Sunshine while playing Hooky (NaBloPoMo #10)

Today was a long day. We got up at 5am and were out the door by 6:30... We got back into town just after 7pm and then I had sanshin practice.... I got in just before 10pm.

Exhausted, but wanted to get in a post for today. So what do I want to say....

Given I'm not ready to share about today, a little difficult to write. Suffice it to say that I enjoyed being out of the office for a day. Just dealing with my own personal stuff and spending leisurely time... I guess because we spent much of the day apart doing different things, too, it was different. I practiced sanshin (before actual practice tonight, yay!), I shot off some email that I was much behind on, folded some cranes (for friend's wedding)... just a day of reminiscing about some things and thinking about the future. Hard being in an office where I'm the only staff person... Need to open and close the office, so different than previous jobs where if I needed to come in later or leave early for personal or medical reasons, I could do so. In this job, I've got to find volunteers to cover me. I feel much guilt asking these nice folks to come in...

The next three weeks will be a little mentally exhausting because of two interns who will be in town from Okinawa. A little different than our very independent volunteers! I am envisioning it to be a good experience all around. (Otherwise I might feel like weeping for wanting a bit of a mental break!)

I long for the days when I was working as an independent contractor in Okinawa as translator, narrator and English teacher. I could set my hours accordingly. As long as I was disciplined about getting the projects done, it sure beat "clocking in and out".

I used to try and fill my calendar to feel productive. These days, I really just want to clear it! However, it's still a battle; old habits die hard.

Did some more thinking today about stress management, too. I think I'll be writing/exploring more on that in the future.

Not from today, but outdoors and sitting on outdoor fixture - kinda similar!

Two other things I enjoyed doing today - I was outdoors in the fresh air. I practiced sanshin outdoors, I ate outdoors, and I stretched. It was the stretching that is the second thing I enjoyed. That is, as I waited for Sterling at one point, I spent about half an hour stretching slowly in the sun. I kind of felt like a cat in the sun. Very deliberate, feeling my body, breathing. I am very tight and I have a very stocky build which really calls for much stretching since my muscles are so compact! The more I stretch, the more I love it and just like other physical activity, I just felt more in touch with body, especially as I've not being practicing yoga on my own too much since my instructor went on maternity leave...

I wish my office had windows that opened! Then I could have fresh air during work time, too!

Just a bunch of rambling I know, the highlight about being outdoors. In any case, here is my 10th blog entry of the month!