Everyday Systems: shovelglove: message 25 of 649

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Some observations, more or less in the order they came
to me:

1) The shoveling movement at least is right on. It's
exactly what I've been doing since the noreaster hit
Friday.

2) Despite my training, it's still hard. It's like
training for the marathon vs. actually running it. Not
quite, but you get the picture. I'm stunned that
people (miners, etc) were/are able to do this kind of
physical labor 10 hours a day 6 days a week.

3) My arms, and not my back, were the first body parts
to cry "uncle." This surprised me a little, but I
think it's a good sign. People tend not to throw out
their biceps, after all. They're also easier to assess
the condition of visually (and mine look just fine,
thank you). The back is like the slowest member of a
rowing team: if it can keep pace, you can fly. 

4) As you might imagine, I was a little overzealous. I
didn't really have to shovel quite as much as I did.
But despite this overzealousness, I didn't overexert
myself. I was sore, exhausted, totally wiped out after
the first afternoon, but in a good way. Nothing 8
hours sleep and a few thousand calories couldn't fix.
Nothing hurt the next morning, and I was able to go
right to it again, and again, and again (the plow
keeps giving me more to do).

5) Here's an odd perk: I had fun. It's possible there
is some he-man in Cambridge MA who is a better
shoveler than I, but I doubt he enjoyed it half as
much. An *actually* useful movement, done in the right
spirit, is even more satisfying than a potentially
useful one. If only I had snow to shovel every morning...