Life Gets Away From Us All

Or, my favorite-You make plans and God laughs.

So, last week was a bit busy. What we thought was Mother having the vapors turned out to be Mother having a stroke. And Mother having a stroke meant hospital and then nursing home. Again. Only there is a bit more finality about it this time. It’s pretty apparent that she can’t come home again. She can’t walk, or use her right hand very well. She is having a hard time getting words out, physically and mentally. So, we hope for the best and that maybe she’ll come around a little. Although today, when we went, it seemed like she was talking to the residents but then not talking much to us. Hmmmmm. I tried not to annoy her.

But life goes on. I had another race. When I got there I found I am now 60, which makes me the same age as my oldest sister AND older than Dave. Although I commend them for realizing I had a birthday and turned another year older, I can’t live with the deception (not to mention the humiliation of it all) So I straightened them out. And, although I could have beat the crap out of the 60 year olds, I couldn’t have lived with myself cheating them out of their due. BUT-the damn 50 year olds are a fast bunch. I was third in their group-we were within 3 minutes of each other.

Going-

Coming-

Yep, still happy after 12.4 miles, and not a bad pace either. 8:56 min/miles. I LIKE it. The cooler weather agrees with my running. And my fast black and pink outfit.

Today I weeded out a few beds, and got mulch in bed one.

Pretty. The bed on the left is next week. I think the bushes are dead and are coming out. Then I think my flower garden will go in AND more mulch. That’s next week. Along with cleaning out the front beds. There are lots of beds around this house.

I posted it in FB, but I’ll post it again. The neighbor’s tree is blooming.

And it is green here.

I have baby flowers blooming

And the bulbs are coming along.

I can’t wait to see them in bloom.

And that’s really about it. Work goes well, Dave starts a new job tomorrow, and things just go along. Like they are supposed to I guess.

Because, no matter how hard we try, life gets away from us all.

 

We Have a Really Big Shoe…Really Big…

Does anyone remember Ed Sullivan-anyone?

Because that’s what I thought of when I posed for this picture at the Tacoma St. Paddy’s Day Race this weekend-

That’s me after about 6 hours of sleep and manhandling my mother. But more of that later***.

In the meantime-I ran a race Saturday AM.

And I finished.

It was a very nice course really. Except for that half mile up hill at the end. Then? Not so much.

And you know, when I am running the course, Dave is running amok taking pictures. Although this time he did ok.

I don’t really know this guy, but we are a timber town so…..

That guy has a big saw. Just sayin’

And the Big Shoe came in ahead of me-or did he-(she?)?

But this picture? I’d like to thank Dave for thinking of us girls.

Because nothing compares to a shirtless man in a kilt. Unless it’s two shirtless men in a kilt and some sort of overachiever in shorts trying to beat them. (Please remember that you can click on pictures to make them bigger-come on, you know you want to)

And there was a band there too, at Paddy Coyne’s at the finish line

Kinda fun.

So I finished this race, as I finished a race a couple of weeks ago. But, do you see any problem with the results?

Sarah Melde    54   M    M 50-54    151    5/17    84   54:55    

Um, yeah, not a MALE.

Jeesh. And this last month

         Age group: 55 - 59
 1    46 Sarah Melde 59 1:22:19  8:50 

I was 53 on that date. Just sayin’. But I did get first place in that age group….

I have been running races for 19 years and never have I had any of this happen, and within 2 months. Not sure, but think at this rate I could win a big one soon. In any division: male, female, whatev. Who knew?

I had my hair cut last month and I think, but not sure, that I was trying to take a picture of that because I found this on my phone-

Um, scared me a little. but see how straight my hair is? My bangs were good too before this picture and what the hell? It startled me so much I had to post it on my blog. Which seems a little counterintuitive as I usually want flattering picures. Or something.

I look happy though.

Made it through week two of new job. I love new job but it’s full of anxiety because I don’t know everything after two weeks.

All of my coworkers/supervisors are like-you are doing great. They are so supportive. I think I should know everything.

