Upgrade / Downgrade

Upgrade:
I'm getting off my ass right now.

Downgrade:
My intense laziness re: everything else these past two weeks.

Let's just forget most of August happened.

Upgrade/Downgrade

Hey funny bunnies.

Upgrade:

• Got a haircut today!
• Went to the gym for the first time in a while.
• Went grocery shopping and stocked up on healthy foods
• Talked to my good friend Gina today
• Helped a bit with cooking dinner
• I'm sticking with the 100 push ups and I'm doing them right now, writing during my breaks

Downgrade:

• Everything on my upgrade list was on my list to do 3 days ago.
• I'm supposed to leave for DC/Baltimore tomorrow and I'm still awake.
• I don't even know how to get there.
• I haven't written on my journal in 3 days.
• I locked myself out of my car and my brother had to come unlock it for me on his birthday

Even with those few downgrades, today was a pretty good success.  I actually like cooking, and I 'm upset that I've sort of let it go by the wayside.  I put my friend Gina on upgrades because I don't like feeling so disconnected from my friends, so I chalk it up to good mental health when we chat.

Goals for later: Lots of reading, and a JOBROS concert with Ayesha tomorrow!

Reasons for Writing

While I'm admittedly pretty self-involved a lot of the time, that's not the (only) reason I decided to refresh this blog. I thought I'd share a few with you, if any of you are reading this.

To begin, I don't presume that anything I'm writing about is particularly interesting (now, anyway).  Actually, the more I write the more I realize I don't really enjoy my own writing style.  I'm hoping that as I write more often and about different subjects, it'll develop into something I can tolerate a bit more.  I don't anticipate ever really having a job where my colloquial writing style is necessary, but I would like to find my writing voice and have it match my personality.

In a few weeks (God willing... maybe months), I'll be leaving to go to Africa for the Peace Corps.  I still haven't gotten my invitation, but I'm expecting (hoping) to hear something pretty soon.  Once I leave, contact back home will be spotty at best.  There is a chance (however small) that I'll be able to write here about my experience and at least remind people that I'm still around in the world over the following 27 months.  I thought about waiting until something important happened in the application process to begin writing again, but I figured I'd end up writing one post and no others for months, as has happened so many times on this blog.  When something happens, I'll be sure to include it in a post, but I don't need it to be the focus of my writings just yet.

Finally, after applying to Peace Corps, I've realized how much I depend on my family and friends for support and advice in my life.  Regardless of how much I post here or how many letters I send and receive, I'm sure I'll be lonely in Africa.  I need to be able to process my feelings on my own, without constant feedback from my friends and family.  I guess it doesn't make a lot of sense to post those things on the internet, but I find it easier to consolidate my writings in one place.

Oh right; also everyone loves me, so of course they'd want to hear what I'm doing at all momens.  Clearly.

I'm usually only willing to try things I already know how to do

I'd like to submit for your approval my hatred for Seth Marlow, a new friend of mine and Pop's regular who started the staff on the Hundred Push Up Challenge.  

Okay, I obviously don't hate him, but I do hate pushups, and so I'm not terribly keen on embarking on this fitness experiment.  My main reason for doing it (and coincidentally my top reason for hating it) is that it's semi-public.  We all report our progress to one another, and the only thing worse than reporting a poor job is reporting nothing at all.  Since I haven't yet mastered self-discipline, peer pressure is a great alternative, and I'm way more likely to stick with it this way.

It only makes sense to put it here, where everyone else can see it.  The more embarrassing it is, the better.  So, here goes.

My initial test resulted in 19 push ups.

Day one of training: 10, 10, 8, 6, 13.

I take back what I said. I really do hate Seth. Thanks a lot.