Last embers of summer

Here we go, another birthday... first one without my father, whose advanced years had hitherto given me perspective and hope. I used to be able to say: "How can I consider myself 'old' when I have a father who's 34 and half years older than me!" 

Well, he's gone; my father remains with me in my dreams - I dream of him more often than any other human being; I dreamt of him again last night. In that regular no-man's land dreamscape that's part Warsaw, part West London, we were on our way by bus from Jeziorki to Acton.

My father's death wasn't something I was prepared for this time last year. I had complacently expected him to sail on until 100 at least. His death, however, came quickly, mercifully, and unexpectedly. At the time of my father's passing, I suddenly became the Oldest Member of My Family; and my age is now upon me - although I should still realistically hope for another 25 to 30 years of active life.

I am mindful of the fact that my mother had her first heart attack weeks before her 59th birthday - the first of three, and that heart eventually killed her at the age of 88. Yet despite those heart attacks, she didn't change her lifestyle. She did zero exercise and ate cake for everybody. My father lived to 96 before his heart gave in. Question: do I have my mother's heart or my father's heart?

Meanwhile, summer might be over, but the sun can still shine. My early-autumn birthday is becoming more and more of a metaphor for life with each passing year. 

The sun is out - make the most of it! Don't waste time! Do something! I finish my breakfast, and get a 6.5km walk in before the clouds close in from the south-west bringing rain by the late morning. Manage that - get back for a second breakfast, still no rain - so time for a sunny motorbike ride around the manor. Top temperature today - a wonderful 24C. Rain, accompanied by thunder, came at lunchtime; then office work occupied me while the dark clouds roiled northward. They passed in the early evening, leaving an hour and half of cloudless skies before a perfect sunset to enjoy on a second stroll.

I give thanks for my health, I am grateful that I've so far managed to avoid SARS CoV-19. I did not feel comfortable going into the office last week; the journey home in a crowded train on Thursday was not something I'd want to repeat while numbers of cases are rising dramatically. It feels safe in Jeziorki and in Jakubowizna, but the centre of Warsaw - getting in and out of it in particular - does not.

Time for a quick look at blood pressure, an important indicator to keep track of. Back in June 2017, I had a short episode of high blood pressure (don't really know what caused it), and was prescribed a lifetime of pill-taking. I said no. I will deal with it naturally. More walking, more exercising, better diet. And it seems to have worked - see table below. But as with everything - there's no room for complacency, don't take your conscious mind off it.

	Systolic	Diastolic	Pulse
4/10/2017	115	78	77
4/10/2018	116	79	75
4/10/2019	117	79	76
3/10/2020*	113	80	75

* Reading from yesterday as I don't have a blood-pressure monitor on the działka.

The systolic measurement is holding steady (below 120 is 'optimal'); the diastolic has crept up from 'optimal' (79 or less) to 'normal' (between 80 and 84); pulse stable. The American Heart Association states the normal resting adult human heart rate is 60–100 bpm, so 75 is around the middle there. Readings always taken first thing in the morning after waking up. I can but surmise that the doctor who prescribed me a lifetime's pill-taking more than three years ago has an agenda to shift product rather than to work with the patient for a more holistic approach to their health.

Exercise - so important. Press-ups: quality, not quantity. After filming myself knocking out 75 earlier this summer, I was appalled by how shallow and floppy they looked. So I'm now doing a minimum of 30, twice a day, but each one with a straight, plank-like back (imaginary tailbone tucked under the pelvis and thrust forward); chest down almost to the floor, then up until arms lock.

Walking: less this year than last, mainly because of lockdown. So I'm averaging 11,000 paces a day rather than the 12,000 I managed last year.

Pull-ups and weights: I'm so far ahead on last year that if I did no more until the end of 2020, I've already beaten 2019 in both categories. But of course, I shall carry on with both. And sit-ups, which I wasn't doing last year.

Portions of fresh fruit & veg: averaging 6.9 portions a day compared to 6.1 portions last year (and a mere 4.4 portions back in 2015). And alcohol - at the three-quarter mark of the year, 14.5 units a week average, compared to 17.3 weekly average across the first nine months of 2019. So the UK government guidelines of 14 units a week is within reach.

As the Polish Ministry of Health's slogan has it: 'I'm planning a long life' (Planuję długie życie). Good advice. Life is good, life is worth living, there are Things to be Done, Thoughts to be turned into Books, so staying positive is the key. Time for a walk.

Below: the forest to the east of my działka - pines and oaks.

Below: between the orchards and the tracks, Jakubowizna. A most special place.

Below: today's sunset over Wola Pieczyska, seen from across the tracks in Jakubowizna. Sublime end to the day.

Give thanks to the Lord.

This time last year:
It's that Day of the Year again!

This time two years ago:

Decline and growth

This time three years ago:
Health at 60

This time five years ago:
In search of vectors for migrating consciousness

This time six years ago:
Slipping from late summer to early autumn

This time seven years ago:
Turning 56

This time eight years ago: 
Turning 55 

This time nine years ago:
Turning 54

This time ten years ago:
Turning 53

This time 13 years ago:
Turning 50