Well, holidays are here. They were to be expected.
The overwhelming majority of people find this season enjoyable; but what do others (like yours truly) who find themselves outside that segment do while waiting for it to end?
Spending time at home is not as bad as it used to be. There are more choices for entertainment, true. But somehow, I don't find it very enthusing to spend a whole week watching tv or surfing the web.
Instead, my approach is different and might be described as early-spring cleaning:
* Clean up the mess I have let to accumulate during the year. Not always easy as it sounds, because that implies moving furniture around and leaving no spot undusted.
* Clean up the other mess. This includes rearranging books and magazines while coughing up the accumulated dust, deep cleaning the fridge and washing machine... you get the idea.
* Ordering the rest of the mess. Wires behind an entertainment center have a tendency to reproduce and become so entangled, it's quite a miracle I haven't suffered from any sort of EM radiation poisoning... yet.
Leaving aesthetics aside, this also makes them prone to interference. On most occasions, I end up totally redesigning the connection scheme after a couple days of careful thought.
* Take care of the daily mess. A bachelor can have time for his laundry or to party, but rarely both; guess which one has priority. But this part involves sorting and pairing clothing while also getting rid of old stuff.
Do you begin to sense a pattern?
By bringing order to chaos, interesting things happen at the conscious and subconscious levels: You are doing plenty of physical activity, which helps keep things like S.A.D. at bay. But you are also rearranging things and rediscovering forgotten spots, taking care of them. You are getting rid of old stuff and junk you have neglected for months.
I'm not a psychologist, but I feel that because of these activities, my burdens become lighter. Mood improves too.
Of course, when the holidays are over one is very tempted to return to the old ways. It's ok to do so, I think... but only as long as the cleanup ritual is respected as well.
Oh boy, and I have lots to do for this year.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
FWIW: if I had the time, I would gladly spend some (most?) of it choosing a good read & music, drinking alcohol and dissappearing.
Well, that's one of the things I plan to do as soon as the cleanup is over.
Except that I can't drink as much as I used to (and I never was a heavy drinker to begin with).
Post a Comment