The Last Post About Christmas (I promise!)
The house has been un-decorated… mostly. I got about 80% through that job and then had to shift my attention to my daughter’s birthday party. As a result, most things are down but you’ll suddenly notice there’s a sign on the the wall that says “Merry and Bright” or pick up a spatula in the kitchen with a Christmas gnome on it. Meanwhile, the things that are down are not quite properly put away… I have some rearranging to do before I can get all the bins back in the closet. SIGH. I thought I would finish the house Grinch-ing after the party, but the problem is, once you get behind, it’s really hard to get caught up. Because now there are new things to do, like clean up the party debris and fresh loads of laundry. The messes keep piling up! Tomorrow we leave on a short trip to Tampa, so I’m consumed with trip prep. I’ll have to finish the Christmas job next week. The cards are still up and I’m enjoying them. As a matter of fact, a client just gave me a card on Saturday! I was able to tell her I would add it to my display. Each card is like a little work of art- I love it. Remember the grab bag present for work, where I had to get a generic gift for a mystery co-worker? Well, I tried. But without knowing the rules of this exchange (would we be able to steal gifts from one another, like a white elephant exchange?) it seemed impossible. My sister advised me that alcohol-related gifts were always popular where she worked, but I know at least two of my colleagues don’t drink. I finally gave up and got a mug, a Starbucks gift card, and a little single-serving size bag of holiday-flavored coffee. This gift exchange was so disorganized, we didn’t end up getting our gifts until New Year’s Eve. We couldn’t get everyone together at one time so I was just told to go take a gift. I chose one that was wrapped the nicest… And it turned out to be… A mini ice cream maker! Now THAT is a great gift! I never would have gotten this for myself (or known that it existed, actually) but I can make my own ice cream any crazy way I want- with oatmilk and one of my alternative sweeteners, perhaps. I haven’t used it yet, but I will next week. It made me feel a little bad about the gift I gave- it wasn’t a BAD gift, but I really could have been more creative. Even though there are those random remnants of Christmas around my house, I’ve moved on. The holidays are over, and I accept it. Now I’m looking forward to our Tampa trip! We’re going to see some old friends, I’m going to find a cool trail to run on, and of course we’ll hear my daughter play in the All-State band- the main reason for our trip. What’s the latest gift or card you received? Are all your Christmas decorations put away?
Weekly Rundown- Feats of Strength
Whew. It was quite a week! Because I had to rearrange my running schedule AGAIN, this week was heavy on the strength workouts. My son came to the gym with me twice (!) and there were some interesting revelations… but before we get into it, thanks as always to Kim and Deborah for hosting the Weekly Rundown. Let’s just see how it all played out… Sunday New Year’s Day! My son and I had talked about going to the gym, but spontaneously decided on New Year’s Eve that neither of us felt like it. So I did Caroline Girvan’s “Brutal Leg Day” workout from her Tempo Week. I’m not sure if it was that much more brutal than her Iron Series leg days, but it was hard. Monday 4 mile run on legs that felt like lead. Tuesday I ran 3 miles in the morning… and then- very exciting- my son and I FINALLY went to the gym together! Part of the reason we were having trouble making this happen is that we seem to have very different fitness goals. He doesn’t prioritize legs, while I don’t see the point of schlepping to the gym if I’m NOT going to do legs. He wants to bulk up and I don’t really care what my body looks like anymore- I just want to run injury-free. I finally agreed to do it his way, and this was a “push” day. We warmed up with some cable flys, then did bench press, incline press machine, overhead press with dumbbells, lateral raises, skull crushers and tricep extension. Ahem… ouch. Wednesday Since yesterday was “push” day, today was “pull” day. We hit the gym AGAIN and did a cable lat warmup, then lat pulldowns, seated cable row, rear delts with the cable, trap shrugs, and bicep curls. So… my son chided me for not working hard enough. He always does his last couple sets to failure and couldn’t believe I wasn’t doing that as well. That’s why he prefers to use machines and cables and not as many free weights. He pointed out that if I’m doing bench press or squats with the bar, I’ll obviously always stop when I know I can get the bar back up safely. With the machine or cable, he’ll always end when he can only get his last couple of reps halfway. My son wanted to give me a training plan, but I had to negotiate a few points. Just like we did with bench press, where we fin0shed on the machine, I pointed out that I could do squats but then end with the leg press machine and work to failure. He agreed to that. Then, I questioned the reason for some of the exercises we did and he said he does them to make his shoulders more broad. Strangely, my fitness goals have never included “have broader shoulders.” Keeping this in mind, we came up with a tentative schedule for me. My two best days to go to the gym are Tuesday and Wednesday. Not ideal, but Tuesday I’ll do