#that i gained *at* therapy which is so painfully ironic

[saturnvs]

wet on wet, attempts at some art therapy at home

[nflfanpointii]

40 is the new 35 when it comes to NFL quarterbacks like Tom Brady and Drew Brees

Back in the day, it was less common for quarterbacks to excel past their mid 30’s. Sure, there was Warren Moon, Vinny Testaverde, Brett Favre, Kurt Warner, and John Elway. But that short list is dwarfed by a painfully longer one filled with Hall of Fame quarterbacks who seemed to crap out well short the 40 year marker.

Even these all time greats experienced precipitous drop offs in their mid to late 30’s. For Roger Staubach, Steve Young and Fran Tarkenton, it came at 37. For Bart Starr, Jim Kelly, Dan Marino and Dan Fouts, 36. For Johnny Unitas, George Blanda, Bob Griese, Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw, 35. For Otto Graham, Joe Namath, and Troy Aikman, 34.

This makes it all the more amazing that so many older quarterbacks are still playing at an elite level in today’s NFL. There might very well be five to seven future Hall of Famers starting in the league right now. Tom Brady and Drew Brees are officially in their 40’s. Philip Rivers and Ben Roethlisberger are both 36. Aaron Rodgers is 34 and Matt Ryan is 33; and both signed extensions in the past couple years at times in their careers when former quarterbacks usually retired.

It’s true, quarterbacks are more protected by the rules of the NFL than ever before, and this certainly has played a part in their new found longevity. In 1978, the league restricted contact between defensive backs and receivers to within five yards of the line of scrimmage. This resulted in a dramatic increase in passing attempts per game, which in turn suddenly made the quarterback position more valuable.

Since 1993, quarterbacks could simply escape the pocket and throw a pass out of bounds without incurring an intentional grounding penalty. This made it harder for pass rushers to get to them before they got rid of the ball, therefore avoiding a sack or quarterback hit.

Roughing the passer penalties have become more and more common as the definition has broadened to include late hits, forcible hits below the knee, hitting the helmet, and landing on the quarterback with one’s own body weight.

Last year, former Packers linebacker Clay Matthews was flagged twice for roughing the passer while making what seemed to be perfectly executed sacks. Ironically, it was probably a hit on Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers the previous season that may have led to the rule change that cost the Packers two victories a season later.

One would think that with these modern day quarterbacks dropping back more times throughout a game than ever before, their careers would be shorter, not longer. That’s why I think there’s more to it than the implementation of more rules that inherently protect the quarterback.

Because they played before GMO’s and modern day fast food chains, many old school players of the past had access to better food. But that doesn’t mean they took full advantage of their timely access to healthier lives. Joe Namath smoked cigarettes on the sidelines for god’s sake.

I doubt they were paying attention to the pH of their foods like Tom Brady or paying upwards of $200K a year like James Harrison did on therapy treatments like massage and acupuncture. The modern day athlete has to be almost obsessive in their quest for success. Talent alone won’t cut it anymore if you want to stick around in today’s NFL.

Extremely strict diets, fitness, and recovery programs have taken the place of binge eating like Babe Ruth, snorting cocaine like Diego Maradona, and binge drinking like Lawrence Taylor. The two oldest current quarterbacks in the NFL also happen to keep two of the strictest diet and fitness regimens across all sports.

Drew Brees has been working with Todd Durkin in San Diego, CA since his days with the Chargers. Brees loves working with Durkin every offseason. “Whenever I come back for the summertime to get in the best shape of my life for training camp, he’s always got something new or a few new things that make me feel like we’re way ahead of everybody else.”

What’s interesting to me, however, is that even though Brees isn’t Durkin’s biggest, fastest, or most agile athlete, he may have benefited the most simply because he’s willing to work harder than everyone else. And that’s saying a lot considering Durkin’s vast client list also includes Carson Palmer, Aaron Rodgers, Darren Sproles, LaDainian Tomlinson, Mark Sanchez, Alex Smith, Brandon Cooks, Reggie Bush, Charles Tillman, Zach Ertz, John Brown, Dontrelle Inman, Malcom Floyd, Ryan Griffin, Chase Daniel, Sean Canfield, Josh Freeman, and my fellow Saints Ignatius College Prep alumnus, Igor Olshansky.

