Calm

We've been away for a few days.

Enjoying the sounds of pounding surf, the smell of salt air, and taking long walks, hand in hand, along sandy shores.

Though I am lucky enough to live on the water, there is nothing quite like the ocean to help soothe the savage beast in us all.

It had been far too long since we had gazed out across her boundless beauty, contemplating things large and small, and we decided we won't let so much time past before we visit her again.

I hope all is well in your world. 

Slow Moving

It's been slow going around here since my last post.  I came down with the flu, then our son, then our daughter...their significant others, and so on, and so on until Mr. Tide was the last man standing.

I literally stayed in bed for days, hoping that someone would either shoot me, or that my head would stop feeling as though it was inside a giant vise!

I didn't return emails, so I apologize to those of you who so kindly wrote to me or left comments, but I just couldn't even bring myself to type a few words in return.  Today is the first day I really even felt like a human being again, and I truly can't remember feeling as badly as I have for the past week and a half, for a very long time!  Thankfully I have a wonderful nurse in the form of my husband, who took really good care of me and catered to my every whim.

Now, there is just a bit of a cough lingering, and I'm still easily tired out, but I can live with that, no problemo!

Needless to say, the picture taking has been at a standstill since I came down with my virus, so the swan pics in this post are from a few weeks ago.

The tundra swans were late in arriving this year, by almost 2 months.  We had nearly given up hope that they would come, when one day we looked outside the window and saw a few.  Slowly but surely, over the past 3 or 4 weeks, more have come to join us, even when our creek was frozen over.  They would Jemima Puddle Duck their way from one end of the creek to the other, stopping to feed at any open spot, or sleeping on the huge patches of ice.  It was slow going for them too, but they didn't seem to mind.

In the pictures above, the swans showing a bit of bravado are standing on ice, and giving us their best moves.  Their wings remind me so much of angel wings that I wanted to darken the images and really give them that ethereal, otherworldly appearance, hence the dark and soft feel of these particular pics.

At last count we had 38 swans, including cygnets, gliding along our shores, eating our underwater vegetation, and making a racket after the sun goes down...for reasons we don't yet understand.  We will be sad to see them go when the weather begins to warm, but we are happy they chose to spend another winter with us!

I will be out of pocket for a few days tending to some family/work stuff, but hopefully everything will be back to normal by the end of next week!  I hope you all enjoy your week!

Changes

Do you ever have things repeat themselves over weeks and months, as though someone is laying down a road map  for you as to which direction you should be heading?  You might read an article on the news, then a blog post, have a conversation with a friend, see a scene in a movie, even a dream, and they all have the same message, the same content essentially?

This happens to me a lot, it's a kind of bizarre deja vu I experience often and have come to embrace as a way for the universe to communicate with me, or maybe my way of communicating to the universe?!

Maybe we see an image, or project one, of how we want things to be, and then, like a mirror, the world reflects those feelings, wants, and wishes back upon us.  It's an interesting thought, albeit it full of fuzzy logic, which after all, is my favorite kind of logic.

For quite some time I've been ready for change.  Change in a personal way with my weight, health, etc. and change in external ways such as my home, my work, etc.   And at the core of that change is a re-prioritizing of what is meaningful and important to me.

Like with so many things, the universe seems to be affirming this for me.  And if you prefer to think of those affirmations in a more religious manner, then hey, go for it, all I ask is that you listen, don't brush aside those little signs and tiny nudges, they are telling you something you need to know.  Pay attention!

 Last October, our daughter was having dinner with us and mentioned a video she had watched on TED.  If you're unfamiliar with TED talks, I highly recommend checking them out.  They are short videos on a variety of topics, and some will resonate with you and cause you to do a little more digging on a subject.

Such was the case with the video I've linked below, please watch the entire video.  For me, it was like the doctor was talking directly to me, with an understanding that has been lacking for years with most health professionals I have seen.  I had been doing everything right, I was eating in an incredibly healthy way, but I still didn't feel better or lose the weight I had gained when I was so stressed with the illnesses and subsequent deaths of both of my parents over the past 10 years.  After watching the video, and crying along with the physician, I began digging for more answers based on what the doctor in the video had to say, and lo and behold I found that what I thought was healthy eating...ie. all organic, grass fed, free range, etc. and exercising in more traditional ways, was not the perfect set up for me.

