The Toils of Getting Old

It has been a terrible few days, feeling ill. I have been unable to run or walk. For one such as myself, for whom such exercise is a daily event, not being able to get out there is nightmare time. To have to stay at home, with the feeling that you just want to be out there.

I began to wonder is this what it is like to be old. Then the penny drops and you begin to realise that for most people you already are old. It is a bit like the old lady who was asked, “What is the best thing about being 94?’  Her immediate answer was, “The lack of peer pressure.”

Or to be like the old lady in a story I was told very recently. She  felt like her body had got all out of shape.  So she got her doctor's permission to join a fitness club and start exercising. I decided to begin with an aerobics class for seniors. 

She said, “I bent, twisted, gyrated, jumped up and down, and perspired for an hour. But, by the time I got my leotards on, the class was over.

This morning I am feel just a bit better, and looking forward to being able to at least have a walk, if only down to the village. I know that I will not make a good old person. I suppose I should begin to look at life and rejoice in what I can do, not what I am no longer able to do.

Which leaves me with yet another story to brighten your day. Another from an old lady. Talking to her friend she was overheard to say.

I've have began to realize I have gotten old!  I've had two bypass surgeries, a hip replacement,  new knees, fought prostate cancer and diabetes. I'm half blind, can't hear anything quieter than a jet engine, take 40 different medications that make me dizzy, winded, and subject to blackouts.  Have bouts with dementia. Have poor circulation; hardly feel my hands and feet anymore. Can't remember if I'm 85 or 92. Have lost all my friends.

 But, thank God, I still have my driver's license.

Have a good day.

This blog is linked to my other where I talk of the artwork above.  I Don't Like Mondays

A Visit To The Bank

The holiday now seems like no more than a distant memory. I have returned to so many things that need doing. My daughter in law made a marvellous job of looking after my plot when I was away. The one thing she was so unsure about was harvesting the now very fruitful space. She was able to cut lettuce and salad leaves and pick peas, but that was it. My onions were all ready to bend over and prepare for lifting and drying. My potatoes were all ready for cropping and a marvellous crop it has turned out to be this year.

She and my son have been off on holiday and this has meant my keeping tabs on his mail for his legal business, a task that took a few hours out of each day.  So one thing and another and I have as yet not managed to have a day at the paint since my return. I hope to put that to rights as soon as he returns home which will be this evening.

I have had a few occasions that have required trips to the bank over the past week. On one day in front of my in the line of people waiting to be served was a family from USA. They were hoping to change US$ into GB£. The exchange rate, as you all are aware I am sure, is not at all good for such an exchange. So he was letting me know loud and clear that this was the case. Telling me and everybody else in the bank that my lovely country was a costly place to visit.

This reminded me of the tale I was told very recently that just has to bring a smile to your face.

There was an Asian lady  in the bank
trying to exchange yen for dollars.
It was obvious she was a little irritated  ... . She asked the 
teller, "Why it change? Yesterday, I  get two hunat dolla fo yen.
Today I only get hunat eighty? Why it change?"


The teller shrugged his shoulders and said, "Fluctuations."

Taken aback for only a second, 
The Asian lady says, "Fluc you white people too"

My apologies for that but it really did make me laugh out loud.

One last bit of news.  Those who follow my blogs know that I am not a competitive sort of person!!!!! So it is with some humility that I share with you that I have just been told I have won the trophy for the best garden plot for 2011. All my work has not only given me wonderful produce but also I feel pleased and honored to have won this award. 

The pic is of my first cooking of my first crop of beetroot, and that little lot is not even noticed missing in the plot.

Listen Before Speaking.

It seems like a million years since I last wrote a blog or was able to make comment on one of the blogs of friends. I am just home from Spain, where I had a marvellous holiday. My holiday could be summed up very much in the words of the security guard of the caravan park I was staying on. Every morning as I ran through the gate, as I headed out for my morning run, he would look at his watch, and on my run return tell me the time I had been gone.  The same happened in the afternoon when I headed off with my walking pole. After the first week of my holiday he said, “Never do I see anybody who all day every day is making exercise.” I could not help but smile.

One of the marvellous things about staying in another country is meeting people who look at life so different from ourselves. The language is not the only thing that makes life different. The Spanish have a large lunch, then late at night, and I mean late, ten o’clock, they will have the main meal of the day. The whole family gather round the table and this late night meal becomes an event. 

On my first year visiting I found this difficult. I wanted to be asleep at ten o’clock, not listening to chatter I could not understand. Now after years of visiting I accept this is the way things are and I try my best to join in and be part of it.

This brings other advantages, the people of the area warm to those who try to fit in with the culture. Over the years I have made many knew friends. What a joy to see them each year, even if we are not always on the same page when we communicate. The many misunderstandings only lead to more laughter.

