Volunteer Day

Yesterday was fun.  The market was fabulous and I got a few goodies.  Of course, my first time doing this kind of shopping again and maybe I was overly enthused lol.  Pictures soon.  Most vendors were priced well.  Shocked I hadn't heard of this place, but found out it opened during COVID.  So, yep.  Not many people know about it yet.

Super fun to catch up with my aunts too.  BTW, we all masked the entire time (per the regulations -- yea). The day felt "normal-ish."

I drove to the vaccination site to check out parking, logistics, etc.  Makes me feel better.  I also hired a dog walker (my neighbor has a business) to let the boys out mid-morning.  That "worry" is off my plate and I won't feel rushed to get home.  I'm looking forward to today.  Hope it goes well because I'd like to continue taking shifts while the sites are needed.

I'm up too early since Duke woke me up and there was no getting back to sleep.  I'll be tired tonight and that feels good.  Tomorrow is nothing on the calendar so I can get a regroup day before I leave for Asheville.  

I'm still mentally navigating how to do this transition back into regular life.  I'm not having an issue being out and about (with a mask and few people), but I am wondering what to bring back.  Mani-pedis?  Cleaning crew (b/c of my back)?  Massage?  Take-out?  Outside lunches? All the things I adjusted to doing without and kind of proudly so.  Now what?  When I'm with people, the push will be to do those things again.  I don't want that to take over my days -- I really, really want to be intentional with gathering.  This is hard and not sure what it looks like.  I also don't want to be one of THOSE people -- strange and preachy hah!

I decided to table the decision.  Live for a minute in a vaccinated bubble and take my time.  April is a full month working on the Asheville house and things will calm down come May.  Then I'll have a better handle on what makes sense.  Maybe a better idea of how to balance.  I want to return to a lot of things, but I want a better balance than I had before.  I'd been working on that before the pandemic too (with little success).  Sounds like something to work on inside of Brooke Castillo's coaching program.  I'm leaning hard to join in May.

That's my rambles early this morning.  Have a good day and stay well.  Later gators.

Family Day

Today is brought to me by VACCINATIONS.

I'm spending a couple of hours with my aunties.  One local, one from out of town, all of us vaccinated. We're meeting at an outdoor flea market.  I'll be masked (not sure about them -- they are looser than I am with regulations, most people are).  I'm passing on the indoor lunch at a winery after -- no indoors yet (especially in GA).  

Tomorrow I'm volunteering for the Medical Reserve Corp to administer vaccines.  I'm oddly a little nervous.  I get this way with any new experience.  Will people be welcoming?  Will I figure out where to park?  Where to go?  I have no instructions on anything ... water breaks, bathrooms, badge, etc.  Should I bring food?  Should I eat before I go?  I'm not concerned about giving the shot -- could do that in my sleep.  Once I have the first experience and know what to expect, I'll be fine.  Enneagram 6ing HARD (as I do).  I probably won't sleep well tonight.  Might take a test drive over this afternoon to see the logistics -- that will help.

Hubby comes home for an overnight tonight.  He's getting his vaccine tomorrow and heading back to NC. The mass site he's going to is halfway to Asheville so he figured that makes sense.  Only downside is I signed up to volunteer expecting him to be home.  Dogs home alone until early afternoon is a push for Monti.  Guess we'll see what happens and if I can leave him for just over 5 hours.  

Saw this yesterday -- lots of peeps reposting.  It's good.  I'm holding a few lately that are tough, but necessary.

This is another "big" couple of weeks for me.  Anything feels big after a year in quarantine -- so there's that LOL.  Back to reminding myself this is GOOD.  This is FUN.  This is what I deliberately created.  This is NOT a task list to complete and wish away.  Out with aunties, volunteering, drive to Asheville with pups (both ways) and home to volunteer again on Monday.  Then back to Asheville to stay the week myself (and dogs and neighborhood bears) waiting for the Peloton delivery.  This will be the first time in the house alone with all electronics and such new to me (not an easy learn).  Putting on my big girl panties though.  Yep -- fun, good, productive.  And a little scary for my Enneagram 6 brain.  Good news is I don't let that worry stop me from doing anything, but I can let the worry stop me from enjoying it.  It's like holding my breath until it's all over -- then I'm glad I did it.  I want to be glad I did it AND enjoy the process.  I'm trying ... 

