Sometimes, when you suffer from a life-long condition like Type-1 Diabetes, you have to just let yourself laugh at some of the ridiculousness that comes along with it. This is where the video below comes into play. I found this while looking for another comedy skit online during my lunch break last week and it had me in stitches. Although it seems a bit ridiculous and over the top, it does reflect some of the ignorance that people have about Type-1 Diabetes.
The prevailing gag in this video is that the T1D guy is doing some sort of illegal drug, which rings familiar to me since I actually had a college professor of mine accuse me of shooting up. He walked in while I was injecting my long-acting insulin, back in the day when I was using a syringe and vial. Although I can admit that someone less knowledgeable may have misread the situation, my explanation that I had Diabetes and I was injecting insulin was summarily ignored at the time. But anyway, I do more than my fair share of bitching about my condition, so it’s nice to share something for a laugh, instead. Enjoy! ☯️
Once in a while, I tend to recycle old material I’ve already written about. Kind of can’t help it when you consider that I’ve been blogging for about four years at this point. But once in a while, it’s important for any of us to remember what’s important in life. And this brings to mind a story i read when I was in college, way back in the 1990’s. I kept a paper copy of this story as it inspired me back then, almost as much as it does now. Some of you may have heard this story before, but here it is:
A professor stood in front of his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar slightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He then asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous YES.
The professor then produced two bottles of beer from under the table and poured their entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
“Now,” said the professor as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things such as family, your children, your health, your friends and your favourite passions. And if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car. The sand is everything else, the small stuff. If you were to put the sand into the jar first, there would be no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.”
It’s important to pay attention to the things in your life that are critical to your happiness. Spend time with your spouse and children. Visit with your parents. Take time for your health. Treat yourself to dinner. Play another 18 holes.
Take care of the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.
One of the professor’s students raiser her hand and inquired what the beer represented. The professor smiled and said, “I’m glad you asked that. The beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of beer with friends or family.” ☯️
Sometimes it’s hard for me to believe that I’ve been with this beautiful woman for nine years. She continues to amaze me with her smile, her temperament and the way she always manages to make me smile and be happy to come home. She’s put up with more of my shit than any combination of people, living or otherwise and continues to maintain that smile despite everything we’ve been through together. truly, all my accomplishments are hers, since I never would have made it this far without her.
I’ve always hated my own birthday. It often serves as a grim reminder of one of the worst instances of terrorism reported to the world in one day. But birthdays are important as one needs to know where one has come from in order to know where they’re going. They become even more important once you have children. I have the benefit of seeing that one more added digit is one more year I’ve loved my wife. Tonight, I get to spoil her. Happy birthday, Laura!
It was quite a busy weekend for my little baby Buddhas and I… Friday night was reasonably uneventful, with not a lot going on besides getting some yard work accomplished and playing with the kids. We made plans to go to a local indoor swimming pool on the Saturday, which is always an enjoyable thing for me. I’ve spent the majority of my life in water, having been born and raised on the shores of an open bay, It al started at the tender age of 2, when my grandmother dropped me into a body of water my father was snorkelling in… The look on his face when I waddled my way down to find him would have been priceless, had he not been wearing a scuba mask and I wasn’t a toddler. But I digress…
My boys, so far, haven’t shown much interest in the water. We tried putting Nathan into swim lessons, but they never took. He’s only just recently started to wander into deeper waters with the use of a life jacket. Alexander however, is already starting to kick and swim and take to the water like the son of a water baby that he is. So on Saturday, we joined my friend Jayden and his wife Tori at the pool, where everyone had a reasonable time, splashing and playing. I say reasonable, because Nathan tends ot become a sensitive little pill when we don’t play the way he wants. But I think he still had a good time.
