Live Stream in Quarantine

Working out is an absolutely critical component of my life.  As a kid my mother would complain that I could never sit still.  Old home movies (taken on the Bell and Howell camera) confirm she was correct.  I tell you this, as I am fast approaching 69, because I believe I come by this need to move honestly.  It is part and parcel of my makeup.  I like the admonition that you should be getting up and moving at least every 20 minutes in your day.  While I was working, I know that's why I drank so much coffee--I had to walk to the coffee machine in the Gathering Center outside of our offices.  Even on the beach, ensconced in my Tommy Bahama beach chair not unlike Jabba, reading an engaging story on the Kindle, I can only sit so long without going back to the townhouse for a potty break or refill the water or maybe just wander down the beach a little to check in with our fellow Snowbirds.

I believe I previously have written about the return of the exercise routine to my life in retirement.  And I may have written about how the closure of the gyms during COVID had a negative impact on me.  (I'm being selfish here--I fully acknowledge and recognize the infinite ways COVID has made itself felt around the world and my little complaint is an amoeba on an amoeba on an amoeba.)  When the gyms re-opened, I was not the only person back in the pool who expressed what a significant positive impact this one hour a day had on their lives.

The gyms, of necessity here in Minnesota, closed again November 20.  However, the non-pool classes had been live streaming for a couple months, so the administration shifted quickly to a live streaming schedule.  I already knew I disliked the recorded classes on websites and YouTube.  I found little incentive in sticking with a program where as soon as I turned it on, I knew precisely what the instructor was going to say, her tone of voice, when in the program it would be said.  Some of the websites were too choreographed and staged for my taste.  So I trotted over to Target, bought some weights and a band, and signed myself up for classes six mornings a week.

The live stream brings you extremely competent instructors.  They are all younger than I, adorable, enthusiastic, dedicated and  set up in their homes. They make the best of it--and then some.  They go out of their way to greet you when you sign in on Zoom.  They stay on at the end of class to answer any questions you might have.  They tell you you're doing a good job.  They walk and talk you through the routines, different each time you log in.  

And you see a real live person in real time who is deliberately making a real connection with you.

I know there are a multitude of other topics that could be addressed as we say Buh-Bye to 2020 and Welcome to 2021, but currently I'm in a space where if I can concentrate and acknowledge the benefits of the little things and not get sucked into the vortex of the bigger things, I'm calling it a good day.




So thank you to all the live streaming instructors, in particular those at Eden Prairie Community Center, Eden Prairie, Minnesota and also a shout out to my niece Cherise Mattix at Barre Code in Arlington Heights, Illinois.  You continue to make the lives of those on the other end of the Zoom camera better in ways you cannot begin to imagine.

And my wish and prayer for all of you is that 2021 is an improvement over 2020.  Somewhere along the way, I firmly believe that will happen for the world.  Also, ps--check your state or county public health website for vaccination information.  Your local state or county provider is the most accurate source for how the vaccine will be distributed in your area.

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