Grab Bag vol. 10
Things I found interesting lately, what I’ve been up to, and whatever else comes to mind.
Summer has ended and now it officially feels like fall, which always makes me sad. Mostly because of the dark, but also because the alpine mountains aren’t covered in lush green grasses and delicate wildflowers anymore. And I didn’t spend a lot of time running in the high country this year. It feels like a waste because summers are so short above 10,000 ft, but I’m doing my best to gather enjoyment from what I did do. I know that I do not need to wake up at 4am and drive an hour every weekend to make the most of the summer (I really do know this) but the feeling I get looking out from a high alpine trail is hard to find and part of that might be because of the effort it takes to get there and how fleeting it is.
Last year, I tried to do too much and I wore myself out. This year I was focused on other things and in the process I’m trying to be kinder to myself. We will see what next summer brings. For now, I’ve got some big things planned for the rest of the year and I plan to make the most of the cold dark days ahead.
Somewhat related - I am working on getting more comfortable with being uncomfortable again. Sometimes it’s exhausting and I am tired of the discomfort and the fight. But it is also necessary. A muscle you HAVE to flex lest you get too sensitive to the abrasiveness of existence. *
*no I don’t mean getting comfortable with the nerve pain I’ve been having when running, which is dumb.
I KNOW I KNOW I keep sharing pieces of writing from this blog but I cannot help it. I am on a similar train of thought but not advanced enough to be able to put it into words so I am just reflecting back what others are saying.
And if you read that, here are my follow up thoughts related to social media: What I enjoyed most about instagram in its glory days were the beautiful photographs from artists I admire. But then I’d get stuck (still do). Just trying to take in “inspiration” and spending no time creating. I can’t just create in a vacuum! No, because what do I know about art - nothing! I, much like our writer above, stepped out of social media (a bit, at least) to create my own little corner, my own little container where I can control the context of my online expression. I’m still pleased about this, but I’m also still spending too much time consuming and not enough time producing. We’re working on it.
I spent a week in Albuquerque for some family things and actually made it to the Balloon Fiesta for the first time in my life. It was a fun playground for photos! So a few of my favorites are featured in this post.
