Not Much New



11 Aug 2011                11 July 2013.

 There isn't much new with me right now. I am still following the Curves Complete program -- 18.5 pounds lost so far! I am still going to see various medical professionals to figure out what all is going on and what I can do to get back to my pre-Hepatitis A energy and concentration.

I am still working on receipts for HAFF, writing/editing HAFF blog posts and writing and editing the HAFF newsletters. And I am still having trouble keeping up with the work load.

Finally, my role guiding prospective HAFF staff through the application process has recently been re-activated, as I have also continued fielding questions for HAFF's current intern, April Lambiotte.

I am looking forward to a visit next week from my HAFF colleagues, Colin, Carla and Becky Wilson. They will only be with me one night, but it will be wonderful to have the chance to just visit as friends, without the pressure of HAFF business or meetings! And, as always, I am looking forward to introducing them to my hometown -- the weather looks like it will be perfect for walking around the neighborhood and the Penn State Arboretum!

13 and Counting

This is another photo from my trip to Seattle. Heidi took this photo of me and the passenger ferry (the boat behind me) from last Monday, the day we walked all over Seattle. The title of this post relates to that trip.

I went to my Curves workout yesterday and when they weighed me, I had lost five pounds in the past two weeks, including the week I was in Washington state. That means in the seven weeks since I started the program, I have lost 13 pounds. I hope I can keep it up!

Still Jet Lagged After All These Days!

     I made another trial run at the end of June, flying to Washington state and renting a car for a week. The trip was spawned by the 100th birthday celebration of dear friend, former colleague and former HAFF board member, Dorothy Eaves. But, while I was in Washington, I took the opportunity to visit with my cousin Phyllis and with former colleagues and dear friends Heidi and Jeff HansPetersen.

    Phyllis lives on the Kitsap peninsula, across the Puget Sound from Seattle. Surrounded by water, mountains and trees, it is a lovely spot. And the drive from Seattle took me through many spots where I found myself saying, "Oh, yes. Washington is indeed the Evergreen State!" The above photo was taken from the small town of Seabeck on the Kitsap peninsula as Phyllis and I drove around to see some of the area.

    I had plently of opportunity to admire the Puget Sound and the mountains, volcanoes, trees and Seattle skyline as I crossed the sound 5 times on ferries! This second photo is of the ferry pulling into Kingston to take me to Edmonds on my way to Dorothy's birthday party.

    I met Heidi and Jeff in Seattle on Sunday to attend church at the historic First Covenant Church of Seattle, founded in 1889, just before the great fire that burned most of Seattle. After church we went to lunch and a walk on the beach. From the beach we were able to see two of Seattle's iconic volcanoes -- Mount Baker and Mount Rainier. Then we took the ferry (ferry ride number two!) to Vashon Island, where Heidi and Jeff live.

Mount Baker in the middle in the distance



Mount Rainier 

    Monday, Heidi and her todler daughter and I took the passenger ferry (ride number three) back into Seattle and "did" Seattle on foot! We walked over 5 miles that day! We went to the Pike Place Market, "where they throw the fish!" said Heidi. And throw the fish they did! Each purchased fish (and they were big fish) got tossed from man to man as they were shown, weighed, wrapped and paid for. It is quite the event and I was not quick enough on the draw with my camera to catch it.

    We also took an hour long harbor tour -- a narrated cruise (another boat!) highlighting the skyline and history of Seattle as well as giving a close up view of drydocks and gantries for unloading freighters. The final photo below is of the Seattle skyline from the harbor tour. Finally, we took a tour of the Seattle Underground -- the remnants of pre-fire Seattle under the streets of current day Seattle. A fourth ferry ride back to Vashon Island brought us weary walkers back home in time for supper.


Seattle skyline from the harbor tour.

       Tuesday was a quiet day of running errands and seeing some of Vashon Island (another lovely spot like the Kitsap peninsula). My final ferry ride took me over to Seattle in the evening to turn in my rental car and to catch the red eye back to State College.

    And that flight from Seattle, starting Tuesday at about 11:30 pm Seattle time and ending Wednesday around noon State College time has told me a lot about my current energy and concentration. I am still dragging today, 5 days after arriving home. I slept most of the rest of Wednesday, did laundry and not much else Thursday and still slept over 10 hours last night and still feel like I want a nap! So, two years after coming down with Hepatitis A, I am still recovering much more slowly than before. But I think I stuck to my diet pretty well, while I was gone and I did pretty well with the walking. I even got in two workouts at the Curves near my cousin and one Friday here. Tomorrow I will find out if I lost any more weight since I was gone.