Archive for the ‘Observations’ Category
These are today’s imponderable questions. Can someone please help me with these?
Where have all the flies suddenly come from? Sitting on the front porch this morning I was nearly carried off by black, buzzing flies. They seem particularly attracted to the white Adirondack chairs in the front too. I am considering a carnivorous plants theme garden.
How is it that when I travel away from home on business my husband and son can muster the energy to take themselves out for dinner, but when I’m home, they can’t?
How can it be that work expands to the time you have to do it? Business is slow, but I’ll be darned it if still doesn’t take all day.
What is the purpose in having the WHOLE family of six stand side-by-side in a line right next to the luggage carousel at the airport to pick up Grandma’s single suitcase, preventing anyone else from even seeing the conveyor belt?
Why does it take my son 15 minutes to mow the Back 40 while it takes me 45 minutes to mow the same area?
Is it wrong to hope that something untoward happens to the male and female cardinal pair that has been attacking the windows of our house, front and back, 18 hours/day for the past month? The noise is incessant.
Who let the dogs out? Oh, I know the answer to that one. That would be me. Apparently I am the ONLY ONE living in this house capable of opening the door and stepping outside with the dogs.
(This is Miss P, our resident feline. She is crabby. I think it’s the dogs. I have talked with her about the cardinal situation, but she hasn’t yet taken action.)
Robin
You know those thriller movies where the villain seems to have super-human strength?
They bounce off of cars, fall from bridges, take bullets, catch on fire. Still, they muster the energy to pursue the good guy.
Well, I know some plants like that. Here is my short list of plants I absolutely, without a doubt, cannot kill. Good thing they don’t have legs and arms or I would be in trouble.
#1 Plant I Cannot Kill - Rose Campion
I agree that this lovely pink-flowered plant on the delicate silvery stems looks innocent enough peaking through the garden gate. The problem is that the Rose Campion spreads and re-seeds virulently. For two summers I have ruthlessly yanked up all the plants I can find. Still, they manage to return again and again.
It wouldn’t be so bad if they always looked like this. They don’t. There are so many flowers that it takes a good deal of assiduous deadheading to keep them looking their finest. Basically, I find this a high-maintenance plant.
This year I have a soft heart and let a couple sneak through my weeding frenzy. I will pay for that.
#2 Plant I Cannot Kill - Johnny-Jump-Ups
Last year I planted Johnny-Jump-Up seeds outside the dwarf boxwoods in this raised bed in the Colonial theme garden. At first, I was charmed by their vigorous appearance. But when they threatened to destroy the boxwoods by mutating to some 18″ in height, I yanked them up by their little throats. Did they give up? No. They remain in the center of the bed and have re-seeded throughout the garden, including in the paths and even in my lettuce bed.
As you can see, I don’t exactly take a zero-tolerance policy. I have let the ones that sneaked past me continue to grow.
(BTW, I think the whole idea of zero tolerance is a bit scary. But then, this isn’t a political blog, is it?)
#3 Plant I Cannot Kill — Mint
I know, I know. Everyone tells you that mint spreads like crazy and you must do something to contain it. I swear on my Papillons that I did not plant this mint in the ground. It was in a pot and JUMPED out. It is everwhere, including wandering through the lawn.
My son has the habit of grabbing a sprig and chewing on it when he wanders by. At least it servers some entertainment purpose.
So Here’s What You Do…
If you know someone who claims a black thumb but also swears they are interested in gardening, get them a little box and fill it with Rose Campion, Johnny-Jump-Ups and mint and see who wins.
Robin
I started my day at the Horloge Fleurie, the famous Flower Clock here in Geneva, Switzerland.
The Flower Clock is regularly replanted with 6,500 plants to cover the 16-square-foot surface. The configuration of the flowers and numbers regularly changes. You can see other Flower Clock configurations here. This season’s clock is planted with primroses and numbers scattered outside the typical circular bounds. Yes, the clock is accurate.
The Swiss planted the working floral clock in 1955 as yet another reminder that all visitors are required to purchase at least one watch prior to leaving Switzerland. Other reminders include the picture on your hotel room door key, all displays in all hotel lobbies, all banners on all light posts around town, names of famous watch brands atop all the tallest Geneva buildings, even clockwork innards springing out from all the animals on the local children’s carousel. Every other store sells luxurious bejeweled watches and all Geneva residents are required to wear at least one Swiss-made watch. If one cannot afford an expensive Swiss watch, there is always the Swatch watch, of which there are plenty.
