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Our New Air Conditioner Passes Its First Nashville Summer Test

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

Every household has its own definition of the perfect indoor climate.

According to my wife, ours has officially reached “ideal resin temperature.”

She enjoys working with UV resin, and apparently our new air conditioner has created nearly perfect conditions for her projects. She did point out one small drawback, though. While it is excellent for resin, it may be a little warm for polymer clay.

Apparently, crafting has its own weather forecast.

This week has become the first real test for our new air conditioning system, and so far it has passed with flying colors.

Summer in Nashville is rarely subtle. Hot temperatures are expected, but the humidity is what truly makes the season memorable. Once the thermometer climbs above 90°F, simply walking outside can feel like stepping into a warm cloud that has no intention of letting go.

Our house presents an interesting challenge.

Because the lower floor is partially underground. That naturally keeps it cooler than the upstairs, although even it begins to warm noticeably once outdoor temperatures climb well into the 90s.

We normally keep the upstairs thermostat set around 77°F.

Lower than that, and the downstairs—where both of our home offices are located—becomes uncomfortably cold.

For me, temperature is more than a matter of preference.

Since my brain stroke, my body has struggled to regulate temperature properly. It often feels as though my internal thermostat cannot quite decide what “comfortable” is supposed to feel like. Air-conditioned buildings that others find pleasantly cool can leave me feeling surprisingly cold.

Our current setup has turned out to be an excellent compromise.

The upstairs stays around 77°F, while the humidity remains close to 43%. Downstairs, the temperature settles into the low 70s, cool enough that both of us often wear long sleeves while working.

Our cat, however, has reached a different conclusion.

She generally prefers the upstairs.

Apparently, she has decided that warmer temperatures are better suited to important feline activities.

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Running in Nashville Humidity: When Finishing Is the Real Victory

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

Nashville’s famous humidity has returned. It arrived with all the subtlety of an uninvited guest who not only stays for dinner but also adjusts your thermostat. Let’s tell you that running in Nashville humidity is hard.

This year, the rainy season seemed to arrive later than usual, which means we are now enjoying the unique experience of combining heavy humidity with even higher summer temperatures. It is an impressive achievement by the weather, if not a particularly enjoyable one.

Running in these conditions is… memorable.

Every breath feels as though I am inhaling warm steam from an oven. The air is so thick that it almost seems to have texture. Instead of cutting through the atmosphere, it feels as though I am negotiating with it.

By the time I had run a short distance, my shirt was completely soaked.

At one point I honestly wondered whether I was sweating that much or whether the humidity had simply decided to wear my clothes for me.

Running through a Nashville summer can sometimes feel remarkably similar to jogging inside a sauna, except the scenery is better.

Not surprisingly, I finished more than a minute behind my target pace.

That was disappointing.

I have spent a long time gradually improving my running speed, and I always hope to inch a little closer to my next goal. Lately, however, the weather has been making that progress considerably more difficult.

On mornings like this, I remind myself of something that is easy to forget.

The most important part is showing up.

Speed matters.

Improvement matters.

But neither of those things happens without consistency.

When I think back a few years, I realize just how much progress I have already made. I have improved my pace by more than a minute per kilometer. That is not the kind of improvement that happens overnight. It is built one ordinary run at a time, including the frustrating ones.

Sometimes training is about setting a personal best.

Other times, it is simply refusing to let miserable weather decide whether you will run at all.

Today’s run belonged firmly in the second category.

There was one final piece of good news.

The 10-kilometer run did not take off much weight this time. I lost only a fraction of a pound compared to yesterday, which means my carefully negotiated relationship with the bathroom scale remains intact.

Even better…

Cake is still on the menu after our weekly grocery trip.

Sometimes the greatest reward for surviving a humid summer run is not a faster pace.

Sometimes it’s dessert.

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Home Repairs Continue: Dehumidifiers, Tripped Breakers, and One Unimpressed Cat

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

Our bathroom renovation has entered its next chapter.

Unfortunately, it is not yet the chapter titled Finished.

The restoration crew returned this morning to check the moisture level in the floor joists. The good news is that the wood is steadily drying. The less encouraging news is that it is not quite dry enough for the repairs to continue.

That is summer in Nashville for you.

This time of year, the combination of heat and humidity seems determined to slow down anything that needs to dry. Fortunately, the restoration crew brought in a second dehumidifier to speed things along.

With a little luck, tomorrow will finally be dry enough to move forward.

Of course, every improvement project seems determined to introduce at least one new surprise.

