Grandma

My grandma passed away today. She was 90 years old and in good health for 90. But things just got the best of her. I will miss her very much.

Some things I remember about my grandma:

• When my brother and I were young, she played Uno (and every other game) with us every time she visited. She was such a good sport.
• Eating awesome junk food when we visited her house. She would make us pudding, and would have Bugles and cheese puffs, and we would never ever be hungry!
• Exploring her house. There was lots of old cool stuff in her house; I remember being kind of freaked out about a stuffed pheasant just sitting in one of the bedrooms.
• Grandma and my older son reading together, and watching the Pokemon movie together at Christmas.
• Visiting her house by myself for the first time - it was a four hour drive. I remember us going to a restaurant and me backing my car into the wall...We had a great time shopping and going out to eat and just talking about things. It was really nice.

I'm so glad we got to see her for her 90th birthday and over Labor Day. I aspire to be like her, living til at least 90 and playing with my grandchildren and great grandchildren someday.

We love you Grandma. We will miss you very much.

Bikes are an afterthought

This morning I heard there was a crash on a highway that had traffic stopped and I was thankful the traffic jam was nowhere near me.

Later I read a post on Consider Biking that said it was a car that crashed into a bike, and the cyclist died. I was very thankful it wasn't me. I felt terrible for the cyclist and his family. And for the driver of the car.

I avoid the roads as much as I can. When I am on the main street, High Street, I ride the sidewalks. I know it is just as dangerous (or even more so if you are not paying attention), but I can't imagine riding on the street itself. I ride on the side streets where necessary but where there's heavy traffic, I am just terrified to be on the road with cars.

Let's face it, roads around here and in most of the country were made for one purpose - cars. Bikes, if considered, are an afterthought. Occasionally you see a bike lane here or there, but accessible roadways are virtually nonexistent. You have to be extra vigilant on the roads, and you can still make a mistake. I read on blogs and in guide books that bikes are to be treated just like cars; we need to obey all traffic laws. But bikes are NOT cars, and roads are not built to be shared.

I do feel sorry for the driver of the car. Bikes are gaining popularity, but there's not really any training for drivers. Should you pass the cyclist? What do those hand signals mean? What about cyclists that cross across three lanes of traffic, or don't stop at red lights or stop signs?

There's some mutual responsibility here, and some responsibility on the part of city planners. If bikes are to be treated the same as cars, then roads must be re-examined as a path to be used by cars AND bikes, sharing the road. And drivers and cyclists need to understand the rules of the road for both forms of transportation.

For now, I think I'll stay on the sidewalks and bike trails. I think there is a bike revolution going on, but I don't know how long it will last, and I don't know if it will go anywhere or if gas prices go down, everyone will return to their gas-guzzling four wheel boxes, consuming far too much nonrenewable energy and getting fatter and fatter all the while.

I'll show you, Wii!

A few days later, and my Wii Fit age is 41. Take that, Wii. Although I realize that the Wii Fit measurements are hardly scientific, I feel vindicated. At the very least, I am a tad competitive so having a goal to reach or achieving the high score really gets me motivated.

The yoga is pretty cool. For the easy poses I was in the "Yoga Trainer" category, and then when I had to balance on one leg, I kept falling off the board. I could get into the yoga, though. There are a lot of poses to learn, and they are challenging.

I have to do it at night when the young 'uns are in bed, because my 6 year old does a mean "Howard Cosell" imitation. His commentary is nonstop. "Mommy, you have to turn to the right. Don't jump on the board. You are going too fast! I can't believe you can't get the ball. You are terrible, Mommy!"

I play a mean game of Tetris. Do they have that for the Wii? Something that takes less coordination, maybe?