Starting month 8

I kind of stopped counting the weeks. When we got to be 6 month mark I thought to myself at a shake off this counting it's not gonna do you much good.

 So now we are in birthday month. That is a little bit of fun to track.  What are we doing to celebrate a little each week.. each day.  That has been a nice change of focus.

 We have done a nice walk in the park. We donated blood OK well I donated blood. Had a nice long lunch with a friend... Outside of course.  Had a fun outing to a vineyard with friends..again outside. It rained that day. Tthat was fun and eventful. A good memory maker. Sat outside at the local tap house and had a spiked Apple cider slushy. That was fun.

Prime rib dinner with my mom. Actually saw some other friends at the restaurant so that was nice for all of us. And we never would have thought to go out on a random Wednesday to a local restaurant to sit outside and eat prime rib.  But we did and it was so nice.  We may just do it again.

And some other plans for this weekend..  and then we go back to stricter isolation in prep for an upcoming vacation.

second 6 months

Not sure why I made the demarcation to the second 6 months.  I guess because I was so shocked to feel like.. oh here we are 6 months in.  I tell myself for my sanity maybe I should stop keeping track.  Maybe that will help with the routine.

Who knows.

I do know at the end of the second 6 months I have exciting plans so...  

August went by in a blur

Saw an old friend I hadnt seen in years.  That was a wonderful surprise.  We met for a walk. It turned into a really long walk with coffee and goos conversation. 

I had a freckle removed from my leg. Still working on that not scarring too much.  

I went to HHI for a quick quiet get away.  Walks to the beach. Minimal shopping. A few meals with seafood.

I swam in the Lake from my friends dock a few times.  I really wish I had made that a weekly routine.  Swimming and seeing them was nice.

There was some running and some walking...  70 miles.

And I made it a point to meet up with friends.

All and all a nice way to spend some time.

September is almost to a close as well.

There was a long weekend in there.  A girls weekend in there. 

Got back out on the road on my bike for about 70 miles so far.  Maybe I can squeeze in some more this weekend.

I have been trying to walk 300,000 steps but falling short if that.

I saw an old friend from high school.  It was nice. It was awkward. What do you talk about to cover 30 years of time? How do transition from fun high school kids to serious middle aged people with personal trainers and thrown out backs and jobs to do and homes to maintain?

I tried my hand at disc golf.  I suck. But goodness was the awkwardness of it not one of the best things for me.  Putting myself outside that comfort zone. I dont know the last time I threw a frisbee. Memories of the back yard and my dad. Knowing people were watching my awkwardness.  The pure random laughter of it. Fred! The last time I think I threw a frisbee was with Fred.  And that would have been 1998.  Gosh that was a fun day.  Prospect meeting gone poorly so we changed and went to the park.. attempted frisbee.. and then we went to a driving range.  A nice carefree moment way back then.  So I digress. 

Back to the disc golf.  It was good.  And then we just walked around the park.  Took the time to watch the people.  And sat down to watch a soccer game.  Obviously not as much urgency to fill 30 years of time with that relationship. 

There have been multiple hurricanes.  Paulette and Teddy went to Bermuda.  Today Beta is here.  I forget the name of the last one that blew through.   I am currently laying in bed.. windows open.. and the rain sounds amazing out there.  Need to go find my wellies and take the dog for a walk.  Make it fun!

All my Disney races have been canceled.  The trips are still on the books. I suspect the 2nd trip may for cancelled until the races are rescheduled. That's just a gutt feeling.  That is not my call to make.  I have a pass.  I am good. 

And some of my logistics for April are all set.  Now to get on the rest of them

week 23

Just amazing that we are still in this state.  I knew it wouldnt be 2 weeks.  

So I am resolving to stop counting at 26 weeks and just keep moving forward.

You know how when you count down to a vacation... or count back to a vacation..  You can only do that for so long.  Then you move forward to the next thing.

