Nope, nuh-uh, no thanks

I had my knitting group meet-up after work today, but I had thought I might go for a walk when I got home. The humidity had other ideas.

See that 94%? Nope. Not happening. The walking I did around Walmart will have to count for today.

Catching Up On Walking

We're halfway through October, and so far I have walked/moved most of the days. Time to catch up! 

• As I wrote on the 5th, I went into the pool instead of walking, plus did condo checks.
• On Monday the 6th, I did a 15-minute online stretch class, and also parked in between two stops and walked back and forth instead of moving the car (it wasn't much walking, but it counts).
• On Tuesday, I didn't manage anything. Oh well.
• Wednesday, I had the stretch class again, and I was packing, which involves plenty of walking around, albeit inside.
• Thursday the 9th, I did plenty of walking in airports!
  
  
  
  
• Friday the 10th, I took my aunt to Wegmans, and we walked around for probably an hour and a half.
  
  
  
  
• Saturday the 11th was the big one: we went to Apple Festival, and of the roughly four hours we were there, I estimate I was on my feet for three and a half!
  
  
  
  
• Sunday the 12th I did go outside briefly, to look at the trees, but my legs were so sore from Saturday, I made it maybe 8 minutes before coming back inside. Walking from the car to the restaurant for dinner added a few more!
  
  
  
  
• Monday the 13th was my return travel day, and with flight delays, the 11-hour trip turned into 14 hours. Some of that was driving, some of it was sitting in planes or around airports, but quite a lot of walking was involved, too. Turns out that looking for the elusive quiet, comfortable, and not freezing cold place in an airport is kind of a lost cause, but I took a lot of steps trying to find it.
  
  
  
  
• Tuesday the 14th was a total loss in terms of walking, or anything else other than recovering. I didn't even finish unpacking! Totally flattened from Monday.

And that brings me to today, where I am less than totally flattened, though still somewhat lower-energy than my usual (which is not high). So I worked, did some of the unpacking, did the 15-minute stretch class, and that's that. Perhaps tomorrow I will summon the energy to go for a walk! Stay tuned.

Some Different Movement; Condo Checks

After Saturday's walk of regret, I didn't feel like walking in the heat of the day today, nor risk leaving it until tonight due to a chance of more rain (I am so ready for the end of rainy season). So midday, when it was mostly overcast but a little sunny, I did a different kind of movement:

I did about 15 minutes of vaguely-aerobic movement in the pool, which is about as much as I can make myself do without the structure of a class (I get bored on my own). Between that and condo checks, I'm having trouble summoning the energy to get my packing in order, but I think after a little reading time, I will get a second wind.

About the condo checks, since there was some interest in that topic. This is a small building, 15 units, and mostly stable, not a ton of turnover. There's a good sense of community and people looking out for each other, something that I appreciated a ton before I moved down here, knowing that there were people nearby for my mother (well, most of the year, anyway).

Part of the reason I'm willing to keep doing the condo checks is because of this sense of community. Part of it is because it's important to my mother, and harder for her to do on her own these days. And a small part of it is selfish: I don't want to have anyone trying to pressure me to be on the condo board: it's a thankless job, mostly, and I already have one of those. This way, I'm doing my part for the community already.

As for payment, I don't charge for it; my mother never did, and frankly I think keeping track of who is away for how long and how much to charge and who has paid and who hasn't sounds like a deeply unappealing way to spend my time. Most people do give either cash/checks or gift cards, which is much welcomed. Some people bring treats from where they were, or do other things (for instance, one is a supremely handy person who is happy to help out with random things around the condo and building, and much valued for it). It all works out.

As to what I look for and what I catch, the overall process is simple. Go in, kick off shoes, and walk around barefoot, the better to catch any water on the floor in the kitchen or bathrooms. Yes, that has happened! Even though people turn their water off. Leaky dishwasher, in the most recent case. 

While in the kitchen, open the fridge and touch a shelf to make sure it's cold (some people's fridges have a temperature display on the front and some don't). Walk around looking for anything out of place, any signs of water on the ceilings, that the lanais look okay. No water in the bottom of the water heater area.

It's funny how much you can notice unconsciously: I once glanced into a closet and stopped dead, something's different, before realizing a Command hook holding bathing suits had fallen and was on the floor. Not a problem, but a change!

In the bathrooms, look for any signs of water anywhere, including around the base of the toilets, as little leaks have happened there before. (Apparently when the water is turned off and evaporates out of the bowl, the seal can dry out enough for some drips.)

Finally, the big one is the temperature. Everyone has their own idea of what temp to leave it at, but a/c problems are the number one thing I catch, so I always report back on those being what they're supposed to be.

Some people have special requests. In one unit, they like to leave the ceiling fans on (some do and some don't), and the one in the living room will sometimes turn itself from low to high, and needs switching back. Another is worried about water under the sinks, and leaves a flashlight so those can be checked specially (as opposed to just the floor in front of the sinks, which I check for everyone). A couple of people want something added to their a/c systems monthly (one vinegar, the other bleach) to keep things running right. (Does it need to be done? Who knows.) I also check a couple of garages: one had a flooding problem and wants confirmation that the dehu and fan they set up are going, and the other leaves a car on a charger but that will turn itself off if there's a power surge, so I often have to reset it.

