It’s been a quiet day. Yesterday evening I had my second DBT session with the new group. We’re going over a module on mindfulness, which my previous group had also covered, but it’s such an essential part of the training that I don’t mind repeating it. One of our assignments for the upcoming week is to practice “observing,” so for a change I decide not to have RTÉ Radio on like I usually do throughout the day. The quiet and stillness is a nice change, especially after so much depressing/negative news lately.
I’m not feeling very productive or motivated, so I pass the time by scanning my email for more job postings and catching up on some articles I’ve previously flagged to read. There are a couple of items from Amazon UK that are supposed to be delivered today in one package, which ends up arriving mid-afternoon. The first is a set of blackout curtains for the window in the spare bedroom. The blinds have been non-operational since my arrival, with only a piece of cardboard taped to the lower panel of the window for privacy. It hasn’t been a big issue, since no one has visited me, but I’ve been trying to make the spare bedroom less of an eye-sore and the ugly blinds were bothering me. I’ve recycled cardboard boxes and paper that were accumulating in the room, keeping only some extra shopping bags. The built-in desk and shelves are still cluttered — I’ve been keeping my eyes out for storage bins/boxes but haven’t found any that would fit the dimensions.
The second item is a back-stretcher that is placed on the floor and provides an arch as you lay down. It’s made out of sturdy plastic and consists of a flat base with slots for a separate bendable arch piece that can be set to three different stretching levels. A yoga mat was conveniently left in the apartment by a former occupant, so I have a good setup for doing some stretches.
Now that the delivery has been made, I’m free to make a small grocery run at the Dunnes shop a couple of blocks away. My weekly SuperValu grocery delivery isn’t scheduled until Tuesday, so I need a few more items to tide me over until then. I’ve looked at other grocery delivery services, such as Aldi’s which has partnered with Deliveroo (the restaurant delivery service), but it doesn’t look as easy to use and several items are out of stock. Based on the limited SuperValu delivery slots, a lot more people must be using grocery delivery services during the third lockdown. I manage to get to Dunnes before rush hour so the shop is only moderately busy. My items fill up two of their large plastic shopping bags, about as much as I can carry in one trip, and it’s still light out when I get home. I was originally going to hang out with my friend J today, since we haven’t seen each other since before Christmas, but we decide to reschedule. I’ll probably just do something easy for dinner to night and enjoy a low-key evening.
Until next time….
