This week's topic is a little bit silly, but does pick up on the common theme of sleep as an important part of self-care. if you had a genie at your command to magic up your ideal sleep environment, what would it be? Ten million threadcount sheets? A chamber ensemble playing lullabies? A cone of silence?
aw
1. Finish data entry
2. Draw some graphs related to project ppw
3. Finish the CR draft, which I now feel much more motivated about because I can see an end to it.
AcademicAmstr
1) write 2x (I have a critique group deadline coming up)
2) exercise 4x, clean bunny hutch 2x
3) plan out food for the week on Monday, grocery shop
4) declutter office for 1 hour total
5) nightly check-ins
Contingent Cassandra
1) finish preparations for conference talk
2) make the most of/enjoy the conference
3) get enough sleep along the way to facilitate the above, and return home ready to regroup for the rest of the term
Daisy
1) Cook real food most nights!
2) Run 3 times
3) Project planning, and don't forget this time!
4) Reading project - do with 3 above for planning purposes, 2 birds and all...
Earnest English
-order book on destressing and relaxation
-have some down time every day
-make sure I get enough sleep and take good care of my health (am going to the doctor today, so I'm working on this!)
-get to grading asap, but in a reasonable and not totally-stressed out way
-work
a bit on Tiny Article due in Two Weeks in small bits (it would be great
if I could sit down and schedule this, but I don't know about that)
-pick
a book related to Big Project to be my go-to book so I can feel
productive instead of spending my time looking for a book and then
reading something I really don't need to read (like a magazine) that
doesn't get me anywhere (in terms of feeling productive)
-try to remember that it won't always be like this
-remember
that nothing is worth killing myself over, especially bozo colleagues
with antediluvian ideas that are unjust. move like water.
Elizabeth Anne Mitchell
Next week’s goals: Write for 30 minutes 3x; 20 minutes 2x.
Walk midmorning 5x, and mid afternoon 5x.
Declutter my desk for 15 minutes 5x.
Organize my next day 5x.
Good Enough Woman
1) Outline new theory/history chapter that I think I'll need for the thesis, and draft at least 1000 words.
2) Read 7-10 secondary articles, chapter.
3) Read primary sources for 4 hours.
4) Mine my Moleskin notebook (at least 30 pages of it) for material to insert into chapter.
5) Night check-in, keep up with exercise
6) find checks or call bank
humming42
1. Write for tiny project every day, not worrying about word count.
2. Draft incredibly overdue book review.
3. Listen to/work with guided meditation.
JaneB
1) self-care
2) grant application
3) Get ahead on NaNoWriMo
4) teaching prep for 2 weeks' time
5) half an hour of domestic environment self-care a day
Karenh
1. Get all the planning done for daughter's birthday (actual birthday next week)
2. Paperwork for gym so I can start trial membership next week
3. Brainstorm grant application pitch and send off for feedback.
4. 1000 draft words on co-written conference paper (can build on earlier 15 minute writing sessions)
KJHaxton
1. start typing in the data for scary project
2. find and read journals for gemstone paper and project
3.
start getting ready for the Christmas crafts by tidying the work space
and working out what I need to buy (hopefully nothing).
Matilda
1) Again, finish the first draft of the article.
2) Do three minute-exercise three times a day.
3) Think of working hard, and taking care of my health at the same time.
Maude
at least 8-8.5 hours of sleep at night.
And until this article is done, 20 minutes of writing a day toward it
(revising or new words). Meditate at least 10 minutes a day. And really
just make it through the home stretch without falling apart.
metheist
1) Grade four major assignments--I am way behind
2) Clean house--I am home so I can do it
3) Put my ideas on paper for Behemoth
Susan
1. Finish planning courses for spring
2. Start drafting conference thing (it's a round-table, so not really a paper)
3. Pick up the prospectus for the book and finish the GD thing.
3. Keep up exercise
4. Ipad. Should not be in my bed with me.
Ideal environment? I don't know -- at times I'd say blackout curtains, but I like waking up to the light. A comfortable mattress would do.
