In honor of last night's full moon....

Anyone who knows me,                                                                      
should learn to know me again;
For I am like the Moon,
you will see me with new face every day.

~ Rumi image: Carlos Gotay 

            Facebook, Rumi

Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder. 
Help someone's soul heal. 
Walk out of your house like a shepherd

~ Rumi image: Rafael Ramos Fenoy 

shared from Facebook, Rumi



There is a voice that doesnt use words-Listen!
Rumi
shared from Facebook, Rumi

Type III Diabetes

     I just heard about type III diabetes, otherwise known as Alzheimer"s disease.  The idea that Alzheimer"s may just be type III diabetes has been around since 2005.  Why am I, are we, just hearing about this?  If Type II and Type III diabetes cases continue to rise in lockstep in America, we are in grave trouble. On the other hand, this could indicate a simple preventative.....diet, exercise, and weight loss.

2005 article from the National Review of Medicine http://www.nationalreviewofmedicine.com/issue/2005/12_15/2_advances_medicine01_21.html

Mark Bittman's recent article from the New York Times
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/25/bittman-is-alzheimers-type-3-diabetes/?ref=opinion

                      ************************************

     I have a family member who recently suffered from a burst appendix, but was fortunate enough to avoid surgery.  He was treated with antibiotics and appears to be healing well. Here is a recent Swedish study which showed that most cases of appendicitis, all but the most severe, can be successfully treated with antibiotics, avoiding surgery.  I found this interesting.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/250767.php

                     *************************************

     I have mentioned before that scientists are predicting that most of the world will have to be vegetarian by 2050 due to food shortages.  There will not be enough water to feed a population of 9 billion.
     http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2194288/Food-shortages-turn-world-vegetarian-2050-warn-leading-scientists.html?ito=feeds-newsxml
     So why not start now?  Why wait until 2050 when disaster forces the issue?  Onegreenplanet.com has a good article with reasons to go vegan now.
     http://www.onegreenplanet.org/animalsandnature/why-wait-until-2050-go-vegan-right-now/

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     Here are pictures of Charleigh and Dean, and Charleigh and me last weekend.  We are still actively training this wildly crazy adolescent.  We have hopes to have her certified as a therapy dog in a year or two if she mellows as she ages. She is one powerful puppy.

A Vulcan salute to you.

My wish for your Wednesday:


George Takei 

    Today is day 4 of avoiding other dogs when Charleigh is on leash.  It is going well.  She does fine around barking/snarling dogs who are behind fences, and sniffs and wants to play with friendly dogs behind fences.  Walking a dog, especially a retriever who is wild to chase brazen rabbits and birds, awakens your senses.  We had a drizzly night last night....no rain, but a welcome damp.  It evidently brought all the worms above-ground and there are hundreds of crows, magpies, and starlings out feasting on them. There were two mourning doves drinking in a puddle at the curb. These are all things that normally wouldn't have registered in my consciousness, but today I was holding back a powerful canine from chasing all of them so I couldn't help but notice.
     Wednesday is trash/recycling day in our neighborhood.  We all use open recycling bins so that, thanks to Charleigh's curiousity and rudimentary "leave it" skills, I noticed what people buy.  There were cases of empty soda cans in a lot of crates.  I didn't know people were still drinking so much soda after all the bad press about the health effects.  Some families evidently live on frozen entrees for many of their meals. It was just an interesting sidebar to our walk.  And Charleigh never got any of them!   

"I can feel the wind go by when I run. It feels good. It feels fast." Evelyn Ashford

I may not look like this, but this is how I feel:


                    shared from Facebook, Dare to be Different

Day 3 of avoiding all dogs while Charleigh is on leash.  So far, so good.  I have been taking her out later in the day once the morning dog-walkers are finished.  Everybody and his brother own dogs here in Colorado and it can be complicated to avoid them.  It is just for a week or two and then we will work on getting nearer and slowly desensitizing her fears.  

New week, new beginnings...

