Hi! I am not sure who needs to read this but it is still Fall…and as far as I am concerned it is still Pumpkin Season, as it should be. I’m SUPER annoyed pumpkin foods only get about a month and a half and then get pushed over by peppermint flavored foods. America really needs to get the seasonal stuff time periods correct. Luckily, I was able to find more pumpkin flavored goodies or baddies. Read my opinion below.

• Pumpkin Spice Swiss Miss Hot Cocoa Mix: Add hot water/milk and you have a cozy cup of hot chocolate. It is very slightly pumpkin spice (but really just cinnamon)–subtle enough that you would not notice if you weren’t told. Down side is there is no marshmallows. This gets 3 out of 5 pumpkins. *#thehubs gives it 4 out of 5 pumpkins but I disagree and I write this blog so my opinion counts as the law on JoyPerks*

• Pumpkin Spice Muffin Mix: Super easy to bake (keep in mind that I adjusted the baking instructions for high elevation like the good baker that I am even though the package did not provide that wisdom), only requires milk as additional ingredient (and a bit extra flour for high elevation adjustment). Not too sweet, light flavor, texture is meh–but your expectations can’t be too high for a muffin mix. I tried to make them better by adding a homemade pumpkin spice and nutmeg glaze–but I’m not sure it did make them better (#thehubs says it did not). I would eat again! This gets 4 out of 5 pumpkins.

• Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Bagels: Obviously not fresh. They smell delicious as they are being toasted but again light flavor. These are made with pumpkin flour (what?!) and pumpkin spice bits. I did eat these throughout the week. If they have them next year I recommend using them for a savory breakfast bagel sandwich (a folded egg cooked with Ajika Georgian Seasoning Blend, slice of American cheese, and some Mexican hot sauce drizzle). I fully believe that is the best use of this bagel. This gets 3 out of 5 pumpkins BUT if you use them to make the sandwich it gets 4 out of 5 pumpkins.

• Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Overnight Oats: Regular overnight oat texture but so utterly bad after a small tasting I would have thrown them in the trash (but I didn’t because I wanted #thehubs to taste how bad it was). And I like overnight oats and don’t really need them to be sweet. It is kosher for passover and also gluten free, however, I still give this 0 out of 5 pumpkins.

• Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Empanadas: First they didnt even get crispy nor golden brown after following past package instructions. The filling seemed to be exactly just pumpkin puree with no spices (neither sweet nor savory). I took one bite and that is it. I believe this would need to be added to make it better with a glaze or something else. This gets 2 out of 5 pumpkins.

I am likely not going to be able to find more pumpkin novelty food products. But If I do, I’ll make sure to blog about it! Stay safe and eat some pumpkin!

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I have twitter…but I also don’t remember my password and for some reason don’t want to reset it. Why? Because I constantly have to reset and remember passwords for work and stupid websites I need and twitter, although a funny medium, is just not worth reseting my password. So instead, here is a twitter like feed of the highlight of what Joyperks (that’s me) and her Valentine (that is #thehubs) did.

#thehubs heard of this class hosted on zoom for Valentine’s Day where we would learn about tasting beer and chocolate. It was super unique and for weeks I looked forward to it. 1) I’m a nerd and like to pair stay at home dates with learning 2) I like beer 3) I like chocolate 4) we were supporting local places (Bosque Brewing and Eldora Craft Chocolates).

And so #thehubs signed us up and paid the fee, picked up the local beers (Bosque brewing did a great job at ensuring it was all the beers needed and just one can of each all packaged and at a good price). And then the chocolate squares were shipped to us by Eldora. So we were all set up days in advance with all of the ingredients! We were also emailed tasting note PDFs for beer and chocolates for us to print and use during the class. We were also given a guide on tasting technique/palate cleansing and how to best prepare for the class (for example chocolates needed to be room temp). And so begins my thoughts on this Zoom valentine’s beer and chocolate tasting and pairing class that I typed while zooming and endulging in beer and 70% dark craft chocolate.

P.S. Sorry if it is all over the place…this is how my mind thinks!

