Time Out

Well by now you should all realize that I'm quite the "joiner." Whether it's a fun get-together with friends, a volunteer opportunity, something extra at work, special school events and lectures, etc., I will almost always say "yes!" The upside to this is that I meet a lot of great people, have a lot of fun, learn a lot of new things, and gain some great experience. The downside is that there are only so many hours in a day, and when you say "yes" to everything you can easily end up having something planned for every waking moment. I have not yet learned the art of steadily balancing when to join in and when to politely decline, because it all sounds so interesting and I really would like to do everything. I enjoy having a busy schedule, but sometimes I just have to give myself a Time Out.

This week is Spring Break and, like always, there are so many wonderful opportunities that my "week off" was swiftly becoming even busier than a normal week. It all started last Friday, when I had a morning meeting with my mentor, followed by a Relay For Life team meeting, running errands, and then meeting a friend for dinner and the ballet. Saturday and Sunday were spent running more errands, working on school assignments, getting a haircut, going to a dinner party, and driving to Charleston and back for the Army Wives premier party. Monday I left bright and early for a two-day trip to rural Hampton County with Cocky's Reading Express. We did eight literacy events in those two days, meeting thousands of young students and their parents, waking up super early and driving back and forth all over the state. All of these things were awesome and exhausting in a wonderfully fulfilling way.

Once I got back from the CRE trip Tuesday night, I made a valiant effort to continue being productive, even rearranging and cleaning our guest room as soon as I got home. Then I sat down in front of the computer to check my email, and when I saw the hundreds of new messages needing responses, I hit my limit. My brain had finally crossed over from energizing stimulation to plain old overstimulation, and I just could not make myself sort through everything. It was Time Out time. Wednesday I got up as usual, fed the animals...and then did absolutely nothing for many, many hours. I sat on the couch, watched TV, read magazines, snuggled with my pets, and did not change out of my pajamas until four o'clock in the afternoon. It was delicious.

But then I got dressed, and played with the dogs, and cleaned up the yard, and exercised for an hour and a half, and went back to checking things off my revolving to-do list. Kids never appreciate Time Outs, but as an adult, I have come to realize that the ability to give self Time Outs is an art and a virtue. And a sanity saver. Thanks to my day of unapologetic slothfulness, I am now ready to tackle the rest of the week, which will consist of a lot of school work, and dealing with many more Loose Ends.

Do you give yourself Time Outs? Or have you actually figured out how to have a balanced life so you don't need them? What are some of the best ways you've found to "re-charge" if you can take a whole day, half day, an hour, or only 15 minutes? I'm always up for trying something new! ;)