petefeet's "Fourth Adventure"

[petefeet]

Hello kids and welcome to my fourth challenge!

 

This will be a reboot challenge for me since I dropped off the planet last challenge. I ended a 7 year relationship and the fallout affected me (and still is) more than I realized.

 

A little about me... I'm 40, live in Nova Scotia (east coast), Canada, unattached, no kids (one cat), have WAY too many books and proud of it.

 

I'm a boiler and refrigeration operator by trade, though my dream is to have a "bricks & mortar" used bookstore. I currently, have a part-time one that I run out of my basement in my spare time and my whole inventory is science fiction & fantasy (my passion). Should be a link to my stores facebook page in my signature.

 

 Main Quest:

 

 In August 2013 I weighted 267 lbs and my doctor said I had to shut up about my sore knees or die (great guy, bedside manner of a doorknob).

 

 So, I started trying to get healthy and since I'm a type "A" person I use www.loseit.com as my food log and calorie counter. I have hit my goal weight of 180 lbs and am working to keep it off.

 

 So my main quest is to continue my healthy lifestyle and improve my fitness level.

 

 To do that...

 

Side Quests: (Easing back into this)

 

 1. Keep my daily food log and weigh-ins

 

 2. Do at least 2 Cardio workouts a week, even if its just walking around my sub-division

 

 3. Do at least 1 BBWW a week, this has been hard for me, I think because strength training is foreign to my nature <g>.

 

Life Quest:

 

My long term life quest is to finish my basement (couple current pic's in my gallery) and turn it into a bookshop/rec-room.

 

I also have to finish making a new community fundraiser breakfast sign for my lodge (I'm a freemason), our old one is a bit tattered.

 

To help keep me sane (ish), I also like to write. So I will be continuing the adventure of petefeet as he explores the world around him. I try and take parts from my real life and weave them into a story.

 

 So far.... (Check 1st,  2nd and 3rd Adventure's for written story)

 

Petefeet is a halfling who was kidnapped by raider's as a small child and taken to a large human city and sold as a slave to the people running the cities gladiator arena. For much of his young life he was used as a servant, used to fetch and carry for the Masters and the gladiators.

 

After many years of this, petefeet starts to realize that he wants more out of life and starts to secretly steal better food meant for the Master's and starts trying to copy the exercises done by the gladiators.

 

Just when the Master's start to realize that something is changing with their normally meek and cowardly Halfling slave, an outside (?) force intervenes. How and when it happens is still a blur to petefeet, but one day he finds himself waking up in the middle of a crater out in the middle of the wilderness wearing nothing but his slave robes, which are now tattered and singed.

 

Found by a young human girl named Jan and her Grandfather, petefeet had his burned skin tended, feed and dressed in old work clothes. In an effort to repay them for their kindness, petefeet offered to rid them of an giant rat that had taken up residence in their work hut. With nothing to protect his hands, our little Halfling wrapped the burned and tattered remains of his slave robes around his hands (like boxing mitts) and went into battle. It was during the battle with the giant rat that petefeet realized that the old robes held some magic (or was the focus for an innate ability), for when he became scared, tiny sparks formed on the old robes covering his hands and when he punched the giant rat burns were also left upon the beast though petefeet received no damage. The more is was able to control his fear, the better he was able to hurt the beast.

 

Since that day, petefeet has wandered the land, helping out where he came, getting into the odd bit of trouble and making new friends. He isn't quite sure where he is going, though is sure he will know it when he finds it. 

[Feowyn]

Glad to see you back

[Ahyar Dreamspark]

Following. Looking forward to more storytelling!

[petefeet]

     When last we saw petefeet he had taken refuge in a magical tower that appeared to save him from a battle crazed beholder. When he left the tower he found himself in an unknown land and has been wandering ever since...

 

     With fresh provisions from the magical tower to fortify him, petefeet has been traveling through the wilderness and avoiding any sign of civilization. The peace and quiet of nature has helped relax and calm the little halfling, if only this calming influence could be transmitted to his dreams.

 

     Luckily he only remembers pieces that leave him listless and feeling haunted when he wakes. They seem to feature a massive Black Dog that stalks petefeet through the dream-world, chasing him until all rational thought flees and petefeet can think of nothing but hiding from the hound. There does "appear" to be bright spot in his dreams though, during every dream in which the Black Dog chases him, petefeet also catches the odd glimpse of a woman.

 

     She is never close, nor does petefeet even get a good look at her, other have she seems to be wreathed in flame. The flames appear to cause her no harm and might even act as some kind of shield, since the Lady in Flames doesn't seem to be aware of petefeet. Once or twice petefeet thinks they might have made eye contact, but with the Black Dog chasing him, he never has a chance to be sure.

