Livingthedreamwithdiana.com

You’re probably getting tired of me telling you I’m doing this, ok, not this, but that, in my quest to return to a modicum of better health, better shape, better life style.

I’m getting there, slowly, but surely. (You don’t need to call me Shirley 😉 I’m concentrating my efforts with, as I have said, using the One and Done program with Meredith Shirk, from Svelte. Her program, now that I’ve finally opened it, and embraced it, is working extremely well for me.

I just had to open the program, and do what it said to do. Go figure.

I work out about 10- 15 minutes in the mornings, M-W-F, than go about my day. I walk for 20 minutes T-Th-Sa, and on Sunday, I do my usual nothing.

My body is slowly changing. I’m getting stronger, a bit leaner in places, my bat wings are almost gone, my belly isn’t as “pregnant looking” as it was, 😉 less bloating, more defined. My legs, and rear have always been good, so not much to improve there, but less cellulite all around.

Well, that’s the way it appears today. Let’s wait, and see how it looks next week.

Until then, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.

Do I need to say more??

I don’t think there are many opera written by Sir Andrew that I don’t love, and know all of the words within.

Recently, I found, on YT, of course, The Phantom of Opera, performed at the Royal Albert Hall, in 2020, starring Ramin Karimloo, Sierra Boggess, and Hadley Fraser as the leads.

I have never heard of these performers, but I cried through 75% of the video.

The whole thing is 2:40:13, and let me tell you that I remember almost every word of the musical.

Then, at the end, he came out on stage; Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber. I cried like a baby, How can he make music like he does unless he’s inspired by God?

Music is the portal to my soul; it always has been, and it always will be. I love music. I love to sing.

I don’t sing enough in my life anymore, and it breaks my heart. I need to sing, really sing, everyday, all day.

My resolutions for the coming year are to walk, and sing everyday.

Until next time, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.

I’m sitting at the table, my space in the living room, and enjoying the smell of the air coming through the windows.

It is fresh, clean, sweet, relaxing.

(I am trying to ignore the music someone feels we ALL need to listen to, and am concentrating on the aroma.)

Today I am feeling relaxed, sedate, and complete. That doesn’t happen often so I’m going to enjoy it while it lasts.

Until next time, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.

Post script: As I have done quite a bit of scheduled post changes, I may have already said this but, on the off chance I didn’t, tomorrow, the 21st. of May, is our 48th. wedding anniversary. So many people told us we would never last. Hah! Here’s to all of you. We’re in it for another 20, or 25 years.

I don’t know about you, but I use our Vacuum sealer quite frequently.

Knowing this, we bought 2 mega refill boxes of plastic rolls before we moved down here, in both the small, and larger widths. We gave one box away, and ended up buying a cheaper variety not all that long ago.

Now, however, I have decided to smarten up a bit. I make each bag just a bit too big, so that when I open it up, and use the contents, I can wash the bag, hang it up to dry in the laundry room, and reuse it. Duh!

Don’t know why I haven’t done that for all of these years. I do know why, actually. I’m sure it was because of the disposable society we lived in up North.

Down here, it’s not so easy to use things, then throw them away. It’s too difficult to replace what you’ve discarded.

So, when we’re not ducking when going through the laundry area because of clean clothes hanging up to dry, it’s plastic bags, of all shapes, and sizes. Look at these.

I can use a Ziplock bag about a dozen different times. Once it gets a hole in it, however, it’s done. But, until that time, it’s fair game. The reusable bags I bought, like the one with the blue band in the above photo, are really difficult to close. Once those are all on the way out, I will save up, and invest in the newer types of reusable bags. Not until then, though.

I hope that gives any of you a bit of encouragement in your efforts to recycle. Once you get the hang of it, it’s easy, and rewarding. Just a bit inconvenient at times.

Until next time, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.

I set the timer on my watch for, say, an hour.

The timer goes off so I stop the repeat.

But I have absolutely no recollection why I set the timer in the first place.

I keep telling myself, when I’m setting the timer, that I should write down what I need to do when the timer goes off, but I don’t.

Therefore, once again, my timer just went off, and I have no idea what I’m supposed to do.

I look around, but, nope. Nothing jumps out at me. Nothing seems to be needing attention.

So, I just sit here, wondering what I’ve missed. Again.

Until next time, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.

So, last night, being a Saturday, we got to have a few drinks.

After our first drink, President brandy for Ivan, and 100 Años tequila blanca for me, he decided he wanted a cigarette. (He had an old pack that he bought more than 6 months ago, when we were still drinking with more regularity. I’ve kept them in the fridge, well out of sight.)

I went to the kitchen, got him the cigarette, lit it, and took it to him.

He took one drag off it, and started choking.

