Roadwork

 

   Early 20th century boxers called one of their essential conditioning exercises "Roadwork".  It was simply running on the road while shadow-boxing.  My variation is marching and high-stair-climbing with a 2kg dumbbell in each hand.  It works my legs and core, and it's a great aerobic workout.  Three times a week.  

   I do an hour of prep before marching.  First a micro-dose of C sativa, then Tai Chi, Yoga, stretches, and calisthenics.  I recently added a second round of TC and cals using 1kg weights.  Then I hit the pavement with the 2kg ones.  

   I have been constantly pushing it, swinging the weights, twisting, pumping them, especially focusing on working my core.  I am exhausted by the end of these workouts and need a rest day between them, but I am feeling stronger.  My sciatica pain is mostly gone, although I still get twinges of a reminder of it if I move carelessly.  

   Views: 

   From the top of the stairways up to the Rama 7 Bridge, I can watch the river traffic, eg, tugboats pulling long trains of barges, and express boats.  Looking north, up-river, I can see six Buddhist temples and one new mosque, which is very beautiful in white and light green.  

   At home, from the corner of my veranda, I have a view of a couple of the only trees left out back.  I keep my binoculars out there for watching the squirrels and birds.  My pair of Zebra doves came back and nested a 3rd time on the veranda, successfully hatching another chick.  The doves were a bit disrupted this time because of major demolition of a building just across the wall on the side of the electric company.  

   This disrupted other creatures as well:  a big Monitor Lizard was perched on the fence at the top of the wall, evidently flushed out of his underground home.  His body was two feet long, with a very long tail, and he had muscular arms and huge claws.  

   I am reading Stephen Batchelor, *After Buddhism: a re-thinking of the dharma for a secular age* (2015).  Batchelor and I are on the same page about Siddhartha Gautama.  

-Zenwind. 

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The Doves Nest Again

 

   I was surprised when my old friends, a pair of Zebra ("Peaceful") Doves, revisited their old nest up under the roof of my veranda.  (I mentioned their successful hatch in my posts here in September and October.)  

   The hen sat for three full weeks again, and then, after another week, the nest was empty.  I was worried, because from below I couldn't see them feeding a chick as I had seen in October.  But in a couple of days they all appeared, the mother, father, and the new baby bird.  They rested on the spacious window ledge of the building across from my veranda, and they spent a few afternoons and nights there before ranging farther afield.  

-Zenwind. 

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Vipers!

 

   We've had a couple of visits from snakes in the last few weeks.  I knew they were poisonous because of the triangular shape of their heads.  They were night visitors, and dark tan-brown in color, so I couldn't identify the first one.  But my best guess is that they were either a Malaysian Pit Viper or a Siamese Russell's Viper, both "venomous and potentially fatal".  

   The first was spotted one evening just outside the glass door of Tuk's living room.  It headed for the street, and was captured by some locals, who took it elsewhere for safe release.  

   The more recent visit was discovered in the connected toilet area in back of Tuk's area.  This was once an old open toilet space, but has recently been covered with a roof and hosts her washing machine as well as refurbished toilets and shower.  The area is still open enough for critters to climb over the walls  -- we've had Monitor Lizards (aka, "monsters", as Tuk calls them) come in several times.  

   This second viper was found on the inside wall slithering along a water pipe.  Tuk called for help (which I believe was from the fire squad of the neighboring electric company), and a few guys showed up quickly with proper snake gear:  gloves, hooks and a bag.  They bagged it and took it away, with an attitude of "no big deal".  

   Folks here are quite casual about very venomous snakes  -- while I am not used to them  -- yet they freak out when encountering Monitor Lizards or Tokay Geckos.  But these recent viper visits have me a bit spooked, since they tend to have large litters.  I fear there is a nest nearby.  So, I will more carefully watch where I step at night.  

-Zenwind. 