Not long after the second dehumidifier was installed, I noticed that our water dispenser had mysteriously stopped working.

After talking with my wife, we discovered that the refrigerator downstairs had also lost power.

Apparently, two industrial dehumidifiers, a large fan, and our home’s electrical circuits were having a disagreement.

Fortunately, the explanation turned out to be much less dramatic than I first imagined.

One of the breakers had tripped.

After resetting it, everything came back to life. Water dispensers were working again, and the downstairs refrigerator resumed its normal duties as though nothing had happened.

The electrical system, it seems, was simply reminding us that every circuit has its limits.

The restoration crew also closed the bathroom door to keep humid air from entering while the machines worked.

It is a sensible idea.

The only downside is the noise.

Those dehumidifiers are astonishingly loud. Even with the bathroom door firmly closed, they produce a steady mechanical roar that can be heard throughout the house.

Now that there are two of them, the soundtrack has become considerably more enthusiastic.

Oddly enough, the loudest machines in the house have solved another problem entirely.

Normally, a closed door is an irresistible invitation for our cat to investigate.

Not this time.

One brief listen to the dehumidifiers was apparently enough to convince him that whatever mysteries lay beyond that door were someone else’s responsibility.

For perhaps the first time in history, loud industrial equipment has successfully defeated feline curiosity.

Home renovation continues to teach the same lesson.

Rarely does one problem travel alone.

Fortunately, neither do good solutions, nor patient contractors.

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Every Project Has Another Layer: Unexpected Home Renovation Problems

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

Today was one of those days that seemed determined to test both my patience and my problem-solving skills, especially when it comes to unexpected home renovation problems.

The adventure began before I had even put on my running shoes; I came back because a tile installer was visiting.

To his credit, he arrived right in the middle of the scheduled arrival window, a small victory that I appreciated after watching the weather ruin my running plans.

Unfortunately, that was where the easy part ended due to an unexpected home renovation problems.

After inspecting the materials, he discovered that two of our three boxes of tile had arrived broken. Even better, we were also missing a backer board that, interestingly enough, had never appeared on any of the supply lists we had received.

Fortunately, he quickly contacted the supplier and arranged for the missing materials to be delivered.

Then demolition began.

As anyone who has renovated an older house already knows, demolition is less about removing old materials and more about discovering what previous homeowners have been hiding from you.

Once the old tile was removed, we discovered that a leaking toilet had rotted part of the subfloor.

The tile installation immediately came to a halt.

The installer explained that the damaged flooring would need to be replaced before any new tile could be installed. Unfortunately, that repair fell outside his scope of work, and he couldn’t recommend anyone who handled it.

So the phone calls began.

I contacted Home Depot to find someone to perform the repair, but I am still waiting to hear back.

Meanwhile, my wife suggested an excellent temporary solution. Since we had already planned to install a new toilet downstairs after the flooring was complete, why not simply install it upstairs instead?

That solved one problem.

I called our plumber, and, remarkably, they were able to come out almost immediately.

While the plumber was here, I asked whether their company handled subfloor repairs, since the damaged area was directly related to the plumbing leak.

They didn’t.

However, they did have someone they trusted.

One referral later, another contractor arrived to inspect the damage and prepare an estimate. Hopefully, the quote will arrive this evening.

Hopefully.

The project has already become more expensive than expected, and I suspect our renovation budget quietly sighed when nobody was looking. At this point, I can only hope we have reached the final surprise.

Home renovation projects have an unfortunate habit of behaving like onions. Every layer you peel away reveals another one waiting underneath. With a little luck, today’s subfloor will be the last layer we uncover.

Of course, every homeowner knows that saying those words out loud is probably tempting fate.

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Why Scheduling Time for Fun Can Make You More Productive

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

One thing my wife and I have been working on lately is balancing our schedules. Scheduling time for hobbies isn’t wasted time

Like many people, we enjoy staying productive. The challenge is remembering that productivity is not simply about filling every available minute with work.

For example, I regularly play online games with friends two or three evenings a week. Those sessions give me a chance to relax, laugh, and mentally step away from everything else for a little while.

My wife is a different story.

She always has a project in progress. If she isn’t working, she is planning the next thing to work on. For a long time, she found it difficult to justify spending time on activities that were simply enjoyable. Reading, drawing, and crafting often felt like luxuries rather than worthwhile uses of her time.

This weekend, however, we managed to accomplish everything we had planned.

Even better, my wife found time to work on several crafting projects.

