It’s that in-between weekend, and for many of us, it marks the end of the “holiday” week at the end of the calendar year, and the start of the new year. I’m filled with some random thoughts today and thought I might as well get them out so they stop circling in my head…
I’ve had a headache for 3 days running now. I really dislike taking pain meds, but I’m starting to think this beast may force my hand. It’s like there is a clamp on my temples. Sigh. (Update: I caved and took 2 ibuprofen at 2 pm. Let’s hope it helps, at least a bit…)
Which begs the question of… why? I’m certainly not dehydrated. Sleep deprived? Likely. Stressed? Definite. I mentioned that it was a challenging semester, and the academic year is barely half over. I know it’s not going to improve much, either.
To help with the stress, I am going to start building in some actual breaks in my weeks. This includes the possibility of mini-road trips with Engie (YAY!) to some of the system campuses that I’ve never visited. (Most of which, handily enough, are in towns I haven’t visited, either!) I feel like we are channeling Birchie and her Rust Belt ToursTM with this plan.
It has been gloriously quiet around the apartment complex, since most of the graduate students (about 50% or so of the residents) are on break and likely elsewhere. They’ll start trickling back in next week, but for now I am enjoying the blissful quiet. (That said, the Guy Who Drops The Weights [Argh] is back already. Sigh.)
I did a pick up at Target this morning. I got 2 pints of ice cream and lettuce. Perfectly balanced.
Is anyone else finding and loving Substack newsletters? Many of the people whose email newsletters I’ve been getting for years have been moving to them. I love the audio feature – it’s like the person who wrote it is reading it to me. 🙂
(Skip if you don’t want to think about politics…) Anyone else in the US have a creeping feeling of dread as we move into 2024? I’m probably over-immersed in political news (a chronic problem of mine) and, well, I’m not feeling so great about the state of things right now. It does not help living in a battleground state and dealing with state politics on top of everything else. Sigh.
Doing a complete 180 because I really don’t want to be thinking about politics right now… In Spring, I teach undergraduates, and I love it. It’s a change of pace – and energy! – from Fall. Every year, though, I realize anew that their internal thermostats are completely different from mine. I was reminded of this at Target this morning, where the person ahead of me on the escalator had a hoodie on, and I was in my winter coat, one of my heavier (and older – ca. 1999) sweatshirts, a long-sleeved shirt, a long-sleeved cuddle dud, and a tank top. I also had a hat and mittens on because it’s finally winter-ish here. Last year in class, I was wearing essentially the same thing, but swap the sweatshirt for a fleece, and drop the coat, and a student was wearing a short-sleeved crop top. I mean, what? Are we living in the same reality? Am I really that much colder than everyone else?
And on that note… I may step away from the computer and start the new-to-me Kate Morton book I opened (but then didn’t start) last night. Or, if that’s too mentally taxing, I might shift to a fluffy book. Whichever I choose, I need a break from this screen! Have a wonderful New Year’s Eve & Day. I hope the start of 2024 is peaceful and joyful in all of your worlds.
Have you ever been to the House on the Rock? I would like to go, but my husband has no desire. It seems like such a quintessential Wisconsin thing. Maybe we could do that together. Or maybe we’ll wrap that into the trip if/when Birchie comes. What about Cave of the Mounds? Have you been there? I feel like I haven’t done any Wisconsin things!
My husband and I just had a conversation about 2024 and it was…not good. I think things are looking up in WI with the court decision about gerrymandering, but I worry that the national picture is looking dire. I don’t know if I can do another four/eight years of that…
HOUSE ON THE ROCK!!! I am totally in, but I think we might need to wait for Birchie. It sounds like it is something that would appeal to her. I have been to Cave of the Mounds but would happily go back. And yes, I have missed SO many Wisconsin things! We will do this! (Maybe not today, though… ;>)
“Dire” is the perfect word. I also worry that it wouldn’t be four more years of *that* but… more. (Cue foreboding music…) Sigh.
How fun to spend so much time with Engie!!
Ugh, sorry about your headache. That sounds dreadful.
I like Substack but honestly, I like regular blogs a lot more. I follow quite a few on Substack though. My friend Laura has one called The Cozy Library and it’s just great!
That is the plan! When the weather is good. We actually have some colder weather (and a tiny bit of white stuff) now, which is so much better than the rain we had on Christmas!
I still love regular blogs the best, but I prefer Substack to the email newsletters, because sometimes those just… disappear in my inbox.
I love your balanced Target trip! Fun and nutrients seem like the perfect way to enter into a new year. Seriously, tho, the news and climate here in the US are more than slightly terrifying (and it’s hard to see hope going into an election year). But to 180 for both of us, I love the concept of Anne & Birchie adventures and hope to hear more about what AB sees (haha) next year!
Happy New Year, Anne; I hope the meds help your headache and that you chose the fluffy read to end your year!
I thought it was very balanced, myself. 😉
And yes, I feel the same way going into 2024. It’s why I hope to balance that impending sense of doom with spending time with Engie and (hopefully) Birchie. We’re putting on the pressure to get her here to WI. I think Engie and I are already planning the itinerary. Ha!
Happy New Year! I love your road trip ideas. Enjoy and safe travels!! Can’t wait to hear about your shared adventures with Engie <3
And committing publicly means I have to do it, right? 🙂 Shared adventures are fun – I think we all like living vicariously through others. Happiest of happy new years, Elisabeth. <3
That sounds lovely to do road trips with Engie!