ReplyDeleteLast week's goals:
1. Finish planning courses for spring NO, but I've started both and will get first set of book orders in this week
2. Start drafting conference thing (it's a round-table, so not really a paper) Barely
3. Pick up the prospectus for the book and finish the GD thing. No
3. Keep up exercise YES
4. Ipad. Should not be in my bed with me. FAIL
Analysis: this week we had the kind of event on my campus that you hope you don't have to experience. (I.e. CNN, Fox News, NYTimes covered our little place) It closed campus for two days, and it's still stressful. So while in theory I had two days at home, in fact it didn't work that way. And particularly the first day, I spent a lot of time staring at my computer and wondering whether the story could change. So: I did the copyedited ms. for an article, and that was good. I wrote a blog post for a friend's blog. But other stuff, not so much. I'm still procrastinating. But as one of my colleagues said, we're all stressed, there are no rules. Even about chocolate.
Goals for next week:
1. (Really TRQ, but) Finish the piece for next week's conference
2. Get book order in before deadline
3. Reexamine the prospectus.
4. Keep up with exercise.
Yikes! sounds like quite a week. At least you managed to make productive use of the too-worried-to-really-concentrate time (under somewhat similar circumstances on 9/11 -- safe, but near enough to one of the attack sites to wonder what might happen next, and whether anyone I knew was directly affected by what had already happened -- I glued down all the loosening seams and patched a few torn/very worn spots in the powder-room wallpaper of the house in which I then lived. Copyediting seems similar, and at least your article is likely to endure a bit longer than the powder room, which was torn down along with the rest of the house a few years later).
DeleteWow. Sorry to hear the emotional stress of your week. I hope that you will feel calmer as the week progresses and that your campus community can move past this.
DeleteHow terrible. It's all so awful and sad and infuriating. I hope your community begins to "recover," whatever that means. It's seems the anxiety would remain high after such an incident.
DeleteGood job keeping up with the exercise. That was, I'm sure, a good way to deal with a generally jittery and distracted sensibility.
Thanks, all. The campus has stayed together remarkably well, and the students have been awesome at resisting hate. (They have grieved not just for the people hurt, but for the assailant who was killed by a campus policeman.) But it's stressful for everyone, and likely to remain so for some time.
DeleteOh wow, ideal environment for sleep? Mostly I have what I need for good sleep -- blackout curtains, a mattress that is a bit firmer than I would like but still good, etc. -- but I need more time.
ReplyDeleteThis week I really noticed that sometimes I stay up late and don't get enough sleep because between the high volume of work and my high-energy kid at home, I feel cheated out of any kind of me-focused time, whether that's escapism (which is purposeful as I desperately need to exit my life and focus elsewhere as the stress mounts) or refilling the creative wellspring. The wise thing to do might be to remember that it won't always be this way and go to sleep anyway, but on the other hand, I'm learning I really do need that time to de-stress and relax. A 28-hour day would be ideal, with those 4 hours for extra sleep. More in line with the limits of the real world, trying to get Absurdist Child to go to sleep earlier might help me get some time for myself. The other issue is getting Absurdist Child to stay in his own bed instead of coming in every night into ours. He and I have talked about why he does this, and I think it's just a habit, not borne out of some fear. So we'll work on it.
Last Week's Goals
-order book on destressing and relaxation: YES, and it's awesome!
-have some down time every day: I tried. Transition time is hard. I'm working on developing better skills and strategies here, thanks to the above book.
-make sure I get enough sleep and take good care of my health (am going to the doctor today, so I'm working on this!): balancing sleep with me-time was a key challenge, as noted above
-get to grading asap, but in a reasonable and not totally-stressed out way: I'm so behind now, it's ridiculous, but I've prioritized not making myself sick
-work a bit on Tiny Article due in Two Weeks in small bits (it would be great if I could sit down and schedule this, but I don't know about that): starting yesterday, I've begun scheduling 30-min sessions on it in the morning, and WOW it's amazing what can get done in 30 minutes!