I had to, in essence, pack up my previous preconceptions and lock them away in search of what would work for me...not for everyone.  Which we all know, there is no everyone, what works for me won't necessarily work for you.

The organic fruits and veggies were great, but I needed to be very selective in which fruits and veggies I ate...no more sweet potatoes, or apples, no more high carb anything in reality.  And I needed to up my fat intake...yup you heard me...up my FAT intake to lose fat! (But by eating the right kinds of fat) I also needed to eliminate sugars, pasta and anything carb-laden.  This one was easy for me as we rarely ate sugary anything, but I did consume sugar in hidden ways, such as salad dressings, tomato sauces, and even the smallest amount is critical for someone like me.

I have to also say that my health at the beginning of this was not like that of your average bear.  Over the years, I have suffered with hypothyroidism, PCOS, insulin resistance, and adrenal fatigue, while I was able to manage these fairly successfully, I was still climbing up from a far deeper pit than most, which means the steps I needed to take were more extreme than others might need.  Because I haven't had a soda or any sugary drink in 3 years, the only carbs I was eating came in the form of gluten-free breads and pasta for the most part, so for me, the changes were relatively small, but have had huge consequences of a positive kind so far.

I'm not Paleo, I'm not on Atkins, I'm just eating in a way that works for me.  And I'm also exercising in a way that seems to work for me as well.  I have stopped doing major cardio which never seemed to budge the scale at all.  And, I've given up on the whole concept of calories in vs. calories out, which research is finding only works for about 1/3 of the population.  God bless those of you who can limit your intake and run a few extra miles...I am not your people!  And I'm not saying that there isn't a certain percentage of the population who does overeat and who is sedentary, but for many people this isn't true, yet they struggle with their health and weight.

I now do eccentric only exercises and a type of yoga that focuses on the large muscle groups in your body and not on large numbers of reps or time put in.  All of this flies in the face of conventional wisdom (well, what has been conventional) and everything I have known my whole life.  I was a college level athlete after all, and exercise was my go to for many years, so it has been challenging to scale back on exercising, but the results have told me that this is my new normal.  I'm also very aware of my heart rate during exercise so that I don't go over my metabolic threshold.

It's funny, when I started typing this post it was about decluttering my house, about how I wanted to lighten my life by ridding myself of the things that I don't need anymore, and yet here I am typing away about diet and exercise.

I have no idea at what point during this post my brain decided to switch gears, and honestly I don't really like talking about diet and exercise on my blog, it's such a personal subject.  I do know this though, for me, there are big changes going on, and perhaps you are someone that has stumbled upon this post for a reason...maybe you were meant to read what I've typed and it will help you too?!  I will likely never know, though you are more than welcome to email me and ask anything you want about what has been working for me.  And NO, I'm not selling supplements or starting my own yoga retreat spa and hotel in Fiji...though that sounds pretty darned good right now doesn't it?!  I just know that for years I was doing everything "right", not cheating, not lying to myself and others about what I was doing, and still I couldn't heal my body, and that was not a happy time for me I can assure you.

Things are looking up, and not because I'm losing weight, that has been a happy side effect of feeling better.  Health is, and has always been, my #1 priority.  And as I begin to heal, because I still have a long road ahead of me, I am interested in things I had forgotten I loved before.  Change is good my friends...may you all have happy changes headed your way soon...just remember to follow the sign posts!

Some Days

The geese are gone from the field...

The eagle in the background is too, now that the fields which had finally lost their blanket of white are now cloaked once more with powdery diamonds.

The bird feeders need replenishing, that will be this afternoon's task.

Some days the birds I like to call "bully" birds get to eat with abandon while their more shy, much smaller neighbors wait in the bushes for their turn.

And some days, upon closer inspection, I learn to appreciate the bully birds for their absolute beauty, even if my heart always goes out to the tiny underdog birds.  It's no wonder mankind invented fashion when you look at what mother nature did without a stylist!  You can see how we might get a little jealous over the millennia!

We have fresh snow and bitter temps here at Casa Low Tide, but I'm kind of embracing this winter and all of its chilly beauty.  That's not the case for so many who never see snow and are dealing with all the chaos that comes with snow and ice in the deep south, and to those of you stranded and suffering, my heart goes out to you.  It wasn't too many years ago that our daughter was stranded in the DC metro area for over 12 hours in her car on her way home from work, and she will be the first to tell you that it was NO fun!

