Z is for Z

Z, the last letter in the alphabet, signifies the end of things. It just so happens that today is the Big Moving Day, the last day in our home of 13 years, the last day in the neighborhood where we have lived for 21 years.

Two days ago I cooked the last meal in said home and said neighborhood. It was baked fish, and fried rice with vegetables. *yummy* Since then we have eaten leftovers out of the fridge and sandwiches, trying to use up available food before the move. So yes, today I am thinking about the end of things. The end of the A to Z Challenge *whew* and the end of our long life in this lovely place where our family has lived for so long.

What's exciting about the end of things is the anticipation for new beginnings. Which reminds me that life isn't like the alphabet, with a beginning and an end, but it is like a circle. Eternal. Endings and Beginnings together, flowing into one another. One eternal round.

Y is for Yes, I did it!

Yes, I did it! I walked an hour and ten minutes yesterday despite many valid  reasons  typical ridiculous excuses not to. So that makes six days in a row that I have overcome my resistance and just walked out that door. Because I am NOT A QUITTER.  HOO RAH!  Semper Fi and all that inspiring Marine talk I get from my son. HOO RAH!

X Marks the Spot

Do you remember that Steven Spielberg movie The Goonies? A group of kids find a treasure map in the attic and follow it to find a fortune so they can save their homes from evil developers. It sounds like a lame premise, but never underestimate Steven Spielberg or the fantastical charm of those four words-- X marks the spot.

Besides, what kid hasn't dreamed of doing this very thing? I know I did. I would fantasize about finding an ancient pirate treasure map with that magical X showing where to dig for the buried treasure. I even had my wish list of what I would do with all that money: 

Buy all the candy in the world. I still love candy. Have my very own horse. I always wanted a horse and never did get one, cursed deprived childhood. Fill my room with every stuffed animal, doll, puppet, book, paper doll set, tea set, electric train, squirt gun and cap gun and real gun that I ever wanted. I was a girl of varied interests.

Now I'm an adult, and I still long for some kind of magical X to mark the spot, the end of the rainbow, the buried treasure, the ship coming in. On The Goonies, there was an actual ship that came in at the end-- floating into the bay as the parents watched in awe.

What would I do with all that money? Pay off my mortgage and the mortgages of all my sisters and children. (Again, similar to The Goonies-- getting money to save the family home.) Buy my husband a truck. Get new carpet in my home, tile, and repaint the entire place. Rebuild the pond. Er, I mean pay someone to do it. Buy my son and his fiancee a new car to start their wedded life. Buy my daughter an economical but safe car so she could drive down every day to my house and go for hour-long walks with me.

Okay, I need to stop now. This list is building steam as I go. Do you think there's ever a time in one's life where we are so satisfied that we don't have even one tiny little desire to find the buried treasure?

W is for Walking (and not quitting)

As I see the end of the A to Z Challenge in sight, I balk every day about writing one more post and I just want to quit. Which is really stupid, because I've made it this far and it's not even that hard compared to all the hard things I have done and am still doing in my life.

Same with walking. I set a goal to walk 30 minutes a day. I'm finally getting around to starting, and have enjoyed it so much that most days I walk an hour or more. But do you know how easy it is to just quit? I keep making excuses for myself to either not step outside or to cut my walk short.

The weather. My mood. Fatigue. Too much else to do. My clothes. My shoes aren't right. Traffic bothers me. Too many people out. Dogs barking at me.Thirsty. Hungry. Tired. Bored. Need a kleenex.

Okay, I'll stop now, I'm sure nobody wants to hear the my list of excuses. As my mother-in-law used to say, "Excuses are like armpits. Everybody has them and they all stink." Another W word that inspires quitting is Writing. I make excuses for not doing that, too. Don't worry, I won't list them here, I've told you enough already about my inner dark side. 

I am not a quitter! I will keep walking! And writing! And finishing the A to Z Challenge! So there. W is for Walking and doing all that other stuff and NOT QUITTING.

V is for Very Tired of Blogging

Hey, after thirty days and two blogs, posting daily, who wouldn't be? Still, I have enjoyed the A to Z Challenge and don't regret participating double. On Coming Down the Mountain, I had a theme and scheduled my posts so it was fairly stress-free. On this one, I just came up with something for the word of the day. It's been fun doing daily seat of the pants posting here, but in May I'll go back to my once a week posts, more or less. And posting 2 or 3 times a week on my other blog.

Blogging should work for one's own purposes imho. If you try to fit into someone else's idea of what it should be, you'll get frustrated and give up. It should be about your interests, time frame, routine, and style. It has to be fun, yet still a responsible task that has a purpose.

So I'm not actually very tired of blogging. I joined the A to Z Challenge to help me define my two blogs, and I think I accomplished that personal goal. But can I just say I'll be very glad when this month is over?

U is for Uncle Forrest

Often in a large family, the younger children will become aunts and uncles while still kids themselves. Forrest, our youngest boy, became an uncle at age 10. As my grandchildren grew, they of course bonded with Forrest who was closest to their age and liked to play with them. He was their favorite, (altho they never really called him Uncle Forrest.)

One of my little grandsons called his other grandma Grandma and he called me "Forrest's mom." Or "the grandma who lives in Forrest's house."

T is for Thirty Day Blogfests are Too Long

Okay, I know I'm a host of the A to Z Challenge and all, but that's really my other persona-- old KarenG over at Coming Down the Mountain. This Karen cannot believe it's another day and I have to write yet another post. What the---? Thank heavens tomorrow is Sunday, and we get a break, and the next week is the last week of this thirty day challenge. Whew!! April 30 is also our last day in our home of 13 years-- (hey thirteen, another T word!)-- which means the packing and sorting and moving is done. So I am really really really looking forward to April 30.

S is for Sunshine

I can't even tell you how many women have told me their doctors said they had Vitamin D deficiency. I used to spend hours outdoors everyday, year round. Walking, working in the yard, being outside with the kids. Then I somehow got away from it and became this big hermit. I guess I had so much work to do inside I couldn't spare the time for the sun.

The sun powers our lives. People need to be outside in the sunshine. It's rejuvenating and healing for mind, soul and body. When I was young, I heard that all the time from grown-ups: "Get outside in the fresh air and sunshine. Go play outside. You haven't been outside yet today. You'll feel better when you go outside and get some sun." Sound familiar? Well, maybe not if you are under forty. Because somewhere along the way came this idea that the sun's rays are harmful and cause skin cancer. What the heck? Why is it that everything causes cancer? Do people even know what causes cancer anyway?

So people started avoiding the sun, covering up, staying in and now it's Vitamin D deficiency from not enough sunshine. Lately I've been going outdoors for long walks in the sun-- and I can't tell you how much better I feel. It's not just the exercise either because I can be busy in the house, actively running up and down stairs, vacuuming, doing whatever for 6 or 7 hours on my feet and not feel as good as I do after an hour in the sun.