     Charleigh is becoming more secure at our house now.  She knows what to expect, and doesn't always think that a car ride means a trip back to the kennels.  We had weekend company and she was in hyper-puppy mode the whole time, but has settled down to almost mellow since they left.  We made the mistake of taking her to a rugby game on Saturday.....it was loud and active, there were lots of people and dogs.  She started exhibiting leash anxiety/reactivity.  Basically she becomes very fearful and vulnerable around other dogs when she is on leash and goes bonkers.
     We took her to the dog park yesterday and she did great.  Unfortunately there were only a handful of dogs and owners there.  We forgot and went during the Broncos football game.  She played very well there, though.  So starting today, when she is on leash, we are just avoiding other dogs and taking sudden detours. We will do this for a week or two until she hopefully starts to forget her anxiety.  Then we will gradually cut the distance between her and the other dogs we meet, rewarding all the way.  Wish us well. We want to nip this behavior early on.


     Thanks to our family visitors for coming this weekend.  We really enjoyed seeing you, as always.  Please come again soon.  And our nephew played great in the rugby game, although CSU did lose to UNC in the "A" game.  We know very little about rugby, but the position he plays is the Prop.  His brother is playing rugby at N.U. this year and also plays that position.


 Here's a story about an inspirational woman to get your week started off right, from Run The Edge
 
This is Harriet Anderson, 74. Competed in Ironman World 18 times. In 2009, got clipped from behind on her bike, fell and broke her clavicle. She taped her arm to her waist, walked the marathon portion and still finished in time.

http://www.athleta.net/2010/05/11/enduring-beyond-barriers-the-harriet-anderson-story/



     The New York Times on Sunday posted an excellent article by Dr. Dean Ornish on Eating for Health, not Weight.  I recommend it.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/23/opinion/sunday/the-optimal-diet.html?_r=0




        shared from Facebook, Epic Ultras

Happy Friday....

     It is Friday at last.....a run day, a clean the house day, a get groceries for the weekend day, another train the doggy day.  I'd better get started.  We have a busy weekend planned.


                       shared from     Be the change you want to see in the world

What I vow:

I promise to take care of the only body I will ever have. I promise to fuel it well and give it the exercise and maintenance it needs. I promise I will not neglect my heart and lungs by allowing my lazy impulses to win. I promise to carve out a little time every day to do something good for me. Run.  

Run The Edge

                    Run4Beer

What I actually hope for:

                              I <3 to run 

 

                                        shared from  MotivateHopeStrength

Today...not just another day...a gift.

     Some days we need reminders of why we should be grateful.  This is a beautiful video on gratitude.  Enjoy when you have the time to concentrate for a few minutes.  Open your eyes.



                                      shared from Run4Beer 

A thought for the day......

     

Image by John D. Boswell, of Symphony of Science Official Fan Page
Thanks to Universlings for Science and Reason for sending this our way. 

     I know I am blogging less, but doggy training is taking up more of my time.  Charleigh is coming along, though.  She still periodically tears around the house like a crazy dog.  Trying to stop her does not help, so we are trying reverse psychology (does that work on a dog?), ignoring her, and trying to get her attention diverted to something else.  She is now licensed by the county and has seen the vet, so she is official.  

     Yesterday I completed 30 days in a row of forearm and side-planks.  Yay for me.  Now lets see if I can keep it up.  Running isn't going as well, although Charleigh is learning to run beside me.  We must go slow, though, to make sure she doesn't trip me up when she sees rabbits, squirrels, prairie dogs, other dogs, birds, and you name it.

    

Whoever said diamonds are a girl's best friend.....never owned a dog.

     At last, here is a picture of our newest family member....Charleigh.  It is really hard to get a dog to hold still long enough to get a good picture, so it took several tries.  Believe me, she looks deceptively calm here.



     Here are some other items of interest for your week. Isn't  Ernestine Shepherd  amazing? I'd love to look like her. 

Ernestine Shepherd was born in 1937. At age 75, she is the world’s oldest competitive female bodybuilder. She wakes up at 3 a.m. every day to meditate, and then clocks up runs totaling 10 mi (16 km) before lunch. She started working out when she reached the age of 56, but has since won two bodybuilding contests and run nine marathons. — with Andrew Floridas Finest Barbershop, Coko Loko,Stephanie Bernard, Angie Cho and Nigel Tharpe. 

