Days 18 and 19 - Getting it All Done
I’ve found that getting anything done during the week is almost impossible. As I mentioned (when? Last Tuesday?) I’m starting to feel the burnout. It’s not the project. In fact, learning to self-publish has been my savior, my fun. It’s almost relaxing. Here’s what my mid-week days look like:
Up at 5am
Coffee, write (usually this blog)
6:30am - Shower, get ready for school
Out the door by 7:30
Walk to coffee house for coffee, call Lyft
Lyft to train station - arrive 8-8:30am
Train to school (45 mins)
Walk to school (ten mins)
10am-12:30pm class
Walk to train (10 mins)
Train home (45 mins)
Lyft home (10 mins)
Home by 1pm-1:30pm
Feed the cat, eat lunch, watch something (usually an episode or two). Sometimes I fall asleep, sometimes I’m up
Homework between 3pm and 6pm - intermittent breaks cleaning the house
6pm: Start dinner
Husband home by 7:15pm
Eat dinner, watch some TV - depending on what we watch, I try to be done by 9pm
9pm: Time for bed
In bed by 10pm - usually, my husband and I are chatting, I’m getting ready for bed, sometimes I’m desperately trying to work on Melanie stuff until 11pm. If I don’t go to bed by 11, I’m wrecked in the AM.
The afternoons look like the best time to get stuff done, but by the time I get home from school and start my homework, I’m pretty tired. It’s also during this 3pm-6pm window that I try to work on house stuff (mail, organization, whatever needs to be done). It doesn’t help that my 3rd semester of copy editing started last week and I have anywhere from 45-100 pages of reading every week. Plus, homework and workbook exercises.
I can’t even imagine those of you who have kids. I know there are people out there who raise children, go to school, and work a full-time job. I tip my hat to you all. You are amazing. Please tell me how you do it. Truth is, I’ve been more organized on this project than ever. It’s not just organization, it’s time management. For the first time in my life, I’m mostly sticking to a schedule. But as you can see, when do I have time to write? I see all these people on Twitter posting about their wordcount for the day and I’m like: uh, none? I haven’t written a word in a week - and that was while I was out of town, stuck in our hotel, and I added a new scene to LESSONS IN LOVE.
And then there’s the weekend. My family wants to hang out. My mom wants me to go with her to buy a new couch. I’d love to, but when can I work on Melanie?
This has been my problem forever. How do I manage to do what I want, work on the things I want AND keep the house from falling apart, spend time with my family, and not be wound in knots? In my 20s, I would always succumb to what everyone else wanted - thus, my dreams were put on the backburner. In my 30s, I became a step-mother and all the tasks that came with it. I learned how to assembly-line their lunches, so there’s that.
This isn’t so much a complaint post as it is about commiseration. I know the uber-organized ladies on YouTube are insane. The people who write books about getting it all done are monsters created to make the rest of us feel bad. Marie Kondo is a robot. They don’t show us their freak outs, when they lose their shit on their kids, or smash a dish out of sheer frustration. I’ve been there. I once got so mad while I was washing dishes, I took a cup I hated, walked out to the backyard and smashed it on the concrete. That felt good.
Ok, so we’re all stressed the F out. Right? I assume so. Is this why so many moms post about needing that glass of wine every day? I don’t drink anymore, but I also don’t seem to have an adequate method of venting. The kids are all grown and gone, but I still find it hard to manage my time. Perhaps I need to take a step back and reorganize. I can squeeze a few moments out - like the train ride or not take so long a lunch break. Or should I value my long break and really soak it up? Share your thoughts in the comments. How do you stay organized and keep your stress down? If you’re feeling the burnout, go ahead and vent. I say bah-humbug to the perfect Instagram moms and crazy organizer ladies. They don’t represent the majority of us. Do they? My sink has a funny smell. Clean it out or write a chapter?