Brothers of Mayhem
Sunday morning was a strange change for our household. Both boys actually allowed for a bit of sleeping in (sleeping in when you have children means no later than 9 am) followed by a breakfast of cheerios and cheesy bread. Sundays are usually our grocery and laundry day in order to get the household ready for the week to come. Although Saturdays are the usual go-to for outings, we decided to make a different plan and I took the boys to one of their favourite playgrounds while my wife made a grocery run without having to contend with the boys IN the grocery store.
They had a lot of fun, with Nathan finding some random boys to play with and Alexander raising hell all over the playground. In true toddler style and much like a domesticated cat who prefers the box than his cat bed, Alex couldn’t help but be fascinated by the trees, bushes and twigs as opposed to all the colourful play structures that sat on the property. In fact, as you’ll see from the photo below, his favourite play structure turned out to be a bike rack…
I’ve had a few people ask me why I choose to write about my time out with the boys on weekends. That’s a valid question, considering this is a Diabetes/Buddhism/Health&Fitness blog. A valid question, and here are the reasons… many people do things like open an email account for their children and send photos, videos and memos to it with the intention of providing the username and password to their children when they turn 18. In some ways, many ways, my hope is that my boys will someday read my blog and soak in my experiences and everything that was done for them, even when they didn’t assume they were getting as much as they THOUGHT they were.
The other reason is because although some may say that they didn’t choose the path they’re on, there’s no better way of finding peace than in the eyes of your children. It’s important to recognize that these experiences are JUST as important to the father as they are to the son. Or in my case, the sons. And with everything going on in the world, it’s al the more important to have something positive to read, in any forum and through any media. Food for thought… ☯️
I’ve written about some of my time in Okinawa, a journey that took place exactly one month after 9/11 happened and the world changed forever. 9/11 just happens to be my birthday, which made it all the worse. I don’t pretend to compare my personal pain with any that the people directly involved with those tragic events have to have felt but I know that it affected me in ways I still haven’t recovered from, as well. And although I realize that I’ve often written about the martial arts aspect of my time overseas, I’ve never really spoken about some of my personal experiences in Okinawa. And that would be a fuckin’ shame…
I could get into the entire journey TO Okinawa, which included a couple of cities in the US as well as some within Canada… I still have camcorder film of the entire journey (yes, I still have a camcorder) but I’d rather share some of the feelings I experienced while over there. Okinawa was among the best experiences of my life. Besides the fact that it’s the birthplace of karate, my journey and time there changed me in ways that never would have happened if I hadn’t gone over there…
Once we were in Naha, Okinawa we checked into our hotel. I wish I could remember the name of the place but all I remember is the Japanese pronunciation of my room number, which was “San-Yaku-nana” (room 307). Picture what would be a cold October morning in Canada… chances are that you’ll wake up shivering if your furnace isn’t going yet. in Naha, we were woken by temperatures in the mid to high 30’s… We usually shared a breakfast of eggs and toast together in one room before deciding how our day would go.
Outside of our obligations to the Uechi family, we spent a good amount of our down time on the beach. Although it was 40 degrees Celsius during the afternoon and extreme summer weather for us, it was actually late autumn for the Okinawans. They were all in long pants and jackets while we were in shorts and splashing in the ocean. It was a strange contrast, especially since the Okinawans were curious and watchful of the strange white people who were cray enough to swim in the ocean during the “cold” months.
During the evenings, we would enjoy Japanese beer and Sake while reminiscing of our time in training… Memories that no camcorder could capture. During the day, we visited Zen Buddhist monasteries at my request as well as shopping locals that featured much of the culture that makes Okinawa uniquely beautiful. I got to experience chocolate-covered grasshoppers and prayed in a few different monasteries. It was great. Nothing quite like getting a front row seat to the culture one was raised on, to change one’s perspective.
