Notes from Steve

I had a couple of welfare calls and texts after my article from last week.  “Steve, are you all right?”  So, I went back and reread.  I can see how this might have come across.   I’m fine.  Actually, I was thinking today that I’m really good - I haven’t felt this good in a while.*

The beginning of the year always has me in both a reflective mode and a self-improvement mode. My friend was telling me a story where she was comparing herself to herself in the mirror. “I’m fine, I don’t need to lose weight”, she told herself. Which is usually a good place - we want to be self-confident and comfortable with where we are, until we’re not.  When she finally looked at comparative charts, she found that her weight was too high and she was not fine.  Same with my hearing.  I’m kind of hard of hearing.  When I got the hearing aids, I realized how much I had been missing**.  Bottom line - we need to be aware and conscious and proactive on things we can control.  

With all of this in mind - I’ve come up with a couple of plans.  One, I’m going to stop making excuses based on age.  Focusing on the number (my age) is an easy out.  So, that’s done.  Next, I’m looking at my nutrition (food and water) and making sure it’s less ruffles/onion dip and more apples.  Then, my exercise needs to change up (I need to focus more on strength training), and I need to calm down (mental health).  I’m not being hard on myself - I’m being honest.  This is what January is for.  

To quote the Bard*** “to thine own self, be true”.  It’s a good thing.  

*… and I probably just jinxed myself.  
** Unregulated hearing loss is a factor in dementia according to commercials for hearing aids.  
***Shakespeare