It’s An Aging Thing

The older we get the more we start thinking about our health. At least I do. I never really cared that much when I was a young woman. Eating healthy? Ha! I scoff at the idea of having a proper diet. Exercising? Seriously? I’m plenty active, I don’t need to exercise. Vitamins? Really? Please, just stop already with the suggestions. I’m young. I’m healthy.

Read Full Post »

Hard To Believe I Was On the Honor Roll

All through my years of schooling, I maintained consistently high grades; honor roll every year. Except for algebra my junior year of high school. That ruined my GPA for one entire year. (Stupid math.) I did redeem myself in college though. While still struggling with numbers, I managed to get a B- in algebra my last year. I had to pass that class or I wouldn’t graduate. But I did. Again, with honors. Whew. But, I digress. At present, there are many days I do some incredibly stupid, not A+ or even B- things, and certainly not honor roll things. It’s like my brain forgets to do its job. I used to be “with it.” I used to not need notes to remember things. I used to use common sense and logic to figure things out. Nowadays, not so much. Some days I don’t even recognize myself because I do some really dumb stuff.

Read Full Post »

Aging – It’s Not For The Faint Of Heart

Photo by WARREN BLAKE on Pexels.com

We’re all getting older whether we like it or not. Every day brings us one step closer to death. I know that sounds morbid, but it’s the truth. Reality is, our date of birth is actually the day we start dying. That’s why every single day should be considered a gift. A chance to experience life to its fullest. Every morning when we open our eyes, we are given the gift of another day. Another step toward the grave. Another opportunity to do good, to embrace the blessings around us, and to boldly walk toward the pearly gates.

Read Full Post »

Lessons Learned From My Old Dog

I have a purebred AKC registered yellow lab, who is the sweetest dog on the planet (IMHO). Everyone here at the inn loves him and return guests always ask about him. Most guests won’t leave until they’ve said good-bye to Sherlock. He’s quite the celebrity.

Read Full Post »

My Mom Wasn’t Kidding

I remember my mom sometimes complaining about little aches and pains she was experiencing, almost every day. (I’m sure I was the cause of some of those headaches.) Anyway, as a teen-ager I used to think my mom was just saying these things so my brother and I would feel sorry for her and not give her any grief those days because she wasn’t feeling good. I mean, come on, how can someone have a new pain every – single – day?

Read Full Post »

My Pick For President

I don’t know about you, but I hate election years. I’m so not political. I mean, I know what’s right and I know what’s wrong and I certianly wouldn’t want to be Commander In Chief with a country as messed up as ours. But, all of the back-stabbing and pointing fingers and “I’m-better-than-you,” crap is really annoying. Let’s talk issues and solutions not who’s got more accolades or speeding tickets or whatever.

But, enough of my soapbox lecture. Let me just show you, who I’d like to see running this country.

Someone like Dorothy Custer would make things happen. She doesn’t have any excuses, she’s not afraid to work hard and she calls it how she sees it.

What say you? Do you like Dorothy’s healthy outlook on life? Wouldn’t you like to see this little lady in the White House, even for just one day or one week?

Word of the Day: Xeriograft

Fun fact about me: I’m really not very fond of Japanese Lady Beetles.

Original post by Jansen Schmidt, January 2016. Video courtesy YouTube.

 

Read Full Post »

Oh WebMD.com – You Crack Me Up

The menopause saga continues folks and let me tell you, it gets weirder and weirder. I have to laugh, because my only other choice is to cry myself into a padded room. And let me start by saying that men definitely got off easier (again) on the whole aging thing. I mean, at mid-life they just buy an expensive sports car and – bam – they’re over it and move on into their golden years.

Women however, we experience mid-life differently. Most get the “usual” physical symptoms, hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, bulging bellies. But not me my friends. No sirree, not me, although my belly does bulge a little. I have all of the “other” symptoms. I ones you never hear about.

Photo courtesy Google Images

Let me explain. For awhile now I’ve been experiencing some strange little things in my body. Things like a sore thumb one day, a sore wrist the next three, creaking knees the following week. No injury, no apparent reason for the pain. And, sometimes while I’m driving, my fingers go numb; my feet often “go to sleep” when I’m watching TV. I’ve also been having extreme vision issues, issues not correctable (or explainable) by my eye doctor. I wear a different bi-focal contact lens in each eye and I still have to wear glasses sometimes. And then there’s days when I just can’t seem to see at all, my vision is so blurry. And my eyes hurt. They feel dry and gritty and they twitch. A lot. But then at night, when I lay down to try to sleep, they water like crazy, soaking my pillow on both sides of my head. What the heck? What is this madness?

Where am I going with this? I’ll tell you. I did some research on WebMD.com for dry eyes and joint pain. Both list possible causes for the ailment and potential remedies. But way down on the list for each problem I found that these conditions may be the result of menopause. Say what? Dry eyes and joint pain are menopause symptoms?

Apparently so. And this created a burning need to research menopause a little deeper, leading me to a long list of “unusual” symptoms of menopause. Holy cow! I have more than half of those “unusual” symptoms. And what’s even funnier are the suggested homeopathic treatments for the symptoms.