-pick a book related to Big Project to be my go-to book so I can feel productive instead of spending my time looking for a book and then reading something I really don't need to read (like a magazine) that doesn't get me anywhere (in terms of feeling productive): I haven't done this, but I think my go-to book for now is the relaxation and de-stressing book
-try to remember that it won't always be like this: uh huh
-remember that nothing is worth killing myself over, especially bozo colleagues with antediluvian ideas that are unjust. move like water.: I got mad a bit this week, and I got stressed about something, but I turned the stress into a productive work schedule, so some very important things are moving forward
This is a time when I'm relearning how to get things done. Before I got tenure, it seemed reasonable to make myself sick over grading, for example. (I'd rush to get something done, even though I'm perennially behind, and then get sick right after.) Now tenured but with health problems, this trade-off doesn't suit me anymore. So I'm rethinking assignments that pose particular challenges for grading, including the assignment that is currently killing me, which is good because I'll be teaching this particular course each quarter this year. So this is a good time to figure that out.
DeleteGoals for the Upcoming Week
1. Keep up a decent grading pace, which unfortunately includes the stress of telling my family to leave me alone (repeatedly because 7-year olds don't get it).
2. Some kind of relaxation work each day, whether that's escapism (watching shows), working on the relaxation workbook, or tuning in to some kind of creative well-filling activity.
3. 30-minutes daily on Tiny Article. It will get done by Friday. Yes, it will. Even after two sessions, it's much better than it was, so don't stress about this. Don't think about it. Just do it.
4. Magnesium. Take it daily.
5. Do leg lifts and crunches while watching shows at night.
6. Continue to prioritize eating at regular intervals for good energy all day long.
7. Don't expect anything of yourself after long teaching days.
8. Instead of stressing, see what service you can scoot over or enlist help with. (Had a great conversation with a colleague who is sweetly worried about my health who asked why I don't go and get out of one service commitment that is pretty much languishing. She's right.) Don't get involved in big arguments because chest pains suck.
9. Nothing is worth killing yourself over. Move like water. --> recite mantra at will.
Sounds like you're making good progress on trying to get various routines into more manageable shape, and on Tiny Article. I think the sleep vs. time-for-self tradeoff is a very real one for many people (I do it sometimes, even though I'm single and childless, with considerably fewer demands on my time/attention than many here, and I can definitely think of at least one "insomniac" foremother who was probably just looking for a bit of time to hear herself think).
DeleteThe business of jettisoning/revising assignments that create grading logjams also rings a bell with me. That's basically how I've survived a 4/4 writing-intensive load for going on for two decades: I keep in mind that, since timely feedback from me is an important part of the process of teaching writing, I need to design assignment sequences/timing that work not only for the students, but also for me (and that the way things work out semester after semester is probably a better measure of what I actually can do than any ideal picture of what I should be able to do).
Hope you continue to find ways to manage, if not improve, the health problems. I'm glad the book is helping. Care to share the title? Transitions are a weak spot for me, too, so I'm intrigued.
I also struggle with transitions. To-do lists sometimes help me with that. Have a "go-to" book or task also seems like a great idea!
DeleteThis is definitely a topic after my own heart. I do like sleep. More darkness than I currently have would probably be useful, but, like Susan, I like to wake up to the light (and in fact use an alarm that gradually lights up, as well as a backup radio/sound alarm), and there's a good deal of artificial light in the vicinity of the very large window in my combined living/dining/bedroom/study. Since there are remote-control shades, I'm sure there's a way to have your blackout curtains retract quietly, all on their own, just before dawn (or other wakeup time), but I haven't looked into that. Otherwise, I like cool room temperatures combined with reasonably-warm but not too heavy covers (one of my better investments in the last few years was replacing a fiberfill comforter with a down one), and a mattress with a fairly firm center but a few soft/squishy inches on top (a memory foam topper was another good investment -- and I don't usually describe household/clothing purchases as "investments," but things that make sleep better count in my book). The other thing that helps is enough physical exercise during the day (but not right before bed), and a manageable workload (the better to actually get to bed on time). And I prefer a relatively early-to-bed and early-to-rise schedule. I actually have more of the above in reach than many people here, and probably get more sleep than many of my colleagues, but I also seem to need it.
