A small but exciting change to the daily routine began this morning, thanks to Jennifer's offer to get up with me every day and feed the dog. It's so easy to sleep in, and in winter in particular, it feels instinctive. I try to get up to maintain a lifelong ingrained perception that doing so makes for a more productive day and better health, yet I wonder at times if all of that is just social conditioning. Would I fare just as well to sleep later, follow that instinct to hibernate, and, as I do in the summer, allow the natural rhythms to set the pace instead of the alarm clock? Jennifer's rising with me will break her own tendency to follow that biological cadence. Maybe we will swap routines at some point, but for now, while we can, it's nice to have more alignment and time. Tommy left at 4 am to visit his cousin(s) in Phoenix, so we have the house to ourselves this weekend. The last time he went there, he returned feeling frustrated, and maybe even some animosity, because of that side of the family and their positions on my and Jens' relationship. Some towards us. That is absurd, given the truths so maligned by the dominant force of one man's ego. Such is the drama, but I mentioned last night that he remembers firsthand what they dismiss or ignore. We spent the morning hiking in the "Quicksilver", where Jen often goes with her friend Deann, but this time Matt B. came along. We did one of many longer trail options that ran for 5+ miles up to and along the reservoir on Hicks. The park is amazing, vast and filled with "ruins" from the mining era of the late 1800's. 2.5 hours later, we completed the hike and went to Andale for lunch. Walking back through the alley to our car afterwards was filled with memories of living downtown. What a great experience that proved to be. I swapped out the problematic thermostat, only to spend more time than expected getting it properly configured and set up. It was quite a fiasco, but I rolled with it all as par for the course. I did not meet all the intended goals today. It's a routine I am working to refine for greater consistency. At the same time, the "bullet journal" approach keeps cropping up in my mind as perhaps more effective. It would be a dramatic shift away from digital, which has its own set of pros and cons.