Here’s an abbreviated list of lesser known menopause symptoms: loss of bladder control, extreme fatigue, inability to concentrate, tingling extremities, irregular heartbeat, anxiety, weight gain, hair loss, brittle nails, and bloating.

Photo courtesy Google Images

Here’s a partial list of cures: drink lots of water, exercise, get lots of rest.

Okie dokie. Let’s just back the apple cart up a little bit here shall we?

My symptom is loss of bladder control and you tell me to “drink lots of water?” Really? How is this helpful? I cannot sleep more than two hours at night and you’re telling me that the cure is to “get lots of rest?” Well duh. And wouldn’t that be nice? And you say that more exercise will cure the weight retention and bloating issues? Yeah, maybe under normal conditions, but, I am so freaking tired there is no way in hell I’m going to exercise more.  I can barely get through one 1-hour zumba class a week. Most of my exercise these days consists of getting up from my two-hour nap each night.

And I might experience anxiety. You think? I’m pretty sure that getting only two hours of sleep each night might make me a little — how shall I say this — tense. Not to mention my hair is thinning at an alarming rate. And my heartbeat is so irregular I think I’m having a heart attack and in fact, consider waking my husband up to have him drive me to the emergency room. I’m pretty sure, this symptom would make anyone anxious.

This article is really funny.

I little farther down on this ever-so-helpful site I read that menopause can last anywhere from twelve months to twelve years. ARE. YOU. KIDDING. ME? Twelve freaking years?!? Nothing anxious about that. Can’t I just buy a Corvette and be rid of it?

Photo courtesy Google Images

But here is the kicker my friends; the suggestion that makes me laugh the hardest and longest. The article recommends avoiding alcohol. Seriously? I have 52 things wrong with me and if I drink enough water and get enough exercise and rest in twelve years they MAY go away. But, in those twelve years I’m not to have a drink? Like that’s really going to happen. If there is one thing I really, truly NEED at this very moment in my life, it is alcohol. Please dear God, let me never be out of alcohol. (Unless you bring me a Corvette, then I might reconsider.)

Photo courtesy Google Images

So, I know it’s a bit tongue-in-cheek, but seriously, if you read about your symptoms on the web, you may be enlightened. Or mislead. Or entertained. I was definitely entertained at the end of my on-line research. However, I am a little less worried about all of the little crazy symptoms I’m having. There’s light at the end of the twelve-year tunnel that they may go away. Seems I’m not having a heart attack, I’m simply anxious. And I’m definitely going to try staying up all night exercising and drinking water since, Lord knows, I certainly won’t be sleeping.

So (everybody raise your glass), here’s to aging, hair loss, peeing your pants, being awake all night, slightly overweight, anxious and blurry-eyed. I thank the good Lord every single day that I am generally healthy, happy, mobile, employed, and do not have some horrible debilitating disease, or chronic condition impacting my life in ways too unspeakable to mention here. If getting old means having a few aches and pains and anxiety along the way, so be it. I’ll take every day I am blessed to live. Even without a Corvette.

How about you readers: have you ever experienced any unusual or unexplainable condition that worried you? Do you try to self-diagnose? Do you rely on information you read on the web? Ever find a silly suggestion to fix a problem?

And, if I haven’t told you lately, I am blessed to call you all friends and thankful for your support.

Word of the Day: Nide

Fun fact about me: If it were practical and affordable I would drive an expensive sports car every single day. (And that’s not just the menopause talking.)

Original post by Jansen Schmidt, May 2015. Photos courtesy Google Images.

Read Full Post »

Middle-Aged Chicks Are Hot!

If you’re hot and you know it raise your hand.

Photo courtesy Google Images.

Oh, me. (hand raised high) Me, me, me, me, me. I’m hot and I know it. (This is me — in my mind — a really hot chick.)

But not all the time. Most of the time I’m the same temperature as everyone else. But sometimes, I’m raging hot. Wildfire hot. Exploding gas hot. Oh, I’m not on fire, I’m just having a hot flash.

Sometimes those hot flashes happen at night, while I’m in bed, all cozy in my fuzzy jammies. Those night time hot flashes are the worst. Wake up all wringing wet. Have to strip naked and take a cold shower. What kind of madness is this?

Photo courtesy Google Images

(This is me — in reality — a really hot chick.)

Yeah, I know. I’m as surprised as you are. What the hell happened? What happened to the woman in the yellow dress?

Well, we all age and there’s not a damn thing any of us can do to stop it so we might as well share a laugh about it — right? So, here’s a mash-up video from Chonda Pierce about women of a certain age. I hope you enjoy it. Feel free to laugh out loud.

How are you aging? Gracefully? Or kicking and screaming? What do you do when “those” moments hit? I’d love to learn any tips and tricks for staying comfortable and sane through this “phase.”

Fun fact about me: I older I get, the more adventurous I get.

Word of the Day: Theurgy

Original post by Jansen Schmidt, November 2014. Photos courtesy Google Images. Video courtesy YouTube.

Read Full Post »