Final weekday of OLLI's spring break. I only really remember my travel day at mid-week, a day selected partly based on weather, which turned out ideal, and partly it's being mid-week. Had OLLI been in session, I would have had a single Zoom class originating downstate a short distance from my Fishing Pier destination. Very pleasant travel, lovely long overdue walk through downtown Rehoboth Beach, simple lunch of extra large pizza slice, and pleasant drive along a tony part of Rehoboth that never really caught my attention previously. I remember my scheduled treadmill sessions Sat-Sun-Tues with end of month hiatus. And I went fishing, once locally, once on my trip.
My upcoming Torah reading is taking shape, a partially satisfying accomplishment. I made my statement about where my congregation needs to refocus. This gave me less satisfaction than I thought it would.
And there were some successful patches. My car Info Screen looked odd. The agent at the Toyota dealer assured me it's appearance was normal. I tinkered with it, finally convincing myself that he's right. And the online U Penn 50th Reunion access seems fixed with some expert help, not easily obtained, partly from the Alumni staff office and partly from my wife.
My decision to forgo overnight travel this break was based on proximity to Passover that needs its own preparation. Menus, cleaning, non-perishable shopping all ahead of schedule.
And there are things I might have liked to do but didn't. I didn't eat out, not breakfast or lunch other than the quick slice of pizza while on the road. I did go for coffee on Monday. My mostly daily stretch program gave way to recovery from soreness. It only takes minutes, done faithfully with a set time to do it, and likely a significant contributor to my recent uptick in self-assessed well-being. My Space did not get the attention I would have liked, but my spring gardens and herb pots did. I wrote an article on my Reunion experience that could be submitted. I did not get around to editing a languishing one for submission. Did not do any elegant eating, as pre-Passover is focused on consuming space occupying packages of things. While I've completed my book quota for this half-year's initiatives, I started another which I hoped to complete by the library's three-week return date. I renewed it instead, but set a schedule for reading the rest of it up to the footnotes by Pesach, and will likely get there. I made a couple key financial decisions. Thought I would spend more companionship time with my wife than I did. And did very little to advance my upcoming major travel. That really doesn't need time defined by a spring break.
Even the trip downstate could have been done while OLLI classes are in session, as I have two days weekly without classes. OLLI forces me to be someplace at a set time multiple days a week for consecutive weeks. Nothing else does, other than maybe shabbos dinner. I have created a few appointments with myself, treadmill at 8:30AM on scheduled days, more recently stretch video at 4PM. Those timed structures are rather important. Sleep-wake has a semi-timed pattern though without the consistency of an OLLI class that begins at 9AM and I have to get myself there. The things I would have liked to do this break but didn't in all likelihood still would not have been pursued within the timed OLLI structure, though.
As the break slips to its conclusion, Pesach arrives with its own imposed schedule of ceremonies and worship attendance. But I think the week taught me has been the importance of assigning times, whether the trip downstate, some of my responses to my synagogue officers all done by setting a time to do them, and even my recreational writing where I now set a Focus Session on my computer. I need the "I am going to do this at this time", easier when OLLI is in session than when it was on hiatus.
No comments:
Post a Comment