A New Journey

Since my health issue in February, I have been thinking of changing the focus of Celebrate the Journey.  The new journey is this:  my return to health.  My intention is to write this as a way to provide information and encouragement to others who are struggling with health issues as I am.  I will share my story, but also ask others to share theirs.  If you want to tell your story, you are welcome to tell it here.  If you have information or encouragement that will shed some light on weight loss and related problems, please add it here.

There is a lot of information out there, and many diets and eating plans.  Some are valid, healthy ways to lose weight and regain health, others are fads, some are even dangerous.  And what works for one person may not work for others.  The point here will be knowledge and encouragement.  I will post at least once a week about knowledge I have gained, my progress, and my struggles.  I am hoping some of you will join me on this journey.

So, here's my story:  I have a LOT of weight to lose.  I can barely admit to myself how much I need to lose, and I am not ready share that information here.  I have struggled with it for 20 years, losing, gaining, trying new things.  It has been an exercise in frustration.

But on Friday,  February 6, I had an in-your-face moment I couldn't ignore.  I was walking down the street in downtown Harrisburg talking with someone, and I didn't notice a break in the sidewalk.  I fell, very hard.  I didn't hit my head, and I got up and shook it off.  I was fine until 2 am the next morning, when I became very ill for 6 hours.  At the end, my right side felt very weak, and I called 911. They took me to the hospital, where at first, it was dismissed as food poisoning.  Then, suddenly, they decided to admit me for 36 hours of observation for signs of a stroke.  I had an MRI, a CAT Scan, a session with an occupational therapist, and many blood tests.  It was determined I didn't have a stroke, but I spent an hour with a nurse talking about strokes.  It was very scary, and a rude awakening for me.  I determined to improve my health.

That fall seemed to set off a cascade of health issues, both related and unrelated to it.  First, I injured both knees and my back during the fall.  I have had injections in both knees, but my back is still recovering.  While all this happened, my vertigo, which had somewhat settled down, came back very quickly.  I had been diagnosed with vestibular (inner ear) migraines in October of 2014, and a week after I fell, my doctor tried to treat me with medication to prevent migraines.  This set off some very serious side effects, and he weaned me off the medication.  But for 6 weeks, I was dizzy and disoriented most of the time.  It was hard to get up and go to work, hard to stay at work for a whole day, and I had to carefully choose when to drive.  I spent a lot of time resting over the weekends.  After yet another doctor appointment (my 6th doctor) I am back to a diagnosis of vertigo, and another new doctor in  2 weeks.

All of this leads me to now.  It is time to take control of my health.  My first step is to find an eating plan I will stick to and enjoy.  That's my assignment for this week.

I have had many wonderful people providing me with input, and I am listening to every one of you.  Please add your thoughts here, so I can share them with others.

Thank you all.

Musings

I moved to Harrisburg about 13 months ago.  Today as I was driving on Pennsylvania 581, with the sunroof open and windows down, singing along with Eddie Money and Ronnie Spector, I realized how happy I am. When I finished my master's degree in public policy, I wanted to use it to help rebuild Detroit, the city I truly love.  Of course, reality intervened, and there were no jobs in any field, let alone in a non-profit working to rebuild Detroit (there are quite a few of those).   You all know the story of how I ended up here, and I realize how incredibly fortunate I am.  And how my life was turned upside down in 2009, and I am a better, stronger, happier person than ever.  Life is so good.

My pictures today were taken at Hershey Gardens in (of course) Hershey, PA.  The gardens were originally on the grounds of the Milton Hershey mansion.  Milton founded The Hershey Company in 1894, when he developed a chocolate coating for caramel candies.  Ultimately, through mass production, he was able to make chocolate candy affordable, not just a luxury for the upper class.  I have periodically published pictures of Hershey, including my favorite, the roller coaster at night.

Hershey Gardens were established in 1937, when Milton Hershey wanted a garden to share his rose bushes with the public.  The garden was originally 3-1/2 acres of rose bushes.  By 1942, it had expanded to its current size, 23 acres.

I have never seen a perfect Lilypad until now.

Obviously these are roses!

Last but not least, the Royal Chocolate Distinction Poppy:

Tomorrow:  Baltimore.  I can't wait. Have a wonderful week!

Valley Forge

A couple weeks ago, I explored Valley Forge.

