491. Blissful rejuvenation.

Ah well, it's that time of year.

I've been getting sick.  :(

Yes, yes. I'm in need of better habits: eating, sleeping, exercising, drinking water. All the deficits contribute to my lowered immune system thus making me a target for the invisible critters that wreak havoc on health.

First the Allergy Army came for a visit. It stayed a few weeks, finally leaving after we bought an air purifier.

Then came the Migraine Meddlers. They only lasted a few hours but the accompanying symptoms gave me such a fright that we headed to the E.R. for a cocktail that I didn't want but badly needed.

Since then, I've been doing my best to get more sleep and more water, as well as eat mindfully and more often.

I know I get headaches when I'm dehydrated. And I've always tried to quell them with drinking large quantities of water. But with no luck...

However, I may have found a solution. I was in Big Lots the other day and I found their MetroElectro water. We've been fans of Smart Water for years and we buy it occasionally. The ingredients in the M.E. water are antioxidants, electrolytes and zinc, all of which I'm sure to be lacking in at any given time and probably more likely during a headache.

That same day I had gone out without eating and had not had a drop of water either. So I grabbed several bottle of the M.E. water, 50 cents each.

When I got to my car, I swigged half the bottle in a few minutes and was amazed to find my headache subsiding.

Coooooool.

And although I'm still not getting enough water, I've been drinking one 20oz bottle of M.E. water a day. Which is more water per day than I've ever drunk in life.

My last few ounces of M.E. water will be gone in a few minutes. I'll be re-loading at Big Lots before I head to my crochet group later today.

Which reminds me: I created my diet affirmations here on my blog and did not follow up with the rest. My bad.

The oversight will be corrected before I leave for my crochet group today.

I am thankful for the ability to do so.

And so it is!

490. Bliss in bloom.

Me, with my hyperbolic bracelet.

My daughter's arm, wearing the hyperbolic bracelet.

489: Hyperbolic Balls of Bliss.

Have I blogged about this before?

If I have, forgive me. It's become a mini-obsession.  :D

Somehow, in between dreaming, blogging, doing laundry, sleeping, vacuuming, dusting, writing, Facebook stalking my teenager, and other duties as assigned, I've fallen in love with hyperbolic crochet.

Yes, I know it sounds like some weird dance step or a drug that accelerates the metabolism but it's neither.

Actually it's a simple method for crocheting cute balls of fluff with lots and lots of uses.

They can be crocheted using any yarn in any color, to match your mood or decor.

My obsession started with a search for the perfect flower pattern.

Looking at flat, one-dimensional flowers didn't give me the sense of creative urgency I needed to start working the pattern.

Then I discovered hyperbolic crochet.

Are you now wondering what hyperbolic crochet is?

Yes?

Here is how Lion Brand Yarn describes it:

Hyperbolic Crochet is the name given to applying a mathematical principle to crochet patterns. A hyperbolic plane expands exponentially from any point on its surface, always curving away from itself. You can easily crochet a hyperbolic surface by increasing at a constant rate throughout the piece.

Hyperbolic growth in nature gives rise to the ruffled shapes of coral, kelp, and sea anemone. Crocheting coral forms is a great opportunity to try different yarns and stitches, and is just one example of the types of project that hyperbolic motifs may inspire you to do.

The Institute for Figuring created the concept of the Coral Reef with hyperbolic crochet and have been developing this concept since 2005. More information about the project may be seen on their website www.theiff.org.

And here are links to the IFF fun stuff:

• Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef
• IFF links to galleries of hyperbolic crochet in action 
• Hyperbolic Space Introduction

There will be no hyperbolic crocheted reefs in my future but I know I'll be crocheting lots more Hyperbolic Balls of Bliss.

It's because I have a thing with numbers that's been going on since childhood, when my mother told me the story of our "family numbers", a story I'll have to tell some other time or I shall digress too far.

I don't recall when I first learned of hyperbolic crochet. (Can you tell I like saying those words?) But I've since used several  patterns to achieve the h.c. before realizing I don't need a pattern, just an idea and an understanding of how often to add stitches.

Any way, without  further ado (and before I nod off at the keyboard) here are photos of the Hyperbolic Balls of Bliss I've crocheted so far.

The beige Ball of Bliss is rather small. I crocheted it using crochet cotton, also known as crochet thread.

This weekend I pinned a small hair elastic to it and wore it as a ring. I got lots of compliments on it.

The other two are here awaiting a good home.

They are too big to be worn as rings but they:

• are interesting as over-sized bracelets
• look lovely sitting on a mantel or a desk
• will inspire lots of comments when tied to a car antenna...

The list is bound only by imagination.

488. I don't like the word "diet".

Nor do I like the word "exercise".

I can substitute "movement" for exercise.

What can I use in place of "diet"?

Hmmm...  Off to the thesaurus!

On another note, I'm sleepy.

There was nothing nutritional in my "diet" today. Absolutely my fault for not making sure I ate properly before I left home this morning.

When I had time to grab a bite, I was in an area with no options for a healthy snack. And by then, I was feeling drowsy and lightheaded. I felt like anything was better than nothing, if I wanted to make it home safely.

So I grabbed a bag of chips and a can of tea.

Now I'm feeling the after effects.

Yuck.

487: Thinking about...

My diet.

Not "a diet".

My diet.

When I get home, I'm gonna write my diet affirmations on a sheets of white paper and tape them to the walls in several rooms:

Today I will only consume food and drinks which I believe will create and sustain my optimum health and healing.

Thank you God for making these items readily available to me.

And so it is.

Amen.

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486: A day of...

...Bliss.
 
Today is a good day. Nothing pressing on my plate.

Another funny dream this morning and I awoke in a panic, thinking it was Saturday and hoping I wasn't late for a much-awaited excursion with my church family.

Thankfully, five hours of sleep will be enough to last until my next dance with the Sandman.

A smoothie for breakfast would have been perfect but waking up early gave me a false sense of time. Instead of eating, I did other stuff. Before I realized it, it was time to get dressed to take my daughter to work.

But I managed to snag a bowl of watermelon for the road. So far, so good.

One of the Facebook pages I "subscribe" to announced Harris Teeter's Super Doubles Days. And I wondered where I would find coupons since I neither have printer ink nor do we get a Sunday paper.

God always makes a way.

I was sitting here at the library, at a station that has been without electricity since this branch re-opened this summer.

Only I wasn't aware that the power hadn't been restore until I plugged my laptop in.

I packed my bag and strolled the premises several times, in search of an available station with an outlet. Not one.

Finally I sat in the open area near the front door.

I saw a sign...

Literally.

It said:  Help yourself to Some of these Money Saving Coupons!

Aha!

Just what I needed.

Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah!

My fingers dove lovingly into the pile.

It was a goooooood pile too. I found more than 20 coupons I will actually use when I get to  Harris Teeter early tomorrow morning.

Amen.

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485: Today I am Inspired to...

Many thanks to my new blogging sister Georgia for such an inspirational post!

She has inspired me to create a Day of Happy Hypotheticals.

Here goes...

Today will be a wonderful day filled with positive energy, love, love, and more love. Lots of peace too.

Today I will:

1. Smile at everyone I cross paths with.
2. Radiate peaceful energy to the universe.
3. Treat Baby Bliss to a nutritious lunch when I pick her up from work.
4. Remember to make up the bed so it feels fresh when we get back in it.
5. Polish off the remains of our home made apple pie (thanks Mr. Bliss!) with the other Bliss while we laugh at the questions and answers on Family Feud.

 =)



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