By Lindsay Martell – I am a proud and (mostly) unrelenting creature of habit.

So, every year, as we turn a corner into fake fall, I love ceremoniously ditching the remnants of the long, sweltering months: pool floaties, faded beach towels and way, way too many bottles of sunscreen.

The cozy slide into autumn is always right on time.

As my kiddo embarks on her final lap as a middle schooler (gulp), I find myself wanting to explore the places around Lake Norman that were just too packed in the heart of summer. We’ve gotten amazingly adept at steering clear of crowds, but I think I’m ready to embrace the free events that pop up on my Facebook feed.

On a recent Saturday morning, I unrolled my dusty yoga mat and squeezed between rows and rows of ladies taking part in a free community mat Pilates class at Birkdale Village, part of lululemon’s Summer Series partnership with JetSet Modern Pilates.

I was surrounded by perfect pink pedicures and pricey water bottles — feeling woefully out of place in an old Billy Idol concert tee and faded running shorts. And yet, I leaned in and kept moving through the poses with the kind of sweaty exertion only a middle-aged body can muster.

Pilates is both a tough workout and a cleansing escape. I hadn’t taken a live class in years, and it was a nice break from the YouTube videos I’ve watched on repeat since the pandemic. When it wrapped, we were given complimentary cans of prebiotic soda and healthy skin gummies, and I left feeling massively spent, but also … perhaps a little, tiny bit more limber.

On an unusually quiet afternoon in Davidson, we hit up scoop shop Seemingly Overzealous in Sadler Square — its newest location outside of Charlotte.

It’s known for its gluten-, egg- and dairy-free treats, but even those with zero allergies will find happiness with such flavors as Ube Cheesecake and Can’t Be All Cookie. You can’t beat the vibe or the free parking, which is always a massive plus on any weekend.

We made another sweet discovery in Davidson: Fisher Farm Park, a sprawling, 200-acre wooded park accessible via the West Branch Greenway. Paved, flat and perfect for our walking-averse terrier, it was a lovely little getaway that we somehow missed in years past.

On that note, my husband and I silenced our introvertedness for a couple of hours of Music Bingo at Boatyard LKN — something we had wanted to do for ages.

The emcee gave us the go-ahead to use our phones for help (phew!), so I eagerly downloaded the Shazam app to help identify the 99.99% of songs I didn’t know.

Our knowledge of country artists is woefully scarce, but fortunately, my husband crushed the alternative rock genre, so we sort of did OK. Sort of.

It was one of those events that reminds us that the most fun you can have is when you try something new, even when creature comforts will always be your happy place.

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Milling About is a column about life around Lake Norman, written by Lindsay Martell. The column name is a nod to life around the lake and our town’s mill history.

Lindsay Martell lives in Birkdale with her husband, daughter, and a scruffy mini mutt named Dug.