Cheryl Katz

I’ve been watching a lot of Food Network lately, just to pass the time while I’m knitting after Sami has gone to bed. And I think that their current programming really reflects the impact of the writers’ strike.

Granted, I don’t know to what extent Food Network employs writers at all. But they are re-running a lot of old competitions, Iron Chefs, Good Eats, and these new Holiday specials.

The Holiday specials are at once intriguing and excruciating. The All-Star Holiday Party involved the biggest FN stars making their favorite dishes, with “help” from another FN star. I especially found the idea that any one of those cooks would need an assistant to be contrived, since every one of them handles everything just fine on their own shows. But whatever. The entire shows are full of interesting ideas, but shot and edited oddly. There are normal cooking-show scenes, with cutaways a la reality show, with a FN personality talking in front of a white background about what’s going on in that kitchen scene.

I think this is what happens when the personalities all pitch in together to create a time kill sans writers. It’s not awful, but it’s not exactly enjoyable either.

In other TV news, I saw possbily one of the most touching things ever. A Charmin commercial that was for the most part NOT a Charmin toilet paper commercial, but a tribute to the actor who played Mr. Whipple since the 50s. I found it endearing that the company recognized him as not only an essential part of their brand over time, but as a personality that many consumers would feel nostalgic about. I refuse to believe that the whole thing was simply a marketing ploy; this may be naive, but I’ve never seen a commercial whose main purpose was to say that a spokesperson or character would be missed. So I was touched.

Today is my first day off in Sami’s entire life. So, since September 9, 2006.

Sami woke up chipper and healthy, so I took her to day care as usual, and then proceeded to take the day off from work.

I got on top of some loose strings at work (from home) and then sat and stared into space for a moment while I contemplated that I had no idea what I was going to do with myself. I almost went to work! Egad.

First, I picked up a free antique spinning wheel from someone on Craigslist. It… is a little wobbly. Missing a few minor parts, but according to The Whole Craft of Spinning, which came with it, the things that I believe to be wrong are minor and reparable. This will require some elbow grease and time, but in time, I’ll get there.

Now, I’m sitting in the coffee shop having breakfast, knitting, and remembering what it was like when I wasn’t somebody’s mom. I miss Sami, but it’s nice having this time to myself.

So here are my objectives for my day to myself:

- Get my eyebrows done. (Probably myself, but still. Needs to be done.)

- Finish $&@#)^& Sock #1! And hopefully start Sock #2 so I can make some headway on it tomorrow, while I’m passing Sami hand to hand among Ben and our friends. (Long shot, but hoping.)

- Take a walk and/or run.

- Then a shower.

- Read something fun.

- Paint my toenails. (I’d do my fingernails, but it would look funny since I’m missing the middle fingernail on my left hand. Well, maybe I’ll do it anyway.)

- Whatever else I have time for.

It is really hard to get back on the fitness wagon.

I’ve been pushing myself for the last several weeks to form a routine. This has generally consisted of eating a salad for lunch and including a pilates or yoga workout after Sami goes to bed.

On Tuesday, I plopped Sami in the jog stroller, complete with new wheels, and went for an intervals run. Walk one block, run one block, rinse and repeat. My body was thoroughly wiped after that.

There’s a lot that I didn’t consider before taking on that particular workout. I warmed up, but I’ve never run pushing the stroller before. It changes my posture. My arms don’t swing as much. I lean ever so slightly more forward. Lastly, but by no means least, it weighs 40+ pounds with Sami in it. Sure, I’m not carrying that 40 lbs., but that is some added resistance.

Needless to say, I woke up on Wednesday morning with some pelvic and lower back cramping that I can only compare to early labor. It hurt to sit down and stand up. Picking up my child would have been out of the question, but I just enjoy squooshing her too much to give that up.

My point in all this is simply that getting back to fitness after a maternity break of any length is more difficult than one might expect. Even if one is successful in getting there mentally, there are unforseen physical challenges, time constraints, and general exhaustion due to constant functioning. On top of that, there is no immediate feedback loop. It’s discouraging when working out is hard to fit in, physically harder than you remember, and then takes a month or more to produce measurable results.

It will be worth jumping these hurdles in the end, provided I can screw up the motivation to overcome inertia in the first place.

Knitting a sock.