***So, Friday was a good day, being Friday and having plans for the weekend. You know how that is. Nina and I had big belated birthday plans because, as you know, we have known each other since we were 10 and our birthday is on the same day, same year.

 

Blurry is our life.

But we didn’t do that. Because Mother, aka Gramma, went to the ER on Friday. We spent until about 9 PM there, and then I spent the night getting her up and down, and then Saturday  all day, with my sister Martha, dealing with her right sided weakness, inability to walk, eat,  or do much of anything for herself. It’s hard when you are listing to starboard. I spent the night last night getting her up and down and realized by this AM (Sunday, St Patrick’s Day) that things were not going to improve, and that my mother can no longer live at home. So, off to the ER again, and she’s in the hospital now. I have to say something for the spirit of both sides of my family-no matter what the problem, we never lose our appetite. As Martha said today when Mother was eating her lunch in the ER bed-“she may be sick, but that girl likes her groceries”.

So, I sort of feel like I am in some sort of weird kind of world here-I am a 59 year old male (according to race officials-I still think of myself as a 54 year old female-I hope) trying to deal with my mother moving out of her house for good. And Grampa (who, come to find out hasn’t had a decent nights sleep in about a month because of mother) dealing with that after 60+ years of marriage.

So, if you see normal life out there-tell it I want it back.

 

Birthday Post-and a shocking lack of imagination……(It even bored me a little)

The blog post that is, not my adventures.

Last week was my birthday. And I have the bad pictures to prove it.

We celebrated weekend before last, so technically it wasn’t quite my birthday yet. But close enough. We actually started celebrating Friday PM because that was the last day of my old job (aka hell). And Martha and I went to Sew Expo (S’expo, as she likes to write it).

And I didn’t take one picture of it. But it was a pretty huge fabric and needle arts Expo. Oh yes it was.

Saturday morning we got up and did something, but for the life of us we can’t remember what. We know we got pizza and went to Safeway, but before that it’s a blur. I think the library was in there somewhere.

Anyway, this is how it looked when we got home.

Yeah, I don’t know what he’s watching either..

Or what about this-Dave and his little friend-

But I think I was supposed to post this one-(Dave gets a little cranky when I only post the crazy ones)

After this, we made pizza and had delicious cake. It really was delicious.

I think the photographer is getting shaky

I got some good presents too

Now, this one is a shawl that my sister knit. I have two other pictures of me spreading the shawl out for viewing. However, my photographer was a bit unsteady and they were all blurry. So, Here’s this one. Best part-Dave in the window.

I got a new tablet and a lighted mirror so I can see the wrinkles close up. I had a very happy birthday. But we really fell down on the pictures. Dang. I think it may be because Laura, my blog muse, is not around to make me be the best that I can be. Or at least take better pictures. Or something.

Sunday was a day to be outside.

I made the mistake to let the cats out and they were all bad

Yeltsie went under these chairs, but Jack went over the top and escaped, and when I went to catch him he yelled at me like I was killing him which was a wee bit embarrassing.

But before he went over the wall, he helped Dave garden.

 

Trixie enjoyed it immensely

We took dinner to the gramma’s in the afternoon and took a walk around the club-mainly to see if we could spy on the old house, but we couldn’t get close enough to the back.

Monday I started my new job. Again. Jeesh. I am done starting new jobs so this is the last new job I am starting. Does that make any sense at all?

I have a window for now-

And if I look far enough around I can see a tree-

Unfortunately we are moving at the end of the month and I will lose my window. And that will make me a little sad.

And Thursday was the evening run-at the Irish bar Paddy Coyne’s, where next Saturday I’ll be running a 10K.

I think we needed a flash…

 

Ah ha. And that’s the end of last week. We took Happy to the vet on Saturday and out to dinner with the grammas. Happy was ok and still weighs about 18 pounds.

Sunday the girls came over and my friend Julie gave me another shawl. Yes. A purpley one to go with my blue one.

This picture is positively frightening. If I had more time I’d be photo shopping the hell out of that. But Julie’s shawl looks beautiful doesn’t it?

So now-onto week two of new job and everything else.

Happy Daylight Savings Time to all.