Yesterday, I came home from work with a temperature of 99.9. I wasn’t really sick, and I wasn’t really not. I had planned to go to Oxford, but the trip didn’t work out. Instead of being disappointed that I was missing out on the thick of the excitement over Mississippi hosting the first presidential debate of the season, I was just relieved. I feel draggy and overwhelmed. I have too much to do. I probably would have only felt worse if I’d forced myself to get pumped up for a road trip. The thing is I’ve felt this way for a while, and it’s time to do something about it.

I have a history of all sorts of health issues with arthritis, asthma and allergies topping the list. For the past few years—since Katrina really—they’ve all been in a downward spiral. At least, I’ve spiraled down again every time I’ve gotten back up and brushed myself off again.

At the same time my physical energy has been in a slump, my mental energy has been in overdrive, and this isn’t working out all that well for me either on a personal level. On a professional level, it’s not so bad. I’ve gotten involved with TYCA and CCCC. I’ve been going to conferences. I’ve spent half my life in committee meetings. I’ve been writing, and for the first time since I finished my Ph.D. in 1996, I've felt motivated to send my work out. I have a chapter in the TYCAM-produced book, For Our Students, and I’ve written the first four chapters of a technology guidebook that I would like to eventually complete on my own or with a partner or two. Meanwhile, I’ve taught seven classes at a time, and I’ve won an AT&T Blackboard Course Enhancement grant.I’ve been busy, and I’m going through a time when it seems the stars are aligning for me in the professional sphere. Now I just have to get my act together enough so that I can physically and emotionally survive the onslaught of new work all of my hard work keeps giving birth to.

I’ve got to make diet and exercise a priority. I know that if I get myself into a regular exercise routine I’ll feel better. I know that if I lose some weight I’ll feel better. Understanding should make it a given that I’d work as hard to be healthy as for anything else, but it doesn’t always happen that way. When I come home from work with a temperature of 99.9 from nothing more than generalized inflammation caused by allergies and arthritis, I know that I should go for a walk and make a salad. I’m a lot more likely to slump down on the couch with my laptop and a bag of popcorn, however. Breaking that cycle is hard, but it’s got to be done.

I’ve neglected my blogs since I’ve gotten busier and busier in other directions, but I’ve decided to use this one to help me focus on my health. The point of this blog was supposed to be about writing, teaching, technology and other elements connected by my professional identity. Health, I think, is a big part of our professional identities, however, and maybe we don’t talk enough about what we are doing to take care of ourselves as we doggedly pursue our workaday goals.

So here I go. This morning I’m eating oatmeal for breakfast. Of course it is an instant flavor called Sweet Pecan, but it claims to be whole grain, and it only has 170 calories. I figure that’s one step up from eating an oatmeal cookie for breakfast. Maybe in a week or two I’ll progress to not-so-sweet oatmeal. Baby steps.

I bought the ingredients for vegetable soup. I’m going to make a big pot today and eat from it all week. With luck, I’ll be so inspired by the delicious nutritiousness of it that I’ll remember not to reach for the Jalapeno Kettle Chips when I think I don’t have time to cook.

Next, we have the issue of exercise. My back hurts. I have a little bit of a cough. I feel run down. I really don’t want to exercise. If I wait until I want to, though, I could be waiting a long time. I’m setting a baby goal of just leaving my house today and walking any amount at all. I’ve been known to spend entire weekends glued to my computer as I worked on one project or another with no real awareness of the outside world. Leaving the house is a bigger goal than it may seem. Check back tomorrow to find out how it went.