Today Avdi and Jess are taking me to lunch at a Middle Eastern/ Mediterranean restaurant (like a boho Tel Aviv vibe) for my birthday, yofi! [“nice” in Hebrew] so I’ll keep this short for now.  I did 10 laps, saving room to eat later, socializing will happen, etc, etc.

I made an attempt to dress up , as much as I ever do these days (really just an excuse to wear my newish purple Converse), and even took a selfie to prove it.  Or two partial segments of me, at least.  How do you get your entire self in a selfie?  That’s how much I don’t know!  I guess I don’t have a midsection.

In other good news–my hydro lab seedlings are just starting to germinate!  That took only 4-5 days!!  This one happens to be Thai basil.  It’s alive!  (Also germinating are Genovese basil, Italian oregano, and thyme.)  You know what else is adorable?  One of my wildflowers is blooming indoors!  Meanwhile, my conventional herb seedlings have been coming up.  Avdi’s future herb garden will be fully stocked and loaded.

Ok, back later.

Never a dull moment at Avdi’s, in a good way.

For starters, somehow I outdid myself on the challah, to the point where Avdi declared it the quintessential, genuine classic, hard to get better than that, and K. agreed.  I even amazed myself.  My homemade Jewish Penicillin (chicken soup) with matzah balls from scratch wasn’t bad, either, although the balls could have been more cannonball-like.

I stayed overnight, watched some stuff, read my book, and slept well.  This morning I puttered around some more until Avdi got back, and then we went to the St. Louis Zoo!  On the way, we passed the famous iconic old Amoco sign.

Even in winter, with many exhibits closed, the zoo was a great place.  My favorites were the aquatic critters.  Avdi even bought me an adorable plush harbor seal for my birthday, shown atop its own water feature.  Here are scenes:

Exercise: lots at the zoo.  Cookery: see above, plus leftovers.  Socializing: at Avdi’s.  Reading and writing: check.  Meditation: “Something tells me it’s all happening at the zoo.”

I’m over halfway into my 30 days of incorporating 6 habits.  It’s still a conscious effort, but only half as difficult as it was the first week!

I’ve found that for me, all the habits pivot around the writing one, because it holds me accountable and consistent.  I don’t have the luxury of writer’s block, because I simply have to find something to report on, however ordinary.  It also gives me a journal of my progress and adaptation.  It helps me become more comfortable articulating and communicating.  It forces me to think and work more creatively with the mundane material available.  At first it was a chore, but now I look forward to it each day.

Similarly with some of the other habits, they become less chore-like and more something I feel good about accomplishing.  With any habit, you have to start small and realistic.

With laps I started with a couple, and now I’m up to 10 a day (about a half mile), sometimes divided in half to make it more achievable.  Apartment laps are just a temporary measure until the weather warms up and gardening (and kid-herding) begins.  At that point I won’t even think about it, it will be assimilated.

Cookery seems obvious and easy, but it takes some discipline to see that I eat one balanced, healthy meal a day, and not just forage.  I purposely keep very few junk foods around, and fill up on the healthy meal (and leftovers) first.  I’ve found that it helps me have fewer cravings.  Today’s meal, inspired by Avdi’s Asian cuisine, was an Asian stir-fry of Chinese eggplant, baby bok choi, peanuts, ginger, garlic, green chiles, cilantro, various Asian condiments, and chicken broth, served over jasmine rice, with enough left over for later.

Reading is more of an automatic reward than a habit to learn–I look forward to it every night.  I supplement it with documentaries, mostly about wildlife, which I also enjoy learning about.  Rewards can be useful for reinforcing your habits, just as in dog-training!

I have to remind myself that a habit is defined here as something you feel good about adding to your life, if not totally enjoyable, and in small doses at first.  If I have to force it, or I hate it, it won’t encourage me to feel self-confident at succeeding at it.  Once I feel like I’ve made progress on a small habit, I’m not as intimidated by adding on more challenging layers or levels.

We’ve established I’m not a meditator, whatever that is.  Maybe premeditation would be more my style!  I’m not sure at this point if meditation is even something I require for a balanced life, or if I’m already doing it in some alternate form that works for me.  Maybe it’s more beneficial for hectic rat-racers who need a time out.  I already have too much daily time on my hands, though not a lifetime left to waste.

I do notice that instilling the other habits has given my daily life more structure and less killing time.  It’s not busy work, either, it’s like a framework or blueprint for spending time more wisely.

Finally, socializing, so automatic for some people, though not always in a meaningful form, is one of the most challenging for me in my circumstances.  On the other hand, making it an important priority for a healthy life ensures that I’ll try to let it happen whenever possible.  It’s easy to retreat into my introvert default setting, but I’m making more of an effort to resist that tendency.

