June Sweeps - Day 138

So, I went up to the cabin again today.  Just like yesterday, I set my alarm to wake me up early, so I'd get a full day at the cabin after I got my work done (I had gotten most of it finished yesterday afternoon, so I knew I'd be okay if I could just wake up early) . . . and again, the damned thing didn't go off.  I thought yesterday that maybe I had pushed a button and cleared it right before I fell asleep or something, but nope, it still said it was going to wake me up . . . a full half hour before.

So, I don't know what's wrong with that.  My regular alarm goes off at the same time every day, so it still works.  I wonder what I would've done if I had had to be somewhere, like on a film set or an appointment, and the thing failed me like that.  Count my blessings, I suppose, that it was just my weekend that was screwed over by the alarm.

Last week was quite cool (temperature-wise), and I had only brought summer clothes, so I grabbed the I NOW PRONOUNCE YOU CHUCK & LARRY jacket I always keep in my car (there was a caption-writing contest I entered right before the movie came out a decade back, and I won a hat, the jacket, a duffle bag I still take on road trips sometimes, and a Ziplock baggie filled with Adam Sandler's spittle) and put it on.  I ended up wearing it the whole day, and slept in it because I couldn't get the fire to stay lit.

Today is supposed to be even colder, so I made sure to grab long-sleeved shirts and am wearing long pants, but it's warmer right now than it was last week, except for a chilly breeze that's making all the leaves outside the windows flutter in a delightful way.  I love it up here at the cabin, but I can hear guys just over the ridge behind the cabin (where I like to sit and read) doing some kind of noisy construction, involving shouting and backing up beeps and chainsaws, and that's a step down from the last two visits.

There are a number of things I look forward to when I'm here.  One of them is just pleasant solitude (rather than the other, unpleasant kind), the chance to read, the chance to do what I want for as long as I want*, a few moments to write, a few longer moments to edit audio, and maybe watch a video from the library.

I thought I'd alternate between activities, like I normally do, and made myself do some sit-ups just now.  And while I don't necessarily need to go to the emergency room afterward like last week, it is a super hard wood floor, and absolutely no fun to do them there.

I recorded and edited a little piece to go on the end of my "Writing To Please" episode, which still has the worst title of any of the episodes I've put out.  Since I've already released it for my Patreon supporters, they will get a bonus podcast that's just today's addition.

This is going to sound super complainy, but it was terribly cold today, and when I went out to the lake to do the song (the highpoint of my day, I guess it's sad to admit), it was so cold that after a while, I couldn't get my fingers to press the button on the phone.  Isn't that bizarre?

The wind prevented the reflection from last week.

I have learned (the hard way) to always check the video before I leave the storage unit (or the lakeside, in this case), because I've had a couple turn out totally blurry and one where the picture was vertically on its side (which is useful for nothing), and when I checked this particular one (only took me two takes to get through the song), I discovered just how weird my hair looked.  Now granted, the wind was blowing icily along the water, messing with my hair, but it's at a length where I guess it just looks BAD, and maybe I'll have to get it cut soon.**

"You don't believe me?  You will, Doctor Jones . . . you will become a true believer!"

I built a fire in the fireplace, and it blazed pretty well for an hour or so, which enabled me to cook some soup and warm up the room.  The thermometer says it's 38 degrees outside and 68 degrees inside, which is great, but the fire seems to have gone out again.  I did some more sit-ups, and am going to go for a record today before I sit and read and once again, fall asleep long before I planned to.

I feel we've pretty much reached the end of all this--the blogging, the daily writing, the self-improvement, the exercise--because there's just no point to it all.  Last night, I hung out with my uncle and his ex-wife, and both of them were really supportive of my singing.  Len's always impressed by my writing, which is nice too.  I try to be a positive person, but it flies in the face of my nature, whereas Len is always in pain because of his back, which flies in the face of his cheerful, positive nature.

I wrote quite a bit today, on the egg story (the new one I started this week), "Podcatcher," which may actually have some light way off at the end of the tunnel, and a wee bit on "Only Have Eyes," which is just tunnel all the way down.

Sit-ups Today: 150 (dang, I was gonna try for a record)
Sit-ups in June: 2084

Despite the really high number of sit-ups, I didn't manage any running today.  I was scrambling to get my song recorded before the sun set, and was so darn cold that I managed to run about a thousand feet before I thought, "Eff this noise," and walked the rest of the way.  It wasn't even dark out yet, and I could see my breath.  Since it doesn't matter in the slightest whether I go running or not, I hope you will forgive me.

Words Today: 1302
Words In June: 17,028

*Right now, I'm blogging, sitting at the table with a blue Mountain Dew next to me, thinking I could grab a book and go outside, or I could just sit here, or I could take a nap, or I could listen to music and exercise, or I could do all of those things, in any order.  Nice.

**The Hispanic lady that's cut my hair for years closed up her salon when the pandemic hit, and within a month, it was for sale.  And now it's a bloody dog grooming clinic (though they will technically groom dogs that don't have blood on them too).  I wonder if the haircut lady still works somewhere I could track down, or if I have to go looking for a new one.