Small bites

A super grey cool day with drizzles. The drizzles are welcome, no matter how small. They’re much needed moisture. However, the grey and cool are not conducive for cheer and action. I am in a grey slump, not jumping up and down with excitement nor smiling with glee. I am feeling glum and being negative. There is no point in putting on a phony face. I do apologize for my negativity but I thought it is okay to feel not okay and face and accept what is here.

I am not a total ‘loser’ for lack of a better word. Though I feel lackluster, I am not inert. I still have a bit of life force in me. I’ve been reading Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything by B.J. Fogg. It lit up a small spark in me on this dreary day. I’m already a fan of doing small and doing easy. This book is a great addition to what I have already learned from Atomic Habits.


Rainy days are good for falling asleep and not so good for for finishing posts/projects or for starting them as you can see. I’ve come back to finish what I started yesterday. This way I can honestly say I’m writing every day. Chocolate cake and a coffee does help to wake me up a bit. Writing on doing small and easy and tiny habits do push me to test out the idea of tiny. A bunch of tinys do add up. They have the potential of becoming something big. On difficult and/or rainy days when tasks look monumentally difficult, taking small bites works better than trying to tackle the whole thing.

It works for me. That is how I am getting through the days of this difficult year. Today, I’ve meditated and wrote my morning pages. Last night’s supper dishes and today’s breakfast dishes were done after breakfast. That’s how I start the morning. It starts me up. Then I cosy up with a cup of tea and some reading. We took my father out for lunch. It gets us all out of the house on a grey rainy day. It’s cheery to eat in a restaurant full of other diners. Dad gets a walk in the mall after. Takes his mind off his shingles. The pain is not too bad. He is on tylenol and can sleep and nap despite the discomfort. I feel I’m doing a good job as a daughter with short time spent.

The afternoon is peaceful. I seed a small pot of broccoli and another of brussels sprouts. They will germinate fairly quickly. Our spring is none too warm yet. I’ve painted my teacup for the #the100dayproject. I’ve bagged up some old clothes for the garbage. Then I’m out in the yard, pulling a few of those darned creeping bell flowers. After all the digging up I did last summer, they are creeping up again. I’m applying doing small and easy on them. I will see where that gets me. I’m going to learn how to live with them wisely. And that is not killing myself trying to obliterate them.

THE END OF THE DAY – Day 37 in a year of…

Day 37, August 28, 2016 @9:20

At the end of 37 days, I am weary of setting intentions daily and following through. At the same time it is getting easier.  I’m stretching and reaching my goals.  I must be developing new muscles and building stamina.  I’m still in the early days of my year.  I must keep to the straight and narrow.  It is my own doing.

At the end of this day, I have to show – 6 loaves of whole wheat bread and two zucchini loaves.  Even if I must say it myself, the zucchini loaf is delicious.  It is my first try.  They are all packed and put away.  The bowls, pans, measuring cups and spoons are washed, dried and in their proper places.

It is wonderful to come to the end of the day with my intended tasks completed from start to finish. It hasn’t always been so. Hooray for me!  Are you a finisher?

It is late.  Good night.  Till tomorrow.

DELAYED GRATIFICATION – Day 34 in a year of…

Day 34, August 25, 2016 @7:17 pm

I despair for words each day when I arrive.  What I need to change is my mindset and my timing.  Would I have more to say in the morning before I live the day?  My inkwell seems dry now, tired that I am.  It is a good thing I set my intention in the morning.  At least I have something to go back on.

IMG_7385I am a terrible procrastinator.  I don’t get a lot done because I delay and postpone everything by having a cup of tea/read a chapter/rest/anything else first.  Then I would tackle the task for a little while and repeat the tea, read, etc. My different today was to cut out all the delaying crap.  I got to the heart of the issue – tasks first, then reward.

I completed all my tasks.  The vacuuming was tough.  It seemed to go on and on.  Dog hair everywhere – under the bed, behind furniture, corners and closets.  Ugh!  I will be deliriously happy when shedding season is over in a month or two.  The reward was the floor felt so clean after.  Well worth the effort.

IMG_7387I was surprised by pleasure in hanging the laundry out in sunshine amid my tomatoes. I felt this smile filling me up from the inside as I hung each article.  Pretty silly, right?  It felt so delicious standing and hanging each wet article to be kissed dry by the sun.  I stored the feeling and memory in my body and mind.  I will call upon it to help me the next time inertia hits me.

That was the morning.  Then there was lunch to be made and dishes to do after.  I almost buckle after that.  But I called upon that sunshiny laundry feeling to help me out.  It gave me a little more energy to return overdue books at the library.  After that, Sheba got a reward to the dog park.  It was one for me too.  How do you reward yourself?

Till tomorrow.

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