”Drew Brees, first and foremost, is a special person. I will probably not have the opportunity to work with a guy like that in the next 20 years. His concentration and focus are amazing, and he works extremely hard. He’s not the biggest guy or the fastest guy, but he’s going to beat you with his athleticism, his smarts and because he’s such a competitor. I don’t care what it is, the dude wants to win at anything. He’s always restless and never satisfied,” said Durkin.

Brees is absolutely methodical in his training and game preparation. “I know where I’m going to be at a specific time,” he says. “I know what I’m going to be doing; I know what needs to be accomplished for me to feel confident and go out there and play at the highest level.”

His focus has shifted from the archaic meathead approach to training he learned in college at Purdue to a more functional and efficient approach. “I think maybe those [exercises] served the purpose at the time.” Drew says. “But now I’ve wised up to the things that I need to do in a position-specific and functional fitness kind of way to benefit me as a quarterback.”

If you have 30 minutes to kill, watch this video of Brees’ workouts with Durkin.

I’ve been a fitness trainer and instructor for 12 years and I’m telling you, Durkin is the real deal. I love his approach to fitness. I stopped lifting heavy weights years ago and have focused more on agility ladder work, TRX training, yoga, and generally maximizing my strength and endurance gains while also minimizing sheering forces on my joints, tendons, and ligaments.

Tom Brady takes his fitness protocol in an even more holistic, and dare I say, Eastern direction. He and his trainer/business partner Alex Guerrero founded the TB12 training facility next to Gillette Stadium in 2013. Guerrero, though highly controversial, isn’t a total quack in my opinion.

Of course claiming his supplements could curemultiple sclerosis, AIDS, concussions, and other diseases with no shred of testing or evidence based proof was incredibly disingenuous and downright dangerous. Settling with multiple investors out of court for defrauding them is no better either.

But I have to hand it to him: he has kept Tom Brady in phenomenal shape to survive and thrive in the NFL past the age of 40. Guerrero earned a Masters Degree in traditional Chinese medicine from a school in LA that closed after losing its’ accreditation. He is not a physical therapist and does not hold any Western degrees that would qualify him to do a lot of the work he does with his clients.

Yet, Guerrero is highly respected and retained by many professional athletes including Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman, Wes Welker, Danny Amendola, Willie McGinest, Jimmy Garoppolo, LaDainian Tomlinson, and Chris Hogan. Instead of focusing on lifting huge weights and tearing muscle fibers, Guerrero prescribes more body weight moves and exercises with resistance bands that are designed to increase the muscles’ “pliability.”

Brady often sees Guerrero twice daily and receives intensely specific massages in which he tenses the muscles while Guerrero massages them. The goal is to lengthen the muscles and increase their flexibility so that Brady can withstand the weekly car crash that is an NFL football game.

The other main focus is to reduce inflammation in the body by maintaining a strict diet. Brady does not eat white flour, white sugar, MSG, iodized salt, coffee, caffeine, alcohol, fungus, dairy, nightshade vegetables and most types of fruit. This diet may sound strange, but it’s most likely derived from the Ayurvedic tradition which is over 5,000 years old and trusted throughout Asia as much as we trust Western medicine.

The part where Brady and Guerrero lose me is by making sweeping statements like everyone should drink 25 glasses of water a day, or eat this exact diet, or that everyone needs to consume TB12 branded electrolytes or wear TB12 branded muscle recovery pajamas.

I’m not 6’4” and 230lbs; I’m 5’6” and 130lbs, so I don’t need more than 65 ounces of water a day, unless Tom wants me to get hyponatremia and die of brain damage. Don’t just replicate a professional athlete’s diet and fitness regimen. These have been specially tailored to them. If you work for Google and sit at a desk for eight hours a day, you probably shouldn’t eat and drink exactly what Tom Brady does.

It’s okay to be skeptical too. Brees isn’t much more trust-worthy with his shameful peddling of Advocare products. It’s important to rely on evidence-based research conducted by independent bodies without a financial stake in the products they test. Even more important, think for yourself and do your own research before listening to athletes that have a financial stake in the health philosophies they are sharing with the public.

