Audio Evolution - Born From Necessity

My alarm was set for 4:00 am, but I awakened at 3:15 am and decided, "What the heck, I might as well get up now." So I was a good girl and got up, I also decided to be good and see if I could manage a quick one mile walk on the treadmill. I haven't worked on the treadmill since before I broke my ankle/foot on May 1st, so it's been a while. But, I was able to get my running shoe onto my broken foot without trouble, and hit the treadmill walking. 

There is nothing fabulous about a treadmill, but it's a good piece
of equipment to use and we've owned one for more than twenty
years. DH works out on it regularly during the winter, and I use
it when I can't get to the gym or the pool. I want to use the
treadmill 3X/week and the Barre 3X/week, that'll get me back
to my normal 6-days-a-week exercise schedule. 

The mile went by quickly while listening to an audio book. Do many of you listen to audio books? I first started listening to them while recovering from abdominal surgery almost twenty years ago. I was on this same treadmill at the time, walking very slowly, but trying to build up muscle strength again to get to the point where I could go back to work. Listening devices were much bulkier and more difficult to use at that time, but I used a CD player somewhat successfully. 

I suspect many of my readers had one of these - the
original iPod player. Although it took me a
little to nail the operational controls, I loved
the fact that it didn't skip while using it for
exercise. It's still the only Apple product
line I love. 

After frustration with CD's and their skipping issues during bouncing during a fast walk or run, I purchased an iPod - one of the original ones. I think I still have it in a drawer somewhere. That first iPod was the only Apple device I ever truly loved (Apple and I have a love/hate relationship - I don't play well with Apple). I downsized my iPods whenever I had the funds to afford a new one, and currently still use three different ones - two waterproof, one not. My waterproof iPods are designed to swim with me. Well, I'm not in the water now, but I'm still using them for my morning workouts - one for music, the other for audiobooks. 

There were several iterations between what I currently have
and the original iPod. I owned/still have most of them. The
final ones I use are from the Shuffle line - similar to this.
Mine happen to be hot pink, but I had two turquoise
blue ones before my pink ones. 

It was nice to get back to the treadmill again, even though it bores me terribly. With a good book I can ignore the fact that I'm walking fast to nowhere. I hope your Thursday is tremendous and that you go to bed tonight feeling pleased about what you did during the day. I'll be back tomorrow. Be well, Stay safe and please, wear a mask. 

Triumphs and Growls - Life Always Has Both

Yesterday was a rainy day and so wet I didn't get out into the garden at all. I'm hoping all of that rain made my transplanted maple tree delirious with wet happiness and that it will grow tall and strong and rather bushy quickly. It's not that I hate the Alzheimer's care facility across the creek, it's that I hate that one window. I like my privacy and it always makes me feel as if someone is watching me when I sit in my patio chair. 

As I pointed out yesterday, that window from the care
facility across the creek from me is what I'm hoping this
Silver Maple will cover. Maple trees grow quickly,
and Silver Maples spread out as well as up, so I'm
hoping it will grow high and bushy ASAP. 

I passed my physical exam with flying colors, but have a mammogram and bone density test coming up tomorrow. These are nothing tests, but important ones. I'm overdue on my mammogram, which I try to have every year, and it's always good to keep on top of my bone density since I have had osteopenia for a decade or more. Osteopenia is a bone density issue, but not as bad or as advanced as the more well-known osteoporosis. Osteopenia can be a precursur to osteoporosis, however, so I want to keep an eye on it. 

Although I was on bone density meds for several years, I never
felt comfortable with them and I'm hoping I won'd have to
return to using them. There are a LOT of negatives associated
with bone density medications. 

Apparently my mental acuity is excellent. Sorry to disappoint all of you, my readers and friends - LOL. 

Apparently I have no problem with spatial placement or
random memory recall skills. Whoot! 

I'm having an argument that I'm losing with my laptop and my iPod shuffle right now. I listen to audio books on my shuffle while I'm at the gym. My shuffles are treated for use as an underwater listening device, and I love them. I have two of them, one loaded with music, one with books. Since I've been away from the water, I've been using the one for books exclusively. Yesterday I purchased the next book in a series, but last night I couldn't get it loaded properly for anything. I finally gave up, loaded a different book, and I'll try some things while I'm at work today. Sometimes technology SUCKS! 

I really wanted to listen to "Stalker of Shadows",
the first book in Series 3 of Jordan L Hawk's
wonderful SPECTR series, but I couldn't get it
to load properly, although the purchase went
through without problem. I'll listen to one of
Rhys Ford's books instead, then return to fighting
with my Audible vs iPod software for this book. 