The sense of peace and belonging I felt in Okinawa hasn’t been replicated since. The people, the culture and the beauty hasn’t struck me in the same way ever since. The thought that Sensei has been back about three times since then breaks my heart, because I was never able to join him. But one must never live life with regrets, right? I only bring it up now because I’ve recently been dreaming of it… Okinawa has penetrated my very soul. Maybe I’ll get back there someday. in the meantime, karate may be the only piece of it I have left to hold onto. ☯️
Early last week, I had the opportunity to experience something different. I attended a 2-day conference related to my work. The reason I say it was different is because although I’ve attended a number of courses and seminars during my time with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, I never quite had the experience of communicating, exchanging information and business cards. It’s always been about the learning but this time it was about the networking.
I spent two days hearing others speak about matters related to my current field, which was fantastic. I also got to speak on some subject matter, myself. Never one to keep my mouth shut, I was able to speak well over time and infringed on everyone’s lunch. Shame on me, but it was free lunch so they really don’t have too much to complain about. I ended up handing out dozens of business cards and making all sorts of connections. It was phenomenal…
It definitely exposed me to a different side of the professional world. As a police officer, I was usually limited to a world where I associated with other badges. Now, my world has expanded a bit. It gives me some thoughts about what the future may hold. And I’m kind of thinking that the future may be bright enough that I’ll have to wear shades…
Yesterday I travelled back to Regina from Saskatoon after having spent the night recovering from my eye injections on Monday afternoon. As is my usual habit, I spent Tuesday morning attending some work-related meetings from my hotel room and part of my afternoon dealing with the closure of an office location in Saskatoon. The result is that I got home much later last night than I normally would have. And interestingly enough, My Monday/Tuesday was a bit more interesting than my typical visit to the hospital and evening in the pub. And here’s where you het to hear about it…
I arrived in the city around lunchtime and headed straight for the hotel. I’m almost always a few hours early for check-in and I do this to ensure I can accommodate any unexpected delays, such as construction, road closure, a flat tire, etc… It’s never happened but I know that the one time I leave so that I arrive on the hour, I’ll have some issue come up. I used to wander one of the local malls or stores to get closer to check-in but I stopped doing that when I realized the hotel would allow me to check in early, provided there was a room available.
Zombie eyes…
My check-in and walk to the hospital went off without a hitch, despite the cold winds and slightly lower temperatures than we’ve been getting lately. I arrived at the hospital about thirty minutes before my injection appointment. This is always by design as well, because they have to dilate my pupils and take surface photos of my eyes before I get to see the doc for the injections themselves. I’ll usually try to get through all of that prior to my scheduled appointment so that I can be on time. I can’t help but feel that if everyone did this, there would rarely be any hold ups. But I digress…
I got through the vision exam, dilation and photos without issue. Then, the wait began… Amazingly, the doc could be seen floating from one room to the other as he usually does. It seemed as though they were on the mark but everyone had been waiting well beyond their scheduled appointment. As any of you who may have read some of my previous posts would know, I’m not a big fan of being kept waiting; especially when I intentionally take steps to prevent keeping others from waiting. I was getting a little frustrated at the wait (it was already 15 minutes past my scheduled appointment) when one of the nurses came into the waiting room and called for a “Mary.”
One of the ladies stood and said she was called Mary but when the nurse checked her name tag, her first name was actually “Cora,” with a middle name of “Mary.” This was not the lady they were looking for (cue Sir Alec Guinness’ voice, here). I made a passing joke about how I should have piped up and said that I went by Mary so that I could slip in earlier. The whole room got a laugh and it alleviated some of the tension that everyone was feeling, which was a good thing. I finally got in to have my injections more than a full hour after my scheduled appointment.
My dinner, once all the hospital stuff was done
I could get angry and frustrated about the extended wait I experienced. After all, what if I needed to get back to work? What if I had to pick up children or had other obligations? Being made to wait for that period of time is inappropriate in any setting. Unfortunately, this has become the norm in the Canadian health care system and I’ve learned to roll with it and be sure that I can accommodate the added wait. So as much as I dislike waiting, I was prepared for it and knew it could happen. And here we are. I staggered back to the hotel room for a brief nap to let the dilation wear off prior to going to dinner.