ReplyDeleteGoals for last week:
1) finish preparations for conference talk
2) make the most of/enjoy the conference
3) get enough sleep along the way to facilitate the above, and return home ready to regroup for the rest of the term
Achieved: pretty much all of them (it pays to have reasonable goals, with a certain amount of TRQ urgency/enforcement). I spent a bit more time than ideal keeping up with teaching/department matters while at the conference, which meant a bit less engagement with the conference itself than ideal, and no chance to explore the city where the conference was taking place, but I still got a lot out of the conference, and returned feeling good about it, and not horribly behind (at least in the teaching; there's one semi-optional activity I deliberately let drop, and will have to decide how much I can catch up on).
So, to continue with reasonable goals:
1) do most urgent conference follow-up, and plan additional, including thinking about/investigating whether and where the presentation might become an article (preferably a fairly short but peer-reviewed one)
2) keep to reasonable sleep routine, and try to work in at least some exercise (especially gardening, since the deadline for fall cleanup at the garden plot is looming)
3) cook & freeze some food, and/or stock reasonably healthy pre-made frozen food
4) catch/keep up with most urgent household/financial tasks (I'll return to these with more focus once the garden is put to bed for the winter).
I'm glad the conference went well! I'm inferring you felt good about the talk, itself? I hope so!
DeleteI'm not sure if you have a Trader Joe's nearby, but I made this last night, and it would be great for freezing. Super easy. It has a bit of a kick to it, but the Mexican crema moderates that just a bit. I'm pretty sensitive to spice, but even I found it just right. Not sure if you can eat all of these things, but here it is:
1 Carton Latin Black Bean Soup
1 Can Cuban Black Beans
1 Bag Chimichurri Rice
1 Package Chicken Jalapeño Sausage
Some Loc-Crema Mexicana
Dice the sausage and brown it in a pot with a little oil. Add remaining ingredients and heat/simmer to taste. Service with a dollop of creme or sour cream.
Would still be quite good without the sausage, I think.
This topic was brought to you courtesy of a lot of time in bed - I'm down with the dreaded chicken pox, and partially out of limited energy (a short potter around the house and I'm done) and partially from hiding from the children to limit the infection risk, I've been spending a lot of time here.
ReplyDeleteSo my ideal would be a firm but not hard mattress, a pillow of the same consistency as my current favourite but one centimeter higher, fresh cotton sheets, a doona that is comfortingly heavy but not overhot, a little fresh air coming in at the window, being out in the country so able to have open curtains and darkness at night but waking up with the sun, and a small lamp with the right bulb and angle for a little reading in bed and a headboard to lean on while reading, a vase of fresh flowers in sight. So I can do now - and should make an effort to do more often, like the flowers, others are waiting on the major investment in a new bed/mattress.
Last week:
1. Get all the planning done for daughter's birthday (actual birthday next week) - mostly delegated off to husband
2. Paperwork for gym so I can start trial membership next week
no
3. Brainstorm grant application pitch and send off for feedback.
had a discussion about how my ideas would fit with other ongoing projects
4. 1000 draft words on co-written conference paper (can build on earlier 15 minute writing sessions)
400 words into google doc
So this week has been, if nothing else, a good exercise in delegating, thinking through priorities, and relying on the kindness of others. My main focus over the next week is to keep that sense of priorities and limiting what I take on and using the energy I have in a focused way, while also maintaining firm boundaries around time to recover. Also to submit final grades - here comes summer!
1. Continue work on conference paper - 2x1hr sessions, 3x15 minute sessions
2. Move grant application along - get rough draft of idea to coherent stage and out for feedback.
3. Spent time outside each day
4. Do something kind for my body each day - stretching, bath, whatever.
I hope that you feel better!
DeleteOh no! I hope your bout wasn't TOO terrible. I've heard that, for adults, chicken pox can be even more miserable than for kids. I'm impressed that you got so much done!
DeleteSLEEP. I regularly fantasize about it. I need 7hrs of good sleep. I like cool cotton sheets and a downy comforter. I also have a fan on for noise. A perfect night's sleep would include limited dreaming. Oh, just the thought!
ReplyDeleteLast week's goals:
1) Grade four major assignments--I am way behind
2) Clean house--I am home so I can do it
3) Put my ideas on paper for Behemoth
Accomplished:
1) Nope--I forgot that my sixth graders term ended this week. So, I spent my time grading their last test and calculating grades.