If you aren’t hip to eating according to your Ayurvedic dosha (My dosha is roughly 70% Pitta, 20% Vata, 10% Kapha) like Brady seems to, you can go the Western route and still learn something about how to function at a higher level, no matter what your lifestyle is. Drew and Brittney Brees got food sensitivity blood tests done back in 2004. That’s when Brees found he had significant sensitivities to gluten, dairy, and certain nuts.

“As you can imagine, I was shocked because I was consuming most of these things every day. And just to think how long I’ve had these sensitivities and had continued to feed them. Guys coming in fresh out of college are used to going to the training table and eating and drinking whatever they’re given.”

“In many cases, I see myself as a veteran player – pulling those young guys aside and, as part of teaching young players how to be a pro, talking to them about their diet, their sleep habits and their recovery. They’ll start to ask questions like, ‘Hey Drew, what do you do?’ That’s when I explain to them that I use coconut milk and almond milk products.”

It’s not just Brees’ direct teammates like Reggie Bush, Sean Canfield, Chase Daniel, Brandin Cooks, and Ryan Griffin who have followed his lead when it comes to diet and fitness. “It took the fourth or fifth time hearing, ‘You need to do this,’ and then reading about Drew Brees and Tom Brady and others who are your peers doing it,” Kirk Cousins said. “I realized, ‘If I want to hang with these guys, then it’s time to stop playing around.’”

18 of the 32 quarterbacks starting in the NFL are over 30 years old, and by September that list will grow to 21 with the 30th birthdays of Cam Newton, Tyrod Taylor, and Andrew Luck. Even though five quarterbacks were drafted in the first round last year, there’s a good chance less than a third of the starting quarterbacks in the league will be younger than 30 years old.

40 might be the new 35, and it’s not just because of some changes in the rules. Players are spending highly on optimizing their health and performance through a multitude of practices both new and incredibly old. Cousins is right, it’s time to stop playing around.

[fanficwriter013]

The Ties that Bind (Part 6/?)

Pairing: Clint Barton x Reader

Summary: Clint makes it his mission to win you over. He succeeds, but you don’t believe in marriage. Can the two of you stay together without the promise of wedding bells in the future? What about when the two of you are forced to go undercover as a married couple?

Word Count: 2133

Warnings: Hospitals, a caring relationship, physical therapy, angry reader, training the Avengers, more physical therapy, and couples banter. 

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 / Part 7 / Part 8 / Part 9 /

You could hear beeping, your eyelids felt like they were sewn shut. Your mouth felt like the desert, your lips dry and painfully cracked. You finally won the battle with your eyelids to be blinded with sterile white, and once you could finally see it didn’t look like you were back at the Tower. Your (E/C) eyes landed on a hunched Clint sitting in a chair pressed against the wall. It looked like he hadn’t slept in days, and he had lost some weight too. His skin was close to a gray tone, and while you were the one in the bed. He was the one you were worried about.

“You look like crap.” You croak out, and Clint’s head snaps up to look at you. “How long was I out? I’m guessing a couple of months. Did you spend the entire time in that chair? You know I wouldn’t have been mad if you weren’t here all the time. Wouldn’t have been mad if I woke up alone either. I’m kinda actually mad that you haven’t been taking care of yourself.” He’s looking at you like he’s insane, or you're insane. Then he’s standing, and he’s holding your hand, rubbing circles into your palm.

“It’s been six months. You’ve been in seven surgeries, and you decided to flat line twice. So yes, (Y/N), I look like crap. And yes, I have been here going insane for most of those six months. If not in that chair, I’ve been upstairs training the twins, the Jarvis android, the birdman, and the better Iron Man.” He sounded tired, and you lifted your other arm so you could put your hand on Clint’s cheek.

“I thought we were gonna retire? And also, am I plastic now? Shouldn’t you go get the doctor so they can do those reflex tests or whatever?” You asked, earning a snort and a smile from your archer. “We could be the synthetic twins, you know ‘cause of your stomach. But that’s only if I’m plastic now too.” The door slid open, and you turned your attention to see Dr. Cho. Her mouth is set in a thin straight line, and you don’t like the looks of it.