On that note, I'm out of here. Have a great Tuesday and I'll be back for a very busy Wednesday. 

Monthly Wrap-up and Project Runway

September was a frustrating month of losing and gaining the same three pounds over and over again. In fact, if I was totally honest, I could extend that frustration to a full six weeks. I'd better be falling off that plateau soon because I'm really tired of seeing those numbers on my scale!

The month of September consisted of running in circles and
losing the same three pounds throughout the month.
Can you say, "Frustrating?" 

But, on the bright side, I didn't lose, but I also didn't gain. Today we're in a new month and new opportunities rise up before me.

When they are laying new roadway, nothing can get through. The busiest road
in my city slows down to a crawl. Traffic yesterday was at a stand-still. 

Road construction continues on my street and yesterday they began ripping up the roadbed and repaving the last 2-3 inches again. That led to horrid traffic, loud noises and new dinosaurs (the Brachiosaur was back since he is the one who strips off the old bituminous road surface). He was joined by loud, rough rollers and huge machines that spit out the new pavement.

Of course the Bead Shops Hop also began yesterday and because of the machines and the horrific traffic issues, our customer levels were extremely low and we had the worst start to this event that we've had in three years. I'll be finalizing an e-newsletter to send this morning and hopefully that will result in increased numbers for the rest of the Hop. We have the best door prizes we've ever had and it would be disappointing to not have a lot of customers trying to win them.

Ashley's little ensemble was adorable. She took a matronly, boring dress,
cut it up, and made this sweet crop top and skirt. The jacket was
a hit too. Great job! 

Project Runway last night eliminated a designer who should have been eliminated weeks ago. We're down to six designers now, and there are some strong voices there. Personally, I loved the winning look (although I'd never be able to wear a dress that form-fitting), but I really loved Kelly's pants and faux-fur fun vest, and I adored Ashley's cute little crop top, swing skirt and that great pleather jacket. WTG Ashley! Next week should be interesting. The designers left in the competition are all strong designers with solid voices and skills.

This outfit was an epic FAIL. One seam up the back of the skirt, and the
top was just tied on with rough edges. Again, no bra for the model. This
was supposed to be an outfit that could be sold commercially and this was
a total bust. 

Today I'm heading back to the pool and I have my tunes again. Underwater Audio just rocked it - I only had three swims without my underwater iPod and that's exceptional service and fast turnaround. Great people! So, I'll be rockin' to my music as I swim my laps and that will make me VERY happy. I hope you have a wonderful Friday while I shiver with our cold snap here in a chilly, Minnesota autumn.

Catching Up? Maybe ...

I'm hoping to catch up a little bit today - comments and replies for LJ and DW and general tasks as well.

I was trying a new doctor this time, and I really liked her. I hope she
sticks around for a while. It would be nice to have a primary physician
again. 

Yesterday's doctor appointment actually was good. I'm not sporting a huge bruise from the labwork, my tetanus shot was given by a nurse who actually was great with a needle and barely hurt at all, and I really like my new doctor. My BP was 102/72, and lab results were already on my e-chart last night - all levels are good. Next week I'll have a mammogram and bone density test and that should round me out. Then my doctor and I can figure out the best course for a healthy future. (A colon exam is also in the future, but that's handled by a sister clinic.)

Today is Day 1 of the 17 days of Bead Shops Hop Minnesota. I didn't get as much done for it yesterday as I had planned, and most importantly, didn't get my email newsletter done to send out to my customers reminding them of the Hop (as well as one more bridge closure and a new product line we're launching along with the Hop). That will be my work today, after I've changed light bulbs this morning to illuminate our cozy little messy and colorful shop.

I'm delighted to have my underwater iPod again. I wear it just
like she does and it's comfortable and the tunes spur me on
to better effort. Rock on, Underwater Audio! 

I received my replacement underwater iPod yesterday - personalized and still in the blue color I love having for my water gear. That was exceptional customer service - I had only shipped the original malfunctioning unit to them on Monday. I charged it up last night and loaded my playlist onto it, tested the sound this morning, and I'm good to go for my water workouts tomorrow. Although I'm tempted to wear it while on the elliptical and bicycle this morning, I'll wait. But if you're looking for an iPod that can handle the water and is sold by an excellent firm, I recommend Underwater Audio. Great people, great service.

So I'm cutting this short. Like I said - trying to catch up! Happy Thursday to all!

Late at 4:00 AM

How can I be late at 4:00 am? Actually, I was already late at 3:15 am but whose counting? All I know is I have to be at my new doctor's at 8:00 am for a physical and they'll be sticking needles in me for blood draws and a tetanus shot so I'm majorly stressed. Needles and I don't get along well - in fact, unless it's attached to my sewing machine or a strand of beads, I don't want needles anywhere near me. Voluntarily walking through the door to be checked over is unusual for me, but probably necessary since I'm not getting younger.

