Ms November 2008...

Penny sent through the photo pages of the 2008 Kindred Spirits calendar, and here I am. There are lots of ways you can be recognized for individual achievement, but this one from the 100+ person team, means more to me than I can say -- the timing coincides with pancreatic cancer surgery for one of the four women I walked for in September; and with news of a malignant brain tumor for a friend of nearly 40 years. There is so much more we can do to beat cancer.

I'm back!!!

Last three days I've done two miles each time without discomfort in the heel during or after the walks. I invested in a waterproof jacket yesterday, so bring on the rain!

Day after Thanksgiving...

It is luminously light at Green Lake this morning, but so cold that I could hardly hold the camera. I did a full mile, having slowly worked my way back from a case of planar fascitis in the right heel. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year. Soon I'll be looking for a wreath for the front door and sorting through an accumulation of decorations, many of which holds dear memories.

Birthday Dinner

Some have asked to see a current set of photos of James. So here we are. Below, James and Lauren before we sat down to a splendid dinner....

James posing with several of his birthday presents from Lauren.

Lauren dressing her initimitable salad.....

And Leroy with his small Peruvian purple potatoes in a special sauce....

Leroy cooked pork tenderloin with mustard sauce, with salsa, and with gravy. We see the potatoes up above, and he also prepared fresh squash with dill. I found a chocolate fudge truffle cake for dessert. As James said once when he was small, "we live like kings."

Sweet Baby James

Twenty three years ago tonight, Leroy and I were on our way to Swedish Hospital so that James Harrison Sowers Searle could be born early the next morning. He spent his first ten days in the intensive care unit at Swedish, along with Claiborne & Cameron Bell whose birthdays we celebrated with his for years. We continue to regard him with somewhat the same amount of awe and pride as when he was growing up. Happy Birthday, James, from your biggest fans.

Seasonal Adjustments

Though I've been training with Amy in the gym a couple of mornings a week, it's been hard this past month to get out and walk. I've been better able to complete a round of chi gong in the morning and then some pilates work on the mat in the evening. My weekend walks tend to be reminders of how much more often I should be out there...and of missing items like mittens and hoodies.

But now -- finally! -- we are off daylight savings time! The sky lightened at 6am today, though it was not light for another 30 minutes or so. That's just enough edge for me to get a couple of miles in before work.