Since winter is just now releasing its grip on the poor watch-making Swiss, I had to entertain myself with pursuits other than strictly horticultural ones. In other words, I went shopping.
In Geneva’s Old Town, the Vieille Ville, there are tightly packed galleries, cafes and boutiques that cater to highly specialized tastes. There is an antiques store that only sells scientific instruments. In one sparsely decorated gallery hung a couple dozen 8” to 12” animal sculptures made from raffia, twigs and other natural materials. Antique print and bookshops abound. Occasionally you’ll stumble across a more contemporary gallery, such as the one that sells some sort of robot prints. (I didn’t get it.)
I finally headed down to the main shopping district on the Right Bank, where I stumbled onto Globus, a multi-story department store. Good thing, too, since I needed a new umbrella. My Wal-Mart Totes umbrella busted on the first day of my visit, leaving me a bit soggy. But while I was there, I ambled down to the basement where the gourmet foodstuffs were displayed. Why do the big stores always put food in the basement? Have you noticed that?
Anyway, I found some very nice teas, including a beautiful hibiscus tea that will probably taste like dirt. I also found some tiny little mixed flower teas in beautiful mesh bags. If I didn’t know they were teas I would think I was supposed to plant them.Oh, and I picked up a couple of Swiss chocolate bars just in case there was a food emergency in my hotel room.
Since I had walked approximately 1,115 miles already today, I decided to sit down for a while on a boat cruise of the lake. It was a lovely 50-minute tour during which I understood not one word of the recorded narration. I didn’t care. The sun had finally come from behind the clouds, the air was warm and my feet were tired.
There is more rain ahead and the hotel concierge, Francoise, tells me I must make the most of the day tomorrow before the rains return in earnest on Monday. So I really must go and work on decoding the shower faucets now. After three days I am still using the trial and error method to regulate the water temperature. Apparently you need a Swiss engineering degree to operate Swiss plumbing. To complicate matters further, they seem to operate on the VTS (Variable Temperature System), which requires that the shower water temperature fluctuate +/- 10 degrees while you are standing under the stream.
My clients have all rushed back to the States for soccer games, baseball games and to frazzled mothers of infants. They, apparently, are at a different life-stage than I am. I can linger, but I’m all alone. My guys could not get off from work or school to play. And while I miss my guys, my little dogs and my garden, I’m not really suffering too badly. And there are always the chocolate bars I have for such emergencies.
Robin
I recall a conversation from years ago with my dear old friend Claudia.
She has just moved into a charming little cottage in the old Ortega section of Jacksonville, Florida. The house was surrounded by old trees and magnificent, mature flowering shrubs. I was completely taken with the place.
I commented to Claudia that I would garden constantly if I lived there. Her response?
“Oh, I love the idea of gardening. But I just don’t want to be outside there all by myself. It would be so lonely!”
SUNFLOWERS AT THE CHICAGO BOTANIC GARDEN
Although this conversation took place, oh, nearly 10 years ago, it has stuck with me, and occasionally crossed my mind, because the feeling that Claudia expressed is so foreign to my own needs and desires for being with nature.
See, while Claudia yearned for company to enjoy nature, I am more like the legendary Hollywood star.
“I want to be alone.”
When I am indoors, I continually bounce from one activity to the next, multi-tasking between home and office and getting distracted with one thing or another. My mind leaps from one idea to another…
“Need to clean the frig…haven’t heard from that client yet…what am I going to do about that programming issue…should I go to the spinning class tomorrow…oops, need to finish that project schedule…can I deliver that report early…”
The internal chatter is a lightening speed, incessant drone.
When I am working in the garden, that chatter gradually subsides. I become lost in the activity. Minutes at a time go by without my having a single thought other than about what I’m doing with my hands.
And although there is no shortage of work for which I could use an extra pair (or more) of hands, I don’t nag my husband or son to join me in the garden because I just want the company of the wind and the birds. (And little dogs, of course.) When they do join me, we usually work at a distance, all of us lost in our own internal worlds. Happily, they share my desire for quiet time.
So you see, perhaps, why I wasn’t entirely sad to be alone in my visits to some of the country’s most spectacular public gardens this past year—the Phoenix Botanical Garden, the Chicago Botanical Garden, the Denver Botanic Garden and the Dixon House and Gardens, among others. Although part of me would loved to share the experience with my husband or another friend, the selfish part of me was happy to have the gardens to myself.
As I wandered through, I could go at my very own pace, lingering over an unusual combination of primroses and cabbages, admiring the coy in the Japanese garden, sitting under the shade of a well-placed trellis.
