Alphabetical COVID Diaries: A, Part I

It's NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month) and the project I'm doing is my Alphabetical COVID Diaries. Go visit San at The In Between Is Mine to sign up to be part of NaBloPoMo or to find a list of bloggers who are participating. 

Dumpster in front of a house that was getting a new roof, siding, and gutters. Can you even imagine what that cost?

A bit of venting about the financial woes at UWW before we called it a day. A bit stressed about it, but B---- says not to worry. A--- came up from Madison and we did all the Fort things - Farmers Market, water tower tour, museum, cows. A couple of people who have been out of college for a long time asked for some info on coming back. A couple of quick meetings this morning, then goofed off a bunch. A couple of student meetings, went to the PGL meeting to tell them about my job and discuss Navigate. A couple of work meetings and some fitness classes. A crazy busy week at school and I'm excited for a bit of down time this weekend. A day is missing.

A DoL meeting in which I learned that one of the CCB's employees is leaving in November. A fair number of student meetings. A family event! A good time was had by all. A lot of CPL feedback. A lot of people still aren't wearing masks. A lot of stores are starting to mandate mask wearing. A nice gentle rain all afternoon. A perfect Saturday. A really tiring day. A run! A sigh of relief is felt all around. About 40 kids this year - we once again just put some candy out on the porch.

Absolute madness. Absolutely beautiful day. Absolutely silly. Accidentally left my pillow there.

Admitted Warhawk Day at work. Admitted Warhawk Day this morning. Admitted Warhawk today. Advising Institute today and then F-'s retirement party.

After a bit of a false spring, all the giant piles of snow had melted, but now there's snow again. After a crazy Saturday, it was chore Sunday. After a long week, I mostly spent the day on the couch watching Schitt's Creek episodes. After a lot of things going on yesterday, I had a pretty chill day today. After breakfast, T-- noticed a smell like gas.

After dinner we had book club - What's Mine and Yours - meh. After dinner we made Valentine's Day cards. After dinner we went to a lecture about Stax Records over at J--- M-----'s farm. After dinner we went to see Three Thin Dimes at the patio concert at FAC. After dinner, GBBO episode - bread week. After dinner, I went over to Paddy's for a game night that D------- organized. After dinner, went to J---------. After that, it was a pretty lazy Saturday. After work, I went to Walgreen's, picked up the CSA, signed some FAC documents, and did an hour of FHC classes. After work, we had our FAC annual meeting and regular board meeting. After work, went to Festival to buy pumpkin pie ingredients. After yesterday's excitement, today was much more chill.

Agnes wouldn't start, so I took T-- to campus, ran home to walk Buddy and Mingus, and ran to yoga class, and took H to the groomer. Agnes wouldn't start, so we had to jump the battery. Agnes' tire was flat again today, so T-- had to deal with that.

A---- L------- sent over her resume, so I'll get started calling her references on Monday.

Air quality still poor.  Albanese gummy bears taste like vomit. A---'s graduation party - good turnout and she seemed really happy. All four dogs! All Hannah all the time today. All I wanted to do was sleep. All in all, a winner of a day. All my email inboxes are clean now and I'm super excited about that. All quiet today. All the snow from Friday is long gone. All the snow is melted, I saw some robins, and it feels like spring. All the students are gone! All the trees and plants are blooming. Alone at the office all day.

Also made sweet potatoes for Hannah. Also ordered holiday cards! Also stopped to get birdseed. Also took H over to D------ C----- were she had fun. Also took Hannah to the dog park. Also, a nail trim for her and dealing with her anal glands. :( Also, had a WebEx interview for another advising position. Also, my thumb is still sprained. Also, the skateboarding street final was exciting. Also, there were fireworks tonight, so she's a nervous girl. Also, very tired. Also, went to buy groceries after dinner. Also, wrapped all the presents that need to be mailed and they'll get picked up by USPS tomorrow. 