Free Your Mind and Think 

         shared from I <3 to run, on facebook

In 490 B.C., the Athenian army defeated the invading Persian army in a battle in the plain of Marathon, located roughly 26 miles north of Athens. According to legend, the Athenians then ordered the messenger Pheidippides to run ahead to Athens and announce the victory to the city.
Pheidippides raced back to the city in intense late summer heat. Upon reaching the Athenian agora, he exclaimed “Nike!” (“Victory!”) or “Rejoice! We Conquer” and then collapsed dead from exhaustion. 

                     shared from Dare to be different

Happy feet.....

Wherever you stand, 
be the soul of that place.

~ Rumi 


Don't you love it?  They are jogging.

Some thoughts for the weekend....

     Charleigh is settling in pretty well for a one-year old dog.  We found out she turned one on September 12.  We are working hard on getting her to be calm.  I imagine that may take at least a year as labs are puppies for 2-3 years! It is much like having a baby in the house as far as having to be watchful at all times.

     We were going to running group this morning, but Dean is under the weather.  Maybe we'll get out and walk later.  Daughter Kate is coming over for a visit this afternoon. Maybe we'll take Charleigh to a dog park.  That is always fun.

     The autumn weather is gorgeous.  We should take a drive up into the mountains just to enjoy.


               shared from Science is Awesome



            shared from Dare to be Different


And my favorite, because I've been very lucky in this regard:


Set your life on fire.
Seek those who fan your flames.

~ Rumi  

So there's this boy, he kinda stole my heart, he calls me "Mom".

     Happy Birthday wishes to Benjamin.  I know you say you aren't much into birthdays, but everyone needs to celebrate their specialness now and again.  Celebrate.  We are celebrating you!  Make a wish.  The universe is listening.
     Birthdays are good for you.  People who have the most birthdays, live the longest.

It's Raining, It's Pouring, our little dog is snoring.....

     It is raining!  Real, actual honest-to-God rain.  It has been many months since we have had a nice rain, or even any rain at all.

     Yesterday we did adopt the dog we fostered over the weekend.  She is a cute rambunctious 11 month old lab/golden mix.  She is still settling in but seems to really appreciate our house compared with the kennels.  She had severe kennel stress while there.
     We found out what her original name was when she was at Foothills Animal Shelter.  We decided we would keep that name for her.  The big reveal...........the newest member of our family is called Charleigh.  (I wonder how long it will take for her to answer to that?)

     I am so thankful for the rain, but now that means I must go walk in it with Charleigh.


"There's no such thing as bad weather, just soft people." 
-Bill Bowerman


(P.S.  we'll take some pictures at a later time)
(P.S.S.  I've really missed that wet dog smell.......said no one EVER!)

                              A fitting song for today..........

 Run for those who can't run. Run for those who ran into buildings to save others. Run for those who would give anything to have their loved ones today. 

Run to remember today.

                       Distant Runners

Politics....don't get me started!

                      Shared from Facebook, Evolve Campaigns.

     Ignore the rhetoric and just get out there and do something.  It is Monday and so hard to get going.  But quitting is a character flaw.  I/we must get moving.


                 Shared from Facebook, Run the Edge

     Bubbles is settling in at our house.  We are still thinking of adopting her.  She has a few foibles to be worked on, but so do we, so she will fit right in.  We are thinking of changing her name....Dean is embarrassed to stand outside and yell: "Bubbles, Bubbles." Maybe Gracie, or Bonnie (his choices so far), or Otter or Song, (my choices).  None seem quite right.
     Maybe Peach?  She is sweet and fuzzy and yellow, and can be a real peach, and sometimes can be the pits.

Happiest birthday to Sydney J.!

All the world is birthday cake, so take a piece, but not too much.
George Harrison

With all of our love, from Grandma and Grandpa.


                  shared from Golden Retriever Rescue of the Rockies

And kisses to Alex, too.

