Weekly Mileage #158 and General Conference

Monday I went for a trail run and a hike. The weather was in the low 70s and everything is just starting to green up- a beautiful day! I decided to let the chicken coop dry out another day before working on the floor- that and working in warmer weather drains me a lot faster than when the weather is cooler. The forecast for Tuesday and Wednesday was in the 50s, which is much more conducive to me being able to work outside for longer.

So we cleaned the house instead. It's not our favorite activity, and it really is an exercise in futility, but it was desperately needed. The boys are always tracking dirt into the house (hazards of having no pavement around our house) and they're good at making messes with anything they touch. I can ignore it for a while, but then it reaches a tipping point.

The governor issued a statewide stay at home order that's in place until June 10. We can still leave for work, groceries, doctor appointments, and exercise. I'm so glad exercise is included, but I think it's going to make the parks even more crowded. I am thankful our trails park doesn't have a playground that I have to keep the boys off of.

Tuesday we did music lessons online again. While it's not the same as meeting in person, it is easier to keep the kiddos from disrupting the lessons since I can send them downstairs or outside.

Wednesday I worked on the chicken coop floor, though I'm still not done yet- this is just 1/3 of the floor. I also made a face mask and still didn't get to sleep at a decent time.

Thursday I had to get up early for a chiropractor appointment, which left me dragging all day from too little sleep. Not a productive day for me.

Friday I started making a bunch of face masks for us and a friend from our ward who doesn't sew. My efforts got derailed when my 60+ year old workhorse sewing machine pooped out on me. I'll take it to a sewing machine repair place when everything opens up again, but I don't know if they'll be able to fix it. It's been having more and more problems over the last couple years, so it may be time to retire her finally :(

Saturday Jeremy got me a new sewing machine since I couldn't make masks without one. The one he bought isn't one I would have picked because it's got a lot of bells and whistles: it's got like 50-60 stitches, and I've only used two so far. But when Jeremy went to the store, it was this one or a $400 one, so he went with the cheaper one. Honestly, it's really nice to sew without problems or constantly twiddling with the machine.

Saturday and Sunday was General Conference. I can't sit and listen to something without falling asleep, so I have to keep my hands busy. Note taking doesn't work for me since the writing portion isn't constant. This year I decided to use the time to fold and mark my papers, and it worked really well. I folded a lot of papers for use in notebooks (counted out in 5 page sections first), then marked the stitch holes. Both tasks are tedious, but perfect for doing while listening to conference.

template I use for marking holes on different sizes of paper

after I mark the right spots, I push the awl through, making the holes bigger

stack of pages ready to be sewn together

I liked the selection of songs they used- picking across various performances from the last 10-15 years yielded some really good hymns. It's also super cool about the temples in Shanghai and Dubai. Very reminiscent of when missionaries were first allowed into India and Russia when I was a teenager. Those were locations that seemed so out of reach until that time, just as these temples seemed out of reach until now.

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One good thing about having all our activities canceled- I'm getting a good nights sleep (for me) even with stress-induced insomnia because I can sleep in. Combined with the fact that I've finally stopped waking up when the boys wake up and start making noise, and I'm getting my 7 hours of sleep (more is ok, but I've discovered that 7 hours is the minimum I need to be functional) despite insomnia keeping me up. And my insomnia game has never been stronger. Sooo frustrating.

The sameness of our schedule is also helping me pinpoint some of the variables that throw me off as I try to figure out triggers and reactions and how long reactions affect me. I thought sugar alcohols in sugar free treats were contributing to my insomnia, but I may be wrong on that one. Stress for sure is an issue. Trying to shut off my brain so I can go to sleep has been a challenge the last couple weeks.

Though the insomnia has proven helpful in one respect: I've finally moved forward with character details and plot points on the novel I've been working on for the last 12 years. I was stuck not knowing enough of the plot to move forward with actual writing, and some of what I had was a bit too melodramatic for what I had in mind. I've now been able to hammer out a lot of the plot and characterization issues, though I do have a bit more to figure out before I actually start writing. Not that I have time to write a novel right now.... But at least when I do, I'll have all the background info ready to go.

Weekly Mileage
Monday- 1.65 trail run
Monday-2.46 miles hiked
Wednesday- 3.75 miles walked while working outside
total- 7.86 miles

2020 totals

13 hikes towards #52hikechallenge
0 kayak miles towards #365milechallenge

62.33 outdoor foot miles towards #365milechallenge
8.00 indoor foot miles towards #365milechallenge
90.0 bike miles towards #365milechallenge
160.33 miles total