise. After reading the results from physical, I tried working out at home again, but I could tell that I lacked the motivation to push myself hard or felt the drive to stick with it. The appeal of going back to Crossfit is that it will push me – it did before – and I will be motivated to go regularly. If I don't go consistently and at least 4 times a week, the workouts don't get any easier. That alone is enough to get me up at 5:30 every morning. A week and a half ago I rejoined the same Crossfit gym ('box') that I was a member of previously. I've gone every day since except last Monday when I worked out at home. (Dawn and I have to leave for Gainesville just after 7 to get to Andrea's by 8.) It feels good to be back and get hot and sweaty first thing in the morning. 

The trick now is to stay healthy. I know from experience that getting sick – usually a cold – is the thing that has the most likelihood of derailing my exercise program. Hopefully, all the spinach, vegetables and fruits I'm eating will help boost my immune system. 

The other thing that I have to watch out for is letting a small ache turn into a more debilitating injury. This one is hard for me. I grew up in an era where we were always told to "be tough" and to "play through the pain". It's difficult to shut off that voice that voice in my head or ignore it. Having let it talk me into workouts that I should not have done given how, at the time, I was feeling physically, I should know better. I really should but did I mention that it's hard to ignore that voice in my head? 

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Dear Damian, 

Mom and I went out for breakfast this morning. John Bryant joined us. Will and Kelly are in Charleston for a Laser regatta. Will is currently in 3rd place overall out of 18 boats (in the 4.7 fleet). Next weekend, John and Will will be in Wilmington for regatta at CYC. It would have been fun to go with them if you were here. We could have stayed at Emily's. 

Dan McGraw and Jonathan Stewart sailed Dan's Hobie 33 in the Chicago-Mac race a few weeks ago. They came in 2nd in their fleet. When I read about them doing this race, my first thought was of you. I think if you'd been here, we would have had a good chance of being onboard as crew. I've wanted to do the Chicago-Mac for many years. It would have been awesome to do it for the first time with you. Alas, now that I know that Dan is up for traveling with his H33, I will ping him to see about getting onto the crew. 

It's been crazy hot this summer. Like everywhere. The week that mom and I were in Alaska it was around 100 here in Georgia so we picked a good week to be gone. Since then, it's been pretty normal temps for us – mostly upper 80s and low 90s – but the rest of the world has seen some very hot days and nights. Like 100+ in places that are not used to even being in 90s. 

I read this morning that a leading climate scientist in the UK has come to the conclusion that the Earth is already past the tipping point and that the weather extremes of today will soon pale in comparison to what's to come. He went on to say that the Earth as we know it now will soon be gone. The article didn't get into the specifics of what exactly will be different but I'm not at all optimistic that we have much time left before the bottom falls out. If there is any tiny sliver of a silver lining in you not being here it's that I don't have to worry about what all this means for you. Gives me chills just thinking about it. 

You would probably dig this idea: given how hot it's been getting, I'm wondering if makes sense to start looking at the feasibility of a house below ground. Something that is deep enough that we don't have to rely on air conditioning to keep it cool and comfortable. I don't have much confidence in the electrical grid to keep up with the increasing demand for power as temps continue to climb. The thought of being without AC when it's 100+ is not pleasant. Ok. Enough doom and gloom for one day. 

Mom and I have been working to tear out the wood flooring in the house. I'm done with most of it. I still have to finish the dinette (in the kitchen) which I will tackle this afternoon. Sometime next week, we will have the new flooring professionally installed. We are going with a vinyl product that looks like wood but is much more durable. Should be able to withstand the dogs without any problem. Looking forward to getting this done. The old floor was really looking terrible. 

Oh. Mom had lunch with Lara last week. Lara is working at Dairy Queen. She is looking forward to going back to school to see friends but isn't anxious to start classes again. Sound familiar? 

That's about all that is going on here. I will write again in a few weeks. 

I hope that you are still enjoying your tour of the universe. I love you and miss you. 

Dad