Three Things Tuesday

1. I made it all the way to the gym this morning before realizing that it wasn't open until 11am because of the intercession break.  Stupid undergraduates always ruin everything.  So after a moment of deliberation (Should I go to work and then go back to the gym later?  No, then I'd have to hide out in my office, un-showered until 11am.  Should I go back home?  Too time consuming.  Should I forget the gym and go for a run?  Nowhere to stash my backpack and nowhere to shower.) I decided to bike over to the sensory deprivation gym on the south side of campus.  In addition to suffering the indignity of having to do extra exercise to get my exercise (the horrors), going to the other gym meant I was behind on my morning routine and had to use the mystery soap in the dispensers on the wall (probably surplus laundry detergent from the prison), dry off with my hand towel and attempt to comb my wet hair with my hands  (I keep a real towel, soap, hairbrush and hair dryer in my normal gym locker).  I subsequently celebrated my dedication to fitness with a pack of MnMs from the vending machine for breakfast (not really).

They love me back. [source]

2. After a lengthy interview with the women who works in the parking office and an even more lengthy internal debate, I finally applied for a parking permit yesterday.  Even though I sort of hated doing it, I think it will be for the best.

Parking permit cons:

• They are expensive.  As in "more than a month's worth of food but less than a month's worth of rent" expensive.
• The cost is prorated, so we *could* have tried to wait to apply for one until I go back to work after maternity leave at the beginning of March.
• The parking lots that are convenient for me are not convenient for Daniel.
• The bus runs frequently (every 1/2 hour during peak times) from the new place to campus and in reverse so we don't *really* need a permit until I return to work and am taking the baby to daycare.
• Extra wear and tear on the car (+ gas costs) driving to campus every day.
• I won't use it during maternity leave, which will be the coldest months of the year.

Parking permit pros:

• My #1 choice is actually the least expensive lot.
• Parking/construction projects are always in flux around campus so there's no guarantee that I'd get a permit in March.  And then what?
• The bus runs frequently during morning rush hour but not much earlier than that.  It would not be convenient for getting to the gym or going to yoga in the early mornings.  If I get to the point where I can't run anymore then I'm going to want to go to the gym a lot.
• I could *maybe* bike, but at the point that the road construction has chilled out, it will be dark and I will be an unbalanced blimp, so that's probably out.
• Right now I can use the service permit to park outside our building on days I have doctor visits, but at the point those increase in frequency to every other week or every week, I may not be able to use it every time I need it (it's shared by approximately 239874 people).   
• I will probably need to come in during my maternity leave at least a few times for meetings/ conference calls/ etc. so it will be helpful to have a guaranteed place to park and not have to worry about the permit.

So while we *could* make it work through the fall, I think that applying for one now will make our (well, mainly my) lives a lot easier.

3. If you haven't seen it, Raising Hope is hilarious.  It's the only thing that will get me through until the next season of Castle starts in September.  I could stop reading all the baby books now and just make sure not to do anything depicted on that show and raise a kid who will probably not be a serial killer.