Following all the storms and heat we’ve had the past few weeks, the weather has finally settled into something resembling mid-Spring weather. Days in the 50s or 60s and nights in the 40s, good breezes, occasional rain, and the recent addition to “normal” Spring weather: random heat spikes and intense blocks of bad weather coasting aorund the edges of said heat spikes. It has been nice to be able to open the windows and leave them open rather than constantly run the AC (though that might not last much longer as Spring fully arrives and delivers a metric ton of pollen into the air around me), so I’ve been trying to make the most of it while it lasts. There’s no telling when it will shift back to warm days and stay there until the fall, so I am doing my best to appreciate what I’m getting between needing to adjust how open my windows are so it doesn’t get too cold or the rain doesn’t pour in my windows. For Whatever reason, I’ve been blessed with breezes that actually enter my apartment, which is great until it starts to rain the the gusts of the storm whip it into my apartment to soak my curtains or collect on my kitchen floor. But it’s manageable and far more pleasant an experience than another snowstorm or heatwave. At least there’s been very little lightning and wind as a part of the rain we’ve had so I don’t need to worry about losing power or the potential for tornadoes.

I’ve even tried to go outside a little bit more. I probably won’t be during it much when this gets posted since that’s patch week for Final Fantasy 14 and getting my teeth into the meat of that will be my number 1 priority, but it’s been nice to spend a little time outside at the end of my days or whenever I settle in to drink coffee while at home. I’ve also been trying to take it a bit easier at work so I can drive home while it’s still light out, a thing that won’t take special consideration soon given how late sunset is happening these days. Now, all I really need to do to take advantage of all this good weather is start getting back into the habit of midday walks. Soak up some sun while the UV index is still on the lower side so I can handle it when it gets a bit higher over the summer. And, you know, get a nice mix of exercise and fresh air. I’m getting plenty of fresh air, but my continuing sleep problems, busyness at work, and burnout have been making it difficult to find or make the time for something like good, balanced exercise. All I get is the hard work of doing my job which sometimes means supporting my body weight when I lean on something, carrying a couple thousand pounds around in stacks of just over one hundred pounds, and holding as much weight up at or above neck height for as long as I can manage while changing things out. Lots of muscle useage, but none of it is even or consistent or good for my cardiovascular health. Which is where the walking will come in when I’m no longer working through my lunches (which lets me go home earlier in the day).

The relatively low temperatures have meant that neithe the heat nor the AC have been on at work. There’s still air circulating as the HVAC system continues to refresh it all according to the latest guidelines on how to lower the potential airborn spread of various colds and COVID, so it never gets stale or unpleasant. In fact, with just a touch of work to manage the humidty and no further heating or cooling, I think this might be the most comfortable I’ve been in my office (temperature-wise) since before the pandemic. I hope this is indicative of the HVAC system finally functioning properly because the last couple years of it constantly breaking down every summer have been more than enough. I do not need to spend another warm five months breaking out into a heavy sweat the instant I start moving around to do even the less strenuous parts of my job. I like not soaking through my shirt one or more times a day just from walking around the lab (and being just drenched on the days that required heavy manual labor). It really is such an improvement to feel comfortable in the workplace. Well, at least in this regard. All the other problems are still around and giving me grief, but at least this one specific problem has ceased to weigh on me.

So far the forecast looks clear. This nice little spate of comfortable Spring temperatures should still be in effect when this gets posted and will hopefully carry on for a while longer, even if there are some bumps along the way. I’d really like to have just one thing in life settle down for at least a little bit, you know? I’ve got enough going on without needing to stress about whether or not the weather will knock out my power, if storms will rip up my neighborhood, if hail will break my car while I’m stuck inside at work, or if lightning will strike someplace too near to my apartment and result in some kind of direct fire or a fire-causing electrical surge. One less thing to worry about is always nice and having a half-dozen potential concerns taken off my plate at the same time would be stupendous. Maybe I’d finally be able to relax enough to go to bed at a reasonable hour or do things other than escape into a video game. Sure would be nice.