upper body. I’ll combine the push day and the pull day, and leave out some things I don’t think will help me. Wednesday I’ll do legs, and then a third strength day at home (on Fridays?) with things I don’t need the gym for- like bulgarian split squats or bicep curls. Speaking of bicep curls, my son said I’m doing them wrong (SIGH!) He challenged me to do them without moving my upper arm AT ALL, and it was really, really hard. I thought I was good at these, but apparently not. One more thing. I LIKED going to the gym and working super hard. I realized that doing “pretty hard” strength training is just kind of uncomfortable and boring for me. But doing REALLY hard strength training is actually kind of… fun. Wait, did I just say “fun?” Yes… I did. It was fun and it made me feel great. Thursday After all that, I needed a leg day. I repeated Caroline Girvan’s “Brutal leg day” workout because… why not? Friday Enough of all this pushing and pulling heavy stuff around! I did a nice 4 mile run. Saturday Day off! Well… other than going to work and HOSTING THE DREADED BIRTHDAY PARTY. Thanks so much for all the encouraging comments on my last post. You guys were right! No one cared that the house wasn’t perfect. And I forgot- these are band kids. Band kids are nice, and slightly nerdy. No one did anything stupid, and there were no trips to the ER. They jumped on the trampoline, painted rocks, ate pizza and cake, and just hung out. Most of them stayed past the original end time, and everyone seemed to have fun. Hooray!!! I was really happy for my daughter, but the best moment for me was when everyone was gone and I could change into my pajamas and snuggle on the couch with my cat. An introvert to the end. Sunday You may have noticed something missing this week- a long run! The last two weeks I did it on Wednesday, but had to move it yet again because this Wednesday I worked in the morning. So on tap for today- 15 mile run. One last thing I have to mention. After months of complaining about the weather, I can finally report that our weather has been BEAUTIFUL. Well, this is our time- if you don’t like the weather in South Florida in January, then you definitely shouldn’t live here. It’s been upper 50s/low 60s overnight, and 70s-low 80s during the day, and the humidity is down. I love it. What’s your favorite month, weather-wise? – I might be the only one who says “January.”
January Coffee Date!
Well, the holiday mugs are put away and I’m back to my favorite Harry Potter mug. Usually the first week in January feels very blah to me, but this time it’s packed with activity. Thanks to Coco and Deborah for hosting our monthly coffee date. If we were having coffee together, the first thing I would tell you is… This episode of the Florida Trail Runners podcast was incredible. The guest was Aaron Hale, a runner who is totally blind. AND, he’s deaf. He’s an army veteran who lost his sight from an explosion in Afghanistan, and then four years later he had meningitis which left him completely deaf. He has a cochlear implant, which allows him to “hear” a Siri-like voice, translating the words around him and sending a signal directly to his auditory nerve. As he put it, it’s not like the real thing, but is much, much better than the alternative, which would be having people spell words into his hand, a la Helen Keller. Oh, and why was he on the trail running podcast? WELL, he just completed a 100 mile race, from Jacksonville Beach to Daytona Beach. He runs tethered to a guide (the guide was also interviewed on the previous podcast episode.) And as if being blind and deaf weren’t enough, when he lost his hearing he lost his vestibular balance, and had to learn how to walk by holding onto the rails of his treadmill. So… the next time I’m tempted to think something is “too hard” for me, I’ll remind myself of the blind and deaf runner with no vestibular balance who just completed a 100 mile race. As a matter of fact, I’ve been reminding myself of that this week while getting ready for my daughter’s birthday party. I’m suffering from “party hosting anxiety.” I wish my house was spacious, nicely decorated, and impeccably clean, and that I were ready to host a get-together at any moment. Hahahahaha. Instead, I’ve been thrown into a panic- “Pressure clean the patio! Pull all the weeds! Deep clean the bathrooms! Throw all that clutter into the bedroom!” Then, assuming that I can get the house ready, I always worry that no one will show up, or that they will show up but have a terrible time. In this particular case I have the added worry that the party will be in our backyard, and there are two things out there that are potentially fatal: a pool and a trampoline. No one will be swimming, because the pool is too cold in the winter. But that doesn’t mean someone can’t fall in (or be pushed.) And the kids WILL be on the trampoline. I know- these people aren’t toddlers. But they are in middle school, and middle schoolers do some stupid things. I keep envisioning having to rush someone to the emergency room. I can’t decide if I should just avoid hosting parties as much as possible, or do it more often so I can get better at it. At any rate, there will be 10-15 middle schoolers in my backyard tomorrow… but I’m not blind, I’m not deaf, and I don’t have to run 100 miles. I just have to get through this party… I can do it! Do you like hosting parties? Is your house usually ready for company? Any tips for me?
