Have a gigantic bonfire in the middle of a blizzard, in about maybe 10 degrees F (that’s -12C). Well in my defense I was still sick, but I could barely handle being out there for 5 minutes! That’s sad, just sad …
But let me back up. I had driven down to Peru, VT, which is just east of Manchester. Manchester is where a lot of old money lives, and you can tell from looking at the houses in the center of town. So I have a friend who lives in D.C. whose family owns a renovated farmhouse in Peru, and what a gorgeous house! I always love architects’ houses, they are really something special. This one is a green (environmentally friendly) house, the only heat pretty much the entire time we were there was from a small wood stove, and the house was plenty warm. But not at all lacking in amenities: a 6 hob gas stove and brushed copper hood … anyway, a nice place.
The original plan was for me to come down Sunday, attend a Boxing Day party they were throwing with a bonfire, spend the night and head out Monday morning. Clearly, that didn’t happen. To begin with we started the evening by attending another Boxing Day party in town, at one of the old houses on the main strip. Nice party, and they weren’t kidding when they said there was food on every horizontal surface! And what party is complete without a red wine called Irony? We were there maybe 90 minutes before heading back to prepare for the party they were hosting, sadly we left before the Vermont state Senator arrived (although to be honest I wouldn’t have been able to pick him out of a crowd, my knowledge of U.S. and world politics being sadly lacking after 8 months on the Dark Continent).
Aside from not being able to hack standing outside by the bonfire, I had a great time at this Boxing Day party too, but when I woke up the next morning the blizzard was on in full effect, with some pretty hectic winds. It was like Cape Town winds, but with snow, and people were advised not to drive unless they had to. I didn’t have to, so I stayed. Unlike the four boys who decided to go skiing in those conditions. Nutcases. Unfortunately around noon or 1pm I started feeling even more sick; my fever must have really increased because all of a sudden I just felt like death. Apparently I picked up some pretty nasty North American germs from somewhere….
How to make a CrossFitter feel like a wuss? Give her a bed that’s so high she can barely climb onto it. Not even kidding. Now that is one heck of a fever.
After something like a 4-hour sleep I woke up, and came downstairs to be somewhat social. My fever had broken and I was “just” feeling weak and achy. Today is much better, still achy and a bit weak but overall, halfway human again. For dinner we had burgers, and then watched Monday Night Football (New Orleans Saints vs Atlanta Falcons). Not the best game in the world, but it was nice to watch football again. Watching Drew Brees through two picks in a row: not the best, although the second one (tip that led to a bobble and interception) was actually quite a thing of beauty. Of course, I was rooting for New Orleans both because they were the “underdog” and because a Falcons loss would give the Pats the best record in the NFL this year.
Somewhere over these few days, Laa-Laa hit his 100th box (he’s now on to 102 I think!), so congrats to him. Pretty sure no one else has done that so actually that makes him a bit of a CrossFit celebrity in his own right. It’s looking more like I’ll be visiting a friend in London rather than getting in a third continent, but that’s a choice I’m comfortable with. Crazy to think of seeing a good friend I haven’t seen in 10 years!
It really is beautiful here, looking out at the white snow and the brown trees coming up through it, and there’s definitely a distinct smell to the outdoors in winter. We even had a snowball thrown inside the house today! It’s also so convenient to be able to put things like beers and chicken stock outside to chill; on my last day in Cape Town we had to put red wine in the fridge because it was too warm to drink at room temperature! Hmm, North American germs aside this has been quite a hectic temperature change: from about 90F to 10F (or 33C to -15C).
I can’t wait to be fully recovered; I am still too weak and achy even to do mobility work and I am about as stiff as I could be! Sadly, I don’t think enforced rest due to illness really counts as rest days, although it’s resting some nagging injuries, yes, but the body must fight hard to heal itself. Even a wounded tiger is still a tiger!
And with that, I need to head back to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, before the sun goes down.
“Walking is not skiing.” – Bill
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