arthur_p_dent

Last week was quite a roller coaster, both emotionally and physically. As it stands now things are better overall, but how the coming week plays out remains to be seen.

The work week started out fairly normal, and as I mentioned, I found a new way to spend some of my time during my lunch break. Unfortunately, those good vibes were short-lived. Following an out-of-the-blue conversation with my boss, my understanding was that I should expect to be losing my job in the very near future. Now, even though I've been expecting for years to be let go at some point, it still came as a shock to my system, and I spent the rest of the day feeling stressed out. We had another call set up for the next day, and as it turns out I had misunderstood some things from our first call. The good news is that I do still have my job, but the bad news is that I don't think it will be long term - almost certainly in the second half of the year. For sure I'm sticking it out for the severance package, but it's also time to start getting my resume in order.

It took some time for that drama to subside and to feel a bit more stable again. I had lunch with my good friend on Friday and talked about it with her, and that helped a lot too. Friday was shaping up to be a decent day, and I was looking forward to the weekend.

Then came curling. We had barely started the game, and I was getting ready to take my second shot. The next thing I knew, I was down on the ice. The hack, which is the block that we use to push off from when throwing the rock, had come loose, and while trying to adjust it back into place, both of my feet went out from under me and down I went. I took a lot of the weight on my arm and jammed my shoulder pretty badly. Nothing dislocated or broken, but it's been stiff and sore all weekend. Hopefully it will continue to improve as the week goes on.

Fortunately that injury didn't prevent me from getting my long runs in over the weekend. Both went mostly well, although Saturday was chilly and Sunday I forgot to eat breakfast and ran out of energy near the end. Only two weeks now until my first race, and I'm starting to get a little bit excited. 

Hmmm... I was about to get another coffee, but I looked at the time and I guess I should have left already. So, that's going to be it for today. Enjoy your week to come, and I'll be back again soon. =]

I'm not having a particularly good day today, but I will strive to keep that from spilling over into my post. At least the coffee is good.

Last week held some promise as far as social things were concerned, but I'm not entirely sure how I feel about how it all turned out. St. Patrick's Day coincided with run club, but for some reason the evening felt underwhelming. The music, food, and beer were all good, but it seemed to be another one of those times where I felt like I wasn't really part of the group anymore. Honestly, if that is the case, I wish someone would just tell me so I could get past it and move on. Of course, it could be me reading too much into things again too - I do have a bad habit of transferring one spiral into other situations. I guess for now I'll try to be more objective when I read the room, and at least get a better idea if it's just in my head.

Friday curling wasn't too bad, but I was feeling really tired all night and didn't enjoy the game as much as I should have considering several friends were playing in the same game. I had to make it a fairly early night too, because I was playing in a tournament the next morning. It was a glow in the dark event (I played in the same one last year), and again, it should have been more fun than it was. I think we got too focused on trying to win, rather than on having a fun day. I'll play again next year, and hopefully I can remember to focus on having a good time.

Sunday I was really behind on my weekend chores, and I didn't get nearly enough done either. I ended up doing some of it this morning since I was up far too early (second night in a row of terrible sleep), but there's still more to do. So far I haven't started beating myself up for taking a day to do something enjoyable, which is nice.

Work is much the same. I had a project to do that ate a couple days, which was a nice change of pace from the usual daily boredom. I still hear bits and pieces of office gossip about plants being sold off, and I know that it's not just rumour. But, there's not much I can do about that until something actually happens.

I took last week off running entirely. It took a few days for my foot to stop bothering me, and I figured a few extra days of rest would be a good thing. Less than three weeks to go, and I'm not worried about being able to complete the distance, so I'll take it easy and not push as hard as I have been. I also went looking at shoes and got some good advice for my next pair of trainers. Once my spring races are over I'll go do some shopping, and hopefully I can avoid having this injury crop up again.

Well, while this has been a very welcome diversion on an otherwise lousy morning, I see on my work phone that the computer systems are back up, so back to the office I go. Hopefully the first full week of spring is full of good weather and enjoyable days for all. Until next time. =]

So...
Month two.
Two + weeks late posting.
Not a good start to the year.

I haven't looked at February's results yet. Guess I'll find out how it went as we go...

( February goal review... )

The month started well, but week by week the scores got worse. Overall I ended up at just 48% for the month, which is obviously not where I want to be this early in the year. A little sneak preview - March hasn't started all that great either, and my motivation has been really low. Hopefully I can pull myself together and finish strong.