Breaking Through the Post-Christmas Depression
Ugh. This time of year is typically very hard for me. I love the holiday season so much, starting in September when I get out my pumpkin mugs and decorations. In October I put up Halloween decorations, on November 1st Thanksgiving, and then of course on Black Friday, the house is Christmas-ed to the max. Happy month! But then… My post-Christmas depression usually follows this schedule: The night of December 25th: NOOOOOOOOOO! It’s over. Extreme sadness. December 26th: Wait, this week is still The Holidays. Decorations are up, there’s delicious food and the kids are still home from school. This isn’t so bad! December 27th-31st: Mounting dread. All the decorations are going to have to come down- it’s going to be SO MUCH WORK. First Day Back to School: Full-on depression. Everything is officially over. Life seems dull and drab. The house looks horrible without festive decorations. This is terrible! How will I get through it? Several Days Later: Depression has lifted. The month of January seems blah, but otherwise I’m back to normal. I’ve tried all sorts of different things to mitigate the depression phase- taking down the decorations early, taking them down late, making the “un-decorating day” a little holiday with fun food… nothing works. But why should it work? Christmas and the months leading up to it are the best time ever- of course I’m sad when it’s over. As a matter of fact, I can’t understand why everyone isn’t depressed. What- you don’t like beautiful decorations, delicious food, gifts, and more time with your family? How do some people sail through the end of December unscathed? One year I was walking my son to school on the first day back and neighbors were calling out cheerfully “Happy New Year!” I was astonished that they weren’t sobbing silently to themselves, as I was. Last year was extra-special. As I’ve mentioned, my son and I both got Covid on Christmas Eve, so I was home from work the entire week between Christmas and New Year’s. After the first couple of days with the worst sore throat ever (me) and high fever (my son) we were both just tired and achy, and I spent the days resting on the couch with my cat on my lap. Because I was sick on Christmas, the house wasn’t properly cleaned so there were ribbons and wrapping paper strewn about, and opened presents placed haphazardly under the tree. It was a very lazy, cozy week… and I got SO DEPRESSED. It was the worst post-Christmas depression I’ve ever had. It seemed unbearably sad that my son would be going back to school (in two weeks) and that he wouldn’t be home for Easter. I knew I wasn’t thinking logically, but the thought that Christmas was over was terrible. This depression finally lifted after New Year’s Day, when I went back to work. (A quick word about my work schedule. I work at a spa which is closed five days a year: Christmas Day, New Year’s Day, Easter, 4th of July, and Thanksgiving. Other than those days, if it’s a day I’m scheduled to work, then I’m expected to be there. Of course I can and do request days off, but I like to reserve them for things like taking my son to school in August, or going to Tampa with my daughter for All-State this month.) This year, Christmas fell on a Sunday which is my day off anyway. That meant I had no extra days off, and was scheduled to work Christmas Eve (although only until 1:00) and the day after Christmas. At first I thought I would hate that, and considered asking for at LEAST the day after Christmas off. But then I remembered the terrible depression of last year, and decided to see what would happen if I worked straight through. Well… The day after Christmas, not only did I go to work, but my son had a friend over. So on Christmas night after dinner I kicked it into high gear getting the house cleaned up. I got rid of all the wrapping paper, bows, boxes, and other festive clutter. I placed a few presents neatly back under the tree (like my rice cooker, which I wasn’t ready to unpack and start using right away) but mostly the house was tidied up. My Christmas night sadness was lurking in the background, but it felt SO GOOD to be busy and get the house cleaned. The next day I didn’t feel like going to work- but it was the best thing I could have done. It was a busy day, and aside from a few polite inquiries, no one talked about Christmas. It was so busy that there were stretches where I didn’t even think about what day it was. When I got home I was happy to see the Christmas tree and a nice clean house. The rest of the week was equally busy. On December 30th I suddenly thought “Would’t it be nice to celebrate New Year’s Eve without that old tree taking up half the living room?” After getting the kids’ approval, I moved quickly and took it down. I made a makeshift New Year’s Eve “display” and thought I would wait to take everything else down. But on New Year’s Day I had a burst of energy and a “let’s get this over with” feeling. I started the long process of “Grinching” the house. It is a LONG process because many things need to be laundered- sheets, pajamas, towels, tablecloths… every year when I put it all away I think “Why do I do this to myself?” But I know that next year on Black Friday I’ll be saying “I can’t wait to get out the Christmas shower curtains!” I took a page from Suzanne’s book, and kept my Christmas cards out. They’re the one thing I’m not ready to part with! I’ll keep them up (along with a string of white lights) as long they make