Unfolded

I actually ended up going to BOTH the Concrete Blonde concert AND the YSO Street Fair! Go me! We got to the Newport during the opening act, so there weren't many seating options by then. But I did manage to find a step that worked both as a place to see above the crowd and a place to sit when my back got tired. Concrete Blonde started off their show with Bloodletting, I started dancing, got lost in the music, and mostly forgot about my back problems.

They played a really great show. The people watching was fun, too. Most everyone there was about my age or a little younger, many with tattoos. Almost all looked like interesting people who know how to think for themselves instead of following the crowd. My kind of people.

I figured after all that standing (I stood for almost the entire concert) I wasn't going to be up for a street fair the next day, but ice and some good sleep did wonders, I guess, so off we went. I had a really good time in spite of the heat. I bought some handmade soap and pain reducing salve, and stocked up on healing herbal teas from the herb shop in town. I didn't seem to be in the mood to buy clothes, which was a shame, because there were some amazing dresses for sale!

The only other think I purchased was a 15 minute shiatsu massage. I don't think I've ever had shiatsu before. I asked the therapist to concentrate on my low back and hips. She had me lie on a thick mat on the ground and used her hands, knees, elbows to press acupressure points. She also did a lot of stretching. She made use of her entire body to do the work. At one point she placed the bottoms of my feet on her abs and leaned in, pressing my knees toward my chest, for a great low back stretch. It was an absolutely fantastic massage. Different from the massages I usually get, and well worth the $20 for 15 minutes.

Just as the vendors were packing up and we were making our way out of the street fair, a man pointed at my shirt and said, "Nice shirt!"

I was wearing a t-shirt with a batiked tree design that I bought at a YSO street fair some 20 years or so ago when I lived there. It turns out he and his business partner were the artists who had made my t-shirt! They don't make that style any more because it's so labor intensive. I thanked them and told them what a great shirt it is. How cool is it that I met the artists!


Sunday morning, after all that activity, I felt sore, but "normal" sore. Like I used to be in years past. It was the best feeling.

Life has been pretty normal around here recently...not much to write about. My exercise regimen last week included some new qigong workouts as well as some additional ab work. I can always tell when I've done good strengthening work, because I'm hungry and tired for a few days. Healing sucks my energy like a sponge.

I am eating well, though. I have slowly been adding additional foods to my diet to meet the increased nutritional needs of my healing body. Pumpkin seeds and almonds for zinc, folate, and a host of other minerals. Blueberries and blackberries for antioxidants, and their tonic effect on the liver and kidneys. Parsley--called a "spring tonic"--for iron, vitamin C, and blood-purifying properties. Beets, also for iron. Spirulina, a blue-green algae, for vitamin A, iodine, and B vitamins. Even fish for healthy fats, iron, and extra protein. And of course I was already eating lots of leafy greens and beans.

An old friend of Rob's visited us this weekend. She was a nutrition major in college and is now an organic farmer. She confirmed all the foods I've added to my diet as good choices. She was able to suggest a few new foods to add: avocados for high mineral content, and eggs for vitamin B12.

I do take supplements (lots, actually), but I have this theory that my body can absorb nutrients from actual food sources better than it can from pills. And it's really good to understand what foods actually do for you. It's one thing to be told to eat more vegetables and fruits, but feeling the direct effect certain foods have on me as I rebuild my body brings a whole new level of understanding to nutrition.

We had another visitor this weekend.


I took this picture from the living room window, just after noon. I suspect it was looking for food, as it was moving pretty slowly. I'm pretty sure it's been getting scraps from the compost bin. Poor thing.