Because uncertainty is all over the map this week, I'm fretting over workouts too.  Things are timing strange and I don't know how to finagle everything.  Weird thing for me to be so wishy-washy over.  Get a little nervous and then everything feels nervous worthy.  One thing I know, meditation is a must to calm my charged up brain.

That's all the rambling from here.  Have a good day and stay well.  Later gators.

Alone Time Ramble

Yesterday was incredible.  I missed being by myself with thoughts and podcasts and dogs and books.  It's something I crave regularly, especially after big "together" times.

I re-listened to a few podcasts yesterday.  Brooke Castillo classics and Armchair Expert with Jud Brewer.  All things centered on CHOOSING delayed gratification for your better good ... or for more authentic good.  True desires vs false desires.  I bought Jud Brewer's book too (comes today).  He deep dives into habits solidified early in life and how to change them -- spoiler alert ... being curious and mindful about what your brain is doing.  He says it way, way more clearly and more helpfully :)

I felt myself slipping this week after coming down from the wedding week and feeling sluggish from the 2nd vaccination.  I need to nip that in the bud -- and quick.

I also was playing a mental game because I had a couple glasses of wine at the wedding.  Nothing that made me feel unwell.  Sipped over a longtime.  It hit the spot.  I didn't drink at the Welcome Party.  BUT, that stopped my "count" and started activating my all-or-nothing.  I never wanted to stop drinking, I want to drink when a drink feels good.  Most of the time I use a drink to buffer something or to enjoy an experience more.  That's what I want to let go.  I am in the heart of this experiment -- what do experiences feels like if I'm not adding alcohol?  Can I learn to enjoy things for other reasons?  What do I need to practice?  What do I need to let go?  What do I need to learn?  This transition time is the most important time to be aware.

Anyway ...

I'm reading The Rose Code (Kate Quinn).  Recommendation from the PopCast.  WW2 code breakers.  I'm enjoying, but it's a long book.  Not much time given to reading lately, so looking to amp that up again.

Netflix recommendation from PopCast as well -- Kim's Convenience.  It's 3 seasons, comedy about a family that owns a convenient store in Canada.  It grows on you.  I'm about halfway into season 2.

Today is a Trader Joe's run and the both dogs have their yearly vet appointment (still curbside -- yea, vet!!).  I'll get a quick Peloton ride in first and a dog walk.  Otherwise, a quiet day again.  More cleaning and chores -- feels good to get the necessary things off my plate.

Have a good Monday and stay well.  Later gators.  

Happy Easter

I'm doing a load of nothing-to-do-with-Easter today.  Hubby leaves for Asheville.  Grand-dogs happily at home.

Me, my pups and house chores.  I'm going to tackle cleaning and such.  I'm jonesing for ALONE TIME after so much social pinging the last few weeks (wedding and the new house).  Podcast and cleaning sound really good today.

My energy is almost back to normal.  My heart rate is about 10-12 beats higher -- resting and during the workout.  Guess my body is still working behind the scenes on immunity.  I'll do an easier Peloton ride today.

Have to run and help hubby get out the door.  

Hope you have a good Easter (if you celebrate).  Stay well.  Later gators.

A Pet-Peeve and a Soapbox

Good morning.  

Things are quickly moving toward "normal" again and I'm a little freaked out.  Not so much about the pandemic, but more about suddenly leaving my routines in the dust.  My aunts are gathering next week for an outdoor flea market and invited me.  I'll go the the market (masked) and all of us vaccinated, but they are going to lunch and a winery too.  

I feel good eating and not drinking.  Lunch and a winery is what I want to avoid.  I haven't figured out how to manage a balance of before/after lifestyles yet.  Monti has a grooming appointment so I think that gets me out of the afternoon stuff (this time).

I'm afraid that when I get a taste of how it was, I'll go straight back there.  It feels super tempting.  I like NOT dieting, NOT yo-yoing, feeling good after I eat.  Eating out doesn't offer those choices -- not when I'm going out with people who aren't interested in a healthy restaurant (ie alternative restaurant).  A restaurant salad is okay, but not great.  Vegan meals at a regular restaurant means pasta.  

And my biggest pet-peeve (even before the pandemic) ... everything you do socially ALWAYS includes going out to eat or stopping for a drink.  Why?  Why can't we just go to a flea market?  Why can't we just go on a hike?  Why can't we just hang out?

Guess this is the point of such a long practice -- putting things in play when the choices are harder is HARD.  I could use life coaching on this.  Time to problem solve and figure this out.