See you again in a couple weeks. =]

Well, I made it here on a Monday. And, I found a new coffee shop to kick back at. It's a bit of a drive, but there should still be enough time to get my post written. Bonus, the coffee here is delicious. =]

March has started mostly ok. Month end went fairly decently, with no real problems. As usual, the week slowed down after that, and now I'm facing another long stretch of slow days. I often wonder if they'd notice if I got another job and just kept up with this stuff in the evenings?

My running has been noticeably improving recently, thanks to the training I've been doing. On Tuesday I did my scheduled run, then went to my run club for a little extra distance. I didn't have any plan for this, but I ended up coming close to a PR for a 5K. Saturday I had a long run, with the last third of it in a heavy rain (training in the elements is a good thing, but still not very fun). Then yesterday, my run was scheduled as a "give your best effort" run, and guess what? I hit that 5K PR by 40 seconds! No small feat, and I'm now very close to breaking 27 minutes.

No curling this week, but that afforded me the opportunity to (a) go to the Friday run club, which has been a while, and (b) hang out with my good friend afterward, which is always a wonderful way to finish the week. Weekend chores were numerous, but I was able to spread them out and not get overwhelmed. And a turn in the weather made for a bit of nice time outdoors.

I have still been dealing with some other stuff (brain-eating stuff). The weekend helped take my mind off it, but not completely. I'm hopeful that it'll continue to get better over the coming days, but we'll see. 

And I'm out of time. Have to get myself back to work. I hope you all have a great week - see you again soon. =]

Quick little post with pics of the shawl I finished recently. From the first few rows to the finished product.










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I survived another week, but I'm not sure how I feel about how it went. It was another lousy week for goals, and once again I feel like this week has started off on the wrong foot. I'm going to have to make some big changes next week to kick off March, and I'm not going to beat myself up about how this month has gone.

My book and puzzle have taken a back seat lately, with most of my leisure time spent finishing the shawl I've been crocheting. No pics yet, as I still have to cut off and sew in the tail end. Look forward to a separate post on that soon. Other than that, I feel like much of my free time has been almost wasted. The one thing I'm still pleased with is my run training. Regardless of everything else that's been going on, I haven't fallen off of that. That's also a part of the reason why I want to make some changes in March - I really want to succeed in my April races.

I had a really busy weekend, and again I'm not sure how I feel about how it went. Curling was definitely a good start. I had had a few weeks where I wasn't enjoying the game so much, but this week was a lot of fun. Hopefully that trend continues.

On Saturday I was invited to go on a wine tasting tour with some friends. The day itself was really good, but one thing kind of irked me. It was a last-minute invite because someone had backed out, which was fine. But almost the first thing that the host said when I arrived was that if I couldn't go they didn't know who else to ask - giving me the impression that they had tried countless other people and I was the last person they could think of. Whether or not that was true I don't know. But I did my best to put those thoughts aside and enjoy the day.

Sunday morning I was getting ready for my grocery trip, and there was a message in one of my group chats that one of the group was heading to the pub to watch the big hockey game. I had forgotten about it! I got there a bit late but still managed to see most of the game. And despite the outcome (Canada really should have won that game), I had a great time. But again, something about it irked me. There had been no previous messages about going to watch the game as a group, and yet there were a dozen of us there. So, there were already plans made that I had no clue about. Maybe I'm reading too much into this one, but I almost feel like that message went into the wrong group chat.

So yeah, I don't really know what my mood is right now. I just finished a good run during my lunch break and need to head back to the office shortly. And tonight I need to try and catch up on the things I neglected by spending time enjoying my weekend (and trying not to beat myself up for putting myself before my chore list this one time). For now I'll wrap things up, wish everyone a great end to February,  and I'll see you to open a new month next week. =]

Weird thing literally just happened. I'll get to that in a sec.

Hey there. Yesterday was a holiday in these parts, and so I put off doing my post until today. I have a seat at a regular haunt for today, but it's less than ideal - I'd prefer to find someplace quieter. But I'll make this work for now. (And as I say that, a heated discussion about the Canadian curling controversy sparks up immediately behind me)

Anyway, the weird thing. I just got asked if I was losing weight. That in itself isn't weird, since I have been over the past couple years, and occasionally someone will comment on it. What is still weird to me is how I deal with compliments. I'm very quick to deflect, like I don't feel like I deserve to hear the nice thing. I've been aware of this for the past year or so, and I thought that at some point I would at least be able to reply with a simple 'thank you', but it seems like that day has yet to come.

