Oh Deer...

When I take a second to plan for my walk (i.e., choosing the correct camera and lens) the results sometimes pay off.  I still can't find my spare battery for my Canon or my iPod, but that's another story.

Stormy skies (or the aftermath of stormy skies) - 10-20mm wide angle.

Feeling funky and fun ~ Lensbaby Scout and Fisheye op

But on most - since I try and hit the trail quite early - the 70-300mm w/a double image stabilizer - a lens I never would have bought for myself (the Mister can be quite generous) is usually a good choice. Because that's when the wildlife is about and in full wake up and grab some breakfast mode.  The timing (and the lens choice) did not fail me this morning.

I found this little girl

And then she found me and said, "I'm outta' here!"

But the best find was this trio ~ Mama and her twin Bambis.

She was a good Mama.  It didn't take her long to spot me.

The she was like, "We're outta' here, kids!"

"Come on!"

Exit Stage Left!

I said Left!

Sigh... Rebels - they were kicking up their little Bambi heels like gazelles!

I assure you ~ it was worth getting sand in my Keens. :)

And on a closing note... I've been inspired to start carrying "The Duck o' the Day" with me on my hikes again. (Rather than every shot being at dinner with a glass of wine. They enjoy nature, too.) It's a little challenge I like to give myself to find the most interesting backdrops/bokey. I've had a few printed on canvas wraps and oh my... I've created a monster (myself).  I see a whole new market opening up ~ baby nurseries, toddler's rooms/baths, people who won't grow up and have big houses... *wink*

So Water Baby and I did a little trial run on the trail this morning.

Oh hang on to your qwackers.. there will be more to come over the days and weeks!  

It feels good to back where I belong.  In nature.

Maybe Tomorrow

I haven't been in the blogging mood lately and it occurred to me this afternoon that maybe it's not just all this crazy health stuff going on (wait... wait... wait...) but maybe also due to my lack of morning walks in the past few days. 

I rarely walk in the park on the weekends because there are, you know - people - there on the weekends.  I prefer it like this

Thank you very much.

I missed another morning because I needed to finish a couple of projects.

Burpies for Seal Beach, CA

Whee Ones for Cherry Creek North, Denver

(And I'm promising myself that one of the first things on my July reboot is to set up a new spot to shoot my products properly!)

Then we spent some time with this guy one night

He was... magic.

But any time I'm awake past 9pm (it was close to midnight!  Gasp!) and up with the puppy at sunrise ~ I'm not too motivated to walk a mile or two.

I was all set into head to the wild this morning and then I stepped outside.

The smoke from no less than 8 wildfires burning in my state 

is lying thick over the metro area.

Even walking a couple of blocks with Boo - breathing in the smoky air was suffocating.  I am really claustrophobic so the thought that I can't breathe can send me into a panic attack in a heartbeat. In fact, even though windows were closed all night, I woke suddenly at 3:30am with the feeling I couldn't breathe. I bolted out of bed and headed to my studio ~ to breathe.

At sunrise I repotted some veggies and herbs (quickly as the smoky air was not fun to sit in)

Roma tomatoes

Mint ~ for those mojitos

Basil for caprese and pesto

And I watered the flowers

Maybe I'll be inspired to blog tomorrow...

To Health...

I never understood people who were afraid to go to the doctor.

You know like when I was in my 30's and I wasn't afraid of anything. Even looking silly. (Although I was quite multi-talented. I think it's how I convinced the Mister I was "the one.") I had my annual check-ups.

And in my 40's when l was consumed with love and my new life. I had my annual check-ups.

And then came my 50's. I was becoming a little more aware of aging and the ups and downs of that; but still not afraid of looking goofy. Obviously. And I started to skip the annual check-ups.

Funny how as I age and especially as I grow closer to 60 and things like my blood pressure start creeping up and hmmm... never noticed that lump before... I begin to understand that denial. That feeling of "I want answers" and at the same time, "I don't want to know."

But then I remembered Boda Kitty ~ who looked perfectly healthy on the outside. But her insides were killing her. And I remembered a friend telling me about a colleague who had been afraid to go to the doctor with some of her concerns. And she died.

