Zura

Advbike - haha re the dancers hip, he might have phrased it "I think", it probably wasn't an official diagnoses as no scans etc but he just seemed stuck on it lol. I joked to myself later, after doing some unique Zura style dancing helped bring some relief, it might be reverse dancers hip, aka I just need to dance more 😂. Obviously, in my case, movement without bearing weight on it seems to help as walking really aggrivates it. I think it's either genetic or perhaps a weird family gait thing as hip issues, from a young age, run in the family 🤷. Not one of us has yet to receive any definitive medical etc answers, treatment and management.

Oye re the HOA meeting. Us humans are such tricky creatures. So complex in our ways, and ever expansionally so as we globalise and our social networks, and infrastructure evolve. I don't envy those sorts of experiences. It's hard enough getting a family unit these days to work together let alone any larger group!

Dickensen - I also loved hearing about the orchid growing. I hope your staying safe with the weather situation etc.

Pline - lovely to hear from you. Sending best wishes that all is going well for you.

All is well here, the usual activities that bring much joy mixed with the evolving uncomfortable parts of life that bring some dis-ease. And distraction from everyday activities (so annoying lol) but I'm back on track and about to dive into a very big, long project.

dickensen

Zura, There is no hurricanes in sight for Southwest Florida. Our problem is lack of rain. Every day we have beautiful thick black thunderstorm clouds in the evening with a flourish of wind but little rain. Tonight, the weatherman upped his rain prediction to 90%. Most of the orchids are now hung in the bottlebrush tree so a good shower would be appreciated.

advbike

Good Morning to all.

Dickensen, sorry no rain has materialized yet. Perhaps some misting will be in order.

I can empathize with the walking pain, Zura, more than ever, as the reality of my physical situation is sinking in. Having been an endurance athlete (of sorts) for 40 years, it is extremely disconcerting, if not depressing, to realize I am going to have to give up or severely curtail significant aspects which bring me so much joy. I cannot believe I was racing fellow cyclists on the bike path only a month ago. Of course I have exercised addictively, like many things I do, so this is a wake up call in that regard also.

I have been unable to bike, and can only walk sparingly at the moment. I am thankful I can walk at all at this point. Accepting the diagnosis of severe osteoarthritis means I must preserve the function I still have left and stop recklessly doing damage. I don't want to even think about a joint replacement at this time, although clearly that will be on the horizon at some point, when the pain gets bad enough. Not trying to be a downer here, it's just my new reality, and I am coming to a point of acceptance. I had MRI's which showed significant cartilage wear and arthritis in 2015 but have been in total denial about it.

I am so glad alcohol is no longer a consideration, as It would absolutely be the end of me. It would ramp up my shame, anxiety and depression and eliminate any chance I have of charting a successful path through this. Significant changes are going to have to be made as is. Fortunately my sleep is back to normal though - thank God for small miracles. But I have put on a few pounds already because my usual 3000 kcal/day caloric intake is suddenly about 1000/day too much. Sigh. So many changes need to be made, but it is important to note that my mood is pretty good. My dear departed mother used to say that God never gives us more than we can handle and I suppose it sunk in.

I am enjoying reading Dopamine Nation - it is not too dense, yet seems fairly on target with respect to how we are faced now with such an abundance of addictive substances, technology and behaviors - which our brains have not evolved to handle, since they developed in times of scarcity. Dopamine being the brain's primary mechanism of seeking more, which was important when we were seeking food on the savannah, but causes us lots of problems when drugs, porn, gambling, shopping etc are only a click away. I can see how aspects of my own past behavior reflects this. Sigh. There are ways to get back in balance though, which is the good news.

Well, enough blah, blah, blah. Time for my second cup of Joe (thank God for simple pleasures) and on to my day.

Best to all.

Zura

Dickensen - whilst I'm glad your not dealing with hurricanes, lack of rain after dryness isn't ideal either. Sending prayers for rain for you. I like imagining orchids hanging in a tree etc.

Advbike - it definitely would be a big adjustment for you not being able to cycle etc. Is it possible it will heal to the point where your getting around and sleeping ok, or is this likely the new normal? I hope its the former, and your medical peeps can recommend some form of exercise that's suitable.

I haven't actually read dopamine nation but have listened to a talk by the author. It really resonated.

Anyway, big day today so best get at it! Best wishes to all for a good day.
​​​​​​

pline

Morning all.

Dopamine Nation looks like an interesting book.
Totally understand the phone thing. I have a distant relationship with phones, social media. Reactions of other ppl to this can be revealing. The new manager obviously irritated that he could not find me and then wife on social media. First thing he did was look for all the people on Facebook. The suggestion was made that we were 'hiding'.
I explained the idea of privacy as something to be valued. Seemed a bit difficult for him to grasp. Phones.....again, ppl irritated if you are not instantly and continually available.
My current phone vibrates slightly as you pick it up. Its weird.....as though its made somehow personally responsive. They are carefully designed to cultivate addictive behaviour.

