EXCITED | about finding a painted rock on one of my walks with Jon. If you follow Kim’s blog, you have learned about the art of rock painting. Jon didn’t know the story behind it and I had to tell him what these painted rocks are all about. I think it goes back to the Kindness Rocks Project, where people started painting rocks and left them for others to find and collect in an effort to spread joy and kindness. Photos of the painted rocks and hints of where to find them are commonly shared on social media.
The rock that we found had a message on the back on what to do with it: “Spreading Joy One Rock at a Time. Keep or Rehide. Post pic at SactoRocks on Facebook“. I posted a picture in the group and while we currently still have the rock, we are planning to rehide it at some point.
ROCKING | a new Power Zone Pack workout shirt. As you know, I do a lot of Power Zone Challenges, and every challenge usually offers a shirt that you can buy. I am never really interested in the challenge shirts (because there are so many and I won’t buy a shirt for every challenge), but when the Power Zone Pack came out with a Power Zone Pack Shirt with the Power Zone Bar on it, I had to have it because Power Zone Training is my jam.
FEELING | good about my workout routine. I’ve been sticking to my schedule and have been making some strides (no pun intended) recently. I improved on my 20-minute running distance test at the end of the Team Wilpers Summer Challenge, I finally (after 10 months) did a re-test on my FTP and managed to achieve a small increase, and my half marathon training (week 5) is going well.
HITTING | a few more Peloton milestones this month: Tanja and I will celebrate our 1000th ride this upcoming weekend. I completed 350 yoga classes, I am currently on a 160-week streak, and I reached 18k minutes on the platform for this year.
FRUSTRATED | that my work has a fitness reimbursement program but they’re not covering virtual fitness programs like Peloton at this time (apparently they’re looking into updating the policy but it hasn’t happened yet – even though they’ve been “looking into it” since the start of the pandemic). It’s kind of a bummer because I have been more physically active since I started the Peloton membership than when I went to the gym (and I have data to prove it).
EATING | homemade pickled cucumbers. You guys, they are so good and so freakin’ easy to make. They were cold and crunchy (they need to come out of the fridge, don’t debate with me!) and had a nice tangy, sweet-and-sour taste. Jon said they were possibly the best pickles he ever had, and he apologetically added that he was sorry but that it looked like I’d have to make them again. Haha. Nothing to be sorry about!
DRINKING | coffee + water. It’s pretty simple around here.
THINKING ABOUT | the climate crisis. Devastating fires in Hawaii, Washington (State) and Canada recently. A hurricane (ok, tropical storm) hitting Southern California with major flooding (oh, and did you hear that there also was an earthquake right at the same time?). Oof. Mother Nature is telling us something. There have been so many news stories lately, it’s hard to know “where to look first”. Everything seems urgent and dire. I listened to a climate scientist the other day on the news who said, we have to find ways to adapt to the weather changes that are already happening, but it’s not too late to make impactful changes for the future. So, why not do that. I am sorry, but politicians and rich people can’t “buy” themselves out of the impacts when the planet becomes uninhabitable. How about we do something about it now?
ANNOYED | by the Safeway App. I don’t know about you, but I use a few different apps to save money at the grocery store. The Safeway App is one of the convenient ones, because not only does it show you what is currently on sale at your local store (discounts you automatically get with your loyalty number), but it also has special deals/coupons (ForU Deals) for items you buy regularly. I take the time to go through the list every week, then add the coupons to my loyalty card in the app and then the discount is supposed to be applied at check-out. It’s only that this hasn’t been working for a few weeks now. The ForU coupons never get applied and I have had to get the store clerk to manually apply these discounts to my purchase repeatedly. It’s super-annoying – and time-consuming – to employ the store clerk every single time (although I will do it without fail – it saves me money!) and they really need to fix the app.
WATCHING | 90-day Fiancé. It’s such a nice kind of “turn-off-your-brain”-entertainment. I’ve been pulled back into the latest season while zapping through the TV channels, and while I know that some (most?) of this must be scripted for dramatic purposes, it’s kind of fun to just “roll your eyes” at some of these couples. I also might be rooting for one or two of them.
