It's sinking in

[cjsmith]

It's Monday and I'm not at work. I'm overwhelmed with job-related suggestions and ideas, for which I heartily thank you all! It's sinking in that I'm really on the next step now.

Emotionally, the next step seems to be the grumpies.

This morning I had my annual doctor's appointment in which nothing gets done and I pay $430 for the privilege. I'm also currently under a wave of foot-related grumpy, probably because last time I was off work I could run. I'm relearning how to eat right (my usual pattern is to snack on junk all day) when I don't have friends coming by my desk reminding me it's lunchtime. But have I invited anyone to lunch? No, I've just sat here. I haven't even responded (yet) to one friend's invitation to drop by her house.

I'm hermiting.

Worse, I'm ignoring stuff. Under the guise of taking a break, I'm doing nothing at all. I didn't go swim this morning, and I could easily have. I haven't tried to find new special shoes now that the ones I'm wearing are falling apart. Ditto jeans. With all this free time I've put nothing in the crock pot, and I've baked no cookies or pies. I haven't touched the shirt I started sewing last time I was out of work.

I know that though this is minor, it will grow and feed on itself if ungoverned. Activity, that's what I need. A good long run would...

...dammit.

Okay, maybe a load of dishes.

Comments

[vito-excalibur.livejournal.com]

This is just about exactly what happens to me when I finish a project - which is yet another reason why it's bad for me to be a contractor - and in fact to most everyone I know when they're out of work. It's very frustrating. It's one thing to not be productive, but it's yet another to not be productive and not be enjoying yourself.

I find the key thing to do is to make a to-do list, in order of priority, and then have at it; rather than have a vague idea of all the things you could be doing, and end up doing none of them.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

It's one thing to not be productive, but it's yet another to not be productive and not be enjoying yourself.

Yes, that's it exactly!

I've got the to-do list, or to be more precise I've got a list of projects around the house that need doing. Of course, all those things can be put off indefinitely. (They already have been.) Notably missing from the to-do list are all the job-hunt-related tasks.

Congratulations again on finishing Bay to Breakers!

[vito-excalibur.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much!

It's not a to-do list till it's organized in order of priority. ;)

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Right - the list I have is all priority 5 out of 5. It's stuff that basically doesn't matter, and deep down I know it, so I do nothing. I think I need to put new things on that list. It needs fun stuff like "sit in the hot tub and eat bonbons" and job-hunt stuff like "write up what I did at Spice so my ex-boss could give me a reference". And probably even "swim". All of those are at least more important than priority 5. Then I can go by mood, and shift priorities as needed.

[dizzdvl.livejournal.com]

Is it because you aren't putting something off? I know it sounds silly but when I am doing something to avoid something, like laundry, it's fun. But when the laundry is done I'm not putting something and I'm bored and listless.

Go play with kitties!

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

We procrastinators get SO much done when we're putting something off, don't we? (Whoops, don't mean to speak for you, but I know I procrastinate.)

Kittiiiiiiies! Now that I've cleaned up what one of 'em did last night (spring means hairballs, sigh) I feel a bit more like playing!

[quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com]

How dare you not invite me to lunch. ;-)

Seriously, though, I hope the grumpies pass. *hugs*

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Hee! Dan, I hereby invite you to lunch! :-) :-)

Thanks. They're a bit better now, a few hours after I wrote that post, but I can feel them lurking. The Doctor prescribes either a) frenetic activity AND b) some fun, OR c) a new job. :-)

[quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com]

*snicker* I appreciate the invite, even in the spirit of silliness. What was I kvetching about yesterday morning? Missing free time for stuff like travel? :-)

Is the Rx for (frenetic activity && some fun) || a new job or is it frenetic activity && (some fun || a new job)? :-)

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Aw c'mon, I put the comma in! That was a big hint! I meant it for the former. :-)

Yeah, too bad plane tickets have to be purchased so far in advance or they get fiendishly expensive. Otherwise right now I'd go visit my parents, and then maybe there'd be some other folks on the list too.

[quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com]

I completely missed the comma. And I conclude that my C class corrupted me. ;-)

You still have an open invitation to come to Indy sometime when you can, BTW.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Thanks! You never know :-)

[elflet.livejournal.com]

Well, Priceline and their ilk can offer cheap tickets at the last minute -- they're "consolidators" who pick up and resell unsold seats on the cheap. Of course, unsold seats are becoming harder to come by these days. Also, the major airlines (AA, UA, Southwest) offer last-minute deals when routes aren't filling up completely.