Always an adventure on a Saturday. Am absolutely exhausted. Am excited that tomorrow is Friday. Am excited to sleep in tomorrow. Am exhausted. Am exhausted. Am exhausted. Am exhausted. Am exhausted. Am exhausted. Am exhausted. Am exhausted. Am mentally exhausted. Am officially exhausted. Am pretty tired after all that. Am pretty tired tonight. Am really worn down at this point. Am super exhausted. Am trying to finish my book club book for tomorrow, but it's slow going.  Am very tired these days. Am very tired today, though - I think staying up late for book club last night was a bad idea. Am working on a blog project where I ask 20 people to guest post to celebrate my blog's 20th anniversary.

An appraiser came by because we're financing and we kept very far from him and Lysoled every surface he touched. 

And it's so cold! And some Liberal Studies AARs. And still had time to read. And there are two cards hanging up in our display already! And warm! A--- had a sub. A--- was teaching and it was wonderful. A--- was wearing ice cream pants and I was influenced. A--- won't be doing any more yoga classes here. :(

Annoying. Annual exam this morning. Annual exam this morning.

October 2026 Accountability Buddy

Thursday, October 1
30-minute yoga video in the student union at lunchtime

Friday, October 2

10-minute yoga before bed

Saturday, October 3

30-minute full body dumbbell workout

10-minute yoga for lower back pain

Sunday, October 4

Yesterday during my workout I did something to my back. Or I have a kidney stone. Who knows? It hurts. I did some verrrry gentle yoga stretches, but I'm scared to do too much.

Monday, October 5

30-minute yoga video in the student union at lunchtime

Tuesday, October 6

Day off

Wednesday, October 7

15-minute stretch class at lunchtime*

30-minute Japanese Interval Walk

Thursday, October 8

30-minute yoga video in the student union at lunchtime

Friday, October 9

15-minute stretch class at lunchtime

Saturday, October 10

10-minute no jumping cardio

10-minute legs

10-minute standing arms

10-minute post-workout stretch

Sunday, October 11

10-minute no jumping cardio

10-minute standing arm workout

10-minute standing abs

10-minute yoga for low back pain and hip stretches

Monday, October 12

30-minute yoga video in the student union at lunchtime

Tuesday, October 13

15-minute yoga flow - The neighbors were taking down a tree on the boundary of our yards. In order to make it seem "normal," I went ahead and did some yoga. I think it worked, too. Hannah was zen next to me. 

45-minute body blast class at the community center after work

Wednesday, October 14

15-minute stretch class at lunchtime

Thursday, October 15

15-minute stretch class at lunchtime

35-minute deep yoga stretch for stress relief

Friday, October 16

Day off

Saturday, October 17

30 minute full body with weights 

15-minute yin yoga for hip flexibility 

Sunday, October 18

30-minute walking workout

10-minute yoga for tight hamstrings and lower back

Monday, October 19

30-minute yoga in the student union at lunchtime

Tuesday, October 20

45-minute body blast class at the community center after work

Wednesday, October 21

15-minute stretch class at lunchtime

5-minute full body warmup

15-minute arms and shoulders

15-minute standing abs

Thursday, October 22

30-minute yoga for hips and lower back

Friday, October 23 & Saturday, October 24

I got a couple of vaccines and took it easy on these days.

Sunday, October 25

10-minute leg workout

10-minute standing arm workout

10-minute standing abs

10-minute nervous system reset (Yoga with Adriene)

Monday, October 26

30-minute yoga in the student union at lunchtime

Tuesday, October 27

45-minute body blast class at the community center after work

Wednesday, October 28

30-minute best balance exercises - I like to do this video once a month or so because it's great for me to see the differences in my good and bad legs. Wednesdays are really hard to fit in movement, so I can do this video in my office at lunch. 

Thursday, October 29

30-minute yoga in the student union at lunchtime

Friday, October 30

15-minute stretch class at lunchtime

30-minute full body dumbbell workout - no repeats, no jumping

Saturday, October 31

Day off

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Totals: 23/31 (74.2%) of days of 30 minutes or more

Strength/cardio: 12 days

Yoga: 11 days

Short stretch classes at lunchtime: 5 times

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*Our local healthcare organization does free stretch classes virtually three times a week. Sign up here! It's free. It's fun. We regularly talk about candy and what's for lunch. It's a delightful break in the middle of the day. You do not have to have your camera on. She has the classes out there for the rest of the year, so you'd only have to register ONCE. 