Omg all of these people on the class are old, like Medicare old (Joyperks note: it should be an honor to be this old (65+)…means you get good health care benefits)

Oh look! Young people, oh wait, those are the presenters 

I can tell who the chocolatier is—he’s wearing an apron and looks fancy casual

Great sermon about loving ourselves first and how we can do this by enjoying this class

New Mexico’s brewers guild—yes they do hold a lot of power which is why they were somehow allowed to stay open when the bars were closed…still don’t quite understand that

A barrel is 2 kegs..good to know!

Bosque does care about the community—like restoration pizza (Joyperks note: check this place out!)

Lol she just said friendships strengthen over beer on a NICE 90 degree day in a patio (how is 90 degree weather nice?)

How long till we can have the chocolate?

There are over 200 flavors of chocolate?! Wow! This guys thinks badly of regular store chocolate. Slave labor is a big deal…I might feel bad eating nestle chocolate now

I like this chocolate guy! Farmers get paid 200-300% more by craft chocolatiers which is why craft chocolate costs so much

3 bean to bar places in NM (Joyperks note: cacao bean to chocolate bar is what this means)

oh…apparently this presentation is being recorded

Craft chocolate process similar to coffee making…per pictures (Joyperks note: there is roasting)

3 c’s: complement, contrast, cut/cleanse

I should have eaten a bigger lunch…I’m hungry

Partner—I’m so glad they didnt make us turn our video on or introduce ourselves (Joyperks note: I would have been mortified if they had made us do that…though the other participants seemed to love having their video on)

Mmmh this elephants on parade is good! Raspberry light (Joyperks note: this was a beer)

Im not good at tasting chocolate…can only tell if it tastes good or bad

Don’t feel like eating more—definitely satiated (Joyperks note: while tasting chocolate, just one part of a small square)

Wow! at the 2nd try the chocolate gets fruitier

We have 7 beers left…I’m going to get so drunk…definitely ordering deliver dinner (Joyperks note: shared amongst two ppl we only had max 1/3 of each can of beer)

Open haze space—I like this…do I like IPAs now? This would go well with pretzel and beer cheese—dry hops.. I can feel this beer in my nose

Wow this is going to take a while…we are barely in our 2nd pairing

This chocolate is so different!

Jk after the 2nd sip I don’t like IPA’s

This chocolate got sweeter after the beer

Ok smelling yourself resets you sense of smell (Joyperks note: assuming you aren’t wearing scented products this is a real thing that was taught)

Drink scotias to get DRUUUUNK (Joyperks note: ABV/alcohol % higher than other beers)

Why did I have a healthy lunch? My stomach needed carbs to soak this alcohol (literally only had like 3 sips of 3 beers….such a lightweight)

Should have had a Pepcid before this…is it too late? (Joyperks note: proceeded to take 20 mg of famotidine (aka generic Pepcid))

Well…I’ve put on my Snuggie and had a Pepcid

Is she done talking?

Naptime after this

She said it is alot of beers so ok if you get goofy—I like this Bosque gal

She also just said you have ether been consuming not enough of too much during quarantine (Joyperks note: both applies to Joyperks…it depends on first half or second half of the pandemic 2020 year)

If I don’t like this Mexican chocolate does it mean I’m not Mexican?

I don’t like it, I guess I’m not Mexican

Beer took that gross taste away (Joyperks note: thankful for this because the chocolate from Mexico was the least favorite)

I really need to take a nap after this

So I’ve been pronouncing Gose wrong. It is pronounced goes- uh.

Omg I can smell the pickle tastes like pickle juice beer (Joyperks note: Joyperks loved Pickle Down Economics Gose beer from Bosque Brewing)

How much pickles did they use? I want a ham sandwich with this

Or something salty

I need a case of this pickle beer now!

#thehugs took the pickle beer away…because I was too enthusiastically drinking it (Joyperks note: Joyperks really liked the pickle beer)

Maybe I am Mexican— I love this mole chocolate

Hello spices!

Star anise

Red Chile

Mole chocolate with pickle beer is OMG amazing (Joyperks note: Joyperks favorite pairing of the night was this)

I need to make smores with this

Taste more clove/Chile with the Pistol Pete (a beer) in the mole

Will the Eldora choc give us a tour?

You can put the spice on the bottom of the chocolate instead of inside?! How cool—how do I get Steven (the wonderful chocolatier teaching us about chocolate) to be my friend?

