I can't stand it!

Source: Kirsti I.

I was faced with a bit of a predicament this past Sunday: I had to go to Best Buy for some packaging materials. It's a solid 50 minute walk away. How would I do one thing for the entire day? And then it dawned on me: what if I just went through my day like I otherwise would, except I never sat down? So, I spent the entire day standing.

My morning was mostly usual: I woke up, did some laundry, and cleaned up my room. All stuff I usually do on my feet anyway. I got a sub for lunch, and ate it in my room as I checked the day's news. It was kind of strange eating standing up, having to move the sub so far from the plate to my face, but other than that, it was pretty much like any other Sunday.

Then, in the afternoon, I walked to Best Buy. Now, if you're ever going to walk somewhere 50 minutes away, the one thing you should do beforehand is check the weather.

It had already started snowing when I left my dorm.


I took Allen Street out to North Atherton Street. A little while after leaving campus, the sidewalks were covered in snow, so I switched to the road. By that point, any cars left on Allen had pulled into their driveways, and most of the pedestrians were gone, too. The solitude brought on by the snow contrasted sharply with the usual hustle and bustle of campus, and the experience had almost a certain serenity, helped by the occasionally strange houses lining the street. It was a feeling I was familiar with, having spent many a day out in the snow in middle and high school, but I had forgotten just what it was like.

After getting onto North Atherton, the rest of the walk was pretty boring. Best Buy didn't end up having what I needed; neither did Staples or Walmart. Oh well.

On the walk back, the snow had accumulated enough that the serenity brought on by new snow was replaced with inconvenience. I was glad to get back into the warmth of my room.

The rest of the day was largely uneventful; I did some homework, watched some TV, ate a burrito, and didn't sit down until it was time to go to bed. It's weird, I expected that my legs would be killing me by the end of the day, but they actually felt fine. The most unpleasant part of the day was not the feeling of my legs, but rather just how inconvenient it was to stand up.

When trying to do routine tasks, like writing, browsing the Internet, or eating, it became abundantly clear that my dorm room was not designed for standing. There are no surfaces at the proper level for these things; I had to do my homework on a clipboard, and when on my laptop I had to crane my head down uncomfortably. As I mentioned previously, it was odd having to move food so far from the plate to my mouth. In fact, by the end of the day my arms were more tired than my legs.

As far as I can tell, forcing yourself to stand all day doesn't really have any significant positive effects. I didn't feel more lively, it didn't help me be more productive, and all it resulted in was tired arms and a sore neck. So don't do it.

Also, make sure to check the weather.