BUYING | a new runner for our hallway. Our wood floors are pretty slippery, so we have to have a rug in the hallway, but we were using this boring (gray) roll runner from the local hardware store (cut to size) that we also use as stair treads. It did its job, but wasn’t anything to write home about and the rubber backing recently started wearing off. Since it’s not exactly cheap either, I decided to replace the hallway runner with a nicer-looking rug this time.
STOKED | about the new kitchen floor. Yes, I promise I will shut up about it soon, but I had to include it one more time for the Currently in August edition because it was definitely a highlight for this month to finally get those terrible tiles replaced. I mentioned before that when we moved into this duplex, the kitchen was my least favorite thing about this place. This was a hard pill to swallow at the time because the kitchen is really important to me in my home. I am so happy to say that these new floors have really made me love this otherwise old and ugly kitchen a little more.
What is currently going on in your world?
Elisabeth
August 24, 2023 at 2:32 pmI love your Currently posts. So much happiness. I love homemade (fresh, crunchy) pickles and yours look AMAZING.
Yay – again – about the floors. You can talk about them as many times as you want and I promise I’ll be here for it. Having gone through a lot of renos the last few years I GET IT. Also, they look amazing, so jazz hands for that.
Sigh. Your coffee picture sings to my very soul.
Boo about not reimbursing virtual fitness. After a global pandemic, really? I hope you manage to convince them otherwise.
I love finding painted rocks and we regularly spot and then rehide rocks on our many walking adventures with the kids. Such a boost of happy in a day.
San
August 26, 2023 at 2:16 pmThank you, Elisabeth. I am glad you like these posts, as I like to read similar posts from others too. It’s just a great way to give little life updates :)
So cool you’ve also been finding – and rehiding – painted rocks. It does spread joy!
Nicole MacPherson
August 24, 2023 at 3:27 pmThe floor looks great and so does that new runner! How pretty!
Do some people not keep their pickles in the fridge? I always do – so nice and crunchy!
Yay for 1000 Peloton rides! It’s a huge milestone!
San
August 26, 2023 at 2:17 pmHaha, I think there are people who keep pickles in their pantries, but for me, they need to be cold! :)
And thanks my friend, I know you get the Peloton obsession.
Engie
August 25, 2023 at 9:19 amThat runner looks amazing in your hallway – like it was made for that space!
We had a really terrible storm a few weeks ago that our city is still recovering from (there are still streets where the city has yet to pick up yard debris) and then last night we had another very bad storm, complete with hail and everything. Even in flyover states, climate change is hitting hard this summer.
I’d like more info on your pickles. Recipe please?
San
August 26, 2023 at 2:19 pmThe size of this runner was really perfect for our hallway. What a coincidence.
I am so sorry that you’ve been dealing with weather hiccups in the midwest, I know, none of us is safe from them right now.
I’ll be sharing the pickle recipe here soon! Although it’s not really a recipe, it’s so easy ;)
Ally Bean
August 25, 2023 at 12:30 pmI enjoy your currently posts, I feel like I get a better idea of who you are. I think your employer should definitely pay for your Peloton, it’s nutty that they don’t, considering. Coffee and water is super simple. Rather impressed. Your runner looks great, well done.
San
August 26, 2023 at 2:19 pmThank you, Ally. I agree – these type of posts are nice little glimpses in everyday life :) Thank you for always coming by and your thoughtful comments.
Rachel
August 29, 2023 at 10:20 pmI have never watched 90 day fiancee however when my husband and I moved to the states (he was my fiancee at the time… so we were on the same visa although both moving from the UK together) We asked the border agent what the next steps for the visa were. He said “oh have you seen that show 90 day fiancee?” as if that was the official guidance for moving to the states. I still haven’t seen it but husband always says he was a 90 day fiancee… although we had lived together for 3 years first lol.
