How do you Bookend Your Day?

I'm in the middle of a disheveled week. There's a workshop sucking up 4 hours of my morning which is basically the whole morning - from 7 am to 11 am. The afternoon sucks up more time related to the workshop... with the end result that I'm spending 6-7 hours of my day working on this contract. Normally... I do maybe 1-2 hours a day. Hence the dishevelment of this week!

Given all that is going on, I am handling it remarkably well. And that's not must me thinking that... that's my partner commenting on it as well! Despite the fact that my usual morning routine is a bit out the window... I'm not blogging, journaling is hit or miss, and let's not even talk about my morning walk... However, I am managing to keep some of the key pieces in place - like meditation, cat cuddling (very important) and a healthy breakfast.

And in the evenings, I am still doing my journaling and reading a book. Still finishing eating by 6:00 (ish) and limiting my time on the computer screens... even though I still have to do a final sweep of workshop related stuff at 8 pm. 

All in all... not doing too badly. As we were talking, it came to me that... as long as my morning and evening routines are remaining fairly intact, the rest of the day flows not too badly. Yes, there are ups and downs and disruptions but... I'm handling it better than I have in the past. It's like my morning and evening routines are bookends to my days.

Some days... I probably wouldn't miss a bookend, or even both of them... because the day is like a bunch of hardcovers... they can stand up on their own for a while. Day after day... likely not. But for just this day... I can manage without a bookend.

Other days however... I'm trying to corral a bunch of floppy softcovers and... geez... without both bookends, the day just ends up falling apart. Pull those bookends away and it's a right-old mess!

The thing is... I really don't know what the day is going to look like, so it's important for me to tend my bookends. I need to pay attention to my morning routine... and if I can't go for a walk, at least I could puzzle for a bit instead. I can make these little adjustments and still find time for me, even in a hectic morning. What I'm realizing is that I can seize those small moments and actually get a fair bit done. This morning... I didn't journal or blog... but I did work on another personal writing project, and that felt really good.

I also can't neglect my evening routines. Even though the day is done... the evening routine gives me a chance to decompress... to journal a bit and debrief. To play a game with my partner (and lose!). To read a book, even just a few pages. All of this calms me and prepares me for the next day. It allows me to clear the space so that I'm not carrying unresolved stuff into the next day.

What I'm also realizing is that my morning bookend has a bunch of moving parts. Depending on the day of the week, I might do weights... or I might go for a walk. Or I might work on one of these blogs. Or maybe I'll work on my other writing project. Perhaps I'll go for a walk... or save that for later. It's much easier on me when I have a set routine... first do this, then do this, then do this. That's part of what makes habit stacking so effective. I'm finding it harder with all of these mobile options. It's very easy for me to forget some key parts, especially if I start off the day doing something different... like working on a puzzle first thing. I really need to focus to connect with... what to do next.

A flexible routine is an oxymoron to me... routine is something set and solid. It's not flexible. And for something to be flexible... that implies that there is a lot of room for variability... totally not routine! So I am having to wrap my head around the idea of marrying these two contrary concepts into a united whole. Is there such an offspring?? I guess I might need to alter my vision of routine... perhaps it is not "rigid" or "structured"?

Or perhaps... rather than seeing my morning routine as a solid block... I need to see it as series of smaller pieces, that can be combined into different shapes. Kind of like Lego blocks. Some pieces are non-negotiable... like stretching and meditating... and journaling... but other than that, I can grab different pieces and combine as I choose... in the timeline that I choose.

Maybe... I will have to mull this over a bit more. In the meantime... I will work on hanging onto my daily bookends! They are small steps... but without them, my days would be a bit of a mess!

Falling Off the Routine Bandwagon

I was off in Vancouver for a few days and my well-honed routine went out the window... no meditation or stretching in the morning was the first to go. I did journaling on one day and then it fell apart on the second day. My plan to walk 10,000 steps each day also didn't happen. My evening journal page also evaporated. Sigh.

That's the thing when you travel. You are out of your familiar milieu... you are away from your well-worn routine and... it's hard, really hard to keep things going. I try... but it's all different. It's like I need a different routine for a different environment, which probably makes sense but is something for which I didn't plan or prepare!!

It would take a it of effort given that I am staying at my sister's house and working on their timetable. They aren't up early and it's not a house in which I could cook my breakfast without disturbing someone's slumbers. At least not at 5:30 in the morning... Even as I'm tying this at 7:05 am... I realize I didn't take my Synthroid this morning! Ugh...

I'm not sure what a routine would look like when I'm traveling. And it seems like a lot of work to come up with a plan that I only need every once in a while, and only for a few days at at time. I know that when I get home today, I will slip back into my familiar routine and all will be well.

Perhaps if I was going on a longer trip... then it might make sense to devote some time and thought to what a morning routine might look like.

The one thing that has worked on this trip is... I get up early and I walk to the nearby Starbucks and sit there for several hours. Yesterday, I did do my morning journaling there, and I wrote one of these blogs. So that all worked. But this morning... I am heading back on the ferry, so the bus disrupted the flow of my early morning pattern. Even though I'm at a Starbucks near the ferry terminal, the journaling has taken a back seat. Although... kudos to me, I am writing a blog!

