Crazy Healthy

The inspiration that started it all...Lily read this and was committed...I took a bit of convincing.

The quote continued with, "The goal to live a healthier life is almost universal. Everybody feels better, worries less, and enjoys life more when they are actively improving their health. You deserve this better life. Today is your day." My wife was a goner after that; jumping back aboard the health train and she hasn't looked back.

If I had been Adam, I would have probably eaten the apple.

By this, I mean that I am fairly easy to distract with temptation, which is a problem, now that Lily has convinced me to commit to a regular workout routine and healthy diet. With cookies and ice cream and various other snacks readily available, it is very difficult to not cheat, which is kind of what Adam and Eve did, thanks in small part to a demon disguised as a snake. I guess that means Oreos are the product of the devil, and given how good they taste, it would not surprise me at all if one of Satan's monikers is Mr. Christie.

Still, the benefits of even just last week are noticeable. Working out is not as painful, and when you mute the video and play dance music, many of the exercises resemble club dancing. I should clarify though, that by club dancing, I of course mean Caucasian-style. My wife would argue that those two words do not belong together, but that response is typical of someone who is (very) secretly jealous of how good a dancer her husband is. She will almost certainly deny this, but you now know the truth.

We are eating healthier, and being better about portion control, too. Lily is even weighing and measuring our food so we can see what a proper portion looks like - and man, our portions were way off! However, the benefits of doing this together is to cheer each other on and support one another if one of us wavers.

One of the easiest excuses for eating poorly is that we are stuck in the frigid Arctic away from everyone back home. While this is true, it rankles Lily and I a bit when people say things like "Oh, it's so incredible what you're doing up there, I wish I was that brave!"

Please allow me to set the record straight. Thus far, we have not pulled anyone to safety from burning buildings, avalanches, or collapsing houses. We have not trekked longer than two hours, and that is usually in the summer. During the winter, it is rare for us to be outside longer than ten minutes at a time. We have not yet saved the world from thermo-nuclear destruction, zombie attack, or environmental catastrophe. Lastly, we have not fought in anything approaching a war to safeguard the freedom of those we love.

The above examples are indicative of "brave" behaviour. We are simply living in a small town, much further north than anyone reasonably sane would consider. Crazy is a term I can better identify with, and I know it has a negative connotation, but it is far more accurate.

So, to sum up: we are healthier, and happier, and crazy.

-J

Plastic Brains

A bit belated, but once again, one of the side benefits of living in Baker Lake is that Santa overcompensates, being that we're so far from loved ones during the holidays. No complaints!

Amongst other great gifts for Christmas, my mother gave me a book entitled The Brain That Changes Itself, by Norman Doidge. In classic Jeff form, I procrastinated reading it until just recently. Once I got into it however, it became as engrossing as a Lee Child or Tom Clancy novel. It talks about neuroplasticity, which simply means that our brains can be changed positively with a little exercise. The book documents examples of people with Alzheimer's, strokes, brain injuries, and other ailments, and shows how what was once considered permanent brain damage can be reversed using the latest in neuroplastic advancements.

I'm only into the third chapter, but already, the information I've learned is incredible. The book explains why people become forgetful as they age, and the best ways to prevent this from happening. As the author explains, medical science has gotten very good at keeping people alive into their eighties using tools that make us more physically healthy. What's needed is a comparable amount of focus on mental health, so that everyone can fully enjoy this longevity.

There is a website one of the neuroplasticians founded called Posit Science, and you can try several exercises for free that help train your brain to become better.

It's a great book that explains complicated brain functions in a simple way, and every chapter is more interesting than the last. I HIGHLY recommend reading it. Don't procrastinate. :-)

-J

Getting Healthy

Pepper is as energetic as ever, and still adorably cute. It's hard to get used to the idea that he will only ever be max. 7 pounds, even as a grumpy adult. Right now he is snuggling next to Lily , legs splayed out like he was drunk (he's not), and Lily is engrossed in one of the hidden object games I downloaded for her iPad. Typical evening in our quiet household. We had an eventful weekend in terms of weather - Lily came home around 3pm on Thursday and that blizzard lasted until late Friday night/early Saturday morning. Most of Saturday was clear and sunny, but we were under a second blizzard warning for the evening, though when we went to bed it was still pretty clear out. Winds picked up Sunday afternoon, but it never got terribly bad even though we were supposed to have a blizzard until Monday evening - by later on Sunday, it was pretty clear again and our blizzard warning sadly ended. It was brief, but reminds us that if only there were a bit more snow, this could be a very different winter.

Early Retiredment

Normally, I look forward to Fridays, especially this one, as I work the late shift, so I can sleep in. This time, though, I'm less excited as I feel like I've picked up a bug somewhere. You know that sensation - shivering constantly, yet sweating because of all the layers, body aches, and just general malaise. Today's post (as I am writing it on Thursday evening) will therefore be a little shorter than usual, as Mr. Sandman is bugging me to answer his call.

