Today's code word was supposed to be indulgence. Throw some money at my pensive mood and see if I can shake it loose.
My plan was to leave work at 11, walk downtown, have a nice lunch on Wish's patio then head to Stillwater for my hair appointment. Change Wish's lamb burger on the patio for a brie and raspberry crepe in the park, and that part of the plan went well. I was faulty in thinking that it was the monetary exchanges that would improve my mood.
I had been listening to an interview on CBC this morning (no idea what the show was or who was interviewed), my attention being caught by a discussion about the increasing ubiquity* of iPods providing a never-ending soundtrack to one's life. A question stuck with me - is silence obsolete? One guest jokingly said yes, the other was far more earnest in his reply: I am far more in the world when I am experiencing it with all my senses, he said.
So rather than walking around listening to Weekend Players and Lhasa de Sela, I left the iPod in the purse. I'm so glad I did; I would have missed the sound of the kids laughing in the playground and the twittering of a flock of sparrows in the bushes behind me, waiting for me to leave so they can scavenge for my crumbs. There was the whir of two dragonflies moving past me, their wings flashing gold and green in the sunlight, and the sound of the wind moving through the leaves.
Presto. Instant mood improvement. Which made the rest of the day icing on the cake.
Keith picked me up after my appointment and we went for sushi at our favourite place. It seemed a shame to waste the rest of a nice day inside working on a computer, so we went for a walk along the east branch of the Don River.
We hiked and explored the path through the trees, walking along the river when we could. Stones were skipped - it's our ritual. I found a 3' fish skeleton in some shallow water, picked clean. We wondered about it and put it down as a fluke, until we saw 2 similarly-sized salmon in some clear shallow water a bit further down. In one spot, we surprised a blue heron who was wandering in the slow shallows, startling it into flight.
There's a commuter rail line that runs along the path for a while, and we were in a clearing when the outbound train slid past us. We waved like maniacs for no other reason than that someone might wave back.
I doubt I'd have had this kind of a day if I hadn't unplugged. It felt so good, I might do it again tomorrow.
*yes, A, I used it correctly in a sentence. You owe me a coffee *grin.
My plan was to leave work at 11, walk downtown, have a nice lunch on Wish's patio then head to Stillwater for my hair appointment. Change Wish's lamb burger on the patio for a brie and raspberry crepe in the park, and that part of the plan went well. I was faulty in thinking that it was the monetary exchanges that would improve my mood.
I had been listening to an interview on CBC this morning (no idea what the show was or who was interviewed), my attention being caught by a discussion about the increasing ubiquity* of iPods providing a never-ending soundtrack to one's life. A question stuck with me - is silence obsolete? One guest jokingly said yes, the other was far more earnest in his reply: I am far more in the world when I am experiencing it with all my senses, he said.
So rather than walking around listening to Weekend Players and Lhasa de Sela, I left the iPod in the purse. I'm so glad I did; I would have missed the sound of the kids laughing in the playground and the twittering of a flock of sparrows in the bushes behind me, waiting for me to leave so they can scavenge for my crumbs. There was the whir of two dragonflies moving past me, their wings flashing gold and green in the sunlight, and the sound of the wind moving through the leaves.
Presto. Instant mood improvement. Which made the rest of the day icing on the cake.
Keith picked me up after my appointment and we went for sushi at our favourite place. It seemed a shame to waste the rest of a nice day inside working on a computer, so we went for a walk along the east branch of the Don River.
We hiked and explored the path through the trees, walking along the river when we could. Stones were skipped - it's our ritual. I found a 3' fish skeleton in some shallow water, picked clean. We wondered about it and put it down as a fluke, until we saw 2 similarly-sized salmon in some clear shallow water a bit further down. In one spot, we surprised a blue heron who was wandering in the slow shallows, startling it into flight.
There's a commuter rail line that runs along the path for a while, and we were in a clearing when the outbound train slid past us. We waved like maniacs for no other reason than that someone might wave back.
I doubt I'd have had this kind of a day if I hadn't unplugged. It felt so good, I might do it again tomorrow.
*yes, A, I used it correctly in a sentence. You owe me a coffee *grin.
I loved this. There's nothing more relaxing than sitting on my (new) deck in the evenings and listening to the sounds of nature around me, or watching the kids in the park behind me. Unplugging from our ubiquitous (love that word) technology should be a daily goal.
Hey...just saw your note about tomorrow. Both H abd I have doc appts, or else I'd be in for sure.
When's your next free day for lunch or coffee??