Weekend Plans Post: Independence
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Last year’s 4th of July was around the time I ran my very first 5K. (Well… jogged. Well… shuffled.)
The climbing gyms were closed, the lockdown had no end in sight, and the only exercise that was okay was socially distanced outside stuff. Tai chi. Yoga in the park. Jogging.
This year, the climbing gym is open again and you do not have to wear a mask if you have been vaccinated. I slapped my Vaccination Card down on the counter as I re-upped my membership and they told me “oh, you don’t have to show that… (but thank you)”.
I think about how much has changed since this time last year and how much hasn’t changed since this time last year and the exercise regimen is the number one thing that has changed. I’m back in the gym, I’ve forgotten everything, and my hands are slowly regaining the callouses they lost in the basement over the last year.
We went from going to the grocery store and spending $400 because we were digging in, to getting groceries delivered twice a week. Sometimes three times. Now we’re back to doing stuff like “picking up some garlic bread, because dinner would benefit from garlic bread”.
We still haven’t gone back out to eat, really. We get our delivery dinners and we do curbside pickup (and the drive-thru, of course) but haven’t really eaten in a restaurant. Well, except for the Yute and Yeti. But that doesn’t feel like it counts.
With all of the talk of this variant and that variant and hearing stories about how another Full Lockdown is around the corner… well, this weekend will be spent celebrating being able to go out and about again. There are a handful of errands to run this weekend (groceries, Costco, PetSmart), a handful of chores to do around the house, and laundry. I’ve made a tentative new workfriend who moved here from Away and he wants to go out and do a hike. So… maybe I’ll go on a hike for the first time since Clinton’s first presidential term.
And mostly just enjoy doing stuff, while we can continue to enjoy doing stuff.
So… what’s on your docket?
I had been regularly griping about the cicadas on these threads, but that season is over and it seemed a lot milder than last cycle (although how much of that was due to me not being outside as much, I can’t judge). I think I’ve come to terms with them ever since I remembered that when I was 17, all I ever thought about was having sex and dying, too.
No big weekend plans. Likely working a bit on Monday. But I wish everyone else a fun and adventurous three-day weekend.Report
Big family picnic resumes after a 1 year hiatus. It’ll be nice to see all the cousins again.
Other than that, hopefully nothing. I’m still grappling with being the sole occupant of a house. It’s a lot of work!Report
Baking blueberry muffins for indepedence day breakfast at church. Also probably resting up; I suspect the usual suspects in my neighborhood will be setting off the big booms as soon as the rain goes away. I try not to be too much of a grinch about this but I dislike loud noises and don’t have anywhere (like a basement, for example) that I can get away from them.
Did “big grocery shopping” (aka driving into Texas instead of doing what I can locally) yesterday. Went to the Target, had a flashback to February 2020, when I stopped mid-aisle and thought “I am hearing about this new virus in Asia, and Australians apparently having a hard time getting TP” and bought a 24-pack.
I bought a 12-pack yesterday. Case counts are going up regionally and while they keep reassuring us that at least 90% of those case counts are unvaccinated folks, still…..I have a weird “stampede’s a-comin'” feeling (I also counted up how many canned goods I had yesterday; I have enough currently). I hope I’m wrong but the past year taught me that paranoia doesn’t necessarily mean they’re not out to get you.
it’s also just super humid here and my allergies (well, I HOPE they are allergies) have kicked back in. Lots of sneezing and sinus pain and even a little vertigo related to the sinus issues. fReport
Oh, jeez. The cats are going to be under the bed for a week.Report
Fireworks are illegal in Fort Collins. We’ll see if the police are any better about enforcement than the Arvada cops were. Might be more public pressure, since we all spent two months last year breathing smoke from the record fires. The hillsides and ditches are disturbingly lush and green for July 2.Report
According to the Google:
All types of fireworks with a fuse and/or requiring a flame for ignition are illegal in Colorado Springs. Only novelty items (snappers and poppers) are allowed.
If last year is any indicator, bottle rockets and black cats will abound.
And those are the things that drive our kitties under the bed.Report
I can confirm multiple pockets of civil disobedience.Report
Fort Collins bans possession of any fireworks, including snakes and sparklers. Last week I saw a couple of the free yard signs available from the fire district that are roughly “Consider the pets you’re going to terrorize before you set off your illegal fireworks.” The city encourages people to rat out their neighbors on this subject.
Other than the professional show in the distance — several miles — I didn’t hear anything last evening.Report