Aaaaaaaand she’s back!
And still hasn’t written her Taiwan blog post! It will come with time (i.e. once I force myself to sit down and process everything – why does this sometimes feel like such a TASK?!). For now – let’s just continue with the regularly scheduled programming.
To address the half week that existed without documentation before I left for Taiwan: it was filled with packing and last minute trips to Target and working long hours to try and facilitate my absence at work. There is a certain pride that comes with being very integrated into the minute facets of my workplace – but also a certain fear of could happen in my absence.
Spoiler alert: she’s a control freak!
Just kidding.
Sort of.
Anyways – I am now returned, now integrating myself back into my daily routine, now getting over (mostly successfully) my jet lag.
Even though coming back this week was difficult and a bit hectic, there were many high points. To begin with – my sister was in town!
The day after Stephen and I got back from Taiwan, I drove to Fullerton to visit my family. I was afraid, at first, that I’d be wildly tired and not be able to enjoy myself, but thankfully the jet lag held off! I was so tired from all the planes and busses I slept the whole night through.
In Fullerton, we did all our classic activities – tea at the Tranquil Tea Lounge, perusing a bookstore for new treasures we certainly don’t need, and relaxing in our parent’s living room. To make things more exciting – we got to do all these things with Karly’s boyfriend, Kyle! I was so glad to finally meet him in person. He’s been such an important person in my sister’s life this year, and I’ve heard so much about him, it was fun to actually hang out with him in a friendly, casual way.
Once I was back to my normal work week on Tuesday, I made an effort to get back into my regular routine. I’m proud to say I actually ran 3 times this week! It would have been easy to give myself a break, and count it as a free week, since I was recuperating from traveling (totally an excuse I would have used in the past). But! I didn’t want to lose the endurance I’ve built up the last few months, and I didn’t run in Taiwan, so I was eager to push myself and make it happen.
Fun news – I can still run 5k! It was slower than it has been in the past, but it’s the doing it that I’m proud of. I also went home again this past weekend and got to take a run in my hometown – something I honestly haven’t done… maybe ever. I felt powerful and new in a place that is so familiar to me – and, unrelated, there were lots of pretty flowers!
An obsession of mine this week, and something I listened to on all my runs, has been 36 Questions: A Podcast Musical. I intended to listen to it on the plane to or from Taiwan, but didn’t actually get to it until this week. SINCE LISTENING – I’ve been in full obsession mode. Which, while great, is a bit sad because I don’t know anyone else who’s listened to it! I want to gush about the story, the characters, their development and emotions. Instead, I get to say “You NEED to listen to this!! It’s so good! It’s got Jonathan Groff! And is so funny! And truthful!”
In an attempt to vocalize my obsession, I actually picked up the ukulele for the first time in quite a while. While I wasn’t able to find chords for the songs in the musical (again… come ON people, discover this so I can have chords!!), it was nice to pick up an instrument again. I played some familiar songs, some new ones. I want to play more – I forgot how nice it makes me feel.
I’ll end this post with something fun – a little audio clip of me singin City of Stars (felt appropriate, as I am now back in the LA area)! I finally cracked and got wordpress *~premium~* so that I could have a bit more mobility within the website, and also include fun content like videos and audio! It’s 2018 baybee – we’re makin it!
Plz enjoy:
This has been a post.
Tea, cats, and life. 