2) Clean house--I got half of my kitchen done and my desk. Those were the big things that were bothering me so I am happy with that accomplishment
3) I got some notes written down--not a lot but something
New goals:
1) Finish the 4 grading projects
2) take the notes I have and apply to revamped intro
3) Go to bed earlier
Good job getting some cleaning done even in the face of grading!
DeleteOh, sleep, sleep is so lovely - but like others I struggle with wanting 'me time' in the late evening, despite having relatively few calls on my time, instead of getting to bed nice and early. I think for me it's partly because going to bed has started to feel like the start of the next work day, and I want to put that off as long as possible... and mornings are hard (that's a symptom of depression as much as anything, and possibly a medication side effect too) so I very easily get into a sleep late, stay up later pattern. Environment... a fairly firm mattress with a natural fibre topper not memory foam (I find that that heats up too much as the night goes on, for me), fresh air, layers of fairly light bedding so I can adjust things, mountains of pillows of different textures and fills all covered with silky-fine pure cotton. Light levels don't really bother me for sleeping, though I have the same sort of sunrise simulating alarm as Cassandra and it does make winter mornings less painful. And probably some music, very quietly, gregorain chant or tudor polyphony or the like, voices only and not starting and stopping and taking it in turns, all layered and sink-into-able.
ReplyDeletegoals:
1) self-care not great
2) grant application ready to enter into the online system, except that two of my three referees are not replying to emails and the finance office person doing the university end of things has taken a couple of days off. But I can get most of my bit done
3) Get ahead on NaNoWriMo ish. I am a bit ahead of where I need to be if I write the same amount every day, and it's going OK
4) teaching prep for 2 weeks' time I let this slip. I've just been rather fed up this week
5) half an hour of domestic environment self-care a day did this a couple of days. Hard to say if I felt better those days BECAUSE I did that, or did it because I felt a bit better...
analysis: As soon as I was officially on sick leave I began to feel a lot worse mentally, perhaps because I let myself stop focusing on the next teaching thing, the next urgent item, and consider things slightly more broadly. I finished off a couple of things like writing my study leave report (depressing) and working on the grant application, but I've pretty much let myself sleep and read and try to take a bit of a break. This week I'm covered by the sick note. I have a little bit of voice - it's creaky and erratic, and if I talk for more than a few minutes quietly I start coughing and can feel my throat siezing up, but it's much better than it has been - so I guess I need to plan to be going back next week... but maybe not being able to do everything I'm scheduled to do. GAH. This constant second-guessing...
goals for this week:
1) self- care and domestic environment care
2) get the grant dispatched
3) do proofs for the Crunchier papers
4) have a plan for the following week assuming partial voice
I'm glad you've had some proper sick leave time but am sorry you've been feeling worse mentally. I hope that will change.
DeleteAs for your throat/voice, are there any soothing teas or other remedies that you find useful?
Sleep: A cool, moist cross-breeze is my favorite thing. For this, I am lucky that I live in an area that often has evening fog (or it used to anyway; our climate has been quite different this past year). Last night, it was actually RAINING when I went to sleep. A glorious sound with that cool, cross breeze through the room. I like clean, smooth cotton sheets, medium weight blanket and quilt, and then a heavy, very soft blanket that I can pull up over my body if I'm cold or over my ears if I need to block out noise (hubby's snoring, seagulls, neighbors, whatever). I do look forward to getting in bed each night because that's the only time I get to read for pleasure, and I'm always eager to get to my book. I only last for about 15 minutes before I fall asleep, but I love it. Oh, and like CC, I do sleep better when I've had a bit of exercise during the day. Sabbatical has been good for both exercise and sleep.
ReplyDeleteLast week's goals:
1) Outline new theory/history chapter that I think I'll need for the thesis, and draft at least 1000 words. NOPE.
2) Read 7-10 secondary articles, chapter. YES.
3) Read primary sources for 4 hours. NOPE.
4) Mine my Moleskin notebook (at least 30 pages of it) for material to insert into chapter. NOPE.
5) Night check-in, keep up with exercise. YES on exercise. NO on check-in.