I was especially happy to see that because she has been carrying a heavy workload recently. Between reconciling recent IEEPA government refunds, working through JSOX responsibilities, and preparing for the quarterly financial close, her mind has been occupied almost constantly.

Weekends can disappear surprisingly quickly when every hour already has an assignment.

One challenge she faced was guilt.

She felt that every moment should be spent doing something productive or meaningful. Ironically, that way of thinking made it difficult to relax, even when relaxation was exactly what she needed, which was scheduling time for hobbies.

Her solution was wonderfully practical.

Instead of waiting until she “earned” free time, she scheduled it.

Art time.

Crafting time.

Reading time.

They all became appointments on her calendar, just as legitimate as meetings or work projects.

What surprised her was the result.

Once she gave herself permission to enjoy those activities, she discovered that she actually worked better afterward. By the end of the weekend, she felt refreshed, focused, and ready to return to work with renewed energy.

Sometimes the most productive hour of the week is the one spent doing something that produces absolutely nothing except joy.

That realization has changed the way we think about our schedules.

We still plan our time carefully, but now we recognize that rest, creativity, and hobbies are not interruptions to productivity. They are part of the system that sustains productivity.

Next weekend will look quite different.

After a long wait, workers are finally scheduled to reinstall the tile in our downstairs bathroom. Their calendar has been packed for quite some time, so we have been eagerly anticipating their visit.

Fortunately, we have already checked every delivery and confirmed that all the necessary materials have arrived.

Everything is ready.

Now all that’s left is to let the professionals do their work while we try not to add any “helpful suggestions” from the sidelines.

Sometimes planning ahead is the hardest part.

Sometimes it’s remembering to leave room on the calendar for life itself.

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Maintaining Weight with Kidney Disease: The Unexpected Challenge of Summer Exercise

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

When you have kidney disease, you will face the unexpected challenge of summer exercise. This evening, you’ll find me doing something many people would probably envy.

I’m deliberately snacking.

A bowl of dry cereal now sits beside me, and I keep reaching into it every few minutes in an ongoing effort to replace the calories that disappeared during today’s exercise. It may not be the most glamorous recovery meal, but it is crunchy, convenient, and currently working overtime.

Every summer, I face the same struggle: the challenge of summer exercise.

Keeping my weight up.

Our backyard isn’t especially large, but it is built on a steep hill. Mowing it is far more demanding than people usually imagine. It feels less like ordinary yard work and more like a long endurance workout that just happens to leave the grass looking nicer afterward.

The physical activity itself isn’t the real problem.

Replacing the calories is.

Because of my kidney disease, I have to be careful about almost everything I eat. Protein, sodium, potassium, and phosphate all require close attention. Those restrictions eliminate more than just large steaks and salty snacks. Even foods that most people think of as healthy, certain colorful vegetables, dairy products, and many fruits, have to be eaten thoughtfully and in moderation.

Rather than relying on one “perfect” food, my wife and I constantly rotate what I eat so that no single nutrient becomes excessive.

Managing my diet has become something of a long-term strategy game.

Protein and sodium are the nutrients I monitor most carefully. I also take medication for high blood pressure, another condition closely tied to my kidney health. Every meal becomes a balancing act between providing enough energy and avoiding foods that could make my lab results less than ideal.

Last summer, I thought I had found the perfect solution.

Melon.

It seemed refreshing, easy to eat, and ideal for helping maintain my weight.

Unfortunately, blood tests revealed that it contained far more potassium than I could safely consume on a regular basis. So my brilliant nutritional discovery quietly retired after one season.

Sometimes your laboratory results become your least forgiving food critic.

Of course, exercising is not optional.

Running, strength training, and even mowing the lawn are all important parts of maintaining my health. If I burn more calories, however, I also have to replace them.

Hence the cereal.

Tomorrow offers another opportunity to replenish those calories. After our grocery trip, I’ll finally get to enjoy a slice of cake and finish the leftover pizza from last weekend.

Before anyone concludes that I have discovered the world’s greatest fitness program, there is one small detail.

Tomorrow is also my regular 10-kilometer run.

So those extra calories already have a job waiting for them.

Such is life.

Most people spend the summer trying to lose weight.

I spend mine trying to convince the scale to stay exactly where it is.

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Maintaining Weight with Kidney Disease: A Small Victory After Lawn Mowing

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

After finishing today’s lawn mowing, I stepped onto the scale and was greeted by a pleasant surprise. I had finally climbed back into my target weight range. Maintaining weight in kidney disease can be challenging.

