One of the activities that Greg enjoyed at
Gull Lake was the zip line. We had a young member of our party (not one of our children) who was eager to try it this year and Greg was happy to oblige her. After years of experience climbing lighting rigs, heights are not an issue for him. He did check everything out for safety first; had there been any question, he would have walked away.
By the last day of camp, I agreed to go on the zip line myself. You have to understand something, though. For a long time, things like this have been in the category of "If I wasn't so overweight or uncomfortable with how I look, I might try _______." Yes, I've lost a little weight, but not enough to drastically change the things that fell into that category. Something prodded me to take a risk this time, though. I told my sister, "I could die in my sleep tonight or get hit by a car - any number of tragic things
could happen. If I continue to put things off because I'm overweight or uncomfortable with how I look, who knows what I could miss out on?"
*I should make note here that the pictures I have included are of one of Greg's trips down the zip line - not mine. I put my sister in charge of my camera, but in her defense, it is very hard to take pictures of someone hurtling through the air.*Greg went with me. Actually the whole family went with me, as though it was some sort of historic event. Once we were in harnesses and helmets, we climbed the steps of the 40-foot tower and did the safety checks. With great trepidation, I inched forward toward the edge and sat down (which, for the record, I think is the scariest part of the whole zip line experience).
Three...two...one...
The part that was not quite clear to me until the critical moment was that you have to scoot yourself off the platform to go down the zip line. Since you are seated, it is hard to consider it jumping off. I don't know what I was expecting, but I learned that it wasn't enough to climb the tower and sit down. In order to overcome my fears and excuses, I had to willingly take that last, very scary step. Or scoot, as it were. I had to take the risk to go from the nice, solid tower to the unknown of the zip line.
I did it. Twice, actually. I'm not sure "fun" is the word I would use to describe it, but I am proud of myself. I think my husband was shocked - and pleased. The whole experience meant a little bit more to me the next day when I learned that a friend of a friend had just lost her husband. He was a few years younger than I am - no obvious life-threatening issues...he simply had trouble breathing one night and died soon after arriving at the hospital.
Life is so short, friends, and none of us have any guarantees.
Have you taken a risk lately? Or are you putting something off until _____? I would love to hear about it.
Good yarn + pointy needles + a great pattern = a big finished lace project. It is also my reason for not blogging much this week. Bee Fields is now finished. Thanks yet again to Anne Hanson for another glorious pattern! The yarn is Wooly Wonka Fibers merino laceweight in the colorway "The Silk Road."
The part that was not quite clear to me until the critical moment was that you have to scoot yourself off the platform to go down the zip line. Since you are seated, it is hard to consider it jumping off. I don't know what I was expecting, but I learned that it wasn't enough to climb the tower and sit down. In order to overcome my fears and excuses, I had to willingly take that last, very scary step. Or scoot, as it were. I had to take the risk to go from the nice, solid tower to the unknown of the zip line.
I did it. Twice, actually. I'm not sure "fun" is the word I would use to describe it, but I am proud of myself. I think my husband was shocked - and pleased. The whole experience meant a little bit more to me the next day when I learned that a friend of a friend had just lost her husband. He was a few years younger than I am - no obvious life-threatening issues...he simply had trouble breathing one night and died soon after arriving at the hospital. 
We had snowcones our last night at Gull Lake. I'm not fond of the blue ones, but Natalie is.
I go for cherry if it's your basic carnival snowcone. If it's something more high-end, like from a proper snowcone stand...well, that changes things.
A few days of my recent travels were spent in Palm Springs, CA. I have spent very limited time in California and even that was years ago. All I knew about Palm Springs was that it was popular with golfers. A quick search about weather told me to be prepared to be exceedingly hot while I was there.
The extra-nice part of the trip was that since it was off season in Palm Springs, we were able to stay at the Hyatt Grand Champions Resort. While I wouldn't say the rooms were luxurious, they were very nice and the bathroom was huge. The biggest perk for a family would be the pools. There are seven! None of them are massive, but having several allows you to have plenty of room. I'm sure that isn't the case during peak season, but it was true while we were there.
Our children were not with us on this short trip; they stayed with Greg's parents in Missouri. So do you know what my favorite part of my resort experience was? The pool that was for adults only. In reality, I spent very little time there, but boy it was nice.
I wish I could go back. At the same time, the scenery and lifestyle were so foreign to me. It seemed to be an entirely different world than the one I'm used to.
Hey Ragamuffintops - I'm back! I really expected the past three weeks to set me back a few pounds. I mean, it was vacation for pete's sake. While we were in Palm Springs I got to eat at PF Chang's, California Pizza Kitchen and The Cheesecake Factory (complete with White Chocolate Caramel Macadamia Nut Cheesecake). There were also several fast-food stops since we had so much driving to do after the California trip. Then at Gull Lake I had ice cream pretty much every night.
We're home! We left Michigan at 8:30 yesterday morning and got back to Nashville at 11:30 last night. It's not that long of a trip, but we had to make a lot of stops along the way - so we just took our time.
I have to get started on packing today. I don't really want to. I also have to mow. Don't really want to do that either. I made some poor food choices yesterday and feel like a big ol' slug.
This dock is just feet from the back door of the house we'll be staying in.
"Don't even think about it," she said. I have started working with Natalie at the piano. We are not on a regular schedule with it yet, but I work with her when she asks. Last week, she was very focused on picking out the melody of Mary Had A Little Lamb on her own, so I left her to her devices.
