Archive for the ‘Inspiration’ Category

Phalanges! (Or the Tale of Two Toes)

Posted: August 7, 2013 in diabetes, Doctors and Dentists and Nurses... oh my!, Exercise, Foot issues, friends, Inspiration, Physical activity, Supportive Partner Woman, Walking
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See? I used Latin. Who says you can’t learn anything on the Interwebz?

So, yesterday was the toe surgery. If you’re squeamish, you might want to skip ahead, but know that Supportive Partner Woman was in the room the entire time and kept her lunch down. The root of the problem is that I have hammer toes. This is primarily due to the diabetes and the overpronation of my feet. There are many treatments, most of which involve therapy of some sort, unless your toes are beyond repair, as mine are. The simple fix is that the podiatrist makes a small incision at the base of the affected toe and then, using a scalpel, releases the tendon causing the toe to be bent. It’s not terribly invasive, but it does render you incapable of curling your toes.

Recovery time is about a week, during which the toes stay bandaged (it acts as a splint) and then you are left with straighter toes. This helps to prevent corns and blisters.

It also leaves you with a freaky-looking foot. Although, as my podiatrist has told me, I’ll never win an award for attractive feet. I guess there goes my career as a foot model. Sigh.

There’s been an interesting side effect, though. For the longest time I couldn’t feel much of anything with my toes, except for heat and pressure. As my blood sugar has stabilized, I’ve found an increased level of feeling. That’s awesome, except now I can feel pain again, and, well, the toes kind of hurt. As I was sitting at my desk last night, I could feel the pulse throbbing in the straightened toes and I didn’t know whether to be bummed that it hurt or ecstatic that I could actually feel something other than phantom pain. I settled for Tylenol and a sense that while I hurt, it was a good hurt.

The other drawback is that I’m on the shelf for a week as far as getting outside. Walking up to the mailbox does not make for a ton of exercise, but I can at least lift weights and get something done. Swimming is out, because I can’t get the bandages wet (I have to wear a leg sleeve in the shower. Oh, yes, I look like a huge dork, but SPW is the only one who sees me wear it, so no foul). I can’t do squats or anything that puts stress on the feet, so lifting it is.

Been a few days since I’ve done an inspiration piece, so today’s shoutout does to Linda, who’s just an amazing person. Linda is someone who has been so incredibly supportive ever since I started this blog project oh so many years ago. I can always count on an encouraging word when I need it, and just wholehearted support. I’m incredibly lucky to know her and I can’t thank her enough for the unwavering support. So, thank you, Linda, for everything. We are truly honored to call you our friend.

Bichon/Shih-Tzu puppies

Bichon/Shih-Tzu puppies

All that being said, going to get on with my day. But, since you are my readers and are awesome, I thought I would leave you with an undeniably cute picture, because, well, who doesn’t like cute, fuzzy puppies?

Song of the Day: Lovely to See You – The Moody Blues

Currently Reading: The Brass Verdict – Michael Connelly

Success!

Posted: August 1, 2013 in 5K, Exercise, family, Foot issues, friends, Goals, Inspiration, Physical activity, Supportive Partner Woman, Walking, Weight loss
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There’s been some success in my life lately. I actually got service from Comcast… an event I just had to add to the Life Events part of my Facebook page. I got the parts to repair the mixer. I even went to Root’s Market for produce.

The biggest success thus far is not only have I made my original fundraising goal, I’ve made my revised goal. See, after making it to $500, I upped it to $600. Thanks to a donation I received in the mail yesterday, I stand at $601 (for anybody checking out my page, checks take a long time to reflect in your total), which makes me wonder if I should up the ante yet again. Should I make it $750?

Anyway, the contribution that put me over the top came from an old college friend of mine. Karen and her husband Rodger, who I have seen once since their wedding 18 or so years ago, were kind enough to drop a check in the mail.

People do surprise me.

I’ve been so busy carping about Comcast lately that I’ve not given any credit to those who are inspiring me. Today, that honor goes to the lovely and gracious Supportive Partner Woman.

Now, I’m sure some people may think that’s a cop-out answer, but truth be known, SPW is to be admired. She has a stressful job, family health issues and, well, has to put up with me. Through it all, she lets me drag her to the gym and when she gets there, she totally kills it. Take today, for example. I did 2.3 miles at a 3.3 mph pace and she did like 2.6 on the elliptical and another 1.5 on the dreadmill.

