May 21 2008
Make the Most of Your Time
My typical Saturday goes something like this… (Lord, this is embarrassing.) Wake up around 7:30am and make breakfast. Surf the internet and catch up on blogs for a few hours (I know, I know). Go for a run. Come back and shower. Grab some lunch–eat while surfing the internet again. Write for an hour or two. Straighten up the house. Watch some TiVo’d programs (Battlestar Galactica, House, Law & Order SVU, The Office). Make dinner. Watch TV or movies until bed. Repeat on Sunday.
Sure, I get some things done (a little bit of writing, a run, cleaning), but the bulk of my weekend is frittered away on mindless entertainment. I didn’t truly realize the impact this was having on my life until recently.
A few weekends ago, my husband and I actually got out of the house. We woke up on Saturday morning, went running together, and came back and made breakfast. We walked downtown to go the DC Chili Cookoff. We met some friends and hung out there for a few hours. It wasn’t really our scene, so we left and walked to the movie theater in Chinatown, where we saw “Forgetting Sara Marshall” (off-color, but hilarious!). We had dinner at a sushi-go-round place and then went out for a beer. It was an incredibly fun day.
I woke up the next morning totally convinced that it was Monday. Why? Because we’d gotten out and done so much that Saturday felt like an entire weekend by itself. Sunday was like a bonus gift–we slept in, made waffles (with PB&J for me!), and had a lazy morning. Then we went out to run errands for a while. When we got home, I went over to a friend’s house and we cooked together. It was AWESOME! The weekend felt like it lasted forever.
The moral of the story: Don’t let time-suckers like TV and the Internet steal away your leisure time. You will get so much more life in your life if you’re out doing something than if you’re home sitting on the couch. My excuse is always, “I had a hard week–I’m tired and I need some rest.” But I’m here to tell you that my excuse is total BS. I felt far more energized after my action-packed weekend than I would’ve after a 6-hour TV marathon.
What are your biggest time-suckers and what are some things you can do to defeat them?
6WBMO Update: I’m still sticking to the exercise portion of the plan and doing my modified eating plan. Overall, I’ve lost two pounds since Day 1, BUT I’ve lost a total of 2 inches, so I’m guessing that I’ve put on some muscle!
Daily Routine Update: Can I tell you how much I love my routines? I LOVE my routines!!! They are really improving my quality of life. I highly recommend this for anyone who has a set of recurring tasks that need to be done every day and struggles with time management. It makes a huge difference!
Seriously? 7:30 on Saturdays? That, my friend, is where you have issues.
Actually, my weekends are typically extremely busy, to the point that if I’m watching TV, it’s a welcome reprieve. Right now is little league season, so we are running around watching/coaching the kids, we have the kids every other weekend, so those are always packed, and on the off weekend, there is always something to do. Most weekends, if I check my email once, that’s an accomplishment.
I typically do all the laundry on Sundays (didn’t this week and I’m still paying for it), so that usually guarantees me at least a little butt time on the sofa.
What I can’t seem to find the time to do on weekends is my own thing. I don’t get a chance to go work out or walk. I need to start getting that in.
My computer is mine. With trying to design my website, blogging, looking at other blogs, chatting with some friends, etc. The computer sucks a bulk of my day! So, since it’s rather pretty outside most days and not hella hot (yet), I try to get out as much as I can. Even if it’s running around the complex or going to the bookstore, I just get out. Shake it up a little bit.
This weekend though, I have to do some cleaning. Hardcore, my room is a HUGE mess. I’m ashamed of myself, actually.
My weekends are housechore catchup time - laundry and cleaning and then relaxing. Last weekend was packed with going out with friends. I like to alternate how the weekends are used, because if I do go out a lot on the weekends, I have to do the laundry and whatnots during the week (blah).
That said, it would be easy to get sucked into the Internet or veg in front of the TV. By the way, isn’t BSG great! I finally have Greg hooked on it. Lol
How funny, we watch the same TV shows. I LOVE me the L&O. Had a big crush on Jack McCoy since day 1
The computer took over my life and led to insomnia. This is a common problem for Pro level bloggers. Recently I made the decision to change my blog topic focus to cooking, and one reason is that cooking forces me to get away from the computer as I have to be at the store or in the kitch.
It’s all about balance, but it is Soooo easy to get sucked into the vortex of the web..lol…
I’m so totally with you on this! When I’m lazing around the house all weekend, time seems to drag — but then Monday’s there before I know it! It’s much better to get out and do something productive.
Getting sucked into the internet world is a daily occurance in my house…it has infected my entire family. hehe
I actually enjoy the weekends and have learned to balance them. I work all week and typically store the bulk of the house chores/laundry until the weekend but I’ve noticed that I don’t ever feel rested or relaxed if I spend my weekends indoors after an entire week of work so I dedicate one day to the house (rarely leave the house on that day) and I dedicate one day entirely to getting out and about. I don’t set it to one specific day because I’ve noticed over time that different things come up on different days that I might be interested in not to mention it gives my daughter an incentive to help clean up if she knows we will get to do something afterward AND I still get a little of both worlds!
~K