A few years ago my blood pressure spiked and my [at the time] GP suggested I buy a digital blood pressure machine, check my blood pressure periodically at home and call him if it continued to be high. He felt that the reason for it rising at that time was stress.  And he was probably right because once some things were resolved in my life, it came down.

Recently it spiked again - big time. I suppose I could blame some of it on a little stress; but I think most of it is approaching 60 and man, is it in the genes. God bless my Norwegian ancestors but they are notorious for stuffing their thoughts and emotions down so deep that the only way they can come out is if your head explodes.  Voilà - high blood pressure. And then there were a couple of lumps that suddenly appeared and since thyroid problems run in the family, too ~ well you can see I was doing a lot of self-diagnosing and imagining the worst.  

I knew I should probably stop hiding my head in the sand and be a grown-up. I called and made an appointment for my first physical in 9 years.

When the nurse placed BP cuff on my arm I explained that I know my BP is high, blah, blah, blah. As the cuff tightened around my arm and the nurse read the numbers he said, "Wow, you weren't kidding it's high!"

Just what you want to hear.

It was off the charts ~ something like 168 over 110 (120 over 80 is normal). They were a little worried letting me walk out the door and having a stroke in the parking lot... I hate prescription drugs, but sometimes you gotta' do what you gotta' do. So I was given a mild BP drug to bring those numbers down along with instructions to monitor my BP every morning and every evening until I see them again in 2 weeks.

I was sent for more tests for those lumps and got to spend the entire weekend wondering if my days were numbered. And in cases like this, the internet is not my friend.

But today is a new day.

The good news is ~ I have a very vivid imagination.  And the lumps are harmless lumps and as of this morning my BP is lower than it has been in years - 124 over 92.  

Yeah. That sigh you just heard? That was me.

So although I still have some things to work on - nothing is life threatening - and a wee celebration was in order last night. 

I will be around a bit longer to enjoy my lilacs and play with my Lensbabies.

There really is no greater feeling than knowing that all the horrible things you imagined aren't going to happen. At least not today.

And all of it serves as a reminder that - especially as the years move on - it is really important to stay in touch with my body and what it may be trying to tell me. And get those annual physicals.

Because without my health, I have nothing.

When was your last physical?  She says with love. :)

I Heart Summer Mornings

It was a very early morning walk (with my beloved Lensbaby 2.0 and telephoto adapter) in the park today.

Followed by a Ginger Pineapple Banana Smoothie.

I'm actually cutting up bananas to freeze for future smoothies, too.

It was quite yum but I think I will add more pineapple next time.

And go with vanilla yogurt rather than plain.

And then it was time to do a tour of my little garden (which means my potted flowers on my deck and the lilac bushes in the front yard).

I do love early summer mornings...

Happiness is...

Last night I watched a documentary called "Happiness is" ~ well, ok, half of a documentary called "Happiness is."  It started out interestingly enough talking with everyone from college professors who analyze happiness to homeless (but talented) artists who create their own happiness despite the odds to children who just are happiness.  The filmmaker lost me, though, when he focused on immigration and featured an on-air pissing contest between Bill O'Reilly and Geraldo Rivera.  Granted it was kind of funny to see the two of them going at it, but the film didn't seem quite so happy anymore.

But it did get me thinking about happiness ~ which can be so elusive or so simple and means so many different things to so many people.  Happiness is a big deal to me but sometimes it seems the more I chase it, the more I analyze it ~ the more it slips away.  

So I took some time and returned to the one thing that can always bring some modicum of happiness - a walk in nature. This morning I took my Canon and my trusty Lensbaby 2.0 and the telephoto adapter and hit the trail. I didn't clear my head as much as I would have liked, but damn it felt good to be back on the path. And did get me thinking...

I noticed that despite our wet spring the lake is low.

And then - not to sound too dramatic - I thought

well, at least I have a lake.

At least I have water.

And then I thought about this ~

Stop analyzing. Stop searching for what is right in your own backyard. Stop creating problems where they may be none. Stop worrying. Stop being dramatic.

Just be happy. Do things that make you happy. For fuck sake.