A trip to Target and a lesson about "stuff"....

    The other day I decided to make a quick run to Target to pick up a few things that I really needed. I figured it wouldn't take long, especially since I didn't need much. I grabbed what I needed and stepped up to the checkout counter. There was only one customer ahead of me so I knew I would soon be out the door and on my way home. 

    Her basket was full of small items, and the cashier meticulously turned each one over in his hands a few times before he scanned it. This was going to take longer than I thought, but that's okay. I have a lot of patience and I'm pretty good at entertaining myself. I played Ninja mind games, I played with shifting my weight, and I looked at a few magazines. Good grief, this was taking forever! 

    I was tired, my feet hurt, and I worried about getting home to let my dogs out. They are Italian Greyhounds, and they are notorious for being lackadaisical about their house training, especially when they've been left alone too long. They aren't malicious about it; it's just not high on their list of priorities. Finally, the cashier pulled off the sales receipt and handed it to the customer. She looked at it and said, "This isn't right. You overcharged me." Uh-oh.

    It took a few moments for him to realize his mistake. He put in a call for his supervisor. While we all waited for her to arrive, he smiled at me and said, "Miss, this is going to take a few minutes." No kidding. He was a gentleman, and I wasn't angry with him, especially after he called me "miss." But I had already waited long enough, and I politely replied, "It's okay; I'll come back another time. I really don't need all of this stuff right now, anyway." 

    The minute I said those words, I realized how true they were. There was nothing in my cart that I did need, except for the box of dog treats. After all, I had to give my little darlings something to keep them busy while I cleaned up after them. Everything else was just "stuff" that was getting in the way of my getting home, putting my feet up, and playing with my dogs. What was I thinking?

    I already have enough "stuff" in my life, and you probably do as well. The last thing we need is to collect more. Instead, perhaps we could focus on getting rid of the "stuff" we already have that may be getting in our way. Sometimes clearing out the clutter helps us gain clarity. I'm going to remember that the next time I feel the need to pick up a few things, and I'll think about what it is that I really do need instead.
    

Be healthy!
Cheryl Ilov, PT, GCFP 

The power of graciousness and the gift of friendship...

   
    While preparing our Thanksgiving dinner at our favorite mountain hangout, I heard a bit of commotion outside. I stepped outside to see what all the excitement was about. Across the street several cars were slamming on their brakes, tires squealing, and pulling over onto the side of the road. Car doors opened and people started pouring out of the cars with their cameras ready. Wondering what caught their attention, I noticed two huge bull elk standing in the grass, grazing, and minding their own business.

    The tourists seemed to be getting dangerously close to the elk trying to get their pictures. The basic rules of wildlife etiquette, so to speak, is to admire them from a distance, and do not invade their personal space. You do not approach them, you do not feed them, and if the animal changes it's behaviour, you are way too close for comfort. Apparently this group of shutterbugs either never learned the rules or chose to ignore them. One of the elk abruptly stopped grazing, lifted his head and stomped his feet.

    The tourists backed off, but when the huge elk lowered his head and started grazing again they pressed in even closer. I guess they figured that the elk was just bluffing. He wasn't. He abruptly lifted his head, snorted and jumped effortlessly over the fence, scattering tourists everywhere. I found it very amusing and highly entertaining, especially since no one got hurt, particularly the elk.

    The huge beast stood in the middle of the road, looking annoyed, when he suddenly saw me watching him. He caught my eye and we looked at each other for a long moment. Finally, he tossed his head in the direction of the departing cars as if to say, "morons!" I giggled and agreed wholeheartedly. Satisfied that we shared a common bond, he gracefully trotted across street, up the short driveway to just a few feet from where I sat on the porch railing. We sat together in quiet companionship for a few minutes.

     He must have felt comfortable with me, because he lowered his head and began grazing again.  He was so close that I could hear him pulling the grass from the earth. I could hear him chewing. As a matter of fact, he was so close that I could smell him. His scent was a little wild and game-y, but not unpleasant. I could see how it would appeal to his own kind. He must have read my mind, because at that precise moment he lifted his head and looked at me, as if to say, "You're not so bad yourself." I swear he winked at me as we shared our private joke.

    He returned to his breakfast, and I returned to admiring him. I admired his size and strength, grace and flexibility. I was honored that he was comfortable in my presence, when just a few moments earlier, other members of my species behaved in such a rude and barbaric manner. Maybe he figured that these unusual two legged creatures were more agreeable when they weren't encased in their hard metal shells that they had to break out of just to enjoy the great outdoors.

    Eventually he finished his breakfast and looked off into the woods where a few of his buddies were waiting. He looked at me one last time as if to say, "I have to go....the guys are waiting for me." I understood. He bowed his magnificent head, and I thanked him for his time, adding that he was not only good company, he was a gentleman as well. As I watched him leave, I remembered a phrase that I had recently heard. "Never underestimate the strength and the power of graciousness."

    There are so many lessons in this little story. But the most important one is obvious to me. Treating someone with dignity and respecting their boundaries is a lot more effective than trying to run them down. They may return the favor and reward you with a gift of friendship. That certainly is something to be grateful for, not only on Thanksgiving, but every day of the year.

Be healthy!
Cheryl Ilov, PT, GCFP

Reddy Kilowatt meets Mr. Sparky

    When I was a little girl, I did what a lot of kids do out of interest and curiosity when the opportunity arises. I took a hairpin and stuck it in an electrical outlet. I wasn't a fast learner in a lot of life's experiences, mostly because of my incomparable stubbornness. I figured if something didn't go my way the first time I tried it, I'd do it again until I got the outcome I wanted.

    However, the shock I got was a pretty immediate and lasting learning experience. I never did that again. I also learned that the cute and sparky little fellow that represented our power company had a mean streak. And one heck of a bite. For years, we all remembered the day that Reddy Kilowatt bit me.
       