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There are only TWO MORE MONTHS in the year. How are your fitness goals going? 

Vote Correctly, United States

I'm going to interrupt my regularly scheduled posting for a quick reminder that today is Election Day in the United States. If you haven't voted already, please get to your polling place before it closes tonight. Vote as if your democracy is at stake because it is.

Admittedly, it was delightful that it was sunny at 7:30 in the morning.

(No comments. Just go vote.)

October 2026 Books Read

It was the best of times and worst of times when it came to books this month.

10/3: House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski (library, 2000) - What a ride. 4/5 stars

10/3: Wanderers (Wanderers #1) by Chuck Wendig (library audiobook narrated by Dominic Hoffman and Xe Sands, 2019) - There's a pandemic! And a very long audiobook. I mean, it was okay. I wasn't blown away and won't read the sequel, but I thought it was okay. 3.5/5 stars

10/6: The Amalfi Curse by Sarah Penner (library ebook, 2025) - This just didn't do it for me at all. 2/5 stars

10/7: The Nightingales by Emil Wilson (library, 2026) - Just a perfect graphic memoir about a teenage girl and her friendship with a dying man. There are POMERANIANS. 5/5 stars - literally NO NOTES

10/14: Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata, translated from the Japanese by Ginny Tapley Takemori (library, 2016) - Look, this book is my jam. So much to think about. 5/5 stars

10/14: This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me (Maggie the Undying #1) by Ilona Andrews (library audiobook narrated by Kristen Sieh, 2026) - Frustrating book. There's a lot here to like, but the pacing was off. 3/5 stars

10/17: Voyagers by Meg Charlton (library, 2026) - Two distinct storylines. I liked both of them, but I'm not sure if they worked together. 4/5 stars

10/19: When I Fell From the Sky: The True Story of One Woman's Miraculous Survival by Juliane Koepcke translated from the German by Ross Benjamin (library ebook, 2011 ) - When Koepcke was 17, she was the sole survivor of the 1971 LANSA Flight 508 crash over the jungle of Peru. Interesting, but not truly enough to sustain the length of the book. 3/5 stars

10/25: Time Travel for Beginners by Jaclyn Moriarty (library, 2026) - Not enough time travel. 3/5 stars

10/25: Julie Chan is Dead by Liann Zhang (library ebook, 2025) - I'm definitely not the right audience for this one. But things did go absolutely batshit at the end, so if that's your jam, maybe you're the audience. 2.5/5 stars

10/27: Royal Assassin (Realm of the Elderlings: Farseer Trilogy #2) by Robin Hobb (library audiobook narrated by Paul Boehmer, 1996) - The reread continues! There's a bit that's slow when Fitz is mooning around like a teenager after Molly, but he IS a teenager, so it makes sense. But we are introduced to Nighteyes and Fitz grows up. 4.5/5 stars

Total: 11 books

Average star rating: 3.64/5 stars

Did not finish:

Night Objects by Eli Raphael - Look, this is maybe a good book. But I can't deal with a mom death AND teenage sex in the same book. I just can't. DNF at 12%. 

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How many 5 star books did you read in October? 

CBBC Week Three: Convenience Store Woman, Wrap-up

Past discussions:
Week One
Week Two

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"Love Letter to a Convenience Store"

Last week, J and Diane brought to my attention that some books have a special Sayaka Murata "Love Letter to a Convenience Store" (also translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori). My edition of the book didn't have it, but don't worry, you can read in on Lit Hub. 

A taste, if you like:

When it was time to go home, I suddenly had the urge to see you look embarrassed, so I asked, “Do you think a convenience store and a human can have sex together?” thinking it would make you blush and get all flustered. But you answered smoothly, your face utterly serious, “What are you talking about? We’re already doing it, aren’t we? You enter me every day.” I think that’s the moment we became lovers.

