2020-05-25 — Slow and Steady

Happy Monday, me peeps! 😊

Something doesn’t quite feel right. It’s 10:43 a.m., not 1:30 a.m., and I’ve already gone for my nightly run instead of still needing to go out! 🙃

We’re currently on tornado watch, so my venturing out far away from home on the run got nixed, so about half the run was in a good solid downpour running around our front yard–around and around and around.

But hey, 26 minutes! And to think, it seems like just yesterday that it was 10 minutes with hedge clippers. 😁 Slow and steady progress, just a minute a day, and boom–I’m almost at my 30-minute daily goal. Pretty sweet, eh?

I still haven’t incorporated weight training into anything yet, mostly because of the ulnar nerve issues, and also because what my body needs, healthwise, is good cardiovascular endurance. I lift enough heavy tools and parts and whatnot that I can probably get away without weight training, but I’d like to do a little weight training, or at least heavy-duty servicize (carrying rocks and logs from the forest and whatnot).

On that note, if you’re curious. I haven’t paid attention in a few days, but here’s where we stand on the things I’m keeping track of 50 (days without buying more sugar), 58 (days writing in journal) 49 (days free and clear of porn/sex addiction), 23 (days free of TV and movies and sports news), 16 days exercising (six-days-a-week goal).

So… how’s it all going so far? Sugar is getting easier. My sweet tooth craves it on a fairly regular basis, and it’s only satiation I think is my peanut butter & jelly, but I’m doing just fine and not really having to work at it. I think the 8 or so years I went without sweets before is gonna come back pretty easily here shortly.

Writing in my journal every night was a long-standing habit for years before I stopped a couple years ago, and it hasn’t really been that hard to write every night. Sure it takes a decent amount of time, and sure I’ve had troubles staying awake while writing it, but the habit wasn’t really hard at all to bring back.

Porn/sex addiction… 49 days. I’ve been getting better and better, I think. The no tv and movies is a huge help. That’s been one of the natural catalysts. See a pretty actress, wonder if she’s done a nude scene… and off I go. So… that’s helpful not to be inviting those temptations into my face every night. What’s amazing to me is that I made it 26 days while still watching TV and movies. Then another 23 since quitting. It’s been good. Porn hasn’t been the hardest. It’s more the in-person interactions, keeping the mind from wandering.

Keeping the TV and Movies and Sports news out has been hard at times. That was just the natural habit. Come home, wind down in front of some show or movie, and then go to bed. I’m not doing that anymore, but I haven’t been very good at replacing that with other things (besides work. Obviously I’m working way too much, and that’s been filling up most of the time). I guess I’ve been journal writing as well. That pretty much replaces TV and movies at night, even though the habit is still there reminding me here and there to go watch TV. It really gets hard when I get home early, I don’t really know what to do with myself because I’ve been so busy working that I don’t even check my to-do list anymore (so busy I’ve gotten out of the habit). There’s plenty to do. And there are plenty of things to do to wind down and relax besides TV and movies, but it’s just not in my brain because I’m out of practice doing any of them, so they don’t even come to mind. I’ll get there, though.

I think exercise has been by far the hardest–especially since I haven’t been doing it in the mornings but have been waiting until… well… I guess it’s morning…🙃 1 a.m. or whatever to go out and do it. I’m totally exhausted by that point, and soooooo don’t want to exercise. So… yeah… that’s been the hardest. But here I am. 26 minutes and 16 days. Wahoo!

Other than that… let’s see… more troubles with the starter job from the other night. The bolts, in the daylight, were a little stripped. Part of me wonders if I’m the one who stripped them, but… I only torqued the bolts to 35, and that was at an angle, so I don’t think that I would have done it, but I’m always nervous that I’ve screwed something up. Being a holiday, the bolt stores weren’t open, so I couldn’t get replacements (the local parts stores didn’t have the bolts I needed).

I got nervous on another car as well. I was cleaning out the throttle and got too much brake cleaner in the intake (cleaning the carbon deposits off the butterfly valve and housing). It flooded the engine completely, and it took several attempts at starting the car before it finally started, and there were some weird sounds, and part of me was worried that it did some damage, but it seemed fine, and there were no misfires like there were before I did the repairs, so I’m guessing it’s fine, like the vast majority of the other times I’ve gone on a sightseeing trip through paranoia land. If it is damaged somehow (waterlock damage), then… oh well. I’ve paid the stupid tax plenty of times in the past, what’s another time? 😁

It’s probably fine, though. I’m just overly paranoid pretty much all the time when it comes to cars. Usually that’s good because it keeps me being super careful.

Anyway, so I did that car, I diagnosed another car, and then a third one, and that was it for me today (well, I got stymied on car #0 [the starter]). I got home about 9:20 or so, stretched (shout out to one of my sisters for suggesting I stretch before I run), did my daily run, and now here I am.

It’s now 12:13 a m. I’m fairly well fed and hydrated, but I am pretty thirsty, so I’m not 100%. But it’s been a good day.

Of course.

I’m gonna get a drink, catch up on the news, look for a work vehicle, so my poor mother can have her Durango back before it gets forever changed into my work truck, and then… bed.

#1. I’m grateful to have legs to run with. A couple of years ago, with all the knee issues I was having, I didn’t know if I was going to be able to run again. I’m grateful I can.

#2. I’m grateful the rain cooled off the day a bit, and I’m grateful that I was able to run in the rain (without getting struck by lightning). I love running in the rain (well, I like being out in the rain. I don’t like running any time, unless I’m playing a sport, pretty much).

#3. I’m grateful that I had more patience today. I was frustrated with the ongoing saga of the starter on that old Pathfinder, but I handled it a lot better than I did the other night. Having more sleep and better nutrition might have helped. 😁

#4. I’m grateful to be eating better. I’ve made myself some eggs a few times this week, and I’ve been eating avocados. Today I had some bananas with my protein powder. Speaking of which…

#5. I’m grateful for my protein powder. I bought it to help me get more nutrition in my diet because I’m terrible at eating. I think it’s the main thing helping me get enough protein in my diet. Otherwise, I wouldn’t get near enough, I don’t think. Shout out to my mother–I’ve been getting enough protein (at least over the last couple weeks, I think. I’m getting I think 52 to 104 grams each night when I come home and mix my protein drink.

#6. I’m grateful to be down in weight and down in the rolly polly of the belly. I think I’m pretty much at good, healthy weight and size right now. Just shy of 5′ 11″, and about 180 lbs. And it’s a fairly fit 180. I could probably stand to lose another 5, and I might still, but I’m not really worried about it. I’m good and healthy, weight-and-size wise right now, so anything else is cream. It’s just the cardio endurance I’m wanting right now.

Well, folks… It’s after midnight now. I took a good while writing this post. I hope you all have had the smiling happy good days instead of the other kinds of good days, but they’re all good days and have their purpose.

I’m feeling like maybe it’s time to add another thing to my list of things I’m working on and keeping track of, now that I’m past two weeks with exercise. I’ll ponder it. We’ll see what’s the next, best thing.

Well, loves and hugs to all of you. 😊 I really appreciate the fact that I have people reading. I don’t know who you all are, but I appreciate you all nonetheless. Just knowing I have readers is a blessing to me to help me stay focused and committed to moving forward. Hopefully, what I write is as much a benefit to you as what your presence is to me.

Thanks for lifting my world.😊

~ stephen