RAIN!

The first rains of the season have come and gone.  The temperature dropped, the clouds rolled in and the sky opened up. In 3 days our rain gauge indicated 4.5 inches.
Everyone I here is complaining that it is "too early", "we hardly had a summer, much less fall", or simply "I hate Humboldt County".
 I, on the other hand, am ready for the rain and wind.  Bring it on! I love the rain, especially in the early season when the trees are dropping the redwood needles, and everything is washed clean.
The sun is taking longer to come up in the morning, and it is dark at 7:30 in the evening. Soon we will have fires every night, crackling the warmth into our bones,  keeping the damp cold at bay.
Gus and I busted a move and got some much needed pre-winter mowing done yesterday.  Imagine my smug satisfaction when I woke around 3:30am to the sound of pouring rain. I have a feeling we made it in the last little window of "dry weather". Gus decided to take advantage of the rain by burning our pile of blackberry and ivy slash from earlier this summer. Although the pile is now reduced to ashes, I am afraid my neighbors are all pissed at us from the smoke we created.  Oh well. The fact that we have cleaned the wood stove pipes, the gutters are all cleared, and the firewood is stacked leaves me feeling prepared for winter now.  I am ready to hibernate!

Motivation

I have caught the motivation bug, finally!!! After months of being down for the count from my shoulder impingement, and subsequent decompression surgery, I am ready getting back into the groove.
I am not sure what clicked this time, but I have been on the move for a few weeks, and feeling good.
My injury, and then the surgery left me feeling low and dumpy. It is a horrible place to be, and yet every time I tried to climb out of the doldrums...I slipped back in to lethargy.

About a month ago I decided that I wanted to try swimming again, even though I am not a swimmer ( fancy myself more of a runner). I was thinking that it would be a good way to strengthen my arms, and maybe gently rehab my shoulder. So, I rejoined our local gym, and off I went. Gus seemed glad to have our membership re-upped as well.

Swimming has been great! I swim 3 times a week for a half an hour. I don't stop any more, just alternate from breaststroke (my primary stroke), to forward crawl and side stroke.  I am not swimming to set any record, just to feel my body glide through the water, feel my arms work, my legs move. It is awesome. On the days I don't swim before work, I decided to run on the dreadmill....knowing full well the likelihood of doing it after work is slim.  I feel better during the day if I work out early, and for some reason my eating habits reflect this. Food and exercise go hand in hand for me. Fueling the body you are working is important. It feels better, I FEEL BETTER.  And slowly, all the wieght I gained pre and post surgery starts to melt away. Motivation.

I recently decided to try the Step class offered, in an effort to keep thing interesting, and prevent homeostasis. It is great fun, and even though I am woefully out of step a fair portion of the time, I like it. I am going to go twice a week. Maybe I will catch on!

Motivation...I love it. I have not figured out what clicks for me, but I am sure glad it finally did.