like summer

I had to go pick up my buddy from the airport yesterday which took most of the day so I didn't get a chance to really enjoy the day. For several hours I just sat in my car waiting at the airport. The digital temperature read out on the dashboard read 85F/30c. It's still winter! The sun was beating right down on me as there wasn't any shade in the parking lot where I had to wait. The skies were clear with no clouds insight. but windy, so what else is new?  By the time I got home after dropping off my buddy in another state where he lives, I was beat from driving and sitting on my ass all day.

Our dog woke me up bright and early this morning and I took her out. The sun had just come up and it was already nice and warm 67F/20c. The weather people said that it was going to rain most of the day and be foggy. Well.... for the last 5 hours I've been enjoying the outdoors cleaning out my storage shed. There hasn't been a cloud in the sky....slight breeze and quite warm. I don't know what friggin planet these weather people are from these days or what country they are doing a weather report for, but it sure as hell ain't for this area. Am I angry? No not at all. I'm enjoying the great weather but if I had to rely on the weather people to plan my day, forget it!

It was such a nice day that I decided to clean the shed today. It needed it bad. A couple of squirrels got in there and built a nest, chewed up just about everything and made a huge mess. I figured that I better close off the area where they chewed up to get in before they decided to reproduce. I had to stop every few minutes to take a breather, it stunk so bad in there! I had to stop because I could feel my throat getting a bit irritated from not only the dirt but from the stink. Tomorrow is another day. Got my exercise in for the day anyway...5 hours worth.

  

Confucius: "it doesn't matter how slow you go, as long as you don't stop."

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It's even going to get better

Yesterday's thunderstorms brought on clear blue skies for today. But, as always, a little bit of wind. This time it was from the North West, a little chilly but quite manageable since it was just a slight breeze. Even tho the temps weren't quite where they said it was going to be yet, I decided that i was going to go for a walk by the lake. I figured that it ought to be safe since the wind wasn't coming up, down or across the lake creating some huge waves to crash on to shore. There are areas where you are only inches away from the water. It was a good bet that I wasn't going to get soaked again.

It was a bit chillier along the lake but the sun warmed me up very quickly and I had forgotten about the chill only minutes into my walk. It was quite an unusual walk for me especially for this time of the year, March, where we would normally have plenty of cold and lots of snow making it impossible to go for a walk along the lake shore or anywhere else for that matter. As I walk, I notice budding trees, some greenery on lilac bushes and flowers on plants already. I can't ever remember seeing that this early in the year, it's still winter and that don't happen until April or May.  There were plenty of enthusiasts out today bicycling, roller skating, jogging and walking. Others were out sight seeing and admiring the lake. Wow and tomorrow is supposed to be even better.

Confucius: "it doesn't matter how slow you go, as long as you don't stop."

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another breezy day

When I got up this morning the first thing I did was to look out the window to see what I was in-store for the day.  It looked like a it was going to be a beautiful day with blue skies with a little wind. I decided that I was going to take a ride out by the lake and walk along the shore where I've walked many times in the past. Chicago has some of the best bike and walking trails along the lake with some great scenery. It's a great place to motivate anyone wanting to walk, jog, roller skate or ride a bike and most of the time you are never alone making it pretty safe. It's also patrolled by police on bicycles so I always feel safe there.

When I got out the door I noticed that it was still a bit chilly and breezy with strong gusts. They weren't quite as bad as the other day but never the less bad enough. I had to turn back and grab another set of clothing for back up in case I got wet. With high winds, the waves are sure to be beating along the cement blocks along the way. Many a time the waves go beyond the blocks and end up splashing the entire path soaking anyone in its way. I  had to be prepared or suffer driving back soaked. The other thing I had to do was to stick some cushion in my walking shoes to prevent pain on the bottom of my right heel to return. Off I went.

When I got to my usual spot, I didn't see as many people out as I would have expected. There were few die-hards out jogging but I've seen a lot more. Once I got out of my car, I could definitely feel the cold wind slap me in the face and went oh oh! The further I walked away from my car the windier it got. Fortunately, I was prepared and had plenty of layers to keep me from getting a chill. I got a little ways and my left foot began bothering me. I had to stop and remove  the insole I added for that shoe as it was digging into my heel for some reason. My right foot was just fine so I stuck the insole into my pocket and off I went. I really felt great.

The sun was warming my face with each step and I didn't have a care in the world. Just around the curb a huge wave hit the shore and got me a little. It wasn't bad enough for me to turn back so I continued. About 20 minutes later my right lower back started to hurt. It got worse with each step. I had to stop and sit for a few moments until the pain subsided and then continued. A little later the pain came back. I began to think what could have caused my back pain all of a sudden. I figured that it must have been the insole in my right foot which made my feet uneven as I walked. I sat and pulled out the other insole and decided to walk back towards my car.

