Challenge- Week 2

Week two of the challenge went better than week one.  That cold knocked me out!!  I have not been that sick in a long time.  I ended up at the doctors Thursday and was put on bed rest for the rest of the week.  Everything hurt and I just wanted to either sleep or lie on the couch and not move.  I missed my mom.  My sweet visiting teachers/friends made me chicken noodle soup, and brought me flowers and popsicles- which felt amazing on with my raw, sore throat! 

 

 

Thor was the calmest I have ever seen him, I feel that he know I was sick.  He would carefully crawl up on the couch and lay besides me while Molly laid on the ground right below me. 

 

Needles to say I wasn’t up for walking.  The closest I would come was stepping outside to watch a sunset or two. 

 

Sunday I finally felt better enough to go to work.  Monday I felt like I could get out and go for a walk.  While my pace was slow it felt good.  I think I coughed all of two times while I was out.  Once I got home and sat down however I started to cough like I had smoked a whole box of cigarettes.  Lovely I know.  Through the week I have felt my strength returning and my cough has slowly gone down.  I was to get my walks in and am almost caught up to where I need to be (I am at 5.98 hr which puts me at 19.9% complete with my goal, I was hoping to be at 20%.)  I am hoping to not only get caught up next week but to get ahead.  Being sick has made me even more thankful for the health I have, I don’t want to lose that.  The dogs also love the walks and the weather has been perfect. 

Bring on week 3!          

15 years

15 years.  15 years and tears still spring up in my eyes whenever I catch even a glimpse of video or even pictures of the planes smashing into the Twin Towers. 

 

15 years and I feel my chest get tight as I think of all the lives lost and the number 343, the number of firefighters killed, is burned into my memory. 

 

 

15 years and I can still hear the sound of firefighter PASS alarms waling right after the collapse of the towers.  15 years and I can still picture watching body after body falling to their deaths, and that sound when they hit, oh that sound.  15 years and it still brings me to my knees.  It is crazy to image that freshman in high school right now were born after 9/11 and it is only something they learn about in history class or from those of us who witnessed it.  So much has change in just 15 years.  15 years ago I remember you couldn’t go even a block and not see a flag flying as we came together as a nation.  The sea of red, white, and blue was breathtaking.  The flag became a symbol of pride as we all united to stand up and not let evil knock us down. 

Slowly they started coming down.  Now some schools won’t even fly a flag as it could be “offensive to others.”  The pledge is no longer said in schools and children don’t seem to be taught how to show respect to the flag.  Now NFL players are “making a stand” by not standing during the National Anthem.   Today when I drove to work I saw only a handful.  15 years and how quickly we forget.  I for one proudly flew my flag.  My love for our country and all that the flag stands for runs deep in me.  I have family members who have help fight for this country and proudly display the flag in my home my Grandfathers flag.  I am beyond thankful for the freedoms and rights we because of the country we live in.  I believe that by flying my flag today it is a way for me to honor and remember all those who were affected by those horrific events 15 years ago.  

15 years ago I sat in Boise fire station 1 and was glued to the TV surrounded by firefighters as the numbers started to roll in of how many people were feared dead or missing.  I spent the next few days, weeks, months at firehouses. 

I wore my FDNY shirts non-stop and was able to ride in parades and go to events with the fire department. 

(My shirts that I still have)

I just started to volunteer weeks before everything happened at Eagle Fire and remember putting my name down on a list of volunteers to go and help out in New York (even though they never called me.) 

(some of my Firefighter/EMS magazines that I still have)

When I think of 9/11 I can’t help but think of the Boise Fire Department and how they made me feel like one of the family.  I will always treasure those times. 

15 years later and I went from the fire department, to the ambulance and now a police dispatcher.  Each change has made me think more and more about not just the firefighters who died helping, but all the EMS, Police Officers, dispatchers and even regular citizens who gave all they could that day.  As a dispatcher I can’t not imagine how helpless and overwhelmed they had to have felt.  I cannot fathom the calls from people who were trapped and dying.  I don’t know if my heart could take the pain of knowing you have guys down but not being able to do anything. 

 

15 years and yet it still feels like just yesterday.  May we never forget. 

 

15 Pictures

There is a thing on facebook right now about posting the last picture you took with your phone.  It is fun to see some of the pictures that people post.  I am ALWAYS taking pictures with my phone or my camera.  Hey I can’t help it, I love pictures!  So I thought it would be fun to take 15 random pictures I have on my phone and put them on here. 

I snuck out of dispatch to watch the sunset.

I helped film for ATC on DUI night and got a few pictures in as well.

 

Another one from DUI night.

A rare moment when they are both on their own beds and both asleep!

One of the plants in my flower bed, I LOVE the red right now!

View from my backyard one night.

