Tag Archives: time

Working It Out

Finally!

I was able to spend serious time scrubbing and straightening at home.

It’s just a start, mind you.

There’s a lot of work left to do.

It’s amazing, how taking the time to scrub windows and wash curtains and deep clean a few rooms can also clear out cobwebs in your mind.

Like I said, there’s still a lot of work left to do.  The garage, basement and yard are daily reminders of work left undone.

I’ll get there.  It will get done.

While life was tossing us around like socks in a dryer, there was no time to do more than react and maintain.  I found myself simply unable to give focus to more than one task.  Things that required more than the perfunctory response were simply removed from the list.

Now comes the task of dealing with the complexities that were ignored.  Oh my, that list is a long one.  It’s almost overwhelming to consider.

Which has caused me to take stock.  I’ve been stewing and simmering, my mind a broody and dark place, as I reconsider and reformulate my dreams and goals.   Something has to give.  One person cannot accomplish all of the things that I’ve striven to do without keeping a neck-breaking pace.

I thought I was up to that challenge.

I like to keep busy, mostly.  I certainly enjoy gardens and kitchens and photos and tasks that challenge my mind.

The one huge hang-up is my innermost being.

You see, I’m an introvert.  It’s something I’ve always been aware of, but for which I had not truly considered the implications until recently.

My job, the task that challenges my mind and gives Hubby and I the freedom to live our current lifestyle, forces me to take on more than my comfortable share of people time.  The interactions at work simply drain this introvert.  I had never fully understood why I would feel so wiped out at the end of each shift until I grasped my need for “re-charge” from the people “drain”.

I had the light bulb moment:  clarity of my personal needs and a personal exoneration.

I could stop beating myself up for being a limp rag, and allow myself a period of time each weekday to escape all stimuli and let my inner being rest.

You may notice that this conflicts with keeping a neck-breaking pace.

Yeah.

Something has to give.

So, I’m thinking I may give up the full scale gardens for a while.

I would still be able to do small scale gardening with containers and the perennial flowers and herbs that currently exist.  I already have lavender, hyssop, calendula, chamomile, lemon balm, mint, cone flower, Russian sage, Solomon’s seals, as well as oregano, thyme, sage, wild onion, garlic and rosemary – and the handy trough of strawberries.  These things could get needed attention and I could add containers to grow a few favorite vegetables.

I will gain valuable time if I don’t have so many projects to attend at once.

In compensation, I’ll have to find good local organic sources for bulk produce and plan to prep and store those treasures.  This doesn’t change the required kitchen time, but letting go of the full scale garden might allow me to finish those canning projects before bedtime.

I think it might work.

Still Dreamin’…

Maintaining

Sometimes life moves like a big storm – quickly and abruptly changing without warning so that you just simply lift your legs and high step right on through the chaos.

Yep, there’s been some high-steppin’ in these here parts!

In the midst, right when the eye of storm was passing us by, hubby and I ran off to Montana for a week-long escape from it all.

Like a life preserver – a necessary raft to ride us through the next waves of the storm – Montana was exactly what our storm-tossed souls required.

Here is a photo excerpt from our vacate.  Enjoy!

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Still high-steppin’!  ;)

Dreamin’ Girl

Time Munchers and Pancakes

Pinterest and Facebooks are time munchers.

Just imagine that little Pac-Man mouth, gobbling away at little bubbles of free time – that’s what happens to time when I open Pinterest or Facebook.

What’s a girl to do about that?

It’s a double-edged sword, for certain.

There are positive aspects of both sites, but the negative will easily outweigh those positives if I’m not careful.

The positive things about Pinterest:

  • my boards are easy tools to find those items that I’ve pre-screened as “keepers”, especially food or household recipes;
  • my favorite links have led me to find new blogs that I now follow on Facebook.

The downside is that I was not looking for those recipes or those blogs, although I’m glad they’re available.

Compare Pinterest to a giant shopping catalog.

Remember those Sears catalogs?  Everyone in our house would take turns, flipping dog-eared pages and marking our favorite “wants”.  The pictures create a longing in us for things that weren’t on our mind before we saw them.

Then there’s Facebook.

Facebook can be a useful tool:

  • to keep in touch (if you can equate type to touch) with dear friends and family who are also living busy lives;
  • there are family photos that I can easily access to make prints;
  • it’s also easy to create groups for high school reunions, or special interests.

I’ve added resourceful pages to my news feed and joined groups that allow me to connect with people who share the same interests.

Initially, Facebook was a mind sucking daily soap opera,  with a barrage of game ads and requests.  I was lured for a while by the daily dramas played out, but that quickly grew old.

I felt the need to counter the drama with my own placid version of life, then would be left with the comparisons of who liked what I said.  It created an emotional void, where the lack of interaction was deemed just as strong a representative as those likes and comments.

There came a point where serious changes had to be made:

  • first I adjusted my settings, so I only see what I want to on each site;
  • then I had to refrain from giving too much time to the sites, allowing a 20 minute block twice daily to catch up on what might be missing in my life.

I know.  You’re wondering:  Is there a point to all this?

But, of course!  :)

A few months ago I found this homemade baking mix on Pinterest.  It was right around Passover, so I knew that with the Days of Unleavened Bread it would not be something I would make soon.  So I bookmarked it for later.

Uh-huh. Yep.  It’s later.

I made up the batch a few weeks ago and stored it in the fridge, ready whenever I got around to it.

Of course, being the health nut that I am, I improved the ingredients slightly, using aluminum free baking powder, raw sugar, and mineral salt – and there was definitely organic butter included.

I finally tested the biscuits and they were delicious!  Light, airy, tasty, crunchy.  Good stuff Maynard!

The only downside:  they crumbled when we bit into them or tried to butter them or spread jam on them.  I’m guessing it’s because the mix is stored in the refrigerator, so next time I will allow the mix to warm to room temperature before they are baked.

Then, I made the pancakes.

You .  have .  to .  try .  these .  pancakes.

Seriously.

They are that good!

I wanted to taste them while I was still making them, but just had to have a bit of syrup for the real taste test.  Half the plate later, Hubby came in to see if his plate was ready.

Oh, oops!

Seems I got carried away with the tasting.

Just call me Miss Pac-Man.