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Baby Dove Took to Wing

 

  Last month, a pair of Zebra (aka, "Peaceful") Doves built a nest on my 2nd floor veranda, high up under the roof.  As they were building it, I was afraid of scaring them off, since I am frequently out there for shower, toilet and exercise.  After the hen  laid and remained sitting, she watched my daily movements and seemed to accept me  -- even my Tai Chi and energetic calisthenics. 

 She sat for about 3 weeks until one chick hatched.  The father would then come to stay with the chick while the mother went out to forage.  (I'll bet she was hungry by that time!)  She would return to feed her chick by regurgitating food as the chick stuck his (her?) beak into her mouth.  

  The little guy grew fast.  Within a week, he was standing up in the nest and flexing his wings.  His learning curve was fast.  Mother and father would both be at the nest and then fly off while he watched.  Then the nest was empty.  

  A couple of days later, baby bird flew up and perched on a nearby building, and then the parents flew in nearby.  That evening, the three of them settled down for the night together on window ledge, as one happy family.  This entire time, over a couple of months, was a very wonderful visit for me.  I wish them well.  

-Zenwind. 

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Exercising Again

 

   We are in the midst of our Rainy Season, and, although it has not been an extremely stormy one so far, a check of the day’s weather report is mandatory first thing in the morning.  One must choose the right umbrella for any extended outing:  a small compact one for a chance of rain; or a big one for almost certain downpours.  The right choice of footwear is also critical.  (I haven’t worn long trousers for many years; cargo shorts only, for both the heat and rain.) 

   A month ago, my urologist said I could start “light” exercising again, as long as I don’t “overdo it”.  (No hand weights yet.)  It’s now two months after prostate surgery, and I feel I’m slowly getting back on the trail.  I’ve now completed two-and-a-half weeks of my resumed marches to the river while climbing the high stairways.  Leaving the dumbbells behind, it just works my legs – as well as the basic aerobic workout.  Gotta keep those climbing muscles in tune!  I’ve also re-started my old gymnastic routine of Tai Chi, stretching, Yoga, and calisthenics.  Feels good. 

   A pair of birds – some kind of small gray doves – have been building a nest on my veranda.  It is on the site of an old nest from several years ago, high up under the roof at the top of a vertical steel beam.  (The previous family had lost one chick who fell out of the nest; it is a site safe from predators but is small and precarious.)  I try not to disturb them too much when I go out there for toilet, showers, laundry tasks, and calisthenics.  I think the eggs have just been laid, since the hen hasn’t left the nest for 24 hours now.  I wish them luck. 

-Zenwind. 

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Post-op Recovery

 

   Five weeks after TURP prostate surgery, and I’m doing well, although I’m going crazy from not exercising.  I see my urologist in a week, and he will let me know when and how much exercising I can begin. 

   I’ve been reading, watching movies, and getting weak, soft and fat.  I hope to reverse this slothfulness soon and start the task – like Sisyphus rolling his boulder up the mountain – of rebuilding strength. 

-Zenwind. 

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I'm Free!

 

   So long, Sancho Panza.  I’m finally free of the urinary catheters that I’ve been hooked up to and that have been my constant sidekicks for the last eight months.  I had been able to exercise quite hard with them, but they were exasperating annoyances. 

   A week ago, I had TURP surgery (Trans-Urethral Recission of the Prostate), and was in hospital for three nights recuperating.  The hospital staff were all great, and they made the bedrest time very pleasant.  When the catheter was removed, three days after surgery, and I could freely pee again, I was discharged.  After five or six days, my urine was free of visible blood.  And, I’ve never felt any pain the entire time. 

   It is so wonderful to at last be able to just jump into a pair of pants without the intricate hassle of rigging the catheter and tubes.  I no longer have to be super-careful about all my movements, lest I snag the tube. 

