Hi! It's been a while. I'm only writing so I can maintain an average of one blog post per year over the last five years. Really. Not really.
So, I had a free coffee to redeem at Peet's and decided to use it this morning before it expired. Life might have gotten in the way. Usually a small Americano or whatever drip coffee that looks good will suffice, but not today, I thought. I'm getting a medium latte with almond milk. "Do you want a large?" she asked, wondering if I wanted to take full advantage of the free offer. "Nah," I replied, not wanting to be too jazzed up.
I know that cow's milk in coffee tastes better than say, almond, soy, cashew or coconut, but I try not to consume it. A little dab'll do me, on occasion, but I don't want a whole cup of pus in my beverage. Generally speaking, black – without milk or sugar – is better, and no, I'm not talking about dicks. If I feel like it will make me too excitable, I might dribble in a little half & half to tone it down. I know, who cares?!
Anyway, almond milk in coffee is nasty! I like alternative milk beverages, but they taste better on cereal or in smoothies. That was like almond milk with coffee. Tasted like one of those artificially sweetened and flavored non-dairy creamers. Nassssty. Wasn't hot enough, was too sweet and didn't even taste like I was drinking coffee. It almost ruined my morning, but I still managed to pour it all down the hatch.
Enough about that. So, it's late August and feels like late September. Has fall arrived a month early? That's fun. Mid-50s in the morning. Yay! I'm not sure, but I think I hear the tropics calling my name. Don't really want to bail...yet...it'd be good to try and get a normal job and life a normal life, right? I just don't know if I can do it.
I should be looking harder for work. I should be leaving the house more often. Meeting people and networking. But it's hard when I don't even know what I'm looking for. I apply for something, have an interview and then change my mind. Nearly three months have passed! I think about applying for various state jobs but can't pull the trigger. The pension sounds amazing, but the thought of working an office job brings me despair. Haven't done that since 2002, or was it 2001? How can I do it now?
Waking up to an alarm: beep beep beep beep! Ok, so I usually wake up to an alarm anyway and it doesn't sound like that, but you know what I'm saying. Just hire me, you will not be disappointed! Never missed a day of work in my life. That's true, but I have had a lot of days off in between jobs. Maybe more days off than days off! Call my references. Maybe I'm delusional, but I'm sure they'll recommend me.
So, how do I fill in the hours, the huge gap of time where most people are working? Exercise is one way, but that gets boring. Mindlessly shoving food in my mouth is another, but that's not really that fun. But it's healthy food! Dark chocolate covered almonds are healthy, right? Thank goodness for MoviePass. As much as I hate them, I have seen more movies on the big screen in the US in the past two months than in the past 20 years. And most have been good! BlackkKlansman, Three Identical Strangers, Crazy Rich Asians, and the list goes on.
And I've gone on more hikes in the Sierras than I can remember, and I'm not done yet! Communing with Mother Nature, getting some fresh air, burning some calories, trying to forget about the present moment. It works! I've also been experimenting with my coffee intake. Trying to see if I would be more alive without it. Made it 15 days with just two cups and a few cups of yerba mate in between and nope – forget that idea – gimme my fuckin' coffee!
This past week, I finally completed a 48-hour fast. Only made it 37 hours the first time, throwing in the towel after experiencing extreme irritability. It's not just a water fast, it's called the Snake Diet. Look it up if you wish. You just drink water mixed with various salts – aka "snake juice" – over the course of the day. Provides the necessary electrolytes and relieves hunger pangs. After my refeed, I did another 23-hour fast, had another meal and then went straight into a 23-hour hard dry fast. That was fun. It felt like I was fading into oblivion, and I was, but the 500ml of coconut water at the end brought me back to life.
Anyway, good times! Here I am. There you are. Living. Life is still good, despite everything I just said. Hope you enjoyed all those exclamation marks. Ugh!
So, I had a free coffee to redeem at Peet's and decided to use it this morning before it expired. Life might have gotten in the way. Usually a small Americano or whatever drip coffee that looks good will suffice, but not today, I thought. I'm getting a medium latte with almond milk. "Do you want a large?" she asked, wondering if I wanted to take full advantage of the free offer. "Nah," I replied, not wanting to be too jazzed up.
I know that cow's milk in coffee tastes better than say, almond, soy, cashew or coconut, but I try not to consume it. A little dab'll do me, on occasion, but I don't want a whole cup of pus in my beverage. Generally speaking, black – without milk or sugar – is better, and no, I'm not talking about dicks. If I feel like it will make me too excitable, I might dribble in a little half & half to tone it down. I know, who cares?!
Anyway, almond milk in coffee is nasty! I like alternative milk beverages, but they taste better on cereal or in smoothies. That was like almond milk with coffee. Tasted like one of those artificially sweetened and flavored non-dairy creamers. Nassssty. Wasn't hot enough, was too sweet and didn't even taste like I was drinking coffee. It almost ruined my morning, but I still managed to pour it all down the hatch.
Enough about that. So, it's late August and feels like late September. Has fall arrived a month early? That's fun. Mid-50s in the morning. Yay! I'm not sure, but I think I hear the tropics calling my name. Don't really want to bail...yet...it'd be good to try and get a normal job and life a normal life, right? I just don't know if I can do it.
I should be looking harder for work. I should be leaving the house more often. Meeting people and networking. But it's hard when I don't even know what I'm looking for. I apply for something, have an interview and then change my mind. Nearly three months have passed! I think about applying for various state jobs but can't pull the trigger. The pension sounds amazing, but the thought of working an office job brings me despair. Haven't done that since 2002, or was it 2001? How can I do it now?
Waking up to an alarm: beep beep beep beep! Ok, so I usually wake up to an alarm anyway and it doesn't sound like that, but you know what I'm saying. Just hire me, you will not be disappointed! Never missed a day of work in my life. That's true, but I have had a lot of days off in between jobs. Maybe more days off than days off! Call my references. Maybe I'm delusional, but I'm sure they'll recommend me.
So, how do I fill in the hours, the huge gap of time where most people are working? Exercise is one way, but that gets boring. Mindlessly shoving food in my mouth is another, but that's not really that fun. But it's healthy food! Dark chocolate covered almonds are healthy, right? Thank goodness for MoviePass. As much as I hate them, I have seen more movies on the big screen in the US in the past two months than in the past 20 years. And most have been good! BlackkKlansman, Three Identical Strangers, Crazy Rich Asians, and the list goes on.
And I've gone on more hikes in the Sierras than I can remember, and I'm not done yet! Communing with Mother Nature, getting some fresh air, burning some calories, trying to forget about the present moment. It works! I've also been experimenting with my coffee intake. Trying to see if I would be more alive without it. Made it 15 days with just two cups and a few cups of yerba mate in between and nope – forget that idea – gimme my fuckin' coffee!
This past week, I finally completed a 48-hour fast. Only made it 37 hours the first time, throwing in the towel after experiencing extreme irritability. It's not just a water fast, it's called the Snake Diet. Look it up if you wish. You just drink water mixed with various salts – aka "snake juice" – over the course of the day. Provides the necessary electrolytes and relieves hunger pangs. After my refeed, I did another 23-hour fast, had another meal and then went straight into a 23-hour hard dry fast. That was fun. It felt like I was fading into oblivion, and I was, but the 500ml of coconut water at the end brought me back to life.
Anyway, good times! Here I am. There you are. Living. Life is still good, despite everything I just said. Hope you enjoyed all those exclamation marks. Ugh!