I observed many groups of families dutifully trudging along after the more enthusiastic members of their parties. Not all the groups looked entirely happy, I must say. Most of the kids looked bored to tears. Not a few were arguing.
So I was glad not to feel I was holding someone back—or dragging them along on my personal nature adventure. There are certainly times when I enjoy the company. But those visits have a different purpose altogether, and it’s not mostly about nature.
And you? Is nature something you prefer to share?
Robin
According to the Nature Conservancy, fewer Americans are spending time in outdoor activities, which could have a serious impact on our environment.
This was one of the stories on the NBC evening news last night.
The Nature Conservancy conducted research that revealed Americans are spending more time with indoor activities, such as the Internet, electronic games and movies and less time at outdoor activities such as camping, fishing and hiking. In fact, the percentage of the American population enjoying the outdoors is at an all-time low.
Although I haven’t seen the research, my own observations of how people spend their leisure time tells me this is probably true.
The reason this is worrisome is that with fewer people spending less time at nature-based activities, nature will become unappreciated and unexplored. If we learn everything we know about nature from the television, our first-hand understanding and appreciation of the importance of clean air and healthy soil and forests and abundance wildlife is diminished.
It’s interesting, too, that participation in outdoor activities is down at the same time there are record numbers of people who are overweight and obese.
I wonder how many of us consider visiting a local nature park, hiking or going to the seashore among the weekend entertainment options of movies and eating out? I know the last time I suggested a hike to Calvert Cliffs State Park to a friend-who-shall-not-be-named I was met with the “you must be mad” expression. We went to an Indian restaurant instead.
So what do we do to reverse this trend? How can we as individuals encourage outdoor activities, particularly those that respect the environment and encourage conservation efforts?
Robin
After reading about it on the Ellis Hollow blog, I decided on a whim to take an online class on botanical drawing through Cornell University.
Given that I have never before expressed (out loud anyway) the desire to draw or paint, it rather took some folks by surprise when I finally admitted to family and friends why I was stocking up on drawing pencils, pads and books on drawing.
My husband’s reaction was: “WHAT?”
My son’s reaction was: “You’re just like your mother!”
My friend Angela’s reaction was: “Why botanical drawing?”
So, to them I’ll answer:
To my husband: [Carefully enunciating here] “An…online…botanical…drawing…class.”
To my son: “Not exactly what I was aiming for, but I can see why you would say that.”
To my friend Angela: “What else would I draw?”
Here’s what I have learned in one week.
First, I have learned to never again say “I’m not an artist.”
No, it’s not that I think I’ve transformed overnight into Marie Cassatt with the help of one week of an online course. Rather, it’s that saying the words “I’m not an artist” is an excuse not to try to improve what skills I can.
On the other hand, given that I’ve reached the age of <<bleep>> without drawing much more than some stick figures here and there and poking fun at myself with a series of drawings on my garden blog, I don’t expect to discover my inner Vermeer. But perhaps I can learn to pay better attention to the details of the natural world around me, render them with enough skill to be able to put it to practical use, and—hey—why not just enjoy slowing down and communing with nature in a way that doesn’t require gloves. a shovel and a shower afterward?
The second thing I’ve learned this week is that the hardest part of learning to draw—so far—has been getting started. I have dedicated the small secretary desk by my bed as my drawing “studio” and filled all the little cubbies with pencils, erasers and inks. I have a nice basket on the floor by the desk where I keep my pads and books on botanical drawing. That was the easy part.
The very hardest part was facing the sprig of Winter King Hawthorn and the empty sheet of paper with a pencil in my hand. OMG. I am taking an online course so I can turn in stick figures and humiliate myself!
“Stop it!!!” (Mental head slap.)
I finally took a deep breath and started with the stems. Big stems. Slim stems. Slimmer stems. Even slimmer stems on the slimmer stems. Did you know there are little tiny white places on brown stems? And some little darker brown spots? And did you know that when the stem meets the tiny little orange-red berry on the Winter King Hawthorn that there is an ever-so-slight indentation?
I don’t believe I’ve ever really looked that closely—or for that long—before. I’ve been too busy pulling the weeds under the tree, I suppose.
But as I looked at the berries, I see that they aren’t just ORANGE. They are hues of orange that can be drawn to suggest the shading, circular shape and even shininess of the berry.
Capturing all this newfound insight with a pencil is not so very easy, however. This does not come naturally to me.