I don't know if I can coherently form a question about this. Discuss amongst yourselves. 

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What were your overall thoughts on this book? 

• I love this book. I love Keiko and her weirdness, I love how deftly Muraka has such a biting commentary on life and social expectations in Japan, and I love the ending.
• I would love to know about how much of this book is autobiographical. Muraka did work at a convenience store and it seems to echo a lot of her family life and somewhat unhappy childhood, but maybe I'm reading too much into that.
• This was a reread for me, but I was surprised at how funny I found it to be. I don't remember that much humor when I read it before. 

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Pop culture:

There's not much here, I'm afraid. Wikipedia tells me that the novel was adapted into a radio drama on NHK-FM's FM Theater  and was broadcast from 22:00 to 22:50 on 30 November 2019. Chiaki Kuriyama voiced the role of the protagonist Keiko Furukura.

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Overall questions to consider:

1) Do you think the pressures that Keiko is feeling to get a "real" job and/or get married is unique to Japanese culture? Is this need for conformity universal? Is it the same for men and women?

2) Did you find this book as humorous as I did? Did you think the satire is understated, overstated, or just right?

3) Last week a lot of us were disappointed in the hypocrisy of Keiko's co-workers and friends who were happy for her to be in a relationship with Shiraha, a man who only pages before had been fired for stalking someone. Is this book fundamentally about how we, as humans, prize conformity and/or conventionality above actual happiness? 

4) I tend to think the ending is a happy ending. Keiko is back to doing what she is good at and finding fulfillment and self-acceptance. But some people see the ending as a nod towards assimilation within the capitalistic hegemony. Where do you stand on this debate? Is Keiko empowered at the end of the book or is she exploited? 

5) I don't care for Shiraha, but does he have a point? Are the expectations for men and women different and men have the short end of the stick? Or is it just an excuse for laziness on his part?

6) Which character:

    a. Do you think is happiest?

    b. Would you most like to hang out with for an afternoon?

    c. Do you most relate to?

    d. Would you most like to suggest go to therapy?

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Most iconic line:

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That's a wrap on 2026 CBBC! Thanks for joining and participating. 

As always, if you have ideas for books for next time or suggestions about how CBBC is run, I'm happy to get some feedback. 

NaBloPoMo 2026: The Project

Do you know what month it is?! It's November! And with November comes NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month). San is our Fearless NaBloPoMo Leader and you should head over there to get the details. I'm definitely going to be posting every day in November. I've been planning this for MONTHS.

Whew. This has been a long time coming. Remember when I read Alphabetical Diaries by Sheila Heti? She took ten years of her journal entries and put them in alphabetical order and then published them in a book? I was really struck by it. It was fascinating and the whole time I was just thinking about my Line A Day journal and how it was so much more mundane than hers. So...I did it. I took five years of my journal - forgive me for not doing ten - and typed every sentence into a spreadsheet (this took an untold amount of time), alphabetized it all, and edited it for clarity (seriously untold amounts of time and I still find typos every time I reread). The years are 2020-2024, so I'm calling it the Alphabetical COVID Diaries.

I also did a reread of Love Lettering earlier this year and it was still so good. In that book, Meg is a designer who mostly works on wedding invitations and planners. She's obsessed with hand drawn letters. I also read On Looking: Eleven Walks with Expert Eyes which made me think about how I could look at my daily dog walks through a different lens. Then I came across this on a walk.

 

It's a capital A! It is! So...then I started looking for images to go with my Alphabetical COVID Diaries and if you've spent more than two hours with me since January, you know I've been looking for letters in nature and architecture. I didn't want letters that were designed as letters, you know? I'm not like Meg and I didn't want hand drawn letters, but just accidental letters out there in the world. Because I was always looking for letters, so were the people who spend time with me. Co-workers came in and said "there are Ks on the gate at the Catholic church" or "the entire front of Tutt is covered in Zs." One of my colleagues and I were about to do a huge presentation and she called me over and told me to look at the ceiling that was littered with Hs. 