Basically, she smoked me like a trout, and I love her all the more for it.

That’s why she’s my inspiration of the day.

Oh, and I only have a few days until the Boot of Shame makes an appearance again. I’ll be getting two toes on my left foot straightened on Tuesday, so I’ll need to be in the boot for a week. I hate missing the workout time, but it should make walking easier. I’ll take that.

Song of the Day: Night Train – Modern English

The Ballad of Stubby (redux)

Posted: July 22, 2013 in 5K, diabetes, Doctors and Dentists and Nurses... oh my!, Exercise, Foot issues, friends, homeowner's association, Inspiration, Physical activity, Stubby the Wonder Toe, Supportive Partner Woman, Team AllEars, Wanda, Weight loss
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So, it was a helluva week last week.

I not only killed it at the gym, I managed to wound Stubby as well.

See, on Thursday, I was actually running on the treadmill. It felt pretty good… the left ankle was barking a little, but that was the extent of my pain.

When I got home from work that night, well, I found that Stubby had a pretty substantial blister that had developed where there was a corn.

Cue frowny face.

I had Supportive Partner Woman (tender of my feet!) give it a Betadyne bath, then slept with my foot hanging off the bed, allowing it to air out. The next day I called my podiatrist and scheduled an appointment for this morning. He was impressed at how well it is healing and told me I could get out of the Boot of Shame. So I have that going for me. The bad news is that I’ll need to spend a week in it in early August. The doc wants to straighten the two remaining hammertoes on my left foot. Not something that I’m really looking forward to, but what can you do? This will hopefully prevent any more corns from forming.

In the other news, it’s time for a rant.

Got another letter from Evil Bitch Queen Wanda of our homeowner’s association. This time saying that we need to put down a “mulch” barrier to prevent damage to the siding from the lawn crew trimming.

My first thought was, “Seriously, this is the first you mention it after the lawn crew has had SIX YEARS to jack up the siding?

My second thought was a lot less charitable.

I posted about this on FB and one of my friends had the winning comment regarding the “mulch barrier.” She said, “Four foot bunker made of bags of mulch. Check.”

Amen.

So far we’ve established that the foot is healing nicely, me running isn’t pretty,and, oh, yeah, Wanda is an evil bitch.

Not bad for a day’s work.

So, on to the fun part of today’s post… Another fine inspirational story.

When I was in elementary school I had a very good friend named Mark. We played together pretty often and we kept in touch well through elementary and middle schools. At that time we went to different schools, and as frequently happens, we lost touch. Fast forward 20 years and we reconnected via Facebook. I’ve been very open about the health issues I have faced, and he had faced some similar issues. It’s been a long road for both of us, but he’s done some running and it inspired me to get in better shape. It’s kind of funny that I can find inspiration from someone I haven’t seen in over twenty years but still think the world of.

Thank you, Mark, for your friendship, inspiration, and also your donation to the Avon Walk. Every little bit counts.

Speaking of which, if you want to contribute, visit my personal fundraising page at

http://info.avonfoundation.org/goto/BrianT.

Have a great day, everyone~

The word of the day is “ouch”

Posted: July 5, 2013 in 5K, Exercise, Goals, Inspiration, Ouch, roller coasters, Supportive Partner Woman, Team AllEars, Theme parks, Walking, Weight loss
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Had a great Independence Day. Spent the day at Hersheypark with some friends at my company picnic and it was actually fulfilling. Not only that, 16,472 steps and no blisters. Woot!

Right up until the end.

The day was oppressively warm… there was a fleeting breeze, but it was not always dependable. It took about as long to get into the parking lot as it took to drive to Hershey. So, you could say it was busy. We started the day with The Scrambler, a special request of Supportive Partner Woman. Line was a little long, but the ride is always fun. After which, we scouted out Skyrush, which is the latest entry in the Hershey coaster pantheon, while we waited for our friends to arrive. I was pretty sure I was going to attempt it, if one big hurdle could be overcome… if I could fit.

They have a demonstration seat at the head of the queue, so I sat in it and was pleasantly surprised to actually fit.

This would come back to haunt me.

