madameblogalot

My daughter can hardly wait for her brother to go to college. She is counting down the days until she has her own bathroom! She has plans for renovating and remodeling the bathroom they shared (that she never used-she always uses ours!) That is a whole story in itself. I was thinking about that project while I was scrubbing my kitchen sink the other day. And I started wondering if I should do the same with my sink.

When we did remodel our kitchen we got a white ceramic sink. It’s pretty. But it is hard to keep that way. It stains easily and it is filled with scratches. So I wonder if I should have went with a stainless steel Undermount Sink in the kitchen. I don’t know if that look would match the look of our kitchen, but I am guessing that all stainless steel Undermount Sinks pretty much match everything and are not as hard to keep looking nice.

I am reading a book which was required reading for my daughter’s upcoming history class. It is a strange enough revisionist-history story. Interesting. But I decided today that I don’t think time travel is possible. I used to think that it just might be if we could figure it all out. Or maybe I wanted it to be possible. I don’t know. But after reaching a certain point in the story today, I think that I have decided that it just is not possible. I may change my mind again. And we’ll see what I think after I reach the end of this story. But….as for now I think that with time being a continuum which may not be a flow per se but happening at the same time. Not necessarily alternate realities but something I read about C.S. Lewis thinking that God is “outside time” and sees all the things happening. So, if that is true (which I am certainly not sure of) then I am thinking that time travel is not possible. But I do find it interesting to think about.

It took me most of June and half of July to finish this book. *Spoiler Warning* It’s a Christmas gift for a certain someone who I am pretty sure will read this post!!

The Chronicles of Narnia and Philosophy: The Lion, The Witch and The Worldview: I bought this book on sale as a Christmas gift for my sister. The title really intrigued me and I knew she would love it. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read it as I was afraid it would spoil the magic of Narnia too much. But, after reading the table of contents I went ahead and decided to read it. While I do not agree with everything presented in the book, it was very interesting and thought provoking. It made me both sad, seeing how much I have failed my own kids in so many ways, and it also made me long for Narnia like I did when I was younger. It made me want to re-read the Chronicles, especially wishing I had time to read all seven books to my kids again before my son leaves. I will rate the book as a HIT.

A Case of Need: This is one of Michael Crichton’s early books. In fact, he originally wrote it under a pseudonym. I enjoyed the story, though maybe not as much as some others. I will still rate it a HIT.

Mother: While away at a small bed and breakfast, this was one of the few movies available. It was not that good of a movie and only served to reinforce the feeling of dysfunction in my own relationship with my son. I rate this one as a MISS.

Cold Mountain: Another of the few movie choices. I went into it thinking I would like it. It was a romance set in the Civil War. While I know that people were brutally slaughtered, I don’t like to see it graphically displayed or sensationalized. Nor do I like to see folk’s brutally lewd side either. Even though I know the things probably represent very human things that happened, I do not want to SEE it! Nor do I even want to SEE the sexual encounter that is to represent “true, pure love” in the story. There were some big names in the movie-Nicole Kidman, Jude Law, Renee Zellwegger, Donald Sutherland, a young Natalie Portman. Even so, I rate this one as a MISS.

The Source Code: This movie is tough to describe. My husband said it’s an Inception wannabe. It has elements of Groundhog Day and Knowing. It is an interesting concept-a man relives eight minutes of the immediate past in order to help change the future. The lead actors do a pretty good job. There is some rough language. Overall, I rate this one as a HIT.

The Great Train Robbery (novel): When I realized this was written by Michael Crichton I had to give it a try. This is based on a real event. I always love how Crichton does his homework on a book. This story was hard to follow at times because of the slang of the time which Crichton uses to make the story even more real. As always, I will give it a HIT.