THE END.

What did you do for Valentine’s Day? Do you think beer and chocolate belong together? What is your favorite beer? What about favorite chocolate?

I want to know what you think in the comments!

Definitely should have purchased some Apple stock a long long time ago…but I didn’t and now I’ll never be able to afford it!

If you don’t use Apple products you can read this part below:

Good job for not getting into a world of which you can no longer escape. But also, I think you are the person who thinks they are better than everyone else because you haven’t given in to buy/use an apple product. But, you probably aren’t better than us, you probably just have better IT skills/more time to figure out how to sort out things on your gadgets than the rest of the world. Rhetorical questions: How do you even do life? If you aren’t part of the Apple/iPhone cult, what cult did you actually join?

If you do use an Apple product, read the rest of this blog!

Hi! Welcome to the club where we buy overpriced gadgets because they are convenient and easy and pleasing to the eye and where we don’t even feel that bad about it because the apple products make our lives easier to manage and then we can focus more on our life without using our brain power on IT! This post is me reviewing extensively (J/k only what I have tried which is like three different workout types) Apple Fitness+ service that launched sometime in December 2020.

What is Apple Fitness+ (read here because I don’t want to type it)? You pay a subscription for workout videos that tie into your Apple device (iPhone/iPad/appleTV) and also link your Apple Watch workout stats. Right now there are about over a dozen coaches (they have legit bios) and 10 different type of workouts: HIIT, Mindful cooldown, yoga, rowing, cycling, strength, dance, core, treadmill walking/running.

Pros:

• It connects to your Apple Watch to start the workout and end the workout. It shows your Apple Watch stats on the screen the entire time so you don’t have to glance at your Apple Watch! How freakin cool!
• You can search by length of workout (5-45 minutes long, depends on the workout type), coach, style of workout or music type.
• Following along is actually easy. In the videos the trainers face you. They are telling you to go to the right…but they are doing it to the left (so as to be an exact mirror image of you)! It makes it a lot easier if you get confused easily! If you forget the difference btwn left and right (like me, ESL problem), just mirror image them!
• They have a section for beginner workouts!
• The music is already integrated into every workout (so you don’t have to have a playlist)…and no you don’t have to have a subscription to Apple Music. Obviously they used sound engineers because you can hear your instructor well. Production value is high.
• They often show at least three people doing the workout (in certain workouts some of them will show the modifications to make the workout easier or harder).
• The trainers use some sign language and remind you that it is ok to modify movements or go slower if you need to! I love this! I love the acceptance message.
• The trainers look like the are also working hard and actually do get sweaty in the videos. They also look like real people and aren’t perfect. They wear cool Nike clothing (IYKYK, Nike at least stands up for what is right (if you don’t know then google: Nike and Colin Kaepernick)).
• It is cheaper than a gym membership…and you can do it at home. Ideal for a pandemic.
• The cooldown/mindful workout only has 5 or 10 minute videos…ideally I would love to have a meditation/stretch video that is 20-30 mins.
• For my husband and I it has been great because having the Apple Fitness+ has made it easier for us to find videos for us to stretch/meditate more and we have done it consistently for about the past week! It really does make it easy for us to do a little extra.

Cons

• It costs money….$9.99/mo.per month  or $79.99 /yr. You can share it with up to 5 family members. It does come free for 3 months if you buy a new Apple Watch.
• You have to have an Apple Watch, and you have to have an Apple TV/iPad/iPhone.
• No live classes (I suspect they will add some in the future).
• You see cool outfits and then you start shopping for Nike workout clothes online.
• Not ideal if you have specific/very individualized music you like to workout to.

Hello my buddies! How is quarantine life? HINT: If you are doing it the wrong way…it probably doesn’t suck even a little bit. If you are doing it the right way by social distancing, wearing your mask, and limiting outings it probably sucks a little bit!

I have a confession…I’m a jam/fruit spread/fruit preserves hoarder. I am not sure when this started but can tell you that the advent calendar of jam was likely not the start!

