WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR SEPTEMBER 2019

TerriRichardson112 wrote: »

Off out first thing in the morning to Latin Study.

☘️ Terri

lhscapil wrote: »

Terri - Latin study? I took 2 years in high school, and glad I did. I think I'm a better speller for it. Vini, Vidi, Vici is all I remember. I hope it's not swearing, lol.

Lanette
SW WA State

On languages ...

I took a full year (2 semesters) of Latin in university in the late 1990s. If I'm not mistaken veni, vidi, vici means "I came, I saw, I conquered".

Venire is "to come" ... if you know your French and Spanish, venir is "to come"
Videre is "to see"
Vincere is "to conquer, overcome"

I love languages, even though I'm not really fluent in any more than English. I've spent some time learning French, Spanish, German, Latin and Koine Greek and if I were in a place in my life where I could learn for fun, I'd learn more!

I am also a poor speller but of them all, Latin did help.

---

On husbands and medical issues ...

Pre-accident, it was a little bit of a struggle getting my husband to go to the Dr but one of the reasons was that Drs tend to work regular business hours and so did he. It's hard to take time off to go to the Dr.

Post-accident, he spends a lot of time going to the Dr. I no longer have any difficulty getting him to go to the Dr.

I'm not sure that brain injury was worth that change.


Anyway, one of the things that attracted me to him way back in the beginning was that we are both into long distance cycling. In fact ... that's how we met.

Some of the ladies here probably know ... he and I met briefly online on a cycling forum, and then in person on the Paris-Brest-Paris, a 1200 km randonnee (long distance cycling event) in France in 2003. We got to know each other on more long distance rides in Australia, Canada and Europe, and then were married in Canada in August 2008 after cycling a century (100 mile ride).

Since cycling has been an important part of our lives for the past 16 years, we've made an effort to keep fit! Together!

There have been times when our fitness has dropped off, but after several months we've built up again.


Right now, however, it is a bit difficult because of my husband's brain injury. He gets fatigued very easily and quickly so we haven't been able to cycle the long distances. Also his left leg doesn't function well anymore (like when a person has a stroke), so he struggles with walking/hiking long distances.

We had built up a bit last summer, so I'm hoping we'll make some more advances this summer.


Machka in Oz

Karen - a good friend's granddaughter was diagnosed with neuroblastoma quite a few years ago (she was around 4 or so), and has now graduated high school. She went through more than any child should, but her attitude through it was simply amazing. There have been advances made in the treatments over the years. Emily is a bit smaller than she would have been otherwise but watching her walk through the whole things with grace and a positive attitude was a humbling experience. Prayers that Josephine will end up like Emily.

lisa- Congratulations on keeping your current job. I think it was very healthy to check out options and carefully consider all aspects. No job will be perfect (we can always find something wrong), but carefully considering alternatives can help us keep the whole picture in perspective.

Moving slow this morning. Yesterday went from work, to food pantry, then choir. Was beat when I got home at 9 pm. We were handing out the Hostess Zinger snack cakes last night (the vanilla ones). I used to love those. Since dinner was a very abbreviated meal, I brought a pack home. Checked my calories for the day and since I could fit them in I ate them. I think that will take care of sweet tooth for awhile! Have to treat myself sometimes. Of course, next week while at conference we are going to the Cheesecake Factory, so that will be the big treat. Going to be wise with choices until then so that it doesn't do too much damage!

Going to start moving but will wait on walks until later in the day (the concrete floor and lifting last might has my feet hurting a bit right now!). Glad it is Friday.

Have a good day all,
Ginny in Ohio

lhscapil wrote: »

Machka - loved seeing that Canadian flag photo! Tasmania is the perfect place for you to accomplish all of the outdoor activities you love. I'm curious about your DH's computer use. How involved is he with it - is he able to research topics, be involved in groups which spark his interest (chat) and such? Email friends and relatives?
As my mom was showing signs of dementia, I often wondered if having access to a computer and doing more interacting and learning might have helped her.

Sinuses cranky this morning. Hoping its allergies and not something contagious.

Lanette
SW WA State

Mt Cheam (with the Canadian flag on top and me crouching everywhere) is in Canada ... near Vancouver. I would love to be back there again. My family is in that area ... my cousin, for example, who is getting married this weekend. We got an invitation, of course, but are unable to attend.

Anyway, yes, Tasmania has many similar things ... although not quite so high!

My husband does use computers. Because he has retained his procedural memory, he tinkers with them! He has taken 3 (I think) old ones apart and put them back together again. It actually amazes me that he can do things like that, but I have to remember that part of his brain is intact, undamaged.

However, much of the damage is in the language area of his brain combined with some frontal damage (and damage to a few other areas too).
So he does look things up on the computer and does some research, but it's challenging for him because he might not understand on the first reading, and takes him a lot longer than it used to. Still ... he persists with things he's interested in.
He reads the news online, which is OK, but it does tend to upset him. The frontal damage makes him more emotional.
He used to be involved in a forum but has dropped out of that. The frontal damage combined with the language damage means that he misunderstands things ... much of the time, he doesn't "get" sarcasm, jokes, metaphors, slang, etc. He takes things very literally. When people chat on a forum, we talk casually ... and he was taking things wrong and getting upset.
He communicates with me by email, but again, the language issues can be problematic. I understand what he's saying, but not everyone would and email communication could go downhill quite rapidly. So, he rarely emails anyone else. Even with me, he'll send a text or email and it will take me some time before I work out what he's talking about! And I've got context on my side!