    Here it is, over fifty years later, and I am having electrical issues again. We have known for a long time that our wiring was outdated and not up to code. We had an electrician tell us several years ago that we needed to rewire the entire house. Okay, we knew we would get around to it, someday. But we didn't worry about it too much, until the day I watched as flames shot out of a neighbor's fuse box. So, the electrician had a point.

    Enter, Mr. Sparky. No, I'm not kidding. That's the name of the company that we hired. Actually, I hired them to do two small jobs. That changed when he opened our fuse box. The two small jobs evolved into a major (and expensive) project. He showed us what the problem was, and where we had already had two burns. Again, visions of flames shooting out of the neighbor's fuse box and the power of Reddy Kilowatt flashed in my mind. It was time to git 'er done.

    It took three visits and a team of electricians to get the work done. At least I had an idea of why it cost so much. On the second day, they started changing the old outlets and pig tailing the wires. Whatever that means. One of the electricians saved an outlet to show us what it looked like. She told us, "This was a bad one." The top half of the top outlet was black and the plastic had melted away. It looked like Reddy Kilowatt was messing with me again.

    Anyway, Mr. Sparky took charge of my childhood nemesis.  He got control of that zippy little rascal, reigned him in and got him hog tied. Or pigtailed. You get the idea. The important thing is that the work is finally completed, and my home is safe. It was an expensive home improvement project that no one can see, and only we can appreciate. But it beats flames shooting out of your fuse box. And at least all of the new wall plates look pretty.

    Funny, I was writing this post while Mr. Sparky was putting the final touches on the new wiring. I had finished the story and noticed that I was having a problem saving it. It seems Mr. Sparky had cut off the power to my computer and I lost the entire post. I think Reddy Kilowatt was the culprit, just letting me know that he still has some power over me.

    I saved the burned outlet. I might have it made into a necklace. Or maybe I can use it for the grown up version of show and tell. I will keep it as a reminder to enjoy a major home improvement project that no one can see. And as a gentle reminder to listen the next time some one tells me I have a problem with my wiring. I'll apply the life's lesson that I learned as a child. Which is that just because Reddy Kilowatt is cute, he still needs to be respected.
     
        At this point I have to put a plug in for Mr. Sparky, so to speak. They do a great job. So, if you are in the Denver area and looking to have some work done, keep them in mind. Their team of electricians are very professional, respectful, friendly, always on time and clean up after themselves. Even better, one of the electricians was a girl. That in itself made Reddy Kilowatt shake in his hot little yellow boots. What more could I ask for?

     So, that's the story of the day that Reddy Kilowatt met Mr. Sparky. It looks like my old nemesis had met his match. It wasn't exactly a match made in heaven, but at least sparks aren't flying.

Be healthy!
Cheryl Ilov, PT, GCFP

Brown bag, lunch time, and April Fool's.

    When I was growing up, I never ate lunch in the school cafeteria. The first time I did eat in a school cafeteria was on my first day of college. It was pretty awful, and I had an even greater appreciation for the brown bag lunches that my Mom packed for me and my sisters every single morning.

    In elementary school we walked home for lunch every day. But once we entered junior high, my sisters and I brought our lunch from home. Our mother would pack a sandwich, piece of fruit and a cookie and put them in the classic brown bag. Sometimes she would put a hard boiled egg, left-over chicken, or anything else that was handy. Lunch was always predictable and reliable.

    However, one day each year, our mother took a few liberties with our lunches. She had a great sense of humor, and loved a good joke. Every April Fool's Day, the joke was on us. And in our lunch bags. Peanut butter sandwiches were laced with rubber bands. Two pieces of bread would hold a hand written note that said "April Fool!" On one occasion the note read, "This is not a piece of jumbo." (Western Pennsylvania slang for bologna). One time the sandwich was a picture of a slice of jumbo. If there was an egg, we weren't sure if it was hard boiled or raw, until we cracked the shell.

    She did it every year. Every year we knew she would do it, although a few times we did forget about her favorite holiday. At least, until we opened our lunch bags. Oh, yes, it's April Fool's Day. I can imagine her at home, watching the clock so she knew which child was in lunch period, opening her special brown bag. As much as she loved her little joke, she would never let us go hungry. She always had an extra lunch for us sent with one of our friends. So, by the time we were in high school, our friends knew about Mom's joke, and eagerly anticipated April Fool's Day to see what she came up with this time.

    So, on this April Fool's Day, I celebrate my mother and her sense of humor. I raise a slice of bread slathered with peanut butter and laced with rubber bands to my mother's memory. And to further honor her, I share with you the lessons I learned from her and those lunches. First of all, it's important to have a sense of humor. It's good for your health. It's important to laugh often, and laugh hard. A good belly laugh is good for your spirit and has the added benefit of working your abs without doing crunches. It's important to go along with a joke, even if you already know it's coming, and you are on the receiving end. It's even better to share the joke with friends. It teaches you not to take yourself too seriously.

    One last thing....always have a back up plan, just in case your brown bag is full of rubber bands, raw eggs and April Fool's. It's good to be prepared for the unexpected.


Be healthy!
Cheryl Ilov, PT, GCFP

What I learned on my Thanksgiving vacation.

    My three day Thanksgiving vacation was rich with learning experiences. I discovered how restful, restorative and rejuvenating three days can be, if you just let go of expectations. I found out how much fun winter hiking is, as long as you dress appropriately. I realized that it really is possible to cook a full Thanksgiving dinner in an unfamiliar kitchen, no matter how small it is.

        Life is full of opportunities to learn. All we have to do is let go of expectations, dress appropriately, and get a little adventurous! 

Be healthy!
Cheryl Ilov, PT, GCFP