Thursday, February 3, 2022

Carpe Diem; Seize the Coffee


 

As the saying goes, carpe diem. 

Seize the day, and seize the drink...just make sure you grab something warm.

Holy frigid freeze-out, Batman! It's been cold, even by Iowa standards. It's a good thing I have a hearty supply of chai on hand. Rest assured, I'm drinking it hot (I can't imagine drinking anything on ice, given the current sub-ZERO feels-like weather conditions).

Anyways, it's that time of the month for gathering and chatting over coffee (or any beverage of choice). I have my chai latte' in hand and a few things to share...

Shall we start?

If we were chatting, I'd first tell you how excited I was to see the noticeable change in daylight upon our return to Iowa. Granted, there may have been a similar change that occurred in Florida as well. When I'm in a strange place, though, everything looks and feels different. Looking back, it feels like we were gone for a long weekend (and not almost five weeks). Having the much increased daylight (that currently lasts almost to 6:00 p.m.), amidst the cold, made for a nice welcome back.


If we were chatting, I'd tell you about the ordeal in getting my swag from the Key West Half Marathon. Since I opted to run it virtually, I had to transfer my registration as such (and paid an extra $20, and change, to do so). Not knowing when the packets would be mailed, I provided my Florida address. We'd had our Iowa mail forwarded to Florida, so I didn't want to risk the packet going to Iowa, only to be forwarded to Florida, and then forwarded - a second time - back to Iowa. Well, I was in a panic, come Thursday (of last week) when my packet still had not arrived (two weeks after the race). Upon arriving back to Iowa, low and behold, there it was...waiting for me in the mailbox. Apparently, they went with my Iowa address (from my original registration) because there weren't any forwarding labels on the package. Crisis averted! 

hands down, two of the snazziest pieces of event swag...ever!

If we were chatting, I'd also tell you about my walking progress (remember my saying I was hoping to log 100 miles of walking each  month?). Well, I also was hoping to do daily walks. The daily walks came up one day short (due to the weather and all the extra biking miles). The mileage came oh-so-close, at 89. Also not a crisis, because the 100 miles/month is a ballpark ideal (ultimately propelling me well past 1,000 walking miles for the year). Those miles will most likely be much higher during the warmer months, so it's far too soon to obsess over it. Now that Milly is "out of rehab," I can do some walking with her on the especially cold mornings or evenings as well.


If we were chatting, I'd share my January totals. I ran 3-4 times each week, but kept the miles fairly conservative. My hip flexor still was feeling a little cranky, at times, so I knew not to overdo it. Plus, I  was planning on a lot of walking and biking, so running wasn't my one and only means of outdoor fitness.


Finally, if we were chatting, I'd share my continued confusion with Twitter. My Twitter following is nothing grand, nor do I spend much, if any, time on there interacting with anyone. One evening, a couple weeks ago, my phone kept dinging with notifications. Come to find out, a randon person had liked (and commented) on 40+ tweets of mine. A few days later, I tweeted about the Florida frost (below), and that almost went viral for my itty bitty account. As this post goes live, there's now over 230 likes on that tweet, my following has increased substantially and there's been a lot more daily activity. And, I still have no idea on the appeal of Twitter, nor do I have any interest in figuring it out. Anyone else?


Ahhh, I'm about due for a refill (it's been in the single digits all week, and sub-ZERO with the wind chill). I haven't even been back a week and I'm already over winter, LOL. Thankfully, we have "warmer" temps in the weekend's forecast, and there hasn't been any snow or ice. 

What would you care to share, if we were chatting over coffee? Would you actually be drinking coffee or something else? Have you noticed a significant difference with the increased daylight? Are you a Twitter fan?

 Since it's the first weekend of the month, I'm linking this with Deborah and Coco for the Ultimate Coffee Date.


I'm also linking this with MichelleReneeDarleneJenn and Zenaida for the Fit Five Friday Link-up.

By the way...are you following me on social media?
Let's connect : Facebook Instagram  Pinterest Twitter

32 comments:

  1. So you do realize that since Florida is so close to the equator, there's very little variation in their sunrise/sunset time? We have a lot more daylight than they do in the warmer months. IYKYK

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh yes, FTR I know Florida is much closer to the equator than Iowa, LOL. I just didn't notice the shift in daylight until I was back in Iowa because it was very dramatic here. Being able to work out outdoors, in the sunshine and warmth almost everyday, was such a nice change of scene!

      Delete
  2. Well, we have cold AND ice AND snow. So you're lucky! Poor Bandit.

    Glad you were able to get your swag

    I have no doubt you'll meet your walking goal!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I took Max around the block, yesterday after work, adn it was like a speed-walking session. He was practically running to get back home because it was so cold!

      Delete
  3. Glad you found your swag because it is beautiful! Now the cold in Florida doesn't seem so bad, does it? Haha! The walks have been tough around here lately!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ha!!! The cold in Florida felt like a late-fall/early-spring day, LOL

      Delete
  4. We're starting to see a lot more light in the evenings. I know it's stupid simple, but life is just better when you're not walking the dog in total darkness.

