Walking can be a challenge

WAIT -- there's a Virtual Retreat tonight and tomorrow, and I kept forgetting to put it in the blog this past week. DUH!!!! So much for the warning. I'll be working away, so if no one shows up, I'm OK with that. The link will be at the end of the post. 

 The decluttering stopped DEAD! Was that because DH was home? Was that because I had a deadline to meet and struggled with passive writing versus active writing? Or was it just time to take a break? I think it was a bit of everything. HOWEVER, I had to do some decluttering on my computer, so that's where I spent my decluttering time yesterday. 

The writing is done, so that's a blessing, but I have some administrative work to tidy up, some quilts to quilt, and some machine embroidery that must be done. 

I am not the person who shuts their computer off at night. I usually have too many windows open of things I'm still investigating or want to share with you. But then it comes to a point when I'm getting sluggish results, and I have no choice. That happened this morning, but I knew I was going to have to do it. 

But yesterday, I decided to check on my storage to see what was going on. Imagine my surprise when I noticed that my email still consumes 104 GB of space. Seriously? I swear I have deleted MANY emails with those huge attachments. Enough that I would have seen some kind of a difference. But nope --- it's still a HUGE file. Where the heck are all the files? 

Email still consuming 104 GB of space

So, after deleting and messing around, I purged files through the Settings Menu. It's one thing to delete them, but another to actually remove them from your computer. I now know how to do that. There were 27 GB of temporary files (probably many emails), which freed up space on the computer. I currently have 87.5 GB of free space. I'm good. It feels good to be in charge! 

Purging temporary files

What's important is that I know how to do this and must keep at it. There's so much that needs to be deleted. But I'm going through the emails because when people send me attachments (mostly for work - so don't be afraid to send attachments), I save the email but don't necessarily save the attachment. So, I worked on some of that yesterday. I MUST get this under control because I'm notorious for not having the correct file for work when I need it. So, everything has to be diligently saved and filed so I can find it again. 

I'm making good progress, but it's going to take time. Every small step is progress. That should become my new quote! WAIT -- I much prefer "Even a small step is progress!"

I have two groups left to deal with admin stuff. I hope to get both done today, and then ALL the groups will be up-to-date. Email distribution lists will be finalized, presentations will be completed and ready to go, and all payments will be handled. It's a HUGE task, and I can only say, "Thank goodness the number of groups is halved from last year."

But then there's the issue of Facebook groups. You can't just delete a Facebook group; I manage many - of course. You have to remove all members and then delete the group. That's a lot of work, but thankfully, my groups are small. Before, the only way to remove a member was to "BAN" them, and I found that wording harsh. Now, you can REMOVE members, which makes me happy. So, I will look at the groups and REMOVE members when they need to be removed. I'll delete the groups that are no longer active, and I hope to clean up that mess at some point. 

So this is Little Bear's current state. He looks like a beauty salon disaster. But darn -- he looks adorable!!! A hippie!!! 

GRANDMA -- I can barely see where I'm going!

Guess where he went yesterday? He got a spa treatment! And while I prefer him with a bit more hair, he seemed pretty happy to get a groom. This groomer we have is the best. She's like the dog whisperer. He ran to me when he saw me and then ran right back to her even though she had "tortured" him for the last couple of hours! 

GRANDMA - do you still love me? 

And he got a little bandana with his name on it. They make them for all the pets! 

Bear's new bandana

So now Murphy and Bear have been to the groomer. Guess who is next? When the weather was a bit warmer, I was diligent about keeping Lexi brushed every day; it made a big difference. But she hasn't been brushed in two weeks! She looks like I've never brushed her. It's warm, so I guess I better start up again. Where does all that hair come from? 

Remember I  mentioned the thermostat when it was super cold and that it never got to 21, which is the set temperature in the house. Well, guess what? The minute the cold snap passed, the thermostat had zero issues about getting to my set temperature. 

Back to 21 degrees in the house

I swear some of these programmable thermostats are controlled centrally, and if you are too greedy, they take a couple of degrees from you. Those who run around in shorts must NOT have a centrally controlled thermostat! 

But some days, it's warm enough to walk around in a T-shirt. That's mostly after walking the dogs (for almost 2 hours), and I'm warm when I come in the house!

Look bare arms in the house!

