The Visible Woman...March 20, 2004

Saturday, March 20, 2004

A Journal from Austin, Texas.
A Project of LBFFP Stealth Publishing.

not according to plan

I had this vague plan. I would be really productive. I would work out early, get a haircut, get all the chores done before the evening's event.

Laziness is the primary reason, I guess, that my day wasn't all productive and that the house didn't get completely organized. I had the best intentions. And, actually, I did get some things done.

First off I was up early. I looked at the clock while I was making the bed (7:31). I had already let Chalow out and fed her and given her the half a pill she gets each day. I had emptied grounds from the coffee machine and made a cup. FFP had gotten the papers.

Then I started doing stuff on the computer like cleaning up e-mail and looking for information and finishing yesterday's journal. I even looked at some old entries and tried to clean them up.

Finally I got off to the club and finally I did a few things around here. But it just didn't go according to plan. Some things got done, though. w

Forrest is fresheing up the big pots for spring.

JUST TYPING

How much can you do?
In a day.
In an hour.
You must stack them up and do the thing.
Bit by bit by bit.

Food Diary.

breakfast

nothing

lunch

I ate leftovers...which was three pieces of turkey bacon, a piece of smoked turkey on a salad on spinach and the last of some lettuce and carrots and onions and some leftover tomatoes and cheese.
And...I had a pretty ripe banana and a little bit of leftover vegetarian barbeque.

snacks

twelve ounces of tomato juice
slice Am. Cheese

Some grated cheddar and tortilla chips

dinner

a bit of leftover meatloaf
some salmon and cream cheese and crackers
green onions
two slice Am. cheese

Today I
- ahem...ate the cheese diet today...one wonders why I only have 28.2% body fat!

Time flies....

Again, "I got up reasonably early but..." The AC guy called and said he'd come look at our main unit. FFP went outside to plant some things. I sort of goofed off at the computer.

I did finally get stuck into being productive. I did laundry, put away groceries, cleaned up from both our lunches, put the dishwasher on, went to the gym, sewed on buttons, sorted some more of my clothes out of boxes and organized a few more things in my office and made a trip to Central Market for some stuff to make a salad and some hors d'oeuvres for a little get together here tomorrow night.

I hustled around getting things moved around in the house if not exactly straightened up. Then it was time to go out and hear early Scottish ballads. One song, with a Robert Burns poem as words struck me...ain't it the truth..."thou golden time, O' youthful prime, Why comst thou not again!" Time flies, baby, and in only one direction. We really enjoyed this show with some fantastic voices, wonderful old instruments and a very intimate setting...a large living room with maybe forty or fifty seats.

The Winter Of Life

But lately seen in gladsome green,
The woods rejoic'd the day,
Thro' gentle showers, the laughing flowers
In double pride were gay:
But now our joys are fled
On winter blasts awa;
Yet maiden May, in rich array,
Again shall bring them a'.

But my white pow, nae kindly thowe
Shall melt the snaws of Age;
My trunk of eild, but buss or beild,
Sinks in Time's wintry rage.
Oh, Age has weary days,
And nights o' sleepless pain:
Thou golden time, o' Youthfu' prime,
Why comes thou not again!

- Robert Burns (1794)

Reading.

Newspapers. How else would I get to read a headline like "For More Afghan Women, Immolation is Escape." Hmmm.

The Life of Ernie Pyle by Lee G. Miller.

nothing

Thinking about Things.

Salt and pepper shakers..
I found a pair that look like Lego blocks.
I decided that the only way to keep such a thing is to fill them and use them.
I have at least ten other salt and pepper shakers.
Which is not as bad as it sounds.
I have a little set of miniature ones for dinner parties so that you can have a pair at every place or two.
Of course, everyone has those cardboard containers from the store of salt and pepper.
There was probably a time when that's all I had.
I rarely add either salt or pepper to food.
Maybe a bit of salt on a boiled egg.
I salt water when I boil it.
Add salt and pepper to a recipe.
Sprinkle a bit of pepper on my tomato juice.
There was a time when salt and pepper were precious commodities.
No they are universally available.
And most homes have multiple containers with these ubiquitous substances.

(3239)

Exercise

recumbent bike	20min
treadmill
ergonomic rower
water aerobics
chest, shoulder, triceps	x
leg, back, bicep
lower back
ab exercises
stretches
walking
tennis

Well..this was interesting. They are doing free body fat tests at the club. I don't know how accurate that stuff is and the last few weeks I've gained a few pounds on the scales, but it showed my body fat as 28.2% e which is just a little bit more than the max one would like at my age (27). I can do better, of course. The fitness director said he would have liked to have seen it before I started my exercise program. Oh, no. Not me.

Digestion is a little upset this morning. But it clears up.

It's a Tangled
Web we weave...these
days of our lives.

One year ago
"It's hard to believe I've had six months off. I took off five months when I was mid-twenties. But this is the longest time I've had off in my adult life."

Two years ago
"I have tomorrow off. I can just go to bed and think...I'll get it done tomorrow. I mustn't put too much pressure on myself, however, having a day off. It's only one day. I have to get downtown early for an event. However, what if I were retired? What if I had every day to think about my own life?"

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