6) find checks or call bank. NO. Must do this.
Analysis, it was a truncated work week because of childcare. I lost about a day's time, and, in general, I didn't feel very focused. I did some good reading, but I didn't write at all. I think I've accepted the fact that I'm going to have to write a brand new chapter 1 that will provide theoretical and historical context, and I'm feeling a bit ill-equipped to do this. I think that's why I keep reading and reading. The thought of this new chapter has made it more difficult to focus on the other chapter I'm in the process of revising. I'm also thinking I really need to write the new Chapter 1 before the sabbatical is over, but I'm not sure I can. Maybe I should just keep going with my revisions, and plan to write Chapter 1 last? Maybe even next summer? It looks like I'll be aiming for a September submission date. Bah. Either way, I should probably just make sure that Chapter 3 gets revised in the next 2-3 weeks, no matter what.
This week the kids are off on Wednesday (it is no-school November after all!), and I usually have that whole day to work. I doubt I'll have much of it this week, which is a bummer.
This week's goals:
1) Outline Chapter 1
2) Add in 30 pages worth of Moleskin notes/quotes to Chapter 3
3) Read at least 5 chapters/articles
4) Find checks or contact bank
5) Keep up with exercise
6) Settle on some course changes so that I can start working on syllabi for next semester (sad face)
My perfect environment for sleep: King size bed, down comforter, crisp sheets, open window with a sea breeze... And here's the important part.... bed with nobody except me in it!!! Nobody!! Not a cat, not a child, not a partner, and for the love of pete, not all three at the same time... so yeah, I can dream :)
ReplyDeleteActually, when I'm really sleep deprived, I actually dream about going to sleep... Always a good sign!
This was a good week for adjustment. New schedule is working better and I cooked great food all week. I took a whole weekend to recharge and not work at all, and now I feel like I can fact this week's enormous pile of freshly submitted "research" papers - about 50 of them.
Last week's goals:
1) Cook real food most nights! DONE and it was good!
2) Run 3 times FAIL completely
3) Project planning, and don't forget this time! DONE
4) Reading project - do with 3 above for planning purposes, 2 birds and all... SORT OF DONE
This week is grading jail time, but in between that I have to finish editing a program proposal and do a bunch of data processing.
This week's goals:
1) Data processing for two collaborative projects
2) Run three times (take 2)
3) Read extra new papers and write literature review for new project.
Ah, yes. A bed of one's own! I forgot to mention that.
DeleteSo glad you got to have a nice week of regrouping and adjustment. Onward!
AcademicAmstr
ReplyDeleteSleep. Ah sleep. Thursday night I only got 4 hours (because of a crazy night where my friends and I got our car locked into a parking garage after midnight an hour away from home), so I've been really enjoying what sleep I get. Ideal? I love my bed, a super dark room (aided by an eye mask), and the biggest dream part: NO ALARM CLOCK! Alas. Every morning, 6:15 comes too early for this night owl.
Last week:
1) write 2x (I have a critique group deadline coming up)--nada
2) exercise 4x, clean bunny hutch 2x--yep, though I may have fallen short on the exercise.
3) plan out food for the week on Monday, grocery shop--yes
4) declutter office for 1 hour total--not really
5) nightly check-ins--half-assed, but I did them.
I'm in the woods with the class I'm teaching. I've realized that I volunteer a lot, for a lot of different things. It's really hard for me to let them go.
With exams and papers to grade, reading to keep up with, and holidays coming up (we celebrate early with my husband's family), I'm going to have to do bare minimum with habits. (I know you all do all this regularly and so much more--I admire all of you for your tenacity and grace in the midst of so many demands.)
For bedtime reading, I've cracked open Gretchen Rubin's "Better Than Before." She describes four tendencies--ways we're motivated: internal + external; only internal; only external; neither (the rebel). I keep wanting it to be different, but I'm clearly external only with a dash of rebel thrown in for good measure in some circumstances. I think that means it's expensive for me to develop habits. :) And it explains why I kept going back to school.
So. This week:
1) TRQ teaching stuff
2) make a list for holiday prep with deadlines
3) exercise 4x; clean bunny hutch 2x
4) nightly check-ins.
