Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Sloth


sloth  

/slôTH/
Noun
  1. Reluctance to work or make an effort; laziness.
  2. A slow-moving tropical American mammal (genera Bradypus (three-toed sloths) and Choloepus (two-toed sloths)) that hangs upside down...

That's me right now, except for the hanging upside down part!
Monday was a holiday for Gerry and Wesley had no classes so we drove to UNCSA, lucky for us it's only a little over an hour away. We picked up Wes and went up to Pilot Mt. for a bit of hiking and climbing, (them, not me). I took a book and a thermos of hot tea and sat at the top of the trail in the sun at the ledge leading to Three Bears Gully and I read and I might have closed my eyes and drifted on the wind a bit. What an absolutely beautiful day considering it had snowed just two days earlier. The sun was warm, but the wind got fierce and finally I had to leave my lofty perch and go for some shelter from the wind. We had a great day,but sadly one 17 year old girl did not. When we arrived, there were rescue and emergency medical crews at the trail head, and with rocky cliffs all around, that is not a good sign. Usually means someone has pitched off. And she did, fell 40 feet. We later read online that she survived but had a broken back, broken leg, arm, wrist, ribs, head injury, punctured lung. She is a very lucky girl. A couple of months ago a climber fell 50 feet very close to where she fell and he died. We have had three deaths this year in the places we have rock climbed for years. So sad, be careful!

 Anyway, I have been doing next to nothing. I spent three hours unraveling my yarn knot, that's finished, what a waste of time that was, but I have yarn now. I shopped at Whole Foods today and bought lots of healthy food. Spent less money than I usually do at one of the more well known chains that is supposed to be less expensive. I think people have that wrong, this is the second time I have shopped at Whole Foods and spent less, but came home with more food.
Anyway, tonight I made a really great salad with pears,strawberries, blueberries, radishes, arugula and spinach and then topped it with some sunflower seeds, almonds, asparagus and fingerling potatoes that I tossed in some olive oil and garlic. Added a touch of balsamic vinegar and some crostini with some olive tapenade. Heaven.
And beautiful in my Jugtown plate that I eat out of all the time now.
Slowly finishing this up. It now has a turquoise stripe too. It's sort of a sampler, I'm just trying random patterns and threads to see what I like. It will be pretty, but I don't know what it will be for.
I also started doing yoga again today and listened to a lot of cracks and crunchy stuff going on in my neck and back. There's a big surprise. Holiday stress, pottery work, weaving, show stress, of course my neck is going to hurt. But it's a problem. I have really bad pain between my left elbow and my shoulder and sometimes my fingers are numb. Like, I can't brush my hair right now or stir things, or lift my arm very high and I am left handed so this is no good. There is also a specific spot between my neck and shoulder that hurts. All signs lead to a pinched nerve. I'm going to try and remedy this myself. I have a very strong aversion to doctors. I found some great exercsies online and in my yoga books and already I can feel some of the tension easing up. Also pineapple juice is very good for inflammation, so I am juicing it up right now. Hopefully I can avoid a doc visit and get rid of this pain with doing things that are good for me. Like mental health days in the mountains and visits with friends........
Turning 50 has not been my favorite thing. I feel like my body went into instant decay and now I am having to work twice as hard to reverse the process. At least in that area I am not being a sloth. I'm trying to take care of this one and only body I have, I got a long way to go and I want to feel good getting there!
Another reason I don't want to do anything..... it's so cold. I know 35 sounds tropical to you up north and over there in Alaska, but for a girl that grew up on the South Carolina coast, if it's below 70f, it's cold to me. I know I don't want to do anything in August either, haha! Apparently I'm turning into Goldilocks and conditions have to be just right. My husband is a saint for putting up with this bullshit, he really is. Thanks, Ger for letting me be me, xoxo!!

20 comments:

cookingwithgas said...

hey for a sloth you are kicking the two toe weaving thing!! I have had pain in the same places, yoga is a good place to start your healing.
now go save some cotton fields, please!

