Tasia's May 2006 Eviction Journal

I am finally feeling well enough to return to Victory. Since the last time I was at the gym I had finished the last day of my intro card, I started a new program today.

As I was going to be doing new things today, I started by doing a treadmill for the first time. Well, it is not really the first time. Years ago I had tried a treadmill machine at the YMCA. I fell on it and skinned my knee rather badly. Today was the first time I tried a treadmill at Victory. However, I did the hill climbing treadmill. This one for some reason does not look as scary as the flat treadmills look. It was actually fun. I think I will do this machine again on another day.

I want to work out downstairs for my weight because it is quieter. All of the cardio machines give the upstairs area a background noise that never quite goes away. Downstairs it is quiet when there are no classes. During classes they have music and I can look at people without the cycle noise of all the trainers.

The machines I used downstairs are a lot easier to get into and out of, once I got a stool. I think they make these things for tall men.

I also learned a lot of floor exercises that use my own body weight for the resistance. This is great as I’ll be able to do these exercises at home and when I am traveling.

I have kitten pictures! Jill at Last Chance Rescue had her friend Fran take some pictures of my two new kittens as her camera and her computer were not talking to each other.

For the second day in a row I am starting a brand new program. Victory is having a contest for who can loose the most inches in the month of May doing the same workout. After I did a good hike on the hill climbing treadmill I started the Fitness Express program - or as I call it the Lose your Caboose program.

Today I did lower body weight lifting. There was lots of floor stuff and I was actually alternating two exercises so the program takes less time. I would do one exercise on a machine, then an exercise on the floor. Repeating these two exercises three times and then one to another machine and another floor exercise. All in all there were six different exercises for the lower body. Afterward I did almost the same abdominal exercises as I did yesterday.

The second part of the Fitness Express program was for the upper body. According to the card the second part should have been just abdominal exercises. However, the trainer I am working with likes to do abs every day. I am not so sure about this as I have no interest in developing six pack abs. Yes, I want to evict my alien love child. However, I don’t want to leave the child’s jungle gym behind once it is gone.

I did not work with a trainer today. Instead I pulled my exercise card and decided that I needed the day off for my poor lower body. Yesterday I did my workout at Victory and I delivered my paper route from one location. This means that I basically did a whole body workout.

Instead of doing lower body and abdominal exercises I decided that I would only do abdominal after I did a longer cardio workout. I wanted to take it easy on my legs and hips which still ached a bit from Tuesday’s workout and Wednesday’s paper route. My idea of taking it easy was to do 65 minutes on the flat treadmill. This was taking it easy! I did the fat burning, lower heart rate program and enjoyed reading a book while I slowly walked at about 2.4 miles per hour. I was able to read a book because the manager of Victory handed me a book rack to put on the machine. This held my paperback book open so I could keep my hands on the heart rate monitor pads. The time passed rather quickly as I got into my book.

After I finished the sixty minutes I programmed the treadmill for it added a five-minute cool down. I headed down to the quiet of the lower level and did the abdominal workout. There were only two other people down there so it was very peaceful. I did have to go back upstairs to finish my workout. There is not an abdominal bench downstairs. Fifteen minutes in the inhalation room was enough time to finish the chapter I was reading before I left.

I did 65 minutes on the same treadmill on the fat burning setting again. Then I decided to do the lower body workout only. I promised Amy I would be home so she could call me and I only had half an hour before I was supposed to be home to take her call. I crept down to the lower level and did the first four exercises. At this point I felt rather wiped out. However, I wanted to at least do the leg press as I could do the side step squats at home. I went back upstairs and did my first set. Once I did that I decided it was silly not to do the squats as I needed to take a break between sets. I might as well do the side step squats while resting from the leg press.

I was completely feeling worn out when I left Victory. This is the first time since I joined that I have actually done five days in one week at the gym. I missed Amy’s call by minutes getting home because she called early so I ended up calling her back.

I am going to take today off of physical activity. I have done rather heavy workouts for seven days in a row.

