August 26, 2013 AFV moments that weren't (Thank goodness!)

Have you ever found yourself having one of those moments when you are extremely grateful that one of your family members or friends with the sick sense of humor is (thankfully) not lurking around somewhere with a video camera??

Living alone definitely has its high points, and assembling the shelf unit for my bathroom a couple of weeks ago was one, but tonight's box wrestling match was definitely another.  I recently learned that my trash company is happy to pick up those oversized cardboard boxes, but they require you to break them down and bind them in neat little 4 foot by 2 foot packages that weigh less than 50 pounds.  Admittedly, I didn't measure the boxes, but figure they're close enough to the limit for audit work.  But the breaking down and binding part had my cats looking at me (again!) like I'd lost a few more marbles.

Two of the boxes from my latest bathroom upgrade had those ginormous staples in them which required a pair of needle nose pliers and a bit of strength to remove.  Said boxes were also about 4 times as thick as the average cardboard box and had to be folded over on one end to meet the 4 foot limit.  Meanwhile, the box from the commode contained several layers of packing material, a few extra cardboard inserts and a shape which was, shall we say, interesting to get into a quasi-flattened state, and then, only with ample applications of strapping tape. 

Here's where the real fun began!  I had to get the boxes tied together and dragged out to the curb (and less than 50 pounds!  Seriously?  As if I'm going to drag more than 50 pounds to my curb alone???) with nothing but the aforementioned strapping tape.  Fortunately, my years of gift wrapping experience, including some rather large and weighty objects (like a tool box full of tools) came in very handy when it was time to flip the stack of boxes so I could continue wrapping tape around them. 

I sit here now, sweating like a pig, but the trash barrels are out, the cat boxes are clean and my spare bedroom is now free of all boxes except the ones the kids pulled out for their own organizing frenzy.  And all this while I'm fighting a bout of laryngitis with a nasty, dry cough that finally sent me to the cough medicine bottle I use only when I'm desperate and my ribs have started to hurt from all of the hacking.

The good news is, it will cause me to drink a lot more water before I retire for the night, and water is always a good thing!

Meanwhile, I continue to practice my energy work, though I have discovered that putting my feet up to do some of them isn't always a good idea as I get too relaxed and fall into a meditative state without completing the exercises.  I have to say that it amuses me to read the cautions from the author about stopping if the exercises make you feel aroused.  Sheesh!  They relax me to the point of near catatonia.  Feeling the energy waves move up my body and getting the chakras spinning is, to me, as relaxing as a cat's purr.  In fact, I think I've found another way to fall asleep on those monkey mind nights.

As I ponder what I accomplished tonight, despite feeling under the weather, I realize that living alone really does have its benefits.  I can't depend on someone else to do the heavy lifting, take out the trash or rearrange the furniture when I get the urge.  Sure, I can call a couple of people if the job is really big, but for the everyday and weekly stuff, I have to depend on myself.  Because I do, I think, even when I miss my gym workouts, I'm still using the muscles and keeping things a lot looser than I would if I had someone to take care of things for me.  Lifting several 30 or 40 pound boxes of cat sand is still something I can handle.  Shlepping heavy bags of groceries is not a problem.  Carrying the sandboxes across the house is just another day in Paradise and every day I appreciate the fact that, compared to a lot of people my age, and some even younger, I manage pretty darn well! 

Yes, I'm overweight and could stand to get back to my regular gym routine to keep the muscles more toned.  Sure, my knees remind me of the years of dancing and abuse on occasion.  But I can still get up in the morning, walk through the house to feed the cats and get my coffee, stand in the kitchen for an hour or more at a time fixing meals, haul groceries and trash, fix the kitchen sink and dozens of other tasks which my contemporaries relegate to others.  So as far as I'm concerned, life is good!

I am Woman, and when necessary, I can damn well do it myself!  Yee haw!!!

My gratitudes tonight are:
1. I am grateful that my body is still able to take me where I want to go, and let me do what I want to do.
2. I am grateful for my independence.
3. I am grateful for the return of at least the lower octaves of my voice.
4. I am grateful for Robitussin, when I just can't stand the hacking any more.
5. I am grateful for my nurse kitties who took very good care of me today.

.Love and light