I hope this icy grip will loosen its hold on you folks, and I hope the first responders who brave the elements, no matter how bad, will stay warm and out of harm's way.

Pluses and Minuses

(Photo Courtesy of Unlisted Website)

I'm married to a funny guy, both literally and figuratively speaking.  The other day he asked me if I was going to do a post on my "new" new boots and when I asked him why he said, "well your last post was so sad."  Funny, I never thought of it as sad, I was going for tongue in cheek, but this man of mine knew how much I had longed for those boots, so for him it was a sad post.  Little does he know...well actually he does but he must have temporarily forgotten, that I can turn on a dime...love something one minute and be moving right on down the line the next.

I returned the Coach boots and never looked back, in fact I felt kind of relieved that I had made the grown up decision of allowing comfort to trump looks.  In my younger years I would have likely muscled through wearing those boots, only to regret it when I needed to take a nice long bath to soothe my aching arches!  Now, don't get me wrong, I wasn't giving up that easily, I knew I would find other boots, and so it was last Sunday night on our way to dinner when I said, "hey let's stop by the store and buy you some jeans...you really need some new jeans."

I tried on 3 pairs of boots, all with lower heels, and when I tried on the ones pictured above, I knew they were the ones!  Comfy...check...on sale...check...and in my size...double check!  They are not red, though if they had had the red ones in my size, you can bet your bottom dollar they would have come home with me too.  They are from Unlisted by Kenneth Cole and they feel like bedroom slippers, at least to me they do.  They are almost a grey/green and will go with everything, so all's well that ends well.  I even put them on in the car and wore them to dinner...and did I mention they were only $23?!  And everyone knows that getting a good deal makes you love something even more...well, except in the case of the .99 cent off brand cookies my dad used to stock up on...they were disgusting, but we're not talking cookies here people, we're talking dirt cheap booties!

Fast forward to today, and although I have new boots and Mr. Tide has new jeans, neither of us will be wearing them.

We got some snow throughout the day yesterday and into last night, and along with the white stuff it's been blowing a gale.  Our temps were in the single digits, and the wind chills took us into minus territory...I think last night it was -8, and that was before midnight!

Even this afternoon when I took the dogs out it was still blowing, but not nearly as badly as yesterday, for which Mr. Quinn is very thankful.

He and Misty love the snow, but even they are smart enough to know that when it feels like 7 degrees outside, they shouldn't play for too long.

That face pretty much says it all.  That's the face of a happy, albeit cold doggie!

Misty insists on rolling around and burying her entire head in the snow like a snowplow.  Even in the minus temps, it is always a plus to have them around!

If you are part of this big snow storm, or feeling the chilling temps of January wherever you are, stay safe and warm my friends!

Love Lost

(Photo via Coach)

So, here they are, the booties I have pined over for months.  The boots I have checked the Coach website every single day almost waiting for them to go on super sale.  The boots in the perfect shade of saddle brown that I have built outfits around in my head.  The boots that I ponied up the cash to buy, even though I knew it was crazy to spend that much on boots I don't need...yup it was love, true love!

But it was unrequited love, a love that could never be.  I knew it the moment I slipped the first one on my foot.  The fit was fine, albeit a little roomy, but I was undaunted, these were MY boots and if I had to wear thicker socks to make it work, then so be it I thought!

I held the second boot up to my nose, breathed in its intoxicating real leather smell (think finely carved western saddle), and put it on my other foot.  These were perfect I thought, but the little voice in my head screamed in that annoying way you can't ignore..."are you sure about that Kat?!"

I stood up, certain I could quell that nasty, know it all voice in my head, took a few steps and then sighed.  These were not my boots, they were boots that had lured me with their shiny gold plate that said Coach on the back, the beauty of the stacked wooden heels, the supple leather that brought back childhood memories of my grandfather and our horses, and the sexy stitching that made me swoon.  No, it had all been a ruse, a cruel joke that made me believe I could walk in heels that made me feel like a 6 year old wearing her mother's high heels for the first time.  And even after I stopped walking like Bambi, I realized that they hurt, not a little, but a lot!

Not one to listen to reason, I wandered around my house, even invited my son and his girlfriend down to take a look...to help convince me that these were in fact my boots, and perhaps first impressions weren't always the best.  They of course LOVED them too, we were all taken in by their beguiling beauty, and so I told myself this would take some time.  Maybe these boots didn't love me the way I loved them, but in time, with some cushy inserts, we could learn to love one another, we were after all, meant to be together!