Another amazing sunset, I may or may not have a thing for sunsets!

A picture of my computer as I work on putting my blogs in a book. 

Driving home from the store and this went off, I thought someone was shooting at me.

A friend posted this and it made me laugh so I had to save the picture. 

Thor being a good guard dog. 

Fitness Challenge

Each September for the last 4 years we have has a fitness challenge at work for 10 week.  Each year I have participated and it is just a good way to get my lazy butt moving more.  Last year was the first year I didn’t complete any part of the challenge and I felt like I let myself down.  I don’t really remember why I didn’t finish, but I do remember that once I feel behind it became harder and harder to catch up to so I just stopped.  This year I am determined to complete it!  I have decided to do the aerobic training which is complete 30 hours in 10 weeks.  The second one I have decided to complete is the weight loss section and loose 5% of my body weight.   The challenge started on Sunday so Sunday afternoon I put on my tennis shoes and took Thor on a “short” walk.  Well it used to be one of my shorter walks…..  Within minutes of me starting I could feel my calf muscles getting tight and my feet started to cramp.  After ten minutes my feet were killing me and I embarrassed as I felt like a big fat hippo.  It was humbling and humiliating.  I am the heaviest I have ever weighed and in that moment I could feel ever single pound.  I just wanted to go home and cry.  I finished the walk and it was painful to even talk my shoes off as my feet kept cramping.  Thor as a happy puppy and wasn’t worn out even a little bit.  I may or may not have slightly hated him at that moment. 

The next day I was feeling sore from the butt down which was just sad.  So I decided to take a shorter walk with Molly.  I am sure we looked like quite the pair as we gimped along.  The only difference is I swear Molly was smiling the whole time while I was just trying to get through it.

Tuesday I decided to retake what I know call the longer walk aka the “short” walk I did the first day.  I brought Thor with me again and even though I was sore it wasn’t as bad as it was the first day.  I even made better time.  Score one for the fat girl! 

By Tuesday night I started to hurt head to toe.  Thinking I may just be worn down I shrugged it off and made sure to be drinking plenty of water.  By the time I got to work (I am working graves this week) I knew that I was getting sick.  Sure enough when I woke today I felt like had been hit by a freight train.  I hurt head to toe, so much even my hair hurt.  I had been hit by a cold straight from the deeps of hell.  My noise is plugged up and yet drips like an old leaky faucet.  I cough like a chain smoker and have bags under my eyes that make me look like a walking zombie.  I thought about trying to get my walk in and decided to mow my lawn first to see if I survived.  Not so much.  I was able to finish the lawn but had no energy after that.  I came inside crawled back into my bed at took a nap before work.  Now I am sitting at work and counting down the minutes until I can crawl back in bed.  I would have called in sick but there is NO one to cover due to us being so short handed.  Ug.  Fingers crossed I will kick this cold in the butt soon!  Unfortunately I may have just brought the plague to work…   

 

So far this whole challenge thing is trying to kill me, I am sure of it!  But I am not going to let it stop me!!  My plan is to take it easy again tomorrow and Friday and then get right back out there Saturday.  Bring it!  

Uncle Brian

 

Tuesday night I got an email from my Grandma that was sent out to the family.  In it she let us know that my Uncle Brian, who was married to my mom’s sister Marla, was found deceased in his house.  The people where he kept his horse noticed he had not been there for a few days which was not like him as he usually was there every day.  They went to his house to check on him and called the police when he didn’t’ answer.  The police found him deceased sitting in his chair and had been there for approximately 4-5 days.  There were 5 dogs and a bird in the house as well and one of the older dogs had passed away as well.  It breaks my heart that he was so alone when he died.  My aunt Marla passed away in 2013.  It gives me comfort know that she was on the other side to welcome him home. 

One of my worst fears is that something like that will happen to me.  I don’t want to be alone.   I worry that as my nieces and nephews grow up I will become less and less a part of their lives. 
Growing up I was always excited to go to Pocatello and see Marla and Brian and their horses.  In 1991, when I was 10, they moved from Pocatello to Tiger, OR and it wasn’t often that we got to see them.  When we did go see them they loved to take us to different places that they loved in Oregon.  After high school I saw them even less.  The last time I remember being in their house was when we were in Oregon for my friend John’s funeral and to be honest most of that is a blur in my mind.  They didn’t travel or come to family events (such as weddings ect) because of all their pets and sadly we grew apart.  I would send them Christmas cards every year and we would email from time to time but that was it.  The last time I was able to see my uncle Brian was at Marla’s funeral.  I am thankful for that.  I will always remember our family trips to their house and the time we did get to spend with them as kids.   

It gives me comfort that I know there is life after death and that we will see our loved ones again.  Until then I love you both and can only imagine how happy you both were to see each other again!