Senescence Is Just A Fancy Word For Old

 In 2015 the packers were at the house, getting for the big, partial move to NC. Those guys worked hard. Peggy came over to supervise the move. Gee, she kept putting things back. She was not too happy about the move. 

The beginning of the wonderful adventure of living in the mountains. God led us, walked beside us and pushed us just a bit, but Roy and I survived being in separate states until he retired. So thankful for all the PTO he had. Many times he left the office and went straight to the airport. He brought a backpack, that is all because he had clothes here. Best way to travel. 

Today, I am feeling like that adventuresome person on the inside but on the outside these past few days I have felt old, elderly, a senior citizen, geezer, there are so many. AI told me that these are some names for the seasoned people of life:

Common synonyms for aging include maturing, growing old, senescence, and declining. It describes the process of becoming older, advancing in years, or showing the effects of increased age. Other terms include graying, mellowing, and developing

This has come to light due to a doctor appointment. We changed doctors and we now go to what Roy and I call Our Med Center on Vanderbilt Park. The drive to Hendersonville with all the upcoming construction played a part in our decision. When the opening came up for this particular practice, we said yes. I think I truly answered questions like an old person yesterday. She had my records and we discussed meds and procedures and all that stuff. I chose a vintage blouse and maybe instead of being cute and with it, I looked old and nostalgic. Ugh! Because she doesn't know anything about how I got to this particular season of life, I had to refer to those times being an athlete, although I know I do not look like someone who worked out all the time. Believe me, I do not live in the past, I just sounded like it yesterday. In the true spirit of being older than Moses, I have an appointment with an audiologist cause I can't hear squat! So, this morning talking with the scheduler, I think, I know I talked like an elderly rambling brained idiot. What she and the doctor don't know is, I have said the same stuff all my life, but what you said at 40 doesn't play well in the 70s season of life. Hopefully, I do better today at the audiologist office. I think asking for them to email the paperwork might have bumped me up a bit. 

Weather or Whether, That is The Question

 My buddies, the cats, are sitting nearby with laser light focus on my phone. Cause when the phone and the sun combine in just the right way, I'm sure there is some kind of math involved but I am non practicing, there will be refracted light to chase. Sometimes when the sun hits the phone I get duel refractions and that keeps everyone busy. 

We have had a lovely two days of warm temps and maybe one more tomorrow and then the cold hits the fan. Some are forecasting accumulation snow but we shall see. So many trees and plants have bloomed out and this cold blast could affect peach crops this summer. After two good peach years, you hate to see it happen. Also strawberries. Oh my goodness. 

After the brief storm on this Monday morning the kitties are coming out from under the beds, finally. A tornado warning issued for Madison County and Avery County is not a usual thing. It doesn't look like none touched down but reading some accounts of the storm complete with wind and hail, sounds too scary for me. Ah, the memories of my first thunderstorm here eleven years ago and being a little higher in the atmosphere than fifty feet above sea level in Texas. Lightning felt much closer and thunder rattled your insides a little more. We have an iron bed here and we had one in Texas as well. I always thought about this unrealistic fear, that our metal beds would draw lightning. So, that first storm here, lightning hit in what was then an empty pasture but it felt like it was lightning knocking on the front door. I jumped out of bed and believe you me, my jumping days had been over for a long time and ran downstairs. Running days over too. Buddy, my BCFE, best cat friend ever, right behind me. Somehow, I have always thought our family has a propensity toward being struck by lightning. Tall for one thing but my grandfather was struck by lightning as a young man plowing a field. His rubber boots saved him. He told me whenever there was a lightning storm his leg would hurt. Years and years ago on N Post Oak Lane, I was walking Tiff the wonder dog and hour or so after a storm. Walking under some lovely trees suddenly a big flash, like a ball hit the ground and then thunder. It knocked Tiff and me back a few feet and we struggled to right ourselves on the ground. A man in a car stopped and asked it we were alright. Yes, a little shaken but not stirred. He was shocked and I was shocked, even Tiff shocked but in wonder what was that instead of being is shock because of the lightning hitting us. 

We had a tornado warning this morning, heavy rain, snow and now the sun is shinning. This truly has been a weather day. 

This morning I looked through FB memories and this came up from my blog. This was in back in 2011. Roy was taking a photography class and looking for photo competition ideas. Brought a little laugh this morning. We were both so scared when it happened. As good of a picture that this would be, a chapel in the front of the prison surrounded by fences with razor wire on top. 

