Sunday, April 27, 2014

not much being said but lots going on.

I will briefly cover the changes in my life and hopefully in a few weeks I'll go into the detail over the bullet points.

January 13th I finished school. I'm in my 50's and finally completed my degree. This had been a long off and on again process over most of my adult life. Thanks to people close to me who not only inspired me to complete this but were also there to keep me focused on the end prize. Moving to Iowa was hard because I realized how the business world was more focused on how important the degree was. Next weekend I'm going to be walking in the actual graduation ceremony with kids half my age or more but I feel like the weight has been lifted off my shoulders. My degree is in Project Management and I hope to find a full time position that can utilize my enhanced skill set. 

Second and almost as big is that I'm no longer having to drive a semi-truck anymore. I loved the driving part of the job but the time away from home and the strange hours and unrealistic expectations is beyond comprehension unless you spend a month driving. Fourteen hour days and ten hour off times that were dictated by freight schedules not your body clock or normalcy. I wont miss the driving in snowy or icy conditions that keep sane people off the roads but the expectations are that we will find a way to make the delivery.    

This leads me to the next point, I am now working in a desk job here in a local company where I am home every night. The position is just temporary while a lady is off on maternity leave but I'm back in the regular workforce. I'm working for a local aerospace company in the continuous improvement department doing data analysis. Not the greatest job but its a start in the right direction and I finally got my foot in the door so maybe I can land a permanent position. I have applied to this company many times but they wouldn't hire me because of the lack of degree but that door is now gone. I'm finding that they are also very particular about the type of degree you hold but that's another story.

I missed the regular parts of my life that people take for granted. Knit night was near impossible to attend because I wasn't home very often on Tuesday nights. Regular knitting and spinning are a reality again. When I was driving I was often so tired at the end of the day that I didn't feel much like knitting. The days off were filled with catching up on what I couldn't do and the fiber arts took a back seat to my school work most times. So I'm really happy to pick up the needles again. My Father's sweater is moving along slowly but I'm knitting most days again.

My weight has crept back up again but I've already put some things into action. Tracking my food on the app Lose-it so I have to be honest about what I put into my body. I have the fit-bit tracking my steps and I'm using Endomondo as my training tool as I begin to run again. Technology is quite fun when all the apps speak to each other. I have a training plan and I know I will slip but keeping at it.
I just wanted to share this because it struck me funny.

The shoes in my size , 15 us and 49 Euro makes them look like Ronald McDonald Shoes but they feel like no shoes I have ever worn. The raised lugs promote a mid-strike or forefoot strike as opposed to the heel-strike that causes the high impact. I had to modify (shorten) my stride and use the land - lever- lift method to propel my body.  My legs have always been the strongest part of my body but these shoes have brought attention to muscles and tendons that I have never utilized before but what a difference in comfort and ease. You can see more here and here if you want to get a better understanding.  Btw, I love Zappos, living in Iowa is fine but finding size 15 shoes is not always that easy.

Next post I'll show an update of the sweater I'm knitting for my Dad.

Life is Good