Admittedly, I am still hovering near the lower end of that range, but after several weeks of watching the numbers drift downward, I’ll gladly celebrate a small victory.

Summer has a way of turning my weight into a moving target.

Our backyard is built on steep hills, so mowing the lawn is far more demanding than simply walking behind a mower on level ground. If I attempted to finish the entire yard in one session, it would take somewhere between five and six hours.

That is less “yard work” and more “accidental endurance event.”

Before I took over the mowing, my wife managed it herself using a hand-push mower. Looking back, I honestly wonder how she did it while working full-time. She often had to divide the job over several days simply because there weren’t enough hours or enough energy in a single evening.

As my own endurance gradually improved, I began taking over the mowing.

My schedule is considerably more flexible than hers. Although my wife also works from home, her workdays leave little opportunity for yard work except on weekends and holidays. In fact, she used to spend much of her vacation time catching up on outdoor chores.

Now that I handle the mowing, she finally has more time to devote to other projects, and perhaps even enjoy a weekend once in a while.

Of course, mowing the lawn introduces another challenge for me.

Because of my kidney condition, I have to limit my protein intake, making it much harder to replace the calories burned during strenuous activity. At the same time, years of regular exercise have gradually increased my muscle mass. I now carry more than 120 pounds of muscle while my total body weight stays between about 145 and 148 pounds.

Muscle, unfortunately, is wonderfully demanding.

It happily burns calories all day long while politely ignoring the fact that I cannot simply eat everything in sight.

Managing my diet requires constant adjustment. Last year, I even discovered that eating too much melon negatively affected my lab results. Since then, I have become much more careful about rotating foods instead of relying too heavily on any single item. Living with kidney disease often means thinking several steps ahead of every meal.

For quite some time, maintaining my weight has felt like trying to fill a bucket with a tiny leak.

Progress comes slowly.

Sometimes very slowly.

That is why today’s number on the scale felt so satisfying.

It may seem like only a few pounds, but those pounds represent careful planning, disciplined eating, regular exercise, and learning how to work with my body instead of against it.

Now I have one small hope.

That tomorrow’s morning run doesn’t immediately erase all of today’s hard-earned progress.

If it does, I will proceed with the scale and continue our ongoing negotiations.

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Finding Progress Beyond the Stopwatch in Running Endurance Improvements

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

I am finding progress beyond the stopwatch in running endurance improvements.

This morning greeted me with something that has become surprisingly rare lately.

No rain.

Better yet, the air was noticeably cooler than it had been for several days. It was chilly enough that I briefly wondered whether long sleeves might have been the wiser choice. After the recent stretch of hot, humid mornings, however, I was happy to accept a little cool weather without complaint.

As soon as I woke up, I headed out for my usual run.

Within a few minutes, my body warmed up, and so did the weather. Nashville apparently believes seasons can change during a single run. What began as “perhaps I need a jacket” quickly became “short sleeves would have been perfect.”

Unfortunately, ideal running weather did not magically produce an ideal running pace.

I missed my target.

Looking back, I probably should have seen it coming. Around this time of year, morning temperatures can climb ten degrees within a surprisingly short period. Since I usually finish my runs before 8:00 a.m., it is remarkable how quickly the weather transforms.

Apparently, summer in Nashville believes in making dramatic entrances.

Next time, I may pay closer attention to the hourly forecast instead of simply checking the temperature when I wake up. Waiting a little longer before heading out might actually make clothing choices and pacing a bit easier.

Fortunately, today’s run was only five kilometers. Had it been my usual Saturday 10K, the changing conditions would have become much more noticeable by the later kilometers. Also, I have more energy than before after running. I must have gained my running endurance.

After returning home, I moved on to my resistance training.

There was better news waiting there.

This morning, I increased my pull-up total to twenty-five.

I was particularly pleased because many of my strength exercises have received less attention lately. Summer has a habit of replacing gym sessions with lawn mowing, and anyone who has pushed a mower across a steep backyard knows that yard work has a remarkable way of volunteering as leg day.

Still, progress is progress.

Perhaps the biggest change I have noticed this year is the effect of my anemia treatment. For years, I simply assumed that feeling tired was normal. Since beginning treatment, I have noticeably more endurance and energy throughout my workouts.

I admit I have complained more than once about having to visit the hematologist. Medical appointments are rarely anyone’s favorite hobby.

But credit belongs where it is due.

The treatment is making a real difference.

No, I did not meet my target running pace today.

On the other hand, I completed twenty-five pull-ups, something I could not have imagined not very long ago.

