It Felt Necessary

Thursday’s Wandering Around Campus Aimlessly (1/06/11)

I was having a down day yesterday for no good reason, as it seemed like it should have been a perfectly fine Thursday.  I was feeling some angst about a friendship, and maybe I was just tired from trying to get through the first full week back in the saddle after the holidays.  I’ve also been feeling some anxiety about work, of which I am well aware but must simply endure because I have no magic wand that will whisk my uncomfortable feelings away.

The only really good strategies I have for days like this are distraction, getting outside, and exercise.  It felt necessary to employ all three of these options, so in the afternoon, when I had a bit of a break between experiments, I went outside, wandered around, and took photos.  I took a lot of photos of myself, which I’ll share soon, but for today, my subjects are other creatures: a winter-dried plant, a blooming shrub, and that adorable cat, who wedged herself between the blinds and the patio door so that she could nap in the sun.  (I took that last picture in the morning, when I was on my way to the grocery store to buy some wine for dinner with a friend.) 

The good news is that all of this meandering outdoor distraction did the trick: by the time I went back to my work, I felt much lighter and ready to tackle the rest of the day’s goals.