It's Part of the Job... (Patreon)

Hey hey, Everyone （╹◡╹）♡

It's all a bit of overwhelm, isn't it?

Okay, I've got a dozen or more posts all started because there is so much I want to share and talk about. There are more soundscapes, some videos (both of the Crow and Nature variety), thoughts, culture, and even a couple recipes. My head is going a mile a minute, but my focus has been -- shall we say -- non existent.

I mentioned before about finishing up some deadlines, the sponsored ads, and other stuff, right? Well, I assumed I'd bounce right back and be all ready to dive (finally) into MY short stories and MY novel and MY visual novel and MY drawings. But I was quite surprised when I found myself suddenly planting mystery seeds (gift from crows, yo!) and basil and repotting flowers; then buying a SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) and brewing homemade kombucha, making plum wine, and plum (duck) sauce, not to mention cleaning!

Oh, oh!! and let's not forget reading! Holy moly! I'm reading through my tsudoku* pile as well and buying books. I have 19 books in my Reading Now folder. That's not even counting audio books and physical books. Seriously. Books are my true achilles heel. I am surrounded by piles. They calm me. It's weird. Anyway, I had no control over all these activities that didn't have me sitting in front of my computer finishing a short story I started three years ago. It was like I was possessed.

I'd sit down and then I'd pop up: "Let's start a worm farm!!" <<-- I did that, too💕! #goworms💪🪱

Look at this big one!

Okay, so then one of those books I'm reading -- Twyla Tharp's Keep it Moving -- said something that hit home. There is a part where she talks about how on days when she has nothing planned she feels listless and uninspired. She said she always thought the opposite would be true, that on those off days she'd enjoy the break from her very busy schedule. Weren't those free days for "rest, relaxation, and feeling better?"

It's not exactly the same. But similar. Hear me out.

Her biologist friend explained our brains are wired to seek a reward. When we work toward a goal -- have all that anticipation -- and then achieve it, our pre frontal cortex gets bathed in dopamine. Yummy!

So I kind of think it's two things.

1) That. What Twyla said. That I was busy and excited and nervous about the projects and that those nice, near constant dopamine (but also the not-so-nice adrenalin and cortisol, too!) hits were driving me. Now all that's done and I DO still have a lot I want to do, I feel unmoored and instead I find I'm doing all this other stuff. Which leads me to ...

2) I think I need to re-charge. Refuel the ol' brain and heart tank, as it were. All these seemingly random endeavors are a kind of healing and replenishing. Heck, I even bought a couple bottles of something because I suddenly want to decoupage my coffee cup. I kid you not. Haven't done it yet. But I will! So it is working, I feel. I'm getting a bunch of big ideas again ✨🧠❤️✨, too.

All that to tell you this:

Yasumu mo shigoto no uchi / 休むも仕事のうち or Resting is Part of the Job or Taking a Break is also Work.

It's a Japanese proverb that states just that. You can't be "on" all the time. Resting is an integral part of working life. It helps maintain productivity, health, and well-being. Well, of course it does! But I guess I forget. Maybe we all do to some degree?

※ I mean it's kind of ironic it's a Japanese phrase when Japanese work so hard here, have so little free time, and invented a word for ”death by overwork” (karōshi / 過労死). I mean, I personally know someone who died by it. So...

But anyway, THAT ASIDE, it's good advice. So if you're feeling a bit overwhelmed or a bit drained or a bit unmoored, maybe no energy or direction or spark, it's okay to just turn everything off and repot a plant, pickle some plums, or decoupage your coffee cup. Might I suggest buying a pile of books and curling up on the couch and reading for an hour or two? Sketching random things around you even if you can't draw is also a lot of fun. I mean I laugh at myself ALL the time. Now if you're on office hours, don't worry about it, it's all good, give your boss my number and I'll talk to them. You know, it might just be that your boss needs a little yasumu mo shigoto no uchi wisdom as well.

╰(*´︶`*)╯♡

Love you, XO, stay safe and well, more posts in the works!

t

*tsundoku / 積読