Today ended up being a very pleasant afternoon, with the sun emerging periodically. I took the long way home from the Cleveland Park neighborhood through Rock Creek Park and captured this shot along the way.
(As best as I could tell where the beam of light hit did not contain pirate treasure.)
I started to tell you about my work week, but, honestly, it’s exhausting to think about and you have your own work week you’re escaping. You don’t need to run into my monsters as you’re trying to beat your own.
I will say that it’s raining out tonight. It’s supposed to rain in the morning and some (possibly much) of Sunday, as well. I’m planning on spending those parts inside, possibly with my book and knitting and possibly trying to get some stuff cleaned and put away. Even small steps will help. There may also be baking.
Tomorrow afternoon and maybe some of Sunday’s will see some drier weather. That’s when I need to lace up my boots (or pull on my galoshes) and head outdoors. My volleyball teammates have indicated they’d like to play this spring, which means I need to think about being able to spend an extended period of time being active within the next six weeks, and being active with 30-somethings to boot. First part of the plan: getting in 7-10 thousand steps every day or spending 45 minutes out on the bike. Second part of the plan: unknown. Third part of the plan: fame and success (or, at least, not letting the team down when we’re back on the court). I’ll let you know how it goes.
Three beautiful things from my past week:
1. When my brother and I finally connected on the phone after our birthdays, he shared he’d been accepted into his art therapy grad school program.
2. Rudi’s negative COVID result after flying home from Salt Lake came less than 24 hours after his test.
3. My mom sent me a pair of indigo blue boots, which are big enough to fit over hand-knit socks and look quite smart.
How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?
Look! It’s the start of a second sock. Now if only work weren’t back to being so stressful that I can’t keep my eyes open in the evening, I might get further. (That fact doesn’t bode well for my progression in Sock Madness, which kicks off next week.)
To go along with a shorter attention span, a graphic novel (in translation) about a rebellious princess who would rather be off on adventures than learning her royal lessons.
I’ve decided that this spring I might be willing and ready to play outdoor volleyball again, in part for the mental health benefits it offers. I’ve emailed my former teammates to see if any of them are interested, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that some of them might be available.
A couple of my teammates played outdoors last fall, and the report I heard after the first couple weeks was that the league was was relatively good about mask wearing and social distancing from other teams and on the sidelines. Volleyball is one of those sports where there you do end up in close proximity to your teammates and some competitors, and some contact with teammates can happen as you’re chasing after a ball and trying not to knock each other down. So it’s not without risk. But it’s also not basketball, where it can’t be played without automatically coming into contact with everyone else on the court. And being outdoors definitely helps lower the risks of spreading disease.
How are you thinking about risk management as we move into year #2 of COVID? Will you continue to stay home and isolated? Were you never paying attention to those recommendations to begin with?
This week’s Top Ten Tuesday from That Artsy Reader Girl asks us to share books that have made us laugh aloud:
Actually, most of these authors include elements of humor in nearly all of their writing, so I’d recommend picking up any of their titles if you want to be amused.