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Sometimes, it is necessary for the universe to give you hints of such magnitude and frequency that even someone like me hears it. The combination of holding forth at HealthCentral about giving it a rest when you need to, being called on not practicing what I preach, having less pain when I sit still (who’d have thunk it?) and Carrie’s post about actions and consequences laid the foundation. Then I got all self-referential in my last post and put in a link to the description of my injury of six months ago to let potential new readers know how monumentally stupid I can be. I decided to read the post. Just for fun. And realized that I am in the penultimate stage of a very familiar process, in which I put being useful and busy above my health and inevitably cause myself an injury. I also realized that as I haven’t yet healed from the last injury, another injury in the same place now might take me out completely and for a long time. Maybe even be permanent.

And it all came together in a moment of such stunning grokking that I’m surprised it wasn’t accompanied by a heavenly choir and beaming light from above (or an anvil to the head) and I asked the question that I should have asked a long time ago: what’s most important – The List or my health? Suddenly, it was a no-brainer. Especially as the question helpfully elaborated and specified not health in the sense that it’s something I can get over in a week or two, but Health. Ability. The life of my shoulder and elbow in my driving arm. That needs to last as long as possible in order for me to keep my independence.

So I’ve decided to not make the same mistake for the 4,297th time and will, with very few exceptions, do what I need to do and do it now while I still have a chance for some preventative maintenance. That means puttering around in my home and very immediate neighborhood and most importantly, staying away from the computer. I plan to read fluffy books, watch movies, nap and then read some more. And not blog, because that requires a computer. Dammit. Will you look at that – personal growth!

I’ll be back Wednesday next week. Until then, don’t do anything I would. Or if you do, please tell me about it because I predict that in exactly 27 hours, I will be bored senseless.