I Am A Pisces - Finding My Water Legs

I like that my astrological sign is the Pisces.  Here is what Google tells me about it: Pisces is a Water sign and as such this zodiac sign is characterized by empathy and expressed emotional capacity. Their ruling planet is Neptune, so Pisces are more intuitive than others and have an artistic talent.  

Who wouldn’t want to be empathetic, intuitive and have emotional capacity and artistic talent.  However, Pisces is a Water sign and I have never liked to be in the water.  Oh, I love being NEAR the water, watching waves beat against the rocks or the sun sinking into the blue Pacific.  I love that I live near the water.  But I have never liked to be IN the water.

Maybe it’s due to a “traumatic experience” I had as a child, when a swim instructor stepped on my little 7 year old hands hanging on for dear life to the edge of the Kent State University swimming pool, emotionally scarring me for life! 

Or maybe it’s due to stepping off a drop in the water near the pier at Brady Lake and thrashing and sputtering as someone lifted me up by my 10 year old arm and asked if I was OK. OK?  I was drowning!!  

Or maybe it’s due to having severe myopia and having everything look like a blur when I was in the water without my glasses.  

Or maybe I am just not an authentic Pisces.  

Whatever the reason, I am always the one sitting on the poolside lounge, not the one frolicking in the water.

So I looked askance when Jay suggested that we try the Water Aerobics class offered at our community pool three mornings a week.  We wanted to incorporate more exercise into our daily routine, other residents raved about it, and it was practically right outside our door. 

We went one morning as “observers” and saw that everyone wore a flotation belt so there was no need to even be able to tread water.  Everyone had smiles on their faces so they were obviously enjoying it.  The weather was so hot and the pool did look inviting.  The instructor offered us her extra equipment to try it and see if we liked it before investing in it.

So, the next class we were at the poolside at 8:20 am, in swim suits, robes and flip-flops.  

Heading for the pool...

We put on the flotation belts and prepared join the others.  

The water was heated so it was an easy entry.  There was a buoyant sense of freedom as our belts held us upright.  We were told it might feel awkward at first but that we would develop our water legs.  For one hour Susan put us through a series of exercises that included stretches to all muscle groups, aerobic big legs and big arms moving in laps around and around and around the pool, stomach crunches, leg kicks and resistance work on the arms using flotation dumbbells.  I especially liked the exercise where I looked like Esther Williams doing side stretches while hanging on to my dumbbells.  

It was quite a workout and I didn’t even have to sweat!

We have been participating in the classes for a couple weeks now.  We have our own flotation equipment and each time as we head home after the hour class we rejoice in the achy muscles and feel quite proud of ourselves.  

The best part is that Susan says I am doing very well, that I am a natural.  It must be because I am a Pisces!

I Am A Walker - Right In My Own Backyard

After spending a week in Barcelona where we walked an average of 6 miles a day, I came home determined to maintain my new physical endurance by walking every day I could.  With my pedometer on my waist, I set out first thing in the morning so I won’t get waylaid by the computer, the newspaper, my knitting…first things first!

Over the week I have renewed my love and appreciation for where I live.  It is a little piece of paradise and it is right in my own backyard!  I set off down the hill from my house, with my eyes on the ocean ahead of me.  

I have discovered that there is a multitude of morning activities in our park that I have never noticed before.  I walk past the dog park and see the pet owners taking their furry friends for their morning walk.  

 I walk past the community gardens, check on my veggies and often see a gardener watering early to avoid the heat. 

I continue along the path along the Paseo Del Mar walking trail, looking out at the water, the fishing boats already out, the surfers, the seagulls on the water.  

At the end of our community park path there is a padlocked gate that lets me out onto the public path in the Nature Preserve that separates our community from the Trump Golf Course.

I pass by the recently  created watershed with its newly planted native ground cover.

 I share the trail with others, people who may have traveled from all parts of the South Bay to walk these beautiful paths.   

