Focused at Fifty

Kinda Happy With Myself!  Hey kids! You all know me and how much I love the gym. My love affair ebbs and flows though. During the Holidays... not so much. Winter time when I don't wanna leave the house ... not so much. LOL Now that Spring has FINALLY SPRUNG I feel a renewed drive to get back into shape. The love affair has been rekindled! I want to remind people about a few things though. Some of us (myself included) are not in our 20s. If you expect to get back into shape, don't put those expectations so high as that you will be disappointed. Be happy and blessed for even your small steps of progress. I'm turning 48 next month. I've got some dad-bod! But, I'm proud of where I am and I recognize I am continuously a work in progress. Facebook lovingly reminded me of myself four years ago when I worked out and was (gasp) almost 20 pounds less. I worked my ass off doing hours upon hours of cardio and I dropped weight dramatically. I was trying to get back down

(https://www.someecards.com) The week of April 15th began with what seems like the 96th day of January. That's one of the latest meme going around the Internet. It's quite humorous BECAUSE IT'S TRUE! We had one nice day of almost 80 degree weather on Saturday and then the temperature plummeted back down to the 30s with fierce winds pounding our region through the beginning of the week. The wind chime hanging from the corner of the house is now known as the Devil's Harp. During the winter Nor'Easters it had become pure evil! It kept me up once again all night. I should just take it down but I'm too lazy to drag out the ladder. I woke to a coating of snow on the ground. The yard was once again in shambles with more branches down. I had just spent the better part of Saturday cleaning up those which had previously fallen. It seemed like it had become the winter which would never end. Fingers were crossed though that this would be the last week of inclemen

(Pic courtesy Pexels.com)  This was originally geared for the younger generation but I feel it can apply to people who feel they are owed by society and play the victim. I don't remember where I got this from but found some scribbled down notes in my files. I cautiously don't want to fully attribute it to myself in case I heard it from someone else and did not correctly attribute it to them. I usually scribble down "heard on NPR or Cable or from so and so author." I figured I would still share it and I have expanded on several parts. I hesitate to say it's only for the younger generation because I have recently met several that I really like and impressed with (my niece Angelica included!) They give me hope for a brighter future and they makes me smile. So without further adieu, some insights into the harsh reality of life as we know it: Life is and will be hard for a lot of you. You need to realize that now. Say it out loud. "LIFE IS AND WILL BE

(Pic courtesy of Pexels.com) In the beginning of Spring, it always seems like the hibernating animals and those that don't (you hear me crazy squirrels) gravitate towards the warm open roadway. One suddenly has raccoons, possum and skunk all trying to do their best impression of the 80s video game Frogger across the busy roads. Maybe the awakening animals are disoriented from hibernation and are most likely hungry while foraging for food. The poor lil' guys get whacked while we drive early in the morning to work or home in the evening. This past morning I sadly struck a chipmunk darting across the highway probably on his first outing of the season. God damn it! I shouted to myself, upset that the lil' bugger got caught under my wheels. I said a quiet Rest In Peace Chippy and went on my way. That brought me back to my memory of the very first time I struck an animal while driving. I was coming home from the AMC movie theater in South Jersey where I  worked dur