Saturday I was supposedly going to have a light day. I now scoff openly at this delusion of mine. Ha!

Brian and I started the day with an innocent walk to campus for the OSU Renaissance Festival. We walked around for about two hours and then walked home. Afterward we discovered we had done at least a five-mile walk while carrying heavy bags.

Now, if that wasn’t enough physical activity for the day I decided I wanted to move wood after we were back home. I am not talking about little pieces of firewood. I am referring to the pile of 50+ year old silver maple tree trunk chunks we have had in our front yard for over a year, possibly two years.

Before I moved any of the wood I pulled out the lawn mower and started to mow the back yard. There was no reason to be cutting the wood up on tall grass. Besides, this way I could actually see how much wood we needed to cut up. My lawn mower decided to spit out its spark plug when I only had two thirds of the back yard mowed. Oh well, I had enough to have space to cut up wood on Sunday. Did I mention that I had invited people over on Sunday for a wood cutting day?

I started the wood relocation project by rolling three mostly round pieces, slowly and in a controlled manner, to the back yard. The next piece I could not roll so I went to get my garden wagon. I loaded a piece on the wagon and moved it to the back yard. The next piece I could not lift onto the wagon by myself. I had to get help.

Brian was roped into helping me move the rest of the wood. There were only thirteen pieces, and I had moved four by myself, plus one more I was able to roll. However, moving the wood to the back yard wore out Brian and me.

Sunday morning Brian and I were sore. We decided that we hoped no one showed up for the wood cutting day. We were in no shape to use our two-person crosscut saw to slab out the lumber. Instead, we cleaned the woodshop. Brian had a lot of scrap that needed to be sorted into keep, burnable, and trash. Plus, the shop needed swept and generally tidied up.

Most of the burnable wood we put into bins for our neighbor, David. He showed up with his family in the early afternoon. We told him no cutting today due to our being too sore. However, we did move all of the burnable scrap over to his house. I also borrowed his mower and managed to finish mowing the lawn. David will be coming back and help us with the crosscut sawing.

Now, as if cleaning the woodshop and moving wood to the neighbor’s house wasn’t enough physical activity, I laid some more paving stones before it got dark. I had taken a break and had some dinner, which I cooked over a fire. I really needed to burn a little wood after spending two days moving wood.

Today I have spent nearly the entire day working on the computer. I seriously thought about going to Victory this morning, but I resisted. I need to let my body have a day of rest. Tomorrow I can go back to the gym.

I finally did the ball class for the first time today. I have wanted to take this class since I started. However, it is not at a really convenient time. 9:30 in the morning just does not fit with when I tend to go to Victory.

The class was really fun! It was also way, way harder than I thought it would be. I thought I had balance. This class showed me that there is a lot more balance that I can develop. I plan on taking this class as often as I can get my schedule to allow me to attend.

Brian and I were up in Mount Gilead helping his parents in their moving efforts today. I packed a few things, but mostly I felt kind of like a third wheel. Brian had lots to do, but I was basically his chauffeur.

I did pack his father’s toolbox and the loveseat that matches the chair and rocker we brought home April 22nd.

Yesterday was a great day. Not only did I take the Get on the Ball class at Victory, but I also went and shot archery at Apache Bowhunters for the first time. I think I will join the club so I can go shoot anytime I can afford the time off, and it is not raining. I can practice at anything from 15 to 45 yard. Yesterday I didn't do too bad. I had all ten arrows I shot on the target. Not centered, but definitely on the target. Two of them are so tightly grouped they are practically in the same hole.

About noon today I will be dropping Brian off at his parent’s house to help with their move again. His brother came in yesterday and I asked him if he would give Brian a ride back to Columbus. This is allowing me to head up to Fort Meigs for the SCA event Baron Wars.

This will be my first camping SCA event in twelve years. I am so excited. I am not actually packing my own tent. I loaned my dome tent to someone in my local group. I will either sleep in my car or stay in Amy’s merchant tent as I am only going to stay Friday night. This is a different Amy. Brian keeps saying that most of my friend’s have the same names.

