Tag Archives: SAIL program

Aug21

Happy Sunday!

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Happy Sunday!

Leavenworth Summer Theater’s production of The Music Man was spectacular. It definitely is one of their best performances yet. The weather was perfect, a clear and starry night, and the smoke hadn’t yet rolled in.

However the following day it did roll in. And the day after that it had filtered in to East Wenatchee. It isn’t that bad yet, but the fire risk is still extremely high.

I’ve been spending more time on my new laptop. My WIP is completely transferred over and I’ve sorted through well over 4000 photos that were on my Seagate and my phone. Of course I’m constantly taking photos and I know there will be more.

The hot temperatures continue with no relief in sight. There was a tease of a few raindrops yesterday but it was very short-lived. Mainly intermittent cloud and smoke.

Did I mention that I live with seven chihuahuas? No. They aren’t mine. They belong to Christina and Danny, the people I live with when I’m in Washington. I’ll take a photo one day if I can ever get them all to pose together.

It’s great to be back teaching fitness classes again in Leavenworth. And this coming week I start new classes here in East Wenatchee. I really missed these classes when I was away in Canada.

September long weekend is coming up. My daughter and granddaughter are coming from Kelowna. I haven’t seen them since before Covid so I am quite excited. Yes, Madeline, I am a real person and do not live in a phone. And Grandma cannot wait to hug you!!!!!!

Aug17

It’s Hot Here

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It’s Hot Here

Last night at 7:30 it had cooled off to a comfortable 86 degrees. I’m getting used to the heat again after the cool temperatures in Winnipeg. Daytime highs here in East Wenatchee are supposed to continue in the range of 105 degrees plus for at least another week.

Yesterday morning I taught a fitness class in an un-airconditioned room in a church. And I get to do it again tomorrow. There isn’t even a fan in the room and unfortunately this means we open windows in an attempt to get some air circulation.

Church was air-conditioned on Sunday. It was great to be back at Sage Hills in person and not on line.

Tonight we’re going to see The Music Man, a Leavenworth Summer Theater production. The venue is the amphitheater, one of my favorite places in Leavenworth.

Because it’s so hot and dry here, the fire risk is extremely high. So now the alerts on my phone are no longer for Manitoba tornados. Instead they’re wildfire and evacuation alerts.

BTW, I visited my tree in Cashmere yesterday. It’s still really green and I hope I’ll still be here when the leaves turn that gorgeous crimson red in the fall.

My characters are talking to me. Time for coffee and writing.

Jun25

Last Post from Washington

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Last Post from Washington

This is my last post from here for a while. On Monday I take the Wenatchee Valley Shuttle to SeaTac to catch the red eye to Minneapolis. From there it’s on to Winnipeg.

ArriveCan info is submitted. Have my confirmation. Now if only Delta would recognize it. So much for checking in online.

All my clothes are packed. I love the packing cubes I bought at Marshall’s. I should have got some years ago. So easy to organize everything now.

I will miss the Leavenworth ladies in my SAIL class. We’ve been together for six years. But I’ll be back before I head to Mexico this fall. And I’ll be teaching some new classes here in East Wenatchee.

A Matter of Balance classes ended on Friday. When I return in August I’ll be doing training to coach in the program. I’m looking forward to that as well.

Leavenworth Summer Theater has three productions this summer. My plan is to be back here in August for at least two of them, The Sound Of Music and The Music Man.

Time to sort through documents, the tedious part of traveling. And to pack my carry on. Mainly devices, chargers and meds. No backpack this time. Just a smaller and hopefully lighter bag.

It’s very different packing for a one month trip than a six month trip. Can’t remember the last time I did that. Hmmmmm…..maybe about five years ago, the last time I was in Winnipeg.

Jun22

What Happens When

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What Happens When

What happens when you ride Link Transit and have a conversation with a perfect stranger who happens to be the activities director at one of the largest personal care homes in the valley? You wind up volunteering to teach SAIL classes at that facility.

What happens when you go to a book sale at the local library? You wind up on the Friends of the East Wenatchee Library where you help decorate for the kids’ summer reading program.

What happens when you attend training sessions in another fitness program? You are invited to take further training so that you can become a coach in that program.

I think I see a pattern here. Retirement has given me the opportunity to travel, explore new places and meet amazing people. Volunteering goes hand in hand with this.

I love my life here in East Wenatchee!

Jun19

Countdown

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Countdown

Please tell me another week has not gone by already. I need to start thinking about packing.

Facebook reminded me that on June 17th in 2013 I was having surgery in Winnipeg. Glad it’s now 2022 and I was leading the exercises in fitness training this year instead on June 17th. Even Walmart didn’t annoy me on Friday.

