Potentially weekly check-in

Wordle 952 4/6

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Hobbies

Warcraft

Tuesday I started the Warcraft week with only two +20 dungeons left, so I focused on it more than is ideal, and after several hours and four groups (the first one succeeded, the second completed the dungeon over the timer, and the third fell apart before starting), I got them both done. Cool. I have officially achieved all in-game rewards I could possibly care about for this season.

This is unusual. For years now, I'd go through a cycle in my Warcraft-playing pattern. Early in a patch/expansion, I'd play my main character heavily, splitting my time roughly evenly between "competitive" stuff (raids, dungeons, etc.) and "casual" stuff (quests, gold-making, collecting transmogs, etc.) Those competitive goals are seasonal. For me, the endgame has been Ahead of the Curve (clearing the Heroic raid) and Keystone Master (a score of 2000 in dungeons; roughly doing them all on 13-14). Neither one is the highest in-game achievement possible in their respective areas, but they're close and they seemed more than challenging enough to me. Once I achieved those, I'd play alts more than my main for purely fun stuff and less overall.

But not this time. This time I got Keystone Master earlier than ever, and sort of cheated on Ahead of the Curve. Dungeons are widely agreed to be easier than usual, so completing them at +20, truly the highest in-game achievement possible for dungeons was attainable to me. Numbers scale indefinitely but from this point on it's just about bragging rights. As of Tuesday afternoon, I was truly be done with the season. Maxed out rewards. Nothing left to strive for. I still might not have the legendary, but at the moment everyone online seems to agree that it's so lackluster, and getting it is definitely luck-dependent, that I think I'll be OK without it. 

So Tuesday night I went to bed, optimistic I'd find myself playing less naturally since I had achieved my "main" goals and then some. I felt good about it.

Reading

Soon after finishing Starter Villain, I started Anansi Boys. I'm doing it more out of completionism or stubbornness than actual enjoyment. It's too early in the book to say it's bad, but it's slow to start and twee in a way I wouldn't go out of my way to enjoy. 

So why do I feel an obligation to read it? To help declutter. (Maybe I should have a tag for this, it occupies so much of my thought.) In addition to generally getting more space in the house and using it better, we're planning to renovate in the next two years, which will basically require moving twice. The less we have to pack and tote, the better. Anansi Boys is one of many books around the house I've never read, and T. hasn't finished it either. I'd feel bad either keeping it and never reading it, or giving it away unused. Not sure the second thing is rational, but there it is. 

I've also been decluttering by taking books to nearby Little Free Library. When we move, I'm almost spitefully looking forward to putting my books in a limited number of boxes and telling T. that culling, packing, and lifting the rest is her problem. 

Good and Bad Days

Over the weekend we ran several errands, me driving because there's snow in the general area of course. We also went to see Frozen at the Kennedy Center, so that was cool, pun intended. I can't be exact about the errands because I'm not doing this on a day-to-day basis any more, but there's probably nothing wrong with that.

Monday and Tuesday were average or below average, except as discussed above. 

Wednesday was pretty good. I got stuff done at work and even at home a bit. Maybe not as much stuff as I should have, or not the right stuff, but the trend was in the right direction.

Thursday was a waste. No exercise. Not very productive at work. Not even in Warcraft, despite spending  a lot of time playing. (So much for those hopes Tuesday.) I did a set of races - casual and collectible, fair enough, and limited-time - but got sidetracked a lot. I also tried to raid a bit to get another chance at the legendary, and failed a lot. I underperformed as DPS and got complaints about my tanking. Raiding in PUGs on this character isn't fun and I'm bad at it. So why am I spending so much time on it?

That's a depressive way of thinking. Persistence theoretically leads to improvement. But the fact remains that it's bad for both my productivity and mental health. I really should limit time in the game. I've tried various resolutions and not stuck with them (although this week has been a return to the Wednesday and Friday blackout days, for what it's worth). And some kind of hours-per-day limit might be more effective with the right details or mindset.

Friday, in addition to not playing Warcraft, I was also good at work and got exercise. Good for me.

Only one normal day

Wordle 945 3/6

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Monday was a holiday, of course. 

