A Conversation with Elizabeth
1999
What I did This Weekend

From:          Elizabeth 
To:            LMixson@PEC.com
Sent:          Monday, December 20, 1999 9:30 AM
Subject:       What I did This Weekend
 
Are you checking your mail?  I feel pretty good this morning.  Saturday I woke up very early and impulsively decided to go to a nearby mall which lets people in early for "mall walking" starting at 5:30.  Its in cooperation with the hospital where I work. I didn't have a watch, but walked around four times and felt pretty good.  The major downside was this horrible mall Christmas music that was playing.  There were quite a few people out walking.  Also, incredibly, one of the stores in the mall opened at 6:00 a.m. so there were women coming in to shop!  I'd thought about doing the mall walking from time to time, but thought it would be sterile.  The trouble is that when its really cold or wet I then don't have a place to walk, so I thought I'd give the mall a try.  Also, since I NEVER go to the malls, I had no idea what stores were there now, or what kind of merchandise was "in" so this gave me a painless (no crowds) way to windowshop.  Apparently red and black are the women's colors for whatever season the clothes were for!  I went back Sunday, and fortunately the music wasn't on and didn't come on until I was almost finished, even though I was there much later than on Saturday.  There is a grocery store nearby and after walking I was able to swing by and get a few groceries, killing two birds with one stone so to speak. Most of Saturday I was a couch potato because there were three Humphrey Bogart movies on t.v. which I wanted to watch.  I'd never been a "fan" of Bogart, but lately have come to like him a lot, so I'm trying to catch his movies when they are on t.v.  I finished a "fun" novel this weekend, by Stephen White, but it was rather unmemorable. 
 
His books have a main character who is a clinical psychologist who married a district attorney, so what I do like is getting both the psychologist character and the lawyer character in one book.  Sunday I went out for my usual bagel, which has become my routine.  Since I've been at "loose ends" for a long time it seems, several weeks, and still felt somewhat that way on Sunday, I decided to go to the bookstore after my bagel. (Its only in the last two years or so that Montgomery has had any place to "go" on Sunday morning.  When the bagel place opened I was so excited, because they open very early on Sunday and its a great place to go and sit and read the paper.
 
 Also, the two big bookstores open at 9:00 a.m., which is great.  I used to get rather "down" on Sunday mornings sitting at home.)  Anyway, in the bookstore I took a look at a book called "Life Management."  Basically the theme, really condensed down, was this is it, this is the only life you have, and you either "manage it" or just sit around in the rut until you die.  Remarkably, as a lot of self help books do, it started with a little test for "feeling like your life is out of control or in a rut."  I scored very high (especially not being in law school at the moment).  Like all self help books to me though, it was rather weak on "how to correct."  It sort of lectured that if you looked hard and didn't deny what you say, you would detect "laziness" etc.  I'm not so sure about that as being the only cause. 
 
Anyway, the book did prompt me to try and, at least, get on some sort of schedule for things I want to do, like walking, and also reading, as lately I have wanted to read the entire Bible.  So this morning, I set my alarm for quarter to six and went to the mall to walk from 6-6:30, then started a read the Bible in a year program. I think when you have activities that are at a scheduled time, like your yoga classes, or a game of racquet ball after work, the schedule is "set" and its easy to stick by--its like me going to class, about which I'm very disciplined.  I think its harder to say to oneself though, every morning from 6:30 to 7:00 I'm going to read the Bible or whatever.  I guess, all in all, that's in part why people activities in groups, etc, not just for the camaraderie but the reinforcement of "doing." 
 
Oh well, the trouble with any "new regime" is seeing how long it lasts. 
I've targeted this semester to try to get back on track, as I only have one course, and so going to class three nights a week isn't there as an excuse, or to drain my energy.  I envy you your time off.  Elizabeth

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