But as I was browsing through the Barnes & Noble for the last of the recommended texts I needed, a rather obvious revelation came to me. The reason people write and publish books on drawing and other arts is because all these fabulous techniques don’t come naturally to most people. And that’s why they have whole classes devoted to learning different art techniques. So you can learn to do it!
Just like I had to take years and years of piano lessons and spend hours and hours of time practicing before I could call myself a pianist, people spend many years at training and practice to become artists! No one (okay, hardly anyone) just sits down at the piano for the first time knowing how to play. Most people don’t just pick up a pencil and create a fabulous drawing their first try.
Isn’t it funny how the most obvious things can be the last things that you understand?
Robin
At our house we don’t make New Year’s resolutions.
Rather, we set annual goals and have a tradition of sharing all or some of them at our New Year’s dinner. Many years we post them, or at least those we don’t mind sharing, on the refrigerator as a daily reminder of what we wish to accomplish in the coming months. There are some goals I don’t share with anyone, either because they are too personal or because I’m simply not ready to divulge some part of myself in this way.
I think it’s important to distinguish between goals and resolutions. Resolutions are black and white. You do it or don’t. You win or lose.
Frankly, most people aren’t designed for resolutions. It’s simply too difficult for most of us to suddenly make a U-turn and start swimming in the opposite direction against a well-established tide. That is, I think, why so many people who make resolutions stumble around, oh, January 6, and never show up at the gym again. Or they inhale a truckload of Fritos and figure they’re doomed.
Goals, on the other hand, take a longer view. Goals are things that you wish to achieve that need to be taken, perhaps, in steps—a bit at a time. If there is something you wish to do that you can “just do,” such as finally cleaning out the garden shed or digging that new herb border, that is not a goal. It’s something that is on your “to do” list, but it is not a goal.
I am fortunate enough to work with a group of consultants who specialize in this type of planning, so I’ve more or less internalized the process of strategic planning for organizations and even adapted it for my own personal planning.
Here’s a simplified version of how it works:
First think about what you want to be. This takes some serious thinking and is probably not something that can be done in the heat of the moment on New Year’s Day. I regularly revisit this question on vacations and during other down-times when I have the leisure of self-examination.
Ask yourself: What is it that I want to be known for, to be and have achieved in, say, the next 10 to 20 years? That may seem a bit of a far-fetched way to begin thinking about annual goals, but it’s not really. Without this long-term vision of what you want to be, you won’t be able to develop a plan to get there. It’s rather like going on a road trip without a destination in mind. You end up doing a lot of things, but they may or may not be the right things. You might get to where you want to go—or you might not. A shocking number of people don’t have a plan. But those who do achieve impressive things.
Here’s an example of how you might frame that type of statement about what you want to be:
“I want to live a life that is peaceful, socially responsible and beautiful and to leave behind a legacy for those values when I am gone.”
Sounds great, right? But boy, that’s a tall order. However will I do that?
Here’s the next step: Think about the things you must accomplish within the next few months to get you closer to living this statement. What you come up with, then, are the goals. Many times it’s helpful to put the goals into a framework of an outcome that describes an end-state.
For our example, some goals to get there might be:
-I minimize my carbon footprint on the planet.
-I surround myself with positive, joyful people who share my interests.
-I have a home that seamlessly blends indoors and outdoors in a garden that welcomes friends and family.
Getting the idea here? These are goals.
The next step is to set objectives for each of these goals. Objectives get you closer to the action steps, but also indicate milestones or measures that indicate what you need to do. Objectives are observable and often are measurable.
Let’s take the goal of minimizing my carbon footprint on the planet.
Some observable and measurable objectives for this might be:
-I reduce the number of kilowatts of electricity used in our household by 25%.
-I rely less on consuming foods from far-away places by growing and preserving a third of our family’s vegetable needs.
-I reduce our household’s water needs by 20%.
After you’ve identified these objectives, you can set the strategies that most of us are familiar with. These look like most people’s “to do” lists or resolutions.
Some strategies for the objectives to reduce electrical consumption above might be:
-Replace incandescent electric bulbs with new energy-efficient bulbs.
-Turn the water heater thermostat down five degrees.
-Hang laundry outside to dry when weather permits.
-Turn the computer and other major appliances off at night.
-Turn the heat thermostat down 3 or 4 degrees at night.
Once you begin thinking about how you want to live long-term the day-to-day activities really do add up. Over time, it’s amazing what you can accomplish if you have a plan for how to get there.
It’s like that old metaphor about how to eat an elephant—one bit at a time.
