Hello everyone
Lupin season continues! The visual impact of a giant field of lupins is always wonderful, and my feeling is the more the better. Our local highways are beautiful right now, all the ditches and banks are full of flowers. My garden ones are a bit past their prime but still lovely especially up close… Beautiful up close on individual stalks, and beautiful when they contribute to a giant field…
I’m struggling with overwhelm right now, everything feels too big, and small actions seem inconsequential, so this week’s prompt is my reminder to reset, and to remember the power of small actions repeated over time and space. What are your favourite, or most effective small actions, in work or life, that are valuable on their own, but also multiply and grow and contribute to making things beautiful?
Goals below, have a wonderful week!
DEH
-take
shoes to UPS for return
-swim x2, gym x2, outdoor bike ride x1
-plant cucumbers
-book August trip
-work on new paper
-lots of editing stuff
JaneB
A
LOT of meetings and diaried items this week, so it's going to require attention
to get anything TLQ done this work week. And hopefully the decluttering happens
this Friday.
SELF-CARE:
* 3x20 intentional movement, 1 x making, 1 x small thing with people, reading
every day (with dinner, in waiting times)
* doing and planning some food prep
HOME AND ENVIRONMENT:
* 75% of chores
* make the most of the decluttering session (if it happens!) and if not do one
thing off the small items list
TEACHING AND ADMIN:
* another exam board this week and associated paperwork
* one hour on Icky Admin Task
* checking in with other research masters student
* one block on teaching for next year (I have multiple small tasks like
correcting problems I noticed with slide order, updating case studies, changing
discussion questions that didn't work as I'd hoped etc. - I jot these down
after sessions during the year when I often don't have the bandwidth/time to do
them properly, then batch them as part of preparing for the next year. These
are well suited to fitting in around meetings to add up to a block
RESEARCH:
* submit small group paper if people reply
* help student if needed with changes on rejected paper
* write draft text for second set of results from modelling problem, and run a
couple more sets of modelling
* start working on revisions for the group paper (I submitted a revised version
in April - It's come back quite quickly with a much more positive and useful
set of comments, thankfully).
Julie
1.
Big Article: 3 days
2. Collect inter library loans, return a book, borrow others.
3. Read two articles for teaching prep meeting.
4. House/life admin: do proper clean of cooker and oven, plan for being away
next weekend & family visit, find out about visas for summer trip, niece's
birthday and Father's Day.
5. Self-care/fun: run x 3, try for a walk the other days, read, journal, enjoy
weekend away with friends and family visit Sunday evening.
heu
mihi
1. Write 6500 words (I have an end-of-month goal I'm trying to reach)
2. Process one journal submission; process one revision; maybe start the next
submission
3. Annoying life stuff: Deal with car thing, deal with excise task thing,
settle upcoming travel to see parents; email catch-up
4. Grad students: Prep for (and preside over) a prospectus defense; read grad
student's exam document
Susan
1.
Enjoy my sister's visit, even though she is not staying at my condo (that was
the plan)
2. Start unpacking
3. Do the minimum of administrative work to make sure the wheels all keep
turning.
Daisy
Make
project plan for intern and two other students
Do data processing for student project
Open one of the research project docs and do more than one thing
Conference accounting and catch-up with everything
Exercise
Happy Solstice! The days get shorter from now on... (and we're due some hot weather next week, there's a heat warming out for some days which is ugh, so shortening days and the lure of autumn is a positive thought for me!). Small actions - in life, making the small decisions and chores the night before has been working well for me - assembling an outfit including undies and leaving it ready to go, checking my work bag has all the things it needs and packing stuff for lunch if its a leave the house day, setting all the phone alarms I need to keep myself on track, having something prepared to grab for breakfast (which can range from foodprep like pancakes or egg cups or yoghurt/fruit/granola, to just making a plan like say nut butter and tomato toast, and leaving the bread, the jar of nut butter and a tomato on the bread-board ready to go in the morning). Basically making it as easy and decision-free as possible to get myself from waking up to in front of my computer to check the morning email! Work wise, the small thing is probably parking on a downhill slope at the end of research type activities - which I've extended to teaching blocks for summer. That 3-5 minutes of noting the next few actions leads to 10-15 (to 30) minutes of gained time when I next get to the task, saved by not faffing and flailing trying to decide what to do or how to start. And that adds up! Also reduces the "oh I must remember..." alerts my memory throws up at random moments All The Time, so that's nice!