It has been essentially a year long project and I'll tell you right now that my husband is super sick of it and he's going to be so excited when I hit publish on the last of this. But I think I'll still be looking for letters. 

So that's my project. For NaBloPoMo this year, I'm going to publish my Alphabetical COVID Diaries with roughly a letter a day. Some letters will take two days, but it will all wash out in the end. For those posts, I will always include a photo of the letter that I have found this year. I am also going to CLOSE COMMENTS on the posts because most of them will be boring and mundane (Laundry. Laundry. Laundry. Then I went to the grocery store.) and I don't want to add work to NaBloPoMo participants. I'll still have some other content - think book reviews, Five by Friday posts - and those I'll have comments on - but I honestly think it's best if no one tries to make sense or ask questions of the nonsense that's going to come out of this project.

I'm quite excited and I hope everyone will, at the very least, skim these posts so you can learn just how often I am upset about Mondays existing in the world. 

Just to add a bit of suspense to this, I will not even be posting my first Alphabetical COVID Diaries until Thursday because I'm posting my final CBBC post and my regular beginning of the month posts on Tuesday and Wednesday. However, I wanted everyone to know my plan. 

Also, go check out San's list of NaBloPoMo participants and find a new blogger to cheer on this month. 

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Who's excited for this nonsense? Who truly thinks this is nonsense? Who's writing every day in November? Who's cheering on other NaBloPoMo participants?

CBWC October 2026: Week 4

It's Cool Bloggers Walking Club (CBWC) time! Hosted by Elisabeth, we're trying for ten minutes of intentional movement every day.

Friday, October 23 - Thirty-five minutes with Hannah in the morning and ten minutes before bed. I had my COVID and flu vaccinations after work today and didn't want to overtax myself too much since I've historically had bad vaccination reactions. The weather has been crazy here getting into the 40s at night and getting into the 70s during the day. It was no surprise that this sweatshirt ended up on the sidewalk at some point and some kind soul put it on this tree so the owner could find it. However, that kind soul also freaked my dog out. 

Saturday, October 24 - I have a sore arm and a bit of fatigue, but otherwise the vaccines had no impact. Yay! We spent a scary 20 minutes this morning outside (duck hunters still, I think?), 25 minutes after lunch, and 10 minutes before bed. I also walked with my husband to a nearby park where they were holding a fun Fall Fest event. 

Sunday, October 25 - Twenty-five minutes this morning. It was a perfect fall morning. We did a half hour after lunch and ten minutes around the block before bed. 

Monday, October 26 - Thirty-five minutes with Hannah Banana this morning. Dr. BB handled the dog walking for the rest of the day, so that was the majority of my outdoor time for the day. 

Someday I'll get selfie angles right. In the meantime, enjoy Hannah's nostrils. 

Tuesday, October 27 - Forty-five minutes con el perro en la mañana. Half an hour after work. Ten minutes back and forth to the library. Ten minutes around the block before bed.

Sometimes you forget your dog's age and then you see a photo that magnifies her cloudy eyes and you remember that her life is short. 

Wednesday, October 28 - Forty minutes in the morning. Ten minutes around the block before bed. Can I just tell you how creepy it is here right now? The moon is almost full, but the clouds are creepily making it go in and out of view. The leaves are falling and rustling. It feels very autumnal, I tell you.

Thursday, October 29 - Forty-five minutes this morning and another forty after work. We did a quick spin around the block before bed, too. 

This is a dog in the midst of the zoomies. This is the look of a dog who is about to jump on me. I adore her so much. LOOK AT HER LITTLE TEETHS!!!

Friday, October 30 - Thirty-five minutes this morning in the creepy dark. I took a half day at work today and after work Hannah and I enjoyed a glorious hour long walk around our local park. We also did a ten minute round the block before bed. 

CONSTANT VIGILANCE. 

Saturday, October 31 - Happy Halloween! We did a quick 25 minutes this morning, with someone being scared of every tiny sound she heard. And that's probably about all for us this month because we have a busy Halloween ahead of us. 

And that's a wrap on CBWC 2026! What's your plan for getting out there and getting moving in November?