One other note about planning: Goals don’t conveniently get achieved in 365 days. Some goals can take a lifetime to achieve. And the beauty of the New Year is that it’s the perfect annual reminder to revisit your goals, revise you goals, cross off goals that no longer seem relevant or important and add new ones.
I hope this wasn’t all too academic and that you can start thinking about your own long-term goals with whatever planning system makes sense to you. There is more than one way to tackle the idea. For example, I notice that Carol at May Dream Gardens also outlined a cool approach with the PLANT acronym.
Whatever you do, I hope you don’t do what someone I know and love said: “I don’t make resolutions so I don’t disappoint myself.” Sheesh. I’ll have to work on that fellow.
Will I be publishing my annual goals? Nosiree. But I will tell you that I’ve been very very good about my renewed workout plan. The very stress-filled fall I had had a positive side. It reminded me that I can’t take my health for granted–and that the older I get the harder I’ll have to work at it. It really is a part-time job.
For everyone who has visited (and read this far), I wish you a peaceful and happy New Year!
Robin
My gift of a straight jacket for my crazy brother may not be as gross as his poo gifts, but I think it’s appropriate. He has a high stress computer job and also tends to be a bit, well, eccentric, if not outright crazy sometimes. What better gift than a straight jacket?
My card suggested this new straight jacket would be great for the days when he needs a jacket at work.
By the way, that’s his handsome son, Blake, in the background. He has another (a twin) named Hunter. (Actually, that looks like Hunter to me now. Pick one.)
I hope you had a great holiday. I have been at the Isle of Palms off the coast of Charleston, South Carolina. We were blessed with unseasonably warm weather, so I walked on the beach about two hours each day.
I ‘ve been working on New Year goals. I am not one of those who poopoos the idea of goal setting (like my poopoo brother). In fact I find this such an invigorating time of year. I’ll be sharing my goal setting strategy shortly. Whoohoo!
Robin
Since I believe my brother Dale has a poo fetish, I should have seen it coming.
I posted a while back about the crazy Christmas gifts my little brother, Dale, and I exchange. Each year we take an extraordinary amount of time scheming thinking of the most iinsulting considerate and gross thoughtful gifts we can present to each other.
Well, with the oncoming rush of relatives, ourl little family of three had our own private Christmas dinner a gift exchange this past weekend. Of course, I opened my bro’s gift with considerable dread anticipation.
As I said, I should have seen it coming. I mean, in the past Dale has sent me such things as links to some blog where a fellow was posting a daily photo of, yes, his, well, poo and photos of luxury toilets. And just this past Thanksgiving he happily gave me the “Monthly Poo” calendar–a beautifully produced calendar of dog poo in various stages of decomposition and posed in beautiful, scenic locations.
Well, as you can probably guess by now, this year’s gift had a poo theme. Here were the gifts, all beautifully packaged.
First, there was the reindeer pooper.
This was actually sorta cute. The little reindeer dispenses tan and brown jellybeans. I will be sure to use it next time the garden club ladies come calling.
There was also a can of Poop Freeze. This actually seems to have a practical purpose. Apparently you just “frost and toss.” The spray freezes the offending poop to -62 degrees F. The can label is very encouraging: “Poop Happens–Just Freeze It!” and “Because It’s Your Dootie!”
I particularly liked the Nope, It’s Soap poo soap. It would be too too predicable to use it when Dale and his lovely wife come to visit. I’ll have to store this for just the right occasion–like when the garden club ladies come calling.
There was also the highly educational book, What’s Your Poo Telling You? I won’t go into all the details because I don’t want to ruin it for you when you go out to get your very own copy. But I will tell you the names of some of the chapter titles: “Floaters vs. Sinkers,” “Number Three,” “Soft Serve,” “Pebble Poo” and, my favorite, “The-Honeymoon’s-Over Poo.”
Finally, he found this lovely letter writing paper made from recycled elephant poo. Well, you just know what I’m using to write the thank you note for THIS gift, right? The garden club ladies!!!
I like to think that my gift to Dale was a bit more intellectual. Sadly, I can’t share WHAT that is right now because I don’t want to let the cat out of the bag, so to speak. But I am hoping that my sister-in-law will be sure and take a nice picture of Dale with the gift.
I’ll be sure to share.
Happy holidays!
–Robin (Bumblebee)
P.S.
I have a brand new Bumblebee Blog design that I’ll be launching sometime in January (fingers crossed). In the meanime, this is a temporary new design that I couldn’t resist. It’s a new template from SquareSpace. Do you like it?
