Felt good working outside a bit yesterday and today. Got to keep this 60-year-old frame moving and active. But the mindset is important. I can no longer pretend the body is 20 or 30. I can do most of what the 40-year-old body could just not for the sustained period or strength. I’m pretty good for the 50-year-old comparison, minus a couple of surgeries and radiation.

So this storm cleanup and early spring start for the outdoor tools is challenging but fun in some ways. I mean how much longer will I want or be able to do the more physical aspects. Well if my neighbor was any indicator he could and would get out into his late 80’s and lived into his 90’s. So there is one example, an extreme one maybe. He had been a contractor/builder all his life. So maybe there is some positive effects from keeping active and doing some regular physical work.

I’m just trying to do it smarter now. What took 1 day as a 20/30-year-old now takes a few. I take breaks, and try to listen to the body. I try to work smart and let the tools do the work. I’ll accept help with the really heavy stuff instead of powering through and hurting myself. And the couple really big jobs like big tree removal I’ll hire it done.

But this past storm also got me thinking I’d like to burn more wood and less oil. And that would be good exercise in hauling and splitting some wood throughout the year. There are lots of things like this that can keep me healthy. I just need to get to them.

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It saddens me that my children won’t get the experience of taking their kids to a Toys R Us store. I can still remember them up and down every isle. I would even spend time looking at the rows of bikes and skateboards imagining having the time ride them all day.

Somehow, buying toys online takes a lot of fun out of the experience. What you see in a picture isn’t aways what it feels like when you pick up the box. Seeing a child pick something up they thought they wanted and seeing them gravitate to the thing they really want is lost.

Ah the times be a changing.