 

     Hopefully in time, his dreams might make more sense to petefeet, but until then he will muddle through as best he can.

 

 

Hey kids,

 

Been a busy week for me, late start to the challenge since I was away last weekend and I got called in to work an OT shift this week leaving my free time limited. Hard to turn down the OT $$$ though with Christmas on it's way.

 

For those who have followed me before, I try and mirror petefeet's adventures with my real. Now while my sleep hasn't been plagued by the Black Dog (depression) I find most of my waking hours "dwelling". Added to the mixed is the Lady in Flames (friend who I think I'm in love with...) and I find myself doing a lot of deep sighing and replaying conversations in my head.

 

     Now I normally don't do this, but since I don't have anybody in real life to talk to, I guess I'll spill my guts here. The Lady in Flames came over Monday for supper to check out my loot from the sci-fi convention last weekend and to go over the edits of a short story I wrote (She's my proofreader).

     I also gave her some "treasures" of her own that I got for her (notably a signed Mark Shepard picture). She thanked me, and then mentioned how her ex boyfriend would be so jealous. She mentioned him 3 times making me wonder if they are back together? I would have asked, but 1. She's VERY private. 2. I was scared the answer was Yes.

     Added to this, she asked me to stop dropping off "treats" to her at her work. Reading what I just wrote, I realize how this makes me sound like an awkward teenager who doesn't know how to talk to girls, and in a way I guess I am (minus the teenager bit). If I'd made a batch of cookies etc.. I would have dropped off a couple to her (I live 3 minutes from her work). I'm not the only person to do this, several people both men and woman have taken to doing this, I think we do it to try to make her smile?

 

Man... Thinking about deleting all this, makes me sound like such a tool.

 

     Anyways... it was a confusing visit for me, I find it hard to know where I stand, since there are VERY STRICT boundaries between us. A while back I tried taking about the Black Dog and she basically told me she doesn't like it when people share, which I admit hurt, but it's also not fair to dump my issues on her when neither of us are good at understanding them.

     I'm trying quite hard not to be too clingy, limiting my visits to her work (place I'm normally at several time a week), not texting her on weekends etc....

 

Fuck this Love thing, I got no ruler to put it against...

 

Anyways... enough dwelling.

 

Main Quest: Keeping my weight at/near the 180 lbs mark (my goal weight)

 

Side Quests: 1 of 2 Cardio's done this week. Between working nights, an extra OT shift, snow falling, I've found it hard to get motivated. Will try better next week.

                   : No BBWW done. Not strictly true, did some lunges, push-ups, pull-ups at work while on nights, but not enough to count as a true workout.

                   : Kept my daily weigh-ins and food log, though been over calorie budget once or twice but nothing big.

 

Life Quest: Spent an hour trying to strap my basement ceiling for drywall, though hard to do by yourself and I screwed up twice since my heart wasn't really in it.

 

This coming week is my "long" week at work 5- 12 hour shifts, so it will be a struggle.

[Talvi]

Hi Petefeet,

 

Nice to see you around here again.  You must have been rather brave to end that relationship, and I hope the Black Dog hunts you less now.  

 

Also "Lady in Flames" is a very vivid image there.  You sound more than a bit worried at the moment about the flames - be brave

[petefeet]

     The days are getting shorter and the nights colder and petefeet realizes that wherever he is, winter is closing in. Still not eager for human company, never the less he sees that he will need to find a warm and dry place to hold up for the winter and usually that meaning civilization.

 

     With the dry autumn leaves crunching underfoot, petefeet gathers up the last few wizened up wild blueberries still clinging to their branches when he hears movement behind him. Hoping for a quail or squirrel to roast over his cook fire, petefeet very slowly pulls out his sling and loads it with a pebble from the pouch on his belt. Turning around as stealth fully as he can, the halfling starts gently spinning the sling all the while his eyes scan for a target. A flicker of motion is off to the left, but before petefeet can turn completely, the creature springs at him.

 

     Startled, petefeet stumbles backward in fear, slips on a patch of wet leaves and falls flat on his back.

 

     "Meow?" says a familiar looking cat as it stands on petefeet's chest staring down at him.

 

     "Mickey? What are you doing here?" Upon hearing its name the cat from the magical tower that saved the halfling all those weeks ago, starts purring and head-butting the halfling in the chin.

 

     Sitting up, petefeet tries to pick up Mickey, but apparently the cat wants none of that, as he springs off the halflings chest, hind claws digging in sharply, as the cat bounds off in the trees. Guessing what is expected from him, petefeet gathers up his dropped belongings and hurries after the feline.