Saturday evening I will be leaving the event for my Mom’s house in Michigan. Actually, attending Baron Wars is only a five-mile detour on my up to my mother’s house. With the price of gas these days I cannot really do a lot of events that are very far from home.

Friday I drove to Baron Wars where it was cold, wet and muddy. I begged a bowl of stew. Then I went around to all the campsites and sang the praises of Boar’s Head Tavern’s stew. I slept in the merchant tent of my friend’s Amy and Don and froze! That tent had gapping holes in the sides, plus it was way too big for my body heat to warm up the interior. I am going to definitely pack my own tent next time.

Saturday, I was on the archery range the entire time it was open. Since I am an Archery Marshall-in-Training I did most of the set up of the range. I also ran the children’s range for part of the day. When the range finally closed down for the day I headed up the hill to where the other events were being held hoping to get to watch some fighting and the equestrian events. However, just then lightning storms started and people wrapped in metal are not a good idea during lightning so the fighting ended early. Playing fighting and pretend deaths are one thing. Real death from getting hit by lightning is not something I am ever interested in seeing. Horses and lightning do not mix either.

The drive from Baron Wars to my Mom’s was in the rain. It had rained on and off this entire weekend. I arrived at Mom’s house late that night, very tired.

Sunday was my first day on the farm. I started with raking leaves under the fence, at least 100 yards of fence. The leaves blow against the fence by the east pasture and stack up. My Mom gets rid of them by having someone shove them under the fence and later raking them into piles and burning them. This was the first time I got the fun of stuffing huge piles of leaves under the fence. It took hours. Luckily, the pasture is down hill from the yard. However, in places it was really steep.

Once I finished off the leaves the next job on Mom’s list was to replace the rotted whiskey barrels on the back deck with new ones. The sand in the bottom of the barrels was wet. Once I had removed all the topsoil and sand from the old barrels they collapsed. I laughed so hard at this point. At least they held together until the dirt was out of them. It would have been a bigger mess if they had given out part way through the shift.

That night I went over to my friends Steve and Theresa’s house. It is so nice to get to see my friends in Michigan when I am up helping Mom.

The next day I moved five wheel barrel loads of topsoil, pulled five old T posts, cleaned out a closet, and ended up trimming the ivy on the driveway. When I am on the farm I get plenty of exercise. No need for a gym membership when there are always chores to do.

In the evening I went over to see my best friend Amy. She lives only ten miles from Mom’s house. I did not take any pictures of the two of us. She was not home! Here I am all the way up in Michigan and Amy is at work. Her husband was home and at least I was able to drop off the chair I brought all the way from Columbus. Brian and I used to have it in our front room. Now that we have the furniture set his mother gave us we did not need it anymore and Amy’s family could definitely use it.

Tuesday started with a going shopping with my sister. Andrea is visiting from England. She looks great. She also claims that she definitely has an American body and cannot find clothes that really fit her over there.

In the afternoon I moved more topsoil for Mom, topped off the new barrels with more topsoil and raked gravel uphill. I had Mom’s entire list done and was looking forward to going home tomorrow.

That evening, my mother and Andrea completely surprised me. They decided to pay for my gym membership to Victory Fitness Center. Thank you Andrea! Thank you Mom! I am going to go to the gym very faithfully.

This morning I work up early at Mom’s and headed home. I did have one very important stop on the way. I picked up my new kittens this morning! Yeah, I have Gadget and Gizmo home now.

This was my fist view of my kittens. They are pouncing each other. This is specifically why I am getting two kittens. They will always be age appropriate playmates.

Gadget and Gizmo had several other kittens they knew at the shelter. Gadget also already had the habit of fighting with brooms. She also likes to perch on chair rungs.
To the right -> the cat below Gadget is their mom.

Once I got the kittens home, Brian and I took tons of pictures throughout the rest of the day.