That is one of the lessons fitness keeps teaching me.

If you judge every workout by only one number, you’ll miss many of your victories.

Some days, the stopwatch wins.

Other days, the pull-up bar quietly reminds you just how far you’ve already come.

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A Rainy Sunday, Extra Sleep, and the Never-Ending Weekend Yard Work Routine

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

After yesterday’s unexpected skunk adventure and my regular Saturday 10-kilometer run, I decided that my body deserved a little extra kindness. The plan was simple: go to bed a bit earlier than usual and allow myself an extra hour of sleep. Reality, as it often does, negotiated different terms. Today is my weekend yard work routine.

I only managed to get to bed about thirty minutes early, but even that turned out to help. I let my wife know that I planned to sleep later than normal so she wouldn’t wonder whether I had mysteriously disappeared overnight.

My wife is an impressively early riser. By the time I normally wake up, she has often already finished a remarkable amount of work.

While I take care of mowing our steep backyard, she tackles everything the mower cannot reach. She edges the lawn, pulls weeds around the flower beds, and clears the narrow areas along the sides and back of the house. It is work that never seems to end, especially during a Nashville summer.

This year has been particularly rainy, which means the weeds have been thriving with almost suspicious enthusiasm.

Even when the grass is still damp, my wife heads outside to keep it under control. It’s a weekend yard work routine. Experience has taught us that weeds are excellent opportunists. Ignore them for a few weeks, and they begin behaving as though they have inherited the property.

We learned that lesson firsthand.

One year, my wife wasn’t feeling well and had to skip yard work for about a month. When she finally recovered, her first weekend back outside turned into a two- or three-hour battle with weeds that had clearly mistaken her absence for permanent retirement.

Since then, she has adopted a much more effective strategy.

Never give the weeds a chance.

Eventually, my extra sleep came to an end, not because of an alarm clock, but because the sound of the piano gently awakened me.

Apparently, after attending a wedding recently, my wife felt inspired to practice again.

There are certainly worse ways to wake up.

By the time I climbed out of bed, the rain had already begun.

It continued for most of the day and is expected to last into the evening. Fortunately, tomorrow’s forecast looks much more promising. The morning should be surprisingly cool, with relatively low humidity by Nashville standards.

That sounds like nearly perfect running weather.

Sometimes the most productive day is not the one filled with accomplishments.

Sometimes it is the one that gives your body a chance to recover, your garden a good soaking, and your weeds just enough confidence to think they are winning.

Tomorrow, we’ll remind them otherwise.

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A Skunk, an Early Wake-Up Call, and a Humid 10K Run

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

By this evening, I was thoroughly exhausted because of an early wake-up call.

That is not especially unusual after my regular Saturday 10-kilometer run, but today came with a few unexpected complications. The weather turned noticeably hotter and far more humid, and my carefully planned morning began with a visitor who was not on my schedule.

A skunk.

Few things will get your attention before sunrise quite like your phone ringing because a skunk has taken up residence near your front door.

Early this morning, my wife called while she was returning from her run. A skunk had wandered in front of our entrance, and she quite reasonably decided that sharing the sidewalk with it was a terrible idea. Instead of risking a close encounter and an unforgettable fragrance, she asked me to open the garage door so she could enter the house from another direction.

I was more than happy to help.

I was just less enthusiastic about being awake.

Under our front porch is a small opening that has long served as a cozy home for various wildlife. Years ago, several groundhogs lived there. I had not seen them for quite some time and assumed the little underground apartment had become vacant.

Apparently, the local real estate market had other plans.

A skunk has evidently decided that the former groundhog residence is an excellent place to live. I suppose one creature’s abandoned property is another creature’s dream home.

Unfortunately, the phone call arrived about an hour before my alarm was set to ring.

I briefly considered returning to sleep. My brain even presented a compelling argument in favor of the pillow. Unfortunately, once I am fully awake, negotiations with sleep rarely end in my favor.

So I admitted defeat.

I climbed out of bed, put on my running clothes, and headed out for my Saturday 10K considerably earlier than planned.

The run itself went well enough, but the combination of lost sleep, rising temperatures, and Nashville’s legendary humidity gradually caught up with me. By evening, I could feel every kilometer and every missing hour of sleep.

Fortunately, the solution is refreshingly uncomplicated.

Tonight, I plan to go to bed a little earlier than usual and let sleep do what no amount of determination can replace.

Running teaches discipline.

Skunks, apparently, teach flexibility.

Sometimes the day’s training begins long before the first step of the run.

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