Who said that every wish would be heard and answered when wished on the morning star?

A joke to start your weekend:

       Q: "Why aren’t you signed up for the 401K?”
       A: “I’d never be able to run that far.” 
                                      – Dilbert 

A thought for your weekend:

          

                               from Facebook, "I fucking love science"

If people sat outside and looked at the stars each night, I'll bet they'd live a lot differently.
Bill Watterson

I heard this the other day.  I had forgotten the depth of the lyrics.  Have a listen and keep on star-gazing.  Don't live your life half-asleep.

Muppets-Rainbow Connection lyrics.

Why are there so many songs about rainbows
and what's on the other side?
Rainbows are visions, but only illusions,
and rainbows have nothing to hide.
So we've been told and some choose to believe it.
I know they're wrong, wait and see.
Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection.
The lovers, the dreamers and me.

Who said that every wish would be heard
and answered when wished on the morning star?
Somebody thought of that and someone believed it.
Look what it's done so far.
What's so amazing that keeps us star gazing
and what do we think we might see?
Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection.
The lovers, the dreamers and me.

All of us under its spell. We know that it's probably magic.

Have you been half asleep and have you heard voices?
I've heard them calling my name.
Is this the sweet sound that called the young sailors.
The voice might be one and the same.
I've heard it too many times to ignore it.
It's something that I'm supposed to be.
Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection.
The lovers, the dreamers and me. 

**************************************************************************

We are fostering this beautiful lab/golden mix named Bubbles.  We may end up adopting her.

Quote of the day.....

              Shared from Facebook, Run4Beer


     Well, I screwed up my courage and went back to the speed-work run group last night. I haven't gone for quite some time.  I am still the slowest one there, probably always will be. It was fun, though, and I am stiff and sore today.  Speed is all relative, and none of my relatives are particularly speedy.....ta dum dum.  (We do have endurance, though, which is more important).  The run group all go out for frozen yogurt afterwards which makes it all worthwhile (the yogurt store owner and run group sponsor is also part of the run group).

Find your greatness.

     I'm sure you have all seen this Nike clip many times during the Olympics, but it is so good it deserves another look.
     This is 12 year old Nathan from London, Ohio.  Greatness is not beyond his reach or ours.

“Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I'll try again tomorrow. ” ― Mary Anne Radmacher

                       Baby planks


     About a year ago I decided to try the plank-a-day challenge and do one set daily for a year.  I did great for about 4 months, then sort of lost focus.  I just looked back and saw that I did planks on 302 days out of 365, which actually wasn't terrible. It works out to 5.8 planks per week.  Labor day is the start of a new year, so I am trying again.  So far I have done planks for 16 days in a row and will try for a new streak...at least 30 days without stopping.
     This is my minimum exercise for a day.  I should be able to do at least this. How about it?  Are you with me?

Doug Larson: If all the cars in the United States were placed end to end, it would probably be Labor Day weekend.

     Monday, Sept. 3, is Labor Day.....the symbolic end to summer.  It is also the last day of the year, or was, when it is fashionable to wear white. What an outmoded premise.  I don't own a pair of white shoes. Even athletic shoes are brightly colored these days.
     Take advantage of the holiday.  Bask in the sun. Dawdle.  Be at your ease.  And be sure to wear white....being retro is cool.
   

Planet Earth, my home, my place A capricious anomaly in the sea of space ~Michael Jackson ((August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009), American recording artist, entertainer, businessman, humanitarian

               Shared from Facebook, Come on the peace train, 1 million members needed

     All of the world may need to become vegetarian by the year 2050 according to researchers.  There just isn't enough water to produce food for 9 billion people if current trends continue.  Start now!  Remember that the planet will be fine no matter what.....it will just continue on without us.


http://www.onegreenplanet.org/news/will-we-all-be-forced-to-be-vegetarian-by-2050/


Update:  Dean made it home fine yesterday on his bike ride.  The homeward trip is pretty much 12 miles of uphill, but he did it, foot blisters and all.