I know that for older people, isolation is common and can contribute to depression and dementia.  I’m fortunate not to be forced into that situation.  I’d rather keep learning to navigate the tricky, awkward complexities of human interaction, however uncomfortable, because it’s essential for mental/emotional health and connection.

Well, there you have my progress report so far.  The important thing to take away is that it’s a constantly evolving, transforming process.  By next month my habit routine may look totally different, as it adjusts to reality and takes on steeper challenges.  That’s the whole idea, to give yourself a support structure to build on and adapt, like a coral “tree”.  When the baby corals (habits) are established, they can be transplanted into a more permanent natural habitat (your brain and life).

The key is to start in tiny increments that you can handle for short time slots, and work up gradually.  Don’t give up, but don’t be hard on yourself.  If you skip a beat, pick up tomorrow where you left off.  It’s just a way to build constructive patterns into your brain until they become second nature and push out the destructive ones.

As it turns out, as usual I did not go hungry at Avdi’s!  First up was this beautiful French-style bread he baked in the bread machine.  It had the perfect crusty exterior and soft interior.  He threw the makings of an Asian-style chicken meal into the slow cooker, and I got some jasmine rice going in the new rice cooker.  I checked on the green babies–doing well!  Then off we went to the transportation museum.

We headed all the way to the back where old trains are stored and maintained, like a train graveyard.  There is always fascinating photography to be found there, as well as just a calm, almost zen-like atmosphere on a rainy, deserted day.  Here are some scenes of yesteryear (with Avdi demonstrating proportion).  You may recognize a few from previous visits, especially “my” turquoise ride.  Appropriately, they played “Get your kicks on Route 66” on the PA system as I drove it into the hypothetical sunset.   (I also got some more exercise!)

Then we went grocery shopping at my favorite store, Global Foods Market.  It’s like a concentrated trip to all over the world, packed into an hour.  One can get lost in familiar and unfamiliar culinary heaven there, and have to be pried out.  Bonus–I get to try some of Avdi’s exotic finds.  The Croatian Orahovac walnut liqueur was particularly tasty!

Back at Avdi’s, he got back to work, and I did whatever chores I could find.  Later, we ate Asian chicken over rice, watched a couple of Expanse episodes, and hung out remotely with Grandkid Y, before driving me home.

So, exercise, cookery, socializing, reading, writing, and train meditation, check.  Now it’s a new day, rinse, repeat.  more later.

“Period of Prosperous” is Amazon “Chinese” for when the little seedlings get so big in the Cube that you can harvest salad from it.  We’re not there yet, but I have faith in my little cube-like friend.  So much so, that I went so far as to take a selfie with her.  Don’t get used to it.

Exercise so far: 10 laps, and then I did some pantry reorganizing, featuring heavy cast iron lifting, so I feel exercised.

Cookery: nothing yet, but I’ll see if Avdi has any handouts.  And I’ve been drinking my water.

Socializing: I’m supposed to go to Avdi’s any time now.

Reading, writing, yada…check.

Maybe more later after I return.

You read right–hydroponix, the new propagatrix!  I set up my new little lab, with its water pump and LED lights.  Meanwhile, I’m soaking the herb seeds and sponges they’ll germinate in, overnight.  Then I’ll insert those into the baskets, set them into the deck openings, cover each with its grow dome, and wait.  Once the seeds germinate, I’ll mix up the included fertilizers and add them into the tank.  Then it’s just a matter of keeping components adjusted.  I even managed to follow the funny Chinese English instructions!  I look forward to reaching “The Period of Prosperous”!

I’m trying rosemary, oregano, thyme, sage, Thai basil, Genovese basil, garlic chives, and English lavender, to see how they do hydroponically compared to conventionally.  Then I’ll move on to other herbs, greens, and flowers.  I’m already visualizing Avdi’s new herb and edible flower gardens.

Speaking of edibles, my lunch was Old Bay-seasoned fish and potatoes, broccoli with cilantro and mozzarella.  Simple, but healthy.  And of course more water.

And now for my latest trick–for exercise, I finally got up the nerve to walk down the street and get my straw bale a.k.a. hair trimmed, way overdue.  Don’t ask me why that made me so nervous, but it wasn’t so hard after all, and it feels a lot healthier.  The nice hair stylist gave me a bonus pep talk the whole time about deciding to try new things vs. giving in to fears, like an affordable shrink!  I do feel lighter after all that de-thatching.  No, you’re not getting a selfie; there’s still my unphotogenic face to deal with,

Does anyone know an experienced drag queen who can teach me how to do a makeover?  It would take some serious skills.

Oh, and I met a couple of stylists and socialized!  And I’m writing about it.