My evening started at about 6 pm, where I made my way down to Finn’s Irish pub on the ground floor of my hotel. I love Finn’s on a Monday night. Never much of one for clubs or bars, it allows me the pleasure of relaxing in a pub environment without the crowds or business that comes with being in such locations. As you can see from the photo above, I indulged well beyond what I would usually consume at ANY meal. between the beer and the “Irish nachos,” I was looking at almost 90 grams of carbohydrates. I can feel my insulin pump having a panic attack just looking at that photo.
I was in the midst of enjoying my meal, sipping my beer and watching Disney+ on my phone while sitting quietly in a dark corner, when I could hear yelling and swearing around the corner. Although I’m no longer in law enforcement, self-preservation is a natural instinct and I’m still naturally inclined to help others who may not be able to help themselves. I took a subtle stroll to the washroom so I could see what was happening. It appeared as though a couple were arguing at the bar and the bar staff were trying to kick them out of the bar. Since there appeared to be no physical violence, I kept walking.
About fifteen minutes later, a tall security guard comes in and all hell breaks loose. Likely told they had to leave, the couple decided to get nuts and this one security guard somehow managed to arrest and remove them both. I’ll admit I was a bit impressed. Unless there were police around the corner where I couldn’t see, it was pretty ballsy (and unsafe) to try and arrest two people by oneself. I never would have attempted it. I decided my evening was over after this and crashed quite early, which had me with my eyes open early as fuck, the following morning.
The moral of the story is that I didn’t stick around beyond that first beer so despite the fact my pump got an olympic-level workout throughout the night to bring my blood sugars down, I got a reasonable night’s sleep despite being away from home. But even in the quietest of environments, the potential for violence and danger is always present. It’s important not to allow paranoia to prevent you from enjoying life. The distinction is to be vigilant, not paranoid. If only I’d had told the nurse I went by “Mary,” I could have gotten though sooner and maybe missed all the action… Who knows? ☯️
Last weekend, we were trying to decide what we could do with the boys as an activity outside the house. Sometimes we bring them to a play structure or a public park, which allows them to burn off some excess energy and doesn’t cost anything. The latter makes me sound pretty cheap. But getting the former accomplished is no easy task, especially when having Nathan and Alexander together is like mixing oil and water. Unfortunately for us, Nathan has developed a taste for the finer things, preferring the likes of the trampoline gym or indoor climbing structures that cost half a fortune.
It presents an interesting challenge, considering we’ve pledged to do something with them outside the house every weekend. Although it wasn’t raining, we had received some snow in Regina last Friday, which cooled everything overall. Temperatures on Saturday morning were in the single digits, which meant that there was a significant chill in the air. Although i don’t hide from the cold, I don’t enjoy being in it unless I have to. And being idle while standing outside makes the cold all that much more penetrating. My wife likes the cold even less, dressing warmly even in the summer months.
Alexander, making his way through the play structures
We decided to try dressing warmly and bringing the boys to candy cane park. An outdoor play park, it features a number of different ares of play, including a giant, concrete sculpture of a Canada Goose featuring all the different wildlife found around Wascana lake and has a slide and different tunnels. It a pretty fun place to play, especially since it also has a rubberized surface all over, preventing serious injury when kids tumble and fall. The idea was to let them play for a while and grab them some lunch from somewhere that they could takes bites from as they played.
All the things he could be playing on and he decides to dig with a random stick…
I thought the colder weather would allow for a quieter amount of people but i was quite wrong. In fact, i was surprised at how many people were either wearing shorts or sandals, making mu theatrics about how chilly it was seem a little excessive. It didn’t take long for both my wife and I to start shivering and being uncomfortable. Since my wife is usually colder than I am, I offered to have her drive back home for something warmer and grab lunch for the boys while she came back. She happily accepted.
Some local wildlife decided to snoop about the park, as well.
