Lake girl

Back in the 603 for a few days to hang out with Sis....I came up on Monday in the rain.  The heat wave has finally broken, so things are much more bearable.  Today I'm headed for the beach for most of the day  with the goal of getting rid of some of my pasty glowing white pale Irish skin.  Which means I will be lobster red by the end of the day even if I use sunblock.  Not my fault that my ancestors came from a cold, dank rainy climate.  But I am neon white and apparently looking a little on the unhealthy side, so...I've already had cancer, right?  Sis is really tanned.  Mom would be proud of her.

Yesterday was my first swim in the lake of the season--I forget from summer to summer how much I love that feeling of the first dive under.  The water was beautiful.  I even dove off the diving board and raft.  Somehow I don't feel like I'm 42 once I get in the water--I'll feel it afterwards when all my unused muscles start screaming.  I really would love to work swimming into my routine, like either lap swimming or water aerobics, but I can never seem to find something that fits with my schedule.  Plus it's not nearly as pleasant in January when it's 10 below and the air has turned artic.  Anyway, it didn't last long since some nasty thunderstorms moved in and we had to go back indoors.  But, I'll go back today.

The other highlight of last week was watching a childhood friend take over command of the USS Constitution for the next two years.  Sis, Mr. Wonderful and I were invited to the change of command ceremony--it was so neat to be part of it!  Unfortunately it was about 105 degrees on the deck of the ship, so we basically baked in the hot sun for about 90 minutes.  The crew had it much worse--the commanders and officers had to wear uniforms from 1813, made of wool. And the uniforms were multilayered complete with large hats.  I don't know how they managed to make it through the day.  We went to a reception afterwards with neighbors from the NH community, and then later that night went to another party in town.  It was a good day, and and so cool to watch someone you know step into a position like that.  Here's to two years of clear sailing!

My calorie-counting/exercise obsession continues...I've only missed one day of some kind of exercise in the last 16!  I've been walking since I got to NH, and the swimming will be like an extra bonus.  Last night Sis gave me back a shirt I gave her last month because it was too small for me, and when I tried it on, it fit!  Woo hoo!  When I say it didn't fit before, I meant that I could barely get it on and off.  No problem last night.  Still a little snug, so I wouldn't wear it out in public, but I could put it on and not feel like a squeezed sausage.  How's that for a motivating factor?  Amazing how that portion control combined with exercise really works (typed sarcastically with a snicker)!  My jeans felt a little looser too, but that could have been my imagination.

Off to the beach for a bit.