all systems go.

as i sit here pondering all the work i should be doing

i was reminded (three time) yesterday

that i have not revisited

the pain i wrote about in a previous post.

so.

i went to the doctor.

i sat with her for an hour.

i walked for her.

i flapped my arms for her.

she poked me.

she whacked my knees with a mallet.

she couldn't find anything wrong.

she sent me to the lab.

they poked me.

they made me pee in a cup.

they took a fair amount of blood from my arm.

they sent me home.

three days later

my results came back:

all systems go.

now.

this is definitely a blessing

given the last two years.

but this blessing comes with a frustration;

what's WRONG with me?

the doctor has recommended more physical therapy

chiropractic care

massage therapy (i can live with this)

yoga

walking

NO running (at least not yet)

sleep

healthy diet

blah

blah

blah.

so i guess i'm going to fine-tune

my daily upkeep.

there you have it.

i'm 'normal'...or at least as normal as i get.

in other news.

there is a 'new do'

but no pictures yet

this is comical considering

the photography studio that has come into existence

in our basement.

past that

life is status quo.

go well.

lopping locks.

"hair style is the final tip-off whether or not a woman really knows herself."

- hubert de givenchy

hmmm...i wonder what ol' hubert would say about me...

because according to him

and my ever changing locks

i don't have a clue as to who i am...

huh.

maybe he's not far off.

i am genetically prone to changing my hair on a whim.

have you met my mother?

perms.

color.

short.

shorter.

longer.

have you met my sister?

platinum blonde.

ruby red.

bangs.

no bangs.

(at one point, her hair was three different colors - platinum blonde, black and orange.

she would argue red

but

it was orange).

so you see

it's a matter of simple genetics.

for sometime now, i have been working with a 'longer' hair style.

long for me, anyway.

there was the 'sprout' look in high school

the all over 'spike' in college.

since then, i've let it grow out

and cut it off several times.

it's been brown.

it's been red.

it's been highlighted with blonde.

i even had artificial curls shortly after moving home.

and so it was

that when we decided to venture to hawaii

i was determined to have a 'girl's' haircut

something that i could easily let blow in the wind

as we traveled up the coastline

in search of beaches.

i then decided it best to keep

my chin length hair

so that when i wore my baseball cap running

i did not look like a teenage boy

going through an awkward pubescent phase.

finally, after shearing off the back

i decided i needed to keep it long(er)

so that i could toss my mane

back

and

forth

to the melodies strummed

by the south african man

whom i adore.

now that summer is behind me

with all of it's adventures and music

i have decided it is far past time

for a change.

i'm thinking this.

stand by...

the next week could bring a new look...

go well.

better than coffee...

i think i should start every day off like this.

check.

you know those lists?

the ones you make of things you want to do

before you die?

i have one.

it's in my head.

and last friday

i got to put a mental 'check' in one of the boxes.

brilliant. breathtaking. beyond my dreams.

a big thank you for my sweet sister

who

despite being 13 weeks pregnant

stood on her feet for three hours

surrounded by the purple haze

and bottles of booze

and danced

and sang.

sober sisters

were we

in every sense of the word.

i only hope little baby

wasn't too affected

by anything but

the melodies.

i owe you a shopping trip.

next on the list?

hmmm...a new tattoo?

a marathon?

another mountain?

another concert?

stay tuned...

go well.

this and other news...

this is, by definition, spontaneous blah. a serious of randomness from the last few days.

so i finally came to terms with the fact that

there may be something

wrong.

i did the self-diagnosis last night.

i called the doctor today.

the pain in the last two months

has been constant

all over

all consuming at times.

i take a lot of ibuprofen.

a lot.

running has been excruciating.

adjustments only hold for a day.

sleep comes

but is never enough.

so i guess it's time.

more to come on that.

thoughts on chronic pain?

anyone?

anyone?

in other news.

my kid is a rock star.

i mean

a serious rock star.

she can sing 'itsy-bitsy spider'

'baby bumblebee'

and jason mraz's 'i'm yours'.

we throw in dave from time to time.

speaking of dave.

3 days.

will i see you there?

i am all about the soybean fields right now.

when i was girl growing up in colorado

i loved to walk through the aspens in the fall

like little gold coins

dangling off the white trunks.

we don't have many aspens

here in iowa

but my

oh

my

you should see the fields of gold.

bill is taking pictures...have i mentioned that?

reading this.

finally,

a happy [day early] birthday

to my baby sister

to my bestest friend

to my road trip buddy

and partner in crime.

love you much.

go well.

just because.

book talk.

i have been contemplating a book

made of observations

the ones that we only think to ourselves

because to say them out loud

might make us seem so small.

yet honesty

should be the foundation

which sets us 

ten feet above

the rest.

what observations have you made lately

that you haven't breathed life into?