It was 1984 when I started walking with some regularity (yes, I'm aware that many of you were not even born yet) ...... At the time I lived in Los Feliz California which is kind of an extension of the Hollywood Hills.If you've ever been there, you know how incredibly steep some of those hills are, which would explain why my calves now look like that of a Romanian shot putter instead of a shapely American female, but I digress.
Walking the hills became a bit of an obsession for me in the 80s, and continued when I moved from Los Feliz to the South Bay, a little closer to the ocean. Not as hilly, but certainly rough enough to keep me on my toes as it were.
Some time later I moved to Nevada and found a great little baseball park with a walking trail where I managed to keep it up in spite of extreme conditions like heat, then cold, then heat, then cold again.
Don't get the wrong impression, there have been months and even complete years that have passed when I didn't exercise at all. But eventually no matter my location, I get back into the swing of things and find myself a patch that offers a decent work out. What a trouper!
Today I live in the East and fortunately have several terrific options for walking places which I use several times a week. Even better, there's ample room here for my dogs to come along and go "off leash" for the most part. Awesome!
Walking the hills became a bit of an obsession for me in the 80s, and continued when I moved from Los Feliz to the South Bay, a little closer to the ocean. Not as hilly, but certainly rough enough to keep me on my toes as it were.
Some time later I moved to Nevada and found a great little baseball park with a walking trail where I managed to keep it up in spite of extreme conditions like heat, then cold, then heat, then cold again.
Don't get the wrong impression, there have been months and even complete years that have passed when I didn't exercise at all. But eventually no matter my location, I get back into the swing of things and find myself a patch that offers a decent work out. What a trouper!
Today I live in the East and fortunately have several terrific options for walking places which I use several times a week. Even better, there's ample room here for my dogs to come along and go "off leash" for the most part. Awesome!
That is until last year when I came home from walking and looked into the mirror. I was COVERED with a nasty, itchy rash virtually all over my body. It was early spring, so I attributed the rash to unfamiliar foliage and perhaps an allergic reaction. Had I brushed up against some strange and unfamiliar weed or ivy?
Ever since that day, no matter where I walk or what I'm careful not to touch, I arrive home completely broken out with a terrible, itchy, red, ugly rash. It starts to dissipate the moment I stop moving and is usually gone within a couple of hours, but that doesn't make it any less miserable while it's crawling all over my skin.
It happens when I work in the garden, or just putter around the house too. Basically, anytime I perspire. It seems to be right under the surface of my skin and ready to rear it's ugly head the minute my body temperature rises. Even in the middle of the night if I have too many covers over my body and get too warm.
It happens when I work in the garden, or just putter around the house too. Basically, anytime I perspire. It seems to be right under the surface of my skin and ready to rear it's ugly head the minute my body temperature rises. Even in the middle of the night if I have too many covers over my body and get too warm.
Google prompted me to go to the doctor where I was recently diagnosed with "Heat Urticuria" or in layman's terms, I'm allergic to perspiration! Can you believe that? You've heard people try to claim that they're allergic to exercise, right? Who knew such an allergy really exists?
So now I'm on a mission to find the right cocktail of antihistamine and allergy pills to take before I go walking. So far I've only managed to get stoned and want to go to sleep after taking those, so I'm a tiny bit frustrated with the whole bit. I'm thinking it's time to do something RASH!