What I really needed on both days, however, was some food to take with me. Because I get hungry in the morning, and if I'm sitting at Starbucks for 3 hours... the siren call of the chocolate brownie becomes too much to resist. And while sometimes my sister has packable food options... not this time. So it would require me to go to the grocery store and get a few things to tide me over. Which all seems like too much effort for a 2 day visit. And so I cut corners and shave a few things off my routine.

Perhaps that is what is required... just cutting myself some slack when my habit doesn't follow its usual groove... or doesn't transfer well to another environment. It's just for a couple of days... and I can get back in the flow tomorrow. More or less... I hope!

In the meantime... what might a new habit ritual look like while staying at my sister's place? Just so I'm well-prepared for next time!

• get out of bed and take my synthroid
• get dressed and go upstairs for bathroom stuff
• do my 5 min meditation/stretching in the family room
• grab & go snack for Starbucks (the fridge usually has fruit & nuts - prep the night before)
• walk to Starbucks
• journal 2 pages
• write a blog
• and other stuff!

I know myself... and if I have it written down and mapped out in my head, then I've reduced the friction of some of these. I have thought through where I can do my morning stretches and meditation. Because if I haven't figured it out beforehand... it's not going to happen as I stand and wonder... where should I do it? Bedroom? Family room?

It's these small steps in planning and preparation that I hope will make a difference for next time!

Slower Mornings Just a Fact of Aging? Or Wisdom?

I don't know about you but when I was in my 20s... I moved FAST! In less than 30 minutes, I could go from a sleeping start to out the door! And I did stuff too!

20-Something Me's Morning Start

• get up
• toilet
• jump in the shower
• get dressed
• eat breakfast
• make lunch
• brush teeth
• pack bag
• head out the door

30 minutes. What the heck?? How is that even possible???

50-Something Me's Morning Start

• get up
• toilet and check phone for news
• brush teeth and wet down hair (no shower to speed things up)
• get dressed
• give cat her treats (a ritual)
• feed cat her dry and wet food
• do some stretches and meditation
• cuddle cat in the chair for a few minutes & scroll through phone
• pack office bag
• head out the door

That's a good 30 minutes AND there's no shower or breakfast in there. Nor a packed lunch.

Yes, there is a cat in there... but I think the bigger thing is the phone. When you don't have a phone... it's easier to focus and stay on task. The stretches and meditation also weren't there in my 20s

If I were to add in breakfast... a bowl of oatmeal with berries and nuts, that would add at least another 30 minutes to the whole thing. Ya gotta love PB&J sandwiches for their speed... both in making them and eating them.

Sometimes I think... "I should be able to get this done faster!" But maybe faster isn't better. Maybe it's good for me to have a slower start to the day... and take some time to interact with the cat... do some stretches... ease into the day with some meditation. It's not all about speed, is it?

Savouring vs Speeding

Perhaps... just perhaps... rather than trying to cram as much stuff as I can into a day... I could consider that it's about savouring the moments that are there. Less is More?

Take the little cat for example. We won't always have this little cat and she is a precious little being. I've had several cats and none have been as interactive as her. She loves to chase the treats that we throw for her. She loves to find them hidden in the same spots every morning. She coos and chirps and runs around the house with an excited curly tail. She wants... nay... needs... her morning cuddle time in the chair. But me? That chair cuddle time has become a rare thing. I'm too much in a rush to get out the door before 5:30 am so I can hit Starbucks just as they open and sit down and journal and blog and get some work done. Would it be so horrible if I took 10 minutes to just sit with the little cat and... not scroll the phone... but cuddle her with consciousness and intention? Might be a good thing for me. Because in a few years... the little cat will be gone. I could actually take the time now to savour those moments.

There's a word in German... Genießen (or Geniessen). It translates to enjoy, savour, relish. I experience that word as a slow word. To sit in the chair and soak up the experience of a cat cuddle. To savour it, enjoy it, embed myself in it. Without the constant natter in my head that says "gotta get moving... gotta get moving"...

In German - Das Leben lebt von liebenswürdigen Kleinigkeiten,
die unserem Herzen Freude bereiten und unsere Augen staunen lassen.
In English - Life is made up of lovely small things
that bring joy to our hearts and amazement to our eyes.

And it's true... there are so many small things in life that bring joy to our hearts - a bumble bee in a flower, a dandelion pushing through the pavement, a sunrise, a cat cooing. And it is good to stop, pause and savour those small moments. But first we need to be aware of them. We need to actually see them.

When I'm moving fast... so many of these small things pass by and I barely acknowledge them. And savouring the moment doesn't mean I have to stand there and commune with a butterfly for 10 minutes. But I can see it, recognize it, and savour the moment before moving on.

Although... it is good to sit and savour as well. Something I could definitely practice more!

Sooo... back to my morning routine... maybe it's not about aging and moving slower. Maybe it's about wisdom and moving slower in order to savour those small moments?