My Crew

I spend a third of my life at another house.  At this other place, where I have been for the last 13 years, I do all the things that I do at my house in Sherwood.  Okay, not ALL the things, but most of them; such as shopping, cooking, cleaning, doing laundry, paying bills, working in the yard, making my bed, brushing my teeth, watching TV, answering the phone and reading before I turn out my bedside light.  And just like my home in Sherwood, I live in the other house with other people.  

Living in a house with others creates all the fun, adventures and mishaps of any family sharing that small space.  Who is going to unload the dishwasher and take the recycling out to the curb?  Will the bathroom be available when I need it and will there be enough hot water when I take a shower.  If I make eggplant parmesan for dinner, will everybody eat it.  Will someone wake me at night by snoring or talking in their sleep?  And "oh my god", is someone going to watch Fox News!!!

Luckily for the me the answer to that last one is NO!!  I am lucky or blessed because I spend the other part of my life with amazing great people.  We call each other, kiddingly,  "my crew"  but they are really my other family.

One of the other things that we do at the firehouse is workout together.  For about an hour each day, usually late afternoon, we doff our black work pants and navy T's and sweats and dress down in shorts and tech shirts.  Most times in the winter we head down to the station's basement which has become our gym.  It has a bunch of cardio machines and plenty of weights for lifting.  Whenever  favorable weather allows, I'll go outside the fire station and run around the block to get outside.  I have a half-mile route mapped out and prefer that to running on the treadmill.  

Other times, especially in the summer, we'll take the fire engine down to Jackson Middle School where we can do a track workout or run cross country around the school yard.  But the cool thing about Jackson is the long set of steps that goes up a hill for two blocks away from the school.  Combining those stairs with the track is awesome. 

I am also lucky because this other family loves to stay active--which keeps me motivated at work.  

First there is Josh (on the bike, far left of the picture above).  Josh usually does this workout on his roller for an hour but it is usually AFTER he has ridden the same bike from home 60 MILES that morning-- and will ride it back in the morning!  And he does this in all weather, all winter.  It flirts with insane but he is my workout hero.  Josh trains for and rides in all types of bike races in the Portland area.  His VO2 max is in the 70's and he stays super thin despite eating anything he wants.  But he deserves it.  He is the the calorie burning machine.

Next in the picture is boring old me on the treadmill.  No surprise.  

Mike is the little diesel engine.  The first one down to the basement every day and he typically spends 20 minutes and every machine down there except the spin bike.  The picture shows him  on the elliptical and getting ready to hit the rowing machine.  He's an animal!!

And last, but not least, there is Mariya.  Yep, she loves the spin bike.  "Mod", as we call her, is not only a spinning instructor but is also a fire department fitness trainer.   Her biceps and calf muscles are way bigger than mine -- but I can usually take her in a foot race.  She's always in a good mood and it's fun to watch all the stares she gets when we're out in public as this very feminine woman is out keeping up with the boys in a physical job.  She is amazing!!

So this is my other family and the house we live in.  No dalmation, just the four of us.  But every third day when I walk in the back door to the my other house I am always greeted with their smiling faces and look forward to the adventures with them that lie ahead.