And, Lunch? I and/or Ambar are free mid-day.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Mmmmmmmlunch! When? T,Th,F currently open this week! :)

[elflet.livejournal.com]

How 'bout Thursday? Send me email so we can figure out where!

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Done! wheeee!

[cyan-blue.livejournal.com]

Your body might need a dose of "crash and do nothing for several days" before it wants to be productive again. Is there anyway you could enjoy some days of cheerful sloth and only doing that which you want in the Now?

*hugs*

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Hmm... that's a good point. I do know the stress has been taking it out of me physically. Suddenly I've had a new desire to go to sleep early of an evening. :-)

[moriamerri.livejournal.com]

My response was along the lines of: but it is only MONDAY........

It does sound like you'd feel better if you were doing
something. But, personally, I think a week of sleep
and hot baths is the minimum reasonalbe level of sloth.
But I realize your mileage may vary.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

*grin* I like your idea! It's true that it hasn't been long counting from when I walked out of the office. I've known for a long time, but maybe walking out of the office is a better time stamp.

Mmmm, hot baths. With a book. Mmmmmm. (When I am Queen all books shall be available on waterproof paper. It is permissible for such a book to cost more than its regular counterpart, but it shall be available.)

[moriamerri.livejournal.com]

knowing ahead of time "counts" when you are discussing mental adjustment time......

BUT, when discussing REST and RECOVERY and SLOTHFULNESS, I say the clock starts on Monday morning -- at whatever time you DIDN'T go to work. That is when the actual change of activity started. So, you are just getting started by my reckoning.

I like the plan for waterproof books. I wonder if some sort of bathtub floaty-shelf exists? with a little bookrack/holder on it (of course).

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Absolutely. Slothfulness starts Monday! 8-)

O'course, the flip side is that physical exercise is a great counter to the doldrums. So I did go swim this morning. I'll count that as slothful if I didn't stress about it.

Ooo, I like the shelf idea! Sort of like those laptop desk things, but with cork underneath instead of a pillow... Somebody has to have made one of these, right? Right? :-)

[ambar.livejournal.com]

Mmm, sloth.

So have dinner with me some night! If you put on the pasta water, I'll cook. :)

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

That rocks! You're on! Later this week perhaps? W-F Rob's not around, and I'll be hermitted out.

[ambar.livejournal.com]

I dibs Wednesday, as my Thursday-Friday are up in the air at the moment.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Ooo... there's a meeting I was thinking of going to Wednesday night. If your Thursday or Friday open up, can I get on the waiting list for one of those? And if that doesn't work out, Wednesday it is.

[ambar.livejournal.com]

*sticks a reminder in LifeBalance* I think I can manage that. :)

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Thankee!

[wooddragon.livejournal.com]

You know, after finals in college, I became an instant and complete sloth. All those things I'd been wanting to do, like see a movie or read a trashy novel, I just had to do. It never lasted too long, but it just needed to be done...

I do understand about the things you want to do that you shouldn't be doing become less fun if they're the things you could or should be doing...

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the stress has been hanging around for about a month -- long before I made any kind of announcement that I was leaving. Now there's a huge sense of relief that I'm not there any more. I'm not pretending, I'm not faking anything, I'm not doing work I was utterly unsuited for... relief! The stress about finding a new job, and about money, is nothing by comparison. It should be big, but my stress receptors are worn out! So yeah. Sloth. Definitely.

[wooddragon.livejournal.com]

After I quit last year, it took me longer than I thought to de-stress. Well, some of the stress lifted the day I left. But I had residual stress for a while (perhaps due to the fact that I decided to add more life stress by moving)... :)

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Well, yes, you didn't exactly have a zero-stress period of time after that! So how are you doing on the stress levels now? You're settled in the new place, hopefully NOT moving for a while, and not at a soul-sucking job. That much seems good. :-)

[wooddragon.livejournal.com]

No stress! Pretty much none at all. I *love* it!

There are things I miss very much, but stress is not one of them...

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Excellent! THAT is the way to live. I'm glad this change was so good for you on the stress front!