Tuesday was a snow day. I worked almost a full day but also played with/supervised the kid. 

Wednesday, school was delayed by 2 hours and instructional time ended two hours late (which didn't affect us much because it normally ends early on Wednesday, but the point is, they didn't lose class time, just extended day program). Also, in the morning I figured it was close enough to 3 weeks and the kid could change her earrings, but in the first ear we tried, we couldn't get the earring out the hole the normal way. It was horrible. She's been wearing an earring backwards since then because that's the only way she can.

Thursday was nominally a normal day, but the kid was grumpy all day for no apparent reason. Lack of sleep? Residual effects of the earring thing? In the afternoon she complained about a classmate being mean, but I'm pretty sure she was grumpy in the morning too. Also, in the afternoon T. had a meeting with a teacher, and I brought stuff there as donations, so that wasn't a big deal but was a disruption.

Yesterday was a snow day. Once again I worked almost a normal day. In the afternoon we tried to walk to Capitol Hill for sledding with the kid's friend and her mother, but after getting most of the way there, found out it was closed due to the March for Life assholes. Happily, though, we found that Gallaudet had reopened for this sort of thing, so I took the girls there later. We had an easy dinner of fried rice and Five Guys brought by the kid's friend's mother. I also went to Friday Night Magic. Lost first round very narrowly against a Yawgmoth deck, lost second round against an Omnath deck when the first game went to turns, won third round against elves, lost fourth round against burn. The second round was ridiculous and fun.

Snow

Wordle 941 5/6

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I just said I wasn't going to post daily, but yesterday was the first snow with any accumulation in DC in 2 years, and my first time driving in snow in the DC area ever, so that feels notable. Not exactly by choice, either. We visited two friends' houses, one for lunch and one for dinner, and that could have been cancelled due to the weather, but T. had a doctor's appointment and needed me to get her there. 

On the round trip, we had two near-accidents (both of which would have been the other driver's fault, for the record) and saw a car that had had a bad accident (I don't know about injuries, but they crossed the median and hit a wall on the other side). We also had a car behind us pass us when we stopped at a red light. Only one lane in either direction, so they had to go around us and cross the double yellow line to run that light. So that's how DC-area drivers handle the snow, if you're curious. 

And today is a snow day for the kid, so that will be fun...

Sticking with it for two years

Wordle 940 4/6

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Relaxing except for errands

Yesterday I went to the farmer's market before breakfast and got some bare necessities, including bread and French pastries for breakfast. Easy and nice.

Shortly after that, T. took the kid to a playdate at a friend's house and I took a nap for almost 2 hours. I woke up while she was taking down Christmas stuff. I helped with that and also did the laundry. When she went to pick the kid back up, I walked to the drugstore and hardware store for a car ice scraper, because we've never got around to getting one before now.

Dinner was chicken and a simple salad.

After that, a babysitter came over for the kid, and T. and I went out to a comedy show. I'd call it stand-up, but those are usually solo while this was a duo, Jordan Klepper and Roy Wood. It was fun. It was shorter than we expected, but considering my health, can't complain.

Meta-journaling

I stuck with daily updates here for two years. I feel like that's enough.

This has been a comforting routine. Journaling is sometimes therapeutic in an introspective sense. And it has felt useful to be able to point to specific days I did certain things, like errands or doctor's appointments, although it's hard to say how it's actually important. 

That's it. It hasn't resulted in personal epiphanies; I never would have expected that. Generating prose daily has not led to writing fiction, incisive commentary on current events, or anything else edifying. I have actually been writing for fun, but not here, and definitely not for publication under anything tied to my actual identity. I'm just not getting as much out of this as I'm putting into it. Good for me for sticking with something, but this particular thing literally daily doesn't seem worth the time.

Going forward, maybe I'll write when interesting things happen but not on routine, boring days. Or maybe I'll do a summary weekly - still putting specific events on specific days, but not a daily navel-gazing session.

Costco and relaxing

Wordle 939 4/6

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Yesterday we had the usual brunch. Later in the morning we went to Costco for some essentials. Before going home we took the kid to an afternoon skating camp T. had found. She was reluctant but had fun in the end. Then we went home, unpacked and started the laundry.

