Saturday Inertia

So, as you see below, last night I had written a great post, was just about to add pictures to it when blogger decided I didn't need the 15 or 20 minutes of clever writing, and the screen refreshed and erased it all. It was a fitting end to a Saturday.

Since B and I broke up last fall... and more so since my decision to maintain the distance some of my friends in that social group... I've found I have A LOT MORE TIME on my hands... and a lot less to do on weekends. Strangely, I've been finding ways (through work events and such) to fill my weeknights... but my weekends are filled with a lot of nothing.

My past week:
Monday - at home, best I can remember. Oh, and some grocery shopping.
Tuesday - Pilates (5:30-6:30); Grizzlies game (vs. LA Clippers, last pre-playoffs home game) with Randi (from work, who somehow got lost on the way to my house and ended up in Mississippi). Parked in the media lot, which we gained admittance to by giving the lot attendant station swag (condoms and lighters). Saw just over half the game (which, due to playoffs, both teams were trying not to win), including a half-time show with world-champion acrobatic trampoline artists (really!) and a performance by the cutest little kid dance team (they looked like those kids in Missy Elliot videos). When we were leaving, some dude looked at my shirt and asked me about Southern California. He said he was from the west coast, Oregon, and when I asked him where, he said Eugene, at which point I had to ask him which high school he attended... which was Sheldon, the same high school that all 3 of my sibs went to when we lived in "Blue Jeans" Oregon. Small, small world, and kinda funny too... and we may have converted him to a listener, as we told him about the station and gave him free condoms and lighters out of Randi's magic prize purse. We went to dinner at Hard Rock (where our waiter, young Wesley, insulted my choices in food and then gave us the slowest, mockingest service ever).
Wednesday - a night at home, no real good TV.
Thursday - Memphis Redbirds game (which was a station promotion), and met up with S and watched the game.
Friday - Bookstore (another Friday night do-dah, this time for the University of Memphis State University literary society or something). Did have some nice convos with artists at bookstore / artists market. But was dull, with no book customers. Then, home and TV. No big plans, no cool stuff.

Which brings me to my Saturday.
Woke up about 9:30, decided to go to Pilates and get my workout on (the more I notice the slow-but-sure effects Pilates has had on my body, the more motivated I am to go). I knew my friend K wasn't planning on going, so got ready and headed out by myself to the 10:15 class. It was a good workout, I saw my old instructor Traci for the first time since she had the baby (I also saw the baby, who is so cute and so small). After class, this girl who had been a few times before was asking questions about Pilates, so asked her if she wanted to head to Starbucks with me for a post-workout drink. We went, got drinks, and sat on the patio for about an hour and half, gabbing and getting to know each other. My brother later called it a "girl-date", which is pretty accurate. I've maintained for years that making friends is as painful as dating. But this girl, Ashley, was really cool, and has only been in Memphis for 10 months, so she's as open to making friends as I am.
At about 1, I headed home to my exciting day of nothing. Called my brother JD, and talked to him about life, the universe and nothing for about an hour. Then, I puttered around, watching TV, listening to music and cleaning (again) for the rest of the day. If I don't find something else to fill my time, and soon, I'm going to run out of things to clean / tidy / organize / dust / sort / purge / swiffer. I loaded and ran the dishwasher. I swept the living room (for like the 4th time in 2 weeks). I took out the trash and recycling. I heated up mostly empty lotion bottles to get the last usable stuff out of them (it works - put them in a little hot water for a minute or two, and then pour out into another bottle) and recycled the bottles. I sorted and catalogued and boxed my magazines for library donation. I went through all my medicines and vitamins, and flushed all expired ones (and recycled the bottles). I went through all my old toiletries and did the same thing... and dusted and swept the areas I store them in. By the time I was done with all that, I had to take the trash and recycling out again. (my contribution to earth day, I guess). And, during this whole process, I discovered that I had given myself a nice one-armed severe farmer's-tan-burn on my left arm from my al fresco beverage with my new Pilates friend.
Like I said, an exciting Saturday. I didn't even have any TV to look forward to, as the WE network has stopped carrying my Australian soap opera, McLeod's Daughters. That was at least something I could do on empty Saturday nights. (This isn't the first time WE has done this to me; they also stopped carrying Cutting It, right as I was getting into the storyline.)

Such is life. I'm now working at the bookstore, for my 5-hours-on-Sunday shift. I've actually had a few customers, and may today even reach my personal goal of selling enough books to pay my wages (some days, that is merely a pipe dream).

I know my whole East Coast family is currently out West this weekend - Dad is in Vegas for NAB, Bebe is out in Oregon for her college visit and decision making tour, and Mom will soon be joining her (and staying on longer for a trek south to see the LA branch of the family). Wish them all luck in their endeavors.

I'm going to go tidy and sweep and organize the store a little bit. That is, after all, what I am here for, right? :)