When did it start? Probably when we purchased our home that came with a big fridge and last year when the husband made us buy a jam holiday pack branded by Downton Abbey, which we were/are obsessed with. When did it continue? When we were gifted/had to try various local jams. Maybe when we thought we needed fancy jams for our charcuterie boards. Also, when I though we needed extra jam for holiday cookies! Do we need more jams? No, but we will have more because see above on our advent calendar choice. When will we need to purchase more jam? Probably 2022, because new rule (I still have to tell #thehubs about this rule I just made up) is no more jams until we finish all of these! What’s the problem for having too many jams. Why do we need less jams? So that we can fit more hot sauces in our fridge. Because more jams means more bread (because we know bread and bread-like foods are the best vehicles for jams) which means more bread/carbs = more calories= need to burn more calories.

Do you have a jam hoarding problem? Do you have a favorite jam? Do you want to know where to purchase some of these jams? Let me know in the comments!

Chest, breasts, boobs, or milkies (as my niece used to call them–you can guess why!). If you are someone who has or used to have the mentioned above and you plan to go running, you need the right support. And no, I am not talking about a supportive running shoe. I am writing about a supportive bra.

I used to hate exercise and really disliked it, especially running. I wish I had learned about supportive running and exercise/work-out bras and their value in my teens but didn’t learn about them until my late twenties. Shame on me. But no fooling me twice. Below are things to consider when purchasing or hunting (sometimes if feels like a hunting trip) for the right support.

Decide what support you need

1. The support you need can vary on the size of breasts (are you an A cup or a DD cup). And this varies by brand too!
2. It can vary on previous chest injuries or scar tissue (have you had a mastectomy, do you have pain in a specific area)?
3. The activity? Low impact sports (walking), medium impact (cycling), high impact sports (HIIT, running, kick-boxing).
4. What you want vs don’t want. Do you want your boobs to bounce up and down or not? Do you want full coverage? Do you want cleavage?
5. Do you have implants?
6. What is the shape of your chest? Yes there are shapes!

Decide what style you like/suits you. This is going to take time!

1. What type of back? H-back, x-back, racerback
2. Lots of straps? One strap?
3. front closure or back closure
4. zip-up or hook or pull-on or velcro
5. adjustable
6. color
7. material
8. cups or no cups, molded cups, removable cups
9. underwire or wire-less
10. band width
11. width of straps
12. Do you want it to match with your leggings/bottom outfit
13. Will you wear this by itself or with a shirt on
14. brand?

I envied smaller chested women because it appeared to me it was so easy for them to find the size/fit they needed and that they didn’t even need a supportive bra anyways! But I have learned that is not the case. Every person struggles to find the right feeling bra and even if you are on the smaller end…doesn’t mean you still don’t need the right support. It is again…like a shoe. Very specific to that person.

Here are my recommendations if you fall into the larger chested category.

My first recommendation is Shefit Bras. They are $$$ (retails for $65-$70) but when I caved and ordered one for my first 5k that I planned on jogging I was drunk on happiness because for once I felt my chest was not hindering my pace potential. I use the Ultimate (for high support). It is size inclusive and fully adjustable (the straps and the band are a velcro tug away from feeling just right). And I know why this is amazing…because a woman is the creator! That makes sense. When women design for women, great products happen. With this bra on, I forget that I have a chest that often gets in my way. I feel a lot faster and my posture improves. I make sure to wear this bra for runs outside and also for any days where we might be having a very dynamic day in the gym or when we have a treadmill challenge. It makes a difference! I ran (really jog/walked) my first and to-date only half marathon wearing this bra.

My second recommendation is CALIA Women’s Go All Out High Support Sports Bra $$ (retails for about $45) which I have used for the past two months. I purchased this bra because it was on sale and I was needing a smaller band size (after some weight loss) and I am sometimes cheap and wasn’t ready to shell out $$$ for a smaller size of the Shefit bras. WOW! This is a very good running bra for the cost! The straps are semi adjustable (they do not cross), I like the higher neckline (again because I prefer fuller coverage) and the band is thick. Just know that the band is not adjustable.

Yes, I have tried other usual workout brand name running bras but they just didn’t do it for me…and that is ok. If you have large chest problems consider the brands above and say good-bye to wearing two work out bras at once (which I totally used to do) to control the ‘situation’.

Side rant! Why are work-out bras (actually, all bras) so GOSH DARN EXPENSIVE—even the cheap ones will be at least $10-$20?

