On Hiking, Writing, and My Gallbladder

I feel better now! I went on a hike, my first since Monday, and oh, how I needed it. I'd missed the mountains so much! If I go too long without hiking, I grow restless and irritable. I crave the physical exercise, sure, but even deeper than that, I crave the peace, beauty, and splendor of the mountains. The woods are my second home -- I need my regular nature fix.

*~*~Back on the trail again, back on the trail again!~*~*

The weather was perfect. No thunderstorms. And that's saying something, since we had thunderstorms off and on all this past week. Didn't see any bears today -- or deer -- but here are pictures of the trail and the surrounding forest.











In gallbladder news: I'm doing much better. Keep in mind, I haven't had it confirmed that my gallbladder has caused my problems. That will have to be done by my doctor when I see her later this month. But my symptoms are classic, except for the all-out attack which I've so far managed to avoid.

And hopefully I can continue to avoid an all-out attack by eating smaller portions and eating lowfat. My diet these days consists of lots and lots of fruits and vegetables, non-fat cottage cheese, oatmeal, applesauce, lean meat, and soy-based veggie meat. Yesterday for supper, I baked a casserole using Basmati rice, veggie chicken, mushrooms, nonfat soup as a casserole base, and a bit of fat free Mozerella cheese. Yummy! Amazingly enough, I don't miss fat at all.

Perhaps the gallbladder will have to be yanked out at some point, but I intend to keep eating healthier regardless. Heart disease runs in my family, and I consider this gallbladder stuff to be a wake-up call.

A welcome side benefit of my healthier eating habits: I'm losing weight. I've been carrying around a wad of extra weight for about fifteen years, but now, I'm finally losing it. No complaints here! I've lost five pounds in two weeks, and I want to lose thirteen to fifteen more. Slow and easy weight loss, of course. I've read that rapid weight loss can worsen gallbladder problems.

In writing news: I'm doing better on the Heart's Chalice front. I had a few days when I didn't feel like writing, but now that I feel better, my creative juices are flowing again. I've worked out some kinks in my plot and had a breakthrough re: a subplot and a character's motivation.