   Again, just like my preparation for my cataract surgery in November, I’m glad I waited until I was physically fit before opting for an operation that would force me to rest and be inactive for a while post-op.  My long routine of stair climbing with dumbbells made it so that now, with enforced rest, I still feel quite fit. 

   I will have a follow-up with my urologist in ten days, and he will advise me on when I can start exercising again and at what intensity.  I can hardly wait.  To stop moving is to stagnate.  Excelsior! 

-Zenwind. 

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Rainbow

   We had a nice cool rain this afternoon, and the air is now fresh and clean.  There was a nice rainbow high in the East South East.  It reminded me of the many times I would see one over the big chickencoop in Sugar Grove. 

   The weather reports have been calling for nearly certain rain showers each day, but, so far, they are often false alarms.  Yet one must have an umbrella when out, just in case.  But soon we will have steady rainy days. 

   I enjoy watching squirrels and birds from the back veranda.  Having my cataract surgery done was an excellent decision.  It is easier to use binoculars, and I don’t have to fumble with glasses.  Aristotle was right:  one of our great delights is our sense of sight. 

   I am a reading addict, so I must force myself to get up and exercise regularly.  Tomorrow is Sunday, my favorite morning for my stair climbing march down by the bridge, since there’s nobody on the sidewalks and it’s at its most quiet. 

   I’m feeling strong enough now to have my prostate surgery, which I will try to schedule for some time in July. 

-Zenwind. 

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Towel Day

 

   Today, May 25, is Towel Day, an important intragalactic holiday.  On this day, we hitchhikers proudly carry our towel everywhere to salute Douglas Adams (1952-2001), author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.  Without his Guide, we would be lost in our galactic wanderings, and we would forget to always pack that essential towel. 

   Here in Thailand, our Hot Season has morphed into the Rainy Season.  It is still uncomfortably humid and hot, still Sweat City, and a towel is an absolute necessity as we slog through Samsara. 

   Re: my Roadwork exercise routine (high stair-climbing along the Chao Phraya River with 2kg weights in each hand; 6 steep stairways; 2.5km in 47 minutes).  I’m entering my 5th week of 3 sessions per week, and I’m starting to feel that power buzz.  It strengthens my legs, feet, back and gut. 

   This week I will consult with my urologist to plan upcoming prostate surgery.  I want to be sure to be fit and strong before it is done, as I will then spend downtime in hospital and recovery. 

-Zenwind. 

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Fat Cat, RIP

   The last of our cats has passed away.  Fat Cat died of old-age and increasing disability.  She was getting gray and weaker only in the last half-year.  She had wandered into our courtyard many years ago with no history, so we don’t know how old she really was.  At the time, we had other cats in the house, and she fought with them, so she lived outside under the eaves for a few years until they all died.  From homeless to housecat, she found numerous hideaway nooks in the house to sleep in private.  She was not an affectionate cat, but she did like Tuk, following her around. 

   Earlier, about one year ago or so, my cat, Pinky, died at 17 years old.  I never wrote about this, because I really didn’t know what to say.  She was special, and was very shy and stayed mostly in my room.  During the night, I would wake up to find her sleeping with her head resting on my ankle, so I had to be careful when moving or rolling over.  She liked to have her tummy rubbed and relished having her face brushed with a stiff brush.  I miss her. 

   In other news, I’m still chained to a urinary catheter and will need some major surgery so I can pee again.  The prostate has shrunk, but scar tissue is blocking my urethra.  I’m not sure how this surgery will go. 

   I have become determined to get physically fit before any serious operation, because I know I’ll be laid up for a while after.  So, I’ve begun my old heavy hands stair-climbing routine again.  Back to only 1 kg in each hand, I walk 2.5 km and climb 6 high stairways – stairs up to the river bridge and pedestrian flyovers.  I’m calling this routine my “Roadwork”, because it reminds me of boxers’ aerobic training.  Next week, I aim to wield 2 kg dumbbells.  That’s the plan, anyway. 

-Zenwind. 

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