It is time to move forward to the next thing.  Make plans for what we know.  Make plans with what we have.  Life always throws curveballs.  This one is just always on the news and impacting everyone.   But while we have been focusing on the global pandemic I am sure there there others that have had less publicized road blocks thrown in their path... along with COVID.

So today..  start where you stand.  Think fondly of where you stood 12 months ago.  But start today where you are.

what day is this?

I believe this is the start if week 21.. so day 141 or so..

Wow

I knew that we all wouldnt quarantine for 2 weeks and the disease would go away.

Maybe if we all stayed away from everyone for 4 weeks..?

I had thought we would all have to stay in.. like not leaving the house for anything..

But who can really do that?  Surely not everyone.   So here we are week 21 and not an end in sight.

But so much has been learned in this time.  Well for me at least.  

I have remembered my love of cooking.  New things. Old things. Recipes. Off the cuff.  Good food.  Curry..  chicken.. sauce.. baking... "grey stuff".

I have enjoyed all the time with Conrad.  He really is quite the sidekick.  Well except when I want to sit outside with a glass of wine.  Then he comes inside... not really an outdoor dog.

I sit in the dining room.  Sometimes to make dinner feel posh.  Sometimes to make sure I am not eating breakfast or lunch at the desk.  And at the moment.. there is clutter but sitting here anyways.  Love the Waterford in the center.  The Island Shop placemats and bright flowers. The art I FINALLY HUNG on the wall.

We play musical chairs in the living room.. right end of the sofa, left end of the sofa, club chair (as my mom would call it).  Back room.. leather love seat.. swanky Pottery Barn chair.  Change the seat.  Change your perspective.

Have read a few books. Have ordered a few more.  Oops ordered a cookbook on Kindle..  have an intense swim workout book arriving next week.

Rode my bike.. on the trainer.

Ran.. ran faster than I have in a while.

Walked...Conrad like that.  At least for shorter distances.

And have swam a wee wee bit.

Listened to music.  Go to music I always listen to.  New music.  Right now Bon Iver is singing with Taylor Swift... lovely.  Danced around the house to the new Jessie Ware album.  Remembered why I enjoy Ben Howard and Mumford and Sons so much.  Have missed concerts.

Installed a white board.

Bought a pair of Aftershokz.

Found some new coffee.

Looking at face masks.

Resigned a board position I held.

Signed up for a mediation course.. gonna learn about chakras.. following it up with a transitional life coach.  See what that does.

Researched other places to live... UK, Ireland, Iceland, Bermuda, SC coast...

So as much as we say we have been kn quarantine, lock down, social isolation..

LIFE has still gone on. GROWTH has still gone on.

And it has been wonderful in it's new perspective of COVID.

So let's see what week 21 brings.

wake up

One of the things I have enjoyed about all of this quarantine stuff is the peaceful morning wake up.

The alarm isnt going off at 4 something in the morning anymore so I can walk the dog, suck down some coffee and then go to the gym.

Yes it does go off a little before 6am... but for the most part I am waking up by then a little bit.

And I dont feel the urge to have to rush around.  Today will be a walk with the dog followed by some stretching and coffee.

From there a quick change for work and the really short commute to the home office.  Today there is lots to get done at the home office.

cleaning

Why in the world would I talk about cleaning... Because a cop haunts me being here at the house all the time

A number of years ago I came to the realization with being on the road all the time and the commute and outside activities I would have someone help clean my house. It has been a very nice perk. But having someone clean wire in the house sheep having someone else come in my house is it really on my list these days.

So the dog and I try to come up with a routine. This is back M laundry bathrooms clean the floor. The retain could possibly be more routine. And mostly it's just all those darn dishes where did they come from. I feel so accomplished everything's in the dishwasher and the next  Thing you know the sync is teaming again with dishes. Must being direct correlation with that previous post.

