Over the River and Through the Woods….

So my goal of posting every week has not worked out so well.  Even after starting back up following my fun adventures in medicine, I have missed a week.  Well, if you can’t be a good example, …

I’m gaining more stamina.  This past weekend we went to the symphony to hear Berlioz’s “The Childhood of Christ.”  What a fantastic piece of music!  And the Utah Symphony and Chorus did a fantastic job!  This really should be performed more often.  It has not been heard in its entirety since 1984(?) under Joseph Silverstein.  It is a beautiful piece and the harp/flute trio in the third section is one of the most delightful things Berlioz ever wrote.  I have come to really appreciate the genius of Hector Berlioz.  What an amazing composer.  It is said that his instrument really was the symphony orchestra, and I am more and more convinced of it the more Berlioz I am exposed to.  The Symphony Fantasitque had been one of my absolute favorites since I first heard it, and I was lucky enough to perform as part of the off-stage chorus in his “Roméo et Juliette” last year.  It is all incredible music.

Then on Saturday, I went bowling for the first time in years, and went out to dinner with friends.  It is the most exercise I’ve since I got out of the hospital.  With all the walking on Friday, and the bowling and walking we did on Saturday, I got quite the workout.  But I’ve got to prepare myself for the first weekend in December.  We’ve got tickets to the First Presidency Christmas Devotional and we are planning on taking Trax and then seeing the Christmas lights.  So that means walking across Temple Square to the Conference Center and then walking around looking at the lights.  More walking than I have done in a long time, even before the surgery.  So I need to bump up the activity level in preparation.

I have lost 20 lbs. through all of this so far.  Not much in the grand scheme, but a good start.  I don’t want to back track.  I just want to keep moving forward. I subscribe to Men’s Health and every month they have what they call the “Belly-Off Club” article that features someone who has lost weight and kept it off and how they did it.  This month I wanted to shoot them.  They featured someone who lost 120 pounds in three months(!), but, as they say “while rapid weight loss is not usually healthy, he has kept it off.”  Well, whoopty-shit for him!  This guy started exercising twice a day for two hours a day.  I don’t dedicate anything in my life that much time except my family.  I could never do that.  That is what is called an obsessive/compulsive personality.  More power to him, I guess.  He is now a personal trainer, but I bet he has not much of a social life.  If getting rock hard abs means giving up my playtime, I’ll settle for a more manageable weight and a slightly soft middle and get to play with my friends and family.

I hope you all have a very happy Thanksgiving, and a wonderful holiday season.  I will be posting more in the coming weeks.  I am so thankful for all of you who read this and who take the time to care about me.  You mean a great deal to me, and I cherish the friendships that I have.  God bless you all.

Quote of the day:

"Thanksgiving. It's like we didn't even try to come up with a tradition. The tradition is, we overeat. 'Hey, how about at Thanksgiving we just eat a lot?' 'But we do that every day!' 'Oh. What if we eat a lot with people that annoy the hell out of us? – Jim Gaffigan”

Bonus Quote of the Day:

"Thanksgiving is a magical time of year when families across the country join together to raise America's obesity statistics. Personally, I love Thanksgiving traditions: watching football, making pumpkin pie, and saying the magic phrase that sends your aunt storming out of the dining room to sit in her car. – Stephen Colbert"