JUST KEEP MOVING

Every end of year I decide to gift myself. Call it the Christmas present no one was ever going to get me, or even just a pat on the back for having made it through the year in spite of all the chaos, snares et al. It also stands in the potential vacuum that may be left in case all my kin and kith decide to squander all their would be gift money in the frills of the season. Yes; that way I am always assured of having a gift under the proverbial tree.

Last year’s gift was inspired by my brother in law. He got himself a Fitbit and convinced me to get one, seeing how it had unsuspectingly changed his life. Now, a Fitbit on the surface is a very ostentatious accessory; a rubber band worn on the wrist to let you know just how many steps you have taken in the day…right? Well that’s true, but I bought it anyway because once in a while we are allowed to make decisions we may regret, like having “one more drink” (there is no such thing by the way…the devil is a liar) before you go home and rest prior to that important meeting in the morning.

Well, I am yet to regret this decision because this little gadget is all sorts of amazing albeit annoying in the same breath. What gets me the most is its intuitive reminders to get up and take a stroll or generally just be useful with my life. In essence it is trying to keep me from wasting away on the couch or by my desk becoming sedentary and piling up belly fat while at it. The only problem as you can imagine, is that suddenly I am aware about how long my toilet breaks are (sorry for the TMI) because I always get vibrator alerts to stand up and walk whenever I go for a No. 2 (again my apologies but we all do it). I can’t take a dump in peace, without my wrist vibrating, the screen flashing as it cajoles me to get up and get moving…even if I am not yet ready to.

Anyway, that minor inconvenience aside, I am a more active individual. I take the stairs at any given opportunity and walk briskly to places I would have otherwise taken a boda-boda to. It also has the added advantage of setting goals and reminding you to hit them, hence keeping you focussed.

Let me reign in this unpaid and unsolicited review for Fitbit, but if at all it comes to their attention, my email address is in the contacts tab and I can let you know where to send the cheque.

This device got me thinking, wouldn’t it be great if we just kept moving in life? If we never ever stood still for too long at a time and stepped closer and closer each day to our goals? Like with the Fitbit, it is a bit of a nag when you are constantly reminded to get up from whatever it is that is taking undue consumption of your irreplaceably precious time, but the end is worth it and with time you sire a habit of efficiency. You learn to never sit still and to constantly keep moving. But of course, every so often, take time to slow down and enjoy the view of just how far you have come from whence you began (Yes the Fitbit also tracks your sleep patterns because this too is important…sorry for this one last review)

PS. If you are a regular reader, you may notice the conspicuous absence of the mention of that little annoying car whose name shall not be mentioned but starts with a “V” and ends in a “Z.” Its name is just as brief, concise and ambiguous as the car itself. Well it is because I was accosted by someone who owns one of these and sternly warned about the impending harm to my life and property if at all I kept at it. It is therefore with deep regret and immense fear that I will stay away, lest I am run over by the said person, in the “unsaid car” and I bruise the little toe on my left foot.