We had a very nice visit to Fairbanks last week. There was much to do in a very short period of time. The conference went well and my husband was able to visit with many people he knows from several different villages. I really enjoy these gatherings and the sense of community. It was a bit more formal than a potlatch or pow wow, but still left me with a good feeling. We were also able to watch one day of the North American Open Sled Dog Races in which his cousin was one of the mushers.

We walked and walked. The hotel is large and the conference room, although still in the same building, was a long ways from our room. I made several trips between the two on Friday. Then, on Saturday, we walked quite a distance to the dog races and back again, followed by walking to another reception. My knees swelled so much that the skin was painful to the touch!

I’ve been doing so well on the BTD and with my naturopath that I had forgotten how badly swollen my knees become when I’ve stood or walked too much. I was more interested in keeping my ankles from twisting. I blew my knees out when I was a teenager while doing a back bend. It sounded like a shotgun being fired and I’ve never been okay in the knees since then. Anyway, I’ve not done any walking to speak of since Saturday night and now most of the swelling and pain are gone. Pineapple juice has been a real blessing!

Eating the right foods wasn’t as difficult as I’d expected. I was able to make wise choices at nearly every meal and didn’t go hungry or way off my O foods. I know I wasn’t totally compliant, but I think I did pretty well considering the offerings