I don't know, when I write it all out, it sounds like a lot, but I'm honestly in each unit for about 2 minutes at a time, and although I'm pretty sick of it by this time of year, it feels good to be providing a valuable service to friendly neighbors. Grease the social wheels, you know? We all do better when we look out for each other.

The Walk That Was a Mistake

One of the drawbacks to doing your walking at night is if it's raining, your choice is to walk in the rain, or not to walk that day. Night. Whatever. I chose to walk in the rain, and this was a mistake. 

Not because of the rain itself (I brought an umbrella), and not because of the temperature, which was 75, but because of this:

The humidity. THE HUMIDITY. When I say I was dripping by the time I got home, this is not an exaggeration for effect. Yuck.

So. I walked. Umbrella shot:

I survived.

There were even flowers.

But yuck. Dripping. Yuck. No stars, will not do again.

Thank all the gods for air conditioning, amen.

Moving Around

I didn't go for a walk yesterday (day 2 of the CBWC): after work, Mom and I caravanned to the Kia dealership to leave it for them to work on today, then grabbed a sub for dinner on the way home to watch the Bruins game. It's not that I couldn't have squeezed in a 15-minute walk anywhere, but I chose not to try. Instead, I counted doing condo checks as my movement for the day. 

Have I mentioned condo checks before? Not recently, at least, I don't think. We live in a small condo building where almost all the owners are snowbirds, meaning they go to various places northwards during the summers. Years ago, my mother started checking condos for a few people during the off-season*: go in twice a week and look around, making sure that the air conditioning is working (that's the most likely problem), that there isn't water anywhere, and that nothing funny is going on. 
*Season down here, without a modifier like "rainy season" or "hurricane season," means tourist season, and is at its height in January and February, though it starts getting busy in November and goes well into April before you start to see a difference.

Once I moved here, I was Mom's backup for this, and the last few years, I've done it alone during the times when Mom was in hospitals/rehab or recovering. This year, I'm taking primary responsibility, with Mom backing me up. At the height of it, there have been 8 or 9 condos, though right now we're at 7, and I go in twice a week. It takes about half an hour, it's slightly outside as I go in and out, and it is movement, at least. I may walk on condo-check days that are less busy, but it counts if I want it to count.

It does mean no pretty pictures, though. The times I have to take pictures doing the checks, it means something is wrong, not photogenic!

For today, day 3, I went for another after-dark walk. The weather was quite pleasant:

Though I was still sweaty when I got home.

The moon is close to full, a few days off, and I tried to get a good picture, but my camera wasn't feeling it. This is the best I got:

But I did get one that illustrates how it isn't season yet. Not my building, but nearby, and not looking too busy yet.

And now: the weekend. 

Walk One

As I mentioned yesterday, I'm trying to walk a little every day, at least in October, and I did go for a walk tonight. Not as late as last night, at 7 instead of 9, and while the sun was mostly down, it was still a bit on the warm side. 

The moon was of course less impressive without the contrasting dark sky.

But we got sunset skies!

When I walked last night, it was after my mother was in bed, but tonight she was still up, and when I said I was going, she reminded me that I could call her if I needed her.

Next week, I turn 57 years old. For several decades, I lived alone, and talked to her perhaps once a week. Now she is concerned that I will need her during a 15-minute walk. Okay then.

I Plan to Move It, Move It

First, for the record, I have not found this covid vaccine to hit me that hard. I gave myself permission to take it easy this weekend, but other than soreness in the upper arm area pretty much right away, and an increase in that from overnight Sunday, it hasn't been bad at all. Less sore today than yesterday, in fact. Right now, it's the other side of my back that's giving me more trouble! (I have a persistent trouble area in my mid-left back and it has been acting up the last few weeks, ow.)

Next, tomorrow being October means it's the start of Elisabeth's Cool Bloggers Walking Club, wherein a random bunch of people are planning to move intentionally for ten minutes every day in October. I am going to try to do it daily, as I did last October, while not giving myself a hard time for imperfection*. 
*"Screws fall out all the time. The world is an imperfect place." Name that movie.

A few points:

• No, you don't have to be a blogger, all are welcome
• No, it doesn't have to be walking, just moving (as I reference in the title of this post, from the oddly catchy song from a movie I've never seen)
• For the full story, I refer you to Elisabeth's blog.

I've been thinking about when to walk. Thing is, here in Florida, it's still hot. I don't say this to rub it in anyone's face, it's just a fact. I checked the weather at 4:30 today, when I was done with work:

That's a bit warm to be out in the sun.

Now, walking in the morning would probably be a better idea, though it doesn't actually cool down that much at night (the forecast right now says that at 7 tomorrow morning, it will be 76 and feel like 81). But the bigger problem with morning walks is that I am all the way at the opposite end of the spectrum from "morning person," and I have enough trouble getting myself out of bed and ready for work at 8. I'm just not excited to add even 15 minutes more into that struggle.

This evening, though, it occurred to me that I could just ... go for a walk at 8:50pm. So I did. It was still warm:

But without sunlight, and with a nice breeze most of the way around the block, it wasn't too bad: I got warm, but not overheated. And other than a section of sidewalk that I had to divert around because sprinklers were going, it was very peaceful. I saw something small and fast zip into the bushes at one point, and at another, I could hear some sort of critter that was chittering and hooting, but there wasn't much else happening.

I did stop for a minute to take a moon-with-palm-tree picture.

So as a proof of concept, that's a definite possibility.