The boys both made friends and played at their leisure. When my wife finally came back, she had happy meals in hand and the boys started snacking away. The sky had turned completely cloudy and we had some concern of rain, so we coaxed Nathan to the car with the promise of hot chocolate when we got home, which he fully took advantage of. Alexander didn’t seem to care either way, content to follow wherever we took him.
These two look like trouble!
Once everyone was home and fed, we took advantage of Alex going down for a nap to close our eyes for a short period of time. Weekend naps are the best, and Nathan actually left me alone long enough to enjoy one, this time. Even if it was a bit on the colder side on Saturday morning, we managed to find a way to get some enjoyment out of the day. I’m sure as permanent, warmer weather starts kicking in, we’ll be enjoying more things like swimming and splash parks. ☯️
Sometimes I get a little cheeky in my writing because you have to admit, there are a lot of weird and strange holidays out there… When you consider things like National Hugging Day, Donut Day and as much as I get a kick out of the gimmick of it, Star Wars Day (May the 4th), it’s easy to see how holidays have become a bit of a staple of society. Social media posts are always filled with tons of posts about these holidays. But once in a while you get one that’s official and it usually isn’t as recognized as some of the goofy ones.
Today is Victoria Day in Canada. For those if you from elsewhere who may not be familiar with the monarchy that oversees Canada, Queen Victoria was the grandmother of King George V, who was subsequently the grandfather of Queen Elizabeth II, the current reigning monarch. Queen Victoria reigned from 1837 until her death in 1901. In 1845, Queen Victoria’s birthday was declared a national holiday in Canada. Upon her death 1901, an act of parliament declared it as a legal holiday. In modern days, it’s used as an excuse to go away for a long weekend.
Having a three-day weekend is always a catch-22 for me… Although it’s great to have an added day off to kick back, relax and do whatever, it’s also an added day of work to catch up on, once I return to the office. Plus, it makes the remainder of the work-week shorter, meaning there’s less time to get certain tasks done. This pretty much undoes any of the relaxation I may get from being off today. But that kind of sounds like a “tomorrow me” problem… For now, time for some caffeine and to actually enjoy the added day. Hope everyone got to do something pleasant for their long weekend! ☯️
Despite how loud and outspoken I tend to project myself as, I’ve never really been a social butterfly and I rarely keep an increased social circle within my personal life. This isn’t because I don’t WANT friends… Far from it, in fact. But the nature of how I live my life, mixed with familial and home obligations, doesn’t make for much free time to hang out and spend time with friends. And that’s fine. I have a handful of people whom I call “friend,” they know who they are and I get to see them when our respective lives allow us to.
With that in mind, it’s a normal thing for people to come in and out of our lives. Sometimes it happens organically and doesn’t really change a great deal. I have people that I spent TONS of time with, twenty years ago and somehow life carried us in different directions and life has progressed all without the sense of loss that should normally come with that lost connection. However, once in a while a person may make an impact on one’s life that makes it a little bit harder to accept their departure when fate deems it necessary for them to step away.
We usually navigate our own lives oblivious to the direct impact we have on other individuals. And that impact can be either negative or positive but the reality is that any given person will ALWAYS have an impact on others. When you meet someone genuine, someone who is helpful, a teacher, guide, mentor and friend, that impact is all the more measurable and important. It’s made all the more special by the fact that these people often don’t assume or consider how much of that impact they’re responsible for. And that’s kind of what makes it special… If a person did all these things with the purpose of being recognize and considered as a genuine, impactful person, I think it would lose a little something.
In some cases, many cases, we are oblivious of the importance of such people until we’re at risk of losing them. And that loss can come in many forms, whether illness, death, falling out and misunderstandings, moving away to a new location or simply unavoidable circumstances of life. Once they’re gone, it leaves a significant gap and sense of loss and one can suddenly regret that the requirements and rigours of life prevented more time spent with these individuals. But, such is life! That’s why it’s important to value and appreciate the important people in your life while you have them. Because you never know when someone who impacted your life significantly will have to leave. ☯️
The Blogging Buddhist 