Most of them respect the beauty of our little piece of the earth, but some come for other reasons and leave their traces behind them.  

 I guess that is also why these signs are posted periodically along the path as it hugs the top of the cliffs. 

Eventually, I stop at the little rest area and check my pedometer…almost one mile from my front door.  

I sit and gaze out at the ocean for a while, feel the constant breeze on my face, hear the sounds of the gulls and the surf.  I have to actually force myself to stand up and head back, leaving this little pause in the pace of life.

So I have invested about 1 hour of my life in this activity.  I have walked 2 miles.  I have communed with nature.  I have chatted with some early morning neighbors.  I have started my day right in my own backyard!

I Am A Friend - Walking and Talking with Cindy

There were times in my life when I have needed to seek the listening ear of a compassionate, wise therapist.  I would spend 50 minutes pouring out my angst, my fears, my confusion and she would sit, listen, encourage and sometimes make a suggestion.  I would leave a little stronger, a little calmer, and a little financially poorer.  But I considered it money well spent…it was for my personal well-being and sometimes life can overwhelm and this was a gift I could give to myself.

I am fortunate that my life is on an even plane these days…my strongest feelings are ones of contentment and gratitude…but there are still things I would love to share to a listening ear.  Enter my friend, Cindy!

Cindy is a gift that life handed to me a few years ago.  Like two magnets we were drawn into our friendship when Cindy joined Omnilore, our Learning-in-Retirement organization. We seemed like-minded and shared a similar energy.  For the past 2 years we have found 2 hours once a week to meet for a “walk and talk!”  Sometimes it is just through a neighborhood, sometimes it is at the Botanical Gardens, 

sometimes it is along the beach.  Today was our day and Cindy suggested we meet at the Interpretive Center in Palos Verdes.  I am so fortunate to live just a few minutes down Palos Verdes Dr. South from this location and enjoyed the coastal views as I drove to the Center.

Once there, and after our required pit stop so we would not get distracted…we headed out on one of the trails.  We have developed an easy way of sharing our lives.  It is as if we have an Indian “talking pipe” that we hand back and forth to each other.  I held the imaginary pipe first and talked about our Thanksgiving Day…she listened, commented, laughed; and then I handed the pipe to her.  She talked about her Thanksgiving Day…and I listened, commented, laughed. We often pass other walkers and periodically stop to appreciate the beauty of our surroundings…and today we also watched for rattlesnakes! 

And so it went for about an hour of walking, gifting each other with little snippets of our lives, our hopes, our concerns, our joys.

We always spend the last hour sitting outside a Starbucks, sipping coffee and continuing the talk.  We often coordinate classes together so we discuss the class and what we need to prepare.  When we return to the parking lot, before leaving we will reach into the trunks of our car to share an article, a bunch of kale from the garden, a book, a knitting project that we brought along to show each other…then we head off to our individual lives.  I leave a little stronger, a little calmer and only poorer by the cost of a cup of coffee!  

 I am grateful for my friend!

I Am A Golfer – Playing In the Women’s Guest Tournament

 

We all carry comments and preceptions about ourselves inside our heads.  My “voices” say to me things like:  “You are a good cook.”  “You have pretty eyes.”  “You are not artistic.” “You talk too much.”  Another thing they say is, “You are not athletic.”  I never played sports in high school.  In PE, when I HAD to participate in baseball, I played right field and spent the entire game watching for rattlesnakes.  I was on the drill team rather than the basketball team.   

So when friends discovered that our new community had a 9 hole golf course, they all asked, “Are you and Jay going to play golf?”   Playing golf was not part of our plan, but after walking to the golf course a few evenings, seeing the beautiful greens, looking out at the ocean, feeling the breeze, hearing the birds, we looked at each other and said, “Maybe?”   