Here is my second month’s time trails. I have only improved in the swim and that is if I did not miscount. I think my run last month was a bit faster because the little karate boys were all out doing their training run-they were motivation, like running after little rabbits. I know the bike was slower because it was a very windy day this month, but I finished it none-the-less. I do feel like I am getting stronger, even if my times don’t always reflect it. Now if I can just train my heart to work more efficiently during more exertion….

swim
16 laps
time-18:36

bike
15 miles
time-55:16
ahr-148

run
3.1 miles
time-29:08
ahr-156

In just a little under a month, my son will be leaving for college. It is a bittersweet time in our house. One good thing that is happening is that some reality is dawning and setting in for him. For example, this weekend he has cleaned out a living room shelf where he has kept “stuff” all school year. He cleaned out his room a bit more as well. He is finishing up little tasks, applied for a couple of on campus jobs, and even got his class schedule done! Today at lunch he told me how much he appreciates me waking him up for events like church and other things. But, now he wants me NOT to do that. He needs to learn on his own to start making sure his alarm is set and that he gets up to it, especially on weekends. I could only laugh and tell him that I think this is a great idea and a perfect time to start!

Do you ever walk into a room and forget why you came in there in the first place? I had seen it happen with my grandparents and parents but was not ready for it to happen to me (at such a young age!) It actually has been happening for years now, but it’s not altogether uncommon anymore! And I have even had moments where my brain is completely blank when thinking of a name or trying to remember some fact. I had never had that experience until recently. I know that I am getting to be middle aged, but I was not prepared for my brain to start slipping so soon!

And now more than ever, people are needing better brain fitness and longevity. It is not only frustrating in day to day living, but it is imperative now that people are working til older ages. As folks live longer and the economy cannot sustain their lifestyle, people are choosing to stay in the work force for more years. This makes brain acumen a must, especially as the older generation finds themselves competing for their jobs with ever younger colleagues.

There are numerous ways to keep your brain in shape. I have always heard that reading and doing puzzles like crosswords or sudoku are helpful. Getting together with others and talking about things, staying up on current events and learning something new can all be good ways to keep a brain in shape. I have even heard about some online programs that can help keep the brain fit by training cognitive skills. Looks like I better get to training!

I guess most parents feel a sense of failure sometimes. I found an interesting quote about it in a Michael Crichton novel, of all places. One of the characters, a psychiatrist, states that another character, a teen aged rebel “…presented her parents with their own neuroses. In a sense she acted out their fantasies.” (Crichton, A Case of Need, p266)

Also in regard to the young girl “There is a cycle here, a pattern….A rebellious child chooses the weak point of its parent-with unfailing, uncanny accuracy-and proceeds to exploit it. ” (Crichton, A Case of Need, p267)

I won’t pretend to completely understand this, but it really hit me when I read it. While it’s not very comforting, it gave me a lot to think about.

In using the heart rate monitor, I have to conduct some personal “time trials” to see my time over a given distance and the average heart rate during the exercise. After conducting my first series of time trials this week (two weeks ago by time of posting!), I can see that I have already gained some strength and speed over the past year or so. I am hopeful that in using the monitor, I will be able to continue to increase both my strength and speed in each event. It is helpful in having already watched my husband learn through using his. He is careful to stay within his heart rate zone, even if it means slowing down or even walking. Over the past six months his times have decreased while his strength has increased. He is able to monitor his heart rate and work more efficiently during each workout.

First time trial times:

800 meter (yard) swim (actually 720m/16 laps) 18:58

15 mile bike: 52:21; average heart rate=146

5k run: 28:09; AHR=160

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy: When I saw this book for $2 at Barnes and Noble I thought I’d pick it up for a Christmas present. And since my sister has read (and I think liked the book) I decided why not read it in the meantime. I have to say that while not quite a complete MISS (there is enough humor there) it is the weirdest book I’ve ever read!

Field of Vision: This made for TV family movie was one that was a little more on the “cheesy” side where everything turned out all right in the end. I understand the message and could enjoy a movie with no “bad” stuff in it, but it was not very realistic. And was also a platform to advertise products within the movie. At any rate, I will call this one neither a HIT nor a MISS.

June looks like a short reading month, but I’ve been working on one book most of the month. Almost done with it, so will post it for July….

I have never used a heart monitor in my training or exercise. I have been told that it is very helpful in monitoring your output, making sure you are doing the right amount of work as well as training your heart to do a maximum amount of work at a minimum output (heart rate.) So I just invested in my own heart monitor. I am hopeful that it will help me to continue to build my strength and stamina as I have seen other athletes able to build theirs simply by training with a heart rate monitor.