With a new month, it’s time for a currently post. We are almost a week into April and I have been spending more time journaling for myself in this weird time. I have also enjoyed the slowing down and spending more time on my yoga mat.
Currently I am working on a homework assignment about mindfulness. I decided to practice mindful eating for some of my meals which means eating without a TV on, scrolling Instagram or walking around and trying to multitask. Admittingly, the task is hard to eat and do nothing else, but I have seen some of the effects of mindfulness. I am more calm while I eat and take my time and actually know when I am full. The case study we were assigned to read also mentioned how this practice leads to being more productive, focused and creative. It has me reflecting on the current moments as we are all forced to slow down. For some, it is uncomfortable. For me, I have seen myself writing more and being more creative, so there are definitely some positives to this time.
Some other positives are when you feel like baking muffins on a Thursday night. These pumpkin muffins turned out amazing!
I venture out once a week to the grocery store still and because I do not know what I will find from week to week, I have actually found myself spending more money at the grocery store to stock up on items I do not necessary need right away but you never know if they will be in stock next week. Last week’s excitement was finding flour and quick oats. This week I was excited about Ritz crackers and dishwasher soap. Then you have the impulse buy at the register because I had to try fudge brownie M&Ms since I haven’t seen that kind before.
They were like mini brownie bites coated in the M&Ms candy coating. They were ok, but I would say the Nutella M&Ms are better. I also just recently finished off my special peanut butter Easter egg M&Ms. Can you tell I am picky about M&M flavors?!
So shortly after the gyms closed, I purchased the PIIT28 plan. After doing multiple days in a row the first week I had it, I had a massive Charlie horse in my leg and was so sore. Since the workout is like a HIIT workout, there is a lot of jumping I am also not used to. I decided to back off a bit and try doing every other day and alternate with yoga days. I signed up for Bad Yogi’s online yoga which is free for 2 weeks, but I think for $9.99 a month, I will keep it for now. I really like all the different options she has from 20 minute to 60 minute sessions and different focuses such as core, flexibility, etc. Maybe by the end of this quarantine time I will actually be more flexible. I have noticed less mobility than I used to have when I did more consistent yoga and I know this mobility work will help when I get back to weightlifting.
I have also been enjoying Saturday Zumba zoom sessions with my Zumba teacher back in Illinois that I love. It has been fun working out to zoom videos and seeing everyone. Honestly, I would pay for those sessions if that became a regular thing. With yoga studios exploring sessions via zoom and everything, it will be interesting to see if some of the sessions could stay. You could pay through Venmo and get the link or something. I have been doing my part to support yoga studios if I participate in an Instagram Live session then I contribute to their studio. It is a business and currently my gym membership is frozen so it would just be like normal paying for a class.
Currently I have also had more time to read. I actually finally finished the book I got in the beginning of March, Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid. I just ordered a new book after watching a Youtube video that should come later this week. I have been enjoying a nice story before bed when I have a book going. A good way to calm my mind down for sure.
I can’t believe that at the end of this month I will be done with the spring semester of classes. I am counting down the days. I have been working ahead since the start of March, so I haven’t been as stressed about the school work which is nice. Also, since all my travel for April got cancelled, I have more time at home. My goal is to be done with most of my assignments by April 26th or sooner. The last day of classes is May 1st, but since I don’t have finals for the first time, I can be done earlier. Then once I finish, I will have 2 weeks before summer classes begin which I expect to be way more intense. I am hoping in those 2 weeks to clear out the spare bedroom and have Brian do the floors in there. I have some things to sell and get rid of and need some sorting time and new bins to reorganize. I wanted to put some things out to the curb but with the current quarantine, not many people are driving by to pick up things so that might have to wait a bit.
Speaking of floors, I never shared our beautiful living room. Thanks to Brian having 2 weeks off from work, he got the living room done and it looks amazing. Also, my carpet now slips and slides so I need to get a mat to put under it. It never slid on the unfinished floors.
Brian is back to work this week. I am still working from home but might need to stop into the office for some filing and some notes on a monthly task. The first day of month end last week was rough. It really had nothing to do with not being in the office for me, I just struggled to balance my numbers and didn’t have access to a report I normally do to compare. Now I know the differences with the fiscal year end and starting to write notes on that.
So that’s my little ramblings from the first week of April. Still looking for joy in the little things. Hope everyone is hanging in there and staying healthy.
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