Exercise:
In the two series of sessions I had of physical thereapy, I felt myself getting stronger and my ability to move around improving. I've continued the PT exercises as I can. Unfortunately, quite a few of the exercises were done with stretch bands that were stabilized by the therapist hold their centers. I tried doing these by wrapping the center of the bands around doorknobs. Have you ever been hit by a long rubber band pulling lose from a doorknob?
I kept seeing advertisements for the Body by Jake Tower 200. I kept thinking, "That would be perfect for those band physical therapy exercises and more." Finally I checked it out and made the purchase:
I had a bit of a problem putting it up on the door; it took me an hour and 45 minutes to do the "easy set-up," primarily because I couldn't get down on my knees to slide the base around the bottom of the door.
I had more of a problem keeping it up on the door! The day after I put the exercise thingie on the bathroom door, I was sitting my chair in the living room devouring lunch, when my caregiver came into the room and dumped my exercise thingie on a chair. I asked her what she was doing and she said that I needed to put it somewhere else because, with it on the bathroom door, she couldn't lock the door.
I was dumbstruck: (1) it's my house and my door and my exercise thingie; (2) I live with a cat and seldom shut any door fully--otherwise I have Alex clawing on the outside of the door all the time I am behind it; & (3) I told her she is safe to use the bathroom because I wasn't going to bust in on her. My exercise thinging is now back where it belongs. The second instalation only took 15 minutes because that time I knew how to do it.
I am quite happy with my exercise thingie; now if I can just figure out how to make the "4 easy (not for me!) payments" so that I can keep it!
Organization
The stuff around me is always disorganized and has been all of my life. I am one of those people with a out of sight, out of mind mentality. If I file something, I may as well throw it in the trash because I shall forget where I filed it. However, if I leave it out, it will eventually be absorbed bt the other stuff on my desk or wherever and I still can't find it.
Through the years I have read numerous books and articles on organization and time management and filing systems. I have the knowledge; I just don't have the whatever it takes to apply that knowledge.
Thus I want/need to experimentwith various systems to find/develop one that enables me to organize and find stuff. THen I want/need to apply that system to the thousands of things around me that need to be organized. (Actually, the fun part of being as disorganized as I am is that, when I come across something that I've not seen in months/years/decades, it can be like receiving a very special present).
A couple of people have commented on my new header for Nick's Bytes. For example, in response to my New Year's Day post, Squeekid wrote: "(I) like the new picture at the start of your blog by the way - can't work out what it is, mind!"
The answer is: it is an Impressionist version of the top of my desk:
OK? Being within my sight each time I log in to Nick's Bytes, I am hoping that that graphic will remind me to continue my organization project. Maybe it will.
Of course, there are other things that I want/need to do. I'll share those in later posts.
Nick,good luch with the weight loss,I feel your pain i still have at least 40 more pounds to go my self.
ReplyDeletegood luck with all three... i know they are always in my top five things that i should get to. lol...
ReplyDeleteMy blessings to you on your projects, Rev Saint.
ReplyDeleteAbout the door and your housekeeper: does the exercise machine really prevent the door from closing or locking? It doesn't look like it does from that photograph.
Nick
ReplyDeleteI wish you luck in your new or rather not so new endevers. The first one is high on my list. I walk as the back doctor said that was the nature way to exercise so I given a threadmill and I need to use it so the dust will not gather on it so heavily. I had to LOL at the clutter on the desk and a saying came to mind "A clean desk is a sign of a sick mind." I guess you have a very healthy one. I worked with a lady many moons ago and her desk looked just like yours but she could put her hands on anything you asked about. I always worked on one case at a time and she would have six or seven opened and spread in many different directions. Hope 2010 is a very Happy one for you and welcom to a new decade. Peace
Enjoy your exercising and your dig out! I, too, know filing systems that I could use. They seem to work for others, but I think you have to have a certain kind of brain for them to work - a kind I wasn't given. Oh well, I think that it's much more fun to find surprises than it is to have everything under control.
ReplyDeleteI have the same problem with Simi - if I shut any doors, she just tries to scratch them down! And quite right too - it's HER house as well as mine! Glad you got the exercise thingie back up. I was wondering what the header was too but now I see!
ReplyDeleteYour blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now keep it up!
ReplyDeleteGood luck getting through them all.
ReplyDeleteLittle by little is the best way when you have a lot on at lest I find it to so.
Much love
Lia
xx
Nick, I once saw a sign on a desk, a messy one. It said, "A NEAT DESK IS THE SIGN OF A SICK MIND."
