12 Oakdale

I am so dang tired of hurting. My shoulders, my hands, my butt. Enough already. I know this too shall pass, patience is a virtue, blah, blah, blah. On the other hand, I am making progress against the weeds. I’ve finished with the front plot to the north of the driveway, only getting bitten by fire ants once, when I foolishly stepped in just to cut out another maypop vine. Only took about 3 seconds, but long enough for ants to attack. I was wearing flip flops. By the time I’d flung them off, 5 ants managed to bite me in a line up the top of my foot. One little bugger got me between my toes. Obviously, no, I will never learn. The weeds did get a break when I took Friday morning off so Grant and I could attend a Canine Companion doggie graduation where friends and eight other people got their new service dog. The dogs had had 6 months of intense training at a beautiful campus just 20 minutes north of us in Calcona. Our friends spent 2 weeks there being trained to know how to use all that ...

The vibrating massage ball being rubbed on my sore tendon at physical therapy seems to be helping. Or it’s a darn good placebo. Either way, I’m happy and have signed up for 6 more sessions over the next 3 weeks. I am also being sure to sit on a big, soft pillow every time I sit down, working in the yard, dragging it to restaurants, etc. I am actually starting to feel better. On Sunday, we drove to Weeki Wachee Springs to see Clara perform at Mermaid Camp, a 2-day affair at the state park. Her show was after the regular mermaid revue, this time the story of the Little Mermaid. Why, in this day and age, we have to still be celebrating a 15 year old wanting to change her body for guy is beyond me. I had hoped there would be a modern twist, but no. Well, Weeki Wachee was created in 1947, so I guess there is still a retro vibe, but still, really? In any case, the girls had fun and lots of exercise. Swimming as a mermaid is definitely a core workout. Because the attraction is now a state par...