Since my running is very limited right now, I don’t have a lot to write about my workouts. Oh, sure, I could write about my elliptical training.
Last week, I ran six days on the elliptical for a total of 32.33 miles.
That’s a pretty short post.
I could tell you I am fairly happy with my plank challenge progress. I can now hold a forearm plank for 4 minutes 30 seconds.
Still pretty short.
Instead of discussing my very limited fitness activities in this post, I am going to, um, appropriate my blogging friend Cora’s idea and write about a few “One Good Thing“s.
One Good Graphic
Thank you to Christine from the blog Poetry for Healing.
This is my attitude when I am grocery shopping. I live in the same town in which I was a high school teacher for 30 years. If I taught 150 kids each year, that’s 4500 former students in total. Add in the parents of former students, former colleagues, and other assorted random acquaintances, and I know a lot of people in this town. And they all seem to go to the same grocery store as me.
Grocery shopping is my least favorite chore. I go in armed with a list to expedite my excursion. I am a fairly social person, but not in a grocery store. There, I just keep my head down and plow through. This graphic sums up how I feel in the grocery store.
One Good Running Quote – Inspirational
How many mornings have I deliberated with myself about whether I wanted to go for a run or not? I can honestly say I can never remember a time when I regretted going. There were many times when I regretted not going, in fact, almost every time I opted not to run, I later regretted it.
Running has changed my life in so many ways, all of them for the better. It has made me stronger, given me more self-confidence, allowed me to feel calm and at peace, increased my patience, taught me that I can do hard things if I persevere…should I keep going? The best thing about running is the people it has brought into my life, both in person and online (Dear Reader). It has, without a doubt, changed my life, and for this, I am forever grateful.
One (OK, Two) Good Running Quote(s) – Funny
This Jimmy Fallon quote says a lot about us marathoners. We do tend to be pretty full of ourselves, don’t we? We find smooth, insidious ways to work our recent running exploits into any conversation.
My Friend: “I got fired from my job.”
Me: “I’m so sorry. Did I tell you I just ran a marathon?”
I use this one alllllll the time!
This quote makes me think about all the moments I fritter away doing something mindless like scrubbing the kitchen floor on my hands and knees. At the end of my life will it really matter that you could eat off my kitchen floor? Is this really the best use of my precious and finite amount of time on this earth?
The housework will still be there when I get back from a run. Unless, of course, Bill does it while I am running (even better!)
One Good Book
I am reading “White Picket Fences” by Amy Julia Becker. I know this book was recommended to me by a blogger I read, but, for the life of me I can’t remember whom! If you recommended this book and are reading this, please say something in the comment section. It is a great book!
This book about privilege is told with a gentle storyteller’s voice. Amy Julia tells stories about growing up in a small town in the American South. She discusses her family, her experiences, and how she came to examine her views on race, disabilities, and poverty.
She writes about an incident when Caroline, her African-American caregiver when she was a little girl, called her father years after the family moved away from their North Carolina home and asked him if he would send her money to buy glasses.
Her father agreed, then asked why. Caroline told him that she wanted to learn how to read. Her mother had pulled her out of school when she was six because she thought it was not safe, so she had never learned when she was a child.
“At first I heard that story as beautiful, a testimony to Caroline’s perseverance and creativity, to my father’s generosity, to the years of trust and respect built up between them. But then it struck me, like a blow to my windpipe. How many years had that longing gone unfulfilled? And how many of those years were spent with me nearby, curled up in a chair with a book?”
In this book, Amy Julia Becker tenderly urges you to think about perceptions you have of those who are different from you, always a worthwhile topic to consider.
Tell, me what is One Good Thing you have come across lately?
I am linking up with Fairytales and Fitness for Friday 5, Holly from HoHo Runs and Wendy from Taking the Long Way Home for their Weekly Wrap, Running on Happy, Crazy Running Girl, and Coach Debbie Runs for the Coaches’ Corner, and The Blended Blog for Friday Loves.
Such a great post to focus on all the positive. I’ve had a tough week and it’s hard to look at the bright side. But one really good thing is all the sunshine we’ve had this week! We don’t get much sun here in the winter and it’s been such a treat!
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Wendy, sorry to hear you’ve had a tough week. The weekend is almost here (or do you work on the weekends?) Sunshine always brightens my mood. Way to focus on the positive! 🙂
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I’m from a small town as well, grocery shopping is always a chore to escape conversations. Lol
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Yes! The secret is keeping your head down and your eyes on the ground! 😀
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One good thing about this week??