Arthritis. Yes, adaption is only possible response. As I've mentioned, its arrived in the big toe joints for me....podiatrist, orthotics and adaption only way. Knee would be way harder to adapt to tho. Rowing machine? Weights? Motorbike for the road experience. Joint replacements aren't the end.....can be v effective. Made an amazing difference to one aquaintance.

Hope the weather breaks for you Dickenson. We in the south are feeling the arrival of winter now. Constant forecasts here of storms and high winds which never seem to actually arrive.

Life continues fairly busily here. Pulling a couple of projects together. Rebuilt the laser cutting head ( yeah, I know....still doing it) so will go downstairs and put it back together this morning.

All the best.
Later

dickensen

We received some rain last night - the first rain in a long time. There is another good chance for tonight.

advbike

Good morning all. Another bright sunny day here in the Sonoran Desert - kinda boring, lol..

Dickensen, so glad the rain has arrived! We will probably not get any for another month or two, when (hopefully) the monsoon arrives.

Zura, yes, my mobility will be fine, once this latest goofball damage that I did heals up. Already I am walking okay, with improvements every day, just have to be careful not to twist the left knee too hard - the one I damaged on the gravel bike a few weeks ago. My natural tendency is to kind of move quickly (I walk really fast also) - this is not good when you have knee damage. The other problem appears to be that I kept getting back on the bike too soon, and then pushing hard (because of my competitive nature), when it hadn't healed up. No more of that. I am taking a full week off this time, then starting back with the trainer to properly rehab the knee. I am also doing the old PT exercises from a previous incident a decade ago..

The trainer is a back wheel roller for the road bike, with fluid resistance. Cycling on a fluid trainer is almost like being on the road since you mount a real bike to it and just pedal. You can vary the resistance and time of course. The advantage is it is the same position and feeling since you are on your own bike. Plus the constant steady effort - no hills or other cyclists to distract me to push harder, haha. I will use this setup while my knee heals, then start integrating use of the other bikes, including the e-bike, until I am riding regularly again. Hopefully..

I am also going to make the commitment and join a gym. My regular pushups and dumbbells aren't enough to burn the calories I will need to burn, over the long term, and I can see that I need to balance my approach better, probably reducing the cycling over time to reduce joint wear. As Pline mentions, adaptation is the name of the game here.

Pline, interesting comments about the social media - the comments and pressure at work. Not very informed thinking, but also not surprising. Stick to your guns, friend.

The Dopamine book is great - highly recommended.

Best to all.

Zura

Dickensen - wonderful you had some light sprinkling, I hope it signals a break to the dryness and you receive ample amounts to come.

Advbike - Wonderful news to hear that it will heal, to an extent and that there will be some suitable adjustments available to you, in time.

pline - I know it's the new normal re social media stalking by employers, but I still find it extremely creepy, invasive and plain weird. Boundaries, right? And social media is usually used as a very fake form of self-advertisement so it's not even an accurate measure. I warned my kids about the ramifications of the whole social media thing when they were very young (held out on electronic devices as long as I could). One opted out entirely of social media and the other created an annoymous online identity, as they love online activities and most require a 'profile'.

As for me, I pondered my future whilst working away today as, as I've mentioned, I'll be transitioning towards the world of employment soon. Still no closer to an answer. I just can't pinpoint any vocation that aligns with me. I'm certainly not putting in substantial financial investment towards any vocational training that doesn't resonate, as everything requires ridiculously expensive certification these days. I've already got one useless university degree that I never got to benefit from and whilst I was suited for that kind of work back then, it would have drained my life force if life hadn't taken me down a different path entirely and made that avenue null and void.

I feel I should be honing some craftsmanship skills of some sort and developing a business in relation to that. But it's just not coming to me and time is running short lol. Come on universe, reveal already, your making me nervous 🤣.

Anyway, that's my day so far. Now switching off from work, duty and future career nonsense to connect with myself and relax. I hope everyone is having/has a good weekend 😊.

advbike

Motorcycles rule! Haha, just back from my morning ride. I rarely ride it but when I do I love it, lol.

Zura, I do hope you find something in line with your values and rewards. Maybe working in a nursery with plants, or on a nature preserve, or a small homeopathic business. Or something artistic. I do agree that it should be something that utilizes your skills and creativity.

dickensen

We just went through an unusual dry spell in May in South Florida; but we are on the cusp of the rainy season that will last from now until the middle of October. The last of the lenai orchids will go out into the tree tomorrow. The next job will be cutting the shrubs and also to remove any evil vines that we find. The Florida milkweed plants are doing great. The Monach butterflies are feeding on the flowers' nectar and laying eggs on the leaves. When the eggs hatch, they will feed on the milkweed leaves and become new butterflies. There is a movement across the States to plant milkweed plants to help the Monarch's.