Then I napped, or at least lay down in a dark room and relaxed, while T. did her own thing and picked up the kid.

Dinner was barbequed (oven-cooked) ribs and green beans. Easy and good, but messy. 

Last night I took melatonin and NyQuil before bed. I'm not sure if that counts as mixing medications (I don't think so), but I got 9 hours of uninterrupted sleep which would be great under any circumstances but especially now when I'm sick, so I feel like it was worth it.

Sick

Wordle 938 3/6

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Yesterday I drove T. and the kid to work and school uneventfully. Then I came home and relaxed, although probably not enough.

Work was fine. Two meetings and one document published; not bad for a Friday that's not the biweekly report day. I played Warcraft, of course, and went to the store briefly. The "probably not relaxing enough" part is because I'm sick - bad cold or mild flu or something - and probably should have found the time for a nap, but didn't.

T. came home a little early due to the upcoming holiday. We drove to get the kid. She had a gymnastics class planned, but hurt her hand in school (got stepped on!) and was worried about hurting it further, so we skipped it. Dinner at District Taco, as usual, but home after that. 

In the evening we watched Doctor Who and went to bed early. I was in bed for 9 hours. T.'s snoring didn't help, but her body heat did; I had a fever and chills. Tradeoffs.

I finished Starter Villain before bed last night. It was fun. It left me wanting more about the character and universe (similar to ours with a few differences, like sentient cats), which I guess is a good sign. Like The Doors of Eden but less so. It's interesting, I've reacted almost with disgust when a book ends with a sequel hook, like the last Dresden Files book or a certain Brandon Sanderson book, but when these didn't, I'm disappointed. Is there a meaningful distinction to be made between interesting characters and an interesting world?

A first I have mixed feelings about

Wordle 937 5/6

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I wasn't feeling well yesterday, as if I am/was getting sick. I'm not sure if that's why I didn't get much sleep, but regardless, T. took the kid to school without me for once. Cool.

Work was fine. 2 meetings in the morning, both productive enough. After all the needed follow-ups on them, I got my exercise for the day: walking to the library to get that book for the kid and the store. In the afternoon, I sent a few more emails and generally stayed on top of things. 

I also played Warcraft. I tried biting the bullet and leading a raid for the one boss I still needed for Ahead of the Curve, the raid milestone I normally regard as the endgame. After an hour and a half and 7 wipes, I gave up. I found someone advertising paid carries, accepted, and had my kill in less than half an hour.

I have mixed feelings about that. How much does doing it myself matter, considering that "myself" has almost always actually meant "pickup groups I'm lucky enough to get invited to"? I feel better about it this season than I normally would, because getting it isn't the endgame. My main is a warrior, so I sort of feel like getting the legendary weapon is the endgame, and this is almost necessary but not quite, and definitely not sufficient for that. 

On the one hand, I tried to pull my weight in the raid I was paying for. I survived to the end and didn't cause problems, unlike two other people paying for it who died early. On the other hand, frankly, I failed to pull my weight. My DPS was almost exactly the same as the tank's, less than half that of the top DPS. In layman's terms, it was bad. Part of the problem was a lack of preparation, which is partly because I've prepared more for tanking, and I can come up with more reasons that have nothing to do with skill, but even so, it's humbling.

Oh well. It's just a game. There are other things I care about this season (in addition to the legendary, and I don't want to worry about it too much because it depends on luck, I still have several +20 dungeons to go) and I'll try to reserve judgement until it's over.

So anyways, after that I took a nap. I went to get the kid and T. at the last minute. Dinner was pasta and squash. I got to bed early.

A bomb threat? Really?

Wordle 936 4/6

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Yesterday I drove the kid to school uneventfully. I had a couple productive meetings in the morning. (Preceded by some writing, and a little Warcraft.) After them I planned to have a both fun and productive afternoon, but I took a shower around 11:45, and came out to find about 80 WhatsApp message. Apparently the kid's school was evacuated due to a bomb threat. (I didn't want to link to that site, but the top 5+ Google News links were also weird. Journalism for local issues has really bottomed out.) 