On my commute by bus to Leavenworth to teach SAIL classes on Thursday, I met an activities director of a personal care home. She noticed the shirt I was wearing and asked if I’d consider teaching at their facility. I told her I’d touch base in August when I get back from Canada. I still have more training to do so that I can coach A Matter of Balance.

Never in my wildest dreams did I ever envision myself teaching fitness classes at this stage of the game. Add it to more stories to tell my grandkids.

Writing is going well. Actually it’s going so well that I haven’t found time to catch up on reading books in English, usually a favorite pastime when I come up from Mexico every spring. I do go to the library, but it’s mostly to print out documents.

I’ve also given Duolingo a rest. I received an email the other day telling me how sad Duo is because I haven’t been checking in every day. Poor little owl!

I met a guy the other day who is up here from Florida to be in Leavenworth Summer Theater. So happy to hear that I won’t miss all of them when I’m in Canada. My favorite is still Sound of Music. The surrounding woods and the mountains are the most amazing backdrops.

Que tengas un buenisimo domingo!

Jun12

A Matter of Balance

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A Matter of Balance

Anyone who knows me well is quite aware that I am constantly taking courses. I have this thirst for knowledge and have way too many letters that come after my name. Thanks to the internet I have taken courses from Rice, Harvard and several other prestigious American universities. While the majority of these courses have been in the field of psychology, I have also begun delving into the area of health and fitness in more depth.

Back in 2017, I began attending SAIL classes in Leavenworth. No, this has nothing to do with boats or water. SAIL is an acronym for Stay Active and Independent for Life. After a couple of weeks, I was approached and asked if I’d be interested in taking the training to teach these fitness classes. It was a natural fit after teaching water aerobics classes at the YMCA back in Canada.

SAIL is a fitness program for seniors geared towards fall prevention. Classes begin with a warm up followed by an aerobics component. Dynamic and static balance exercises are next, followed by strength exercises for both the upper and lower body. Next are flexibility exercises for the upper and lower body as we cool down. I am now into my sixth year teaching here in Washington.

Always eager to learn more, this month I am taking a course called A Matter of Balance. This is a program based on Fear of Falling: A Matter of Balance offered by Boston University. I have very legitimate concerns regarding the fear of falling, primarily due to the fact that I’ve had two knee replacements. Some cognitive restructuring is in order and this course has been most beneficial to me.

I’ve met some amazing people in this course. The oldest in our class is ninety-one and I’m the baby at seventy. The others are in their seventies and eighties. We are all interested in remaining active and independent. Regular exercise is definitely a part of our daily routine.

As a child, I remember well when my own grandmother turned seventy. I recall thinking that she was old. Well, I’m that age now but I feel healthier than I did when I was in my fifties. And I attribute a lot of that due to the exercise that has become such an important part of my life. I do not feel old.

I look around me at the participants in the SAIL classes I teach. In their eighties and nineties they are a true inspiration to me. And I look forward to sharing with them what I have learned in A Matter of Balance classes.

Falls are a serious concern. The statistics from ERs regarding fall related incidents are staggering, as are those related to hospital admissions.

Most falls are preventable and falls should not be viewed as a natural part of aging.

So SAIL away with me today and perhaps some day I may have the opportunity to coach you in A Matter of Balance. Yes. I think that coaching in this program will be the next step for me.

May25

Half Time

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Half Time

I just crossed the border at Nogales. What do you mean I’ve been back in the USA for three months already?

That got me thinking about all the changes since I first arrived in Leavenworth in July of 2016. I’ve always lived primarily in Leavenworth but I’m now living in East Wenatchee. But I still commute to Leavenworth to teach fitness classes.

Covid caused a lot of changes. The Senior Center in Leavenworth has yet to reopen. I went there often for lunch and I also volunteered in the kitchen. I played bridge there and went to craft afternoons.

Covid also affected the library programs which all switched over to Zoom. The rumor is that in person programs are starting again next month. And I am looking forward to those, including book club, craft programs and speakers.

I now attend a church in Wenatchee and have a new life group as well. It’s a much larger church than the one I used to go to in Leavenworth. It’s also a Free Methodist rather than a Nazarene church.

My attorney has told me he’s retiring at the end of the year and my doctor has told me she’s moving on to a different clinic. More changes.

Over the years I’ve met a lot of people and have developed close relationships with many who I now consider as part of my extended family. Friendships are especially important to me considering my nomadic lifestyle. And those constantly change depending upon where I happen to be living. But my extended family changes very little.

There are constants in my life here as well. This is my sixth year teaching fitness classes in the SAIL program. Next month I’ll be taking training in A Matter Of Balance. But more about that in a future blog post devoted to the program.

