Work Job #1 Monday through Friday. Work Job #2 (Produce (A)isle) Tuesday and Thursday evenings and Saturday afternoons/evenings. Iaijutsu class Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday morning. Church and Rabbit Shelter on Sunday. Gym Monday, Wednesday, and Friday (in theory; still trying to lock this down).
Add to this one week a month at The Ranch (or parts of a week thereof) and this has become the rhythm of my life.
On the one hand, there is a great deal of regularity to it. For example, on Tuesday and Thursdays I always leave Job #1 at 1630 to get to Produce (A)isle by 1700. I arrive home from Iaijustu class almost the same time ever evening and morning. I will be at the Rabbit Shelter on Sunday by 1300 and likely home by 1600.
On the whole, the hours are very cut and dried.
On the other hand, clever readers will notice relatively few gaps of free time that are not interchanges between one thing and the other, where I am doing things like feeding animals and eating. That largely comes down to Friday evenings, mid-day Saturday for about two hours, and Sunday afternoons.
I had written earlier this week about paring down my activities. This schedule has really forced the issue.
Is it a terrible schedule? Other than my inability to sleep for periods at a time, not really. It is predictable. It covers a combination of things I have to do and things I want to do. In the fringes (read mornings) I have the opportunity to do all of the personal sorts of things I need to (like, for example, blog).
It also has the benefit that the random Thursday off really feels like a "true" day off. Free time has never feels more enjoyable than when it is unexpected.
How long can I do this? Hard to say. I am hard pressed to think what I would drop if needed - really I would love it to be Job #1 but I am not independently wealthy to the point that is a possibility. But I can easily see making this work for a longer period of time than I anticipated.
The difficulty, I suppose, really lies within myself: am I willing to accept this rhythm as it exists? Willing to use those precious free hours in ways to move other initiatives forward instead of just randomly clinging to them as "mine, mine, mine"? Or am I only willing to ever be unhappy about the whole thing?
Coming to terms with what "is", instead of what "should be", makes for uncomfortable personal reflection.
Coming to terms with what "is", instead of what "should be", makes for uncomfortable personal reflection.
What jumped out at me and I'm probably wrong, was will you continue to be happy with being unhappy?! What is most important, what is essential now? Unlike Deep Space Nine, there's only twenty fours in a day TB.
ReplyDeleteGood point, Nylon12. I seem to be constantly burdened by the fact that I could be doing more, when it is clear that I have probably maxed out my time and energy.
DeleteFirst time commenting but this particular post struck something very tender in my heart.
ReplyDeleteThe worry I have is that I did not see any time allotment for the ravishing Mrs. TB??
I spent 33 years waiting for my spouse to not be so busy with his life but realized that I was unfortunately not ever going to be a priority. So I find myself alone at this stage in life.
This has left me bereft and I would never wish for you to suffer this.
I’m saying this with only kindness and pray that your schedule has your spouses’ tender loving care right at the top.
I’ve been reading your blog for years and look forward every morning to your words and thoughts. God Bless.
Fetch - First of all, thank you for your readership and your willingness to comment.
DeleteTo some extent we have lead separate activity lives as we have separate interests. We were also doing a date night/date weekend earlier this year, but this has been subsumed by the layoff and the revised schedule. We do have dinner together every night that I am home (or she is home - she has her own schedule as well) and we do have Sunday afternoons.
But point well taken, and I will give it more thought.
For me, questions like this are best answered by asking the other half in the relationship how they feel about all the absences.
ReplyDeletePerhaps we have reached equilibrium Ed, as we both have our own activities that we largely do on our own. There is an element of equality in that, one person not bearing the whole brunt of being "at home" while the other is off doing things.
DeleteThe last 2 question's were along same line as my thoughts. But another is what in Iaijustu are you striving for. Kinda same for the weight lifting. Ravishing Mrs TB may have been fine with kids in the house but house's are very lonely when empty.
ReplyDeleteWhat am I striving for in Iaijutsu? It is hard to explain. One never "arrives"; one is only on the journey. Ideally menkyo (certificate) acquisition, which is on one hand a totally obscure goal, but on the other hand deeply personal.
DeleteFor the other? The Ravishing Mrs. TB keeps an active social live - in many ways, she is more busy than I.
Although you don't mention it, I'm going to guess that your time at The Ranch acts as something of a reprieve in your busy schedule and helps you re-set for the next round. If that wasn't there and your tight schedule was ever ongoing, I think it would be more difficult. We humans aren't machines, after all, and therefore subject to burnout.
ReplyDeleteLeigh, I realized last time out that it is a regular sort of forced reset as a lot of the things I do here simply cannot be done there.
DeleteThat said, the point that this is not a long-term solution is taken. At some point I will need to re-reassess.
Before reading this post, I've been amazed that you keep up with posting here regularly, TB. Now I'm just utterly confused how it's possible. I mean that with kindness. And curiosity.
ReplyDeleteOn one hand, I admire your work ethic and that you have other interests too - that are serious commitments. I also think that having a schedule is a very good thing. I need more regularly scheduled things in my life - but that may also be my being waylaid by recent health issues talking. On the other hand, since you raise questions about how sustainable your schedule is, you make me worry just a tad. I appreciate that you "think outloud" here. It's always good food for thought for your readers.
Becki, I really do use this as a "think out loud platform", which has both good and bad implications - honesty on the good side, perhaps some less than engaging subjects on the other hand (since it largely revolves around me).
ReplyDeletePart of the reason I write and try to prioritize it is that for me, this is an outlet and a discipline. It allows me to think in a way "real life" does not always do, and it forces me to do something regularly ("Write every day", as Eaton Rapids Joe says). And to fit that in, one does need a schedule, or at least as close to an approximation of one as I can get.
The sustainability question is a real one - although it appears that Produce (A)isle will be slowing down a bit through Thanksgiving, which will be welcome.