Category: Well-being

Comforting Fast Food

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 19mm, f/2.5, 1/100 sec, ISO2000
 “McDonalds Meal” Cedar Park, 2020

We rarely get fast food, but tonight we didn’t plan anything for dinner at home and when Bay suggested we get something from McDonald’s, the idea sounded really attractive. I guess it is a connection to when life was more normal before COVID-19. We ordered our food online, then I went to pick it up. The restaurant’s dining room is closed, but the drive-thru was open and there were parking spaces designated for pick-up orders. I parked in space #3, clicked on the “I’m here” option in the app, and in a few minutes, the food was delivered out to the car. Very convenient!

I don’t know if it is because of the new process that the pandemic has forced on the McDonald’s, but the food wasn’t the freshest. Everything tasted as usual, though, and after Koa put his chicken nuggets in the toaster oven, he said they were good! I guess even though we don’t go to McDonald’s often, we have our usual preferences: Mariko likes the Filet-o-Fish, Bay will get a “fancy” chicken sandwich, Koa will get the chicken nuggets, and I’ll go for a burger or some sort. It’s definitely a comfort food, and once in a while, fast food can’t be too bad for you!

Home and Work Desk

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 19mm, f/2.8, 1/100 sec, ISO2000
 “Desk Setup” Cedar Park, 2020

One of my “stay-at-home” routines is converting between my home desk and work desk. It’s actually the same table, but at then end of every work day, I shut down my work laptop, put it in the cabinet, as well as the keyboard, mouse, and headset. It would be easy to just keep everything out, but I really enjoy going through the ritual of switching from work mode to home mode.

The photo above is my home mode (with margarita, even!), and the photo below is my work mode, with laptop, keyboard, and wired mouse. During work hours, I have both my home computer and work laptop hooked up to the monitor, and can toggle between the two, but I find it easier to use Chrome Remote Desktop to access the home computer from the laptop. It’s a nice setup!

Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.6, 1/80 sec, ISO3200
 “Ready for Work” Cedar Park, 2020

I’d really like to get the cables behind the monitor hidden away, but I’m going to wait a week because… I ordered a new monitor! It’s larger, with higher resolution, and better color rendition. I’m super excited because I haven’t had a new monitor in a long time, and the higher-quality is warranted since I am a graphic designer and also an amateur photographer. But I’m also kind of a cheapskate, which is why I have held onto my inexpensive 1080p monitor for so long. 😄

I hope you had a good day!

Run and Bike

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/125 sec, ISO3200
 “Sunset Cycling” Cedar Park, 2020

Today I went for a lunchtime run, and immediately I could tell my legs were a bit tired and the muscles were stiff. From our house, whichever route I take is downhill so it’s a nice, gentle way to warm up and assess my physical (and mental) condition. Yesterday was a rest day so I wasn’t too worried about straining myself, however, I made a note to take it easy. I don’t want any injuries!

I’m reading the book The Pants of Perspective: One Woman’s 3,000 Kilometre Running Adventure through the Wilds of New Zealand by Anna McNuff and I kept thinking about what a bad-ass she is and how she dealt with physical down-days on her journey. Super-inspiring and motivating! That positive energy definitely helps with my mental state, and although my legs might still be tired, I don’t let that get me down.

I ended up running 3.43 miles, which I am pleased with, and my pace of 12:19 /mi wasn’t as slow as I expected. And besides, it was beautiful outside!

Not surprisingly, the run’s momentum carried with me into the evening and I went for a short evening bicycle ride around the neighborhood. I remembered to pack my camera and was rewarded with a really nice sunset. You know, it’s really nice having a cargo rack and panniers on my bike – I can get the mail, carry my phone and camera, and still have plenty of room to spare.

The ride was great and I saw lots of people out walking, running, and playing safely. Lots of waving too! Although we’re living in a pandemic situation right now, people seem to be keeping it together. I really like our neighborhood.😀

I hope you had a nice day!

Nice Bottle for Pens

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/100 sec, ISO320
 “Meiji Yogurt” Cedar Park, 2020

I like the shape of the bottle, the lettering style, and the color. It only holds a few pens, which is great because I have way too many and I need to reduce/simplify my collection. A cleaner, less-cluttered desk makes me more productive so it’s a perfect pen-holder for me. Another item that sparks joy and is functional too. Win-win!

New Running Gear

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/15 sec, ISO3200
 “Running Gear” Cedar Park, 2020

I’ve recently updated my running gear to include a few new items. Of course, running is pretty minimal to begin with, so there’s not a whole lot of things you need, but these items make running much more enjoyable.

First, I have started wearing my sunglasses consistently. No more squinting! This pair of HULISLEM UV/Polarized sunglasses are lightweight, comfortable, and inexpensive. My eye doctor recommended I wear UV sunglasses whenever I am outdoors and I am a believer!

Next, I started using Injinji toesocks for running. I noticed that my little toe on my right foot was rubbing a lot on the toe next to it, and thought I would give these toesocks a try since they were highly rated. Well, I can definitely recommend them! With the toes separated, the rubbing and numbness I experienced have been relieved. I have since bought a couple more pairs (which were on sale for about $8 a pair) and now I am set for a good long while. I’ve been using some socks I bought from Target for several years now, and they are still in good shape, so I will keep one pair as a backup, but get rid of the others.

Lastly, I bought a running belt to put my phone in. For years I would carry my phone in my hand, which I didn’t think was terrible, but after using the Tiffmoo running belt, I can’t believe I used to hold it! This running belt is stretchy and super slim so I can wear it under my shirt, and you wouldn’t even know I was wearing it. It holds my Moto G6 easily (without wallet case) in the main zippered pocket, and there are two additional pockets where you can probably put stuff like lip balm, band-aids, etc. I love this belt. Being hands-free is so great and I feel stupid that I carried my phone in my hand all these years! As a bonus, my chronic wrist pain is less since there isn’t that extra weight to contend with.

Anyways, I’m pretty sure I have my running gear dialed in. I still love my On Cloud Running Shoes, and my basic running/soccer shorts are fine, as are my synthetic running shirts. Now it’s just a matter of putting in the miles, which I enjoy. 😀