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| Thanksgiving Bird for November Heart in Hand pattern |
For me, the highlight of October was the first week, when we celebrated Gary's birthday. 🎉The rest of the month was filled out with a lot of medical appointments for both of us (all routine, annual check-ups) and encounters with a shocking number of skeletons.
Aside from the marvel of how our Creator God has created the human body, I do not relate well to this macabre "decoration," but then as I've said before, I'm no fan of Halloween.
I did a little research regarding this trend. As well as being a part of October 31 festivities, there is a cultural fascination with the gothic, nostalgia, and dressing the skeletons up for the different holidays.
Yes, we saw a skeleton Santa Claus in the hardware store yesterday. Where is jolly ole' Saint Nick?!!
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| cross stitch for September - October |
Anyway, I'm glad to turn the calendar to November. One of the notations on my page for today is to change out the cross stitch from "Home is where our story begins" (a Lizzie Kate pattern) to "Thanksgiving Bird" by Heart in Hand. I no longer do any needlework (except for mending as needed) but I enjoy displaying projects from my past.
With November here, autumn has definitely arrived in Florida. We woke up to 47 degrees yesterday, and colder than that today. But I can handle it....
Yes, I was there! But now my home is in Florida where there is no snow to shovel and our five Camelia bushes are in glorious bloom - - yes, in November !!
With the arrival of cold temperatures, I went shopping for a pair of sweat pants to wear on our bike rides. It was money well-spent!
Another advantage to living in a temperate climate, is having our car dealership drive to our house for oil changes and tire rotations. Ford has come several times in the two years we've had this vehicle for routine maintenance and recall notices. It's been great to watch it all happening from the garage. Speaking of car fluids, this sign caught our attention:
Back at home, as we sip our first cup of coffee every morning, I usually ask Gary about his plans for the day. Often he teases me with his signature, "Nuthin'!" But the other day he woke up saying he needed to get a hair cut. He added that he was considering a buzz cut. I immediately vetoed the idea. He persisted with the idea and I held firm.
When he came home after his trip to the barber, I called out, "Do you still have hair?" He informed me that yes, he did but that a butch cut costs $2 LESS than a regular man's cut. I kissed him and thanked him for spending the extra bucks for my preference. As you will see in snapshots to follow, he is blessed with a good head of hair.
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| race arrow sign |
Our +55 community had its annual race Saturday morning. In spite of the cold, we got outside early on our bicycles so we could avoid the runners.
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| scarecrow guards the Begonias |
We rode past some refreshment stations along the way and a few costumes, too. Our Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) directed traffic, which can be shockingly wild. I wish our CERT people were out there all the time.
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| Here they come! |
Anyway, the race was some 3+ miles long with runners on the multi-purpose path that is behind our house. Of course this was a good opportunity for 'blog fodder,' so we made our way across our back yard and onto the grassy median.
Gary spied them first. I saw a side of him that I've not seen before. Most of my readers may not know that my guy is a former marathon runner.
One of the first things we did together as a couple was to hang his framed marathon posters on the lanai wall. These posters are from:
1985 Marine Corps Marathon
1986 Marine Corps Marathon
1988 New York City Marathon
1992 Marine Corps Marathon
1996 Marine Corps Marathon
And one more on another wall:
1984 Marine Corps Marathon
These posters are from only 6 of his races. He's run many more in a lot of locations. He's got the T-shirts, too. He tells me he also ran the JFK fifty-mile race twice. Those races started and ended in western Maryland taking him along the Appalachian Trail and along the Potomac River in Virginia and West Virginia.
So, with that said, what I had not seen in him before was how involved he gets with runners.
He grins and claps and grins and claps and... (you get the idea). He also yelled out to the runners (most of whom were walking, truth be told). He knew exactly what to say.
Lookin' good!
You can do it!
You can win this!
They gave you a good T-shirt!
Let's get that blood flowin'!
There are only a few ahead of you; you can win this!
Only 2 1/2 miles to go!
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| (faces edited for privacy) |
It was great fun for me to see this side of Gary. When I asked him how he knew to call out all of that, he said he's heard it all from his races.
He no longer runs. His hips eventually required replacement, so biking is his current sport of choice. It's a good thing because although I've learned to be a biker through my association with him, I would not have been able to do the running.
🚴🏻🚴♀️🚴🏼♂️ 🚴🏻🚴♀️ 🚴🏼♂️ 🚴🏻🚴♀️🚴🏼♂️ 🏃♂️🚴🏻 🏃🏻♀️🏃
When I looked up scripture verses having to do with running, this passage spoke to me the most:
Therefore, since we are surrounded
by such a great cloud of witnesses,
let us throw off everything that hinders
and the sin that so easily entangles.
And let us run with perseverance
the race marked out for us,
fixing our eyes on Jesus,
the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.
For the joy set before Him
he endured the cross,
scorning its shame,
and sat down at the
right hand of the throne of God.
Consider Him who endured
such opposition from sinners,
so that you will not grow weary
and lose heart.
Hebrews 12:1-3
Until next time, stay the course! You can do it!
