Shore Birds Keeping Warm

Here's to having fun along the shore.... despite the temperatures, or the windchill factor. The various flocks and families of gulls are just so very fascinating. Thank goodness for the sunshine and the blue skies. Please feel free to write a "caption" for that last picture with the talking gull. Leave your caption in the comments section.

Daytona (Freezing) Beach

 

 

 

 

We have made it safely to our honeymooner's-haven: Daytona Beach. The skies are blue, the sun is shining and it was down to 31 degrees last night!! Seriously, unseasonably cold. This did not deter my enthusiasm for walking the sandy beach this morning. We just wore layers and layers and more layers!! Hooded sweatshirts pulled up around our faces. Allen had the brilliant wisdom to think to walk INTO the fierce wind initially, so that our return trip back to the resort was nearly effortless. The forcast calls for the entire rest of the week to hover near freezing at night time. Getting a few degrees warmer each afternoon.

It's hilarious to see the 8 and 9 year olds swimming in the resort's heated pool, while everyone passes by wearing their woolies and long-johns. Kids will be kids -- and they're in FL, so they're going to go swimming!

Happy Valentine's Day

 

Would you call prom for seniors: senior prom?? Last night was our community dance for Valentine's Day. We went and had a super-great time dancing. Allen had planned ahead with the d.j. and had them play "our" song -- which was perfect for a fox trot across the brand new dance floor. The seriously great news is that we could also swing dance and complete most of our turns. No pretzel maneuver, but the basics were within my range-of-motion.

Unfortunately you can't see my brand new polka-dot flippity dance skirt in our professional picture. LOL.

Blizzard Baby Birthday!!

 

My babyiest daughter is celebrating her twenty-fifth birthday today. How is that possible?? In honor of her arrival on planet Earth we hung some of her original artwork today in our home here. I 'snatched up' her painting a couple of years ago. She painted it the summer she played camp counselor at art camp. We've just been waiting for the right moment to get it up on the wall. It's our first N.D. Hollister. The frame is Ikea. So is the pillow.

Noelle was born during an enormous winter storm. After she had arrived safe & sound they closed the entire county down for the next five days, to all travel except emergency vehicles. So I had a long stay in the hospital. Right in the middle of my stay, the window right beside my bed blew in. It was replaced with sheets of plywood and I was moved to a new room. Memorable.

It seems only fitting that in honor of her 25th there would be storm after storm after storm pummeling their Annapolis-DC area, setting historic records for snow accumulation.

Angels in Mini-Vans

It's now 5 weeks since my second diagnosis of DCIS. I had two years and nine months to consider the possibility of hearing that announcement again, "It's cancer." It's been just over three weeks since my surgery and I am making progress toward reclaiming my life. One step at a time. Literally. My BC mentor and friend, Saint, put me on a very specific walking program. We call it: one step at a time. (My new mantra.) Walking upon waking and then a nice rest with computer visiting and then a second walk sometime after lunch. I am working very hard to pace myself, to guard against my splurge toward 'over-doing' it.

So earlier this week I checked the skies & the thermometer and dressed appropriately: walking pants, long sleeve t-shirt and then due to the 49 degrees I zipped up my hot-pink, winter parka, all the way up to my hood. For Pete's sake I'm from the mid-west... 49 degrees on a February morning with a blue sky, is an open inviation to get moving!

Off I went. I have a route. I follow it conscientously, again, to guard against my own enthusiasm & my desire which over-extends my actual current capabilities. I was just about to my half way mark, when I heard a car approaching me from behind. Slowing down. Someone needing directions to the clubhouse perhaps?? (It's really hard to imagine that anyone is lost.) The mini-van came to a complete stop and the driver put her window down and I walked over. Then came the most amazing part of the interaction, the part worth logging down for posterity. The driver said these four words to me, "You are sooooo courageous."

I am stunned. I am flabber-gasted. I have no words. I am on the verge of tears.... maybe even a total melt-down? How does she know? How does this total stranger know my story? The tears are all set to cascade when in my complete silence she continues, "This is such a cold morning for a Florida walk."

My tears turn to laughter on a dime, instantaneously. My heart does a couple of cart-wheels. She doesn't know my tale of woe!! She has not used her super powers of x-ray vision to beam thru my three layers of protective gear to assess my scars. She did not read the bumper sticker on my back that says 'bilateral-basket case, no recon, approach with care'. She has not ascertained anything from my body language or the pace of my walk. She apparently didn't even see the neon lights blinking over my head flashing: "2-time cancer survivor, emotional land mine, pass with caution." She was commenting on the unseasonable weather. Seriously!! In her mind, walking on a brisk morning made me courageous. Just imagine.......

I stammer something about recently completed surgery and my needing fresh air. She asks for my first name & promises to say a prayer for me. My return trip home is a blink, because I keep repeating her statement to myself, "You are sooo courageous. You are SOOO courageous. YOU are sooooo courageous." [I think it's one of those times when "fake it-till ya make it," is applicable.] I can squeeze my ears, right now as I type, and hear her saying to me, "You are soooo courageous." I'm inching closer and closer to my new normal. Tomorrow's assignment will be to walk and smile at the same time.

Never under-estimate the power of four kind words spoken by a stranger.

A mini-van with an angel. Thank you and thank you again.

(****edited to add a posed picture of me walking thru my neighborhood against the blue FL sky, that's Fran's new P.T. Cruiser in their drive-way.)

UNBirthday Party

 

 

Here are the first pictures of me on this side of surgery. Proof-of-life! All I can claim is clean hair. LOL. (Of course any of you who have had surgery to the top half of your body realize that having CLEAN hair, i.e. washing your own hair, is an ENORMOUS victory in itself. Using a round brush or curling iron are skills to aspire to, as my range-of-motion improves....baby steps.)

These are my parents, here at our FL home, to celebrate all of our birthdays. How do you spell carrot cake? YUMMY. I know they were relieved (insert: THRILLED) to see me up and moving and more-or-less acting like myself. They can exhale now. I will get stronger with each passing week and then rebuild some stamina after that. In the meantime it was great fun to celebrate each other with UNbirthday love.

Don't Leave Home Without It

 

So here I am, sitting around recooperating from surgery, and I get a call from the fraud division of American Express asking if I had ordered an Apple Computer on line. Obviously, the fraud department was tipped off because they know our home is total PC. Always has been, always will be.

In any case, this required me to cut up my old card and them sending a new one over night. Imagine my extreme delight to see that the experiation date is 12/13!! (My birthdate, silly wilkins.) I will smile every time I use it for the coming years.