After our friends arrived, we made our way to the back of the park to ride one of our favorite wooden coasters… Lightning Racer. Lightning Racer is a dueling wooden coaster that usually ranks in the top 15 wooden coasters in the world. It’s a lot of fun, and doesn’t beat you up like a lot of other woodies.

After that was the picnic lunch. It was kind of a challenge, but I managed to eat a little bit of chicken BBQ and half of a hamburger patty. I also had some fresh fruit. It was pretty tasty, but I can’t help contrasting it with what I would’ve eaten back in my heyday. That would’ve been multiple hot dogs and burgers, all with rolls, chips, washed down with lots of diet soda.

Yeah.

And to think that was normal. I’m liking the new normal that much better.

Following lunch, we wandered over to The Claw. This is an evil beast that I kind of looked at and said, “Oh, HELL no.” We hung around while our friend Hollie went for a ride, then we wandered to the arcade to play some SkeeBall. Post SkeeBall, it was off to my favorite coaster in the park… Great Bear. Great Bear is smooth, yet thrilling, and I even managed to get SPW (Brave little toaster!) on board for the ride. As with many things, there’s a backstory. During my yo-yo weight loss years, I went to the park. Paid admission and all that, then decided to try to ride Great Bear. I waited nearly an hour in line, climbed on board and they couldn’t close the restraints. I was too fat. I left the park immediately, totally ashamed.

The last time I rode it, I managed to fit, but it took two people to get me in, pressing on the harness until I could barely breathe, until the belts would actually close.

This time, there was even some extra room.

The ride is smooth and thrilling, and due to the design of the coaster, it roars like an angry bear. This is due to the lack of sand in the supports and the design of the track itself. Following Great Bear, I was hoping to take my first ride on Storm Runner. This was not to be, however. The seat harness is supposed to touch your thigh and I needed another inch or two. Gives me something to look forward to next time.

The Skyrush train

The Skyrush train

We closed the day with a visit to Skyrush. The motto for the coaster in “Ride the edge” because the two outboard seats are floorless. I opted for a trip on one of those. SPW (Kind of a coaster chicken!) was having no parts of this, so there were only three of us. The train is pulled out of the station with a cable lift rather than the typical chain lift. You are moving up that hill at a pretty good clip. The cable system pretty much throws you over the top and into an 85° drop, reaching speeds of 75 mph. That’s awesome. Then the airtime kicks in, pretty much throwing you out of your seat. This is what caused the problem. I hit the restraint with my left leg so hard, it bruised the quadriceps. This has made walking a challenge, not to mention getting into and out of a car. It will heal, and I now have more of an appreciation of what to expect, should I ride it again. I’ll leave you with the front seat POV.

After our park time, we stopped at the Troeg’s Brewery in Hershey to meet up with the subject of today’s inspiration section, Brad. Brad is a fellow Disney enthusiast, fan of quality beer, as well as an all around great guy.

We met some years ago at Magic Meets (are you sensing a pattern here?) and we just hit it off from the get-go. He and his family live in the Central PA area as well and we get together periodically, although not as frequently as we would like. Brad is one I refer to as insane, as he is a running nut who’s been known to do the Dopey before it was officially the Dopey. What that means is that he would often run 42.4 miles in one weekend. See? Insane. That being said, he’s been incredibly supportive of my efforts with Team AllEars and has offered much in the way of sage advice and patience for a complete novice runner (me). I’m really psyched for January now… I think that crossing that line will really make an impact on my life and maybe illustrate that I can succeed at something I thought insurmountable. It will be because Brad (and many others) believe in me, so much so that I might start believing in myself.

Scary, huh?

I’m going to do it. Failure is not an option.

Song of the Day: Sole Survivor – Asia

Yet another in a series…

Posted: July 2, 2013 in Bariatric surgery, Exercise, Foot issues, friends, home improvement, Inspiration, Mickey Miles podcast, Physical activity, Team AllEars, Walking, Weight loss
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It’s Tuesday and I’m a little loopy from sniffing polyurethane. Yes, I was in a well-ventilated area, but that stuff is pretty potent.

Progress continues to be made on my shelf project. All parts are cut and sanded, and all but a couple of sides are stained and polyurethaned, It should look pretty good when it is finally complete. Next job will be to find a place to hang it. Yikes!

