Tuesday 17 November 2020

Catching up

“To have become a deeper man is the privilege of those who have suffered.

Oscar Wilde

Of course, Wilde was talking about prison. Covid is not prison, but it ain’t an East Hampton clambake either. I hope it’s true that I’ve become a deeper woman as I’ve struggled through it, and I hope that I will carry with me the things I’ve forged in its darkness.

Where I’m at

Y’all, I am wiped. out. This may be well nigh incoherent.

I made a quilt! … I will never do it again!

I have been go, go, go for the last few weeks, and whether it was early outdoor family Thanksmaschristgiving, or finishing a quilt I started 20 years ago, or judging a business plan competition on a Friday night, I need a break!

Luckily, I have the chance for one. Next week we are staying here and doing nada. And I am soooo looking forward to it.

Here’s what I last wrote:

Thursday 5 November

One of my mantras is “hard as nails.” It’s only just now that I’m regaining fitness and actually feeling good that I realize how “soft as pillows” I was this summer. Despite mildly heroic efforts to stay in shape during the shutdown. And it is in every discipline, not just swimming.

Whenever something happens like that, I am always very analytical about it, mostly in hopes of future prevention. I’ve said before that if I had it to do over again, I would order a garage pool immediately… and I’m sure that would have been good for my sanity, but I’m not sure how much difference it would have made to my fitness. I think that it was a stressful time and I think that stress and poor sleep have enormous effects on my ability to train at high levels.

So the lesson is, don’t get stressed out by a global pandemic and the collapse of all of your personal and professional goals?

I’ll get right on that.

The Catch Up

My open water swims from the last two weeks are below. Pool swimming was pretty intense until this week – I didn’t swim yesterday or today. But at worst I’ll be back in the water on Friday, and swimming 6K at the beach on Saturday.

Lap swimmers seem to think it’s getting too cold outside to swim. Silly lap swimmers 🙂 

8 November 2020 – people as crazy as I am. Don’t worry, Bill has a suit on.

Me Swimming

Thanks to videographer Lisa!

63 degree water

1.5 hours