When we got home Gizmo and Gadget had a whole new world to explore. They found new places to play and hide.

They are so small that they need to tuck a foot or two through their cat collars to keep them on.


	The kittens had a fun time exploring in the kitchen. They found a cork that was under a cubbard and declaired it a good toy. They also found that we had a broom for Gadget to play with just like they did at the shelter. Gizmo found an old toy of Polgara and Belgarath's that was somewhere tucked in a shelf.

After all that playing, the kittens needed a nap. Just like little kids, they tried their best to fight it.	In the end the need for a nap overpowered them
	Suddenly, Gizmo came back to life. He was done with his nap and ready to rumble. Gadget, on the other hand, was still tottally zonked. When she finally woke up, Gizmo and her started a serious game of pounce. Gadget is a little smaller than her brother. However, they are both going to be wonderfully big cats.
		When Gadget was getting tired she tried to hide from Gizmo. Note the sleepy look on her face again. She would love to pounce him some more. She just cannot keep her little kitty eyes open. Gizmo admitted he was tired also. They found a nice location and they took a nap together. Gizmo and Gadget play really hard until they absolutely have to crash. The only problem they had was that Brian and I don't sleep on the same schedule as them. At night we locked them back in their cage.

My naked morning weight is 276.5! Hey, I’m down three pounds from the last time I actually remembered to weigh myself before I ate something. I keep thinking about weighing myself after I’ve eaten. This morning I remembered and the scale said something nice. All that working out I have been doing is definitely paying off.

Today I did my first of two required work days as a member of Apache Bowhunters. I did not sweep the clubhouse as was suggested. Nope, no way was I going to stay inside on such a great day. I helped set up the three dimensional targets for the 3D shoot tomorrow with the guys. Just because I’m a girl does not mean I’m going to put my work days in on doing cooking and cleaning.

Less than a week at home and already my kittens are growing. Today marked a momentous occasion. Gizmo purred for the first time that we noticed this morning. We were curled up on the couch petting him and her purred! It is not very loud yet, but it is a definite purr. He also comes when called.

Not to outdone by her brother, Gadet purred for the first time at 9 pm this evening and she voluntarily came for petting.

For the past several months I have been working on a project in ceramics. Today, I finally finished the ceramic portion of my project. I have made the letters for a sign for our house. I think it is a perfect disclaimer for our house: "The Hermitage Brian – Resident Hermit & Tasia – Captive Social Butterfly" as I have always said if you want to meet my hermit you have to come to the hermitage. Yes, there is the famous art gallery in Russia with the same name. However, a hermitage is where a hermit lives and Brian is definitely a hermit. Heck, my friends call the rare times when he goes out to group social activities hermit sightings.

Well this last weekend was most definitely a hermit sighting. Brian went with me to MarCon. Mar Con is a science fiction convention here in Columbus on Memorial Day weekend. I had a booth there and sold things I make such as cloaks, velvet chokers, but mostly buttons. The buttons are mostly of sayings that Brian has made up. Brian needs to put a website where we can sell these all the time and not just at events.

Today we are both recovering from the convention. It is amazing how much energy it takes to run a sales booth at an event. Since this is a holiday I’m going to actually take the day off work and have a relaxing day with my hermit at our hermitage.

I can’t believe that today was the first time I have been to Victory since the tenth of May. I could hardly remember what my workout notes meant and had to ask a few times. Some of the things I know really well as I have been doing them at home. I think I need to have the trainer go over the exercises and write up a do at home program. I am going to be traveling for work a lot this summer and I will not be able to go to the gym as often as I want.

This is not to say that I will not be working out. I have my paper route – which is hours of stretching as I put it together, then hours of walking carrying weights up and down steps and across lawns that are nearly never level. Plus, Brian and I walk to the grocery story, the post office and anywhere else that is close to the house. We define close as within two miles or so. The gym is not close as it is three and a half miles. Additionally, when I go there I work out hard and am way too tired to walk home afterward.