I must have slept for three days, on and off.  Finally I felt able to get up and go to Avdi’s yesterday.  He thinks I may be getting migraines.  As far as I know I’ve never had them until recently, and assumed what I had couldn’t be that bad.  It does knock me down for days.  Avdi gets them, hopefully not from me!  He inherited enough genetic crap already!

Anyway, I felt well enough to get lots done over there.  The little pepper seedlings are happily germinating downstairs, with a little mothering from me.  I did some light cleanup, and some sorting projects for Avdi.  There was a bin of tangled tech spaghetti from yesteryear, and some ancient candles from the crypt, including an old Havdalah candle I attempted to make eons ago.  Talk about full circle!  Two more big bins of stuff to donate (some of it to me).

It was springlike again, so I explored the yard for early spring risers.  Some weeds were blooming!  There are masses of various spring bulb spears coming up, some with flower buds.  I was happy to find that the crocuses I had planted in fall were coming up under the mulch (not shown).

I made a hot dog dinner for us (Costco kosher dogs are the best!), and Avdi and I watched our latest installment of The Expanse, a brilliant sci-fi series, in our opinion.

So, exercise: lots of it going up and down stairs and walking outside; cooking: see above; socializing: check; reading and writing, automatic; and drinking more water (the new meditation?), happening.  I think meditation will become however I spend Shabbat. Seems logical.

I returned home and proceeded to have awful nightmares all night long!  Not from The Expanse!  I think my anxiety and insecurity just get the better of me sometimes.  Now it’s another day, with maybe another blahgpost to come, if I accomplish anything to write about.  I’m thinking hydroponics?  Time will tell.

I had to take a day off from everything, as I was not feeling well.  I came home and slept for a night and day, very unlike me.  You know it’s bad when I can’t “drink” for two days, and can barely eat.  I still feel really out of it, so I don’t have much to report, but I wanted to at least write.  So there it is.  Hope to be back to my normal boring self by tomorrow!  Here’s a picture of my faithful Tradescantia in its new foster home.

So much to report in so little time!  Yesterday I earned my keep at Avdi’s, getting lots done.  I moved some plants to “my” spare bedroom, checked in on the little green babies downstairs that were just starting to sprout, learned how to make challah using the bread machine, switched out a cabinet of miscellaneous old cookware for Avdi’s brand new set, cleaned up the kitchen and dining room, made a Mediterranean chicken dinner, and other jobs.  Jess came over for dinner; later they went out, and I spent the night at Avdi’s.

This morning, we decided to go to CRC.  It was a big weekend there, hosting the artist who designed and created their beautiful mosaic floor, their new Torah cover, and many other works of art.  She’s a Jewish Indian (Bene Israel) from Mumbai who later lived in the NYC area.  She collaborated with her friend Rabbi Susan Talve to create the multicultural mystical mosaic circle, among many other art achievements.  I got to meet both the artist and Rabbi Susan, an honor.

After services, Avdi showed me the St. Louis Art Museum, which was impressive.  In the main lobby is the very striking holocaust sculpture, “Breaking of the Vessels”, by Anselm Kiefer.  It symbolizes Jewish learning, Kabbalah, persecution, and Kristallnacht (1938), with shattered glass extending out from it.  We explored several of the  galleries of world ancient arts, just as an introduction, then grabbed a bite.

And now, back to the infamous habits:

Exercise: lots of it doing chores and going up and down stairs.

Cookery: a healthy Shabbat dinner of Greek-style chicken, salad, and brown/wild rice.

Socializing: I actually met/re-met some people and talked to them.

Meditation: I include this because I found some of the CRC service very meditative (which I wouldn’t normally use to describe my past Jewish experiences, but this is different).

Reading: continued my Maya Angelou reading at Avdi’s.

Writing: for once, lots to write about!

I’ll be off to Avdi’s this morning and overnight, so I’ll get this out of the way.  Today I’m bringing half a dozen misc. plants with me to temporarily live in the spare bedroom where I sleep.  It wouldn’t be a livable habitat without plants.  Also I’m running out of room here!

Moving right along…

Exercise: 10 laps.  Ten circuits equals about a half mile, I think.  That includes two flights of stairs, up and down, so that’s a bonus benefit.

Cookery: Not there yet.  Keeping it light, because I’ll be making a chicken dinner at Avdi’s.

Socialization: Also in my immediate future.

Reading, Writing, blah blah…

I think I should add drinking more water to the list.  I keep forgetting to do that.  Done.

The Bobs sent me some wonderful birthday gifts–a little hydroponics lab to germinate plants, lots of assorted herb seeds, and a St. Louis t-shirt, my first!  Next time I’m home I’ll set up the lab and start growing some more stuff.