That’s one of my oldest mottos. And indeed still one my favorites. It’s good right? A nice reminder not to put off starting something until tomorrow and also good for the case where making the most of everyday. Well, it’s slightly contrary to my previous post which was all about wasting time. Unless, of course, the thing you intend to start has to do with carving out time to waste time doing nothing but letting your mind wander in whatever direction it pleases.

Hey, I kinda do that already but it always feels so goal oriented. I’m walking and getting some exercise and producing some words and making little micro-contributions to the vastness of what is now the collective consciousness of humanity. Set that aside though.

I typically don’t make New Years resolutions, but I have in the past. The end of last year moved so fast into 2020 and literally has not paused for breath. Until today. Today is the first day I’ve felt an inkling of time slowing down. The other significant thing that occurred was that I finally broke down and threw out the last of the cake we had in our refrigerator from the wedding.

Last night I got out the last remaining Tupperware and had a few bites of each flavor. That’s it folks. The official end of the big event. It’s a shame nobody in this house eats cake (and I’m really the only one who likes leftovers). So the wedding is over and I’m not trying to be punny but the honeymoon is over top. So what now?

Well, how about some resolutions. I guess you could say my official resolutions for this year were to get hitched, to get my darling daughter graduated and successfully off to college, and to also finish my masters degree. I also want to get my son his learners permit and start teaching him to drive, and support Jim as he opens a new location for his business. That’s all very textbook, and will probably happen naturally with the things I’m doing already. So what can I resolve to do to challenge myself? To elevate my life to the next level? To kick-start my writing or other interests?

The elusive, goal-oriented list would probably be this:

1. submit to publications at some regular interval, perhaps once a week.

2. Write a new poem every week.

3. Read a book a week (fat chance).

4. Do some work on a new website.

5. Participate in more community programs. Which would require some quantifiable definition.

6. Up my step count/exercise regimen.

7. Up my sleep goal (to help with my chronic exhaustion and evening brain fog).

But I can’t stop thinking about the value in wasting time.

I had lunch with my friend Margret and told her about that discussion I went to and I asked her if she did anything like that. She went ahead and told me a little something about her daily prayer practice. She makes a list of people to pray for and then does that. Her list changes every day. I’m not sure that qualifies for wasting time as she has a goal in mind, to help those in need. But it’s very subjective. I don’t believe in what she believes in and some people might see that practice as a waste of time. See how hard it is to define??!!

Anyway, so daily meditation or sending good vibes out in the universe directed at your loved ones feels like a very worthy resolution.

Perhaps I should pick some underutilized space around my house and yard everyday and just sit, and appreciate it for what it is. And perhaps try to gain a different perspective. I always am in the same spaces, kitchen, living room, bedroom, office, workout room. I should try just being somewhere different. The same probably goes to places around town. Now, now— I don’t want to get too crazy.

For real though, I think there is value in just exploring different angles. I need to do that and incorporate that in whatever resolutions I come up with.

Fun fact: Twice before in this blog I have used that motto as my title. The first was right after the inception of the blog on January 14, 2017. The second was about a year later on January 8th, 2018. Since then, the phrase has made numerous appearances in posts but non save those as the title—until today.

I’m gonna wrap now. I’ll see if I can waste some time this evening and come up with a good strategy for whatever resolutions materialize as something tangible. Beyond that… it’s just relaxing and enjoying what is left of the weekend.

Cheers to Starting Something,

~Miss SugarCookie