Gold or Porcelain?

Thank goodness for my husband John because he has talked me off the ledge quite a bit these last few months. I have had my share of private dispair, and I hope that an uptick will soon occur for me. Fortunately, John will push me out the door to ride my bike, go for a pathetic run, or get back into the swim, either solo or with my TryFitness sisters, when all other aspects of life are fraught with landmines.

It makes a huge difference in life when people believe in you, and if I didn’t have that, I wouldn’t be writing this. Oh, and my writing! It is good. I know this because people tell me they like the way I write all the time. But you cannot put a round peg into a square hole and be happy. Sometimes I feel like comic sans in a Times New Roman world.

On Tuesday, February 12, I jumped on the Catholic-Give-Something-Up-For-Lent bandwagon (it’s a backslidin’ Catholic girl’s right) and gave up white flour. What happens when you give up white flour? You give up much more: No white flour snacks and desserts, no hamburger rolls, no side of mac salad, no katsu, etc. There is a lot you can eat though: rice, rice noodles, oatmeal, quinoa, barley, and whole-wheat products. I started making my own home-made, whole-wheat pasta and pizza crusts. I’ve been drinking a lot more water, and fresh fruit and vegetables. So a month later I’m down seven pounds. Not much, but, pretty good for me.

What has helped is the Honu Half-Ironman fitness regimen with my TryFitness sisters. We rest on Mondays, we work out together on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays; and we work out independently the other days. I’m doing nearly all of the independent workouts. I really don’t mind that I’m the slowest and quite possibly the oldest woman in the group, because I’m in it to make me better, and to be part of a bigger movement, the one where about 15 of us get together to bond and support each other.

This morning John and I went to the dentist and I had to have a molar prepped for a crown. Half my face was numbed and it was a very crappy 45 minutes with Steve Martin in my face. JOKE, of course. I’ll go back for a fitting in a few weeks and for my new crown in May. I’ve decided to go with gold because you won’t see it anyway, and they last longest.

I was very sad after that appointment. We were driving to my next appointment to have lab work done, and John said to me that this was all a part of getting old. I’m a little bit pissed about this. I’m not really ready to be a little old lady. There’s too much to do. The best is yet to come. Crooked smiles and all.