Category Archives: Travel Journal/Blog

The River Run Weekend: Flying High to Lying Low

River Run medal
Gate River Run Medal

Mimi didn’t plan to enter the Jacksonville Gate River Run–a 15K race that winds across 2 bridges, the downtown business district, Sports complex and residential neighborhoods.

I thought I was done competing and certainly wasn’t training. Currently my exercise consists of walking and attending yoga class.

But Judy, my former marathon buddy, was in town and asked me to join her.  Seems her training ran amuck; so we agreed to take our time and simply finish the event.

Race morning surfaced foggy and overcast, perfect conditions to prevent overheating, something I struggled with in the past. Judy and I jogged across the starting line (to look good on the live broadcast) but then walked as fast as possible.

We astounded ourselves, keeping under a 15-minute-mile pace the entire 9.3 mile course.  We talked our way through the route, amongst a crowd of 13,000 participants and honestly had fun.  We still finished with a decent time.  And we gloated.

The next morning, I groaned.  I was struck down, not so much from sore muscles, but with the flu bug, the one that’s hitting everyone.  I spent the day in bed, which other than feeling crummy, wasn’t too bad.

Mimi Listens to Earworms: Foreign Language Rapid Musical Brain Trainer

Earworms_French_Vol1Today I’m starting an experiment.  I’m attempting to learn some basic French through listening to musical earworms.  Earworms are a new technique designed to help one recall basic words and phrases.  As I listen, they are supposed to burn the language into my longer-term memory.  An impressive goal.

I play a CD containing specially composed melodies with rhythmic repetitions. The instructions say, “You don’t have to concentrate too hard, in fact you shouldn’t try to actively concentrate, just sit back, relax and listen and let your brain do the learning.”

A booklet of the 200 essential words and phrases is included, which I’m told to review.  Links to a website (http://www.earwormslearning.com/) provide me with memory hooks.  These are word associations that assist in memorization and understanding.

I’m giving Volume 1 a try and will report back on my progress.  So far the music sounds like the elevator type, but I have already mastered asking for a cup of coffee and a bottle of wine.  Heck-that may be all I need for my trip to France in June.

Circle of Life Continues: Pop-Pop is 90

Pop PopToday, my father, known as Pop-Pop, turns ninety.  We celebrate his past because that is what he remembers. Pop-Pop suffers from Alzheimer’s disease .  I see his life slowly unwinding in a downward spiral, one that is hard to watch. Granny, aka Thoroughly Modern Millie, takes care of him.  Granny is 89.I worry and wonder; how long can this situation continue?

In my previous post, I claimed grasping newborn Claire’s finger gave hope. Pop Pop’s hand reaches for help–and we must be there.

So, once again I am reminded of the song from Disney’s Lion King:

The Circle of Life

From the day we arrive on the planet
And blinking, step into the sun
There's more to see than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done
There's far too much to take in here
More to find than can ever be found
But the sun rolling high
Through the sapphire sky
Keeps great and small on the endless round
 
It's the Circle of Life
And it moves us all
Through despair and hope
Through faith and love
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the Circle
The Circle of Life
 

Lyrics by Tim Rice, Music by Elton John