Interesting about motivation. I'm guessing I'm an internal + external, but not sure. Plenty of external, for sure (what with all of the schooling, as you note for yourself, and service at my college, for which I receive much praise). Bah.
DeleteGood luck getting through the woods. When I'm dealing with finals and holiday prep and travel prep all at the same time, I sometimes hyperventilate a little bit. It helps me to stay up late one Saturday night, after everyone else is in bed, and I watch "Love Actually" and "The Holiday" while I wrap presents, do some planning, etc. I usually do it when my husband is at a conference (he has always gone to the same conference the first weekend of December), but he's not going this year! I think I will have to kick him out of the house for a night.
Hang in there! (imagine kitten poster here)
Knowing many people who struggle with sleep, I’m always a little uncomfortable to admit that I can fall asleep in about five minutes, virtually anywhere. Usually I sleep through the night without trouble too, except when I’m in periods of overwork and stress. Then I wake up around 3:00 and think about too many things that I am better off ignoring even in daylight hours. If I could have an ideal sleep space, there would be a magic means for falling back to sleep and forgetting all the distractions.
ReplyDeleteLast week:
1. Write for tiny project every day, not worrying about word count: yes, wrote every day!
2. Draft incredibly overdue book review: worked on it but not finished.
3. Listen to/work with guided meditation: yes.
Analysis:
I wrote for tiny project most days but one day worked on the book review and drafted an abstract on another day. I find I have the same problem I have had trying to do the writing month events previously--I often need to do research and reading before I can get any writing done. Writing doesn’t happen well in a vacuum for me. So I face that challenge in the week ahead.
This week:
1. Write every day
2. Finish book review
3. Read one chapter or article for book project
4. Catch up on obligations for conference planning
When I wake up in the middle of the night, I have several strategies to stop the mind from spinning. I count backwards (a classic), I pay attention to my breath (telling myself that all I can do just then is to *breathe*), or (as a last resort), I pick up my book light and my book and read for a while in order to reset my brain.
DeleteThat need to "research and read" before writing is really messing with me right now. I hope you find your way to the writing this week. I'll be working on that, too.
It's quite lovely to have someone who cam empathize with my issues! I'm thinking about printing out a book chapter draft and spending some time editing that, or at least marking up places that need more research. Happy writing!
DeleteTopic: if you had a genie at your command to magic up your ideal sleep environment, what would it be? Ah, that elusive thing, sleep. I have been struggling with sleep the past few days (hence my late check-in), so this is a great topic. I need a room of my own--like the bed to herself that Daisy describes, but even more exclusive, with no one in the room but me! I am a very light sleeper, so my night-owl husband cannot sneak in without waking me. It helps slightly to have quiet music on (no trumpet solos!), and a cool room with warm blankets.
ReplyDeleteI also try to empty my mind--writing down anything that is bugging me, whether an errand, or some colleague who irritated me. I think I could probably do with a massage--maybe hot stones--every night, too, if I’m going to dream!
Last week’s goals: Write for 30 minutes 3x; 20 minutes 2x. Not quite. Although I did all that writing, it was things like letters of support, and editing DH’s article.
Walk midmorning 5x, and mid afternoon 5x. Yes, done and enjoyed!
Declutter my desk for 15 minutes 5x. Only 3x, but I can see the surface!
Organize my next day 5x. Yes, this habit is proving to be very helpful.
Analysis: My creative writing took a hit this past week, but I was pleased that I can crank out required writing on command. I had to write a letter of support for an award for a colleague, and thought it would be difficult to sit down and do, even though I think very highly of this person. I sat down and wrote, edited, and printed it on letterhead within two hours, at work, with distractions. Yay, me. I also had to fill in some gaps in DH’s article--he clearly has lived with me too long, for now he skips across arguments like stepping stones across a creek, which is my worst writing-related habit!
Next week’s goals: Write for 30 minutes 4x to finish some of the blog posts I have simmering.
Walk midmorning 7x, and mid afternoon 5x. I plan to add dog walking to the mix.
File the stuff left over from decluttering my desk for 15 minutes 5x.
