Or to a new normal?
My last day was remarkably uneventful. All things considered, that’s probably the best it could have been. I don’t know which is harder – first days or last days.
I moped around feeling not-myself when I got home, then hauled my lazy rear downstairs for my run.
3 miles (including .25 mile warm-up): 41:17
That’s a 13:45 average time, or 13:30 if I take out the warm-up. However, I ran the last 1.75 miles without any breaks at a 12:15 pace, so…you can see where all my walking breaks in the first mile killed my time. No leg or hip pain whatsoever, and my heart rate never went above 172 (never above 155 on the first mile, which was 3 min run intervals at 12:30). I will keep trying (and trying, and trying) to figure out a better way to warm up.
I was feeling completely out of energy since I hadn’t eaten since lunch. Speaking of lunch:
The normal Jimmy John’s veggie sandwich (unwich) was the right size. Also a much more reasonable lunch, at 430 calories. (I love the nutrition calculator on the Jimmy John’s website.) It was nice to eat with co-workers, both for company and to have someone to finish my chips 
I know there’s a lot of debate about whether calorie counting is evil or helpful, and I have to say I find it very helpful. For instance, I know how many calories I need in a snack in order for it to keep me going for another 2-3 hours of work, and I know how much is too much at dinner. If I didn’t count, I wouldn’t eat enough at all during the day (I used to eat less than 600 calories before dinner, which is the fast track to late-night snacking and fuzzy thinking). I have to admit, though, that I am looking forward to the 7 days + weekends I have off from work – no worries about what I eat during the day, because I won’t have to be in 100% peak thinking condition for 9 hours a day. (Dedicated much?)
I was planning to do a little send-off to my office and showcase my cute cubicle, but it looks like I never took the photos of it that I thought I had taken 
I took some when I first redecorated, but they don’t quite do it justice. It was a basic gray cube, but I spruced it up with black and yellow, along with a small moss-topiary-thing, a glass container of rocks, a cute candy dish (a necessity for social well-being), and a few other “objets” (a mirror hung from a ribbon, Ansel Adams prints, and some tiny “antlers” that I made and “mounted”). I’ve learned the value of having a clean, comfortable, expressive workspace in the kind of work that I do – just enough touches to feel like somewhere you are inspired to spend time, a place for everything (and everything in its place, of course), but still very proper and professional. I’ve also learned that I like visual reminders, no matter how digital I am – calendars, places to hang projects that are in-work, timelines and gantt charts and inspiration and KPIs or other success factors…that way, I think my mind is working even if it wanders.
I do have this:
HP put that up on its website last year in December and my best work friend and I hung it late one evening to try to boost spirits during a rocky time. There’s a longer story, but in the end many people contributed decorations – even a talking Darth Vader figurine for a topper.
I have to go scrounge something for dinner and find something fun to do tonight. Wonderful boyfriend had a meeting after work and won’t be home for a while still, so it’s just me and:
Spooky ghost cat, who will not stand still. I love her anyhow.