 

     It's an odd journey which features our friend the halfling rushing through the forest chasing after a cat that bounds from stump to branch or tunnels through the fallen leaves like a mole through the ground. With no idea where he is, or where he is going, petefeet is almost ready to give up when he sees Mickey laying down in a patch of sunlight in front of the ruins of a old stone manor house.

 

     While the roof has long since collapsed, the walls seem sturdy enough, and with a bit of effort some of the rooms might provide shelter from the coming weather. Clearly someone or something is looking out for petefeet, first the tower appearing just in time to save him, now a place to hole up for the winter, but who or what it is, the halfling has no idea.

 

     Looking down at Mickey, petefeet says, "I don't suppose you want to explain all this?"

 

     Mickey looks up at the halfling and flicks his tail in amusement.

 

     "It was worth asking..."

 

     Using the last of the days sunlight to construct a temporary lean-too roof of evergreen branches over one of the manor house rooms, petefeet finally is satisfied that it will do, at least until he can clean out and winterize some of the other rooms in the coming days.

 

     Petefeet is surprised, but grateful that Mickey has stayed with him all afternoon, watching him from various positions as he tries to capture as much of the suns fading warmer as possible. And when petefeet lights his campfire and settles in for the night, Mickey hops down from his perch and curls up in the halflings lap.

 

    With a gentle smile on his face, petefeet falls asleep and dreams....

 

     The dream world is hazy, though the Black Dog is there stalking petefeet through the forest, it's heavy footfalls snapping branches as it hunts for the halfling. Fleeing from the hound, petefeet looks for and sees the Lady in Flames, but instead of rushing towards her, he forces himself to approach slowly. When he gets within 10 feet of her, petefeet senses that the Black Hound has retreated, as if the light/flame from the lady holds the hound at bay. Instead of trying to get closer to the Lady in Flames, petefeet settles for the light and warmth from where he is, scared that if he tries to get any closer, her flames might burn him....

 

 

Hey kids,

 

Nothing too exciting to report, been working at finishing my basement (Life Quest). Right now I'm trying to strap the ceiling to get it ready for drywall, but it's quite hard to do by yourself. I'll get there somehow. 

 

Visited the "Lady in Flames" at her work on Tuesday. She was a bit remote first off, but I just said hi and went to check on new inventory (she works at a used bookstore). After a while, she finished what she was doing and I had a new find, so we had a nice chat (we have LOTS in common), though I made sure not to cross the line and get personal. She became more comfortable as we chatted, once she realized I was respecting her boundaries. For the time being, I can survive with this, emotional breadcrumbs are better than nothing.

 

Main Quest: Still in and around my goal weight, though I took myself out for supper last night and the extra calories showed up in the scale this morning.

 

Side Quest:  Daily Food log and weigh-ins kept.

                  :  Only 1 of 2 Cardio's done so far

                  :  0 of 1 BBWW done

 

Life Quest: Like I said above, I'm working at strapping the ceiling of my basement. Once I get that done, my brother the electrician, will wired it up. 

[Kareesh]

So glad to see you back. *hugs* Glad to hear things are getting better for you. Subbing to follow along in your journey once again.

[petefeet]

     It has been a busy week for petefeet as he tries to make a home within the ruins of the deserted manor house.

 

     Using little more than his wits and limited tools, he has cleaned out three adjoining rooms of the manor house. The mountains of rotting lumber, leaf matter and animal bones have been carted out until the stone floors once again can be seen and are swept using nothing more than an evergreen branch.

 

     One of the three rooms, petefeet has cleaned out appears to have been part of the servants barracks with a small but serviceable fireplace. After several hours of filthy work cleaning out the flue of decades of bird nests, petefeet is finally able to get a fire started.

 

     Little of the outside world intrudes upon our little halfling these days, though one thing of note does happen. Normally while petefeet is busy working away at his new home, Mickey the Cat is sound asleep in whatever patch of sunshine he may find, but on one crisp fall day, he paced along the crumbling stones walls watching the forest outside.

 

     Late in the afternoon, just as petefeet was finishing lashing together spruce boughs into a makeshift mattress, Mickey hoped down from the old stone wall and charged outside. Uncertain what had spooked the cat, petefeet snatches up a sturdy club that he leaves just by the doorway for defense and follows the cat outside.

 

     At first the halfling sees nothing except Mickey who is standing their bold as brass, his back arched and tail puffed out, staring into the forest. It's then that petefeet realizes that the familiar birdsong and the other sounds of the wilderness have stopped, like the woods are holding a collective breathe waiting for something. The wait isn't long, because out of the forest shuffles a massive brown bear, heavy with it's pre-winter fat. Whether it just happened upon them or was investigating the smell of the halflings fire, either way the brown bear now knew they were here.