Saturday, Roy and I went out for breakfast and then hit the road for a day trip to Huntsville.  He has class most Saturdays and since it is spring break, we decided we needed a little get away.  We ate a late lunch at the Farmhouse, shopped, he took pictures and then we decided to take the back roads to Madisonville and of course pay homage to all things Buc-cess.  There was a small blip on our pilgrimage.  Roy wanted to take a picture of a prison chapel that was surrounded by fence and razor barbed wire.  I'm thinking there has to be a reason there are no parking signs all up and down that road in front of the prison.  Long story short, Roy was swarmed by three prison guards on foot and a guard in a car pulled in front of Sequisha so I couldn't drive away.  Roy had to delete the pictures, they recorded his TDL and our license plate.  They escorted him back to our car and gave me a dirty look.  Here's the deal, you can't take pictures of prisons.  I asked Roy didn't they teach this in law school?  He said no and I plan to ask for a tuition refund.  Roy is none the worse for wear, but my blood pressure spiked and I had the worst headache for the rest of the day.  Johnny Cash songs were playing in my head and I thought about all the Lock Down shows I've watched while everything was going down.  Ultimately, Buc-cees was not quite as much fun as it would have been before the photography incident. 

Foggy and Fog

This is a warning, not for the faint of heart or for those whose patience can be tried with stream of consciousness ADHD thoughts. The past few weeks have held it all but not my attention span for very long. No surprise, so who knows how it will go or just maybe a steam line of thoughts will play out in a consistent and logical basis. I am chuckling to myself. 

I have learned from an article on fashion that MC Hammer pants are coming back in style. I saw some examples in a Anthropology email. Not to be forgotten in nostalgia, I also saw that stirrup stretch pants will be in style this summer. Talk about pants at the opposite ends of the fashion spectrum.  

This week included Dr and Dentist appointments. Time for the mole patrol with the dermatologist. Two freezes on my face and a biopsy on my arm. Drat that baby oil with iodine days of high school! The wait is not bad at all because they run on time. At first we older types filled the waiting room but I must say, the conversation between two older women is the best I have heard on the state of weather in a long time. These strangers became BWF, best weather friends,  in a matter of seconds. They read to each other the low and high temps for the next week but they used different weather apps for comparison. The weather fun stopped when one was called back behind the golden door. The woman left behind looked for another patient with weather on their mind but we all looked down at our phones. 

Roy and I have decided to try and go out to eat once a week or at least once every two weeks. Not a hard or fast rule but we are in a rut of eating at home. Who ever thought I would write that? Not me, for sure. We have some options that we like and several new places to try. 

We now come to that difficult season, feels like spring but too soon to wear spring clothes. Next week a little bit of winter returns but those heavy wools just don't fit into March seasonal wear. I am better prepared for late summer into fall. Along with MC Hammer pants and stirrup skinny pants comes the "new" colors for spring and summer. Lots and lots of neutrals. This seems across the board from most of the stores or labels I buy. Funny, used to be a big Flax person, still somewhat. When I was a tourist here I went into a store in the lovely Biltmore Village. They had carried Flax previously and couldn't find any. She said she quit carrying Flax because the styles never changed, the colors rather pedestrian, and since Flax is made to last, why buy one more item of clothing that you have lots of in your closet. Made sense and although I still purchased Flax clothes that thought lingered. It influenced me and now that Flax has gone online only, it is helpful to not run into it at stores. J Jill still interests me and a few other brands as well. I was thinking the other day about furniture phases...went from cheap-o, to Eddie Bauer's (when they sold furniture), Basset, Crate and Barrel and Pottery Barn. Have a lovely mixture now.

It is now Sunday and the work I did yesterday moving some boxes etc... caught up with me this morning. My lower back was tight and I surely was feeling it. Continued getting ready but had to make the decision to call or text in that I would be missing in action this morning. I put some stuff on my back and got out the heating pad and slept for two hours. Feeling better but I'll be hitting the heating pad in just a little bit. 

So today is International Women's Day or something. Wasn't it just International Cat Day? I cannot keep up with these made up days. I thought today was my back hurts, so I didn't make it to church day when I really wanted to make it. I went to bed early on Daylight Savings Time Eve and I had one rosemary cracker to celebrate National Rosemary Spice Day. Roy celebrated International Women's Day by making a cup of hot tea for me and he stirred it with a fork. I had to do my National Make Sure They Aren't Experiencing Dementia Day by asking did he know he gave me a fork. Yes, he knows because he used it to get the crystalized honey out of the bottle. Tomorrow is I Will Not Let Roy Forget He Made An Early Morning Eye appointment on the first Monday after Daylight Savings Time. Ugh! 

We celebrated the First Monday of Daylight Savings Time in the dark, on back roads, and freeways. To add to the general malaise of losing an hour, we battle fog. Oh my, this fog was worse than August morning fogs here in the mountains. Roy said it was a London fog, thick and cold. He had the best description going. Not only heavy fog in the country it was also heavy fog in the city. Truly it was a battle especially on our back roads that always carry the threat of deer crossing the road.  After Roy's appointment we drove through still heavy fog to The Moose Cafe for breakfast. It was delicious as always. Even at 9:30 when we left the moose, you guessed it heavy fog. We decided to punt on going to Barnes and Noble and returned home, in heavy fog. Finally around 11:00 it lifted but that one strange morning and being on point watching all elements is exhausting. 

Looks like my ADHD didn't command too much of a take over on the blog post.