World Enough and Time

An oddly satisfying couple of days. I signed up for more French classes, even though I really don't have the money, but it might help me find or keep a job, and I love it.

Then I cleaned up my bedroom. I panicked because I didn't know where my French text books were - and don't want to pay for a new one. I was pretty sure they were among the piles of stuff in my bedroom, and I was right. By the time I found them (about ten minutes after I started cleaning up), I was on a roll, so I did the whole job. Sorted all the piles. Emptied all the bags. Threw out the stuff I'll never need, put away the stuff I will need, and made a bag for the Salvation Army. I even repaired the lovely little Tiffany lamp that had fallen over and come apart. Nothing broke, thank goodness, but the bulb.

I even found places for all the books and comics.

So: very satisfying.

Also went to work for four hours this morning, which will help alleviate the money worries. I'd originally planned to keep today free for myself - for reading, errands, housework, and the like - but I've been working on a project that really needed a little more attention, and I wanted to get it done. I didn't get it done, but I did as much as I could. I also set off all the security alarms because the security company didn't have my passcode in their records. Even though I sent it to them. (On March 26. Yes, really.) I'm happy to say I wasn't arrested for tresspassing, but it makes me nervous about going in to work on a Saturday. On the plus side, since I was the only one there, no one came to me with things they needed me to do, and I could concentrate on the one job.

After coming home, and after a brief nap, I spent an hour doing exercises. Yoga - a pretty full workout, which I'd stopped after breaking my ankle and never really got back to, despite a few false starts.

Yesterday, after telling myself I was not going to spend any money on anything but necessities I bought myself a kettlebell. It's something I've wanted to try for a year or two, and with some encouragement from commodorified, who was buying one herself, I got a five-pounder and studied some beginner's instruction on YouTube. You know what? It's as cool as I thought it would be. As soon as I can afford it, I'm going to get a ten-pound kettlebell, too.

And as I hoped, an hour of exercise and yoga raised my energy, which has been horribly low of late. I keep napping all the time. But I don't want to turn into a slug, and I think what I need is not more napping, but more motion. Walking just wasn't doing it, especially since I've had a sore foot ever since someone rolled a shopping cart over it. So: kettlebells, dance, yoga... Feels good.

Does anyone here know anything about kettlebells?

My cold is better, and I'm still high on a sense of freedom. My plan to exercise is getting a slow start, so I set out for a walk this morning. It's a nice day for walking; the sidewalks aren't particuarly icy or snow-covered, and I headed south on Bank Street.

I am so very out of shape. It's almost a year since I regularly walked to work, or walked on a regular basis at all; and I've spent a good part of the past week in bed. I walked for an hour. I went at top speed, which sadly, is currently indistinguishable from a slow crawl. I am tired.

What a wimp.

Give me a few weeks of practice walking daily and I'll be back in fine form.