Determined not to spend money on something we may not take seriously, we set out to find some used equipment.  Jay found a complete set of clubs and a bag at a rummage sale for…$5.00.  I asked around and had a nice neighbor offer me her old clubs for free and I bought a golf bag at the GoodWill store for $8.09…with my senior discount.  

  

After practicing putting with Gabe 

and playing the first hole over and over again and then venturing to the first 4 holes, 

we decided to join the Golf Club and just get to know some of the people.

Imagine my surprise when a neighbor, Maybrit, called me a few days later to invite me to play in her foursome in the Womens/Guest Annual Tournament.  Though I professed my non-Nancy Lopez status, she insisted I could do it.  It was a scramble which meant that you always played the best ball hit and there was no pressure…I could just have fun and meet some new friends.  I said “yes!”

Those who know me, know I am not a costume person so I graciously accepted the costume I was expected to wear for my “team” and was a “Wonder Woman” she picked me up at 8:30 am.

It was foggy but that didn't stop the women.  

After coffee and donuts, Suzy gave us the rules and we were off.  

Half way through there was a little refreshment stop...Bloody Marys...provided by the course angels.

Bottom line, she was right.  I had a wonderful time.  My team of Maybrit, Linda and Ann made me feel very welcomed and they encouraged my attempts.  

I even feel like I contributed to our second place win for Low Gross because they used one of my tee shots, 

one of my chip shots…and…drum roll please…I putted for a birdie!! 

I will never be Nancy Lopez, but I am glad I did this because now I know that I can at least hold my own on the course and will enjoy going out with Jay when we decide to venture beyond the first 4 holes!  Who knows, I might even develop a new voice in my head...  As long as I am breathing, I can continue to change and grow!

I Am A Listener - My Three Times Rule

I have a three times rule.  If I hear about something new - a book, a restaurant, an idea, I make a mental note of it; if I hear about it twice, I jot it down in the little notebook I carry in my pocket; and if I hear about it three times, I sit up and pay attention...I figure "the universe" is talking to me! 

I recently received my third message about focusing more on my fitness and health. 

First, my brother, Fred, and his wife, Sharon, began taking a Nutrition Class.

My brother is the poster child for enthusiasm. If he likes something, he jumps on the bandwagon and touts it to the world. So we began receiving scans of materials he was reading..."Did you know how many calories are in 12 olives?" Then he made a virtual introduction of us to the instructor of the class via email and we received info on how to sign up for the next session.  Mental note made...maybe I should look into more informed eating.

Next we received the list of upcoming classes for our Learning-in-Retirement group and saw one that was entitled "Living Well Forever."  The focus of the class is to learn about emerging technologies in the medical profession based on the premise that if we can live healthy for the next 20 years we might be able to benefit from these innovations.  We got into the class and it begins in September.  Written note made...consider how to live healthier for the next 20 years!

Then, out of the blue we received something for nothing...AARP sent us Silver Sneaker membership cards.

A new perk with our supplemental medicare insurance, this program allows us to attend specific fitness centers in our area at no cost to us.  If we activated it, we could drop our paid membership at the local YMCA. So we checked out the nearest 24 Hour Fitness facility, signed up and have a renewed enthusiasm for getting our bodies more fit.

To make the message louder we watched a documentary on PBS entitled Over 90 and Loving It  where interviews with many people living active lives well into their 90's reaffirmed the importance of staying engaged in life and activities that keep your body moving! More importantly these seniors seemed unaware of how old they were...they just kept doing life!

It is not my plan to life forever and I know there are many things that are out of my control.  But I know I have to do my part.  Jay and I talk about doing whatever we can to support an expanded "health span" and it starts with conscious decisions to continue to eat well and continue to move this body!  I think we already do try to make good eating choices and we have always valued staying fit, but it is easy to slack off.  I welcome these three messages as reminders to us to stay the course.  Thank you Fred, thank you Omnilore and thank you AARP!

Now what to do with the money we save through Silver Sneakers...maybe a smart phone is in our future!