The vacuuming has reminded me how much dog hairs shed on a regular basis.

covid diet

So when we 1st all ran out to the grocery store thinking we be quarantine for a bit I think a lot of people use the approach of a snow day a storm day

Let's by all the snacks let's play all the junk food

That quickly faded for me. I went through my jar of peanut butter it was very tasting. I had a couple of boxes and bags of cheez its. That was a nice change. I dabbled with some ice cream. But perhaps the novelty is worn off.

Unlike others I feel my scale and I are on good terms. I was 1.2 pounds away from my goal weight about 2 weeks ago. Haven't hit the go away yet. We can call it a little bit of dehydration on that scale day. But I'm still holding my own.

The hardest part is buying fresh fruit and vegetables and then it goes badd because you're running in bulk.

Twice now I've had really badd pineapple. The 1st one made me kind of sick. The 2nd one didn't stick around the house that long.

 I have made a variety of fun things. Variations of curry. Meat loaf. Shrimp scampi. I have clam sauce that I need to make with and greening that will happen sometimes sooner than later. I bought polenta the other day with the idea of making it with peppers and onions and mushrooms I guess I need to make that  Sooner than later as well.

I have baked  Things. I think I started with a chocolate cake. Moved on to mixed Berry scones. 2 attempts at bread but the  Kind without yeast. Coffee cake. That made a whole lot of coffee cake.  Rum cake that went over really well. Ginger snaps that were wonderfully snappy. And lastly an old school banana carrot loaf with raisins and nuts and chocolate.

Next up I may try that bread with yeast or go back to the mixed Berry scones.

day 100 or so

So I had started with the concept that I would make a post every day on a track being isolated

Then I somewhat found that being isolated really didn't warrant Tracking every day it was a fairly consistent routine

I will admit there have been some up days and some down days Some ambitious daysAnd some don't really feel like getting out of bed days

I feel like I've noticed the most conflict when trying to move forward as usual but you know in your back of your mind it's not as usual

Training for race. Planning a client meeting. Looking at the calender 6  Months out. Trying to inspire people to volunteer for 2021.

We are going through the motionsBut it's not quite realistic.

But we need to continue to move forward

day 68

Not much to say today.

Laying in bed.  Listening to the birds outside.  Can hear a few cars in the distance. It is early still but light out already this time of year.  It has me thinking I should jump on the bike and ride around the big block just to get some fresh air.

This week has been another dud of a week when it comes to work outs.  My stomach was a mess earlier in the week.  Blaming that on some random foods.  And then I havent motivated from there.

Last night I worked until about 8pm.  That is a problem with the office being just down the hall.  You start a project and it just gets away from you... and you don't have to worry about the drive.. you have fed the dog.. and you just work on.  Glad I did.  Got a spreadsheet done that needed attention and can send some emails today to get some insight on what I did.

I ended up cooking late.  Homemade scampi.. work in progress for sure.

and then just stayed up too late.  That typically goes hand in hand with the work thing.

Today I have meetings in the AM.  Then need to run some leftovers to my mom.  And the afternoon will be more meeting scheduling and spreadsheet filling.

Tomorrow is a short day and the start of a long weekend.  Not sure what that will look like.  Some bike rides maybe.  So long walks or runs.  More cooking.  And laundry. 

Mentally it has been a good week.  Trying to not listen to too much drama.  It is out there in full force. Trying to stay off social media more than I used to.  And trying not to engage in undermining conversations. 

Meditation helps.  Breathing exercises help.  I am glad there are a good number of those at my finger tips.

ironman

Not the movie, the race. I was needing some motivation.

I was doing OK with some running in April.  But as the days turned to weeks and the weeks turned to months.. the short term memory had me working out a whole lot more than the reality.

So 3 weeks ago I decided I would give myself 2 weeks to complete Ironman distances in the bike and the run.  2 mile run every day.  10 miles on the trainer.

It started out strong.  And as usual it faltered.  But last weekend I pulled out the stops to hit the goals.  It made for a lot of walking and a lot of time in the saddle.  But got it done.

Of course I ended up doing absolutely NOTHING this past week but am OK for it.