Anna M. Branner said...

Thanks to your last post I finally dragged myself into Libertytown and my big loom to work on the blanket I have threaded.....

Dennis Allen said...

I'm thinking one armed weaving and one arm potting are a lot like one armed paper hanging.Good Luck.Anna weave faster winter is not over yet.

Tracey Broome said...

I must save the cotton, I like weaving with it, haha!
Anna, I am so far from weaving a blanket, still trying to get a nine inch width right!
Dennis the one arm thing isn't much fun, really makes you appreciate how much work your arms really do!

Sandy Miller said...

The sloth of January is alive and well in Ohio too. So many aches and pains I took myself to a real live Dr. Crap.....not good! Ordered my herbs last night and off to the studio....... It's winter, it's eff'en cold and I really don't feel like dancing. Rock on sloths! And besides I won't have time to read a blog or pick up a book once April arrives :)

Tracey Broome said...

Sandy, I've seen what a real doc has done to my mother in law with her back aches. She is now on 14 different drugs and doesn't know who we are, no thanks, I'll try the yoga and natural foods route first! Sloths unite, haha!

Chris said...

Traditionally West African blankets are woven in narrow strips--read portable looms for nomadic herders--that are sewn together, so maybe you are on your way to that blanket!

The aches and pains sound way too familiar. Stopping to stretch frequently helps to loosen things up. And it's not being slothful to rest and recuperate, it's called recharging the batteries.

Laura Farrow said...

the self-inflicted pressure to be productive 24/7 is craziness! I say! (I have it too... probably we all do). embrace your inner sloth! there will be time enough to be a marathon runner come spring. winter really is for resting, no? xo

Tracey Broome said...

Christine, I love the idea of a blanket made in strips, I'll have to look that up, and yes, I am recharging and it feels great!

Tracey Broome said...

Laura, it is craziness isn't it?! Plants go dormant in the winter, why shouldn't we do it too! Sloth on sister, haha

Lori Buff said...

Ginger is also a great anti-inflammatory, mix it with your pineapple juice for a really delicious drink.

Michèle Hastings said...

The patterns you are weaving are beautiful!
and...
Your salad photo is making me hungry... it's made with all of my favorite things.

Sissy said...

Tracey, I sewed a bag from thick cotton fabric and filled it with seasalt. For treating muscle/joint etc. pain I warm it up in the micro and put it on the sore area. It really works for me.

Tracey Broome said...

Hey Lori, good suggestion, we drink a lot of ginger tea and I cook with it, I also have ginger juice, maybe I'll try that, yum!

Tracey Broome said...

Thanks Michele, re the salad, I have gotten a bit lazy with cooking since we started eating more whole foods, they just taste better not cooked. I use lettuce like bread for a sandwich, it's the base for whatever I have in the house.

Tracey Broome said...

Hi Sissy, we don't have a microwave, wonder how I would warm such a bag, the oven? Sounds good though, I have seen them in craft stores from time to time.....

June Perry said...

Know where you're coming from Tracey. I deal with inflammation of my back all the time. Walnuts, turmeric (you can buy it in capsules), and Boswellia will all help. I take the turmeric and Boswellia daily.
Wish I could do more yoga, but not many postures are doable after a hip replacement, but I have gone back to meditating more regularly after a few of the yoga postures I can do.
I also understand the winter doldrums. It's very damp in Oregon in the winter with sunny days seeming to be pretty rare at least for the last month or so and the dampness really bothers me more than the cold. So let's hang in there together. Some early signs of spring are only a month and half to two months away.

Susan Wells said...

It's a fact that idleness generates creative ideas. Books are being written about it. In hopes to give our children more free time to daydream.

Tracey Broome said...

Hey June, I hear ya, the aches and pains are just a sign of hard working girls I guess!

Tracey Broome said...

Absolutely, I was the queen of daydreams when I was a kid, lots of creativity came from it!