Today is girls' night, with a number of female neighbours coming over to keep my wife company, which is another reason I'm happy to be working late. We men should have a night to ourselves as well, but getting it organized is a real pain. We should probably hire the women to do it. :-)

The nights are getting longer, and there has been snow falling several times in the past week. It's too cold for Pepper to walk outside, but he's a hardy trooper and insists on braving the elements....for now. Although this morning I grabbed his leash to take him outside and he went and hid in his house...so maybe he's not so hardy after all. We bought one of those daylight-simulation lamps and have been using it when we're in the living room - I'm not sure it works, but I know that it lights up the house brighter than a spotlight. I also noticed that the vitamin D has showed up in our daily vitamin pile as well, so we hope to combat the darkness before it catches up to us.

I just dozed at my computer for ten minutes, so I'm off to bed. Until next time.

-J

In Sickness and in Health

We are officially the no-fun house this week. :(

Jeff's been sick since the weekend and it's finally caught up to me as well. Married people share a lot of things - I just didn't think 102 degree fevers really needed to be on that list. I guess we're taking our marriage vows of "in sickness and in health" pretty literally.

We were going to book a health center appointment, but the nurse said that there's a bug going around and they've just been telling everyone to take Tylenol and gargle with salt water. So, we decided to save ourselves the walk into town and fight it out here if that's all they can do to help.

It's funny when you're sick and no matter how old you are, you just wish your mommy was here. We are both missing our mommys as we sniffle and cough our ways through this, that's for sure. I even made a pot of chicken and ginger congee (rice porridge) since that's what my mom always fed me when I was sick - and although it seems to be doing the trick on helping us be on our way to feeling better, it just doesn't taste exactly like mom's. Maybe I didn't sprinkle enough love in it?

Our poor dog was excited we both were home from work today, but realized pretty quickly that we were bumps on a log - he ended up snuggling up with me on the couch for most of the day. Like I said, we're no fun to be around. Sorry, Pepper.

Hopefully we've turned a corner and will be better by tomorrow.

-L

News!

I mentioned in my last post that I had some exciting news. Here it is:

Striiving to beat Sir Bacon

I've heard that walking is one of the best exercises you can do, and while I do walk around a lot at work, that's because I have to. The idea of walking as exercise or just for fun has never really appealed to me. Until now, of course.

Sicky McSickerton(s)

We've both been battling a pretty hefty cold/flu this past week, so it's been quiet on the home front (aside from the sneezing, coughing, sniffling, etc.) . It knocked me out for most of Tuesday through Thursday and it started hitting Jeff on Wednesday and he's really suffering today. It's one of those viruses that any movement of your body takes all your willpower, so it's been tough to get going every day.

The upside is that it doesn't seem to last too long as I'm finally starting to feel better today - so I told Jeff there's light at the end of the tunnel! Lots of tea, soup and sleep has been on our agenda for the past few days...we're sick of being sick, let me tell you.

It's definitely one of those weeks where you're thankful it's Friday and we get a couple of days to be in our pajamas. I anticipate much rest in our near future.

-L

Canine conundrum

Normally, I love dogs. I have enjoyed their company since we got our first puppy when I was a teenager, and miss my parents' current labrador, Miller. There are a lot of dogs here, so I know he would have lots of friends to play with. At the moment, however, my relationship with dogs is suffering, because some of the local pooches are not respectful of bedtimes. Granted, they aren't likely aware they are disturbing my slumber, and yet, they should know that barking at 1am is not going to produce the results they're trying to achieve, given that an hour later, they are still at it. Most dogs here are chained up outside (most unlike the way we coddle our dogs, as if they're members of the family) and are considered work dogs, although I'm not sure what kind of work they are supposed to be doing. Guarding rusty snowmobiles, perhaps?

Making a Difference

This week has been a doozy, so I am breaking it up into two posts. In no particular order, here are some of the highlights we've enjoyed in the last seven days. 

Any time we receive something in the mail, our eyes light up and big grins appear on our faces. Being so distant from family and friends is difficult to adjust to, and while phone calls and emails and Facebook help, it's the thoughtfulness of someone taking the time to sit down a write a letter or put something small but locally inaccessible into a box and mailing it that really makes us appreciate our family and friends. To wit, for those of you reading this (and by extension, those that should but aren't), here is your assigned homework: 

Mental Prep

We would be remiss to talk about how we're prepping for the move without mentioning how it's affecting us internally. I thought planning a 200+ person wedding on an extremely tight budget in 9 months was stressful, but that was a walk in the park compared to this. Mainly because a wedding is something that you have a general idea of what to expect...but how do you know what to expect living thousands of miles away from your family and friends, in a community and culture that is very different from what you're used to? To say it's mentally draining would be an understatement.

What If?

I've been having a lot of fun telling people that we're moving to Nunavut, because it is so completely out of left field that people are simply gobsmacked when they find out. It's to the point where I have to start the conversation by saying "I have news! (No, no babies yet.)" Everyone assumes that since we're newly married, I'm going to announce that I'm pregnant - so it's taken what is some pretty big news on its own and amplified it by 2378327 because no one would ever expect it.

Whenever I tell people that we're moving to Nunavut, it's generally been met with a "Nunavut?!? You're not really going to Nunavut??" Surprisingly though, as it's never been on either mine nor Jeff's radar in any sense, most people seem to have some sort of six degrees of separation to Nunavut - either they've known someone who's been, or someone who's there, or they've wanted to go. After the customary questions of why we're going, what we're going to be doing, etc. it inevitably turns into the "What if" game.