But one frontal damage change in him is that he's more social. He'll talk to all sorts of people!! Especially if they've got an animal with them like a cat or dog. So I try to get him out where he can do that. We go to physio together once a week. He volunteers at a golf course with a small group of volunteers once a week. We'll go for a walk at the beach where there are often people and dogs. If he says he wants to take the bus to the hardware shop, I'll encourage him to do that. I figure the socialisation is good for him.

And I encourage him to use the procedural memory he has retained. He builds little things, tinkers with the bicycles, tinkers with his computers, gardens, and so on. Along with that, he will do some reading and research which may help rewire that part of his brain.

So I don't know if I answered your question or not! It's really hard to say ... everyone's brains are different.


I hope you don't come down with a cold.


M in Oz

I did Latin at school for 7 years and took it for A level. I also studied Ancient Greek for GCE.
I did French at school for 7 years, but I somehow managed to fail A level. I think I messed up the prose paper, which you have to pass.
Since school I have discovered a passion for languages I never knew I had. I studied Spanish for 5 years at night school and used it a lot in extended stays in Spain and Latin America. I have kept up with French through visits to France and movies and I am much better now than I was at school. :laugh:
Since I discovered Duolingo I have revised Spanish and learnt a bit of German, Norwegian, and I have been studying Swedish for 2 years now. I do a bit every day.
I so much enjoy speaking a language on holiday and always try to learn a few phrases. I even learnt a bit of Arabic and Gaelic! I have tourist Italian. For me a holiday isn't a holiday without a language to speak. That is probably a good reason why I haven't ventured to the Far East. Can't face Mandarin or Korean!
Learning a language would be for me a holiday in itself!
All my friends think my language skills are amazing, but I really am not any better than anyone else, I just practice a lot. I have no natural talent, just perseverance. I never miss a day's Swedish.
I am so looking forward to using it on this holiday. We will be mainly in Denmark and Norway, but everyone understands Swedish and I can always learn a few local phrases. There are some differences.

Bea is watching children's tv right now. DH has been doing sterling work, talking to her non stop! And she can talk for England!


Love Heather UK xxxxxxxx

The extent of my other languages...

Felicia, what a sweet and touching memoir of saying goodbye to a beloved pet. I, like you, have no problem interacting with death. I’ve felt peaceful all the nearly seven years since, and am now feeling like if love happens again in my life it will be fine.

Lyttlefish, welcome to our group of chatterboxes! Your goals sound very though-out and do-able. In fact I’ve already begun parking midrange. I don’t use the handicapped pass much anymore unless there’s nothing in my mobility range yet. I’m up to 2000-3000 steps a day from 750, and one day on vacation hit 3500, but that was a bit of a fiasco day! I’ll be telling the story here later. I am going to latch onto that “get up and do 250 steps every hour” goal of yours! I have a reminder on my Fitbit that nags me to do that. I’ve been ignoring it most of the time, but no longer! Thanks for your positive attitude. Good luck w your fall and winter up there!

Sharon in Seattle

Hello again! I really do like checking into this forum.

bwcetc: No, I have never been on any type of blood pressure medicine before, it was always good. So, the dr took me off Naproxin which was an anti inflammatory for joint pain which I have been on for about 5-10 years. He said it was too hard on kidneys. He has told me to take Tylenol for pain as my liver numbers show such improvement and it will be easier on kidneys. He added Lisinapril to my regimen because it is supposed to open the arteries in the kidneys and allow them to do their work more easily, although it may also lower blood pressure, that is not what we are using it for.

grandmallie: I am so sorry your little dog, Chester is not well. Over the past year, I lost both of my little corgi friends who were almost 14. It is so hard when our four legged babies are struggling. You are in my thoughts.

kevrit: So sorry you are feeling down. I hope it improves for you soon. I loved your sunflower photos. They were just perfect for September.

rho: thank you for the encouragement, it is both needed and appreciated

To enter into the book discussion, I too am an avid reader. I have recently discovered both Bookbub and the fact that I can download books from the public library to my kindle. I set a goal at the beginning of the year to read a book a week. My daughter's wedding planning slowed me down. So, I am only up to July. I read a split between fiction and non-fiction. My two favorites for this year are both non-fiction, Radium Girls and The Feather Thief, highly recommend both.

Trying to pull myself out of my slump. I am back to my calorie goals after about 4 days of being "weigh" over. But, I have upped my walk to 6 miles, so that has revitalized my spirit a bit. Just gotta keep trying and ignore the whole kidney thing as I can't fix it, so gotta learn to live with it and try to make it not be worse. I think it hit me hard because my stepmom started dialysis and it has really put a damper on her life. She and my dad can no longer travel and they are both still vibrant people tied to home more now. That is not a life I want. My daughter is a pharmacist and she says I could stay at this same level for 20 years. so going to trust she is right. and try to think good thoughts.