Dr. Cho checks the monitor for your vitals, before grabbing your chart and standing at the foot of the bed. “We had to remove your L1 vertebra because the pieces could have severed your spinal cord. We had to induce a coma to make sure you didn’t move to protect the exposed portion of the spinal cord. But you’re currently sporting a 3D printed L1, and the scans show no lesions or swelling. As for the motor control of your legs, well that’s going to be a waiting game.” She was making a weak joke in an effort to make you feel better. All you wanted to do was start therapy and get out of this too bright white room.

“Alright, doc, so when does the therapy start?” If you ever wanted to walk again, that is if you still had control over your legs. Therapy would be the only answer. She gave you a weak smile, promising it to be soon before she left the room.

----------------

Therapy was grueling. You’d started just by working on some upper body control and trying to live without the function of your legs. Getting yourself into and out of a wheelchair, attempting to reach cabinets that were now well above your reach. It frustrated you to no end. You were an assassin and now you were trapped. You were used to being dependent on yourself, and maybe Clint since he had wormed his way into your heart, and now with the things that you couldn’t do. The things you didn’t know if you would ever be able to do again. You wanted to punch something or cry.

After three months, you had given up hope that you would be able to use your legs again. Clint told you that you were no different now, but this was the same as after the Carsen mission. Then it all changed. You had been up in the training rooms, just watching the new Avengers team. Clint was doing the same on the other side of the room. Wanda was sparring with Natasha, and you had bitten your tongue a couple of times but you couldn’t stop yourself now.

“Wanda, your hips. Square your hips, bend your knees. Remember your magic, but also don’t rely on it.” You shouted at her, as Natasha put her on her back for the ninth time in the past fifteen minutes. The Maximoff girl struggled with your words for another handful of rounds before you started to lose your cool. “Nat, work with Sam. Pietro with Vision. Rhodey with Wanda. Don’t hold back.” You bark at them, earning a glance from both Clint and Natasha.

You split your attention between Pietro and Vision, and Rhodey and Wanda. Although, you were in your own head thinking about creating a training gauntlet, to get the new Avengers to work together. If you weren’t going to be able to hit the field again, you wanted to be damn sure that the new generation, your trainees, were at the top of their game. You looked down when Wanda knocked Rhodey onto the mat. It had been easy since the man hadn’t been focusing on his center of gravity. The girl had been able to easily disrupt his balance. You were a little shocked to find your feet not on the wheelchairs rests. Had they fallen off, or had you moved them?

You picked your legs up by the knees and readjusted your legs back onto the foot rests. “Rhodey, take a lap. Clint, could you work with Wanda?” The first had been barked, the second a softer suggestion. Your archer gave you a questioning look, which you shook your head at before he started to work with Wanda. You were trying to watch Pietro and Vision, but you weren’t seeing what was going on before your eyes.

“(Y/N).” It was Rhodey, snapping you back to reality. You turned to look at him. “You just planted your feet on the floor.” He was pointing, and you followed it to look at your feet. Which were once again on the floor. Since Rhodey had seen you, apparently, knowingly move them. You decided to test it. You willed your foot to move, just a minute movement, to place it back on the footrest. It seemed like an eternity, but your foot came back to rest on the wheelchair. Without you having to lift it back.

Since you were an all or none kinda of person, you decided to take the test to the maximum. You planted your palms into the armrests of your chair, moving your foot back down onto the floor. The time it took for your foot to respond was shorter this time. You pushed into the chair, focusing more on your feet, but you could see that Rhodey had shifted in front of you now. You took one hand off the chair. Pleasantly satisfied when it seemed like, although they were wobbly, your legs would hold your weight. You gently let your other hand raise off the wheelchair. It was official you were now standing.

“Clint!” You yelled, the excitement palpable in your voice. Rhodey shifted to your side, so that way your archer could see that you were standing. “Look! I have feet.” You’d distracted him from his sparring with Wanda, and she put him on his ass. But, when he looked at you his smile matched the warm and fuzzy feeling you had knowing that you would be able to walk again.

----------------

Since you had suddenly gained control over your legs again, physical therapy resumed. It wasn’t any better than you remembered. In fact, you were sure it was worse. They made you do stairs and the walking between the two bars. Your progress was slow, and frustratingly so. The muscles in your legs had atrophied, and your therapy was working to reverse that.

It took another long month of therapy twice a day, every day, for you to even begin to be able to walk comfortably. Now your physical therapy included a treadmill, and they were trying to push your stamina. You were trying to push yourself, the assassin within didn’t like the show of vulnerability you were currently fronting. But you still knew your limits, and you wouldn’t push past that brink.