Organize my next day 7x. I’m going to try to extend this habit to the weekend.
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This sounds like a pretty good week Elizabeth! Congrats on the exercise, pre-organizing, and a little bit of desk clearing! I wish you better sleep next week, along with a bit more time for your creative work.
Deleteaw
ReplyDeleteSorry for the late checkin-
Last weeks goals
1. Finish data entry -NO
2. Draw some graphs related to project ppw -NO
3. Finish the CR draft, which I now feel much more motivated about because I can see an end to it.-NO
I got swamped last week- I feel as though I got a lot done, but under a lot of pressure, and none of it was TLQ. So, the same goals again this week, plus exercise 4x.
Sleep- I loved my last house which was in the country and you couldn't see a single house light at night. Only the sky. It was perfect, and so quiet. We often slept with all the doors open. I wish I could do that again! Otherwise, warmth and a good mattress!
The country house sounds dreamy! Best of luck getting to the TRQ this week.
DeleteI mean next week.
DeleteHello, I’m checking-in late. Well. Anyway.
ReplyDelete1. Topic
Sleep. So great a topic. Reading all of your ideal sleep, I have had a really enjoyable time imaging each! At the same time, I am sorry but so many of us longing for sleep - just sleep.
Me, I dream of going to bed to sleep alone, with no alarm set, no plan for the next day.
2. Last goals:
1) Again, finish the first draft of the article. - Not yet. Again.
2) Do three minute-exercise three times a day. - I have tried to be active, like choosing stairs instead of lift, walk faster than usual, but I did no particular exercise.
3) Think of working hard, and taking care of my health at the same time. - This was hard. I have been thinking whether I waste time or I work hard. I decided I would work more, trying to be more productive, but at the same time I know well that I need sleep, need to be healthy to keep things going. Difficult question again: can I be more productive? More effective without feeling stress???
3. Analysis:
I think I got stuck at my paper. I need to think about the way of escaping from this sea of panic. Calm down, Matilda. There must be a way to get out.
4. Planning:
The deadline of the paper is coming really soon, and I am still reading materials. The next week is another busy week, but it is always so. Create time to write and stick to it, Matilda.
5. Next goals:
Same as this week:
1) Again, finish the first draft of the article.
2) Do three minute-exercise three times a day.
3) Think of working hard, and taking care of my health at the same time.
Have a good week, everyone!
It sounds like you are having some of the same problems as humming42 and I are: lots of reading before the writing, so having a tough time getting to the actual writing. We must all get to the writing next week!
DeleteDear all:
ReplyDeletesorry for being more than 2 weeks late with this check-in: I don't know how time gets so away from me.
1. Sleep: yes, great topic--and also yes to all who said they needed "me" time before/instead of going to bed: I do, too, and I still haven't found a good solution: I currently alternate between too little sleep or too little me-time, all the while reminding myself that "this too shall pass," kids will grow up (and be able to take themselves to bed, like Oldest), semester will wind down, and I will somehow find an unwind activity that doesn't bring out my addictive tendencies, so that I can actually stop the activity after 15-20 minutes.
2. Old goals and progress:
a. grade all the essays --> yes (by now)
b. read MA thesis assignments and hold meetings w/ the students --> actually, this one is ongoing, so yes but also no
c. set midterm exam --> yes (by now)
d. walk daily, lunch in pleasant environment, no email/computer at night, go to bed on time --> some progress
3. Analysis. I moved back to home state for the remainder of the semester, which is always a big undertaking: packing/unpacking, cleaning (at the place left behind and at home), paperwork, jetlag, dealing w/ new childcare & schools. So, that was 2 weeks right there. Ugh. Why I never plan for that lost time is just beyond me. . .
4. Upcoming week: looks reasonable. I have a ton of grading to do, but it's possible! I also, just today, started a small (2 person) writing group with a friend in home state, to help me be more productive with my writing time between now and the end of the semester.
5. Goals:
a. grade all the exams
b. grade BA thesis proposals
c. do writing group task: identify & track down references to update lit review for GP paper
d. practice self-care: walk daily, unwind daily, & sleep enough
e. next semester anticipation: make class schedule for BA1 class