Sure enough, when I got to that spot where I got splashed earlier a huge wave hit the blocks and soaked me good. I was drenched, dripping with water from head to toe. Man that was cold! The water temps weren't too much above freezing and when the strong wind gust hit me as wet as I was, I could feel it down to the bone. Fortunately, I had a change of clothes in my car so I tried hurrying back, but my back.....oh my back! When I finally got there, I was shivering from the wet clothing and all I could think of was to get them off as quickly as possible. I got in my car, turned it on and cranked up the heat. It was a bit difficult changing clothes in my car but once I was in a dry set of clothes, I felt much better. Even my back started feeling better. Next time it's this breezy I think I'll stick around the house.

   

Confucius: "it doesn't matter how slow you go, as long as you don't stop."

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windy city

Yesterday, after a good rain fall, the temps plummeted again to below freezing. Today it looked nicer than it felt. The skies were clear and the sun was out, but the winds were coming from the north which means only one thing around here; bone chillin'. That wind will go right through you no matter how many layers of clothing you got on and hit you in the core. If you're not shivering within a few moments, you ain't real! Ever hear of the windy city shuffle? Well that's what folks around here do to keep warm when that bone chillin' wind hits ya. They don't call this the windy city for nothing.

Sure enough, as soon as I got out I was shivering in minutes into my walk. I even prepared myself and put on extra layers of clothing to protect myself from the cold wind. Probably should have stayed in but....I needed the exercise. I could feel the bite of the wind on my cheeks and on my skin underneath those layers of clothes. I tried walking faster in trying to warm up and then tried to run but that didn't seem to help.  When I got home, my cheeks were all red and my body was shivering.  It took me a while to warm up with a cup of coffee.


   

Confucius: "it doesn't matter how slow you go, as long as you don't stop."

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Winds were brutal

The temps are real nice around 70F/21C but cloudy.  I tried to go for a walk today and only made it a short distance as I had to turn around and come home. I've never had to do that due to wind except when I was in a hurricane down in Louisiana and Texas. I was working as a contract disaster housing inspector for the government immediately after Katrina and soon after came Rita, Sept 24 2005 which hit Texas. I was right at the edge of Rita with winds at 115 mph (185 km/h). There was no place to go and take cover as the area was already devastated. We didn't know about Rita coming as land phones were down and cell phones didn't work. The towers were down too. To get to an area where the phones worked, I had to drive 60 miles one way. I was supposed to be in contact with headquarters 3 times a day and also get the job done which had been mandatory for the day. What a joke! Driving 120 miles 3x's a day just to make a phone call. It took well over two hours one way to make the trip as the roads were covered with debris, well you do the math, didn't give me much time to do my job. By the time I got back to the area, I had to turn around and go make a phone call? Pure stupidity!!! That was some scary times.

 I thought yesterday was bad and last month when the winds were howling at 50mph/80kph, but today it topped that. The wind gusts are from 50-60mph/80-100kph. There were debris flying around making me have to dodge them or get hit and be seriously injured. I didn't want to take that chance, besides the wind kept wanting to knock me down especially in the open where there was no protection. Today I'm better off just staying home and maybe work on some music.

Confucius: "it doesn't matter how slow you go, as long as you don't stop."

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winds are howling again

It was another one of those days where the wind was howling, clear blue skies and temps in the upper 50'sF/10c and rising. The winds are picking up and the trees are already bending to the point of snapping but, whenever I get a chance to enjoy the warmth of the sun, wind or no wind, and as long as I can control my footing, I'm out there. At-least I get to enjoy a couple of days of warmth. The weather has been like a roller coaster going from one extreme to the other in just a few days....sometimes even in just a few hours.


   

Confucius: "it doesn't matter how slow you go, as long as you don't stop."

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much better

When I got out of bed this morning, I noticed that the ground was all white. It snowed even tho the weather people said it wasn't going to....useless these days! At least the sun came out and by the time I got out, after taking care of several things first, the snow was gone.

There was still that nippy feeling in the air and as I walked I could feel it on my cheeks. I was feeling pretty good since the snow had melted and I could feel the warmth of the sun on my face. It was also a good feeling not to walk with heel pain. I didn't say anything about other pain as that comes with the territory of aging but the heel seemed to have healed up nicely and it was just a great feeling. I walked for about a half hour and came home, I got tired. Now I just have to be careful not to aggravate the heel and begin building up my stamina once again. Ah yes, rebuilding stamina, can't recall how many times I've had to do that from scratch, these last 5+ years.

Confucius: "it doesn't matter how slow you go, as long as you don't stop."

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