My blood pressure is usually pretty good, although I'll be stressed
so it may be a bit higher than usual. 

Tomorrow is the first day of the Bead Shops Hop and I'm also majorly stressed about that. I've got a lot of it complete, but there's a lot still to do and I won't be in the shop today (see above paragraph). I have a huge number of printouts that I did last night for Chickie to work with, and I'm very grateful that the Hop doesn't start until Thursday. I can still pick up new light bulbs for my 8-foot fluorescent fixtures and get some dead bulbs changed in the early morning tomorrow. Washing the floor might not happen, though.

I know I need a tetanus booster and I hate those intramuscular shots.
But, I work with metals and pointy things. It's necessary. 

I finally got the one wallpaper sample I had been awaiting in yesterday's mail. I haven't even had time to open the envelope and look at it once more *sigh*. I hope I catch up a bit today because I really need some quality time as well as all of this "other" stuff.

I'll have to get lab work too. These tests usually leave me bruised
for more than a week. My body really doesn't like invasion by sharp
metal pieces. 

On a positive note, my new underwater iPod is on its way to me. Maybe, if I'm really lucky, I'll even have it for Friday's swim. I hope so - silent swims are still wonderful because I'm in the water, but they're much more boring without my tunes.

Happy Wednesday to all of you. Be good and don't do anything I wouldn't do (which leaves you open for much mischief).

Whirling Thoughts, Projects and Planets

I'm living life in stutter-step right now.

I'm running in place, and it isn't even helping my physical conditioning. 

I'm waiting for wall paper samples - got one, need two more to arrive. I'm waiting on supplies for my cards - looked through some ideas for my solstice gifts (yes, I'm contemplating sending a small gift along with each of the cards) and think I may be able to pull this off. Renaissance Faire starts today, and tomorrow we'll be out there in the sunshine and surprisingly low temperatures, even though today's temps will be warm and beautiful. Disturbed's newest album dropped yesterday and I spent an hour last night previewing the tracks. I like it - think I may have to buy this one.

Disturbed's newest album, "Immortalized" dropped yesterday. I was
hearing clips on and off on Sirius XM yesterday, and last night I settled
down with iTunes to preview the album. It's pretty good. I may have to
buy this one. 

So, as you can tell, my thoughts are here, there and everywhere. Focus? What's that!? Yesterday, I did buy a second sheet of metal so that I could try some samples of the techniques I want to play with. Also, DH made a wonderful dinner last night - too much food = weight gain = more time on the elliptical today. *Sigh* my life - the good, the bad and the marking time.

The world is whirling, but realistically, that's a very good idea. 

So I'm running in place both figuratively and literally right now. The world is whirling around me (probably a very good thing when I think about gravitational pull, orbital pathways, and basic physics) and I'm watching it go. I'm feeling a bit frustrated right now, but I'll get over it. After all - I have metal I can play with! Have a great weekend.

Toys, Drapes and Shine

I used my newest toy for swimming yesterday. I'm delighted to say that it worked perfectly. My waterproofed iPod Shuffle gave me a good pace, kept me pushing through a few rough periods I had in the water as I did my laps, and generally passed its first trial by water in fine style. I've decided to drop down one size on the earplugs for Friday and see if that improves things even more, and I need to get a bit more familiar with the controls, but it was a good first outing. I suspect I'll get as much use from this iPod as I do from my slightly larger one which I use for my machine days. So far I've lost 25 pounds since the beginning of January and I feel 1000 times better, so the gym is definitely working well for me. In fact, yesterday I wore a pair of jeans that I haven't been able to wear for the past two years! SCORE! LOL.

My new little iPod worked really well in the pool
yesterday. The gals all laughed at me, calling me a
Gadget Geek. Well, I am, but this is also my early
birthday gift to myself and I think I'm going to love it. 

I saw the decorator yesterday with our new colors and samples in hand. She will order some larger carpet samples in for us to look at. They will be mailed directly to me. We also went through their laminates with the smaller sample I had brought along with me and chose two that were quite similar for DH to look at. These are larger 1x2 ft samples, so he can get a very good idea of color range and changes. So far we're divided on which of the two we like better, but they're quite close and we'll get there eventually. There's no major rush on this. I had been shooting for a mid-May install, but because it's taking longer to make up our minds, I'm pushing that back to 2nd or 3rd week of June instead which will give me more time to catalog our paperbacks - all to the good.

