Spark Joy!

 “A good half of the art of living is resilience.”

― Alain de Botton

(his pithy lines are my version of the holy book or whatever)

I'm always trying to find the right balance of being out and doing things and living and simply being at home and just living. I've started to notice a pattern: I'll have a weekend or two with an intense burst of activity and then I will hibernate, to recover.

This past weekend was so much fun: I met my friend-in-progress (who was in the middle of a 20 hour date and at this point was inviting other people over - the kind of weirdness I absolutely want in my life). Her other friend's date so kindly offered to be a wing man for me if I wanted someone to watch Netflix with that evening (I didn't, but the thought was such an adult kind thought). I tried cranberry apple cider and I give it my stamp of approval. It also gave me the right amount of buzz for a weekend visit to the Indian grocery store (it gets really crowded and you all know how I feel about lots of people). Also, we played Uno with an Uno launcher. How cool is that? I also learned a very annoying version of Rummicube.

I've just started to read Spark Joy by Marie Kondo and I really want to follow some of her recommendations. To be honest, I did sort my clothes and take out a discard pile and my cupboard is a lot more manageable now. I can see what I own! It is folded! I enjoy my clothes very much and they have a strong effect on how I feel about myself, the day - all this to say that owning clothes that make me feel grubby is a bad idea because I am like to never wear them and if I do, I just feel out-of-sorts.

If I only Marie Kondo could give me advice on the number of bags I take to work and what they contain. Today as I fished out my sunglasses, my lens case fell down on the escalator and there was a moment I wanted to pretend it was not me. The moment passed, I sheepishly picked the case up.

My best friend had her birthday today. I will have my birthday soon. I will try and be an adult about it (which means make a plan and have company on my birthday instead of just being fussy and fuzzy and eventually feeling all alone and melancholy). Go lightly, go kindly, I remind myself.

I sent out hundreds of emails last week for this project I am working on and I kid you not, my wrist pain flared right back up. The connection is so textbook, it is annoying. No amount of wrist bands or wraps or pain relief sprays are useful for that nerve pain. I am not even sure how I know it is real, but I think it is.

Here's a life lesson: if you don't pause, you can't panic. Here's another tip: it is not possible to never pause, and it hurts to try.

Also here, check out Marie Kondo on the Infomagical challenge (I'm signed up for the challenge, which means they ask me I was able to focus today and I reply saying no and they send me puppy photos. That works).