It took you another month before you were able to run again, but not to the caliber that you had been before. It was three miles at most, and you would have shin splints and muscles cramps that you hadn’t gotten before. But, you were grateful that you could control your legs at all. You would have been able to accept a life living in the wheelchair, and you definitely had a new respect for people that did, but you appreciated the function of your own limbs.

“Hey, babe. I’ve been thinking.” You say to Clint as you refill his coffee cup for the fifth time this morning. The archer groans at you and gives a theatrical roll of his eyes. “No, it’s about your princess wedding. You should be excited.” You explained, as you leaned against the counter in the room, really apartment, that you shared at the compound. You tried to stand as much as possible now.

“Oh, my princess wedding, huh? What’s wrong with being a princess?” He asked, and you laughed a little, shaking your head. “Okay, so, I can walk now. I know you had most of the details done, probably all of the details. I know right, who am I kidding? Okay, so like the point is. If your feet are warm, we could set a date. Have all the Avengers there. You know, the important people. And I was thinking about that whole ring issue, for you know if we don’t retire, and what if we got matching tattoos. Or not matching and like I got an infinity symbol with an arrow in it, and you did something if you were cool with tattoos that is.” You’d finally had to just shut yourself up since you could hear the rambling and your archer was just sipping his coffee casually.

“Oh, you done now?” He asked, raising an eyebrow at you. You nod. “My feet are hot. All the details were done, including wardrobe. Yes, even yours. Cause this is my princess wedding after all. And since you said you’re ready. We’re gonna get married tomorrow. Before you can change your mind. And I think matching tattoos or the not matching tattoos would be cool.” He was joking, but he was also totally serious.

���Tomorrow, tomorrow tomorrow?” You questioned and then watched Clint bite back several sarcastic comments to simply nod. “How long have you been planning this? For like two months, haven’t you. Since you knew I could stand again?” It wasn’t accusatory, it was more of amused musings. You hoped that he hadn’t been doing this since that final fight with Ultron, that he had waited a bit.

“Just because you didn’t want to wheel down the aisle, didn’t mean that I wasn’t fine with that. But no, I didn’t plan or organize anything while you were in a coma. I started afterward. But I had originally picked tomorrow, so it was a good thing you got on board. And before you start, yes I picked your crew for you. So we’re gonna finish breakfast, and then they’re gonna kidnap you. And I’ll see you tomorrow.” He said, and you knew that even though this had started because Clint was determined to win over the stick in the mud agent. This was a partnership on the same level as soulmates, and you were damn glad you had let Clint in.

“Okay, but like we’re gonna get married tomorrow. So my kidnappers and your bachelor party can’t get too crazy. You planned all that out, right?” You asked, sure you wanted Clint to have fun before tomorrow. But you didn’t want to deal with your archer when he was hungover. “Wait, what about a rehearsal dinner?” You asked this was obviously not something you had your hands in.

“Chill. Your crew has a schedule. It’s all fine. Just don’t fight them. And don’t worry Nat would kill me if I drank too much.” He said, and you rolled your eyes. Natasha knew what hungover Clint, and drunk Clint too, was like. It’d been awhile since the three of you had been out to drink and had had that much. While you had to admit that you were nervous, this also felt so completely right.

Part 7

Tags: @dontyouforgetaboutme @graysonmalfoy @lisssays @tamlovestacos @my-personal-little-space @jessie-baby-96 @thegoodinatx @marvelbase001 @toastmaster94 @skylions-den @thesumofmyyears @walkingtravesty13 @humanandangel @awkwardkarma @masks-of-beauty-blog @something-to-do-with-pandas @mylovelyadventures @penguinsrideatdawn @zxcorra @jaqui-has-a-conspiracy-theory @realmen-wearplaid @jynx-winters @bryannareblogsstuff @tessellaneous @absurdos 

[spryfilm]

“Night Gallery” (1969 – 1973)

Anthology/Horror

43 Episodes

Created by: Rod Serling

Produced by: Jack Laird & William Sackheim

Rod Serling: “Good evening, and welcome to a private showing of three paintings, displayed here for the first time. Each is a collectors’ item in its own way – not because of any special artistic quality, but because each captures on a canvas, and suspends in time and space, a frozen moment of a nightmare.”

