YES!!!

Exactly!!! Although, I don't think people against health care reform really give a flying F about the lower class and whether they'd be able to afford anything related to health care (or anything else for that matter) anyway.



Reposted from perpetual self-check. As he mentions, longer version here.

Exactly

This is exactly the kind of stuff I was skeptical about when I wrote an earlier post about The Biggest Loser.

A good read

Oh, Kurt Vonnegut...what an interesting life. The Paris Review Interviews of Kurt Vonnegut. I agree with the laughter behind a grand exit into the coat closet.

Financial crisis

Not sure how old this is, but it cracked me up. Poor Andre!

Stroke of luck

Today, L. and I ventured to the Bellevue mall so that I could look for a new swimsuit. The one I've been using the past couple of weeks doesn't fit real well, and there's nothing like wearing an ill-fitting piece of spandex to make you realize that maybe you should just cough up a few bucks for something that fits properly and doesn't make you want to duck back into the locker room immediately. I think the suit I've been using dates back about 10 years now, so it was time.

I actually intended to look at Macys, but we parked by the JC Penney and I figured we could look there first. Lo and behold, they had a whole section of swimsuits, and some of them were pretty cute and came in my size. I found about 10 different ones to try on, and made my way to the dressing room while L. found a chair to wait in. I think we were secretly both worried that this trip was not going to end well. If there are two things women really hate shopping for, it's swimsuits and jeans.

Anyway, I went in and had a good chuckle over a few of them. These clothing makers have no idea how much fabric it actually takes to keep in the girls for a rather well-endowed woman as myself. In the end, I came out with three suits that fit properly and were cute! L. and I both sighed in relief and went to the counter. We didn't end up needing to go to Macys, I didn't complain about my weight, and I didn't come home depressed and empty-handed. All in all, it was a pretty good experience.

Blame inflation

Today as L. and I were walking out of the Bellevue mall, we were asked by a seemingly normal, older gentleman if we could spare $10. Not "change" or "a buck" like most people begging for money, but $10. Guess inflation has really affected everyone... Sheesh!

Remembering Rod

Earlier this morning, our good family friend, Rod, passed away. My dad (on the left) and Rod (on the right) met during the Vietnam war, when they both served in the Army and were stationed in Japan. I heard lots of stories about that time in their lives, because Rod moved in with my dad and mom when I was a little girl. He had fallen on hard times, and they took him in. I have such great memories of him. He was the kind of guy who treated everyone equally, was honest, and treated me like a person and not just some kid. And he was so smart. He read so many books, and taught me so many things. I'll never forget him explaining how lightening and thunder happen, or even teaching me about his struggle with diabetes.

He was part of our lives on and off. After my parents divorced, we didn't see him for awhile. I later came to understand that he was upset by their split and didn't want to choose sides, knowing that my dad was making a huge mistake, and yet being unable to change the outcome. Rod loved my mom a lot, too, and it was hard for him to see the happy family he'd known and lived with come to an end. It wasn't until some years later that my dad found him again, living in some crappy apartment in Seattle, and then recently in a crummy motel before needing to go to a nursing home for 24-hour care. He never had a lot, but didn't seem to care. Never got married (wasn't the marrying kind, he said) and never had kids.

A couple of months ago after we'd reconnected, he mentioned that he'd like to see my mom. So, she and I went to visit him at the home and they finally got the chance to talk though the hurt that happened all those years ago. Turns out that my mom was frustrated with Rod at the time for not trying to do more to convince my dad to stay, and that Rod just knew it wouldn't make a difference at that point and was sad to see it end but felt guilt over not doing more. She was able to ease his guilt and sadness by explaining that she's gone on to have a good life with my step dad and that things happened the way they should have. She understands now that nothing Rod could have said or done would have changed my dad's choices at that time. And he got to know that she was no longer upset with him about that. So, there was some closure there.

It wasn't diabetes that claimed Rod's life. It was surely a complication, but not the whole story. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and outlived his oncologist's expectations by over a year. L. and dad and I spent Christmas Eve with him, and were visiting him at his nursing home a lot toward the end. A couple of weeks ago he went to the VA hospital with pneumonia, and unfortunately due to my having a cold, I could not visit. Again, I didn't make it in time. I planned to see him this weekend with my dad so that I could say goodbye because it seemed that he had really taken a turn downhill.

I suppose that in some ways it might be better to remember him as I do. Christmas Eve. Outback Steakhouse. Love and companionship and good memories of other times and places. The promise of getting together again.

But, it doesn't feel better. I didn't make it again. Again.

Swimming

Tonight after work, I went to the Pro Club and swam laps. It felt good. I alternated between the butterfly, breast, and back strokes. When I was a kid, I LOVED to swim, and even after a full day of working on my grandparent's farm, we'd still all dive in to cool off and swim, swim, swim the evening away.

I was a little apprehensive about 1) being in a swimsuit in front of people (at a health club, no less) and 2) the etiquette involved in sharing a lane with someone. Luckily, they had a sign at each lane explaining how to warn another person in the lane that you're entering, etc. And I just had to get over myself about being in a swimsuit. In front of people. A lot of healthy-looking people. At a gym.

So, I managed 20 minutes straight of alternating the strokes before things started to get a little busy. So, I hopped out of the lane to give others a chance. But it was a good start, and if I can leave about 15 minutes earlier next time, I should be able to get in a full 1/2 hour before it starts getting full.

The nice thing about swimming is that it's easier on my joints, such as my elbows and knees, than some of the other activities I've tried like weight lifting and running. I think once I lose a bit more weight, those other activities will be easier for me to do again without injuring myself. But swimming will be a good low impact, yet challenging way to get my endurance back and lose some of the weight I've gained.