The Sunday after my Saturday night out in Jakarta, me mash up whole day (translation: I was of absolutely no use for the entire day). Not because I was out until almost 2 am, but because I went out again at 5:30 am.
You see, I didn’t expect to be out so late on Saturday night, so on Saturday afternoon when a local volunteer who lives close by asked if I wanted to go jogging with her early on Sunday, I said yes. Never mind the fact that I do not run unless it’s after a plane that I’m late for. (Don’t judge me, my reason for not being a runner is a practical one: I dislike having various parts of my body bouncing around.) But I do enjoy walking for exercise and have been known to walk 5 kilometers in 45 minutes or less, depending on how motivated I am. However, despite my running aversion, I told her yes because I’m all about expanding my horizons right now.
When I went to bed at 2 am on Sunday morning after my night out, I set my alarm for 5 am, hoping that I’d have the mental strength to actually get up and go with her. My alarm when off at the appointed time. I shut it off then re-set it for 5:15 am and went back to sleep. When it went off again, I dragged myself out of bed, still debating if I should even go because I was so tired, but I got dressed anyway. If my sneakers had emotions, they would have been in shock at being on my feet again, since they hadn’t seen the light of day since I left Tanzania back in January. I had expected them to maybe pinch a little but they were totally fine.
My jogging date ran up to our gate at about 5:40 am and we started jog-walking around the neighbourhood. We would jog a little then we would walk a little then we would jog some more then we would walk again. I let her set the pace for the jog-walking; based on her running speed, which was slower than my usual exercise walking pace, I knew that if I set the pace she wouldn’t be able to keep up. By the time we finished 35 minutes later, I just barely had a perspiration sheen; it was so light that I can’t even really call it sweating. I had expected our jaunt to be a bit longer but she was hungry and I was itchy (I always get itchy the first time I work out after not exercising for a while. I know…it’s weird). Still, we had a nice chat while our short outing lasted and it felt good to get a little exercise.
When I got back to the centre, I had a shower and settled back down in bed. I finally fell asleep again at around 7:30 am and I awoke at 10:30 am, I think because it started getting warm and muggy, despite the fan blowing directly on me. I felt exhausted and muzzy, and I had a slight headache (no, it wasn’t a hangover from the 1 little glass of vodka and soda the night before) but I had an errand to run so I got up, got dressed, had some breakfast and headed out. I was back in about 2 hours with ayam bakar in tow for my lunch/dinner.
Just an aside about ayam bakar – this is the best charcoal grilled chicken you will ever taste, including jerk chicken, Jamaicans. Yes, I’m straight up saying that Indonesian ayam bakar tastes better than Jamaican jerk chicken. I am not a chicken bone lover or a chicken bone sucker; this is why I stick almost exclusively to chicken breasts. I have never in my life sucked a jerk chicken bone. But the ayam bakar that I get from a warung just out on the main road from the centre is absolutely delicious. I suck the bones dry then I chew them up then I suck off my fingers. I cannot get enough of it.
By the time I walked back into the centre in the early afternoon, I knew I wouldn’t last much longer. However, I had plans to colour my hair that day because that persistent grey patch at the front (uuuuugggghhhh!!!) had made a reappearance and that day was exactly 8 weeks since my last colour, so I was highly motivated to get the job done. Plus, I knew that it was be difficult to do it once the week got underway. So I mustered up some energy, coloured, washed and twisted my hair and ate my ayam bakar.
By this time I was running on fumes, so I went to bed. The sun was still up but I didn’t care. I was exhausted and I wasn’t trying to impress anyone with my stamina. I was supposed to Whatsapp call with the Jamaican pilot and his wife that afternoon, but I was so tired that I totally forgot and fell asleep without even doing them the courtesy of sending a message explaining why I would miss the call. I felt really bad about it when I finally awoke on Monday morning but thankfully, they were graciously understanding and forgiving.
Was the unaccustomed late night and early morning activity worth the exhaustion of the following day? Absolutely. I would do it again exactly the same way. Why wouldn’t I? I spent a brilliant evening with a lovely lady listening to a great band, then I got a little exercise served up with a side of fascinating and enlightening conversation. As tired as I was the next day, I know I was the winner in that deal.