I didn’t run a marathon!! 😉
I like the oh-so-subtle way you would sneak a marathon into the conversation with your friend who lost their job. 😉
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Haha! Touche! You NOT running a marathon was the highlight of your week? 😀
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( I think it is the highlight of many people’s week!!) 😉 🙂
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What? That’s just crazy! 🙂
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Hahahahahahaah! 😀 ( maniacal laughter)
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Great quotes and I love your honesty about grocery shopping excursions in a small town. I have a friend who was a school teacher and she says the same things about shopping! One good thing this week – reading your blog, and playing Scrabble for fun. Enjoy your day! Your post brought a smile to mine!
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Thank you, Shelley! Glad you enjoyed the post. Playing Scrabble sounds like fun. Except when I play with my kids. We always wind up in “competition mode”! 🙂
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Great job! That is an impressive time for holding a plank.
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Thank you! I am now shooting for 5 minutes (but stuck at 4 1/2).
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I love the idea of finding one good thing to focus on when everything else feels crappy! Fabulous progress on the planking that is a long time. The elliptical is a great choice. Plan on using mine today too. Have a great weekend
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The elliptical is not my favorite, but I am thankful I can do it without pain. One good thing to focus on if everything else is crappy is a great idea. I’ll have to remember that when my day is tanking.
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Oh, those quotes and jokes really make me laugh. I have never run a marathon (you would have heard about it!), but I did run a 15K once, and it’s surprising how many times that can come up in a conversation. haha. I’ve added White Picket Fences to my to-read list.
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Haha! 15k is one of my absolute favorite distances – not too far and not too short. Glad you thought White Picket Fences is worth the read. I finished it and thought it was very good.
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Your plank time is super impressive! I’m still trying to build myself up to 2 minutes, lol
I’m glad that you’ve been able to use the elliptical while your hip is healing.
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Thank you. I do have breakthrough days when I feel like I can hold a plank for a longer time. I use those days to ratchet up the time. I am trying for 5 minutes now but stuck on 4 1/2. I started at 30 seconds! 🙂
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Well I may not be the first to tell you its hard to believe you have been teaching for 30 years but really? Did you start when you were 12? And now after 30 years on your feet you still run. Amazing.
One Good thing quote – heard it yesterday and you know I am strong on being kind.
“You don’t know the hurt people carry deep inside so always be kind.”
Have a good day
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Haha! Oh, thank you, Anita! I taught for one year, took 7 years off when my kids were little, then taught 30 more.
Love the kindness quote. I do know you are all about kindness. Thank you for sharing!
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Another tough week here. Gizmo took a sharp, unexpected turn for the worse, but he’s responding to treatment. So there’s that. I don’t know how much time he has left, but he is still at least *sometimes* laying on my lap — unlike before, when he annoyingly wanted to always be on my lap.
Don’t even think about eating off my floors, though. 🙂 Unless I’ve just cleaned them — the kitchen floor, anyway, because it’s small and I do do it by hand. 🙂
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Oh, no! Poor Gizmo. I remember feeling annoyed when our last cat always wanted to lie on my lap. Now I feel guilty for not allowing him to do it more often. He was a sweet cat and so affectionate. They do become part of the family, don’t they? Sending good wishes to Gizmo!
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Thanks! He’s hanging in there, but still not doing great (although not terrible, either). I’m hoping the holistic vet can work some magic next week, but the regular vet didn’t really have much to offer.
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I will keep my fingers crossed for you with the holistic vet. Keep hanging in there, Gizmo!
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Thank you. ❤
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I hear you about grocery shopping. At one point I was a teacher in the small Southern California town where I lived at the time, and was also mayor of that town. Going to the store was like running a gauntlet; I half-seriously considered going in disguise.
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Wow! You wore a lot of hats. I have considered going in disguise too, then thought better of it. All of the disguises I came up with seemed ridiculous.
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I never want to live in the district I teach in. I love my anonymity! Although I do see students from time to time, but it is the exception, not the rule!
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Yes, that’s a good rule. We moved here and I got my teaching job at the same time. I never considered privacy issues.
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Wow, a 4 1/2 minute plank? I’m impressed! I just restarted a plank challenge and a minute it still a bit rough. LOL! Love the positive quotes you posted.
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It’s just like running. I started with 30 seconds, and in the beginning, I could barely do it. I just kept on going! 🙂 Thank you!
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Wow! Seriously impressed you can hold a plank for that long Laurie, l only have to pick up a plank and usually cut myself — no, on a serious note. The last plank l did was in 2016 for a minute and then ruptured my stomach, so more planking for me!
