ADITL

A Day In The Life --- (ADITL)

4am - 6am  weigh-in (got down to 158 this week!), walk the dog with husband followed by enjoying breakfast (oatmeal, peanut butter, banana, berries, flaxseed, coffee with cream/sugar), watch videos, check FB/Instagram (no baby yet!), blog

6am - 7am brush/floss teeth, Yoga video (M-Th-- I have this trick, if I do 4 days in a row I 'get' the weekend 'off'), shower/dressed

7-7:30 --set up morning 'jobs' that may include the following: update CANVAS for my Dual Credit students, setting up stand for flute, downloading podcasts to listen to while doing housework.

7:30 -8 walk around the park with dog/husband --wave good-bye to spouse from back & front windows

8-Noon -- practice flute, clean-up kitchen, prep lunch dinner, work on any grad work, take Gerald on walk #3, blog, organize something (last week it was my closest -- example: I didn't like that my blouses and dresses were all mixed up together -I also got rid of a lot of things like old wallets). Yesterday at 8am (Friday, a no Yoga day) I was feeling blue, the announcement that schools in Missouri would be closed the rest of the year was both not surprising and sad. As I further analyzed my mood I realized I was also hormonal. I needed a jumpstart to my day. I downloaded 3 episodes of The Open Ears Project and headed out for a walk/jog/walk. These podcasts are each 7-10 minutes long. I jogged for the second one. This was a game-changer for me pulling me out of my mood--the combination of the fresh air, being alone in the park, the music, and the jog --a lovely time!

Noon-1 --husband home for lunch, dog walk #4, eat/watch Netflix (currently we viewing The Office Season 8-- a favorite series for both of us)

1-3pm -- read a book (currently reading The Catcher in the Rye -not loving it but I'm determined to finish it bc it is one of my son's favorites and bc it comes up a lot in various ways), watch videos, nap with my kitty Chester, scroll Facebook, clean-up kitchen, have hot herbal tea. [Yesterday I was seriously craving hot chocolate hormonal, I found a recipe for chocolate syrup - delicious! ]

3-4:45 --walk the dog, finish, more of the same (see 1-3 above)

4:45-5 either walk to my husband's work with Gerald and ride home together or wait by the window (with dog/cat) for him to come down the driveway it's a lovely way to begin an evening with an 80-pound hound running (and a few howls!) to greet you

5-6--dinner/Netflix The Office -- for the last few years we have settled into this routine of mostly not eating in the kitchen, my husband and I talk on our walks, but when we eat at the table (just the 2 of us) the conversation is unnatural (not sure that's the best word). During these meals when we watch an easy show we often look at each other and laugh out loud together, etc.-- it's what works for us. --I find a lot of security in this routine that has played out. This adjustment of mindset reminds me of the following quote from an NYT article on sermons in 'empty cathedrals',

 “Every hand we don’t shake must become a phone call we make,” she said from the pulpit. “Every inch and every foot of distance we put between ourselves and another must become a thought about how we could help that other should the need arise.”
[The source is unclear, The New York Times attributes it to Rev. Kristen Kaulbach Miles of Trinity Church Wall Street.]

Here are some adjustments I'd like to make as I continue to wobble through life --

In my boredom - rest and/or create (unplug)
In my feelings of uselessness -wrestle self-worth/need for validation, find ways to serve
In my sadness -acknowledge, be present, process
In my gratitude -hover with deep breaths in and out
In my loneliness -reach out (also see uselessness and sadness above)
In my questioning of my use of time -day by day untangle the web of regret vs. dread -start fresh

6-7:30-- more videos (YouTube addict!), fall asleep on the chair with kitty, (sometimes) do dishes and take the dog on his very short, final walk...drag self to bed. Good night.

Thanks for reading.
Stay well,
Amy BH