Hanging in There...

I have been struggling with high blood sugar for about 10 years now. The problem hasn't gone away, but I have managed to hold it at bay: I haven't started to take medication... yet. Occasionally my daily early morning glucose readings rise too high... Why? Sometimes my body is fighting an infection (unbeknownst to me...). A few days or weeks late on I discover the cause. Often I simply have to get back to the basics: Eat fewer carbs, walk more - preferably a least 45 minutes a day... And the situation rights itself. Every three months I have a blood test to monitor my situation.

One day recently, when my early morning glucose reading was much higher than it should be, I was very discouraged... I've been trying so hard for so long... It does get tiring... Was it the French fries I ate with the fish I had for supper last night? Is it a dental problem? Who knows?!!

Then I happened to read an early morning reflection on "enduring": The trouble is that we are all inclined to quit a thing too quickly, Joan Chittister writes. We quit when people tell us we will never make it. We quit when we get tired. We quit when we don't improve. These criteria slow a lot of human progress...

But, she cautions: Endurance is not a virtue when it tolerates evil... Never endure what is not in itself essentially good, or designed to make everybody's world a better place, or, in the end, really good for your own development...

So I'll resolve again to walk more - starting today - and to be less complacent about what I eat... Good health, that enables me to enjoy my life - and the people in it - is worth the extra effort of hanging in!

First Farmers Market of the Season

Last Saturday Terry and I drove to Carp for our first farmers' market of the season.

It was a busy place!

There wasn't much fresh garden produce available this early in the growing season, but there were a lot of bedding plants.

Also fresh farm meat, baked goods and maple syrup. Terry got a bottle. I couldn't resist buying some lemon tarts and Eccles cakes...







 

Then had an omelet on a croissant for lunch.

Next time I plan to try some award-winning ice cream or gelato that looked delicious...

Terry wants to try a smoked meat sandwich from this smoker...

With so much food to try, I know we'll be back soon!

Wooden Statue

Strange to be driving down the highway...

... and suddenly see a person (or a realistic statue) standing on the back of a pickup truck!

I wonder where he is heading - and who made him!

(It would be interesting to come across him again in his new home!)

New Lawnmower

It's never hard to get someone to cut grass if the lawn is small...

... and there is a new lawnmower to try out!

Of course, a barbecue "reward" is always nice, too!

Spidermen...?!

Terry and I spent several weekends in Toronto last month.

One morning, looking out the window of my downtown Toronto hotel, I noticed movement at the top of a tall building...

Someone was walking there! (Spider-man?!)

I watched, fascinated, as two workers attached guy ropes to the top balcony roof... (Walking on the open edge, they looked so vulnerable!)

Their ropes went a long way down! Were they going to slide down?!

Who were they? Window washers, perhaps, preparing for a day's work?!

(Glad I don't have to do that job!)

But they didn't slide down - as spiderman might! They disappeared...

Later on, walking outside, I noticed a person tethered to one of the ropes standing on a ladder on a lower balcony. He appeared to be caulking windows.

Does he have to do them all?! Most are too high to reach with a ladder.

I wasn't able to stay around all day and watch - so I left, glad I didn't have to do that job either! 

Luckily we all have different skills!

Visitors

One of my mother's younger brothers and his wife came to visit my mother last month.

In their large family of 14, he was 4th from the bottom and 10th from the top! My mother was 5th from the top - though two of her older siblings died in infancy.

They wanted to see her as soon as they arrived - but she was in bed! (She usually crawls into bed right after supper, at 6 o'clock)

The next day we enjoyed some musical entertainment with her...

Music and exercise classes are my mother's favorite activities.

Later they took her out in the garden for a walk and stayed for lunch.

A few days later, we drove back to Toronto with them. Their visit was a treat for us all!

Relaxing Outside Toronto City Hall

A few weekends ago, Terry and I were in Toronto.

Early one morning we I took a walk around city hall.

Finding a bench to sit on, we watched the early morning activity.

In winter, this fountain is a skating rink...

(The skating signs are up all year long...)

Nearby a large clock counted down the seconds till the Pan Am games begin later on this summer.

What a lovely space to simply sit and stare - thankful that we don't have to rush off to work!