By the way, l have tagged you for a bit of Q&A
https://aguycalledbloke.blog/2018/12/14/q-and-a-tag-come-chat-with-me/
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Oh, no! I would not plank either if I were you. I will take a look at the questions. Thank you, Rory!
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Pleasure Laurie – keep well 🙂
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I am not thrilled with those days when out shopping or doing something either. Some days you just want to do your errand and go home!
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Every day I go grocery shopping is that day for me! 🙂
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That running/house cleaning quote is top notch! I need to keep that in mind anytime I feel guilty for choosing a workout over time spent cleaning.
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I love it. Maybe I will have it made into a poster and put it up in my kitchen! 🙂
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Laurie – I used to be very dedicated to inside and outside the house … walking changed a lot of that, blogging changed even more of that mindset. My good friend Ilene (who is still on the mend and feeling fine thanks to your prayers and good vibes) had two bouts of cancer back about 6 or 7 years ago. When I hedged about doing something pleasurable since I had inside and outside chores, she said “always remember, they will keep” … my good friend and neighbor Marge, who passed away from COPD in August 2017 had a similar mindset. “Live for the moment” she told me, then added “I would give anything to go with you on your walks, enjoy nature as you see it and now am confined to one room, tethered to my oxygen machine.” I now indulge myself more and am not neat-as-a-pin as to chores. I am not proud of my house … I must admit. You live and learn as you go along. How many more days until Bill is finished with work – I know you said he would not be working until the end of the year?
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Yes, I agree with your friends Ilene and Marge. Life is too short to worry about housework. I do just enough cleaning so that I don’t feel too bad if someone comes over to the house. So glad to hear that Ilene is on the mend. My dear MIL passed away from COPD 3 years ago. She too was tethered to an oxygen machine at the end, and I know she would have done anything just to get outside and sit with her cat on the screened in porch once more and watch the birds.
We do learn as we go along, don’t we? Sometimes I wonder why it takes so long for me to learn some very important lessons! Bill has 4 more work days. He is taking this Wednesday off since we must pick up our son and his wife at the airport very late Tuesday night. Their flight gets into Philly at 10:30 and we live about 90 minutes away. This Friday is his last day!
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COPD sure robbed your MIL and Marge of the best years of their lives Laurie. Marge, like your mother-in-law, loved birds and nature and she had hummer feeders at her front room window and watched them for hours; on the deck she would watch the other birds access her feeders – in the end she was too weak to even go out through the door wall in the kitchen to the deck. She was a woman who was full of life and constantly on the go until around 2010 when the COPD really begun affecting her. I watched her go from an inhaler, to portable oxygen to the big oxygen machine tank … she was hospitalized at least eight or more times per year the last few years.
My mother was very big on cleaning – I finally convinced her that we did not have to have Spring and Fall cleaning every year. There was too much to do outside in the Spring so Fall would have to suffice. And I was always busy with Robb, often bringing home work. I do feel like she is looking down and disapproving, but … with walking, work and blogging, I must admit, cleaning the house is on the back burner. I really have to do a better job keeping up, but I feel if it is beautiful outside, I am going out and will hunker down in bad weather and get things done. It turned out to be beautiful today and I spent about 3 1/2 hours at Council Point Park. I saw Parker and was happy to see him – I had worried about him. It was 43 degrees and sunny. I intended to do a post tonight but I had internet issues this morning and am quite behind here. I must try and catch up here first. There will always be time to write a post; better to catch up on Reader. It will be better after Wednesday – my boss leaves for Mexico for vacation for 8 days.
I don’t have anyone coming to the house and perhaps if I did, I’d be a little more attentive. I’ve not seen my boss Robb since the Fall of 2012 and I met him out front as he came to drop off some work and I asked him to bring something to kill a monster spider that lived behind my mailbox – so I met him out front. No one has been in my house since Marge and I brought Buddy home from the pet shop in December of 2010. We had a bitter cold spell and had a blizzard and she wanted me to get another bird before Christmas so she drove down, came in and we got Buddy and she went back and warmed up the car and then held the door for me so I could run from the car with him in little box and swaddled in blankets under my coat.
How exciting to be done with work this Friday after 40 years – it will take a few days to unwind and realize work is in the rear-view mirror and how nice to spend the time with your son and his wife without needing to be at work.
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My MIL went through the same sequence with COPD that your friend Marge did. It was really sad to watch.