I am looking forward to your pickle recipe! I love pickles!
San
September 1, 2023 at 4:15 pmHahaha, I can’t believe the border agent brought up 90-day fiancé with you. Jon and I had already lived together for a while beforehand and got married before I applied for the visa, so we didn’t have the “90-day part”, but I always find it funny how disfunctional these couples are. I mean, I get it, cultural differences can bring up a lot of issues, but I always wonder how these couple are supposed to live together if they already have so many issues before they even get married.
Melissa
August 29, 2023 at 11:05 pmI always keep my pickles in the fridge once they are opened. They are good cold. Yours look lovely, such a bright green.
You can keep talking about your floors. I’m so happy for you to finally have this annoyance fixed. Yay for your continued appreciation. It’s the little things right?
San
September 1, 2023 at 4:15 pmYes, it definitely is the little things. I am trying to focus on these lately! :)
Kyria @ Travel Spot
August 31, 2023 at 9:22 amI agree with you re the Safeway app, but not the same situation! I keep struggling to scan the forU deals when I am in the store (if I do not clip them in advance); I don’t know what the issue is but I have had to have the clerk do it manually for me. You can just see the annoyance in the eyes of the people behind me in line, like dang I got in front of THAT lady again, but I don’t care, I want my dollar off!!!
San
September 1, 2023 at 4:16 pmI am kinda glad to hear you’re also having issues with the Safeway app – so it’s not just me! But I do want to bring it up with customer service because there seem to be some serious issues with the app that need to be fixed.
Kim
August 31, 2023 at 10:38 amThank you for the shoutout! I love that you found a rock! Are you still holding on to it?
That runner looks perfect! And keep talking about your floors, we’re excited for you!!!!
San
September 1, 2023 at 4:16 pmYes, we’re still holding on to the rock… but we are planning to rehide it.
Stephany
August 31, 2023 at 5:06 pmThat runner looks great with your floors! It really makes the space POP!
ALSO I THINK FEEDLY IS WORKING FOR YOUR BLOG AGAIN. I’M SO EXCITED!!!!!
Will your work reimburse fitness purchases, like shoes? That’s crazy that your Peloton membership doesn’t count. Get it together!
San
September 1, 2023 at 4:17 pmNo, my work only reimburses (up to 50%) of gym memberships at this time. I have also looked into my health insurance and if they might cover something, but I don’t think they do at this time. Frustrating.
coco
August 31, 2023 at 9:14 pmyour work reimburses you workout? that’s soooo cool, I’ve ever heard of it.
climate crisis? sigh…. I kind of work in this area, everyone is working on green topics now, but I’m not hopeful because the incentives are not favorable for public goods.
San
September 1, 2023 at 4:18 pmMy work reimburses up to 50% of your gym membership. They’ve done this for years and I was able to take advantage of it before the pandemic. Unfortunately, they haven’t updated their policy in quite a while.
Daria
September 2, 2023 at 12:46 pmAhhhhh! Love these types of posts… I can’t reflect on everything but may I steal it for future posts??
Stocked: about my, MY new classroom. All MINE! lol
Buying: sweaters at Nordstrom’s’. The sale is going on now.
Drinking: coffee+tea+water. Wine on weekends.
Thinking about: the labor day and how I technically AM part of a labor union: teachers’ union.
Tobia | craftaliciousme
September 10, 2023 at 10:18 amSo happy the pickles turned out so great. Did you share the recipe?
Also the new kitchen is so nice. Share away and let us enjoy you happiness. I guess as long as we heard the tough stories we can listen to the happy ones as well.
San
September 10, 2023 at 1:52 pmI have not yet shared the pickle recipe (but it’s in the works).
Lisa of Lisa’s Yarns
September 20, 2023 at 3:54 pmAnother slew of posts from your showed up in Feedly for me today. Ugh! So I am very behind on your blog!
I love your new floor runner! It is so pretty! Currently I am out in NJ for work. I got to meet up with Daria tonight for some wine – it was awesome to meet her in person!!