I have written more than a couple of articles about meeting Ti Ti a decade ago. There are hundreds. I love seeing the world, especially during winter break from teaching. Most of my excursions starting in 2001 were during the month between the fall and spring semesters. During winter break from teaching in 2013, I visited Myanmar. While traveling in the tourist triangle, I stopped near Inle Lake.

My tour guide was Moh Moh. While in the Inle Lake area, Moh Moh had to pick up my itinerary after leaving Inle Lake. She said it would only take a minute. Moh Moh added that I could meet Ti Ti, her nine-year-old daughter, who was home during her school winter break. When we walked into their living room, Ti Ti greeted me. “Hi. My name is Ti Ti. Do you want to play some games?”

When I left their home, I realized that I met my granddaughter. It transformed my life. I have returned to Myanmar two additional times to visit my family. This is our family photo on my last trip.

There is only one fact that I haven’t mentioned in all my writings regarding playing Scrabble with Ti Ti. As we started to sit on their living floor, Moh Moh noticed that I was having trouble getting down onto the floor. Quickly, she said to wait a minute and got a throw pillow. I appreciated Moh Moh’s care and concern but didn’t realize I was moving more slowly back then. That is the backstory.

Several months ago, I had a routine physical with Dr. Marchand, the son of my former cardiologist. It was a regular exam. During our talk, he asked if I had any concerns. I said I take an over-the-counter med twice daily to deal with my difficulty getting down on the floor to play with my Irish Setter. I get down slowly, but I get up far more slowly than getting down. Dr. Marchand’s advice was to go to a sauna regularly.

I followed Dr. Marchand's advice. I have used the saunas at the Southlake YMCA nearly daily for several months. The Y has two sauna rooms: one with steam and one without steam. This is the steam sauna.

Additionally, they have a sauna whirlpool.

I began using the steam sauna, but most others frequented the non-steam room. I assumed that it was better and joined them. The only thing that I noticed, aside from the steam, the room without steam seemed to be hotter.

My routine began with 15 minutes in the sauna, which, over time, moved to 20, then 25, and finally 30 minutes. In the non-steam sauna, there is a wall thermostat. I have gotten so used to the temperature range. I can guess the temperature of a visit, which ranges from 170-185°F. Then, I get into the sauna whirlpool to cool down. It is much less warm than either of the other saunas.

I’m fascinated by the various clothing that guys wear in the sauna. Most people follow the suggestion of loose-fitting exercise shorts. However, some wear long-sleeved tops and pants. I assume they wanted to sweat more.

There are many benefits for folks who use saunas regularly. It improves their health generally, including lowering their risks of cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, and stroke. It can reduce joint pains and relax muscles. Saunas increase collagen production and the shedding of one’s dead skin cells.

It is also interesting to watch the interaction between users. Some are stoic and say nothing. Others would talk even though I wasn’t sure that people were listening. The other day, a guy came into the sauna with a foot-square piece of wood with small bumps on one side. This is a picture of one that he got from Amazon.

A foot massager and reflexology tool

He was asked what that did for him. Essentially, it can help with all the various medical issues people might have. It functions like acupuncture but without a needle. I did some research on this item. It is a reflexology tool. The guy swears that he uses it all the time, and it cures everything. I need to wait until I see Dr. Marchand again to discuss the value of a reflexology tool.

I was going to mention to those in the sauna that I have six Himalayan salt lamps in my home. Salt lamps do produce negative ions in the air, which is good. However, the improvement in the air quality is so minute that it doesn’t improve one’s health. Nonetheless, I benefit from the beauty of the salt lamps. Emotionally, it brightens my days and nights.

Finally, I’m looking into building my sauna in my backyard and use this video as my construction guidelines.