So I picked the kid up early and we had a big lunch across the street from the playground where they were gathering. Then we went to the library, tried to get a book reserved for her, failed because it was in her mother's name and not mine, and got another one instead. Then home. She watched TV. I worked a little more and played Warcraft. That resolution didn't last long. I feel a little bad about it, but it was a weird day through no fault of my own and I had fun and made progress in the game, so not too bad.

Dinner was leftovers. T. and I both got to bed early. Lights out before 10, which is almost unheard of, barring jet lag or illness. I woke up around 3:30 due to snoring, but that stopped soon but I couldn't get back to sleep for over an hour, so here I am.

Rain

Wordle 935 5/6

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Drove the ladies to school and work yesterday. 

The first two meetings of the day went fine - easy and fast. But the kid's school closed early due to rain, of all things. The weather was supposed to be at its worst around rush hour, but still, it seems soft to me. So I rushed through some things in the afternoon. I did some very brief calisthenics during the third meeting and then left early (I wasn't participating anyway) and drove in to get them. The kid watched Doctor Who for a while, but the guitar school wasn't closed, so I drove her back there for the lesson. While she was in there I took a walk, despite the rain. How fit of me.

Dinner was pork chops and glazed carrots. 

I wanted to complain about the day, but I was OK at work, still got some good stuff done in Warcraft (one more +20 dungeon done), and the rain didn't effect us (even though it did effect our neighbors; this is the first time I've been glad to not have a basement), so when I went to bed last night and right now I'm feeling fine about it, really.

Back to the routine

Wordle 934 3/6

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T. and I drove the kid to school yesterday. Traffic was good, maybe because we left earlier than usual. 

Work was fine. Two meetings, neither too busy/difficult. Sent one document out for review, got to one easy task from our backlog, dealt with ad hoc email. 

Late in the afternoon I went for a walk to get my steps in. 

Dinner was chicken, cauliflower, and a little of the leftovers.

Shopping and laundry

Wordle 933 3/6

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I got up at the usual time yesterday, but T. and the kid slept in. After they were both up I went to the farmer's market for breakfast (egg/sausage sandwiches) and general shopping, since of course the fridge was empty. We ate while watching Doctor Who. The kid is working her way through the Ninth Doctor. 

In the afternoon, I took the kid for a bike ride while T. walked to the library and did laundry. After we regrouped, we went to the Craft Beer Cellar, more to say goodbye because they're closing than to actually buy anything, and Giant. 

Dinner was a steak, mashed potatoes, and a cucumber salad.

Going home

Wordle 932 3/6

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I posted yesterday's entry after boarding the plane and before turning airplane mode on. The trip was uneventful. We got home around 4:30 EST and spent the afternoon unpacking. Dinner was pizza since, of course, we had nothing else in the house. 

I started reading Starter Villain, my Christmas present, before bed.

Work and packing

Wordle 931 5/6

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Got up around 4 yesterday. Ugh.

Work was as good as could be expected, considering the biweekly report in another time zone. T. packed more than me. We had to take an extra suitcase due to presents and shopping. I tried to take a nap in the afternoon but failed.

I finished Skinny Dip in the car. Fun book, as expected. Dinner was at a Mexican restaurant with friends. 

Slept well in the hotel despite getting up early. 

A day to myself

Wordle 930 3/6

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Yesterday I basically had the day to myself. T. and her parents took the kid on multiple playdates while I did my own thing.

Work was fine. I was more productive than I had to be, which is always nice. There was an early meeting, and despite some downtime in the middle of the day, I also finished an SOP I've been working on and did some organizational stuff. That downtime was for a walk, longer than usual for the past week. Good for me. 

I took a nap in the afternoon. Everyone came home for dinner, which was simple (soup, salad, and Brussels sprouts I helped make) but plentiful.

Warcraft, walks, and the date

Wordle 929 4/6

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Work was uneventful yesterday. Sent a few emails, started a moderate-difficulty, moderate-urgency task. 

In Warcraft, I completed a +20 dungeon for the first time, a personal record and where the in-game rewards max out. This season is easier than usual, but still, I'm enjoying it and good for me. 

