Dear Friends:
This post is an update from Love is Stronger and about what I have been doing.
As you probably know, I have been on a semi-FB break since mid-January. It has been really good. And I planned to come back on at the end of March. (I wrote about this here: Love is Stronger Will Be Back in March.)
But, it has been such a productive and peaceful break that I realized it would be good to take an extended break. So, I am going to extend my social media/blogging vacation until the end of April.
I have been on social media for over ten years, and I have been writing my blog for about five. It is good for my brain to take an extended break every now and then.
Here are some of the highlights from my break so far (with accompanying pictures). And of course there are a lot of silver hair updates.
One: I got super jazzed about walking 10,000 steps a day (because of a challenge I read online), and I have been loving it.
10,000 steps is about the equivalent of five miles for me. I break it up throughout my day and usually go on three our four short or long walks.
Believe it or not, the other day I got so excited about walking that I ended up walking ten miles (broken up over four or five shorter walks during the day).
To get in more steps, we park our car further from our office. And I take the long way to and from my classes. I also go for a walk after work.
I can’t find the original step challenge, but here is one like it:
The Daily Step Challenge Will Keep You Moving All Month Long
I recently purchased a FitBit, and I love using it to track my steps.
My husband John and I have a contest every day to see who can get the most steps. Right now I am winning. I’m not gonna lie, I’m pretty proud of that. John is really athletic overall, and so I feel pleased that I am winning the step game because he wins about every other game.
Here he is the other day going on a winter run around our block.
Two: I got the Coronavirus vaccine! It was so easy and, in my opinion, didn’t hurt at all. Would highly recommend.
Five: I am getting ready to teach a class on medical ethics, which starts next week. In this class, we will explore the ethics of issues like abortion; euthanasia; genetic engineering; and experimentation on human and animal subjects.
Here are two of the books I am using:
Six: I presented a talk on Stoicism at the Kentucky Education Association. I talked about how Stoic philosophy can help teachers (and everyone) during the pandemic. It was such a privilege to talk to Kentucky’s currrent and future educators. Stay tuned for future posts on Stoicism.
Eight: I have been spending a lot of time in my office at work being quiet, thinking, and dreaming.
My office is so bright and cozy, and I have one of the coolest chairs in the world, which I rescued from being consigned to obscurity. I have been thinking a lot about the past year, and all the changes that I and our country and world have gone through.
And I have also been daydreaming about a zombie novel I have been working on for several years. I think I will write it soon!
I have also been planning my next blog posts. Coming soon in the next months are some blog posts on resilience, stoicism, love, African philosophy, probably politics (of course), walking, the forest, and some interviews with my friends who are doing cool things.
You might like to read this post about dead hangs: Dead Hang: A Simple Move with Big Benefits
I hope you are well, and I will see you at the end of April/beginning of May.
By the way, if you need a cool blog to read, check out my friend M.B. Henry who writes an excellent history blog and is about to get her first novel published!
YAY!!!
Hurray indeed!
Wow! You have been exploring so much, Shelly. I love that you have such an exciting mix of physical, intellectual, creative and spiritual activities in your life. Those topics for courses sound amazing, and I am excited to hear about your zombie novel! So glad you have been vaccinated. John looks pretty hardcore running bare-chested in the snow!