I painted three works. Two fairly fast paintings of the sea and rocks, and an abstract inspired by the restful things I do on holiday. More of that you can see on my other blog.

The two sea painting I actually liked on first sight, on reflection they have found their way into my bin. The more I looked at them the more I saw they had no soul.

The abstract, I did not like on completion, but it has developed and grown on me, and my family like it. I have shared it here and talked about it on my other blog. You will either like it or hate it.

Let me end today with a thought. Thinking of speaking to people in a language you do not really know brings its problems and takes much concentration and thought. Listening to what is being said is crucial, then that is also the case when you do know the language, maybe more so.

Think of this little story.

The newlywed wife said to her husband when he returned from work, “I have great news for you. Pretty soon, we’re going to be three in this house instead of two.”

Her husband ran to her with a smile on his face and delight in his eyes.

He was glowing of happiness and kissing his wife when she said, “I’m glad that you feel this way since tomorrow morning, my mother moves in with us.”

This blog is linked to my other.  Crosswords

It was Jan Friday the 13th, and I was in a deep and wrestles quandary. It had nothing to do with the superstition of Friday the 13^th being a bad day, it was much more simple, the next day I would be 40. I was insecure about entering a new decade of my life and feared that my best years were now behind me.

 I was a parish minister in those days. I lived a very busy life of visiting, conducting funerals, visiting hospitals and all the things that make up the days of a busy parish minister.

In my parish there lived a man named Roddy. Roddy was in his 60s and he went out running two or three times a week, not great distances, but he ran. I remember asking him one day, "What was the best time of your life?"

Without hesitation, Roddy replied, "Well, Ralph, this is my philosophical answer to your philosophical question:

"When I was a child and everything was taken care of for me and I was nurtured by my parents, that was the best time of my life.

"When I was going to school and learning the things I know today, that was the best time of my life.

"When I got my first job and had responsibilities and got paid for my efforts, that was the best time of my life.

"When I met my wife and fell in love, that was the best time of my life.

"When I was a young father, watching my children grow up, that was the best time of my life.

When I was made Boys Brigade captain and I had to prepare the weekly events for the boys in the company that was the best time of my life.

"And now, Ralph, I am sixty-five years old. I have my health, I feel good and I am in love with my wife just as I was when we first met. This is the best time of my life."

And now here I am, older than Roddy was the day we spoke. Amazingly, like him I am out running, longer miles than he was and more often. I have my garden plot. And I have put some pictures of it in its present state, mainly because Jerry keeps asking. I am painting, and on my other blog is my latest, and even as we speak one of my paintings has just sold and is heading off to Germany. So in many ways this is the best time of my life. 

This blog is linked to my other. the making of an abstract

Is The Truth So Difficult?

It seems amazing how difficult it is for some people to just be honest. Now let me define that just a little bit further. It seems difficult for some people to admit that they are wrong or are to blame.  Why do I find that so strange? We, we do seem to live in a blame culture. We are always ready to point the finger of blame. Accidents no longer happen, because somebody has to be blamed for everything. The number of ambulance chasing law firms seems to be steadily on the increase, and sadly they seem to be managing to stay in business.

Now take that and then think about this lovely experiment I heard about the other day.  A student research group prepared two job application letters. The made both of the candidates have the exact same qualifications and the exact same amount of experience.  The one, and only thing, they made different in both was in the section where both had to give some personal thoughts about themselves. David highlighted all of his good qualities missing out not a thing. John on the other hand not only mentioned all his good qualities he also mentioned that at times he could be difficult to live with.

The two applications were shown to a number of employers and each was asked to make comment and to state which if any of the two they would hire. Without exception all employers opted for John. When asked why, they all made comment on the fact that they were impressed with his open honesty about his weakness.

What brings all this to my mind?  In the last two weeks while out running , I have had  a number of occasions when I find snarling dogs snapping round my heels. There is nothing more alarming when running than a barking and bared tooth dog.  When I stopped for one and asked the owner to control his dog he responded, “It is because you are wearing bright clothes and look strange.”  Another owner said, “It is because you are running that they are doing that.”  Another lady with three very large dog, one with a muzzle, said, “There is no sign saying I have to have the dogs on a lead.”  In all cases, who was to blame? It seems it was all my fault. I looked wrong, I dressed wrong or I had the nerve to run.

Not one apologised and admitted they should at least have had some control over their dog. You know what? This morning I met a man and his dog. As I passed it headed towards me barking. Like a shot he was after it and got its collar and put it on the lead and apologised.  Will I be nice to him in the future? Of course I will. I so like open and honest people. So refreshing.

This blog is linked to my other where I speak about the artwork.  At The Going Down Of The Sun