In the afternoon, I played with the kid a bit indoors (a board game, my idea, which I regret because she gets competitive, and dolls, her idea, which is just boring to me), but eventually T. and I insisted on her going for a walk with us. Just a short one, a square around the orchard and along the nearby road. She complained nonstop. She rushed home ahead of us. When we got there, we found her prepping to take the dogs for a walk with T.'s mom. We took the kid and the dogs for a walk instead (or rather, I did; with only two dogs, T. wasn't needed and excused herself). It was probably slower overall than the first walk, due to the dogs sniffing everything and getting the leashes tangled, but still, good for us. 

In the afternoon I took a short nap. Haven't been sleeping well lately (you might notice I'm posting this very early). Then T. and I went on our big date for the trip:

1. A winery, for a low-key wine tasting.
2. Costco. We had time to kill between the winery and the next stop and nothing else fit the bill. We mostly just meandered, browsed, and talked about plans for the next few months/years tangentially related to the merchandise we were looking at. It could have been romantic in many other settings. If it bugged me too much, we/I should have planned the date more tightly, but it wasn't bad.
   
3. Dinner at an Italian place. The food was good but kind of weird. In addition to what we ordered, the complimentary table bread was huge, and as usual we ordered too much. Leftovers.
4. A movie: Anyone but You, an R-rated loose adaptation of Much Ado about Nothing. It was fun, and funny. 

Overall, a fun, romantic, good afternoon and evening. Unfortunately, two things in the movie made me disappointed in my fitness.

1. There were jokes about the male protagonist's stamina swimming. He's "hot girl fit", as the female protagonist described him, and doesn't do cardio. I don't want to read too much into this - they're conventionally attractive romcom characters - but still, it's a reminder that there are different types of fitness and none of them come naturally to the vast majority of people.
2. I got a foot cramp. Sitting there in the theater, I had to take my shoe off and try to surreptitiously massage it. I assume it's related to my plantar issues. It's one thing to be unable to jog 3 miles, but to be unable to sit through a movie? Ugh.
   

Working in CA

Wordle 928 6/6

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Got up early yesterday and spent the morning working from home. Being the first workday of the new year, it wasn't too busy. My supervisor is on leave (sort of; she's replying to emails) and I have the impression a lot of other people are too. 

The kid came to see us in the late morning or early afternoon, saw me playing my game, and objected. I stalled to a guilty degree but eventually came and pushed her on the swing for a bit. 

In the afternoon, T. and I went for a walk. Later, the kid went to the movies with her Papa to see Wonka, so it was just me, T., and her mother around the house in the afternoon/evening. In addition to the game, I also started reading Carl Hiaasen's Skinny Dip. It's funny. The decision to pick that up rather than Starter Villain, a Christmas present from T. to me, was fraught, but if I finish it before we go, I'll be totally vindicated...

Dinner was tilapia or some other white fish, salad, and mashed potatoes. Good, and healthy, but again, a ton of food.

New Year's Day Party

Wordle 927 5/6

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Yesterday the big event was a party T.'s parents hosted. Lots of hors d'oeuvres. I socialized all day. It was more fun than I expected. No major connections, lots of minor ones. 

It made me think I need to get better about my health. Our crowd is aging. Again, this isn't big news, but it's a minor reminder.

The cable was fixed around 5, so we could once again resume online activities without worrying about data limits.

Didn't sleep well last night. I think the main cause was T.'s snoring, but my party-related alcohol intake might have made it worse.

Relaxing

Wordle 926 3/6

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Yesterday I did something I've never done before and used my phone as a mobile hotspot. (The kid doesn't know, and doesn't need to know, that there is an option for media while the Internet is out. Heh heh heh.) It was fine so far but is untenable in the long term due to data limits, and we may have hit them in just one day. I'll find out after this.

Yesterday was again relaxing overall. T., her mother, and I drove to Costco for some shopping. The kid got to play with a friend across the street. Dinner was T.'s mother's cooking, of course, a chicken dish sort of like my vermouth/caper recipe plus several sides. 

T. and I watched TV late, but still got to bed before 11. I'm sure we'll have an exciting New Year's again someday, but it wasn't last night and probably won't be in California.