I’m totally with you about being cold. Your experience with the student wearing a crop top is spot on! I often feel the same, especially here in Ireland, there seems to be no culture of using warm clothes even in the winter! People go out in thin jackets when we have close to zero degrees etc and I choose Aran knitwear, hats and scarves… In clothing shops you don’t find proper warm clothes except puffer jackets. I remember last winter when we had snow and minus degrees, I came to the gym with like 4 layers, and my trainer said something like how Scandinavians know how to dress properly while they went to work in hoodies. Very interesting!
I always prefer reading blogs but since Substack has what resembles blog functionalities, I think it’s a quite good platform. I just created an account to share blog posts (just a simple 2-line article with link to my blog) and maybe I can use that as subscription tool now that the RSS newsletter thing is disabled.
OK, I am so glad that I am not the only person who is perpetually freezing. Air conditioning in summer is the bane of my existence – give me 90 and sunny and I am happy. Seriously. 🙂
Oooh, great idea on the Substack for subscriptions! So dumb that they’ve disabled the RSS newsletters. “Progress”, sure.
And yes, already looking forward to trips with Engie – thinking about where to start and all of the logistics. Now I’m accountable, so presumably you will hear about our adventures in months to come!
We visited a bunch of system towns with Harry and had a blast! Also YES political dread to the max when I even think about what year it is.
I thought you had! I remembered seeing pictures of (I think) Eau Claire in your IG feed. College towns are simply the best. And yes, ergh, 2024 in Wisconsin. Could it be any more anxiety-provoking? (NO, definitely and emphatically NO…)
I’m late to the game, haven’t been reading many blogs lately, but trying to catch up now. I hope that the ibuprofen that you took helped and your stupid headache left you alone.
I used to be cold, but since menopause I now run hot. Not hot flashes, but I don’t want the heater on very often either. I try to be kind to my family and not freeze them out.
Oh, the election. I’m trying to NOT STRESS about it. It’s far too soon to know what will happen. I’m glad I have a night guard, so I don’t grind all of my teeth down to the nubs.
The headache was a doozy – and I think I finally figured it out. I tried a new pillow – long story – and I think something about my positioning on it led to the headaches. Regardless, they’ve been better for a few days so fingers crossed.
I am almost envious of people with hot flashes! I get cold flashes. I had a student experiencing hot flashes in class once, so she was not very happy when I would crank the thermostat to get it above 67 in the room. (To be fair, that is like an iceberg when you run cold!) I would add layers and she would subtract. 😉
Road trips with Engie! I mean! That sounds like a lovely outlook in 2024. I am sorry about the headache. I usually don’t take pain meds either but if a headache is persistent (and water or caffeine don’t help it), I do use Tylenol every once in a while. I hate going to bed with a headache and waking up with it.
I am definitely dreading the political circus that will be 2024 (and I am scared about the outcome). Sigh.
Doesn’t that sound like fun? I need to get out of the next two weeks and then – weather permitting – hope to start to explore a bit. I figure I might start with the campus that’s near where Engie lives. Ease myself into it. 😉
The headache eventually abated and I think (think being the key word) I determined the cause. I get them so infrequently, it was weird.
And yes. A circus, or worse. Sigh. I am just dreading it. Heavy sigh.
I am a take-ibuprofen-at-the-first-sign-of-pain person, so I can’t believe you suffered for three straight days with your headache! That sounds awful. 🙁
I am feeling really scared about 2024. I don’t know what to expect from the election (and everything that comes after…) and I am NOT looking forward to all of the texts and mailers and commercials, ahhh.
Road trips with Engie sound amazing!
Come up this summer and road trip with us! 🙂 I swear, it gets warmer here in the winter. Really, truly. (You might want to come today if you want snow, as it’s supposed to snow most of the day…:>)
The headache was due to something I had changed, so once I undid the change, the headache resolved. The ibuprofen kind of worked but not really. 😛
And yes, I’m also scared. I feel like I need to start a virtual support group for those of us who are terrified because of the possibilities. Yeeks.
Also late to the party here. I had a headache yesterday. I think I can track it to a workout that I did the day before. I need to flag that workout as one that was too tough on my shoulders, because dang – I had so much tension in my shoulders that I couldn’t even nap. I did take meds – something I ususally resist. I hope your headache settled down quickly.
Roadtripping with Engie sounds so fun. Did you two meet thru blogging, or did you know one another before blogging? I’m curious.
I’m not familiar with the neighbor who drops weights, but Yikes. That sounds unpleasant.
My headache was ALSO due to something I did (in my case, I made the mistake of trying a new pillow… sigh). Mine eventually went away, when I went back to the old pillow. Now to decide what to do with the other one…
We met through blogging! And met up in person, hm, over a year ago? We also met up with Kae (https://gratefulkae.com/) after Thanksgiving to go to a very meh museum in our area; the coffee and tea and time together afterwards were the best parts! It’s so much fun meeting people who I’ve connected with online, and I hope to connect with more people in the future. (Did you see Engie’s post on “third places”? For me, the blogger world is that third place, right now. :>)
The weight dropping is a chronic problem (long story) and I’ve mostly gotten used to it, but that + the headache was a bad combo.