My tummy has been out of sorts for the past 36 hours.. maybe even a little longer.  Taco Tuesday gave me heartburn of sorts and then some over ripe pineapple added to the sour tummy.  Today there is tea and some pre and pro biotics.  We will see how that goes.

Some fermented food in the future as well.  Get that back on track.

Get back to feeling OK for some exercise.

I wanted to do a baseline 6.2 mile run walk today.  🙄🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️🏃🏼‍♀️🏃🏼‍♀️🏃🏼‍♀️🏃🏼‍♀️🤢🤮

projects

A lot of people are dabbling with home projects.  The first weekend I remember bounding out of bed.. I was going to prep my patio for warmer weather.  Washed off all the winter debris.  And pulled some weeds.  We do sit out on the patio a couple of times a week.  More often than not we end up doing exactly what we are doing now..  sitting inside with the door open and looking out at the patio.  It is cooler for the dog.  Appears comfier for #ThisIsConrad as well.

Today we are headed to a friends to grab some remnant rocks they bought for a yard project. I am going to redo the side of the patio that is just miserably overgrown and nasty.  Put rocks back in there as I had started years ago.  

There is some neighbor yard creep going on there as well.

And then there are the light blocking curtains in the home office.  They arrived on Monday.  The box says should take 2 hours to install.  So I thought I could throw those babies up one morning before work.  Let's rework that reasoning...  2 hours per panel..  there are 3 panels.  So that's what I am doing this AM after my tea and this little bit of blogging. 

And the other steady project is keeping the house in order.  Dishes out of the sink.  Laundry out of the hallway.  Dust off the tables and shelves.  I have actually been enjoying the down time, the home time, the puttering about and maintaining my space.  It has been good for me.

day 63

I so liked the idea 63 days ago to write things in the blog daily to stay on top of things.  Obviously that hasnt really panned out.

On Favebook i have been posting the week in pictures.  Some of the novelty of that has worn off as well.

I still make sure I wear a dress at least one work day each week.  And I typically will wear a nice blouse pant ensemble (that sounds so old) one day as well.

This week I did wear leggings a bit more than preferred.  It is comfy but also way to lax and sloppy at times for me to really prefer.

I have been trying to be creative with my cooking as well.   Baked a good number of things.  Tried my hand at curry a few times.  Did the cliche taco tuesday.. dont need to do that any time again soon. And there is a baked ziti in my future. 

I have also dabbled with cocktails.  Some nice variety.  Some not so nice combinations.

And still we stay at home.

Day 50

I don't know what I thought when i packed up my desk 7 weeks ago to work from home for a bit. I didn't think the 2 weeks would be sufficient.  But I didnt think about what would be. And I wouldn't let myself think about it either.

So tomorrow starts week 8 of work from home. I am thankful that I know the day will be busy.  I will be thankful that there is work to be done.

Today I ventured out on my bike on the road for the first time in the 7 weeks.  I went around the block... it was an easy jaunt and a well worth jaunt.  I need to do it again.  Maybe tomorrow. Not completely sure.  It has gotten back to depending on how I sleep.

I also did some hill drills and a little more of a run.  It felt good. It felt miserable.  I am pretty sure i am still dehydrated from it all.

And I made what I thought would be a curry chicken and it turned out to be more of a soup. I won't complain.  It is rather tasty. It will be dinner for a good portion of this week. Maybe some lunch as well.


Perhaps I have fallen into a routine.  Perhaps I have fallen into a pattern. Perhaps I have gotten some good vitamin D and endorphins running through my system.  I just feel really good in my own little space.  And want to keep it that way.

day 49

I just noticed i hadnt been counting the days.  I knew this was the start of week 8..  but I didnt do the math...  7x7 well that's 49 and yep we are at day 49...

I dont know.. I feel oddly OK with it.  I am starting to push people away so I know that's not good.  But I am rather content in the house with the dog, cooking, baking, exercising, working and going through movies and books.

I enjoyed work this week.

I enjoyed the new things I did.  

I enjoyed the routine things I did.

