The Only Fool in Sight

OK this is a test. If there is a hurricane approaching your area you should:

1. Buy eggs, bread, milk, OJ and plan to make french toast.
2. Buy some batteries that actually fit your transistor radio and flashlight, if you can find them.
3. Do your laundry, vacuum, and cook all your meat in case you lose power (unless you are looking for another excuse not to cook and clean).
4. Give yourself a pedicure.
5. Stock up on essentials like white wine.
6. All of the above.

Correct! The answer is 6 - All of the above!

Irene arrived last night but I still made it to the Y when it opened this morning - hydroplaning and speeding around the downed tree on Winding Brook Road - through the wind and driving rain - sure I wasn't going to get there in time to claim a spin bike. SURPRISE. On the drive over I was the only fool in sight, save for a few emergency vehicles. There were only three cars when I arrived in the parking lot at 6:59. Duh.

I got my hour on the bike with Tony but a half hour later the power started flickering in and out so they kicked everyone (count: 7) out and closed the building down. All I wanted to do was mat work and I didn't want to go home where we had (and still have) power, and I still haven't done any cleaning. But when I left I wished the newbie at the front desk a good day. That may sound nice but it was dripping with sarcasm, trust me. I drove through 3 intersections with no traffic lights but I didn't slow down. I'm sure you figured that already.

So I'm stuck at home, I think, for the rest of the day, even though they've reopened the road (finally). Thank goodness for Chardonnay.

I played Angry Birds and Solitaire on my new phone, updated my shuffle and had a shower, ate and played stringy dingy with the cat and watched TWC and now I'm blogging the damn Y. Thunder is rumbling, it's still pouring rain and windy. If I'm lucky there's still a chance I won't have to run the dishwasher.

Yak Yak Yak

We share stories of our collective vacations because most of us can't afford to go anywhere unless it's online and on a student budget. After a period of noticeable absence, friends return to their routine at the Y with tans, wounds, an extra 5 pounds, or all of the above. Where have you been? Tell me all about it (in 2 minutes or less please)!

I am VERY protective of my workout time because I haven't yet figured out that my friends are more important than thin thighs. So, you go away someplace COOL like Alaska and you come back just aching for a solid routine at the gym and your time gets eaten up by CONVERSATION. I have no idea why I can't chill. However, last week Peanut and I had a great chat in the parking lot when we should have been rushing off somewhere with many important tasks to perform and just enjoyed a beautiful cool morning break together as "pals". Peanut is wonderful. If I ever grow up I'm going to be just like her.

The weather has been unpredictable and I miss the early morning light. I went running twice last week before the sun came up and it was weird not being able to see my feet, or the road, or sticks and debris, or dead skunks. I like the cooler weather but the shorter days are upon us so it's time to adjust my brain and rethink the workout. I had a great bike ride on Sunday and I admit that starting out at 7:30 instead of 5:00 was kinda nice. However, more cars suck.

The Y has been quieter than usual the past week or so and I'm loving it. The pool and fitness center are pretty empty and I can do my thing without having to worry about others. Please go on vacation or just go away if you can. Good for the soul and great for those of us left behind. And if you've been someplace cool or have traveled please do tell, because after my visit to AK I'm broke so I'd appreciate sharing stories. XXX

My Trip to Alaska

I showed up clean in Anchorage, makeupped, tank topped and smelling of deoderant. I returned to NY exactly the opposite. It was good.

Alaska is no candy ass place. A city girl like me has to adjust to the hippie thing, the wet cold windy weather thing, the moose and bear and lynx thing, the mosquitos the size of bats thing and the swarms of biting flies and smell o' repellent thing, the rutted dirt road thing, the hunting and fishing thing, and the breathtaking view thing. I can't say what took the most effort to embrace but I think it was the idea that if I decided to go for a run in the morning I needed to take bear spray with me. As you might have guessed I did not run, but we did do some fantastic backcountry hiking and saw lots of bear shit.

We saw lots of wildlife but no bears. Speaking of wildlife - the hippies all wear mismatched oversized clothes and boots and hats and jackets all the time and have long hair and beards (so do the girls) and don't bathe BECAUSE IT'S PRACTICAL! Oh get off it. That's like saying we wear high heels in the city BECAUSE IT'S PRACTICAL. It's ALL about fashion, even in the bush - trust me. One day it was 70 degrees and the girls still wore their hats. But maybe that's because they all have lice.

I ate huckleberries and watermelon berries in the woods, unwashed, without packaging. I ate freshly picked oysters. I drank good local beers. We biked and hiked and drove about and toured and had a great time. All this despite the runs from the oysters and berries and beer, the fall off my bike and the resulting bad cut on my leg, and having my shoulder bag stolen from the car by bad people who broke the window and damaged the vehicle to get at it (estimated damage: $2400). There was nothing in the bag of real value if you are in Alaska: tweezers (which I quickly replaced), a few ditties including the perfume I had come to rely on to repel smells (mine and others)(also quickly replaced), tissues (which can be VERY useful in the bush, at least for some of us), gum (which can help cover the stink of beer and fish) and a comb (apparently not needed in Alaska). So I guess I got lucky, except for the guilt trip. What idiot city girl leaves a shoulder bag in a car, in plain sight???

I'm home trying to get my brother's dog's hair off everything. The weather is warm. I'm back at the Y where I belong. It is all good.