Done!

there are 9 banker boxes of books in my living room ready to take to the church's used book sale this weekend. i didn't count all the books, but i KNOW i'm over the 50 mark because everyone of the boxes is full.

so there it is... shedding 50 things before my 50th birthday. DONE!

the greatest part is that i think i've found a partner in getting the shedding done. i have a friend who is looking to get rid of some things to make more room in her life also. she and i have agreed on an experiment. we will trade time each week at each other's home. 3 hours at my house this week and 3 hours at her house next week and so on. it's a risk to air one's dirty laundry (junk) but she's a good friend and we're after the same end. today was the first day of the experiement and i'm happy to say "day one" was a success. let the shedding continue!

Shedding...some chaos...#29 - #35

we have 3 kids. one still at home, one in her last year of undergrad, and one who recently graduated from college. this means that our home is grand central station in may and august. kids with boxes and stuff that they need and don't need in various places in our home = chaos. solution = one room a piece with ALL your stuff. no more a box in the family room and some stuff in the furnace room. if you can't fit it all in and still have room to sleep when you come home... there might be a message in there some where... so that is #29 and #30. to my fledglings...i love you! you are always welcome! never treat people like things, or things like people!

cleaned out my clothes closet. lots of t-shirts i don't wear anymore, socks, old bras, and odds and ends that haven't made their appearance on my body in a long time. i didn't count them all. i know there were far more than 5, but let's just call it 5 instead of me spending time counting socks!

Good-bye Alice....

Alice is my recumbent bike. i got her about three years ago at the insistence of my hubby. he had just re-discovered the joys of biking and wanted to share that with me. problem: due to health problems my right leg would go to sleep after 10 minutes of riding a "normal" bike. solution: Alice, my recumbent bike. it took some getting used to riding a recumbent. i never felt comfortable riding her on the road (too low) and it was real work to ride her up steep hills (something to do with the wheel base and the tire size). i also never got used to people staring or pointing at me as i rode by (not a lot of recumbent bikes here). but overall it was wonderful to be able to ride with my hubby and kids. we even "double dated" with my hubby and his bike at a bed and breakfast on some beautiful bike trails in Minnesota for hubby's 50th last summer.

My health has improved bit by bit by bit due to the surgery i had last september, exercise, and slowly learning to hear and respect what my body is saying to me. this spring i decided to try out my old upright bike. to my utter amazement i could ride without my leg going to sleep. after the second time i took out the bike (just to be sure the 1st time wasn't a fluke) my husband took me to his favorite bike shop to get fitted for a new bike. he said it was for him, because he wanted me to have a better bike so i could "keep up with him". i had my doubts but the guys at the shop assured me that it's kind of a drag to ride with someone that rides slower than you do, especially when you are doing long distance road riding. so before i really knew what was happening i was trying out bikes and found one i really liked and hubby insisted that we buy it "for him". i'm happy to report that after a bit of tweaking the saddle and the handle bars i was able to ride a 25 mile road ride and be appropriately tired the next day instead of "paying for my fun". it feels SO GOOD! like finding an old friend that you had lost contact with and thought you would never see again. and when you sit down to visit again you remember just how good this person is for your life.



so Alice, i guess you are #28. Thanks ever so much for the ride! you introduced me to Gunnar, my new "old friend". happy trails to the three of us!

27

i'm not much of a risk taker...never have been. but right now, in a specific situation, that is getting in my way of moving forward. i'm acting like the past will repeat itself. it's causing me to missing out on the present and freak out about the future. really not very useful stratagies for living a happy life. so... i'm shedding the fear. 8 seconds in the saddle is better than a life time in the stands. let 'er rip!

26

shed all the mess in a downstairs closet. it's organized and ALL in boxes. whatever doesn't fit into the boxes doesn't fit into my life! gone.

i'm shedding more....

two boxes of books, tapes, and CD's that represent two unhealthy and unsuccessful pursuits over a lot of years.... 39 books, tapes, and CDs for one and a dozen books for the other. guess what i'm really shedding is the unhealthy and unsuccessful pursuits and that makes two more... (not 51... shoot then i'd be done for the year) Total = 25

i'm up to 23!

Yesterday my son helped me shed 10 puzzles and 8 board games out of a closet. Yippee! i was beginning to wonder if i was ever going to start gaining on my "Shed 50 things by 50" goal.

However, i'm not doing so hot on the weight side of things. time to start again with that. i think i could use some reading material to help get me going. Any good books out there that could give me insight into why i sabatoge things? i know what to do.... i just don't know why i don't do what i know how to do! ideas, please...