 

     The Bear walks to within 20 feet of Mickey and petefeet, it's nose in the air as it's head slowly swings back and forth. Stopping its advance, it looks at the pair intently for several minutes before huffing out a breath through its nose and turning away. Within seconds the massive beast fades into the wilderness.

 

Hey kids,

 

Been a busy week for me, had to be at work 8 days in a row, either doing shifts or for training, so my time has been limited.

 

What free time I've had, I've spend in my basement, trying to strap the ceiling so my brother the electrician can wire the room up. I'm not ready yet, I'm learning as I go and it isn't the easiest effort by myself.

 

One highlight of my week was that I got to see my friend Hal (Brown Bear). He and I live over an hour away so our visits are infrequent, though I've committed to going to his place once a month for a "Pathfinder Campaign".

 

Main Quest: Doing ok I guess, a little over my goal weight since I splurged and bought a pizza the other day as a reward for getting as much done in the basement as I did.

 

Side Quest: Keeping daily weigh-in's and food log, though been over budget a couple times. Having a difficult time finding a calorie limit for my "maintaining" goal.

                    Haven't been for a single walk or been on my recumbent bike all week, to be honest, hard to find the free time. (0 of 2 Cardio)

                    Somehow got in my BBWW, though split up time-wise, better than not at all IMO. (1 of 1 BBWW)

 

Life Quest: No effort on the breakfast sign done, too busy strapping basement ceiling. Happy with what I have got done though.

 

And for those interested, "Lady in Flames" is still a factor. Visited her at her work a couple times and we had a great hour long chat. Breadcrumbs are better than nothing.

 

    

[petefeet]

No big story right now, just checking in. Will try and do one up tomorrow.

 

No major drama in my world, been busy at work, getting ready for the holidays, several lodge visits etc... going on so free time is limited.

 

My quests are in line, though not getting my Cardio in. Saying that, I've been so busy I dropped below my goal weight! Maybe I'm making room for a holiday splurge? <g>

[petefeet]

Just a short update.

 

Finally getting around to posting, quite a busy time of year.

 

Nothing too big going on in my world, keeping within my goal weight of 180, though been on the heavier side this past week (Darn Christmas treats!!!)

 

Keeping my food log and daily weigh-in's, though been having hard time getting in "extra" Cardio, but have made an extra effort in my normal routine to walk as much as I can rather than use a vehicle to get out buildings. Doing some limited BBWW while at work when I have a spare minute to do some squats, push-ups etc...

 

Weird emotion day. It was 2 years ago day since my Grandfather passed away. He was my last grandparent as well as the one I was closest too. He was a hard man to love, but love him I did, so I took a trip out to the cemetery this afternoon and paid my respects.

 

"Lady in Flames" is still in the picture.

 

She was over for a visit after work last night, though shorter than normal since she had a migraine. "Think" she felt obligated to come over since she bailed last week. Then again, maybe she wanted to come over. I hate doubting myself like this! 

 

She mentioned her ex several times in conversation, which made me wonder again if they are back together. I was going to ask, but she wasn't feeling well, emotions are high around the holidays anyways, and I don't want the heart ache right at the moment. I don't like how my emotions seem tied to her, I've never felt like this before.

 

Anyways... I gave her a Christmas present and asked her to text me when she opened it on Christmas day since I'll be stuck at work (yes I have to work a 12 hour shift on Christmas). I also said I would visit her at work before Christmas itself.

 

Hope everyone reading this is well.

[Kareesh]

Glad to see you're still around and doing pretty well. Christmas treats get me too, but fortunately we don't have any around the house at the moment, which is my workplace. lol.

 

I hated the doubting game as well. A possibility is that she mentioned him so much just because that use to be a big part of her life...? I know it was hard for me to stop talking about my ex-fiance after we had a pretty ugly break up. But I'm glad to hear that you guys are still comfortable around each other. You must be doing something right.

[petefeet]

Wrap up...

 

Honestly, this challenge was a bit of a wash for me, tough time of year.

 

I stayed within my goal weight, though didn't get as much Cardio nor BBWW done as I wanted.

 

Got some work done on my "life quest" (basement reno), though when I have time I don't have the dollars and then I have the dollars...

 

Plan on doing next challenge (Jan 5th) and hope to be more focused.

 

Merry Christmas all!

[Ahyar Dreamspark]

Heya! I've been lurking here during the last challenge--my posting motivation on any thread has been a little iffy lately

 

Just wanted to say congrats for sticking with it, even though you say it was a bit of a wash. Staying within your goal weight and getting some progress made toward your life quest is definitely something!

 

Good luck with the "Lady in Flames" also. I'm probably the least qualified to give relationship advice, though, so I'll stop here XD

 

I hope you're having some awesome holidays, and looking forward to your 5th challenge on the 5th!