Houston, We Have a Problem in Everyday Ramblings

A shot of the Willamette River from the Steel Bridge traveling from the west to east on a train heading south yesterday morning. Although we had a lot of rain in January, we were getting these brief blessed sun breaks.

I had scheduled a day to go down and hang out with my sister a few weeks ago but had to cancel because of the fall. Yesterday was the reschedule. Although I was lower energy than normal, and stiff and sore I did good and was happy to be out and about. The train seats even in coach were fine, the wooden benches in the train station and the bus seat on the way home, not so fine but I dealt.

We didn’t do much, went out and had a long leisurely brunch in a place that wasn’t too crowded and hung out chatting at her place. This is the first time I have ever been able to go down on a weekday where Most Honorable was teaching and I wasn’t taking a day off work.

Wednesday, even though I had four people text or email to say they weren’t coming to class for various reasons I still had students and no artificial knees and so I taught a more challenging class about range of motion and leg strength. I had done quite of bit of prep earlier in the day and this was the first class since the accident I rolled out and sat on my mat. It all turned out to be just on the edge of too much.

But with that I walked the 45 minutes to the train station yesterday and part of the way home and that felt good. 2 ½ weeks out I am not pain free by any means but I am doing really well.

Tomorrow, with the caveat that I am still recovering, I am meeting Mrs. Sherlock, (who came down with ‘the cold” after flying to Orange County California last week for an Auntie Mame party and then coming home and leading a 6 mile hike in the rain) and her (sometimes) traveling companion Ms. Fit at the gym for Mrs. Sherlock’s first Body Pump class.

Are we not awesome? :) It is going to be a hoot. This is a smaller class and the teacher knows we are coming.

I was able to borrow the e-book version of Twyla Tharp’s new book Keep It Moving from the library. She is now 78. She is into exhortation and I totally understand that even though honestly I think it only works with a relatively small percentage of the population. I started reading the book on the train. Trains are so good for that.

Her first principal is to Take Up Space.

This is a major challenge for me as an introvert. Not so much for Mrs. Sherlock or Ms. Fit.

On the way home from the train station I hopped on a light rail train that was coming through downtown as the end of the line to turn around near my place and pick up commuters going back out.

Because the train had just reached the station when I got there I got on the last car, the one furthest away from the driver. There were not a lot of people on the train but I only saw one person that was not obviously on drugs, had a mental health issue or was a poor immigrant with no other option and possibly mentally ill as well. It was raining by then.

I scooted over towards the big burly guy in the safety vest that looked somewhat normal and sat in a visible place two seats next to him. At the next stop another guy who looked reasonably normal got on and sat two seats on the other side of me.

We are in the midst of the very visible trial of the man who after making racist remarks to two young women on one of these trains stabbed and killed two men who came to their defense two years ago.

The range of strange and disturbing behavior and gross trash on the train yesterday was quite troubling. And they are planning a whole new line through my neighborhood! It is a crazy way to spend taxpayer’s money. The people who can afford not to ride are taking ride-hailing cars.

I got home without incident other than a short period of hyper-vigilance.

And today it is possible that our elected senators are going to acquit a corrupt con man that is pretending to be our President as he anoints himself King.

Wow, Houston, we have a problem here.