I need a break. Don't all of us say that at one time or another? Of course we all know the saying "all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." Except for most of us, all having worked too hard and too long many times in our lives, know that "dull" is a very poor and inaccurate word. All work and no play makes a person stressed and exhausted. Then, when that happens, not only are we no good to whoever we are working for, whether it be a boss, friends, family, an organization or club, or even our church - we're no good to ourselves as well.
So with that in mind, my topic this month is probably applicable to everyone - What do you do when you need a break, and how do you get to do it.
For me, I'm a person who gets distracted easily, and I tend to get lost in mini breaks that don't do any good in the long run, in fact, sometimes they do more harm than good because then I'm farther behind on the thing I was doing in the first place.
For me to take a good break, since I don't have the time or money to travel or go on a shopping spree or anything wild and crazy, my break is very predictable.
I grab a good book, make a pot of coffee, get my blankie, and curl up on the couch, if there's no one else in the living room, and read. I'm not talking 20 minutes. I'm talking hours.
Disappearing for a few hours with a good book does take planning. It means trying to pick a time when the house is quiet, and a time when I have nothing pressing to do that can't be left.
Often that also means there also can't be exited dogs poking their noses at me, needing a walk.
When all that is lined up, then I can escape to another world that has a nice happily-ever-after ending (I only read happily-ever-after endings), at least for a few hours.
And this brings me to my thought/question of the day. How do you know that it's time to shut down and take a break before you break something that shouldn't be breakable?
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Hmm. There is never a time when I don't have to worry about the dog. If he's out, I worry he's going to dig a hole under the fence and escape. If he's in, he must be kept quiet not to bother the neighbors. Sometimes reading a book is stressful because I've left it to the last minute and it is due back to the library or it's borrowed and I need to get it back to the owner. LOL But generally speaking, a few hours with a good book can be very relaxing. I also find it relaxing to set a DVD on and grab my crochet hook. I still have the dog problem, but if I can get him settled, that works. How do I know when it's time? Well, you just KNOW. LOL And if YOU don't, someone else will let you know.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like my kind of break! When I need a break, I get quiet and my husband asks me, "Are you okay?" about a thousand times. That's when I realized it's time to read, take a hot bath or knit/crochet (or all three).
ReplyDeletehi gail...just finished the narrow path....really enjoyed it (lost myself in it today, actually). i was thinking to do one of my "therapeutic reviews"and wondered if you might want to do a giveaway with it? somehow i received an ARC .pdf file, which was great...i just switched it to .azw to read on my kindle. so i don't have a copy to giveaway that i normally would. if not, i can just do the review. just let me know!
ReplyDeleteyou can check out other reviews i've done at The Character Therapist.
look forward to hearing from you.
jeannie
The Character Therapist
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ReplyDeleteOops.... I think I hit the wrong button and deleted my own reply! I wanted to comment to Sandie's post about crocheting and add knitting that's another great relaxer. :)
ReplyDelete