"Trying to make the wife happy"

A customer just purchased iris and yellow tulips in an attempt to keep his wife happy. He said that he should have taken a vacation this year, and that he will certainly take one next winter. I so understand. My son leaves the cold of winter for the sun, beach and palm trees. With six feet of snow this winter,cold cold temperatures, everyone is looking forward to spring. The Great Lakes froze over this year, preventing evaporation, so for the first time in many years, the lake and river levels should rise. Talked to a customer from the west coast who said that it was pouring rain and that flooding was likely. I have been doing okay this winter because I light candles and drink a hot carob drink. And the fact that the days are longer, I drive home in the light now, makes me happy. I am doing fine. I am looking forward to paying attention to my husband, though unfortunately for him, I am not Donna Reed and to the college basketball playoffs.

Can I motivate myself?

On Monday, I felt like Gumby after I kicked several hundred times and stretched with a partner! I worked on the forms for the tournament though my legs were wobbly. I know that I should stretch every day. Maybe I can motivate myself to 1.) exercise, stretch and work on flexibility, 2.) eat healthy and 3.) practice hapkido techniques. At least, I record the food I eat on Fitnesspal. I invited my friend to lunch on Tuesday to celebrate her birthday. She will want to go to the grocery store too. She has been complaining that no one has sent her birthday cards. I sent her a card which I hope will arrive tomorrow. She is having cake with her friends on Thursday, getting together with her cousins on Sunday, enjoying dessert with her housemates and going to lunch with me. She is sad because her father died recently and this is her first birthday without him.

In-school tournament

Focusing and focusing on the 31 techniques (beggie ho shin sool and 16 low blocks) that I am performing next Monday at the dojang for the in-school tournament. I recruited a designer,our bank courier who is a martial artist, my son and two sales associates to watch me do practice runs. One time the floor was slippery, another I had a wrong foot forward, another I muffed it up and had to start over. It's good to get these problems ironed out in practice, so that I can perform well at the tournament. I remind myself to drop to a low x-stance, to keep my feet parallel in the riding stance, and to come all the way around with hoi jeons. Plan to practice extensively until Monday.

Congratulations Jamaican Bobsled Team!

Their equipment did not arrive on time, their luggage was lost, but in their interview yesterday, Marvin Dixon and Winston Watts were smiling as they spoke with an interviewer who handed the team a lucky egg. 4.41 seconds separated the Jamaican team from the top team. The thrill of training, the success of qualifying, the excitement of competition-- congratulations Marvin and Winston on your success!

Sochi Olympics

The Sochi Olympics and Valentine's Day week are running concurrently. My husband is keeper of the remote, and prefers other programming to the games. I did see Jamie Anderson's exhilarating and flawless final snowboard run to take the gold. I also watched the couple's ice dancing and so enjoyed the breath taking performances by the medal winners--Russia won the gold, skating to music from Swan Lake, Canada the silver and the United States the bronze, skating to music from Scherezade. Jenny Jones won the first ever snow medal for the UK. Congratulations! I'm looking forward to the men's speed skating this afternoon. I have been working at the branch store by myself so have not been a part of the Valentine Day busyness at the big store. Home today and scheduled to work through Saturday.

More Snow

I remember tbe winter in the early 2000s when we had 73 inches of snow. 31 inches in January and more coming down. A possible rise in temps causing a mix of snow and sleet. I hope it misses this area so that I don't have to drive home in it. The owner is encouraging the sales associates to procure early Valentine orders. He will pay for each order and the person who gets the most will get lunch and a bonus. I try but so far only have one order. Because of the weather, store and phones are quiet.