Speaking of walking, the weather is crazy. Yesterday, it was pouring rain. The little guy wasn't keen on walking, but you'd think he would be - he lives in Vancouver! Murphy and Lexi couldn't care less, so I had to dress appropriately and take them out. But then, at lunchtime, the sun was shining. Because of my deadline, I couldn't walk then. 

After dropping Bear at the groomer, I contemplated NOT walking in the afternoon, and then I thought of my Conqueror Challenge. NO -- I must walk. Besides the sidewalks were in good shape, the temperature was warm, there was no excuse. And while walking, I contemplated a couple of questions I had been asked, so it was all good. 

Speaking of those walking challenges, before Christmas, I struggled to meet the deadline I had set for myself. I had to add an extra week (which is OK), but I think I finished one day AFTER the new deadline. This time? I'm way ahead, so how does that work? 

This challenge for the Lord of the Rings is not mapped on a real map. You can see my original goal in the top right-hand corner. 453.8 KM in 42 days. 

My original goal

I've taken some screenshots the last couple of days, and look how much ahead I am. Good grief. 

15% ahead of schedule

Only 50 KM remain

In case you're wondering why the distance changes and the number of days doesn't - it depends on what time of the day I take the screenshot, as my distance update is at a different time than the day update. 

16% ahead of schedule

This morning, I have 22 KM left and 9 days left to make that happen. I should be able to manage those 22 KM in two days!

As I mentioned the other day, because of my right knee issues, I've way overcompensated with my left leg, and there are days when let's just say that walking is NOT what I want to be doing. I managed, but let's not go there. 

We talked about my walking when I was at the Athletic Therapist the other day. NO ONE has told me to stop. They all think it's good. But I NEED to change the way I walk. I need to slow down and stand up straighter instead of trying to rush through the walk and push forward with my upper body like a sprinter at the finish line. I need to slow down and walk tall. Guess what? I've done that the last couple of days, and I'm almost walking completely pain-free. Who knew that part would be so easy to fix? 

And I KNOW BETTER. I know I walk too fast, so I'm slowing down and enjoying the roses! Well, if there were roses!!!

And still on the walking topic, here's one more thing to contemplate. I took these pictures when we had that "big" snowstorm earlier this week. The sidewalks on our street are not plowed, and some people do NOT shovel their sidewalks. This becomes a dangerous mess with freezing and thawing and people walking on them. What's worse is if they drive their cars over the sidewalk. That becomes a HUGE icy mess. 

Not so fun walking on this sidewalk

Bless their hearts, but some people put salt on their sidewalks. Guess what? This doesn't help the situation. Oh, it does, but it takes DAYS to get rid of the slush and mess, and so it's still very messy until the ice and snow are completely gone. So SHOVEL first and then put the salt or sand down. 

Ice hidden under the bit of snow

And then there are the neighbors you love who shovel their sidewalks completely. I couldn't care less if they shovel their driveway, but please shovel the sidewalk. 

Yeah - I love it when the sidewalks look like this

And I had to chuckle as I watched a neighbor who drives over their sidewalk. I believe their cars had been over the sidewalk many times before they finally put out salt. Then I saw the homeowner trying to CHIP the ice away and grunting when I passed her. As in UGH -- this is a thankless job. Well, if you had taken five minutes (the snow was NOT deep) and shoveled BEFORE your husband and daughter drove over the sidewalk and the temperature dropped, you wouldn't be out here chipping at the ice. 

And their driveway was a slippery nightmare. Not to be mean, but that's when you hope they take a gentle dive getting into their car. 

But with the rain we've had, almost ALL the snow is gone, so the sidewalks are a breeze to walk on. It's amazing how many people don't realize that people walk in our neighborhood? And not just me. Oh -- I forgot, those are the ones that drive their kids to school, speed through the school zone, and drive through the stop signs. How dare I ask them to shovel their sidewalk! OK -- now I'm just being sarcastic! 

Even if they can't shovel, they could ask a neighbor! We have a lot of that happening on our street! Not the drive, just the sidewalk! 

Well, it's time to go! See you all at the Virtual Retreat tonight and tomorrow. 

Join Zoom Meeting
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Meeting ID: 898 1648 3795
Passcode: 248667

Virtual Retreat - Sunday, January 28 - Starts at NOON

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Meeting ID: 829 8351 7671
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Have a great day!!!

Ciao!!!!