#91 Refresh and Re-energize Take 2
Lots to get through today after time off...
Thanks to everyone who reached out to support me in my decision to take time off in December.
A full two week hiatus from all things harp related, and a one week break from the newsletter, really helped me both physically and spiritually.
There was much needed time with friends and family and a lot of quality napping. (I never seem to get enough sleep - it was heavenly to catch up.)
But one of the best parts was waking up and facing the day without a plan or a deadline. I forgot how nice it is to just take the day as it comes.
I even got to sit down with a good old fashioned jigsaw puzzle.
Without chewed pieces.
Resolution Time
I’m not usually much of one for New year’s resolutions. (Last year’s scree about resolving anything at all is here.)
Having said that - 2024 goals – let’s see how I did.
#1 organize at least one thing every day during January. Restricting this goal to the first month of the new year turned out to be a pretty smart move because by February I was already getting bogged down in my usual I-don’t-have-time-for-this rut.
#2 knit through as much of my stash yarn as possible over the course of the year. See previous statement – I did manage some knitting but my resolve did not last long.
What I think we’ve learned here is that I am quite capable of making “January resolutions”. Goals for the entire year? Not so much.
I suspect I am not alone.
But I’m going to tempt fate and lay out a really really big goal for 2025:
Find Joy
Most of my waking life is spent problem solving or meeting expectations – way back when I started my “Overbooked And Underpaid” blog I wrote this:
“I was raised with a fierce dedication to setting goals. I imagine this was to teach me discipline and help me maintain forward momentum. I’m sure it was not to create a constant sense of inadequacy. That was just a bonus.”
Kidding aside, I was not raised with a much of a connection to joy but rather to practicality and self-sufficiency. These were our idols. So, it's not too surprising that I struggle to even recognize joy, let alone experience it.
But I’m going to spend this year making joy my top priority.
In support of that journey I add the following two “subgoals”:
Tea/Wine With Friends
Often.
As often as possible.
Not only am I going to make the time, I’m going to force them to make the time too.
We need to all stop being so overloaded that we don’t connect with each other.
Regardless of the state of our houses.
Avoid Negativity
I need to get better at keeping my thoughts and emotions from being hijacked.
And I need to do that when it comes to one person more than any other.
I am old enough that, for most of my life, I was blissfully unaware of the president.
Let me explain.
There used to be these things called the morning newspaper and the evening news.
If the president had done or said anything particularly newsworthy it showed up in those places.
Period.
There was no 24/7 newsfeed of any kind. No CNN continuous crawl, no social media platforms with their pesky notifications.
Let that sink in. (Cue peaceful summer evening cricket chirping…)
Not only was the general news so much less a part of our daily lives, the president himself almost never did or said anything much that warranted my attention. Or, for that matter, the attention of those news people.
Unless there was a big disaster, or important peace talks, or a state of the union address etc. (Watergate was an obvious exception but I was young enough to be largely blissfully ignorant.)
Things began to change with the advent of cable news but still, whatever the president was up to was only a small piece of the larger news pie.
One of my biggest issues with the soon to be sworn in occupant of the white house is this.
He.
Never.
Stops.
Talking.
And…
The.
Media.
Shoves.
All.
Of.
It.
Right.
Into
My.
Face.
Not once a day.
One THOUSAND times a day.
Or at least that’s what it feels like.
He truly is living rent free in my head.
And, while his residency there is not entirely my fault (see previous comments about news coverage) I have GOT to figure out how to think my own thoughts and get my brain back.
As a result of this resolve, I apologize in advance if I miss all the important images and announcements you all post on your Facebook and Instagram feeds. Because, if I want to reclaim my headspace, it’s going to mean spending as little time as possible looking at my phone and my socials.
I’ll be here if you need me.
But I’ll be largely absent from my other online spaces.
Copyright© 2024 Anne Morse Hambrock All rights reserved.
Stretch Goal
I do actually have a “project” basket of items to be mended. It has been unattended to for so long, that I will first have to shake all the dust off everything before I break out needle and thread.
Worse, any garment requiring a replacement button is going to the back of the line because, though I have a stash somewhere of all the appropriate buttons, I have no idea where said stash has sloped off to. (Ironically, it may have been part of last January’s organization frenzy.)
Regardless, I hereby resolve to mend at least three things this year. I have two winter coats that are in need of immediate attention (unless, during my next trip to the grocery store I want the linings to fall out on the floor) so those are first on the list.
In Other News…
Yesterday I looked down to see this carcass silently screaming at me.
Note the fluff casually reposing by dog chin….
Wildfires
The wildfires currently ravaging California have been truly devastating. My heart goes out to all my friends and readers who have been, or may still be impacted.
A friend who lost his home to fire in 2017 posted this:
“IF YOU KNOW SOMEONE WHO LOST EVERYTHING: Your friends or loved ones may be out of touch for a while. Don't pester them, they have a lot on their plate.
Ask them what they need and really listen.”
I think our first instinct is to help people in the ways we think they need help rather than the ways that are truly helpful. The best thing you can do for anyone in crisis is to take your preconceived ideas out of the mix and get to the heart of what they really need.
My friend laid out a whole list of things he personally found helpful. He is a reader of this newsletter so if he gives permission I will do a separate post with just his suggestions because I think it’s so important.
Books
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We do not have a dog.. I am the one that took a puzzle piece - once. Never again!!!!😁