*DON’T FORGET….just because you have a really good bra doesn’t mean you aren’t prone to chafing…so use that Body Glide (or whatever you like).

I would love to know about your bra recommendations or bra stories (horror/comedy/drama/other genre) or bra thoughts! Please share your comments below!

Happy belated Thanksgiving! Some random thoughts that came to me over the past few days. Here are some photos of my burnt crust pumpkin pie and our semi-homemade meal.

• Why does everyone hate on canned cranberry sauce? I tried it and it was so much easier than making from scratch (even though that is easy too) and it tastes great! They should make twizzlers that taste like canned cranberry sauce! Don’t hate on canned cranberry sauce–it is a fine invention.
• Since I am writing about cranberries…how versatile are they!? Very! you can use cranberries for Fall and Winter, the fruit the juice (cranberry mimosas) and the color!
• Everyone should make omelet/scrambled egg breakfast using leftovers (eggs+stuffing+turkey +/- mashed potatoes + spices/hot sauce + cheese).
• Was there ever a time you made pumpkin pie filling for pumpkin pie and the entire filling was used? That has never happened to me. Somehow the filling is always way more that can fit in the pie pan. Next year…I am using the left over pumpkin pie filling (instead of pouring down the disposal) and placing it in the fridge and then mixing it with flour and baking powder the next day to make perfect pumpkin pancakes! #reducingwaste
• Get fancy mushrooms at Costco! Chanterelles from Costco (yay for $11.99 a pound, while Whole Foods generally charges $20-$30 per pound) are a good buy.
• Turkey is great for leftovers. It is a good protein source that does not have a strong taste. You can make it into anything. Quesadillas! Sandwiches! Put it in a soup/stew! Make it part of your charcuterie board!
• Cold turkey is delicious like cold fried chicken.
• Mayo+ cranberry sauce + sriracha is not a winning combination IMHO.
• Why did I wake up with 50+ emails today (this was from Friday)?! Black Friday is as desperate as it gets. I did no Black Friday shopping…but I did unsubscribe from a lot of websites today!
• Unsubscribe should be immediate…places need to get fined for sending me emails later in the day after I have already unsubscribed!
• Digital junk mail is just as annoying as junk paper mail.

Please share your thoughts on Thanksgiving, Black Friday, post-Thanksgiving time!

The holidays are coming up….and in NM we are told to shelter in place for 2 weeks (but it might be longer). Only essential businesses are allowed to be open and that means that people are only allowed to be out and about to perform essential tasks starting today. #thankscovid But, seriously, stay home. Wear your mask to protect others. And don’t be a dummy. Don’t hang out with other people who don’t live with you!

This is my post where I talk about this issue I have with the holidays and how I find it really hard to accept gifts. I started reading blogs and following instagram accounts about saving money and getting rid of stuff and it has made me even more of a grinch. I don’t want stuff usually, I want shared experiences, and adventures, and adult beverages and carbs without weight gain and to be able to laugh and smile and enjoy company with people I love.

My husband tells me that I am a grinch and it is true! I am starting to loathe holidays because gift receiving is absolutely not my skill. If I ever have kids I will be that parent that throws out 90% of the art projects their kid makes. #sorrynotsorry

Here are my reasons!