ReplyDeleteLAST WEEK:
Meetings eat so much time. And make me so grumpy and uninclined to actually work in the spaces. This was a discouraging week overall, but I know that's largely due to Too Many Meetings and warming weather.
SELF-CARE:
* 3x20 intentional movement, 1 x making, 1 x small thing with people, reading every day (with dinner, in waiting times) 2x20 and 2x15, several experiments with Zen Doodles, D&D with my nibling, and I did read (finished the newish Murderbot - not the BEST entry in the series, but still a very enjoyable read - and reading an introductory history of Africa written by an African author which is very interesting)
* doing and planning some food prep yup!
HOME AND ENVIRONMENT:
* 75% of chores yes
* make the most of the decluttering session (if it happens!) and if not do one thing off the small items list it didn't, I didn't. Sigh
TEACHING AND ADMIN:
* another exam board this week and associated paperwork it went on, but it's not as bad as last year! Also the external examiner who likes to repeat himself a lot wasn't able to attend which helped keep the meeting on track
* one hour on Icky Admin Task 45 minutes
* checking in with other research masters student she postponed until the coming week but did submit some text, which was positive
* one block on teaching for next year I managed about an hour
RESEARCH:
* submit small group paper if people reply no, but I have enough replies that I can finish it off and get it in if I can make time this week
* help student if needed with changes on rejected paper yes - quicker on my end than I expected so far
* write draft text for second set of results from modelling problem, and run a couple more sets of modelling no, but I finished some other notes, and yes
* start working on revisions for the group paper (I submitted a revised version in April - It's come back quite quickly with a much more positive and useful set of comments, thankfully).started, got stuck and very very annoyed with being asked to rewrite one section and not being able to really disentangle what we actually wrote - _I_ didn't write this section originally, and I agree with the referee that it's a mess, but I was so not in the mood to work on it. Hopefully this week...
COMING WEEK
DeleteFewer meetings, but some which will generate quite a lot of new tasks. And the forecast is very bad for me - hot and humid to the point of heat warnings with hot nights. Sigh! I will NOT be going on campus - last week my office had begun to heat up already and it won't cool down until the Autumn. And I am so irritable in the heat!
SELF-CARE:
* 3x20 intentional movement, 1 x making, 1 x small thing with people, reading every day (with dinner, in waiting times)
* resting during the day in hot weather with my feet up - the inflammation and swelling that comes with hot weather gives me a lot of joint pain and definitely contributed to last summer's plantar fasciitis flare, and I want to Be Sensible this year. Also horizontal rests do a better job of resetting my irritation levels!
* write a small list for the following week - which I have taken as Annual Leave, and whilst I want to do a lot of rest/chore things I'd like to do a couple of more finishable, not-just-more-of-the-usual things
HOME AND ENVIRONMENT:
* 75% of chores
* make the most of the decluttering session (which is rescheduled to the coming Friday) and if not do one thing off the small items list
TEACHING AND ADMIN:
* last exam board for this session this week and associated paperwork
* one hour on Icky Admin Task
* checking in with other research masters student
* one block on teaching for next year
RESEARCH:
* submit small group paper if time (will take 2-3 hours because, ick, submission portals)
* continue to help student with changes on rejected paper
* discuss progress and run a couple more sets of modelling (park writing til July)
* complete first draft of revisions for the group paper (I submitted a revised version in April - It's come back quite quickly with a much more positive and useful set of comments, thankfully) - it needs to go to the rest of the team at the end of this week.
* referee two journal articles (I'm an idiot, only meant to accept one...)
Love the planning tips! I do some of that, including the "hopeful plan" and also the "need more sleep" backup plan. Sorry it's so hot--I think we have your weather, and vice versa, as it has been truly pleasant here, with adequate rain. It sounds like you've made good progress on lots of fronts, even though weather and other humans are frustrating.
DeleteSeconding Dame Eleanor on loving the planning tips. Solidarity for incoming heatwave - I think it won't be as bad here as further south, but not looking forward to it. I think I know the African history book you mean - haven't read it, but am curious!
