health – Thoughts From The Passenger Seat

2025, Goals, Healthy Living, life

2025 Review / 2026 Plans

Posted on December 31, 2025December 31, 2025 by nancyb422

Here I am, the last day of 2025. 9:18am, wondering if I succeeded in accomplishing anything I wrote about at the beginning of the year.

I had physical goals that I wrote about on January 15th. I know my weight was creeping up to a region I wasn’t happy about. I don’t recall the weight I began the year at, or where I am now, but I know I feel a lot better than I did on 1/1/2025.

In 2024, I hit 14,753 minutes on Peloton tracking and my goal was to hit 15,000 in 2025. I did it! I knocked it out of the park with 17,345. So 2026 I’m shooting for 18,000+.

I also wrote about my 2025 Mental Health Goals. To be mindful, focus on self-care. I had good times and not so good with that. I am a worry wort. I worry about things I have no control over, and about things that are miles down the road. Waiting for that shoe to drop? That’s me! And I keep it all in, all bundled inside of me. Definitely need to work on my self-care in 2026.

Something I did achieve that wasn’t on my radar was working on my faith. I embraced my daily reading of “Jesus Calling” and its bible verses. I attended a Beth Moore workshop with my good friend and have plans for another this year. I took a big step in the fall and headed back to church, and went to confession for the first time in over 30 years. I feel whole and look forward to continuing to strengthen my relationship with God.

I still maintain a love/hate relationship with Social Media. My goal was to “read less what other people say and write more of what I want to say”. Did I succeed? Well, I wrote 90 posts which is 3 more than in 2024. Considering quite a few of the 2024 posts were Hump Day Photos, I think I did much better with writing in 2025. But I did not do better in my quest to lighten up on the social media sites! Recently, I set up a timer to block me when I’ve gone over my limit for the day. Some days I respect it, some days I ignore it. Still working on that.

I’ve already talked about some goals for 2026 here and here. Goals are great but if the habits to achieve them aren’t implemented, what good is it to set them? Here’s to working on those habits in 2026!

2025, Healthy Living

It’s Special(ized)

Posted on November 9, 2025November 9, 2025 by nancyb422

Name the most expensive personal item you’ve ever purchased (not your home or car).

It’s a good thing I love to ride a bike because my most expensive personal item recently purchased is a new gravel e-bike I brought home in September. It replaced the first e-bike, a Salsa Confluence, I bought in February. It quickly became evident the Salsa was not up to speed (pun intended), for the rides our group takes. The Salsa was half the price as the Creo, had a smaller motor, thinner tires designed more for bike paths than dirt roads, and unfortunately for me on dirt roads with rocks, no shocks in the handle bars.

My new, best bike is a Creo Turbo 2 Comp with a 1.2 SL lightweight motor, and SRAM hydraulic disc breaks. A really crazy feature is the “etap levers” for changing gears. If you’ve ever shifted gears on a bike, you can hear it going on down at your feet as the chain moves higher or lower. Not this bike because it’s electric! There’s only a delightful little “click” as I press the right or left lever, and the chain makes its move on the cog.

It is worth every penny because my hands no longer ache after a 30 mile ride, I’m more comfortable and confident barreling down a hill, and I have more electric power for that hill at mile 27!

2025, life, relaxing

The Head Spa

Posted on October 27, 2025 by nancyb422

My son and daughter in law like to give “experience gifts” and I am happy to receive them.

For Mother’s Day, they gave me a certificate for a 90 minute head spa experience as the website calls it. I love my hair. It’s long and for a 65 year old woman, pretty thick. I’m currently growing it out for as long as I can stand it. It’s working out pretty well because long hair means I don’t have to wash it as frequently for “a style”. It’s just long. I had no idea what to expect but made sure my hair was nice and dirty. It wasn’t a prerequisite but it worked out that way in my hair washing routine.

I made my reservation online for the more local spa in Berlin Connecticut and when I arrived for my 10am appointment I was greeted by Callie, who would be giving me my spa treatment. She is an esthetician who was trained for the scalp massage by the Head Spa owner and she was really good.

Let me just say, if your favorite part of a trip to the hairdresser is the scrubbing your scalp gets, this is the place for you!

You lay face up on a massage table that has a covered resting place for your head. Below that is the water basin. First the technician uses a camera to look at your scalp and shows the build up of natural oils on your scalp. I was amazed to see 2 and 3 strands of hair coming out of one pore. I lose enough hair every day to make a wig for a doll and now I see why I’m not bald.

After that, it’s scalp cleaning, massage which includes your neck and shoulders, and scalp mask. While the mask is doing its work, you get a mini facial! I’m pretty sure I dozed off during some portion of the experience. At the end, you get to see your clean scalp on the screen again. You can either have a “light blow dry” or get the leave in conditioner and a towel to dry your hair. I went with option number 2.

I washed my hair on Saturday, but I can still feel the effects of the mask and leave in conditioner. My hair is weirdly smooth where it’s normally a little dry.

It was $200 for the experience, which considering it was an hour and a half, is not too bad. It’s something I would definitely do again!

Have you ever gone to a head spa? Is it something you would want to do?

