Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog: #28 - Mystery Pain, Bratty Raccoons, Watch Out For the Door, etc.

1. I am now of the age where I get an ache or pain and can’t always remember how it happened. I’ve had soreness on the inside of my left calf up into my knee for a few days. When I stop and think I honestly have no clue where or how it happened. It could be an insect bite, I could have torn my calf sleepwalking, or aliens came in and kicked me there and left. All of these make sense at this point.

2. This week I signed up the oldest client I have ever trained. He is 97 years old. This man was literally graduating high school when World War II ended. All he wants is to get the most out of his body as it is today. Sadly some trainers would see a person in their 90s and say ‘sorry you’re too old I can’t help you.’ I know this because I had a 91-year-old client who told me that happened to her. For me, I want to try to help anyone who comes to me seeking it. I was unable to help my grandparents as they declined in their 90’s. I look at this as symbolically helping my grandparents since this new client is how old they would be if they were still here.

3. I pulled into the parking lot at work like any other day. When I shut my car door I noticed something at the dumpster. 2 heads popped up from inside between the large plastic flaps covering the dumpster. It was a pair of young raccoons. This has happened before. I walked over to kind of shoo them away. That’s when I noticed a 3^rd one inside the dumpster too scared to come out. I opened the right flap of the dumpster and began walking away. The 3^rd raccoon climbed out and began to leave with its siblings until it saw me leaving. Then all 3 scurried back into the dumpster. I had to go to work but came back out a few hours later. Yes, they were all still inside. The same 2 ran away leaving the 3^rd behind. This time I opened both sides of the dumpster and watched the 3^rd raccoon climb with its siblings into a nearby tree. They were not happy when I closed the dumpster and locked it. Sorry kids, the buffet is closed.

It wasn't quite like this but since the site won't let me upload the actual video this will have to do.

4. I’ve been doing more running than I have in a few years. That, plus it being overwhelmingly humid on Cape Cod this summer, means lots of soaked-in-sweat days. Sadly this means I’ve had acne issues for the first time in several years. The only very small bright side is that at my age when I bought Stridex pads I could pass them off as being for my teenage child if I had been asked. Very small bright side.

5. In a ‘life flashing before your eyes’ moment I was driving down a curvy road when some jerk in an SUV was coming the other direction. Not only was he going way too fast but he was also halfway in my lane. I had to swerve out of the way and ended up in someone’s driveway while also laying on my horn. Needless to say, I had to give a quick wave and apology to the woman who was gardening in her yard that I scared half to death.

6. I have reached the point in my life where even on my days off the time I wake up is getting earlier and earlier. If you had told young me that someday I’d wake up at 6:30am because I wanted to I’m sure young me would have either laughed or wondered what the hell happened to me. Now? I take it as extra time to get content work done, like this blog.

Me and early morning are friends.

7. Shout out to the people who work at my local Subway. It’s in South Yarmouth, MA if you want to visit. I don’t go as often as I used to (I am trying to get back into race shape) but every time I go they are always friendly despite the restaurant industry being so cruel. I worked it for years so I know. The food is always good too. So there, go get something from that Subway and be good to hospitality workers because, well because it’s what decent humans do.

8. Everytime I think it has been the soupiest humid day possible the world says ‘hold my beer.’ A run this week had me soaked so much that I think I’d have been less wet if I’d have just dove into the ocean. Fall can’t come soon enough.

9. I’ll never say ‘now I have seen it all.’ Once I say that then I see something like a teenage boy running face first into a closing automatic door at a supermarket. He was too busy looking at the toy vending machines to see the door closing. He whacked his face so hard that he probably thinks he’s a gumball now.

10. Does anyone else feel like there are way more ads on YouTube now than even a few years ago? I’m seeing videos I watch with ad breaks every 3-4 minutes. That’s more than regular television has. But hey the jokes on them. I don’t even watch the ads, I mute the sound and stare at the lower right corner until the ‘skip’ option comes up. Or I just find the latest ad blocker, shhhh.