DeleteHope the worst of the heat missed you and you got some high quality rest during the worst days! Good luck with the reviewer comments, and the reviewing!
DeleteDeep into overwhelmed territory here, partly my own work, but mostly from large-scale university drama and reorganization with a side of government insanity, and now that I’m department head it is all 100% my responsibility. I knew it would be an adjustment, but there really is an added weight…
ReplyDeleteIt is also my kid’s last couple of weeks of school, so we have all the official last things, academic and social, and it is lovely but also very strange and emotional. Julie, thinking very much of you in the same boat right now!
So a good reminder – small actions repeated over time is the only way to get anywhere, really… Child-rearing is definitely that – thousands of hugs, corrections, meals, drives, lessons, tears, storybooks, bedtimes, and all kinds of little or big adventures are all lovely when they are being done, but over 16 years these all worked together and created a lovely human… Just like knitting – thousands of stitches repeated make something. Just like research – thousands of measurements and record and words add up to a story. So, forgive my personal indulgence this week, I really need the reminder! One thing at a time, even if it seems inconsequential...
Last week’s goals
Make project plan for intern and two other students YES, NEEDS WORK
Do data processing for student project MOSTLY
Open one of the research project docs and do more than one thing YES
Conference accounting DONE and catch-up with everything ONGOING
Exercise YES!!!
I started a thing I’ve threatened to do for years and never did – I’ve been biking to work a few times each week, and it is marvelous. It’s only been two weeks and I did two trips each week but I can see it sticking as a summer habit for sure. It is about 11km each way so just about half-an-hour, downhill in the morning and uphill in the afternoon so it works well for getting in fast and in socially acceptable shape after minimal clean-up. The road back is more challenging, but definitely very good for me!
This week’s goals
REMEMBER the small actions!
Get some teacher gifts
Comments and edits for student chapters
Do a lot of data processing for joint project
Enjoy/appreciate all the “lasts” this week and next
Bike to work 3 times
The biking sounds lovely! I hope you can keep it up. Commiserations on the chair stuff with extra drama. Congrats to your kid, and to you on creating said lovely human. It has been clear, over the years, how much you enjoy doing things with them, and that is a wonderful base to have.
DeleteWith you on the overwhelm and the emotional rollercoaster of parenting, especially this transition stage. Good luck and congratulations on getting to this point! Biking to work sounds great.
DeleteGood for you on the biking--I'm glad that it's so enjoyable! And I also love your catalog of little things that make a difference. It's so easy to forget the effect of all that.
DeleteCongratulations to both the kid and the parent! And I'm impressed by the biking. The times I have had an uphill biking home have sometimes been VERY hard, so kudos!
DeleteI have trouble *believing* in the efficacy of repeated small actions, even though I *know* this--it's always an act of faith to try to do one small thing (and if it's 'grade one paper' I'm always hoping that the grading elves will come and finish if I just show them what to do). I think the small things also suffer from trouble making transitions. It's clear to me that putting down one thing and picking up another is a good way to make progress in multiple areas, but that's another thing I struggle with. But that's one thing this group is good for, trying to keep all the things going and hearing how other people do it!
ReplyDeleteHow I did:
-take shoes to UPS for return: YES
-swim x2, gym x2, outdoor bike ride x1: NO, caught a mild cold, swam once, gym once, no biking, some short walks. And I did back exercises every day!
-plant cucumbers: YES, also some weeding and started vine-clipping
-book August trip: NO (ack)
-work on new paper: YES (barely--about 40 minutes)
-lots of editing stuff: YES but still not done . . . (I am finding the editing very tedious and also stressful (I don't think any of the contributors even looked at the formatting guidelines), and I think this is why I haven't tackled the trip-booking: I can only handle one tedious stressful thing at a time, even though I know the trip stuff won't take more than an hour and then it will BE DONE. Sigh.)
