Excuses, Schedules, and Thinking

This has been a productive week for my brain. It was nice getting stuff out of me because I think I let things fester. It was nice looking at the bright side, which I actually often do.

I started thinking, though, about where I am right now. I've been making some excuses for things I should and could be doing.

Excuses: I don't feel like it. I have cramps. I'm too tired. I have other things I need to do. I don't want to sweat because then I'd have to shower again and I need to go out. I'm tired. I said that one. I'm overwhelmed.

The result of me throwing excuses out is I get very little done. Seriously.

I don't feel like it. That one goes out often, especially when it is time to cook. Hubby cooks often, I cook sometimes. I hate cooking. Actually, it goes out for a lot of things. It's a diva mentality for sure.

Solution: Tough sh*t, do it anyway. I mean seriously, I need some tough love on that excuse. It's ridiculous.

I have cramps. Well, that excuse is real. I've been cramping all week, mild to moderate. No period, just cramps. I've not been taking much Ibuprofen due to my stomach, which has helped my stomach, but not the cramps.

Solution: Do my best to deal with it. Work through it. D&C and ablation is Friday, I hope and pray that will alleviate the pain.

I'm too tired, I'm tired. This is another tough one because I really am tired often. Poor sleep, lack of exercise=exhaustion.

Solution: Massive amounts of coffee/caffeine. NOT! That's not good for anxiety and health. Establish better bedtime routine, better wake-up routine. Perhaps set alarm clock. Ahem. Exercise. Use my generic hypnosis CD. Allow myself to nap if completely necessary with no guilt. Set timer for nap, so it's minutes not hours.

I don't want to sweat because then I'd have to shower again and I need to go out.

Solution: This one is tough. I am having a very difficult time working in this new-found exercise to my routine. When we were doing school, I liked doing it in the early afternoon. I wouldn't shower in the morning, just got dressed. Then I'd exercise, shower, do my hair, etc. I'm not a morning person, so exercising in the morning is out for me.

Face it, Jo, you don't go out much. (Yes, another problem is I'm a bit of a recluse, going out only for my son and shopping.) So get up, get dressed, exercise in the early afternoon, shower just like I did when school was going and I was actually exercising on a more regular basis.

Overwhelm.

Solution: Another tough one in which I struggle with. Sometimes everything is overwhelming to me. I think the best way for me to handle this is to make a loose schedule and stick to it. Like the old-fashioned vintage towels, Monday=laundry, Tuesday=baking, etc. I need to choose one of my bigger tasks per day and do it. Cleaning, laundry, bills, etc. My mom did this. She could have taught Martha Stewart some lessons. I remember Thursdays were cleaning days, and I had to vacuum for her. I hated Thursdays because I hated vacuuming. I always told her I would never vacuum my house on a Thursday. I didn't for many years. It worked, though.

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I used to work. It's been 12 years since I worked outside the home, and it seems like a lifetime ago. My son was almost two when I "retired" and started my new career as a stay-at-home mom, domestic goddess, or domestic engineer. A few years later I added in home educator onto my resume.

Life was easier when I worked. Life revolved around work. Work hours were 8-5 every day, which meant I had to get to bed by 10, get up at 6. Most of the housework was done on weekends, as was shopping. Scheduling was a no-brainer, it was all worked out around the job.

When I quit and stayed home, I started staying up later because I could, started getting up later because I could. Any schedule was shot to hell. My son had a schedule, but I did not. Too much freedom is not good for me.

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Before our Starbucks closed, I had decided I would spend $40 a month on coffee. I thought that if I set my alarm, got out of bed, showered, fixed myself up, and actually got out the door bright and early every morning, that I could set myself up for a good routine. I never did it, though. Then Starbucks closed when they closed over 600 stores. That might have worked really well for me, schedule wise and recluse wise.

Once every other week we used to do McDonald's and Arby's for breakfast. Egg McMuffin for me and biscuits and gravy for my son from Arby's. I won't do that anymore for either of us. Not healthy. (But yummy, I still crave Egg McMuffins with all their nasty fat!) It got us up an going, it was something to look forward to.

Getting up to take a morning walk is something I'm not interested in. The diva in me says, "There's nothing in it for me but exercise." lol I need to get out and around people more, which is why Starbucks and McDonald's was so appealing to me.

Thinking, thinking, thinking. I think I'll be looking for more solutions this weekend.