I'm a freakin' hummingbird

Every day I sit out on my deck to enjoy the squirrels, the robins, and

the hummingbirds

they happily buzz around the crabapple tree, the pines, and my head.

Hummingbird me, let's compare:

They're only found in the western hemisphere (hey,

that's where I live), so references to them in european poetry, legends, and stories are, none! They are however, very commonly referenced in Native American mythologies.

the hummingbird convinces the gods to bring rain

yep, check...I pray for rain or snow and VOILA!

the hummingbird is the sun in disguise trying to court the moon

no comment

the hummingbird was sent to look for light when people lived underground in a world of darkness

errand girl for light - for people living in darkness,...well I certainly hope so!

the god of music and poetry took the form of a hummingbird to make love to a goddess who then gave birth to the first flower

almost positive I had a part in the birth of the first flower

"The Hummingbird is the symbol of the spreader of life on the Earth. It also symbolizes the rebirth of the Taino Indian Nation of the Caribbean and Florida. We also call our Warriors, Colibri Warriors (Hummingbird Warriors), as the Hummingbird is very peaceful but, it protects it own homeland with the heart of a Eagle." Peter Guanikeyu Torres

...yep, check.

Hummingbirds are the only birds that can fly backwards, & their hearts beat 1260 beats per minute. When they're not flying, like at night, they have to go into a hibernating state called 'torpor' to keep from starving to death (they have crazy fast metabolisms, and a unique glomerular filtration rate in their kidneys to allow torpor).

In the torpid state their heart rates

range from 50-180.

yep, this describes me too:

crazy metabolism - if I'm not moving I'm passed out - hibernating, dead to the world

eating constantly to fuel energy output

kidneys can't quite keep up!

In comparison to everyone else, I definitely 'fly backwards'.

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

A few weeks ago Eric pointed out that my heart rate was perhaps higher then it should be while exercising..., for my level of conditioning, perceived effort etc.

He encouraged me to get my heart checked, to make sure it isn't enlarged.

Melissa and I noticed it was a bit high on our Little Red ride...

Cardiologist, Dr. Whitehead, thinks that physiologically I have a young heart

(MHR closer to an 18 year old's).

I'm small: it doesn't take a very strong pump to get blood to all my parts.

Apparently, instead of increasing stroke volume, my heart prefers to increase HR to increase blood flow. It just likes to beat crazy fast (...you know, the rest of my muscles don't really bulk up either).

(It's kinda like I have a hummingbird in my chest instead of a heart.)

So, there you have it. I'm basically the human equivalent of a hummingbird.

Note for those with whom I've discussed the MRI:

big brain, quick heart

I'm sooo backwards...

shouldn't it be

quick brain, big heart?