This morning I awoke with hope and promise, and with the balls of my feet no longer aching from the night before.  I tried on my Vince Camuto boots, the ones that started my lust for height and fashion.  They had been true to me, so how could these Coach boots be so different I thought.  But after trying on my other boots, feeling the way they hugged every subtle nuance of my foot and ankle without pain or irritation, it became undeniable that a 1/4 inch and the angle at which a boot is made, really can make or break a relationship.

In time I will get over this disappointing break-up, heck, I will probably find a new love sometime this week as I peruse other shoe sales, and those other boots will become a distant memory.  I will tell others about how they let me down, how I gave them everything, including my credit card and how I called all over the country to find them in my size only to be scorned and hurt for my trouble.  It will take some time, all break ups do, but I know it's the right thing to do, the sane thing to do, and so I will move on...but oh how I will miss the thought of them, the vision I had created in my head.  Goodbye sweet boots, may you find another to love, and one who will love you as much as I had hoped to! ;-)

Excuses and Regrets

The great thing about doing a photo shoot for a magazine is that it gives you a perfect excuse to buy flowers...sometimes lots of flowers.

And this time of year, fresh flowers are a perfect pick me up for very little money.

It also makes you take a long hard look at what you "want" to see in an image, which often leads to editing down to the bare essentials...something I'm striving for these days anyway.

This past weekend I bit the bullet and ordered the boots I wanted...the boots that had spoken to me for so long.  It's a rare thing for me to spend a lot of money on clothes or shoes, I'm way too much of a bargain/clearance shopper for that.  I love the thrill of the chase, and am rarely regretful if something slips through my fingers as I stalk the manufacturer waiting for their bottom basement price, but this time they won out.

I love nice things, I just don't love paying a high price for them.  I think this harkens back to the days when I was a sales rep for high end children's clothing and accessories.  I did clothing shows in New York, Charlotte N.C., and the DC metro area, and so I knew the cost of manufacturing verses retail and I was never really able to go back to full retail after that eye opening experience.

But at the same time, I can appreciate the cost of some things...furniture, antiques, jewelry, and apparently boots in the perfect shade of saddle brown!  They were on sale after all, and I justified my purchase by telling myself that I will wear them every day, of every week, of every month...hah!

Just as I rarely regret losing the clearance tug of war from time to time, I have no regrets when I put my money on the table in other instances.  The pie safe pictured above is one such example.  It was purchased when we were young, didn't have 2 nickles to rub together, and I had to pay for it over time.  It has been with us for 25 years now, traveling from home to home, room to room, and I still love it just as much as when I first saw it in a local antique store.

My father used to always say, and my mother too, that if you really want it, you better go ahead and get it or it might not be there later...something a wise reader reminded me of in her comment on my last post.  I guess from time to time we have to splurge a little, on those special things that speak to us and which we can't get out of our heads.  I doubt I will ever lose my cheapskate ways, but I'm betting I also won't regret strutting around in my new boots either!

What do you splurge on?!...do tell!

Birdsong

There's not much new to report from my neck of the woods.

The weather has warmed up, but the fog and the rain quickly rolled in shortly after I took these images a few days ago, so it's been rather bleak around here.

I'm on deadline for a story, and because procrastination is my middle name, I've been busy surfing websites hunting for end of season deals instead of taking pictures to accompany my story...I blame the lousy weather for not allowing me to take good pics and finish my assignment! ;-)

We filled the bird feeders before the bitter cold and light dusting of snow hit last week, and the birds all seem appreciative of our efforts.  I don't even know what kind of bird this little guy pictured above is, any birders out there that can help me out?

Of course I always know this bird when I see it, and I always smile when a bluebird graces me with his or her presence.  I think they secretly know that just a little flash of their bold blue feathers will help bolster me throughout the day and remind me that the colors of spring must be just around the corner!

I'm off now to do some cleaning, and to talk myself out of a pair of boots I've been eyeing for 2 months now.  Sure, they are on sale, but they aren't dirt cheap yet, and that's the only way I like my after season sales items...so Coach, if you're listening...please take 90% off of all your boots so that I can get my work done...ok?!...and thanks in advance!

Happy Weekend!