Back to last week. Goals were terrible - lots of days where I don't know if I even tried. I squeezed in some reading and working on my puzzle on the last day, and exercise I've been good at keeping up with, but that was about it. Oh, and dishes (I knew there was one more). With the holiday yesterday, this week isn't off to the best start either, but we'll see how it goes.

The running plan is going well. I was starting to wonder when it was going to get more challenging, but now I see coming up there's a time trial, so I expect to be pushed harder soon enough. I also started training with nutrition gels - small packets of concentrated carb gels to help fuel you during extended races. The reason for training with them now is because they tend to be hard on the stomach, so I want to have plenty of time to get used to them before the first race rolls around. No serious issues after the first time, although it did sit a little heavy for a bit. And the texture isn't all that palatable either - that'll take some getting used to as well.

The weather turned springish for a bit, so I was able to get both vehicles washed over the weekend. Nice to get that crust of road salt off the paint - at least until the next snowfall. I haven't done anything outside, but it is still February so it's not really time for that stuff anyway.

My first full week back in the city office went ok. The biggest downside is the noise, but I'll get used to that. On the upside, I save a ton of time and gas with the shorter commute. And, making lunch plans with my good friend doesn't require taking a half day's vacation (I think that's the bigger bonus). On Friday there was a retirement gathering for my one work friend. It was a lot of fun, even though i had to leave early for curling. However, it was also bitter-sweet, since someone else from our office got let go that morning. He'll do ok, but it still sucks.

Well, I suppose I should finish this up - it's about time to head back to work. Have a great week, and I'll see you again soon. =]

Here I am for the first of this year's monthly goal reviews. This post is one thing (among many) that I wasn't successful at completing very much last year, but I'm looking to turn that around. Let's see how I fared in January.

( Goal review... )

Overall I hit 70% for the month, which I think is a pretty good start. Hopefully things keep going well in the months to come. =]

This week has seen some good, some not so good, and the beginnings of some IDKWTF. Sounds fun, right?

On the good side, my goals went well, with only one item missed for the week and that was on purpose. A long-time colleague and friend is retiring, and we went out for a drink after work Friday. We spent a couple hours talking about the past couple decades, and what he has planned for the coming few months. There's only been a handful of people I've worked with over the years that I consider friends, and he's one of them and I wish him the best.

My training plan is working out well so far. Running is progressing decently, although doing longer distances on a treadmill is both boring and annoying. However, I heard that the local university has public access to their indoor track, so I'm going to look into that as an option. Curling was also good. We didn't win, but it was a spirited back and forth match, and lots of fun.

Not so good, well, my car died. Nothng too serious - I just need to replace the battery. But for the past few days it's been too cold and snowy to do anything about it, so it's been sitting in the driveway. At least it's at home though.

Unfortunately, I've still been somewhat mired in the same negative thoughts as I mentioned last week. The details seem to change from day to day, and that's not helping matters much. I just need a magic wand to make it go away - those exist, right?

Now for the uncertain. Rumour has it that the three remaining US plants from the company I originally worked for have been sold. That is very concerning to me if true, since 75% of my job is tied to those plants. Losing them could easily mean the elimination of my job too. As I said, it's only a rumour at this point, but we'll see what happens.

Well, my cappuccino is done and (for now) I have a job to go back to, so I'll sign off for this week. Stay warm, enjoy your week, and I'll see you in February. =]

Last week was fairly ok, as weeks go. Work started out being really busy, but slowed down mid week after month end was over (I did manage to meet my deadlines, but only after working until midnight on Monday). Now it's back to the status quo - finding things to keep myself occupied. As much as I dislike being bored at work, the flexibility I have to manage my own time is a decent offset.

I still haven't gotten back to doing any exercise, although I think I'm going to go to the gym tomorrow and see how things go. Being sedentary for this long isn't doing me any favours, and I feel like I've fallen way behind where I need to be in my training. It's only three months until my first race - hopefully I can get back on track soon. I also haven't been to curling the past couple weeks, since breathing in the cold air has been difficult and tends to set off coughing fits. Maybe this week, we'll see. 

A bright spot in the week was getting together with my good friend for lunch. We usually have a gap during the holidays, and me being sick didn't help matters. So after a few weeks we had lots to catch up on, and it was a really good time.

My 2026 goals officially kick off today. Obviously meeting my exercise goals will be tough for the first week or two, but other than that I think things will go ok. I'm already half done my first puzzle, which I'll probably finish tonight unless I decide to start on my next crochet project instead. We'll see what my mood is later on.

Well, I see by the clock on the wall that it's time for me to head back to the office. I hope your week has gotten off to a good start. Until next time. =]