Can't help it; I'm compelled to make resolutions at every socially-mandated opportunity there is to make some sort of positive change. So this year I'm going to write (see yesterday) and read more, watch less TV, keep my floors clean and the laundry caught up. Big change here for me; for once I'm not attempting to reinvent my entire home life - just identifying the trouble spots and taking them on. I'll also continue the progress I've made in easing off on the consuming and the associated de-cluttering/downsizing.
And oh yes, plan to lose about 50 pounds (30 of which I gained in the last year).
The weight loss thing grows so very tiresome, but it has to be done. I'm completely out of pants that fit and refuse to buy more; and my feet and knees are really starting to feel it. Like prescription-strength anti-inflammatories feeling it... I'm too young for that, and I'm too committed to the idea of not buying bigger pants when I have so many decent pairs standing by. I must do this.
I'll share the details of my plan and progress once I get them hammered out and figure out a way to share that won't cause random blog passersby to roll their eyes and/or pass out from the very tedium of it all.
Oh yeah, John T. Meldrum, if you are reading this, know that I also resolve to be kinder to you this year; and to (if you'll forgive the expression) lean in instead of pulling away when things get tough.
Showing posts with label housework. Show all posts
Showing posts with label housework. Show all posts
Monday, January 2, 2012
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Hit the ground stumbling
This was to have been the post where I said I was clear-eyed, refreshed and ready to take 2010 by storm - an aspirational (yet oh-so-pragmatic) listing of my goals and dreams for the year, dreamed up from a comfy (yet chic) armchair my uncluttered, dust-free living room, cup of organic herbal tea steaming at my side . Instead I'm tired, out of sorts, days behind at the office and mired in layers and layers of laundry in varying states of done-ness - seriously I have worn the same socks three times this week- and all is chaos in the house. And I'm two weeks behind in making my New Year's resolutions.
But hey, the Christmas decorations are away now - uh - except the ones hanging in that one window that I forgot; and we have to step over the tree every time we walk out the front door. And of course, like so many of us, I'll eventually have to find and fish out the extension cord that fell into the koi pond when I was hanging lights out there. But, you know, mostly done. Done-ish.
I think I really need to cut myself some slack here: this is the BEGINNING of something here, not the culmination. If I were truly able to bounce back from the holidays with a clean house, a bright outlook and and empty "inbox" I probably wouldn't need to make New Year's Resolutions anyway. And everyone would hate me.
So dustballs, dirty socks and other to-do's notwithstanding, here's my list of goals for 2010. I expect I'll be elaborating more on these as time goes by, but right now I just have to get them down!
1) Learn to Monotask
This is about doing what I am doing - to focus on the task at hand- and not get sidetracked. Multitasking is just not efficient! For me this isn't just about getting things done - it's also about being present in the moment - present in my life and the lives of the people I am with. Sometimes this means to just stop and do nothing but listen. Or just stop and do nothing. So hard for me - I always feel pulled in a million different directions, my mind is racing ahead to the next thing. Even when I'm sitting still I am thinking about what I could/should be doing instead. Yoga's helped me with my awareness of this, and that's a start. Duct tape may get me the rest of the way.
2) Learn to manage tasks and priorities by making lists
See above. Lists will help keep me focused.
3) Channel my inner adult
At work, especially, I think it's time I claimed my 45 years of life experience and stepped up as one of the grownups.
4) Learn what is enough
What is enough to eat, or drink, or say...what is enough to buy or own...what is enough to put onto my plate, generally.
5) Learn to give housework the priority it deserves; no more or less
A hard one for me - pretty much since the day I got married, I've viewed home as a workplace, not that soft place to land that people talk about. And I find dirt and clutter to be incredibly distracting. I'm going to use the new habits above to get the house to a state I can live with and develop the routines needed to keep everything in its place. We'll see how it goes. I've decided to focus on one new routine every month - get it to be automatic and then move onto the next one.
One resolution that I don't have to make this year, the one I've made every year since Year One, is to lose weight and get into shape. I''m working that one already - just need to keep moving forward on it. And lose the four pounds I gained by medicating my mother-in-law holiday visit stress with shortbread and wine.
But hey, the Christmas decorations are away now - uh - except the ones hanging in that one window that I forgot; and we have to step over the tree every time we walk out the front door. And of course, like so many of us, I'll eventually have to find and fish out the extension cord that fell into the koi pond when I was hanging lights out there. But, you know, mostly done. Done-ish.
I think I really need to cut myself some slack here: this is the BEGINNING of something here, not the culmination. If I were truly able to bounce back from the holidays with a clean house, a bright outlook and and empty "inbox" I probably wouldn't need to make New Year's Resolutions anyway. And everyone would hate me.
So dustballs, dirty socks and other to-do's notwithstanding, here's my list of goals for 2010. I expect I'll be elaborating more on these as time goes by, but right now I just have to get them down!
1) Learn to Monotask
This is about doing what I am doing - to focus on the task at hand- and not get sidetracked. Multitasking is just not efficient! For me this isn't just about getting things done - it's also about being present in the moment - present in my life and the lives of the people I am with. Sometimes this means to just stop and do nothing but listen. Or just stop and do nothing. So hard for me - I always feel pulled in a million different directions, my mind is racing ahead to the next thing. Even when I'm sitting still I am thinking about what I could/should be doing instead. Yoga's helped me with my awareness of this, and that's a start. Duct tape may get me the rest of the way.
2) Learn to manage tasks and priorities by making lists
See above. Lists will help keep me focused.
3) Channel my inner adult
At work, especially, I think it's time I claimed my 45 years of life experience and stepped up as one of the grownups.
4) Learn what is enough
What is enough to eat, or drink, or say...what is enough to buy or own...what is enough to put onto my plate, generally.
5) Learn to give housework the priority it deserves; no more or less
A hard one for me - pretty much since the day I got married, I've viewed home as a workplace, not that soft place to land that people talk about. And I find dirt and clutter to be incredibly distracting. I'm going to use the new habits above to get the house to a state I can live with and develop the routines needed to keep everything in its place. We'll see how it goes. I've decided to focus on one new routine every month - get it to be automatic and then move onto the next one.
One resolution that I don't have to make this year, the one I've made every year since Year One, is to lose weight and get into shape. I''m working that one already - just need to keep moving forward on it. And lose the four pounds I gained by medicating my mother-in-law holiday visit stress with shortbread and wine.
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