FLYING HIGH

Today, I will be flying to Houston, Texas for International Quilt Market.  Each company that I represent will have their own booth at this very busy tradeshow.  For no particular reason, I just felt like posting an old picture of myself from the mid 1980's taken on a day when I was 'flying' in New York's Central Park.

This is a digital representation of an actual photograph taken with 35mm film.

I  recently found this photo taken in the 1980's.  One day my friend Bob and I walked over to Central Park (Manhattan) from his west side apartment with the intention of taking pictures of ourselves 'flying' in mid-air. No special effects were involved. We were testing our physical limitations as well as our photographic limitations. Landings were hard and painful. That is my shadow that you see directly under me. My friend, Bob took this picture of me and I am sure that he still owns an equally cool photo of himself that I took of him. This was years before the days of digital photography. So we had to take multiple photos with the hope that one or two would be good. I can remember that after our photo session ended, we went to a one hour photo shop and anxiously waited for the results. We were both pleased. (I wonder, do people of today even know what I am talking about when I say we went to a one hour photo shop? Are there a large percentage of young people today who have never taken a photograph using actual film?)

As I look at this 'flying' picture, I wonder how much I weighed back then approximately 30 years ago when I was in my mid 20's.  If I had to guess, I would guess that I was approximately 230 lbs. Which is less than what I weigh at this time.  The thing is, even now I only recently slipped out of obesity into the category of simply overweight.  In other words, I have always been overweight.  I was overweight in the mid 1980's and I am technically overweight right now.  Believe me, when I look in the mirror these days, a thin person stares back at me, as it was not too long ago that a 309 lb person was staring at me the few times I dared face a mirror.  This old photograph really captures my current spirit.  Recently I have been flying.  I am still flying high over the Half Dome accomplishment that took place earlier this month.  I am still flying high over the accomplishment of successfully walking the 26.2 miles of the Chicago Marathon.  I am flying high over the resumption of actual weight loss after months of stagnation and even backward momentum.  As a guy who will be celebrating my 58th birthday in less than one month - I am fairly certain that my physical 'flying' days are long gone.  In contrast, spiritually, I have never flown higher or more often.  

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I had had a streak of walking a half-marathon 13.1 miles for three consecutive days: SUNDAY, MONDAY, and TUESDAY.  Technically that streak was broken yesterday as I did not walk 13.1 miles - I walked 15 miles in the morning and then I walked 11.2 miles in the evening.  In essence, yesterday, I walked the distance of a marathon, 26.2 miles.  Yep, I am flying high.    
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I zoomed in the the part of my 11.2 mile walk in and around the Lincoln Park Zoo

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This is one of the two lions that guard the entrance to the Chicago Museum of Art on Michigan Avenue in Chicago.

one of Chicago's tallest skyscrapers: JOHN HANCOCK CENTER

The John Hancock Center
875 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, United States. 
Floors: 100     
Construction started: June 1965
Height: 1,128', 1,506' to tip

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After walking 26.2 miles yesterday, I would be 'LION' to you - if I said that I was not exhausted by the end of the day.  Today, my biggest obligation is to get up early and get on an airplane headed to Houston, Texas. There will be plenty of time to recover from the small amount of weariness I am feeling this morning. I am arriving in Houston early enough to walk around a bit  in the afternoon before meeting up with my colleagues in the evening...

This lion guards the East entrance to the Lincoln Park Zoo

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Your Food Diary For:

Wednesday, October 21, 2015 c

BREAKFAST	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Sodium	Sugar
John McCann Steel Cut - Oat Meal, 1 cup	600	108	0	16	0	0
Roundy's - Center Cut Bacon, 3 Slices	70	0	4	7	220	0
Alive & Radiant Foods - Kale Krunch - Quite Cheezy, 2.1 oz	210	19	15	8	546	2
Kashi - Dark Chocolate Coconut Bar, 2 bar	240	42	7	8	100	14
	1,120	169	26	39	866	16
L U N C H
Omaha Steaks - Beef Hamburger, 1 Burger	290	0	23	19	75	0
Healthy Choice - Chicken Noodle Soup, 2 Cup (243g)	180	24	2	16	780	4
Butter Kernel - Whole Kernel Corn - Canned, 1.75 cup	245	39	4	4	840	14
Kashi - Dark Chocolate Coconut Bar, 1 bar	120	21	4	4	50	7
	835	84	32	43	1,745	25
D I N N E R
Lundberg - Loki seaweed organic rice cakes, 13 cake	780	182	7	13	975	13
Campbells Home Style Soup - Italian Wedding Soup, 2 cup	200	26	5	12	820	8
	980	208	12	25	1,795	21
Totals	2,935	460	69	107	4,406	62
Your Daily Goal	7,992	999	266	400	2,300	299
Remaining	5,057	538	196	293	-2,105	236
	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Sodium	Sugar
Your Exercise Diary for:  Wednesday, October 21, 2015  Cardiovascular Minutes Calories Burned Walking, 5.0 mph 189 3,092 Walking, 5.0 mph 140 2,347 MFP iOS calorie adjustment  N/A 623 Add Exercise Quick Tools Daily Total / Goal 330 / 30 6,062 / 590 Weekly Total / Goal 732 / 210 12,381 / 4,130 TOTAL CALORIES CONSUMED 2935 CALORIES TOTAL CALORIES BURNED 5439 CALORIES NET CALORIES 2504 DEFECIT ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  fitbit day 49 51268 steps ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~	*You've earned 6,062 extra calories from exercise today