Category: Well-being

New Year’s Osechi and First Run of 2023

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X-E4, 27mm, f/3.2, 1/100 sec, ISO2500
 “Osechi” Cedar Park, 2023

Happy New Year! We started 2023 off with a delicious osechi brunch. Mariko and her friends prepared everything here, with my contribution being the roast beef. All the dishes were yummy!

Photo info: FUJIFILM X-E4, 27mm, f/3.2, 1/100 sec, ISO2000
 “Osechi” Cedar Park, 2023
Photo info: FUJIFILM X-E4, 27mm, f/4, 1/100 sec, ISO2500
 “Osechi” Cedar Park, 2023

These past two weeks have been filled with a lot of yummy foods and plenty of dessert, so I need to get back into my exercise routine quickly. With that in mind, I went for a long run this afternoon and completed my monthly half-marathon challenge in Strava. I struggled a little bit and walked a couple of times, but it wasn’t too bad. I’m really looking forward to a nice year of running!

Cold Weather Running

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Photo info: Apple iPhone 12 mini, 4.2mm, f/1.6, 1/400 sec, ISO32
 “Baggy Tights” Cedar Park, 2022

“There’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes”. That’s a Norwegian phrase that was going through my head as I suffered yesterday on my run. So today, I added another layer on top and put on my baggy tights on the bottom. What a difference it made! I was warm and the run was a lot of fun! I’ve always disliked running in cold weather, but with the right clothes, it can be very pleasant.

Photo info: Apple iPhone 12 mini, 1.55mm, f/2.4, 1/16000 sec, ISO40
 “Lovely Sky” Cedar Park, 2022

New Notebook

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X-T10, 35mm, f/2, 1/210 sec, ISO400
 “New Notebook” Cedar Park, 2022

I have many notebooks with empty pages in them, but that number went down by one!

My new notebook is actually one I had used before, but only filled about 20%. Looking at the old notes, it appears I stopped writing in it in maybe 2018… so there’s quite a gap! But that’s fine.

Actually, I kind of like that this notebook will be a mix. Notebooks are not meant to be perfect.

Afternoon Ride with Sophie

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Photo info: Apple iPhone 12 mini, 4.2mm, f/1.6, 1/3700 sec, ISO32
 “Sophie” Cedar Park, 2022

This afternoon I went for a ride with Sophie, my 1972 Peugeot UJ-10 bicycle. I haven’t ridden the Peugeot in a while so it was fun to go for a spin on the vintage road bike.

I like to record my bicycle rides with my GoPro and post to YouTube, but decided to leave those at home and just ride without the extra burden of the video camera. You would think that filming with the GoPro would be simply hitting the record button and just let it run, right? But actually, it causes me to think a lot about it when I am riding. For instance, “is the angle still okay? had the battery overheated and shut the camera down? do I need to change batteries?”. If GoPro cameras were reliable, then I’d have less stress about it, but they are pretty flaky.

Anyways, the only camera I had with me today was my iPhone, so I was just focused on the ride and seeing the sights. It was so fun! The Peugeot is a lot different than my other bicycles – it’s faster and a little more challenging to ride, especially over any gravel or dirt. I mostly kept to the hard surfaces, but there are a couple places where riding over gravel is necessary, and it got a little sketchy! Still, I enjoyed the whole ride.

Photo info: Apple iPhone 12 mini, 4.2mm, f/1.6, 1/3200 sec, ISO32
 “Sophie” Cedar Park, 2022

I hope you had a good day!

Shots at CVS

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Photo info: Apple iPhone 12 mini, 4.2mm, f/1.6, 1/60 sec, ISO100
 “Mulan” Leander, 2022

I got my Moderna Bivalent booster and this year’s flu shot today at CVS. I simply went to cvs.com and signed up for a next-day appointment. And while I was checking in at the store, I asked if I could get the flu shot as well. Super-easy!

I got the COVID booster in my left arm and flu shot in my right arm, and I am feeling fine, apart from sore shoulder muscles. I’ve been fortunate to have had zero side-effects from the COVID vaccines and flu shots. 😀

While waiting at CVS after getting the shots, I saw the Mulan toy hanging out with the other plush toys. Is Mulan still popular for the kids?

Hopefully I will stay healthy for the rest of the year. I’m looking forward to some traveling and camping trips!