My mom was a big believer in cleaning too. When I was a kid, I had to help her clean the entire house, top to bottom, every Friday. That included everything – wiping down the woodwork, cabinets, floors, dusting, vacuuming, bathrooms, etc. She had her schedule and was meticulous.
Glad that you saw Parker. I would worry, too if I didn’t see him for a few days. I wonder what a squirrel’s lifespan is in the wild.
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Marge was constantly on the go and never home after her husband died. She was the hostess in The Boston Tea Room, which was a small tea room that had psychics and “readers” … she worked there for decades and loved it. She had to stop working there because the scents from all the candles and other scented items that they sold bothered her lungs and that was seven years before she died. So, she liked the group of people she worked with, so met them for breakfast two or three times a week, rain or shine, ice or snow, until she could no longer go out on her own. One time she went to the River to watch the freighters and seagulls – it was her favorite place to go. Her portable oxygen machine had a problem, and I believe it was the batteries – she had extra batteries in the glove box (middle of Summer, batteries were no good). Luckily, she called her son and he brought fresh batteries and they installed them. She was very weak, but fairly close to the hospital where they spent so many weeks of her life, but she would not have had the energy to drive. She never went to the River again – the whole incident scared her immensely.
Your mom was even more rigorous of a housekeeper than my mom. It took me years to convince my mom that it was okay to go to bed with a rinsed-off plate or rinsed-out cup stacked neatly in the sink overnight. My grandmother was meticulous about her house too – my mother would really “tsk, tsk” right now.
I am happy I saw Parker too and I worry about him running out into the busy street. Now, the little squirrel that has been hanging around has not come for his peanuts that have been sitting on the porch for two days – I’m not sure what’s up with that either. I am a worrier I guess.
I am very far behind in Reader and been busy at work. My boss leaves for Mexico on Thursday morning – I am hopeful no emergencies come in today or tomorrow. We filed an appeal brief on August 24th and await a decision – I just hope it does not arrive before he leaves. The last 18 months, every time he went on vacation, we had some emergency or big project going on. My boss cannot write a paragraph without revising it 10 times and the appeal brief took a month and two of his vacations to get through. I really need a few days off, besides the four-day weekend coming up, just to catch up with everything and try to write a few posts as well.
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Hoping you get your much-needed time off! A good long time!!!
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Thanks, me too Laurie – I really need some “me” time … I only work part time (technically paid for four hours, but I work something more like six hours) but I don’t have vacation time. It is fine for me as to my getting rid of the commute and working from home … that I am happy for, but we had a two-year period where we had hardly any work and Robb was going to shut down the office the end of 2016 and then we got a large matter to work on and been swamped every since. That two-year period he spent more time out of the office than in it and gone away to the cottage almost every weekend … cottage is his wife’s family cottage but she is the only one who uses it and it is in Georgian Bay Canada. It was nice for me as I got some time to get things done besides always using a weekend. I do try to preserve my weekends for more enjoyable things now, especially since I started walking, and more so since blogging, taking pictures, etc. One more day to hopefully have no client issues … end of year, lots of people get terminated, and often a last-minute deal.
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Oh, I hate to think of people getting terminated at this time of year. It happened to my hubby once at Christmas time. I had just had our youngest son (his birthday is Dec. 4) and wasn’t working. It was such a stressful time. Now, he has only 2 more days to work until he retires!
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Yes, it is a horrible time of year to do something like that and it happens often with our clients because they usually close for the period of time between Christmas and New Year’s so Friday will be the last day of work for many of our clients – they want to do this “dirty work” and be done to go off and enjoy their holiday. My boss is a management labor attorney so it never fails, some one wants help, or a severance agreement done at the last minute. I felt sorry for all the GM workers that had the news of the plant closing so close to Christmas – now GM says “there are not as many as you originally thought and we’ll make provisions for them” … yes, they will make provisions, sending some to the plant in Tennessee, others to parts in Michigan that are too far for a daily commute. How exciting for Bill though- you will pick up your son (so late at night) and the rest of the week will fly by. Is there any special dinner for Bill at work to celebrate or are you doing something at the house since your son and his family will be there?
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Bill worked his last day yesterday. His firm had a little party for him Thursday night, which our whole family attended along with his co-workers. Last night 2 of our sons and I took him out for dinner and next Thursday, we are having a little surprise party for him. His last day was bittersweet. He has been looking forward to retirement for a long time, but he will miss seeing his co-workers, some of whom he has worked with for over 30 years.
