I can't believe it's already the end of July. One month ago, we were celebrating my nephew's birthday in Maine. Where does time go?!
This past week was another whirlwind — a whirlwind of writing and bad weather.
Running: Due to the heat, I did three of my four runs on the treadmill. By Sunday, however, the humidity had dissipated and the temperature dropped, and I had a glorious 9+ mile run around Central Park, with a bonus loop around the reservoir (which I hadn't done before) — this will probably be my "usual" long run route, unless I'm doing more mileage. So I guess I'll get used to those hills soon?
Lifting: I'm still really uninspired in the gym — some of it's the gym itself, which is certainly not very old-lady-lifting friendly. There are no micro-plates, for example — that is, the 1-2 pound plates that make it easier to progress on my upper body lifts. I'd also been experimenting with a new lifting program — an online app designed by an "influencer." It was way too much; the app too involved, too confusing. (I keep trying these new things for Second Breakfast, but I'm not sure I'm so good at reviewing because sometimes it's not that "the thing" isn't great; it's just not right for me and the headspace I'm in right now.)
Swimming: I only swam once, which I think is going to how I'm going to keep my schedule until I shift towards triathlon training more specifically. It was also annoying, but I think I'm just annoyed by the time I'm done with lifting, and I carry that into the pool. Also I don't love "circle swimming" — I lose count of my laps very quickly and then am a little bummed when I haven't even done 1000 yards.
Cycling: I rode the bike to and from the gym twice — even in the awful head. And on Saturday, I bought a bike helmet.
Eating: I bought a brioche sandwich loaf from Amy's Bread. We got croissants (well, one croissant and one pain au chocolat) from Sullivan Street Bakery. We ordered bagels (again) from Ess-a-bagel — with a bonus cinnamon babka. We ate out Saturday night — sans Poppy — at Sesamo, a neighborhood Asian-Italian fusion joint. It was less Asian than it could have been, flavor-fusion-wise. I ordered the chicken parm — the chicken part was Korean fried chicken and the crisp on it was phenomenal, but the sauce was just your usual marinara. The whipped butter that came with the bread was amazing. Also amazing: the dessert, which was a katsu chocolate bread — so, like a breaded, deep fried brownie?!
Writing: I had the most mind-blowing week with Second Breakfast, as my friend (and famous writer) Austin Kleon recommended the newsletter to his newsletters' readers. The sign-ups came flodding in, and I doubled the number of subscribers! Holy shit! So I've far exceeded my subscription goals for 2023 for the project. Pretty exciting. Also pretty scary to have to keep it up. But damn, I am really loving it - loving it in ways I hadn't loved writing on Hack Education for a long, long time.
Mourning: Sinéad. Goddammit.