We both laughed for minutes.

What most of you won’t know is that I smoked 2-3 packs daily for at least 35 years before I quit. After that, I had a few cigarettes, occasionally, when drinking heavily, but nothing substantial.

I had 2 drags off it, gave it back, and he put it out.

That was that. Won’t have to do that again anytime soon. Guaranteed.

Until next time, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.

Last year, well, 2022 actually, I bought about 2 dozen Glade scented candles on Amazon US, had them delivered to my SIL, Mayra, who, in turn sent them to us.

For the past year, I have been burning said candles as the season dictates. In the summer, we enjoyed the Clean Linen scent, while in the fall, I burned the Apple, and Cinnamon scent, the Pumpkin Spice Things Up scent, the Fall Night Long, the Nordic Crisp Pine scent, and Cashmere Woods scent.

We have actually finished only 4 of the candles insomuch as I can use the glass jars

as perfect Oreo cookie dunking glasses. They hold about 3/4 c. milk, which is the perfect depth to dunk our cookies.

We don’t eat many Oreo cookies because of their cost, but when we do, we now have the glass with which to dunk them perfectly.

We get our Oreos online, in a big box with 14 packages of 10 cookies per package. It’s the only was they come down here. Hey, at least we can get them.

Those, and Frito Lay Original Corn Chips. We can get those in a bulk box, 1oz per bag, but 50 bags in the box. Yet, another treat.

It’s the little things.

Until next time, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.

I think rocks are smarter than I am.

Seriously. I just wrote a post about my latest exercise experience, using the Svelte app. What I failed to realize is that I had such a great workout routine going, so many months ago, doing those back, and core strengthening exercises every night that I had been doing.

So, why did I stop doing them?

Not sure. All I know is that I was able to walk all around the park, and even to the market, and back, without having to stretch every 500 ft. for the entire walk.

So, why a did I stop?

It’s 2am, and I’ve been out, in the living room, on the floor, doing the original back/core strengthening exercises I was doing for weeks. I want to walk the 10,000 steps I’m supposed to walk every day. I want to walk around the park, the market, or to Walmart, and back, pain free.

I’m going to go back to doing what worked so I can drop this weight that doesn’t want to budge, no matter what I do. I’m going back to what worked for me. Period.

‘Nuf said. I’m going back to bed. Until next time, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.

Almost 2 years since we had a bloom on the peace lilies. We’ve got one now, finally.

This plant has been through so much in the last 2 years it’s no wonder it wasn’t able to bloom.

It’s been in the North facing window, behind the washing machine for over a year now, receiving biweekly fertilizer, and is finally going to bloom for me. Only one bloom at the moment, but I’m always hopeful there will be others to join it.

Until next time friends, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.

Post script: happy birthday to our daughter.

As of 4/19/24, my “exercise routine”, if one can call it that, has changed completely.

As you may recall, from a prior post, I found several exercises, on line, that help with stretching my lower back muscles, opening up my stiff hips, and strengthening my core muscles.

Well, here’s the thing. I bought a program, several years ago, before retiring actually, called Svelte, run by an RPT named Meredith Shirk. I’ve had the program, as I said, for quite some time, and open it annually.

That’s as far as I ever got.

Until the 19th. I decided that I am going to take my health concerns into my own hands, and finally get back into a decent shape. I’m 2 months shy of 69 years old, but my body feels like I’m closer to 79 years old.

Nuts to that, I say.

So, on YouTube, she has, with 2 other coaches, Gaby, and Greg, short, usually less than 10 minute doable routines that I have been not only participating in, but saving to a playlist, making them all quickly accessible.

I’ve been trying to go to bed between 10pm. and midnight, getting up between 7:30am, and 8:30am. each morning.

I get up, weigh myself, turn on the shower, take my pills, walk to the kitchen, and turn on the kettle, heating water for coffee. By the time I do all of that, the water is finally hot in the shower, so I proceed with my morning ablutions. (A word I’ve never gotten to use before. I love it.)

I have 1, or 2 cups of coffee, work a few of my word games to get the old brain limbered up, then find the latest workout to do on my computer, and do it. When I’ve done my 10 minutes, and have worked up a lovely (clean) sweat, I’m out the door to walk once around the park, or twice if I’m able.

All of the above has been having subtle changes to my large frame, though not all for the best. I’ve developed shin splints. Poor Diana.

Whilst I work through that, however, I still try to walk at least once a day, sometimes twice, and to the market, or all the way to Walmart, and back, twice weekly.

I’m putting in the distance more so on a weekly basis versus daily. At least I’m out of the chair, out of the apartment, and in the sunshine. My tan is coming along nicely with my new summer dresses, and my sandals, so it’s all good.

Until next time, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.