January afternoons

A beautiful riddle / Issue 1,369

Oh, hi friends!

January afternoons are hibernation.

After lunch, I take my laptop to the couch and "work."

(I never do this in any other season. Danger zone!)

I type and read and mark up documents on my iPad. 

Tweak, shift, try.

And then, maybe, fall into an accidental nap. 

It's not our fault January afternoons whisper COZY COZY COZY rather than shout PUSH PUSH PUSH. 

So, what to do, my fellow January cozy people?

I'm telling myself a few things…

If I'm too tapped out to write, I could try reading.

If I'm too sleepy to read, I could take a tiny nap.

If I'm too awake to nap, I could watch or listen to something useful or inspiring.

If I'm too scattered to watch or listen to stuff, I could call someone.

If I'm not in the headspace to talk, I could go for a walk. 

And so on. 

Don't worry, I didn't, like, carve these into my desk.

But I did stick 'em in a Note to remind myself there are always better options than passively defaulting to my phone.

And to understand that January offers small pleasures, too.

Fewer obligations, less chatter.

More subtle yet deliberate action.

Actually, January’s quiet afternoons sound rather lovely. 

Don’t they?

Central Park still life, yesterday morning.

Are you a January cozy person? I’d love to hear how you spend your day!