Friday Wrap-Up: An Old Familiar Feeling
It’s hilarious to me that I have these “a-ha” moments in which I say I’m back at blogging and keeping myself accountable, and then almost instantaneously see something shiny and disappear into the night.
But nevertheless, I’m here, and we still back — whatever that means, anyway.
The past three weeks have been, just like everyone else, very up and down. That said, I had one monster of a freelance project that had me editing a manuscript until the wee hours of the morning, giving me flashbacks of my senior Policy class in college in which my classmates and I would spend nearly every waking hour in the library working on one goddamn report.
In an effort to hone in on my focus, I turned off all notifications on my phone. And in these “very uncertain times” where we are either glued to the news or to memes that serve great hilarity on social media — or in my case, both — cutting yourself off from friends and family is truly a roll of the dice when it comes to your psyche. (And even more so when you’re facing anxiety and depression.)
I’m not complaining here. I’m lucky to be able to pick up random freelance work in an environment that is both ever-changing and going through hiring freezes. In fact, if there’s anything I’m going to complain about, it’s the fact that I don’t have a job. Working on these two projects — both books, btw — brought back that great hustle that I have missed so much in the past seven months I’ve been unemployed. I know I’m not alone here — I just truly miss working. (I also truly get irritated when people complain about their jobs and/or working. You don’t want yours? I’m sure there are a fuckton of people who would gladly trade lives with you. And in the event you forget, I’ll be the person to remind you that you’re one of the few who have an income and aren’t thinking about moving back in with your parents at the ripe age of 35.)
Anyway, between cutting myself off from most humans — I gave more progress reports to two of my best friends than to my parents, if that gives you any insight — the past two weeks have been a whirlwind of emotion for me here. I’ve remembered what it’s like to work. I remembered what it’s like to truly care about what you’re working on.
I also got a haircut — my first since January. And getting a haircut was something I had been putting on the back-burner — that was, until my nurse friend Susan got her hair cut and colored. Then it was game on. I had high hopes of getting some work done during my appointment until Bojana swept in and said, “As someone who just got their hair cut, I can tell you that there literally might not be a more ‘normal’ feeling, so please do not work.” And fuck, if she wasn’t right. It was everything and then some — a glorious 45 minutes of wash, cut, and blow dry, and precisely the break I needed during my mountain of deadlines. (And with Wave 2 looming in the near future, who knows if and when I can experience this again.)
I also had a mega high last Friday night when I reunited with one of my friends that I haven’t seen in five months. After much deliberation we realized that, in the nearly 30 years we’ve been friends, this was the longest we’ve gone without seeing each other face-to-face since we were in college — and prior to that, when she lived in Paris when we were in middle school. So it shouldn’t be a shock to say that I had all of the warm and fuzzies when we (and BH, my forever Friday night dining confidant) caught up over multiple beverages while eating at a nondescript Thai restaurant in the East Village.
These old familiar feelings rush in and, upon their exit, leave me feeling with a gaping hole in my soul. Dramatic? Sure. One hundred percent honesty? Absolutely.
Without these moments I don’t know where I’d be.
So keep them coming. I’m living for them.
Total Mileage for Week July 27 – August 2: 38.1. Okay, so I now realize I haven’t written on this thing for three weeks and thus have to think about what that was like…
::looks back at Instagram and Strava posts::
Ah, yes. In the words of Céline Dion, it’s all coming back to me now. Saturday’s #supportlocal long run with BH and CLO was in full force, and we hit a hill on Amsterdam Avenue that I didn’t know existed. (And in 90˚F heat, a real treat.) Speaking of 90˚F heat, I decided it was a great idea to revisit speed work, so I opted for some Cat Hill repeats, which are so much more difficult when you’re wearing a mask, and so I do not recommend.
It was also that week that I was reunited with Susan for a rousing loop of Randall’s Island Park, and then further reunited with Buffalo tots at East End Bar & Grill.
Notable Meals Out For the Week: This week started the mid-week #supportlocal adventure run in which with an end point of Empellón Al Pastor. Alex Stupak is doing all the right things here — social distancing, cocktails in juice bottles, water station, you name it — and the nachos were exactly how I remembered them to be: fucking brilliant. And the Saturday long run ended at the wildly-popular Jacob’s Pickles on the Upper West Side; and wouldn’t you know it, we were lucky enough to get a table, making this the first time I’ve eaten at this restaurant since 2014. (Thanks, Covid!)
Total Mileage for Week August 3 – 9: 36, on the nose. The highlight of the week was certainly the #supportlocal long run, in which for the very first time in several months, we had CREW. A whopping FIVE of us ran to Brooklyn. And no one could wipe the smile off my face.
Notable Meals Out For the Week: There was one, the end destination of the #supportlocal long run: Egg, in Williamsburg. Weeks ago, CLO alerted BH and I of a tomato sandwich special being served, and so we bumped it to the top of our #supportlocal Covid-19 spreadsheet. (Yes, I made a spreadsheet, and no one should be surprised.) So we ordered in advance, made haste, acquired, and it was a tomato sandwich of dreams. (And I was the only one to opt in for bacon and won the tomato sandwich game.)
Total Mileage for Week August 10 – 16: 30.1. Between my deadline and my trashed legs, it’s quite clear that I’m still exhausted from that 50-mile week. And I did zero speed work. Just literally went out for something when I could. And that’s okay.
Notable Meals Out For the Week: Hands down, Jajaja, the end destination of our long run on Saturday. Apparently there are multiple locations of this Mexican spot throughout Manhattan, but I wasn’t aware of it until BH brought it to my attention last week. (Likely due to the fact that they label themselves as “healthy” and that many of their items are “vegan,” two things that I am not a target demographic for.) Regardless, the food was a fucking DELIGHT, and my the tempura batter of my Buffalo cauliflower was mega crispy, and had an ample amount of veg and solid corn tortilla to support it, and the cocktails were SO REFRESHING, and so I will likely return.
And so we have another weekend on our hands (and if you’re me, all of the days are the same, and if this is what retirement looks like, I’m not quite sure I’m ready for it).
As my anxiety is certainly the highest its ever been, everyone please point me in the direction of their favorite restaurants and also their favorite shows and movies.
I mean…I’ve got nothing but time on my hands.