ALSO: much defracking of habitat, most of which is still in progress but at least we got started. Sir John finished his project of cutting down the maple grove he allowed to get started last year, leaving two saplings, and mowed, now that we have the replacement battery for the lawn mower. I'm working on cleaning books & shelves, and re-shelving books at the back rather than the front of shelves: when we had a tornado warning, we had difficulty extracting Reina from book-tunnels to take her down to the basement, so we're going to stop letting the cats have said tunnels behind our books (except in the basement!). This will be a big task, since we have a LOT of books. I've also tried on many tee-shirts and picked several to give away as no longer fitting well. I'm hoping to try on all my clothes this summer (except the purely sentimental items that haven't fit in decades) to see what still works, what needs to go, what I might want to replace or wear more. And I did a couple of small sewing/mending tasks.
New goals:
-back to gym: swim x2-3, weights x2, cardio x3
-finish the editing tasks and make the issue the press's problem
-4 x half-hour on research
-more defracking of habitat
-book the dang August trip
-get EU visas for July trip
-avoid thrashing
I love the thought of pulling a book from a shelf to find a cat there! Though what will the poor cats do once their fun hiding places are so cruelly removed?
DeleteThey will still have book tunnels in the lowest level of the house, since that's where we want to have them for tornado warnings. Other than that, we're hoping they'll get used to hiding in carriers and boxes (maybe suitcases?), which can be carried downstairs as necessary.
DeleteAnother ALSO/defracking item was repotting some African violets; I declared some to be ex-plants (crown rot) and took them to the compost pile. There are three more which I'm giving a chance but I think they may have to go that direction as well.
My cats would like some book tunnels please! I'm going to see what I can do... Way to go on all the habitat work! Getting old clothes and things no longer used makes such a difference in a house. Hope the violets recover and thrive!
DeleteGreat prompt, as I am also in full overwhelm at the moment. Daughter is off inter-railing later this week, but stressing about all the responsibility of reservations, train times etc. Teaching prep for next year is encroaching already and I feel there are not enough writing weeks left. Breathe. Little things: advance preparation, whether it's a few minutes each evening to prep breakfast and lunch for the following day, remembering to check lists before plunging into the day, noting down things as I think of or remember them. Above all, remembering to pause and have some quiet time: journaling, a walk outside, a run.
ReplyDeleteLast week:
1. Big Article: 3 days - YES (more research than writing, but I'm working through primary sources, which is a nice reminder of little things adding up to bigger things)
2. Collect inter library loans, return a book, borrow others. - YES
3. Read two articles for teaching prep meeting. - YES (meeting was more productive than expected, if still frustrating)
4. House/life admin: do proper clean of cooker and oven, plan for being away next weekend & family visit, find out about visas for summer trip, niece's birthday and Father's Day. YES TO ALL
5. Self-care/fun: run x 3, try for a walk the other days, read, journal, enjoy weekend away with friends and family visit Sunday evening. YES, ONE DAY, YES, NO (see 'small things that are good' above). YES (if with some stress)
The trip with friends was lovely, to a small town that has been used for filming numerous period dramas. I was with two other history grads, so our activities included a medieval church, almshouses and the very grand house of an important early modern person whom Susan will definitely have heard of (think spymaster). The house has spectacular gardens, including some lovely wildflower displays. So that was a very restorative pause, although I came back to quite a lot of stress last night.
This week:
1. Plan for next week's trip to archives.
2. Finish the primary sources I was working through, maybe look at another set if time.
3. Read ILL books, take notes, add bits to Big Article.
4. Get back to a student who emailed ages ago.
5. House/life admin: get daughter safely off on trip, plan for being away next week, book a bunch of train tickets, if possible book a bulky rubbish collection for later in the month.
6. Self-care/fun: run x 3 unless heat is too awful, journal, read, above all, remember to pause!
Three days of both running and researching sounds excellent! And you did lots of habitat care and had a lovely trip! What a great week.
DeleteThe trip sounds lovely! I'm glad you had fun with that, and got some research time this week too!
DeleteHope rail plans all proceed well and the heat does not interfere.
Pauses are good, taking a good cup of tea outside and breathing is often a good reminder for me.
I am so enmeshed in little things that I wonder whether this is the right prompt for me! Daily Italian, daily Legenda Aurea reading, daily exercise (which I'm skipping today because I'm overwhelmed with small tasks and also spent almost 2 hours weeding--that counts, right?), etc. My days seem consumed by these things. How does one balance making daily progress with maintaining a sense of freedom, especially in the summer?