This month sees the release of the anthology television show “Night Gallery” (1969 – 1973) in a three series ten-disc box set, that incorporates every episode produced – just great entertainment with some good special features at a modest price.

Night Gallery was an American anthology series that aired on NBC from 1969 to 1973, featuring stories of horror, science fiction as well some humorous episodes as well. Rod Serling, who had gained fame from an earlier series, “The Twilight Zone”(1959 – 1964), served both as the on-air host of ‘Night Gallery’ as well as a major contributor of scripts, although he did not have the same control of content and tone as he had on ‘The Twilight Zone’. Serling viewed ‘Night Gallery’ as a logical extension of ‘The Twilight Zone’, but while both series shared an interest in thought-provoking dark fantasy, more of Zone’s offerings were science fiction while Night Gallery focused on horrors of the supernatural.

Serling appeared in an art gallery setting and introduced the stories that made up each episode by unveiling paintings (by artists Thomas J. Wright and Jaroslav “Jerry” Gebr) that depicted the stories. ‘Night Gallery’ regularly presented adaptations of classic fantasy tales by authors such as H. P. Lovecraft, as well as original works, many of which were by Serling himself.

Looking back at a television series from almost fifty years ago may seem a difficult prospect but Serling was such a good writer as well as arbiter of taste that the vast majority of this stories are so unique that they seem to have not aged a day.

Highlighted episodes not to be missed:

Silent Snow, Secret Snow (Seas. 2, Ep. 5)

Based on a short story by Conrad Aiken, this psychological tale is the story of a young boy’s fascination with the snow outside his home; a fascination that turns him inside himself and towards insanity. This one is incredibly creepy and atmospheric, one to watch with the lights on, as well as having company with you.

The Diary (Seas. 2, Ep. 8)

This masterpiece, penned by Serling himself, stars Patty Duke as an aging movie star with a grudge, she enacts madness-inducing revenge on the scathing gossip columnist who shreds her acting credibility. Truly one of the more chilling and well-written episodes of the entire series, but you would not expect anything less from Rod Serling.

The Boy Who Predicted Earthquakes (Seas. 2, Ep. 1)

In this chilling tale, a boy is given a very special gift – to see the future. As a commentary on the media’s fascination with the strange and our unearned trust in the media, this story has a very poignant message.

You Can’t Get Help Like That Anymore (Seas. 2, Ep. 20)

It is the near future, and people are still mean as well as bullies. At least, that’s the concept at the core of this tale. When a rich couple purchase the best robot maid available and then attempt to beat the crap out of her (like all the other robot maids before her), they get a nasty surprise.

Sins of the Fathers (Seas. 2, Ep. 20)

The very next episode although being painfully grotesque (hunchback dwarves, guttural screaming, turkey legs) is actually really creepy Dark Ages.

Midnight Never Ends (Seas. 2, Ep. 7)

Another Season 2 gem by Serling, this story is like a cross between “Groundhog Day” (1993) and “The Shining” (1980). A young woman picks up a hitchhiker on the road and the two immediately feel as though they are caught in a super-strong bout of mutual deja vous. What they find out is a truth that is more chilling than you could possibly imagine.

Whisper (Seas. 3, Ep. 13)

As one of the final episodes, Serling managed to saved the best for last. With a skeleton cast of amazingly talented actors, this story is a truly haunting tale that answers the question: What is the worst thing that can happen when you believe you can speak to the dead?

The Ring With the Red Velvet Ropes (Seas. 3, Ep. 10)

A heavyweight-boxing champion that has just won the world title finds himself on an unknown island, surrounded by sexy ladies and good food. Everything is great until he finds out that he’s not the REAL world champion until he beats an otherworldly fighter with a very long winning streak.

The Different Ones (Seas. 2, Ep. 14)

Once you’ve seen this one, you’ll see almost a direct connection with some of Serlong’s more notable work on Twilight Zone. In this futuristic episode, a hideously mangled teenager is shipped off to a governmental-alien leper colony. In his desire to be a “normal person,” the hero is willing to do almost anything to avoid literal alienation.