It was nice to chat with folks.

run to the store

One of the biggest stressors is limiting running to the store.

This week I didnt do too well.

Sunday, I got a sub to go.  They were doing a fund raiser.  I did the whole works sub, chips, soda.

Monday, I went to a Grand opening of a local fast food restaurant.  They closed one location and opened another.  Felt like I needed to be supportive.  Fried chicken, cole slaw, mac n cheese, sweet tea.

Thursday, I went to Target.  Toilet paper run and a few other items.

And this morning I went to the grocery store. My mom needed wine and popcorn.  That was the hardest run to make.  It seemed silly.  It seemed excessive.  It seemed enabling.

And with that I am going to do my darnedest to stay in again for a while.  I will need groceries in a week or so but the Instageam delivery works OK.  I did get some extra frozen chicken today so that will help get me through the fresh and frozen vegetables.

My mom wants to go out and get some meals to go.  I kind of hope she chooses not to follow through with that. I hate that she isnt interacting socially with people.  I know that has to make an impact on her health... but so does the live interaction. 

I was to go out to see friends today.  I opted to stay in.  No big deal.  I am sure they had a good time.   I didnt need to get to go nachos and measure out 6 feet and wear a mask and all that.

Instead we listened to Howard Donald do a little DJ set.. sat on the patio.. fixed one of my planters.. watched an odd movie..had some frozen pizza.. watched The Wedding Date.. ran and rode my bike.

A good day.

Tomorrow I need to clean the house.

so many things

The intent was to document a little each day of this time in quarantine self isolation shelter in place.

Funny how just as with the outside life.. time slips away and you dont stay on top of things like you thought you would.

It has been a rollercoaster of a few weeks.

Navigating around a power outage.

Trying to learn as much as possible about the CARES Act.

Trying to get everyone to embrace virtual meetings.

Documenting efforts. 

Documenting results. 

Learning new software.

Figuring out the best ways to get groceries. 

Finding one off products like toilet paper and disinfecting wipes.

Eating right

Sleeping right

Not drinking too much wine because everyone wants to do a virtual happy hour

Getting exercise while avoiding the neighbors. 

Fearful of when we would have to venture out again. 

So many questions.

So many ups and downs.

 

And at the end of the day I havent wanted to consistently keep track of it all.

food storage

When the power first went out my first reacton wasnt OH THE FOOD!
i truly was thinking about the power sources to my electronics and how to work
but once that was addressed and i was plugging along with my day with everything charging i started to think about the food
and there was no real indication as to when the power would come back on

and then we figured out where the damage was... tall old tress had come down in the older part of town and a neighbor posted at 6pm that night that the power company had finally arrived to inspect the damage

thats when i started googling - how long does food last in the freezer...  it said 24 hours and if full closer to 48...  well for once in my life i had a freezer that was full but not sure it was 48 hours full
i could hope - surely the power would be back on in 48 hours

NOPE as I went to bed on Monday the ETA for power was midnight on Wednesday
well one of the nice things about the triathlon community - people offer assistance all the time
and by the time i woke up on Tuesday I had multiple offers for freezer space...  and off i went at 730AM with 2 coolers of food (they were smaller coolers) to a friend's house... she lived realtively closer than some of the others and her freezer was outside in a detached garage...  she cleared a shelf for me and wiped the freezer down before i got there...  good stuff!

and thankfully the power was back on by that night and i was able to retrieve the food on Wednesday
everything survived

it made for an interesting week 5

Power outage

it seems that even in quarantine my consistency with blogging is about as it was when i was getting out of the house.  by the end of the work day i am at a loss for words.. and with the short commute downstairs i really don't have an opportunity to decompress much from the work day