Side note on life coaching ... my former LC who raised her rates almost 3 times what she was charging is having a bit of a crisis herself (per her Instagram).  She's paused most of her coaching -- it worked out that I'm not with her anymore (at the new way, way too high rates).  She's not in a good place to coach the integration post pandemic.

Side note on the pandemic -- not over yet so stay diligent.  My brother isn't careful (he thought he and his family had it last year early on).  He travels to gyms for his job -- no masks, doesn't care.  He and his entire family (including father-in-law) have COVID.  He exposed my cousin and his family (pregnant wife) and my aunt and uncle (vaccinated, but my uncle is a a transplant cancer patient) the day before they all tested positive.  Dumb and dumber.  My cousin had no business having him visit for the day (inside, eating, no masks) and my brother was arrogant thinking it couldn't reach him.  

I understand it's possible to contract COVID with precautions, etc.  But when you blindly don't care about ANY precautions, that's on you.  The adults all qualify for vaccines but they hadn't gotten around to doing it yet.  Two of them were first qualifiers and the rest early qualifiers.  Seriously?!  At least my aunt and uncle are vaccinated.  

That's my soapbox.  A pet-peeve and a soapbox -- falls just short of a rant LOL.

Have a good day and stay well.  Later gators.

Good Friday

I don't celebrate Easter religiously.  If the family is around, I'll make an Easter dinner (not this year).  I know it's Good Friday because hubby is off from work.  I find it an usual day for a company to give off since it's based so completely on a specific religion, but so be it.  (I know -- Christmas too, but that's become secular for many people.)

I feel blah this morning but this could be a number of things.  I haven't eaten as well this week.  Sofa slug sounds nice, but it makes me feel less good.  Maybe still some lingering vaccine side-effects.

I'm going to do a lite workout this morning to ramp up again.  This afternoon I'm headed to get Monti new dog food -- he hates the senior kibble I'm giving him.  My friend opened a dog boutique and I'll visit to see what she has that he might enjoy.  My shopping (errand) world is expanding (masked, of course).

I'm SUPER DUPER ready to do a re-evaluation of my goals list and make plans for the next few months.  I have an empty line in my 10 goals I write daily and I want to figure out something good.  I'll wait until hubby goes out of town this week so I'll have all the quiet time I need to reflex and plan forward.  Stay tuned -- I'll share as it goes.

Timing feels good -- wedding is over, Q-1 is done, vaccinations rolling out.  I'm excited to plan a few more things and get back to the 21 for 2021 list.  I'm also ready to start cooking recipes again.  Food fatigue is real and I don't want to fill that space with takeout and "junk" again.  I feel too good eating plant focused foods to let myself slip.

I think that's the most important part of this re-evaluation.  I want a NEW NORMAL that incorporates the best of The Before and The After.  I don't want now to look like before.  

Anyway ... I leave with this.  Stay well.

Yep ... soul family.

Three years ago.  Parker and Ellie
have crossed the rainbow bridge.  
I remember this hike -- LOVE them.

Vaccine Update and April 1

My second Pfizer shot went smoothly.  In and out in record time.  Well organized.  Looks like many states are fully opening vaccine eligibility by mid-April.  Yay!!

I had a little headache yesterday.  Today, I'm super body fatigued.  Don't want to hold my head up kind of fatigue.  Otherwise, I feel fine -- no headache this morning.  Looks like a sofa surfing day ahead -- which was planned, if needed.  Truth be told, this sounds nice.  March was a ball-buster month (in a good way) and a forced "nothing" day sounds good.

Overnight freezing temps for the next 2 night.  I had to bring my porch planter inside last night.  I'm one of "those" people now lol.  It's April ... in GA ... and temps below freezing.  Wow.  I'm not complaining -- I like cooler temps, but it's unusual.  Highs in the 50s though.  

Quick update on joining Brooke Castillo's life coaching program.  I planned to join in April, but this month is trip after trip to Asheville to work on the house (plus mega spending on the house supplies).  Not the best time to join.  The first month is the big month (checking out all the archived goodies).  In case I only stay a couple of months, I want to have a lot of time to watch the training videos.  It's on the table for May or June now.  

Next week I'm spending time revisiting goals and a plan going forward.  How to come out of quarantine.  What to keep.  What to ditch.  Focus forward with an adjusted normal again.  Stay tuned.

I also have a bunch of book and Netflix to chat about next week -- yea, fun!

Have a good day.  Stay well.  Later gators.

Boys looking adorable.

One last hair photo ...