Tired, Sore, Injured or Old

Last week I went on a moderate walk in an attempt to get back in condition. I was surprised how sore my muscles and joints were. I figured that old age was catching up on me. Maybe it is, but that really wasn't the problem. It was the start of my getting sick.

On one hand, sickness passes and I'm probably not stuck with all those aches. On the other hand, I'm been sick for a week. That's no fun either. Also not making any progress getting back into condition.

It's true that when you are young you bounce back from just about anything. Decades later, not so much. In fact, some of those old injuries resurface and start to complain all over again.

At 59 I am pretty lucky in a lot of ways. Many of the firefighters I worked with are now gone. Cancer is a common killer in the profession. All that chemical exposure take a toll. Even though my lungs were badly damaged with smoke inhalation, I've avoid the big “C” so far.

Another common problem is joint damage. Knees, hips, shoulders -the job takes its toll. We used to ride standing on tailgate of the truck back in the day. An older firefighter told me to always keep my knees bent; it would save me grief later. He was right. I did and it did.

Of course, I've plenty of other opportunities to do damage in the years since leaving the service. My shoulder does this weird popping thing. However, it still works, so what's a few sound effects?

I've a doctor who's amazed at how good I'm actually doing. Part of that might be that I avoid doctors a lot so they don't get the chance to kill me. Years ago a doctor wanted to put me on weight loss drug. Instead of taking the drug, I dropped the doctor. Later the drug was recalled because it caused heart damage. Well, I'm still fat, but my heart is good.

Speaking of heart, I've also got love in my life. Never discount the healing power of love. A happy marriage makes for a happy life. I also avoid a lot of stress by just not dealing with a lot of BS. It's surprising how much stuff goes away by ignoring it. That attitude probably came from my dad. He'd listen politely to someone telling him what he had to do. He didn't argue. Then dad would do whatever the heck he wanted to do. It's funny what life lessons stick.

-Sixbears