Another constant is the beauty of the mountains. I am as much in awe of it today as when I first came here six years. This is truly God’s country!

Apr24

All About Me

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I’ve written hundreds of blogs posts but have never done an “All About Me” post. I’m not sure just why I haven’t, but a friend called me on it the other day. So here goes.

I go by a variety of different names depending on which country I’m in or which website I’m on. I prefer to just stick to “Karen.” Here in Washington my friends have me in their contacts as “Karen Mexico” or “Karen Canada.”

I was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada and lived there all my life until 2010. My son still lives there. My daughter and my four year old granddaughter live in Canada as well, in Kelowna, B.C.

In 2010 I went to Culiacan, Mexico to teach English. A family there adopted me and I am now abuelita to four nietos ranging in age from three to twelve years old.

After a year in Culiacan, I taught briefly in Irapuato before settling down in Guadalajara for four years. I called Mazatlan home for just over three years and then decided to explore more of central Mexico. After three months in San Ciro de Acosta I discovered Aguascalientes, which has been my Mexican home six months of the year since 2019.

In 2016 a friend I met in Mazatlan invited me to come visit him in Leavenworth, Washington. My two week visit turned into four months when the snow chased me back to Mexico. And that was when I turned into a snowbird, spending the other six months of the year in Washington state.

While there, I’ve lived mainly in Leavenworth with short stints in other towns. This year I’m living in East Wenatchee with my friends Christina and Danny, who tell me that this is now my “forever home.”

As far as teaching goes, I officially retired in 2016, although I had worked extremely very part-time since 2012. Occasionally I selectively take on private students, but have not taught at all since Covid arrived.

This is my sixth year as a volunteer in the SAIL program in Leavenworth where I teach fitness classes to seniors that geared towards fall prevention. Both church ministry and volunteering at the senior center ground to a halt during Covid and are just now starting up again.

I enjoy traveling both in Mexico and the USA. Last summer I took an Amtrak along the coast from Seattle to L.A. I loved it and can’t wait to plan another train trip.

I’m taking a break from Duolingo but I have my gel pens, pastels and water colors to amuse me. And I have been doing a lot of writing lately. Fiction is a new genre for me which I am enjoying immensely.

I am especially blessed to have family and a wide circle of friends in three countries. The time always fly by all too quickly before I find myself once again packing a suitcase. My days are filled with adventure and making memories.

Other trivia……I’m a Gemini, my favorite color is green, I’m a chocoholic as well as a coffeeholic and I love country music.

All About Me

Mar23

Yes I Moved Again

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Yes I Moved Again

Hopefully this is the last Washington move. One night in Seattle, two nights in Leavenworth, one week in Dryden, four nights in Peshastin and now I’m in East Wenatchee.

I’ve unpacked one of my two suitcases. I got here Sunday evening so that’s not bad. The other suitcase has things like pastels and water colors. No time for that yet.

I went into Leavenworth yesterday for a SAIL class. Higher up in the mountains so it’s cooler and there is still snow. I’ll be going into Leavenworth again on Thursday for another class.

We watched House of Gucci last night. I am so glad I watched it in English. Had I watched it in Spanish in Mexico I would have missed a lot of the little nuances. Great movie and I highly recommend it.

For all my hometown friends in Canada…..you are now two hours ahead of me. That means I won’t be calling as regularly as when I was in Aguascalientes in the same time zone. Apparently Washington has also decided to do away with the time change starting in the fall.

The featured photo is the view from my street. I just can’t get enough of these mountains. Living on the flat Canadian prairies for so many years will do that to you. The mountains in Queretero always remind me of the ones here in Washington.

Things are looking better for traveling to Canada this year. Doing away with Covid tests to enter the country is a start. And Amtrak is going to start running to Vancouver again.

My thought for Humpday:

Mar13

I’m Back!

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I’m Back!

First week back in Washington has flown by quickly. I’m trying to adapt to the cold up here. Very different from Mexico and Arizona. So very glad I left a warm ski jacket here. And happy that I don’t need the boots.

I’m living out in Dryden for a few days and it’s always cooler along the river. But I spent yesterday in Leavenworth. I had a CPR course in the morning and went out for lunch with friends after. Then we got some apple cider and visited downtown by the gazebo. The sunshine was most welcome and I think we hit a balmy 50 degrees.

This morning we’re off to Sage Hills in Wenatchee. Can’t wait to actually be with people again and not just do church online.

SAIL fitness classes have started again for me and I really enjoy teaching them. The program was developed here in Washington state and is geared for seniors and aimed at fall prevention. Minnesota and a few other states are now offering this as well.

This coming week I’ll be in Wenatchee for more fitness training. And on Wednesday I’m moving again. Where? Maybe next blog post……..