The past few days have been the perfect days of summer – low humidity, warm temperatures, a nice breeze and a brilliantly blue sky. The weather has embodied why I hesitate to go away in summer… it’s just spectacular here. The side effect of this gorgeous weather is two-fold: we have cool nights, which are perfect for a campfire, and foggy mornings, because we live so close to the river and deep in the valley.
Now, foggy mornings have their benefits if you are a runner, which I used to be. Getting up on a summer morning when it’s a mere 61 degrees out with heavy enough dew that it sometimes feels like its sprinkling has a certain appeal. You stay nice and cool and get the miles done. Many times, as you turn for home, the fog begins to burn off and the sunshine begins to peek through. It’s hard when that happens to believe it can be anything other than a good day.
However, my days of running are long gone. These days, the charm of a foggy morning has slightly worn off. It’s still awe-inspiring as the sun begins to burn through the fog as it starts slowly and then gradually picks up speed and the yard is bathed in brilliant sunshine. But the foggy mornings otherwise? Well, they’re okay. The serve the purpose of adding a little moisture to the ground and the garden plants and ensuring that the daytime heating of about 20 degrees means an 80-degree day and not a 90-degree one. Otherwise, foggy mornings are kinda gray.
When I first started working from home, one of the very first things I did that December 1st, 2017 (which was the first day I had technically quit working full time) was to turn off my alarm. Just recently, I finally deleted the Monday – Friday 6:30 a.m. alarm setting on my phone. But that day, I turned it off for good. I haven’t used it in years. These days as I wake up, I mostly have at least an hour to get through my own “brain fog” before I launch into work. It’s that slow easy transition from, “Hey, I was just sleeping,” to “Sure, let me help you with that,” that I needed. Now, sometimes I don’t get that because I schedule a morning meeting. Today? My first meeting isn’t until 3:30 p.m.
So, just like the sun, I’m sitting here trying to burn off my morning fog. I’ve sent one email, which I needed to do first thing and I’m waiting for a colleague to send me the project she promised me this morning so I can finish my work with another client. I also have a contract addendum to write and a proposal to develop. But, I need to pace myself. I’ve had just one cup of coffee, a little cinnamon toast and some bacon. I definitely need another cup of coffee and to print out a few items before I start losing my head with work. From there? Well, we’ll see. My sense is that just like the fog lifts – which has already begun to clear and I can now see the trees in the distance – so will my brain fog lift.
It’s time for another day. The weatherman is telling me its going to be a beautiful one. I’ll take it. It’s a good day for, well, a good day.
The Yuppie Homesteader 