The Caterpillar (Seas. 2, Ep. 21)

A colonial tale of unrequited love turned sour, this is about a British military leader in the jungles of Borneo. When he can’t have the girl of his dreams, he decides to take care of her husband by using the deadly flora and fauna of the inhospitable land. One small mistake in the plan is all it takes for him to get an earful.

A Question of Fear (Seas. 2, Ep. 6)

A rich man makes a revenge bet with an old buddy that he can’t stay locked up overnight in a reportedly haunted house. When he starts seeing strange things (beds with knives in them, for example), he decides that the $10,000 is not worth his life. Unfortunately, the house doesn’t let him call backsies without a fight.

The Big Surprise (Seas. 2, Ep. 8)

There’s nothing scarier to a 12-year-old than a creepy old guy who tells you to dig a big hole. In this very short story (on the same powerhouse episode as The Diary), a young boy gets a tip from an old neighbor that something buried under a nearby tree. Thinking he has heard some kind of verbal treasure map, the boy acquiesces. His surprise is not at all what he expects.

The House (Seas. 1, Ep. 3)

In my favorite episode by far, a woman continually has a dream that she is driving towards an unknown house, but that she knows inside and out. After graduating from dream therapy with a “cured” badge, she actually finds the house from her dreams. Not surprising, there is a ghost haunting it, but what it’s trying to do only becomes clear in the last few moments of the story.

The Housekeeper (Seas. 1, Ep. 1)

As the first episode of Night Gallery, this little story comes out of nowhere and mentally screws everyone. An aging housekeeper with low self-esteem is requested for a dream job. This story is all about the consequences of being young and beautiful forever. I choose this tale for those who like their Halloween ironic.

Tell David (Seas. 2, Ep. 14)

I personally believe that this is the most horrifying of them all, in the traditional sense. A woman with some marital problems and a small son gets lost in a freak storm. When she finds a local house for shelter, all the strange objects that she finds inside surprise her.

Special Features:

This 10 DVD collection brings you every episode from this spine-tingling 1970s series.

Penned by legendary twilight zone writer – rod serling

Includes the original pilot episode from 1969

“Night Gallery” is out now on DVD.

    DVD review: “Night Gallery” (1969 – 1973) “Night Gallery” (1969 - 1973) Anthology/Horror 43 Episodes Created by: Rod Serling Produced by: Jack Laird & William Sackheim…

[reddirtramblings]

After last week’s post, I implemented my seven ways to smile through winter plan. This quiet season covers at least five months of the year in Oklahoma so smiling through winter is vital. Like Demeter, we gardeners pine for Persephone until she returns from Hades, and green shoots push forth from the earth once again.

A yellow kalanchoe brightens my day as I sit on the sofa and read.

How did I implement my plan? First, I went to three four local stores–TLC Nursery, Whole Foods, Lowe’s and Under the Sun–and bought four or five six or seven indoor plants including a variegated airplane plant. The 1970s are alive and well my friends.

The airplane plant is in the greenhouse video below. Consider it horticultural retail therapy.

New rugs for the living room and two orchids help too. I move the plants in and out of the windows so that they get light. You can’t treat a plant like a piece of furniture. It will die.

I returned home and transferred said plants into beautiful pots.

[bctt tweet=”Beautiful containers and sparkling clean glass do a lot to improve a supermarket plant. ” username=”reddirtramblin”]I always keep decorative containers on hand, and I collect blue and white porcelain including the flow blue platters on the mantel, above. Beautiful containers and sparkling clean glass do a lot to improve a supermarket plant.

Joanna Gaines of Magnolia Market and Fixer Upper fame would agree. If you notice on the show, she cuts a lot twigs and branches and places them in glass vases. She even had cottonwood leaves in last night’s show! I followed her lead with this cotton boll arrangement in my dining room. That reminds me–I think I’ll grow cotton next year. Bustani Plant Farm carries an ornamental pink cotton.

Cotton bolls in a crystal vase a la Joanna Gaines and Fixer Upper. Looking at my Oklahoma sign in this photo reminds me I want to hang it above the china cabinet and retire that iron display rack for awhile.

I placed plants in spots where I could see them while I write, read books, clean house, etc. They, along with my forced bulbs, are in every window in my house. If you’d like to see more pictures of my indoor plants follow me on Instagram. I usually post once a day.