So, I had some more inspiring folks I wanted to give a shoutout to. Todays co-honorees are my Team AllEars co-captains Michelle and Mike.

These are folks I again met through Magic Meets (are you sensing a pattern?) and they’ve always been great friends to myself and Supportive Partner Woman. Michelle is actually a frequent Words With Friends opponent (she usually wipes the floor with me) and has been subtly encouraging me to join the team. They have seen my struggles to keep up with the crowd at Reunion and seen me suffer through the blisters from hell. While I was in the program, both Mike and Michelle would check in with me to see how I was doing and it was hard to tell who was more excited when I committed to join the team from my hospital bed. They even sent a lovely flower arrangement that lasted over a month.

It’s hard to express how much their encouragement has inspired me, but if you want to talk about great leaders leading by example, I would be hard pressed to find a pair of co-captains who exemplify that adage more than Michelle and Mike. I’m proud to call them my friends and my inspirations.

So, second shift is going well after one day. It’s not a crazy busy week with the upcoming holiday, but it works just the same. I even got out for a 1.5 mile walk on break with a nice detour through Home Depot for air conditioning. Have to do it again tonight, assuming the weather stays dry. The foot looks fine, so I think it’s safe to say that the blister crisis is averted.

More a little later in the week.

Song of the Day: Nineteen Forever – Joe Jackson

Guess who’s back… back again?

Posted: June 27, 2013 in 5K, Exercise, Foot issues, Inspiration, Physical activity, Team AllEars, Walking
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The blistering is back… oh, yay.

It was a surprise, too. After a good round of workouts yesterday, I went out for dinner with Supportive Partner Woman (survived that early gym time!) and decided to hit the sack when we got home. Took off my shoes and socks and found a bloody spot in the sock. I looked at my toes… they were fine, but I found a broken blister on the ball of my right foot.

I was crushed. Seriously crushed.

Things had been going really well with my walking… what could have caused the issue this time? I’ve been checking my feet regularly. Near as I can figure, the one thing I did differently yesterday was to not air out my feet as long as usual before putting shoes and socks on. Sigh.

It’s frustrating… I briefly considered chewing my own foot off, but I realized I’m nowhere near flexible enough for that. Plus, it’s messy, unsanitary, and I’m assuming my foot wouldn’t taste very good. After a friend posted that if I tried chewing off my foot, she would spray my foot with bitter apple and make me wear the Cone of Shame, well, I tabled that idea.

I decided to go with the tried and true… I air out the foot when I’m at home and use drying agents to enable the healing process. I’m staying away from walking for a few days, and I just settled for lifting weights today. I just have to do something to keep up my fitness level.

So, as for today’s entry in the “Folks who inspire me” category, we’re going to talk about Melanie.

I first met Mel at a Magic Meets event back in the day. Her and her sister Julie had come all the way to central PA from the Denver area to take part in the festivities and we were introduced by our friend Brad who knew them through Team AllEars. We were all part of a large group that had gone for dinner at a local watering hole.

We didn’t see them again until the Magic Meets cruise in 2010 and, well, in one of our group nights at the champagne bar (and there were a lot of those nights), Mel said I should consider joining TAE. I was a little skeptical at the time, figuring there was no way I’d be able to do that. To her credit, she didn’t give up and told me to think about it.

I never forgot that initial nudge. And I did think about it. And when I joined, I’m not sure who was happier… Mel or myself.

So, me joining TAE is partially her fault and she should get part of the blame. I couldn’t be happier to be a part of such a great group.

Speaking of the team, my fundraising site when live yesterday. I’ve agreed to raise $500 to go toward the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. Any donations are tax-deductable, so if you want to contribute to a worthy cause, click the link below:

http://info.avonfoundation.org/site/TR/DIY/General?px=3294847&pg=personal&fr_id=2350

Thanks again for your support as the journey progresses.

Song of the Day: Once in a Lifetime – University of Wisconsin MadHatters

Part Two in a Series

Posted: June 25, 2013 in 5K, Exercise, home improvement, Inspiration, Lego, Weight loss
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Good evening!

Last post I did, I started my little series of recognizing the folks who have really inspired me to make some life changes. These aren’t exactly folks who have supported me… in many cases, they don’t even know I found their stories or journeys to be inspiring. Now it’s my chance to throw them some recognition.

