Exercise, friendship and hugs chase blues away

By Virginia Winder
Swimming didn't hurt my left shoulder tonight.
Did my 60 lengths, slowly, but concentrated on the style points that Ayla Dunlop-Barrett gave me and it wasn't painful.
She says that when you swim with a straight arm you put a lot of pressure on your rotator cuff, which is group of muscles and tendons that stabilize the shoulder.
I've got friends with stuffed cuffs, but it's possible she's saved mine in time.
Also, the exercises I do at the gym for my lower arms now make sense. "This is good for swimming," the instructor told me.
Now that I bend my arms after reaching out in front, I can feel those muscles working. Goodness knows what I was doing before.
Exercise is a great tonic if you're feeling down.
On Thursday and yesterday, I felt those niggles of depression start to worm their way into my gut and mind.
To be honest, yesterday was a terrible day. Faced some shorter deadlines because of Labour Weekend, slept badly, had stress chest pains again, and had to sleep for 30 minutes between writing stories.
Never got out of my PJs all day, just wrote, slept, wrote slept and felt myself spiralling down. Still felt yucky today, but after getting random hugs from my beautiful husband and talking to an understanding workmate and then a dear friend, I felt better.
Then I had the energy to knock off another story, spend time in the artroom, care for my son who's been feeling sick and then go for a swim.
After my session in the pool the endorphins kicked in and I feel great now.
This has made me rethink the rest day idea. Perhaps, for my own sanity, I need to do something physical, but it could be something a bit more low-key, like a stroll with my husband or a friend (and the dog of course!).
When I was a teenager and feeling a bit blue, my mother would send me off for a run and I'd always come back my bright, chirpy self.
Mum was wise, wasn't she?

Yesterday, I:
Worked for 12 hours
Did no exercise
Slept off and on during the day
Drank 3 cups of coffee
Drank hardly any water
Ate extremely well thanks to my attentive husband

Today, I:
Worked for 6 hours
Swam 60 lengths of a 25-metre pool
Slept deeply for 10 hours
Dranks 3 cups of coffee
Drank some water
Ate fantastically well, including lots of salmon and seasonal veggies

Meadsville, war and more - a journey

By Virginia Winder
Today has been about love and war, totara and Pinetree, nerves and shocks.
Drove to Cambridge for a nerve-conductor test to find out why some of the fingers on my left hand and my forearm are numb.
On the way Warren and I listened to Darkness, Be My Friend, the fourth book of the Tomorrow When The War Began series by John Marsden. It's gripping, scary and too possible. Made me look out at the landscape and imagine where we could hide from enemy invaders.
Had the tests and I can confirm that I don't have carpal tunnel syndrome. That's all I will say on this matter, except I found the shocks given to stimulate my nerves quite fascinating in an "I'm not scared of that electric fence" sort of way.
Afterwards, we met an old school friend for lunch and shared feelings, ideas and laughter. We also caught up on news of mutual friends and I left feeling reconnected and happy.
Driving home we noticed something pretty special at the crash site in Otorohanga - a second golden totara has been planted next the one we dug in for Dad. The pohutukawa we put in for Mum didn't survive, so it's wonderful to see a second totara placed there. Brought tears to my eyes.
Also heading home, we couldn't resist the tantalising signs heading into Te Kuiti or should I say Meadsville. I'm not certain what Colin and Stan Meads think, but some bright spark has come up with the idea of turning the whole town into a shrine for the Meads men.
Have to say though, that it's Sir Colin who's more in the spotlight.
Businesses around the town have changed their names to reflect the Meads mania and there's an outdoor gallery featuring extremely large pictures of the rugby legend/s. Beneath these are, fittingly, mass plantings of baby pinetrees.
It's wonderful to see an entire town get behind a living treasure for the Rugby World Cup. Well, I presume it's just for the Cup or has there been a minor coup in Te Kuiti?
As for exercise, spent most of the day in the car (or perusing Meadsville), so came home and went for a quick trot around the block.
Also returned to bad news about a friend's health, which made me realise that in the scheme of things my numbness is nothing. When someone is sick, you need to focus on their needs, send endless love and positivity, and not let your own grief be a burden on them. Damn hard sometimes, but not as tough as facing a life-threatening disease.
When you finish reading this, go and give someone you love a big hug.
Off you go...

Today, I:
Worked for 5.5 hours (OK, so I got up at 2am)
Walked around the block (in the dark and rain)
Connected with an old and dear friend
Shared positive thoughts with another friend
Ate a healthy breakfast, a bitsy lunch in two parts (mostly salad) and a delicious smoked salmon salad for dinner
Drank way too much coffee (5 cups!)