#38 – Unplug your TV for a while.

As a kid home in the summers my father sounded like a broken record – “Shut off the TV and go outside”, or “Do you even know the sun is shining?” Our eyes would glance up from whatever talk show/soap opera/video game we were watching or playing and we’d give him a look as we didn’t believe his question justified a response.
What I would do to have those summers back! All that wasted time sitting starring at a screen when I could have been exploring, reading, taking up photography etc. I’ll go all cliché on you and say that if I only knew then what I know now, I would have seen and done so much more with my free time.

This summer I had a plan, a plan to catch up on series of television shows that people have told me were good. I was going to rent entire seasons and get caught up before the new fall season started and it hasn’t happened, and well face it – with August ½ over, I don’t have the time to accomplish such a large task. I can honestly tell you that the TV in our house has only been on once in oh say two months, and that was because I was forced to watch ‘The Bachelorette’ finale so I had something to discuss with my boss.

My summer has been all about reading. Am I turning into my mother, and further The Nana? Possibly. My list of summer reads grew longer and longer, and with a packed social calendar, the time to actually sit and read has grown shorter and shorter. I started the summer with Elizabeth Gilberts Eat Pray Love followed by her ‘Committed’. Next I went onto Emily Giffin’s ‘Heart of the Matter’, then Jennifer Weiner’s ‘Fly away home’ and now Elin Hilderbrand’s ‘The Castaways’. Next up I have Stieg Larsson’s trilogy of ‘The Girl’ series. Where in there is there time for TV?

With all that being said come fall with the new shows starting, I will be once again dedicating at least part of my time back in front of the television. I do long for lazy NFL Sundays spent entirely in front of the TV. I don’t however long for the end of summer.

Anyone reading anything good? I’ve got a beach vacation coming up and don’t it like when I can see the end of my ‘to read’ list.

Get a Manicure/Pedicure

So the word has gotten out. People who read this have finally stopped attempting any kind of awkward hug or touch with me. AWESOME. I actually got high-fived good-bye from my aunt which in my world is absolutely amazing.

I mean what is the point of physical touch with someone you’re not close with anyway? I get that a handshake is a friendly gesture – but really where has that hand been? People’s hands are weird. Sometimes they are hot and clammy which just makes you want to wash your hands immediately after, and sometimes they are cold and you wonder what they’ve just been up to. I would prefer to not take the risk of catching a flu bug, or pre-judge you by the temperature of your hand, and maybe just give you a friendly smile, or fist bump – if I like you.

Then there is hugging. I understand that if someone is sad a hug may be of some comfort and therefore I against my better judgement will partake in this – but only if forced. Most of the time it’s uncomfortable trying to figure out the strength of the squeeze or just how long you should hold the hug for. If I had my way a pat on the back or a hand on the shoulder would suffice for everyone. On radio programs in the morning you often hear of people giving out ‘free hugs’ downtown to make people’s day better – how does getting a hug from a complete stranger make anyone feel better?

Last week I was approaching a mall when an older man was approaching carrying a large box. His foot caught on the curb and he did a face plant directly in front of me in oncoming traffic. What do I do? I run to help him of course, but I couldn’t touch him. He had climbed to his knees and had the wind knocked out of him, but I didn’t know how he’d feel with a strangers hand on his shoulder or arm. So I just leaned in and spoke with him to make sure he was ok, retrieved his box, and helped him to his car. Was this the right thing to do?

Anyway I crossed the get a manicure/pedicure off my list, and let me tell you I love the results, but I hate the process. The manicure was not horribly awful except for being in such close quarters basically holding the hand of someone you do not know. I got a French manicure on my own nails and it looked lovely – except that the results only lasted maybe 2 days and I was constantly worried about the polish chipping – but what can you expect for $7.

Next onto the pedicure – ready to be grossed out? Remember that little run I did back in April? Well, this is what my running shoes did to my toenails:

Do you think I need new running shoes? The cosmetologist took off my existing nail polish and asked “you drop something on your feet?” I apologized, explained the situation and then went through the most agonizing 20 minutes of my feet being touched/scrubbed/massaged/clipped and then the toenails repainted, and now they look like this:

I don’t think I’ll pay $30 and put myself through this torture again, when I’m pretty sure with a hot bath and a $7 bottle of nail polish I can accomplish the same results.