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Depersonalized
Oct. 8th, 2012 09:18 amCan't remember where I read recently that the more things we can turn into routine behavior, the more resources we have for creativity. I'm not sure I've actually increased my creativity, but I do feel that my life has become more and more routine. Maybe that's why I'm not writing much about life here anymore, although it's also partly that LJ doesn't feel much like a community any more.
Being diagnosed as pre-diabetic has changed my routines, that's for sure, and it's changed how I think about approaching traditional routines. I spend more time cooking than I used to. Often this is making things I've made before, although yesterday I tried a new recipe: curried black beans and chicken sausage. Because I'm cooking more, I'm also in the grocery store more often, picking up this or that item that wasn't in the weekly grocery shopping that Denys does. My goal is to make a big pot of something on Sundays that I can eat over the course of the week. I also make a big green salad early in the week to last me the week.
My weekends are usually filled with writing for my blog, working in the yard, watching movies, and -- these days -- watching Unversity of Oregon football. On Saturday I helped my neighbor, E, cut down the butterfly bush that had grown between our houses. The detritus from the plant had filled the gutters to the rim, so I also cleared out the gutters. Sawing the thick trunk of the bush into chunks that would fit in the recycling bin got my heart rate up, and so I observed, "Well, this is my cardio for today!" It was quite a workout.
I'm always thinking about how to fit some cardio into my schedule. Yesterday I wanted to get some walking shoes at Northgate Mall, so I took the bus up there with the intention of walking home. Last time I was up there I discovered that it was just over 4 miles from the mall to my house, so a good hike. I also discovered a little deli by Green Lake that I thought would make a good place to stop for lunch this time. (I only got coffee last time.) So I brought my current book (I'm re-reading The Left Hand of Darkness for the first time since I was a teenager) and read a chapter while eating a lovely ham sandwich on sourdough. The weather was so warm and beautiful, it was just a brilliant walk. And then I cooked and did the dishes and watered the garden and watched a movie on Netflix Instant (David Fincher's The Game).
That's life these days. So routine as to be almost invisible, even to myself.
Being diagnosed as pre-diabetic has changed my routines, that's for sure, and it's changed how I think about approaching traditional routines. I spend more time cooking than I used to. Often this is making things I've made before, although yesterday I tried a new recipe: curried black beans and chicken sausage. Because I'm cooking more, I'm also in the grocery store more often, picking up this or that item that wasn't in the weekly grocery shopping that Denys does. My goal is to make a big pot of something on Sundays that I can eat over the course of the week. I also make a big green salad early in the week to last me the week.
My weekends are usually filled with writing for my blog, working in the yard, watching movies, and -- these days -- watching Unversity of Oregon football. On Saturday I helped my neighbor, E, cut down the butterfly bush that had grown between our houses. The detritus from the plant had filled the gutters to the rim, so I also cleared out the gutters. Sawing the thick trunk of the bush into chunks that would fit in the recycling bin got my heart rate up, and so I observed, "Well, this is my cardio for today!" It was quite a workout.
I'm always thinking about how to fit some cardio into my schedule. Yesterday I wanted to get some walking shoes at Northgate Mall, so I took the bus up there with the intention of walking home. Last time I was up there I discovered that it was just over 4 miles from the mall to my house, so a good hike. I also discovered a little deli by Green Lake that I thought would make a good place to stop for lunch this time. (I only got coffee last time.) So I brought my current book (I'm re-reading The Left Hand of Darkness for the first time since I was a teenager) and read a chapter while eating a lovely ham sandwich on sourdough. The weather was so warm and beautiful, it was just a brilliant walk. And then I cooked and did the dishes and watered the garden and watched a movie on Netflix Instant (David Fincher's The Game).
That's life these days. So routine as to be almost invisible, even to myself.
