scrooge, calisthenics and brown bags

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12/17/21 | 48/52

The Christmas countdown is on! By now most of the holiday packages I put together have been delivered. If you still want to pick up a 2022 calendar (they make great gifts for all of the skateboarders in your life) you can head over to the Cultural Center and grab one from the Buddy pop-up shop. While you're there you should head up to the 4th floor to check out the current exhibits.

It can be nice to get a hot beverage to warm you up as you walk around making the most of these beautiful winter days.

Ebenezer

feeling fit

I've been watching the dog I look after grow. I call her Funny or Big Funny or Big Head even though her name is Maggie Mae the mighty, the maniac, the magnificent. She is comfortable everywhere, anywhere, and in the most twisted and confusing positions. Positions I assume to be painful and awkward but she manages to rest easily, sleep heavily and dream emphatically. We give her blankets and cushions and pillows and she rolls off them or rests next to them. Sometimes she drags them around and thrashes them back and forth. We give her pillows, cushions and blankets because we want that softness and warmth for our sore muscles. We want that kindness for our weary bones. When I was new to the world like her, I would lay all over the floor and the grass and occasionally watch television upside down, my feet resting up on the couch. I had effortless flexibility to easily tumble and roll and rest in a pile. I give a lot of credit to my youth and my body still growing and new muscles and having less weight but I also think it was due to some of the exercises I learned in school. As I remember it we had a short amount of time devoted to physical education and to get our bodies ready for practicing dodgeball or square dancing or rope climbing we would start with a round of vigorous calisthenics. I remember some jumping jacks, some cross armed toe touching and some arm circles. I'm not sure if these were for actual physical fitness or they were just to tire us out so we wouldn't run wild in the classroom but I'm going to bring them back into my life. I don't want to pump iron at a gym or ride a Peloton until my heart collapses. I want kind and gentle daily stretching and exercise. 2022 will be the year of early morning arm circles and toe touches and if I'm really feeling energized, a round of jumping jacks. 2022 will be the year of feeling more connected to my muscles, bones and skin. A year to try and be more like this goofy puppy whose grin and relaxed slumber makes my heart larger and more warm.

Friend of the Week

This week's friend is brown paper lunch bags. When I made Farecard DVDs I would package them in brown paper lunch bags closed with a sticker because it was cheap and I liked the look. I also started using them to microwave popcorn. It's really easy. You just throw in the kernels, fold the top over, then microwave until you hear the popping slow down. Top it with some salt and melted butter and your ready to turn the lights low and start up a movie. Brown paper lunch bags are also useful for wrapping small gifts, making puppets and putting your lunch in.

If you would like your best furry friend, most delicate butterfly or snuggliest animal associate to be featured email me 3 pictures of them and I will do my best to try and capture their essence.

If you ever miss an email or you see that it's Friday and no email has been delivered, you can always check out the archive link on the Serial Dispatch instagram. If you know anyone who might enjoy this weekly special delivery send them in that direction so they can see if they'd like to join the list. Let's make it happen.

Solid,
Tim