every week there has been something a little different..
week 1 was all fresh and new - remember i had put together a daily game plan for myself to make sure i got up from my desk and was active
it is a great idea but the pollen got to be a bit much and then the people started always being outside..  it is hard to feel comfortable social distancing when people come out in groups of 5 to walk etc...  and those that think it is time to hang out and have drinks with friends..
week 2 there was a little stress breakdown in the middle of the week - couldnt tell you what at this point i just remember getting off a call and going for a long walk to clear my head
week 3 seemed to go a little better - i found myself some yoga routines and meditations an the bike and i got reacquainted
week 4 we had a short week with a holiday on Friday
i spent the holiday talking to a long time friend for over 2 hours - thank goodness for video chatting over the internet or that would be a silly expensive calle
and week 5...  seemed like a pinnacle week.. we have crossed over into longer than a month

i woke up with lots of ideas on my mind
and BOOM yes BOOM a thunderstorm blew through... thought there were some tornadoes in the mix as well - maybe they were straight line winds but whatever they were - they took out a few trees in the cute little downtown area with the old victorian homes, tall trees and above ground power lines... the trees came down, the lines came down, the power came down.  I was out of power for 36+ hours... **sigh**

what to do, what to do...
at first i worked from home.  i had enough charge in my phone to get a mifi signal and enough charge in my surface to do some work
BUT I WANTED COFFEE

i considered going out to get coffee... i am a little unnerved by going out to get food.  i know other areas do not have businesses open for take away food but we do here... so i could go to Starbucks, I could get a coffee...  but do I really want to?

instead i went to my mom's
i have been avoiding going in to her house because who knows what we are both exposed to
it just wouldnt be fair... i am the one running to the store and picking p the groceries and such
so she made me a cup of coffee and brought it to me on her patio
that's when i had the resourceful idea - bring an extension cord and all my stuff and work from her patio - it worked like a charm!  the phone was plugged in, the laptop plugged in, the tablet was plugged in... and off i went

now running some reports from the patio did not really pan out but i was able to follow up on a wealth of emails i was looking to send
and so went my Monday and Tuesday

Day 25

How are you doing?
Yesterday and this morning I reached out to individuals that I havent heard from in a while just to touch base and see how they were doing.
It was nice to hear back from those that responded. A little heart breaking to not hear back from others.

My introvert ways know that if I don't do that occasional reach out I will eventually pull into myself all together.  There is a little voice that says - just don't reach out - let's see how long it takes THEM to think of you... It is a miserable little head game.. probably taught to me at a young age.

Everyone that has replied seems to be OK.  Some stories of how their communities are social distancing.  Some stories of sorrow where friends and family members have succumb to the virus.  Two have been sick but on the mend.  Most are still working.

It is an interesting observation.. people are falling into their new normal. Being home with their children and their families.  Working remotely and interacting with fellow employees where necessary.  The circle of friends and acquaintances is getting smaller.  There are no longer casual interactions with individuals in hallways, greenways or at the gym.  People are only interacting with the people they have to interact with.  There is no need to do anything beyond that.  There is no opportunity to do much else.

So I reach out to others because I can.  I reach out to others before I start to convince myself it is pointless.

Day 24

today's work from home day includes talking to others that are working from home
a year ago today i was running a half marathon through the parks in disney
i think by this time we were done with that insanity and sitting on the ground in the parking lot and regrouping with friends
what a difference a year makes

the world seemed at my feet last year at this time
i had so many fun things on the horizon
and you know i did all those fun things - ran the run, rode the rides, at the food, drank the dole whips with rum, took all the silly pictures, wore the sundress, laughed, smiled at the sun, felt the wind in my hair... 

I won't say it was a happier time. I am still feeling pretty happy.  It is just different. 
The things we do to keep ourselves, to keep ourselves distracted, that make us feel important.  A lot of that is happening right now.  The things that ARE actually important are what are happening right now.  Reminded daily of the roof over our head.  Planning meals and that food on the table has become the long forgotten highlight of the day.  Getting outside for just a little bit.  And a prayer or two.  All of that we have been reminded is important. 
So a week in Disney is fun.  Amazing fun.  But we can find good in this as well.  Maybe not to the extreme of an amusement park.  But this will give us pause to appreciate it that much more when we can.