Click on the images in the gallery, below, to make them larger and see the captions.

Ruffled cyclamen from TLC Nursery. I got there just as they were putting them on display. After it finishes blooming, I’ll put in my bathroom where it can get some sunlight and humidity.

Mantel with purple orchid and blue and white dishes. I feed the orchids every other week while blooming. They bloom for nearly four months. I’ll put them in the bathroom too afterward.

Mantel with orchids, blue and white dishes and Glassybaby candleholders. I love this look for January. Clean and fresh.

Hyacinths from Aldi’s I bought the week before. They are beautiful. I lean them against the window to stop them from falling over.

Hot pink cyclamen says hello!

Cyclamen in a Wardian case with a sale amaryllis I began growing after Christmas. Amaryllis aren’t just for the holidays.

I then decided to go outside and face my greenhouse. I haven’t written much about the greenhouse this winter because we had quite the early season disaster. My greenhouse is composed of wood and three-ply poly, so it swells and contracts depending upon the humidity. We’ve been very dry. Oklahoma is in a drought again. Of course, it is.

A huge cold front came through in December while we were away, and my son went out to check on things. God bless him for caring. If you don’t slam the greenhouse door hard enough, it can pop open especially when the air is very dry, The wind from the front nearly whipped the door off its hinges. We came home to the greenhouse standing wide open in 18-degree F. weather. Everything inside got either nipped by the cold wind, or frozen depending upon where items were inside. It was a scientific experiment in microclimates, and as in our gardens sometimes, there didn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason to the freezing. I lost several plants, and Mother Nature painfully pruned others. I’m grateful I put the coleus cuttings at the back of the greenhouse. They weren’t killed. However, my beautiful ‘Republic of Texas’ orange tree was so injured I lost half of it, the rest of the citrus were also burned, except surprisingly a kumquat on an elevated surface. The heater nearby must have kept that one warm enough.

http://reddirtramblings.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/A-visit-to-my-greenhouse.mp4

To say I was sad about all of this would be an understatement. I was heartbroken, and after that first evaluation, I didn’t go outside and assess the damage again. I couldn’t face it, so Bill went out every couple of days and watered giving me reports. The orange tree already had ripening oranges on it when the storm hit. My beautiful dark red mandevilla died too. Maybe I can find a replacement at Under the Sun this spring. They carry the Sun Parasols® brand. Mine was a trial plant I’d overwintered twice. It was quite large.

After the post last week, I decided to go out and see what I could salvage. I took clippers in hand and began trimming away the orange tree’s dead limbs. The live video from Facebook, above, shows the results. Don’t you love how videos always catch you at your worst when they stop? Half the tree is gone, but of course, after I pruned the damaged bits, it began to perk up. I also took off the remaining oranges which did ripen but were also pithy from the freeze. As for the other trees, we’ll see if they put on a crop from their damaged blooms. It’s been warm enough this week I set the greenhouse top to open because nearby honeybees love to pollinate the citrus.

[bctt tweet=”One lesson I learned is there’s still a lot of good left in my greenhouse. ” username=”reddirtramblin”]

The same is true about our world. You find truth in whatever you focus upon, good or bad. I choose to stand in the light.

I bought seeds this week. Because we’re having the regional daylily tour in June, I won’t plant the large vegetable/cutting garden this year. It’s too much to care for it, travel, have a wedding, get two children graduated, etc. I just can’t do it all. But, I wanted to show you these seeds from Hudson Valley Seed Company. I love their art packs. They are so beautiful. I bought their calendar too. It’s comprised of the art from the seed packets.

I’ve also kept doing videos for my YouTube channel, and as I wrote above, this is a live video on Facebook. I also read two books last week. If you’d like to know what I’m reading, follow me on Goodreads. I started a bullet journal. I’ll write a post about it another time.

I stepped up my exercise too. Thank goodness! I’m walking most days, but I also contacted a friend who is a trainer and asked her to create a weight training plan for me. I have osteopenia, and I definitely don’t want osteoporosis. Weight bearing exercise is all important.

That’s what I’ve done so far. What are you doing to improve your winter days?

Smiling through winter, an update After last week's post, I implemented my seven ways to smile through winter plan. This quiet season covers at least five months of the year in Oklahoma so smiling through winter is vital.