I have to be honest:  I don't remember much of what I learned about Valley Forge in U.S. History in high school  (my clearest memory is that my teacher reminded me of Mr. Magoo).  I do recall the story of the harsh winter and a lot of soldiers dying.

I learned quite a bit on my visit.  After the British captured Philadelphia in September of 1777, General George Washington retreated with his army of about 12,000 soldiers  to Valley Forge, about 18 miles west.  The site was strategically chosen on the western bank of the Schuykill River (this is pronounced skoolkill, but people say it so fast, it often sounds like skoocull) to prevent British troops from pushing farther into Pennsylvania.  The Americans were never challenged at Valley Forge, but it became their winter camp from December of 1777 till June 1778.

Although we've all heard the stories of starving and cold soldiers, that story is oversimplified.  An observer from the New Jersey Gazette reported visiting the camp and finding the soldiers building huts, a bridge over the river, and earthen forts called redoubts.  The observer stated that the soldiers were singing while they worked.  Most of the 2,000 who died in the encampment perished of dysentery, typhoid, and influenza during the spring.  Few died of exposure or starvation.

The months spent at Valley Forge were important to the American Revolution for 2 reasons:
First, in February 1778, a former Prussian General, Baron Friedrich von Steuben arrived in Valley Forge to train the colonial troops, with the result being a well-trained physically fit army.  Second, France recognized the United States as an independent country in May of 1778, and sent troops to help the Americans.  Together, the two events made the winter and spring in Valley Forge the turning point in the war.

The Valley Forge encampment was not preserved, and when George Washington returned 10 years later, found no trace of it.  The recreation of the site did not begin until 1877, 100 years after the encampment.


Reconstructions of the mud huts the soldiers lived in:

Interior of the mud huts.  These tiny buildings held 12 bunks:

General Anthony Wayne, one of the commanders at Valley Forge (and for whom the city of Fort Wayne, Indiana and many others were named):

Anthony Wayne was known to be eccentric and capricious, earning the nickname, "Mad Anthony Wayne."  He was singled out as a hero at the Battle of Monmouth.

Finally, the Memorial Arch, built in 1917.

Lancaster County

Hello, everyone!  I have been out taking pictures every weekend, but my vertigo, which comes and goes, exhausts me, so I spend less time online.  More tests to come!  For now, I am in physical therapy, hoping to learn how to stop it when it starts, or at least cope with it.

Since I last posted, I bought a wonderful camera, and I love the quality of the photos!

Today I drove to eastern Lancaster County.  Going back to my lessons in how to speak Pennsylvanian, Lancaster is pronounce LAN-cuss-ter, with the middle "a" sounding somewhere between the "u" in custard and the "i" in Kiss.  

Lancaster County is home to many Amish people, and the movie, Witness, was filmed there.  After visiting, I will probably watch it again tonight!

I read on the PA tourism site that State Road 23 through Lancaster County is a beautiful drive and only an hour from home, so I headed that way.  State Road 23 starts in western Lancaster County and goes all the way to Philadelphia.  The city of Lancaster itself deserves its own separate entry, and I will spend some time there in the next couple weeks.  

I saw my first Amish horse and buggy since I've been in PA.  I considered taking pictures of them, but thought it might be disrespectful.  

Traveling east from Lancaster, I drove through several smaller towns, then into farm country on these beautiful rolling hills.

This is outside New Holland, PA.  I have always thought of mountains as being too rocky for farmland, but obviously not.  It's clear from this picture that at some point, you cannot grow crops in the mountains.

This picture is across the road from the one above.  I love the silos in the middle of the hills.

Anxious to take more pictures, I found a side road that headed into the hills.  Although it wasn't marked, it was a private road into a farm.  No one was home (thankfully).  But ever since Field of Dreams, I have been fascinated by cornfields.  I really want to walk through a corn field when the stalks are taller than I.   Of course, I didn't, but I managed to take pictures of the rows of corn.  My mother used to say that corn should be "knee-high by the 4th of July." I found that to be true in Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois.  Corn season is much earlier here, and is already being sold on roadside stands.

One last photo, just because I love this picture.

Have a wonderful week!

