routine

i've always known that i like routine. i usually eat at the same times every day, and maintaining a regular bedtime definitely helps me feel less crazy. i liked my college schedule a lot because i always knew what i was supposed to be doing with the various chunks of my day. even better than college was how, when i was living at home, daily chores were the basis of everyone's schedule: the animals shaped it with their morning feeding, lunchtime feeding, night time feeding... it breaks the day up into manageable three or four hour pieces, gives it all a sense of rhythm.


without these outside structures, and with a slightly-crazy, always-changing work schedule, i've been struggling lately to reestablish a routine. some weekends i'm gone all day, others for just a few hours in the middle. sometimes i don't work at all during the week, and have to find creative ways to fill my time and stay productive. without a real, pressing reason to get up in the morning, it's easy to stay in bed too long. without an obvious conclusion to the day, it's all too easy to eat dinner at 9:30 at night (have you noticed yourself doing this since the time change? i sure have been...). it all circles back around to that discipline thing i've talked about before, and my general lack thereof.

one morning routine that i have been practicing lately is this: wake up pretty early (around 5:30 lately--the birds are really loud!). the alarm goes off at 6:30 and i listen to erik trundle through his morning routine. then i get up, early-ish still (usually no later than eight). i don't bother taking a shower unless i'm heading to work, bundle up (it's been pretty chilly recently), and put the kettle on. grind up my coffee and fill the french press. let it steep while i make oatmeal or pour some granola over my yogurt. then i sit down at the kitchen table and read. i've been resisting turning on the radio or listening to music: i just sip and sit there with my book and my pencil. it's really therapeutic.

i like spending my mornings this way. it is really nice not to feel rushed in the morning, and this way i even get some quiet time before heading to work. it's nice to start the day with someone else's thoughts, not my own: i've learned that writing early in the morning is too taxing for me. i need a little time to warm up and get my juices flowing. early afternoon seems the best time to tackle that. i'm thinking that come summertime and mornings that don't make me shiver, i might change to green tea in the mornings, rather than coffee.

hooray for routines, and saner-feeling days.

b