I didn't think it through that walking in the winter was going to be such a trial. The temperature rarely gets above 30 and the skies are overcast and gray. It's much easier just to sit at home and snuggle up to the radiator with my Kindle. So each day I've been trying to give myself some kind of incentive to get out of the house. The first day I headed off to Starbucks for a peppermint mocha. I figured that was fitting given that it was going to be my reward if I finished the entire month. But even though I have 5 Starbucks within walking distance of my house, none of them would get me my 8,000 steps. So I Googled Mapped a scenic walk around the neighborhood, taking a few photos of the remaining Christmas decorations still up in the neighborhood. I thought this little "Charlie Brown" tree looked pretty pathetic, but apropos for the mood I was in while out walking on such a miserable day. Total steps: 10,377
On Day #2, I walked down to the Post Office, and saw some giant Christmas ornaments perched on top of outdoor porch pots. I'm filing this idea away for next year, because these would look fabulous in front of our house (better than the orange pumpkins I left in until the week before Christmas). Technically, the walk to the Post Office would have gotten me my 8,000 steps, but since I was craving a hamburger, I walked a little further to Blueberry Hill. I always enjoy going there, because the place is filled with old time memorabilia and they have Moose Drool beer. Total steps: 10,063
On the third day, the sun finally came out, so I thought I'd do a little urban sketching. I went down to Ikea, because they have the big windows, but I just couldn't get inspired to do more than eat their Swedish pancakes (notice how most of these walks seem to involve food???). So I walked over to the History Museum and spent an hour drawing Lindbergh's old plane, the
Spirit of St Louis. It's not my best drawing, but I racked up enough steps to take a day off in the future. Total steps: 16,775
On the fourth day, the city showed up to repair our sewer line - years of ever-growing tree roots have pushed the pipe out of alignment with the city's main line. So while Bruce supervised the repair job, I walked over to the movie theater to see
Mary Poppins Returns. I wasn't sure if I would like the movie, since most remakes are never as good as the original, but this wasn't really a remake at all. It was about the Banks children, but they are now grown up - still getting into trouble, however, and needing Mary Poppins to "sort them out." One of the most delightful things about the movie is all the famous actors that were involved - Emily Blunt, Meryl Streep, Dick Van Dyke, Colin Firth (all my favorites). Total steps: 11,580