2025, Healthy Living, life

Digging In

Posted on September 4, 2025 by nancyb422

If you are a reader here, you’ll see I can be “in my head” a lot.

I am reading a book entitled, “High Functioning” overcome your hidden depression and reclaim your joy by Dr. Judith Joseph.

I have told myself that I don’t fall into the perfectionist category and a lot of what she says about overworking was something I did in the past, but not now. However, by beating myself up mentally, I think I should be perfect, or strive to be perfect. Both in my work and my “being”.

She says it relates back to “trauma” most times childhood based, but not always. There can be trauma with a capital T or it can be lower case t.

What I’m more concerned about is that feeling of “blah”. Anhedonia – the reduced ability to experience joy in life which makes you feel meh or blah all the time. For me, I t’s a feeling of doing to get through the day and then the night. When did that start?

I have begun to explore how all this figures in my life. I can see why I am never (never ever) happy with my weight or shape.

I’m beginning to understand some thoughts and reactions in my marriage.

As my business coach says, “what gets measured, gets improved”.

I’m looking forward to digging in deeper.

2025, Healthy Living, life

Daily Reminders

Posted on August 17, 2025August 16, 2025 by nancyb422

Yesterday I relayed sage advice from the queen:

Today while reading from my “Jesus Calling”, one of the scriptures was Philippians 4:8:

“….whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me-put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”

In other words, “Because like what you spend your energy on, that’s the day.”

2025, Healthy Living, life

If…

Posted on July 12, 2025July 12, 2025 by nancyb422

If I say the number on the scale is “just a number” when it goes up, why don’t I say the same when the number goes down?

Here I am again analyzing what I ate that would cause the scale to increase by .6, yes, half of a pound. It never ends.

Does it reside in my head past the weight check? Really, that’s all it is, it is a weight check.

No, I realize it doesn’t. There are so many factors that can cause it to shift. The delicious sourdough cinnamon raisin bread with butter I had after dinner last night comes to mind….

But I drink my coffee, fill my water bottle, and head out the door for my morning workout.

2025, Healthy Living, life

Taking Care of Myself

Posted on June 23, 2025 by nancyb422

How do you practice self-care?

Physical, emotional, spiritual, intellectual, social, and relational. When I looked online for self-care, I found those categories.

Based on the descriptions, I was pretty surprised that I have always practiced self-care but never put the two together.

I eat heathy and work out every day. I write in my journal daily. I read my Jesus Calling devotional every day, followed by the associated bible verse. I read at bedtime and play the New York Times games (almost) daily. I have been working on my relationship with my husband to be more open and honest about things that concern me.

I was going to say that my social self-care would be where I was lacking but I realized – that’s not true! I belong to a group at the library, and attend library events at least twice a month. I meet with former neighborhood friends every month for dinner. I meet with our class reunion committee monthly, which consists of 6 other women who really like seeing each other every month because our next reunion is still 3-1/2 years away!

I could improve on all of that if I could stay off social media!

2025, family, Home, life, Writing

This Weather!

Posted on June 9, 2025 by nancyb422

Here in Connecticut, it has rained at some point during 15 consecutive weekends. Maybe one day, maybe both days.

When we moved back here in 1995, me, the Connecticut native, told my husband, the California native to expect at least one day on a summer weekend to be rainy. I think I did pretty good with that assessment. Overall, this has been a Really Wet Year and it doesn’t look like much is changing.

Now that we are in “summer”, the humidity rises. And falls. And rises. I can handle it but my poor husband suffers from the Jekyll and Hyde atmospheric pressures. Vertigo, sinus conditions, headache – he’s had them all!

Do you have constantly changing weather where you live?

2025, life, thoughts

4 AM

Posted on May 9, 2025 by nancyb422

Worry and fear fly into the room and enter my brain at 4am. I should be enjoying the final hour and 15 minutes of a good night’s sleep but instead in find myself awake giving them the opening to appear.

Bills.business.life.health.travel.bills.job delays.bills. Over and over again.

I turn to my left side and recite the Lords Prayer. I try a little ‘God’s got me the palm of his hand‘. Nope.

I rotate like a pig on a spit to my right side. Happy memories? Upcoming adventures? Nope.

it’s 4:30. I realize the problem is, I’m THINKING. Everything involves my brain thinking. Turn it off.turn it off. It won’t shut off.

Then suddenly, I’m younger, alone and driving trying to get home. I don’t know where I am but (in the morning light), I think it’s in a town nearby. I’m driving up a hill, stop when I can’t go anymore and leave my car. Where do I go? Suddenly, I’m taking a yoga class. Then I’m at home with my husband and Vince Vaughn and his sister (?!) stop by to look at our house. She and I talk about needlepoint. I’m called away from yoga by my friend Sherri who died a few years ago to go see a young girl who was in the elementary school I worked at. When I go back, yoga is over so I pack up my belongings and suddenly I’m back at my car. People are picnicking in the area. I look over and my car door is open. Someone broke in but the people nearby say all they saw was people commenting about the car. I head over to look.

I hear a noise. It’s my alarm at 5:45am. I press the button on my phone to turn it off and lay there to calm the feeling in my body from the alarm.

Time to start my day.