    I liked Twitter back in the OG days but over time it went downhill for me. I don't think I've been on it since the pandemic started.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Twitter is just not my gig. It seems like it's more peoples' opinions rather than just "observations" about their life or experiences.

      Delete
  5. I’m definitely drinking coffee! And have noticed a bit of daylight at the end of my runs.

    That swag is AMAZING. So glad you received it because it would be a bummer to miss.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Even though it was for a virtual, I really would have been disappointed if it hadn't arrived in my mailbox. I was just surprised it got sent to Iowa instead of the FLorida address I"d given them when I switched to the virtual...

      Delete
  6. Well... you don't want to know what the weather is like in Florida. Leet's just say it's warmed up a tad since you left. Wendy's comment is correct- you'll notice more daylight in Iowa, so that's a plus, right?
    Nice job on the walking miles and i love the swag from Key West! Kind of weird that they sent it to Iowa (you'd think they would have just used the Florida address?) but it all worked out!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. And the weather in Iowa has been colder than usual, LOL. At least I had some cold FLorida temps to help me transition a bit.

      Delete
  7. I bet it was hard to return to the cold temps we all have been having! Very nice swag-glad you found it. I am noticing more daylight in the afternoon which makes me happy. Thanks for joining for coffee today stay warm :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Florida definitely had more daylight while we were there. I was outdoors, most every morning, as well as late afternoon, so I kind of took it for granted, LOL.

      Delete
  8. I'm glad you got your swag - such fun pieces!

    Seeing just a little extra glimmer of daylight is making me oh so happy!

    I used to interact with a lot of runners on Twitter in the early days of Runchat but not so much in past few years. Every now and then I pop on. Interesting about your post traffic - I don't think I'll ever understand social media algorithms.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh it was so nice seeing so much more daylight (in comparison to when we'd left, right after Christmas)! Kind of makes all the crazy cold temps worth it...kind of, LOL.

      Delete
  9. I am on Twitter, but not very active...its the last social media that I look at usually, ha! But interesting how you are getting so much action there without any additional effort.

    The extra daylight is so wonderful...we just have to make it through Feb and hopefully the cold cold days are behind us!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree, once we sail thru to March, it should be much better with the temps and especially the daylight.

      Delete
  10. Twitter also baffles me! I don't use it too often and basically just use it to read others posts, but I'm always surprised on what goes viral there vs what goes viral on Instagram.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Twitter just makes ZERO sense to me. I have it because everyone else does, but I seldom do much with it.

      Delete
  11. A beautiful swag, glad you found it.
    I drink Cappuccino when I get up and a hot tea after the runs.
    I am not on Twitter, I only have WhatsApp on my phone.
    The extra daylight helps to be more active even if I keep on running in the morning. Today, to avoid the strong wind I have ran on a beautiful country route far from the sea.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We have had such terrible wind in Iowa! At least the daylight is much better!

      Delete
  12. I love twitter. It makes much more sense to me than IG, yet I still don't understand why I went viral last fall.
    LOL on the swag. I feel you. A brand promised two day shipping, so I used mom & Bob's Florida address and planned it as bday something new to wear-and paid sales tax for the privilige. Yeah it's two day shipping after undetermined processing time so after a week back in NY I emailed them to ask them to change shipping address and it was Such A Big Deal. So lame.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ha ha...and I'm an IG gal ;-) The shipping was a weird situation, given my circumstance. I was paranoid the package would not come first-class, then not get forwarded if it arrived after we'd left. Thankfully, everything worked out ;-)

      Delete
  13. I rarely use Twitter.

    Yay and the increased daylight. I can now run after work without reflective gear.

    I only track my running - 96 miles this month. Not as much walking and zero biking.

    That swag is very cool. Glad you got it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I didn't use my reflective gear much, while in Florida, because the sunrise happened much earlier than in Iowa. I did use my Knuckle Lights a lot, though.

      Delete
  14. That certainly is some colorful swag!
    I have a Twitter account and the only think I use it for is to share new blog posts. I had it set up Years ago that the posts just share automatically so it's been a long time since I've actually logged in and interacted. It seems that Twitter is just a bunch of arguing....lol. I much prefer Instagram!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't really notice much arguing because I don't take the time to scroll much, LOL.I've heard it's worse than Facebook....

      Delete
  15. I don’t get Twitter. I have an account but never post or read any posts. I don’t get SnapChat either.
    It’s been chilly here but also will be warming for the weekend and next week.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. OMG...SnapChat! I don't have that either, but my kids all love it.

      Delete
  16. I am loving the extra sunlight! I noticed it too. No help here with Twitter since I check it here and there. I don't understand it too much either. I prefer Instagram.

    ReplyDelete
  17. I haven't noticed the daylight yet, since its been so dreary. Maybe soon. Glad you got all your swag!

    ReplyDelete