Summer 2014, days 71-85: A time of acceptance
That grand plan I had to squeeze as much out of the last weeks of summer as possible? Yeah, it didn't get too far.
I've been so swamped with freelance work that I was apprehensive to set off on any amazing adventures. Hurray for being swamped, but it comes with a a more restrained schedule. For example, I have probably put in at least 15 hours of work these past three weekend days. That's good in that I got much done, but it's indicative that I have to be a little more cautious of how I'm budgeting my time.
I don't think the boys have minded too much. They have been playing with friends -- those last days of desperate summer fun before school begins. We had some ornery weather over the past two weeks -- Utah's monsoon season in which we get a rain and some thunderstorms. Still, the last two weeks had their moments:
-- Ben finally learned how to ride his bike, on Aug. 4 (Day 72). After he struggled to get any balance every time we tried, on this day -- a couple months since he last tried -- it all clicked. Two days later, he tried Michael's old bike and could ride that. Three days after that, he rode in a short bicycle race. He needed a little help at the start, and it was only about 100 yards or so (this was a fun event before a Tour of Utah stage began at Rice-Eccles Stadium), but he rode it nonetheless just a week after not being able to ride a bike, period. He was very excited.
-- We spent a whole long afternoon at the waterpark this last Thursday (Day 82). Michael was with a friend, and they pretty much did their own thing all day. We met one of Ben's friends there, and they were somewhat independent, too. We hadn't gone to the waterpark much this summer, so our day was a blast. The clouds threatened rain for a few minutes early, but then cleared for perfect hot conditions.
-- Ben is doing postseason swim practices. Michael did six days of basketball boot camp followed by two intense days of get-back-into-shape camp.
-- Visits to the dentist. Enough said.
-- The Corolla needed a new starter. Hurray, the Corolla now starts all the time (it was dicey for about a week there).
-- I wrote three prep football previews for The Tribune. I was having a hell of a time reaching coaches -- I don't ever remember being so frustrated about not getting interviews (I'm sure I have been; it's just been a long time).
-- Running? No. BodyPump? No. Some long walks with the dog? Yes, including a couple short hikes. Chunkier than I'd like to be? Oddly, yes -- my current weight, a little heavier than expected, doesn't jibe with how I actually look in the mirror. A lot of sucking in the stomach at the pool? Oh yes.
-- My sister and her family came through town for a day. They had been traveling for weeks straight, so they were content to just relax. My nephews love the toys we have in our basement, and Popcorn liked having another dog in the house (the cat, not so much).
-- Writing? If it's not for work, sadly, no. As I've said on numerous occasions, if I have time with my laptop, I feel guilty if I'm not working on the freelance stuff. Three stickies are on my desktop One has the posts I'd like to write for this blog. Another has the posts for the GenX blog I've been wanting to start for years now. The third has my to-do list, including freelancing.and home projects. The third is the only one seeing any movement. I think my busy task lists will seem less daunting once school starts. I hate to wish for summer to end, but I can see the schedule coming into focus once the boys are back in school.
And those were the highlights of the past two weeks. One other eureka moment is that once summer ends, I'm not going to look ahead to next summer. Instead, I'm going to be thankful for each day, for each week. The time will pass quickly enough, so savoring the present should help my focus as well. The stickies will be be in a state of flux, but they don't need to be finished, just updated over and over. Acceptance is something I'm going to work hard to accept.
I've been so swamped with freelance work that I was apprehensive to set off on any amazing adventures. Hurray for being swamped, but it comes with a a more restrained schedule. For example, I have probably put in at least 15 hours of work these past three weekend days. That's good in that I got much done, but it's indicative that I have to be a little more cautious of how I'm budgeting my time.
I don't think the boys have minded too much. They have been playing with friends -- those last days of desperate summer fun before school begins. We had some ornery weather over the past two weeks -- Utah's monsoon season in which we get a rain and some thunderstorms. Still, the last two weeks had their moments:
-- Ben finally learned how to ride his bike, on Aug. 4 (Day 72). After he struggled to get any balance every time we tried, on this day -- a couple months since he last tried -- it all clicked. Two days later, he tried Michael's old bike and could ride that. Three days after that, he rode in a short bicycle race. He needed a little help at the start, and it was only about 100 yards or so (this was a fun event before a Tour of Utah stage began at Rice-Eccles Stadium), but he rode it nonetheless just a week after not being able to ride a bike, period. He was very excited.
-- We spent a whole long afternoon at the waterpark this last Thursday (Day 82). Michael was with a friend, and they pretty much did their own thing all day. We met one of Ben's friends there, and they were somewhat independent, too. We hadn't gone to the waterpark much this summer, so our day was a blast. The clouds threatened rain for a few minutes early, but then cleared for perfect hot conditions.
-- Ben is doing postseason swim practices. Michael did six days of basketball boot camp followed by two intense days of get-back-into-shape camp.
-- Visits to the dentist. Enough said.
-- The Corolla needed a new starter. Hurray, the Corolla now starts all the time (it was dicey for about a week there).
-- I wrote three prep football previews for The Tribune. I was having a hell of a time reaching coaches -- I don't ever remember being so frustrated about not getting interviews (I'm sure I have been; it's just been a long time).
-- Running? No. BodyPump? No. Some long walks with the dog? Yes, including a couple short hikes. Chunkier than I'd like to be? Oddly, yes -- my current weight, a little heavier than expected, doesn't jibe with how I actually look in the mirror. A lot of sucking in the stomach at the pool? Oh yes.
-- My sister and her family came through town for a day. They had been traveling for weeks straight, so they were content to just relax. My nephews love the toys we have in our basement, and Popcorn liked having another dog in the house (the cat, not so much).
-- Writing? If it's not for work, sadly, no. As I've said on numerous occasions, if I have time with my laptop, I feel guilty if I'm not working on the freelance stuff. Three stickies are on my desktop One has the posts I'd like to write for this blog. Another has the posts for the GenX blog I've been wanting to start for years now. The third has my to-do list, including freelancing.and home projects. The third is the only one seeing any movement. I think my busy task lists will seem less daunting once school starts. I hate to wish for summer to end, but I can see the schedule coming into focus once the boys are back in school.
And those were the highlights of the past two weeks. One other eureka moment is that once summer ends, I'm not going to look ahead to next summer. Instead, I'm going to be thankful for each day, for each week. The time will pass quickly enough, so savoring the present should help my focus as well. The stickies will be be in a state of flux, but they don't need to be finished, just updated over and over. Acceptance is something I'm going to work hard to accept.
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