Success working is a function of finding something that you like to do but also finding a place where you fit in and enjoy the people (and they enjoy you). There is a big world out there with all kinds of possibilities yet so many people are stuck and hate their jobs. Good luck in your search.

advbike

Dickensen, that is so fantastic that you do your part to provide food for the Monarch butterflies. I have a Desert Milkweed bush in my yard which attracts them but not in great quantities. I suppose it is too hot or dry where I am, although it seems we have more butterflies in general (including monarchs) when we have had a good summer monsoon. Thank you for reminding me how important this is!

Been using the trainer, knee a bit sore but tolerable. Have to ice it. Off for a motorcycle ride.

Best to all for a great week ahead.

pline

Maybe a bit of a swerve here, but I've been thinking a lot about the idea of of 'tolerance'.

I do engineering things. Tolerances are to me a thing. A tolerance is the degree of fit between parts. I use a computer modelling program that works, or refuses to work, depending on the tolerance settings. Its a measure of acceptable difference between parts. I've learned to get things to work by adjusting the tolerance settings.
At the other end I'm rebuilding an old British car. Tolerences here are crucial and tiny. They were made by good engineers, the people who built all those wartime aircraft.
They built these things so tight. Its rebuilding a 1960's racing car engine.

Then, the laser. What degree of tolerance is ok to accept with this? Its not perfect. But way better than it was. Do I stop at this point, and just use it. Yup

Tolerance is a level of acceptable imperfection. Its not perfect, but it works. Next time around, learn and rebuild again.

on we go.
later

advbike

I get it Pline, learned that lesson about tolerances (not to be confused with my alcohol tolerance) the hard way, Pline - many years ago.

Rebuilt the auto box behind a big block V8, and got sloppy shimming the clutch packs. It lasted only 400 miles before it failed and I had to drop it again and rebuild it properly. Shimmed perfectly this time. Was still going strong 80,000 miles later when I sold the car. Several nights on that cold concrete floor taught a hard lesson.

Monday morning here - lots to do this week. Knees slowly recuperating but rethinking my plans going forward - need a better balance in all of this. Biking might have to change, and of course the absence of alcohol for several months now just brings out the other behaviors. Had a great motorcycle ride on twisty mountain roads on Sunday, but laws might have been broken at times. No amount of sobriety has ever dampened my need for speed, unfortunately. Corners are what motorcycling is about for some of us, not plodding along in a line. Okay the fresh air and views are nice but no chance to take it in when you are focused on the road. A track day may be in order once these knees heal up. A friend recently suggested that I am an adrenaline junkie. Yeah, probably.. most definitely. It has something to do with risk for sure. Fire up those dopamine receptors.. Always flirted with it, to my detriment at times. Sigh. So many pieces to the puzzle.

Zura I hope you are doing well, miss your amazing posts about all you are accomplishing on that land.

Best to all for a great week ahead.

dickensen

I owned a CNC machine shop a while back. We lived with tolerances every day for every part that we made. Our mindset was to machine every part as perfectly as possible with no sloppiness. I sold the shop because I became too old for twelve-hour days, but sometimes I miss the craftsman of the work and the magic of chips flying off the cutters.

advbike

Definitely something special about that, Dickensen. Machine shops are wonderful for those of us who grew up in the mechanical world, and the precision of CNC is the epitome. I love precision mechanical devices and the simple life much more than all the newer electronic gadgets, focus on entertainment and "influencing", social media, etc. Time to move off grid, and grow my food like Zura does. I will just have to charge my e-bike from a solar panel, haha.

Hope all are well.

Zura

I like the premise behind tolerances, but having no engineering knowledge I'll just have to apply it philosophically. I also like the design KISS principal and try to apply it to life where possible. We do over complicate things.

All is well here. Haha advbike, I'm afraid I have no interesting gardening happenings going on at the moment. It's winter, most of the garden beds are fallow so it's replenishing time, which is where the majority of the hard work happens (weeding, turning over soil, topping up compost and mulch). With 100+ beds I divide them in half and do half each winter. I can only physically manage doing a couple of beds a day, so it'll take me a few weeks. Recently got a big pile of mulch delivered, exciting times 🤣.

Anyway, I hope everyone is having a good week.

advbike

wow, Zura - 100 beds.. that's absolutely amazing!

advbike

I am starting my healthy eating plan today - cutting out all sweets except fruit, as well as most bread, even though I eat only whole grain. Hoping to lose 10 lbs in 100 days.

I also have my first counseling session this afternoon, to address some of the bigger life issues I seem unable to take action on. It takes a really long time to get these appointments now, due to all the mental health problems in the US.

dickensen

advbike, I wish you success with your weight loss. Losing it and keeping it off isn't easy.

Zura

Advbike - good luck with the appt and eating plan ☺️.

Dickensen - hope your orchids are enjoying their new location 🌸.

Hope everyone else is doing well ❤️.

Enjoying a foggy overcast morning of gardening, im sure the sun will poke out for a little while later on. Anyway, back to work I go! Best wishes to all.