A Question with No Immediate Answer

The past few weeks have been very tiring.  There have been a lot of changes at work with some unexpected consequences, and a lot of overtime hours.  It is settling down now, and some very good things have come of it, but right after it started, I started have spells of dizziness.  My walking has slowed down, and my diet has been fairly awful.  After about three weeks of this, I went to the doctor this week, who, after a lot of discussion, believes it is my ever-present sinus problems, complicated by not sleeping well and  just being tired.  So now I am taking flonase and a decongestant, and it seems to have improved a bit.  In March, I scheduled an appointment to see an ENT doctor, but the appointment is still three weeks away.  It takes three months to get an intake appointment.

But all this has made me think about my health in general.  When I was in high school, I had mono followed by some unexplained infection that would not go away.  My doctor finally hit on the idea of allergies, and I was tested.  I was allergic to many many things...dogs, cats, horses, grasses, tobacco, milk, newspaper print (I used to break out in hives when I read a newspaper and touched my face without washing my hands), ragweed, milkweed, etc.,...and wheat.  Many of those allergies have improved (although I still have a huge problem with cats and a few other things).  But wheat gluten is now everywhere (and in everything), and I realized that since this very stressful period started, I have been eating things I could prepare quickly or fast food, all of which have wheat in them.  So I'm wondering if that could be part of this, and focusing on eating less wheat.  Egg salad (one of my favorite things) on lettuce instead of a sandwich; spaghetti squash instead of pasta; fruits, vegetables, and nuts for snacks.  Breakfast is a problem:  most oatmeals have at least been in contact with wheat.  But I am trying, and will discuss it with the doctor when I see her in three weeks.  I'll let you all know how this goes.

And have a wonderful week!

Wheeling, West Virginia

In my late 20's, I had a job that involved extensive travel in the U.S.  In the 2 years I held that job, I visited 32 states.  I decided then that one of my goals in life would be to visit all 50 states.  To count as being "visited," I have to actually stop and do something, not just pass through.  Over the weekend, I crossed West Virginia off the list.  The states I have left are:  Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Delaware, New Mexico, Nebraska, Montana, Alaska, and South Dakota.

Wheeling is in the northwest corner of West Virginia, and Interstate 70 passes through it between Pennsylvania and Ohio.  It was settled in 1769 as part of Virginia.  At the start of the Civil War, the western counties of Virginia seceded from the state because of the slavery issue, and the state was organized in 1861.  Wheeling has been the capital of West Virginia twice, but in 1877, Charleston was officially declared the capital.

In 2010, the population of Wheeling was 28,486.  The Ohio River runs through the center.  

These pictures are of the Wheeling Island Suspension Bridge, which crosses the Ohio River, and links the city of Wheeling to Wheeling Island. The green bridge in the background is the Fort Henry Bridge, which is Interstate 70 across the Ohio River.

Wheeling Island is on the National Register of Historic Places.  It includes beautiful Victorian homes (photograph below), in addition to some very depressed areas.

Finally, a picture of downtown Wheeling from Wheeling Island.  

There is much more to see, and I wish I had had time yesterday.  Have a wonderful week!

Flight 93 Memorial

The Flight 93 Memorial is about an hour and a half east of Pittsburgh, 2-1/2 hours west of Harrisburg.  It's outside the borough of Stoystown, and well-marked on the PA Turnpike.  I have been wanting to visit since last April.  Today I had some time to kill on the way to Columbus, and went to go see it.  It's half an hour off the turnpike, on US 30.  

It's a very solemn, respectful place.  I learned a lot while I was there.  There was one Park Ranger, talking to people.  He knew all about the people on the flight, their lives and personalities.  It was clear he loves them and their courage.

When it's complete, it will be beautiful and peaceful.  There will be 40 groves of maple and oak trees, one for each person on the plane, and a 93 foot tower with 40 wind chimes. It will be called the "Tower of Voices," representing the voices of those who died.  In 2013, 12,000 saplings were planted, with 12,000 more in both 2014 and 2015.

There is a black walkway leading out to the memorial plaza, with alcoves cut into it where people leave pins, flowers, coins, and other items.  The crash site is to the left.  It was filled in shortly after the crash.

At the end of the walkway is a wall of 40 marble slabs, each with the name of one of the people on the plane.

There is also a long sandstone wall, blank except for the date.

I spent almost an hour there, and will return when there is more progress on the memorial.  It is partially funded from private donations.  Here's the link for more information about the Memorial and the plans.  http://www.nps.gov/flni/index.htm

Happy Easter to you all!