Robin
There is a simple reason for the fact that I’ve not been blogging as much lately. It’s because I have a new part-time job. It’s called “working out.”
I am not kidding about it being a part-time job. I must show up or I don’t get the reward. It is hard work. And it takes a lot of my time and energy.
Some days I like my part-time job—like when I can do my cardio sentence on the treadmill next to someone I know so we can chat or when some fellow flirts with me just a little bit or I imagine that some fellow is flirting with me just a little bit.
Other days I pretty much hate it—like when I would rather be eating a whole vat a macaroni and cheese while reading a trashy novel.
When I do my exercise at the gym it first involves getting properly dressed. Now, this may seem like a simple proposition to most people. Just put on some sweat pants, a t-shirt and some sneaks, right?
Not me. I am NOT going out in a place where I am going to sweat AND look like a bag lady even before I get started. Besides, what if someone wants to flirt with me?
But here’s the trick. I can’t look like I tried TOO hard. I apparently tried too hard one day and a young, grunge-inspired female instructor at the gym commented: “Oh, don’t you look so nice with your little matching outfit. You’re even wearing makeup!” (In case you missed it, she meant this in the b*^&%y way that genetically blessed 22-year-old women talk to 40-something-year-old women who they think should be home crocheting afghans.) I managed to smile sweetly and say “Thank you. It’s amazing but some people will go in public wearing just about anything, won’t they?”
After getting dressed, there is the 20-minute drive to the gym followed by a five-minute warm-up. Two days a week I pay a nice fellow named Greg to be mean to me. It’s the yuppie version of S&M. He tells me to do things that hurt. I pay him. It takes an hour with the weights and other torture devices. When Greg is finished with me, I am sentenced to at least 30 minutes on the treadmill, bike or elliptical trainer.
When I am not paying Greg to be mean to me I must spend at least one day a week being mean to myself–preferably two days a week. On the non-torture days I simply get off with 45 minutes to an hour of cardio work. And every day I must spend at least 20 minutes stretching. I can do that by myself, without S&M Greg’s supervision.
See what I mean about this being a part-time job?
“What’s the reason for this new-found fitness zeal?” you ask.
No, it’s not a New Year’s resolution. It’s a “lifestyle change.” It’s all a part of my slowing down and taking care of myself so that stress doesn’t put me into an early grave.
I also wouldn’t mind dropping a few pounds to get back into my supermodel wardrobe. After all, it is one of Robin’s Immutable Laws of Gardening that you cannot possibly lose weight by working in the garden. But I’m not being too wacky about that. It’s fitness that counts, right? Not looking like a fabulous supermodel in designer clothes?
One of the little “lifestyle changes” that I’m finding amusing is my step counter. You can buy these babies for five bucks at K-Mart. They are FABULOUS. The basic model doesn’t count mileage, but only steps. Just clip it to the waistband of your fashionable workout pants and off you go.
The idea is that you should aim for at least 10,000 steps a day, including a 30-minute walk. The reason for the official “walk” is that if you only do the 30-minute walk and basically sit on your bottom the rest of the day, you’ll only rack up about 4,000 or even fewer steps. The idea is to incorporate extra physical activity throughout your day.
The experts say activity levels correspond with the following number of steps per day:
-low activity: <5,000 steps/day
-Low activity: 5,000 to 7,500 steps/day
-Mild activity: 7,500 to 10,000 steps/day
-Moderate activity: 10,000 to 12,500 steps/day
-High activity: >12,500 steps/day
Greg (remember S&M Greg?) says I should be aiming for at least 12,000 steps a day. (He would, wouldn’t he?)
Actually, I find that on a day when I don’t do any exercise but do some chores around the house and perhaps a couple of errands, I already get about 7,500 steps. When I add in a 30-minute walk I can easily get 10,000 steps. But 12,000 does take more effort for me. Some of the ways I try to get extra steps:
-Parking waaaaayyy on the far side of the parking lot;
-Carrying things upstairs and downstairs as I think about it rather than putting a little pile on the bottom step to take up at one time;
-Walking outside with the little dogs during potty time rather than just standing there;
-Standing and walking around while I talk on the phone;
-And, my favorite, drinking a great deal of green tea so I have to walk back and forth to the bathroom quite a lot.
So there you have it. If I haven’t visited you lately, it’s because of this new part-time job. S&M Greg says my energy level will start to improve soon so that I’ll be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, yadda yadda. Perhaps I’ll also have the energy to catch up with my blog reading.
Robin
