Breathtaking Views August 25, 2012

Never before can I recall being so out of breath so much of the time.  The air here is thin and the altitude high. We are at almost 9,000 feet.   This breathlessness was totally unexpected.  I was planning to buy hiking boots for all of the hiking I expected us to do.  I did bring sneakers, which prove to be enough.  Nick and I both find ourselves huffing and puffing from the slightest exertions.  I would love to come back after I have lost a hundred pounds and see how much difference it would make.  I suspect it would make a noticeable difference.   Meanwhile, I pant. I have trouble falling asleep, because on top of it all I have a cold and stuffed up nose,

I work out; go to the gym at least three times a week.  But the eating is all wrong.  Too much fun food- or junk food as it is usually called.  This has to change.

I started to go to the gym when I did because it hit me that I am closer to 60 than 50 and I want to live as well as I can for as long as I can.  Images of my poor mother in her wheel chair with her oxygen going into her nose though a nasal cannula.   I am just not ready for that.  I cannot imagine I will ever be.

So I breath the rare air here and gulps and look forward to feel as though I have super powers when I return to sea lever=-or near sea level.

Nick and I sat on the porch in our rocking chairs, both of us in our pajamas.  Every now and then a chipmunk or ground squirrel (I am not sure which is which) would come and look at us as if we were going to feed them.  I stomped and send them scurrying.  They are cute, and tempting, but it is illegal to feed them, and as cute as they are, I believe they are rodents.

A man wearing leather chaps walked by.  I told Nick that Dale had chaps like that for riding his Harley.  I confessed for the first time that when I see the bikers, especially when they are moving away from me, it is like saying good bye to Dale all over again. 

We got the fireplace in our cabin fixed yesterday.  Then we were a little worried about the fact that we could see the tiny flame in the gas pilot, so we slept with one of the windows open slightly.  We survived the night!

No plans at all today until our dinner reservations at 7:15- in time to watch the setting sun.    I have my knitting and Nick has his Kindle.

We are about to go find some breakfast.  Later we will go down to the campground about a mile down the road.  There, the General Store has WIFI, so we will get on, check email and post this.

Later!