• The older I get the more having more stuff creates anxiety for me!
• I thrive by getting rid of stuff that I no longer love or find useful enough (thanks Marie Kondo!). My husband resents that I am constantly picking up random stuff and asking if he needs it, when he last used it and if I can donate it/trash it.
• I watch too many shows like The Home Edit, Marie Kondo, and the car detailing/home cleaning videos on Instagram. Many gifted things /items eventually become clutter….and I want to let them go because I don’t love them.
• My husband tells me that gift giving is all about making the giver feel better about themselves and not usually about the gift receiver. Which I agree with, mostly! Why am I nice to people? Why do I give people stuff? Why do I donate to charity? First, to make me feel better, then maybe to help others feel/do better.
• I have finite space. Yes, we have a home with multiple closets, but still we have finite space for storage. I want to save that space for things I really really love and need.
• We haven’t even used all of the gadgets and things we were given from our wedding (which was more than 3 years ago!).
• If I want something it usually is priced at a point where I would find it absurd to ask most people to purchase it for me.
• Also a gift can be uncomfortably personal (there are maybe a handful people that can ask my underwear/pant/dress/shirt size and I will respond to them without even thinking anything weird about it.) Note to all people reading this–if you don’t feel comfortable enough to ask the person directly for their clothing size–then you don’t need to get them whatever that is. Ok, I’m sure by now I have made some enemies.
• For clothes and what not, my design/style evolve over time. So something that I maybe loved last year might not be something I love this year.
• If I want something I usually buy it or plan to buy it already.
• I am generally strategic in purchases and plan for it at times (things will be sitting in my online shopping cart, especially Amazon, for ages before I buy it, if I do)–and the only one who usually knows I am planning on buying it is my husband/super close friends that I annoy with my constant texts and memes.
• I love practicality! I know what I want and when I want it. I am finally at that adulting stage where I have most things I need and replace things when they need to be replaced. I even have a permanent basket for donation/giveaway items in my closet.
• I am so practical I would totally be ok if the world switched from actual gift giving to just people transferring each other money titled “happy [insert holiday/occasion here] here is money for a prescription copay/car payment/your lunch tomorrow/that fancy running bra you need to get/oil change/your doctor’s appointment copay/that charity you like/your gym membership/things that keep you happy and healthy/your yoga class”.
• My love language is acts of service not gifts. Mop floors, cook dinner for me, wash my sheets, and I am so excited and grateful and thankful! Because that means I get free time to chill/write blog posts/nap.
• I have everything I want or a specific plan for home/home decor, beauty, clothing….I generally have a vision for everything.
• I grew up in a poor household…it led to a very eclectic home. Most things came from garage sales and thrift stores and donations…nothing really matched or was a set. There was not enough room for everything to fit right or to spend on organization. My dad’s projects turned into hoarder status (when the dirt front and dirt back yard end up looking like a junk yard that is really sad and doesn’t make you feel good). Knick knacks and extra stuff generally give me that same feeling of being stuck in that situation/hoarder type environment. It is not pleasant.
• Well meaning people love love love to give me scented products (which I can’t really use…but thanks to allergy shots I am getting better at not sneezing at everything that is not fragrance free) or things that I would never ever use. But again, they don’t know that! And I don’t know how to tell them.
• After graduating and finally earning a salary I went a little crazy buying stuff…retail therapy (I still do retail therapy but with the one thing in one thing out rule). For me, accumulating stuff at some point stopped being a positive feeling and became a monster that turned into massive anxiety.

Anyways, even if you are a grinch, people will get you stuff (unless you are a really strategic grinch!). So what can you do? Accept the fact that gift giving is in every culture and will never go away. You can accept the gift and THANK THEM SO MUCH because they made the effort and that in itself shows they care enough about you to try. They invested in time and money to show you how much they love you.

And then after that, you do whatever you want with it, it is yours! So that means you can use it, donate it, toss it (though I only recommend this if it can’t be donated), sell it.

Like and subscribe (can you tell I’ve been watching too much YouTube by this ending?). I would love to hear your take on gift giving/gift receiving.

It’s been months since OTF has been closed. Per state government, gyms offering group fitness classes are somehow (yes, I have read the studies, and yes, I am very salty about this) less safe than other fitness options, hence places deemed as group fitness remain closed. Other fitness options include big box gyms. I don’t attend normal big box gyms because I really doubt that they can ensure every equipment is truly cleaned and because I know from word of mouth that the procedures in place are truly lacking to ensure the safety that is needed. I think soon there will be another case of COVID-19 linked to a big box gym. For now, the climbing gym is open. Climbing is something #thehubs and I had talked about wanting to try once we got more fit. Side note: We are skinnier than when we got married–isn’t the opposite supposed to happen?! A friend of ours also had recently taken up climbing and raved about it…that was the final push we needed to go try it! Everything is better with friends! She and her family were there our first day to climb with us. Since that first trial day we fell in love with the experience and soon thereafter signed up for a monthly membership. I feel that the climbing gym has procedures and education in place that are appropriate. I also feel that the general population who attend this gym are cautious and follow all rules to prevent the spread of disease. No, the hand holds on the climbing walls are not cleaned after each person. However, everyone uses hand sanitizer or washes their hands before and after each problem/climbing attempt. There are areas split into zones to allow for social distancing. The use of locker room and showers are not allowed. The drinking fountains are also blocked (but one can use the water bottle filler). There is a reservation system to ensure there is only a certain number of people in the gym at a given time. There is a waiver and attestation and reminder about procedures in place every time you sign up for a time slot. I have not seen ANYONE wear their mask incorrectly at this gym. This is huge! I believe it is because the people that attend this gym generally are 1)fairly fit and healthy–because climbing is not easy-and they want to stay that way 2) tend to lean toward the non-right wing fanatical political stance (aka reasonable people) 3) want to follow procedures so that this gym stays open and they can continue to attend. I trust that employees here follow all rules and see them disinfecting common areas and benches frequently.