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That’s nice there were some celebrations to accompany Bill’s last day Laurie. I can understand his last day being bittersweet. When my boss and I left the law firm to start a new firm, I cried on the last day and I’d only been there 10 years, Robb 12. We only left because of the merger, which was more like an acquisition. They wanted to raise his billing rates an exorbitant amount and we would have lost all our clients. Robb and I left on good terms and were told if we changed our minds, we could come back – unfortunately, the acquiring firm dropped our former firm like a hot potato not even two years later after we departed and they shuttered the firm for good with just two weeks’ notice to all which was given in mid-December. I went around saying goodbye to the staff and partners, tears rolling down my face. I’ll bet Bill will get together with some former co-workers from this group sometime down the road, once your next few months of vacation and visiting relatives are under your belt … he’ll have a lot of nice stories to tell.
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It’s really a good thing you and your boss left the firm when you did! You would have been out of work too! I think you are right – Bill will keep in touch with some people from his firm. They have already invited us to their holiday party, which they hold in January, and some of the guys have told him they want to play golf with him this spring.
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Yes, it was Laurie. Robb and I were surprised. This law firm, based in Virginia, was so big and their billing rates were outrageous – the top partners billed for $400.00 an hour. Everything about them was ostentatious for lack of a better description – there was nothing wrong with our office, yet they wanted it totally remodeled, new furniture, new computers – then they announced they were closing the Detroit branch two weeks before it happened (12/31/04) and no severance, etc. – attorneys and staff were sent scrambling to the unemployment line. The reason was the Detroit office was no longer profitable – bet they were mad they invested all the money in the remodeling. I kept in touch with some of the staff after I left … I felt a little alone because it was just Robb and me and he always said that a good labor lawyer spends more time away from the office than in it. We were no longer right in the downtown business district so getting together at lunch with former co-workers was not an option. After our former firm closed, I never saw those co-workers again … just an occasional e-mail or we exchange Christmas cards. Bill can still keep up with the goings on and retirement is different than leaving for another position anyway – it is not like he jumped ship, so I think the door is always open to keep up friendships.
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Yay for the planking!!!! I can relate to the grocery shopping. UGH. Not my favorite activity. I’m also quite social, but not when I’m in a hurry to get outta the store.
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Not my favorite either! I always seem to run into at least one person I know no matter what time I go shopping! 🙂
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I totally love the cleaning one, Ill admit I have basically passed of the grocery shopping to my husband. He’s a lot more picky than me so it really works for both of us. Happy running!
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Oh, if only hubs would do the shopping. He comes with me and pushes the cart. He knows he should make “lets go” noises if I can’t get away from a conversation. We’re a good team! 🙂
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Love all those quotes! When I’m on task I don’t want to be bothered! That book sounds interesting too.
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Thank you! The book is wonderful. I just finished it yesterday. Well worth a read!
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What a great idea for a post. I absolutely agree re: hi, but please no follow up chat. Sometimes hi is just hi.
I do almost all my shopping on Peapod now so I don’t have to people
Congrats on the plank progress. Plankgress
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Yes. I have to keep my head down and keep moving or I would never get out of the grocery store! 🙂 Plankgress….I like it, but spell check doesn’t! 🙂
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Great post of Good Things. I do not enjoy grocery store shopping either, although I rarely run into anyone I know. I just don’t like it. 😉 Over the years, I’ve become much less of a housekeeper. There is so much fun adventure awaiting…why would I choose to clean? Thanks for linking!
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Oh, yes! Adventure over housekeeping is always a good choice! Thank you for the chance to share.
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I love the first quote! I am a friendly but not so social person. I will always say hi but that’s about all I want to commit to. I have also heard that marathon quote used about vegans. Pretty true both ways.
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Good point – it is true both ways! 🙂
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I was raised that you NEVER do anything fun until the chores are done and growing up on a farm, the chores never seemed to get done. Don’t get me wrong, I had a fabulous childhood, but work always came first. Anyway, it’s hard, but I’ve learned to separate the two and enjoy this wonderful life even if I might have to stay up later to do a few things because I took advantage of the great weather and went for a run when I should have been doing a boring chore. 😉
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I always envied my friends who grew up on farms. That must have made for a wonderful childhood. My mom was a pretty meticulous housekeeper and gardener. I can remember helping her as a kid and wishing I could do something fun instead. Now that I get to make my own rules, I sometimes skip right to the fun! 🙂
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Great quotes and thanks for the book recommendation. It sounds really interesting and I love a story that also opens my eyes.
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I have since finished the book. I really liked it (although I don’t agree at all with her portrayal of science). It did make me think.
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