Today’s honoree is Glenn, also known as Vegan Wayne (long story).

Glenn was a pretty big guy… also a member of the Disney community, I met him through the fine folks at WDW Today. I’ve always told him he’s my favorite Hawaiian attorney (He’s the only Hawaiian attorney I know, so of course he’s my favorite, but don’t tell him that… it’ll spoil the gravitas that goes along with that honor) I say Glenn was a pretty big guy because he’s no longer that big. Some of my fondest memories of Glenn involved chowing down at the Ohana feast , so imagine my surprise when he told me he was going to a vegan, whole foods diet.

I was stunned.

Flabbergasted.

The voice running through my head was that of the aunt in My Big Fat Greek Wedding saying, “Whaddaya mean you don’t eat no meat?”

Of course he took some ribbing about that major dietary change, including when we all went to Ohana and he had  them bring out the vegan platter while the rest of us did our best barbarian impression, eating meat cooked with fire. The gauntlet was thrown, as well, with our friend Jeanine making a snarky remark about “those four months you went vegan”. To Glenn’s credit, he’s stuck with it and has lost well over 100 pounds.

The road isn’t always smooth, but if you stick with it, you can succeed.

photo (8)My current project of a minifig display rack is moving along. I finished cutting the wood for the outer frame. I even used the router table to cut shelf guides. The first attempt wasn’t too successful… I did each side individually and the alignment was WAAAAAY off. So, I had to buy another piece of wood and start over. I managed to rig some scrap wood into a jig, which kept everything nice and aligned. The shelves are going to made from 1/4 inch oak plywood, since there’s no real weight to the figures. I’m going to make the basic design in a cross-hatched pattern so there’s some support to keep the shelves from sagging under their own weight.

So, that’s what’s been going on. The router table has proven to be a most excellent acquisition, so I’m pleased about that.

Oh, one tip… if you’re outside getting exercise on these hot days, remember to hydrate to the best of your ability. You don’t want to get dehydrated, so avoid caffeine and sodas. Instead, stick to water and sports drinks. My sports drink of choice is PowerAde Zero in the orange flavor. Seriously yummy stuff.

More soon.

Song of the Day: Running on Empty – Jackson Browne

Who pwned who?

Posted: June 19, 2013 in Exercise, Gratuitously Naked Guy, home improvement, Inspiration, Physical activity, Walking, Weight loss
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Today I made the elliptical machine my bitch.

Or was it the other way around?

Jury is still out on that, but I can say that it felt good to do something other than pound the treadmill. While my legs are STILL a little rubbery some 6 hours later, my ankles and feet feel fine.

This week and next week are really booked up at the clinic’s fitness center, so I’m only getting one session each week. I just need to make up the time at the Rec. There are worse fates. I might try to get some weekday swimming in… although the probability of a Gratuitously Naked Guy sighting is much higher during the week. But, dear readers, I’m willing to risk it.

Now, I know I’ve posted about my inspirations for losing some weight and getting healthier, but there’s one that I keep overlooking. So, I’d like to give a shoutout to my friend Matt. I know Matt through the Disney community… he was a fellow Magic Meets volunteer and, like me, was a big guy. Not as big as me, but a bigger guy nonetheless. I hadn’t seen Matt since the last Magic Meets, but would spot him on Facebook from time to time. Then there was one post that blew my mind. Matt was running in last year’s Disney World Half-Marathon.

Wow.

Not only that, but he was deep into martial arts and just really seemed serious about getting healthy and making the lifestyle changes. That was in the back of my mind as I progressed through my program. There’s someone who was doing it. Someone I knew.

I knew that I could do it, too.

The road is long and anything but smooth. I’m getting there, following the footsteps of someone whose success and determination has really been an inspiration. Thanks, Matt, and keep up the awesome work.

From here on in, I’m going to make an effort to recognize those folks who have inspired me to keep going. Who knows, I might even have nice things to say about my jerk co-worker who really got the ball rolling.

I wouldn’t hold my breath, though.

Tomorrow will be more of the same… gym, work, and maybe playing with power tools. We’ll see what the weather is like after work.

Song of the Day: Kashmir – Led Zeppelin
Currently Reading: The King’s Deception – Steve Berry

P.S. I think the elliptical won… word of the day? Ouch.

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