Disclaimer, we only ever tried indoor climbing so far. And we have been using the autobelay system (still need to take a class and be certified to do toprope belay).

These are my thoughts on and during indoor climbing:

• This is really hard indoors…how can people do this outside?How can I be breathing so hard?

• My heart rate is still elevated after 5 mins of resting!

• Are the good climbers basically like Spiderman without the webs?

• How do these people just hang from their arms like monkeys.

• I will just hold on forever because it is so high up and I’m scared of going down (even though I have a harness and I won’t crash down).

• These people here are so impressive! They move like dancers with intent. 

• Maybe I should do yoga to be more flexible.

• Maybe I should lose more weight to make it easier for me to pull myself up. 

• I’m Queen of the world (when I finally make it to the top). 

• Let’s stick to the kids room because the climbing walls are not so high.

• Are there gloves I can use for my hands so I don’t get blisters? The answer is no…you just get calluses over time. 

• Climbing shoes are not comfortable. Now I get why the people who are not beginners take their shoes off in between climbs.

• Dear person…can you hurry up and finish so I can go try that climb/problem?

• What are all of these repair creams/lotion bars for?

• Should I wear climbing tape? *Goes to buy several different types of athletic tape/bandaids to see what works best to cover those popped blisters*

• How do you stop getting blisters?

• I like the creativity in the naming of the routes. 

The different tags indicate the level of difficulty (you follow the same color holds…which is the route). So far we are all about the green and yellow tagged(aka easiest) routes which are 8’s an 9’s. The difficulty varies by route setter (some route setters are easier than others)…because there is subjectivity in the rating. Below are some of the routes that I was able to make to the top. I guess I will have to download the app to track everything I have completed. Hope you like the photos!

Hello beautiful people who are doing brave and beautiful things among this sometimes ugly and complicated world. Obviously this past week has been hard for many because of events that have pushed society (hopefully for better times). Without getting into it lets just state the obvious about what we [mainly me, because I am the only one who writes here (and my husband because he contributes ideas and photos)] believe in this blog: #blacklivesmatter #blacklivesmatter #blacklivesmatter Two organizations that I learned about and chose to support were the Equal Justice Initiative and the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund #putyourmoneywhereyourmouthis I know not everyone is financially capable and times are tough but the thought is to invoke an action for something you believe in. Thank you for reading my plug-in.

Now about gardening!

These past two weekends I have felt we needed some sort of project, something to give us purpose (since we have no pets nor children). Somewhere I read that being around green things (mainly plants) makes you happy (and we need more of that). Last year we didn’t plant any vegetables or flowers in our yard was feeling a bit sad and pathetic. So we picked up some herbs, some vegetables, and some pretty flowers this Saturday and last Saturday. We did not have a real plan other than planting something green. We tried to choose plants that were labeled as full sun…and that is all we know about gardening. These are the items that I used for our gardening: several bags of gardening soil, solid plant food (in form of a shaker), a garden shovel, a weeder tool, tough target plastic bags to contain all the weeds, gardening gloves from Costco (one of the best buys) garden hose for watering. It turns out that being hunched over weeding and planting in the sun (with sunscreen and a hat of course!) is a hard workout (according to the Other work out function on the Apple Watch and my soreness the day after!). Here are some beautiful artist renderings of our plants courtesy of #thehubs. I asked him to draw our plants and of their position in our lawn, except the drawing shows the plants crowded a bit so it isn’t entirely accurate. Enjoy the art!

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