Coffee?

[NF52]

I definitely will!
btw, were you really hauling a flagstone??

"Hauling" might be a stretch, but I was "carrying" a few broken pieces to make a path through some muddy ground, along with "dragging" bags of mulch, "lugging" bags of garden soil, "hoeing" weeds that will outlast us all, "shearing" off overgrown branches and planting some flowers and vegetables. My yearly rampage on our lush vegetation, which I tell myself helps my 67 year old brain and body, and gives me permission to think my farming ancestors would be relieved that their genes haven't entirely disappeared! Not exactly ready for a job at the local garden store throwing flagstone around though!!

[mike]

"Hauling" might be a stretch, but I was "carrying" a few broken pieces to make a path through some muddy ground, along with "dragging" bags of mulch, "lugging" bags of garden soil, "hoeing" weeds that will outlast us all, "shearing" off overgrown branches and planting some flowers and vegetables. My yearly rampage on our lush vegetation, which I tell myself helps my 67 year old brain and body, and gives me permission to think my farming ancestors would be relieved that their genes haven't entirely disappeared! Not exactly ready for a job at the local garden store throwing flagstone around though!!

You make me tired just reading this - you're my hero! I do believe it helps both brain and body.

[thjj]

I definitely will!
btw, were you really hauling a flagstone??

"Hauling" might be a stretch, but I was "carrying" a few broken pieces to make a path through some muddy ground, along with "dragging" bags of mulch, "lugging" bags of garden soil, "hoeing" weeds that will outlast us all, "shearing" off overgrown branches and planting some flowers and vegetables. My yearly rampage on our lush vegetation, which I tell myself helps my 67 year old brain and body, and gives me permission to think my farming ancestors would be relieved that their genes haven't entirely disappeared! Not exactly ready for a job at the local garden store throwing flagstone around though!!

whew! I hope to be as active & healthy as you when I'm 67! btw, I see that you were a grad student 10 years ago. May I ask in what field? I myself regret not going to law school, but heck I wasn't interested in law/politics until a few years ago

[NF52]

...btw, I see that you were a grad student 10 years ago. May I ask in what field? I myself regret not going to law school, but heck I wasn't interested in law/politics until a few years ago

Taking a course on educational law for school administration suggested to me that while I like analyzing Supreme Court briefs, I'd hate the adversarial proceedings. So I don't have the regrets you do! I had an early master's in learning disabilities and had always been interested in how the brain worked more specifically. After "retirement" I added another master's in a cross-disciplinary program called Mind,Brain & Education that allowed me to dabble in a lot of areas (none of them touching on my unknown ApoE 4 status) and meet great people. Mostly it was a chance to stretch my neurons-with none of the pressure to get the top grades I wasn't the oldest person there; I had classmates who were in their 60's who brought great life and work experience.

[thjj]

Taking a course on educational law for school administration suggested to me that while I like analyzing Supreme Court briefs, I'd hate the adversarial proceedings.

Yes, Supreme Court briefs are awesome

[floramaria]

I definitely will!
btw, were you really hauling a flagstone??

"Hauling" might be a stretch, but I was "carrying" a few broken pieces to make a path through some muddy ground, along with "dragging" bags of mulch, "lugging" bags of garden soil, "hoeing" weeds that will outlast us all, "shearing" off overgrown branches and planting some flowers and vegetables. My yearly rampage on our lush vegetation, which I tell myself helps my 67 year old brain and body, and gives me permission to think my farming ancestors would be relieved that their genes haven't entirely disappeared! Not exactly ready for a job at the local garden store throwing flagstone around though!!

I missed this post when you wrote it, but got a good laugh out of it today. I am engaged in both the same activities and the same internal dialogue!
FWIW, my 99 year old dad was an avid gardener until recently, when he slowed down a bit. When asked "his secret" to a long healthy life, he always includes "HARD WORK", said with gusto.
Onward, fellow gardener!

[NF52]

I missed this post when you wrote it, but got a good laugh out of it today. I am engaged in both the same activities and the same internal dialogue!
FWIW, my 99 year old dad was an avid gardener until recently, when he slowed down a bit. When asked "his secret" to a long healthy life, he always includes "HARD WORK", said with gusto.
Onward, fellow gardener!

Thanks, my friend. Sometimes it helps to have a dose of laughter. Picturing a "slab of chocolate" was the spark for me that day. Your dad sounds like my grandmother, who lived to 93, and at 87 was still coaxing flowers and raspberries from her decades-old garden. Glad they both got to see the fruits of their labor for a long time--including their children!