Why hello there. It’s been quite a while since I wrote anything here, but as my grandma always said, when in self-quarantine, do as the self-quarantiners do.
It’s safe to say that we’re in a strange time right now with many things out of our control, so I’m doing what I can to take ownership of a few things.
First, I can be more creative. That’s been my only real lament over the past few years, but an acceptable loss at the same time. By that, I mean there’s a finite number of hours in the day, and I acknowledge that I won’t be able to do everything I’d like to. I get up at 4:30am on weekdays so that I have some time to drink coffee, listen to podcasts, play some games on my phone, and exercise before showering and getting the kids up. (Some work stuff starts happening at 5am, so it’s not completely “me time,” but I really do try to make the most of it.) After that, it’s pretty scheduled with preparing the kids for school, work, after school activities, dinner, catching up with my lovely wife, and then falling asleep on the couch before stumbling upstairs.
So I’ve rationalized the lack of creative activity in my life by asking the simple question, “When would I do that? Get up earlier? Stay up later? Give up the morning routine a couple of days a week?” This whole virus thing has presented me with a new option. We’re letting the kids sleep in a little later, so if I still get up at the normal time, I magically have an extra chunk o’ time to do something. There are podcasts, tv shows, and movies I can easily use to fill that time, but I’m proclaiming at least some of it as Peter’s Allotted Creative Time – or PACT – because it’s a pact I’m making with myself. It won’t all be putting my random thoughts on this page. I have other projects in mind that have remained untouched for a long time, so I’ll figure out how to dispense this precious PACT and keep using my full brain as much as possible.
Second, I can exercise more. I know I mentioned that I exercise in the morning, but for those of you who don’t know me, my current regimen is a little atypical. I like to run around the island. Now from that sentence, you may have a picture of me stumbling out of a little hut, taking in a deep breath of salt air, stretching my legs a little, and then jogging on the beach past the outdoor seating areas of closed restaurants and occasionally nodding to people sweeping palm fronds off the roads or an errant rooster here and there. Alas, that’s not exactly how it plays out. By “island,” I’m referring to my kitchen island. Yes, I run laps around my kitchen island. But before it sounds too crazy, I’d like to try to explain. Would it be completely batshit crazy if I ran in place for the equivalent of a mile or two to get some cardio work in, release endorphins, etc.? No, right? Right? I’ll assume you’re still with me. If that’s not crazy, why would propelling myself forward a bit be different? I actually find it much less jarring on my body to be moving forward instead of just running in place. So I basically run in place…around my kitchen island…dozens of times until I reach my “distance” goal. Maybe it still sounds as ridiculous to you after I tried explaining it, but it’s what I do.
Anyway, I don’t want to give that up (unless I get the elliptical machine we have working again and change back to that or start running – gasp! – outside), but I can add to the routine. Nothing crazy, but I don’t think I’ll be joining my weekly Pilates class for a while, so I need something else. I plan on using this time to add other elements of exercise – might be an increasing number of pushups and sit-ups, might be some planking or something – I’m not sure yet. But I have this opportunity, and when we come out of this, it would be a big win if I can point to some creative output and a healthier body.
And then there’s the third thing I can be in control of during this time: my beard. I’ve had a beard for over a decade now, and I keep it pretty short (save the one time I grew it out and shaved all but a handlebar mustache for a costume). I trim it about once a week, and I rarely let it go more than that because the white hairs at my jawline are much more visible when they’re longer. But screw it, I’m not going to trim it for as long as I can to see what happens. Whether I end up looking more like David Letterman or a rabbi remains to be seen, but why not make the most of this time and do something different? I’m only on Day 3 of working from home, and it’s already at a longer length than normal, so this could get interesting. For me at least. (Smart man’s caveat: if my loving wife hates it and strongly suggests that I bring it back to normal lengths, that might take precedence over my face experiment. Faceperiment? Yes, faceperiment.)
So that’s what I’ve got for today. Not sure how often I’ll be jotting things down here, but it’s good to be thinking and typing stupid stuff again instead of just work. If you have ideas or want to toss out your own social distancing goals, fire away. Take care, homepeople, and stay healthy.