I've gotten almost 1000 of our paperback books
scanned and into my Book Catalogue app.
Now they're in boxes, alphabetized by author.
I still have a lot of books to go, but I've made
a very good start. 

But the draperies! DH and I had agreed on a particular fabric, but when I went to talk with Chara about the decorating, she gave me prices for drapes. If I had chosen that fabric, the drapes would have cost as much as the entire carpeting! No, and again NO! Even going with a lesser fabric, the drapes seem unusually expensive to me. I have basic dimensions now, so DH and I will go to JC Penney's on Sunday and see what something comparable would cost if we ordered through them. I'm sure they would still need to come and measure again, and that would be fine.

OK, I want my drapes in a light neutral ice grey and it covers a width
three times this wide, but it's a pretty basic drape. You wouldn't think
I would have to pay THAT much for it. 

I also left a text message for a friend who has been involved in professional sewing for years to find out if she may have any recommendations for me as far as someone who might make custom drapes for a lesser cost. Fabric can always be ordered by the bolt, I've done it before. It's not an unusual drape except it's wide. It's a standard double-draw drape that goes across my large picture window. I want a lined drape with a center pull. It's straight sewing, just a lot of fabric and the seams need to be absolutely straight. But it's basic sewing and if I wasn't so swamped with other things, I could probably sew them myself.

I decided on Sea Glass as the color of my
new MisFit. I was tempted to choose Wine, but
I think I prefer the lighter color. 

So onward to the machines. I'm shipping my defective MisFit Shine to the manufacturer this morning and they will be sending me a Sea Glass colored replacement as soon as they get my old one back. Hopefully by the end of next week I'll be back up and running with a new wrist ornament. Happy Thursday to everyone!

Oh Dear ... Good News and Bad News In One

I love my MisFit Shine fitness tracker. That said, it decided to die yesterday quite unexpectedly. I sent a report to them with the specifics and screen shots, and they notified me back (within twelve hours, so great customer service) that they believe my unit is defective. The good news, they will replace it at no charge to me. The bad news, the color I've been wearing is not available. I will look through the other colors and choose a different one, send the defective one back to them in tomorrow's mail, and wait to get my new one. I've been wearing it long enough now that I'm quite familiar with what exercise regimes push me up to the levels I want, so a week or two without my Shine won't be horrible. But I'll miss seeing it on my wrist :-)

So which color should I choose? I had the lower left, but it's
not available right now. I'm thinking either #1, #2 or #3, but I'm
edging to #1. What do you think? Comment ant let me know. 

I have a new gadget (toy) arriving this week sometime - a completely waterproof iPod Shuffle for my water days. I normally am swimming 1500 yards on my guppy days and I want to push that closer to 2000 yards so that I have a mile+ in the water. I also want to pick up my pace a bit, and music can help me do that. I spent time on Sunday putting together a heavy metal playlist for my Guppy Days and when my new toy arrives, I'll load it up, use the Flip Turn headphones that are included with my Shuffle, and hit the water. I can hardly wait!

UnderwaterAudio.com offers a completely waterproof iPod Shuffle
in several colors along with headphones that can be used for swimming
or other water activities. I think I ordered mine in blue just to keep it
separate from my gym iPod which is green. I need color cues like this
at 4:45 am - LOL. 

But life carries on while I'm doing all of this. Today will be a busy day at work because yesterday was practically a ghost town in the store. Minimal customers and those who won't spend more than $10 makes paying bills an exercise in creativity *sigh*. So I'm determined that today will be better.

I really hate to do drastic measures like a System Restore to
an earlier time point, but after more than eight hours of getting
nowhere with my laptop, I finally gave it. It took a while, but
it did the trick and I'm back up and running. 

Additionally, yesterday my laptop just wouldn't operate properly, despite restarts, etc. I finally gave up and did a System Restore to last Friday. Now things seem to be working properly again. Of course, I didn't do the Restore until 4:00 pm, so most of the day was a total wash, at least as far as getting computer work completed. But there was plenty of other work for me to do, so I concentrated on that instead.

I really disliked the catalog cover and promotional materials
for the show this year. Usually they have a project and
some really pretty beadwork to get people inspired. This year
they focused on classes, and I didn't even bother posting the
visual materials for my customers to look at. Cover pic = BORING!

And finally, I got notifications and instructions from one of my teachers at my conference in June. Now to download and print out those instructions and gather my tools together so that I can have a great time playing with fire and metal in Milwaukee. I'm really looking forward to the conference even though I'm going to be broke again because of the expense of it all. It's my only vacation (aside from the Labor Day extended weekend with my BFF Sharon each year) and I'm determined to make the most of it.

Happy Tuesday, all! Have a truly fabulous day filled with joy!