With a pretty serious New Year's Resolution bearing down on me you'd think that I'd be gearing up big time over here, especially since I've been pretty absent from blogging, working, or doing anything productive whatsoever, but that has not been the case. I've been home for over a week and I've halfheartedly started a couple of books, only to abandon them, not even halfway through, with nary a backward glance. What...happened? Did I break? At the worst possible time? I just can't seem to get into reading. Yikes! The other night in a fit of "OMG my family is driving me nuts!" I borrowed my mom's car and headed over to Half Price Books to spend my gift card. I got five books for $25 (gotta love the place) and am trying to plow my way through Steve Martin's novella Shopgirl as a warm up, if you will, to the Great Reading Extravaganza of 2010. It's...um...ok. It's pretty good. Whatever, I can't seem to get into anything, and I think I overdosed on reading in December and will never want to read again. And another thing, how does anyone ever get any reading done when there's cable TV to be watched? And DVR? And shopping and baking and eating and sitting around doing absolutely nothing but petting the cat and staring out the window?
Hmm what else have I been up to? Well I've run outside (heh, twice) and wow, it is so different from running inside on a treadmill. First of all, central Texas is a LOT hillier than Illinois or a treadmill (same same, effectively). Second, this is the land of no sidewalks. When I'm out running I'm literally the only person not in a car. People stare and honk and generally don't know what to make of someone propelling themselves forward of their own volition, sans motorized vehicle. It's been hell, that's the only way I can think of to put it. Straight out of the driveway I'm headed down one hill and then back up another steeeep one immediately. This brings me huffing and puffing to the stop sign, where I risk life and limb to cross the street and run in the grass until I can get to another, less trafficky road. Once on this road I'm immediately confronted with another heart-stoppingly steep hill. I huff up that, the road evens out, and there's another damn hill. It is just neverending, I tell you, never-effing-ending. No wonder I was a better runner when I lived in Austin what with running up and down all these damn hills. I woke up today fully intending to run and gave up when I realized it was 40 degrees and raining outside. 40 degrees I can handle and rain isn't much of a problem but put together I just want to turn over and go back to sleep. So, tomorrow I have every intention of hitting the road again. I keep reminding myself that I'll miss running outside for the next four months and I should appreciate it while I can.
I've also discovered that TLC has a show about that crazy family with 20 million kids. There is also a show about very big people and one about very little people and I cannot help but watch this crap as my brain slowly melts out my ears. Maybe all this bad TV is to blame for the reading ennui.