ReplyDeleteAm I giving myself permission to shirk some tasks today? I'm not sure.... I already feel bad about not swimming this morning. Ugh. Maybe therapy would be a start?
Anyway: Last week was pretty crazy. Lots of birthday activity and 8th-grade-graduation stuff. We had 3 parties to attend on Friday--and also hosted a sleepover/fishing trip! It was nuts.
How I did:
1. Write 6500 words (I have an end-of-month goal I'm trying to reach) - YES! But now I'm feeling out of steam.
2. Process one journal submission; process one revision; maybe start the next submission - MOSTLY (need one more reviewer); MOSTLY (still waiting to hear back from one reviewer); NO
3. Annoying life stuff: Deal with car thing, deal with excise task thing, settle upcoming travel to see parents; email catch-up - YES, YES (still unresolved), YES, YES although it never stops
4. Grad students: Prep for (and preside over) a prospectus defense; read grad student's exam document - YES, NO
This week:
I'll be visiting family from Wed-Sat, which is one more reason that I feel bad about not swimming today!
1. Write 3500-4000 words
2. Find reviewer 2 for new submission
3. Process other journal submission
4. Read grad student's exam doc
5. Read two essays for festschrift; check formatting consistency
6. *Only* read Italian and Legenda Aurea on days that I'm home!
Is this realistic? No. But there we are.
Well . . . I hope you enjoy the family visit and also are able to get the most important things done! You have my permission to slack off a bit this week, especially while with your family (unless you need the tasks as an escape, but IIRC you like your family).
DeleteYay for writing more words! Hope you get a bit of a break to enjoy time with family, and a nice refreshing change of activities.
DeleteDaily small things do lead to progress, but I am definitely with DEH on taking some time to take breaks and do other things. I am trying really hard to balance those things this summer, success will be variable but the attempt alone does help!
Little things: I'm not as good at planning as JaneB, but I always have my work bag packed and ready to go when I have to leave early. I'm very good at the minimal household things that help me feel as if I'm on top of life -- I don't leave dishes in the sink overnight, for instance, and put my clothes in the laundry basket immediately.
ReplyDeleteHow I did:
1. Enjoy my sister's visit, even though she is not staying at my condo (that was the plan) YES, we had a good time, though a little more chaotic because of my life than expected.
2. Start unpacking YES, it's overwhelming
3. Do the minimum of administrative work to make sure the wheels all keep turning. Yes. And unfortunately the committee that will not die is not dying. I think I have a meeting of that committee on the day I will be "separated" from the university. (I have to be separated on June 29 so that I get a COLA (Cost of living adjustment) on my pension in October 2027, but my retirement date is July 1. I do not understand it.) My work as graduate chair is slow but ongoing, so as long as I monitor my email, I'm good.
The new place is great -- whenever I look out the window I see trees - and one of my neighbors brought me AMAZING lemon poppy seed cake from "our local bakery". I am so happy to be in my own space, and in control of time etc. But although I got rid of a lot, I didn't get rid of enough. And I had a BIG kitchen. The kitchen is about 2/3 unpacked, my clothes are about the same. But my office is a disaster area -- lots of boxes were dumped there, essentially three rooms worth of stuff in one room. Right now I've set up my laptop and external monitor on my dining room table. I can't start unpacking books until the bookcases are attached to the wall, important for earthquakes. I've arranged to have some stuff that doesn't fit taken away (it's too big for me to move on my own) and am planning new purchases...
Goals for the week:
1. Keep unpacking
2. Contact handyman about attaching stuff to wall
3. Have a fun reunion with friends from last year
4. Keep up with admin stuff
5. Try to get back into formal exercise that isn't unpacking stuff
6. Get back to cooking (that involves putting stuff away enough that I can use the cooktop - the nice thing about induction cooktops is that they do provide extra counter space when not in use. )
Goals for this week:
1.
Goals for the week ahead
Yay, you're in your new place and making it yours! I hope the getting rid of old things and replacing them with things that fit better is exciting and fun, rather than a struggle (I am not good at parting with old stuff). And I hope you find a good handyperson quickly!
DeleteSo glad you are in your new place! Hope the unpacking slowly makes it feel like a comfortable space with the things you enjoy. Bonus for having fun with friends too!
Delete