Meg Evans

I still take the week between Christmas and New Year’s off from work, as does my husband, even though our kids are long since grown and we don’t do much of anything for the holidays. Not doing much is what I like about this week now; it’s a peaceful, uninterrupted time to let the pace of life quietly wind down, while reflecting on what has gone well in the past year and what there is to be glad about as another year begins.

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”

Early this afternoon, my husband and I enjoyed a video call with our daughter after she got home from working the night shift on Christmas; it was already morning on the 26th in Auckland. Regardless of the time and season differences, it was merry. Not quite like being together—but almost.

Wishing a wonderful holiday season to everyone reading this post, too!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”

I had a rather hectic day, with a new furnace being installed. The weather was unusually warm for December, so the house didn’t cool off much. Now it’s raining, the wind is gusting, and the temperature is dropping fast. But everything is good inside my comfortable house, and I am going to relax and just enjoy the rest of a quiet evening.

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”

We had a contractor out today to estimate a replacement for our furnace, which is the original one from when the house was built in 2002. Working from home makes such appointments much easier, as there’s no need to take time away from an office.

Sometimes I wonder, though, if the house feels a bit dull to me because it functions so much as a workspace. I try to brighten things up regularly with new decorative items, such as mini pumpkins in my kitchen in October and a poinsettia over the holidays. I probably would do better to spend time creating craft items, rather than just buying decorations, so as to put a little of my own magic into the house.

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”

I’ve had a peaceful week without much going on, just staying in my cozy house and looking out at the snow. Although I’m not entirely sure why, some old worries about finding time for things (such as writing my Thursday posts) seem to have quietly drifted away while I wasn’t looking.

Now that some coworkers have retired and not been replaced, I’ve been doing overtime work fairly often, which makes clear that I always had ample time. Having a more structured exercise schedule the past few years left me feeling like all my time was spoken for, but that really wasn’t true. The amount of extra time was not that significant; it was just worry making me feel overburdened.

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”

Wintery weather blew in yesterday, with high winds and temperatures falling throughout the day. To be honest, I didn’t look forward to waking up early and going out in the freezing cold to run the Turkey Trot.

Everything was all right, though. The temperature didn’t get much above freezing, but the roads were clear, the wind wasn’t as strong, and this year’s race sweatshirt was thick and warm. The event was well attended, and I wasn’t grumbling to myself while running but was glad to be part of the community.

Then we came home to a warm house, a restful afternoon, and a good family dinner. A day to be thankful.

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”

As the holiday season begins, I’m remembering what it was like to decorate the Christmas tree as a child. The strands of tinsel gleamed like magical highways in the sky, winding their way around the bright starry lights. I imagined the ornaments happily traveling to different parts of the tree to visit one another. Sometimes I rearranged them while playing out that scenario.

While sparkly decorations don’t seem as fascinating once we’ve grown up, it probably would do us some good, every now and again, to find a little magic in our surroundings.

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”

After an evening workout on the rowing machine, I was wondering whether I should go write my Nurturing Thursday post or do an hour of continuing education, which has a year-end deadline approaching. I decided to write a post first and then do an online course. Instead of getting to it right away, though, I spent some time looking at images on Pinterest. Such is life in the modern world.

Looking at it more positively, I was not just wasting time online; rather, I was choosing to rest and relax for a while, understanding that self-nurturing should be a priority, and there is, in fact, plenty of time to deal with the to-dos. I’m off to start the course now…

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”

I’m off again with my husband for another rowing trip, to Chattanooga for the Head of the Hooch regatta, which is always the first weekend in November, on the Tennessee River. It previously was held on the Chattahoochee River, hence the name. We’ve rowed there many times, but now we are staying for a week at an Airbnb in Chattanooga, rather than just for the weekend as before. Now that both of us work remotely, there’s no need to hurry home, as we used to do when he had to be in the office on Monday. We can stay for a while and enjoy the adventure.

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”

After packing for this weekend’s trip south, I’m still feeling calmer than in past years when we traveled to rowing regattas multiple times in October during the fall racing season. Keeping work and travel separate in my mind, without getting stressed about how much time will be needed for each of them, now feels more manageable than it once did.

Perhaps it’s because my work has become more predictable regarding the use of AI—which, so far, has improved my workgroup’s productivity without any layoffs. Those who retired in the past few years have not been replaced, but there doesn’t seem to be any urgency to cut costs further.

I feel as if a small inner voice is whispering to me that it’s all going to be okay…

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to encourage self-nurturing and to “give the planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.”