ReplyDeleteI don't think there's anything wrong with the cluttered look, as long as you know where to find things. It's getting things misplaced in the jumble that's maddening.
Don't go busting into the bathroom to look for something that may be hiding on your desk. Your caregiver may be in there. Wonder what she's up to in there anyway. :D
Happy New Year, Nick and Alex!
good luck with your exercise program.
ReplyDeleteYour desk looks like mine.
Good!! Glad to see you are taking up the exercise track. I too saw this product on TV and felt it could prove useful in addition to my weights.
ReplyDeleteThose things are never as easy to set up as they say.
I bet you'll be pulling cartwheels by June.
Sounds like we have a lot in common. Your desk looks like mine, I need to exercise too...and we both like cats! ;-)
ReplyDeleteLet's hope 2010 is the year we actually follow through on our sort-of-resolutions!
Mike G.: Thank you. It's not only weight loss I seeking but to strengthen my body and hopefully improve my mobility.
ReplyDeleteXmichra: Thank you. I have lots of want/need to do items. I hope I can obtain the energy to do at least a few.
ReplyDeleteAzsonofagun: Thank you, Reverend Rex! No, the machine does not prevent the door from closing or locking. It just requires a but more effort than without the machine mounted on it. She did not complain about its existence on Monday.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous: Thank you. Actually, I have recently been reading some of my older posts and I am quite impressed with them!
ReplyDeleteLia: Thank you. I need the encouragement and the love!
ReplyDeleteSan: I have that sign sitting on my desk right in front of me! I've had it on my desks for years and I think I believe it. Neatness to me shouts out "anally fixated personality." For me, there is no clutter...just a mess. And I can (usually) quickly find anything I want in that mess. When I can't find something, most often it is because I have "put it away."
ReplyDeleteI don't really wonder what my caregiver does in the bathroom; she seldom uses it for her own needs. I do wonder about her frequent trips out to her car and what she may be smoking there. I feel that that is no concern of mine unless she does something that screws me up or in fact is injurous to Alex or me.
Jan's Funny Farm : Thank you. I appreciate knowing that there are other desks in the same state as mine!
ReplyDeleteRicardo: Thank you. I have been using weights and body building for about 50 years: I got my first set of York barbells when I was 13. I have owned some really neat exercise equipment through the years. However, with the many moves I have made in my life, I have had to sell or leave behind most of it.
ReplyDeleteI am finding that I am enjoying workouts with the machine. The only problem I have encountered is attaching stuff to the bottom of it. I have become dizzy and close to passing out when I bend down. My doc is coming to my house in about 4 hours and I plan to ask him about that.
Mauigirl: I celebrate our messy desks! Maybe we should start a society to proclaim to the world that messy desks are OK?
ReplyDeleteMy hopes for 2010 are simple: world justice, world peace, and an end to poverty!
Personally, I hope for the blessings I have been offering to others in recent days:
May 2010 bring you
Walls for the wind
And a roof for the rain,
And drinks bedside the fire
Laughter to cheer you
And those you love near you,
And all that your heart may desire.
Lady Di Tn: Thank you! I understand how walking can help your back. It has helped mine, too.
ReplyDeleteAs I wrote above, I have that sign on my desk, right before my eyes. The only difference is mine says: Neatness: sure sign of a sick mind!
Your co-worker does sound a lot like me: when I was a social work supervisor, I usually reviewed several case records simultaneously and folders would cover my desk.
Carol: You are so right! I have read books and taken seminars on organizing and filing and stuff like that; the only system that works for me is my, uh, "controlled messiness."
ReplyDeleteAnd, I enjoy being surprised when I find things I have forgotten about. For example, this afternoon was I searching through the stuff that my initial caregivers piled in my spare bedroom and came across some really neat stuff that I had forgotten that I own. It was like Christmas!
Welshcakes Limoncello : Are you sure that Simi isn't part cat? Alex can't stand closed doors of any type. And, if I am behind a door, the furball claws at it repeatedly. Often, if the clawing stops, when I open the door I find dear Alex curled up in front of it waiting for me. You know, I really love my little ball of fur!
ReplyDeleteInterested in that Tower 200, I guess I need to make that purchase, thanks for the heads up
ReplyDeleteC B: Thus far the tower is meeting my needs. I'll write more about it after I have evaluated it longer. I do believe that one cannot perform as many exercises as claimed without investing in additional equipment.
ReplyDelete