Reading and Writing
It’s been a while since I wrote here…
Please believe me, I HAVE been writing - see the photo evidence!
I’ve been writing revisions to courses, writing students’ report card comments (it was so fun to fill in for parental leave in a second-grade classroom - with real, healthy humans in the flesh!), and working on a forthcoming book I am co-authoring.
But the blog was neglected.
Truth be told, I had a major case of pandemic fatigue once my in-person teaching wrapped up. Having been out in the world, I was less than enamored about returning to WFH. I needed time and space to find my groove, sharing our home and workspace with family and four furry friends.
And then, winter started to wither away. I was fortunate to be doubled vaxxed and feeling slightly safer getting back into the world. Dr. Lucy McBride’s article in the Washington Post reinforced I am not alone in my hesitancy to get back out there!
I finally realized that changing my actions would irrefutably change my thoughts and feelings.
Much of what helped me feel the frustrating feelings was to take action a good book. I know, it sounds like Lavar Burton and Reading Rainbow, but it’s really a great escape strategy for me! I’m a book nerd and compulsive book shopper. I finally started dropping books into my Amazon wish list rather than my cart so that I can triage my impulse purchases. And still, I have piles of books to be read…
The other keen insight that came to me as I lounged for days in a hybrid of pjs and yoga pants and “regular shirt” was to compile a syllabus. I confessed to being a book geek, and this is part of it!
I’m also what Gretchen Rubin describes as an Upholder.
Ask me to do something, and it’s done 110%. Watch me meticulously plan my week in my calendar (as I do each week), and there will be a lot of rescheduling of my plans to serve others. Sometimes that’s okay, but not when it means I end up with my panties in knots because I am not doing what I intended to do. I do that most weeks, too!
I’ve learned that setting up guardrails helps me stick to my small promises and keep myself accountable. These are the tools that help me meet inner expectations. I’m a big fan of apps like Be Focused, Trello, Insight Timer, and Daily-To-Do for these guardrails, as well as old-school tools like sticky notes and fresh black Sharpies.
I tend to read several books simultaneously and choose based on how I am feeling and where I am in the world. My Audible book is always with me in the car and at allergy shots. My “work-related” book and notebook sit in my office. I keep a light fiction book to read at bedtime, after working very hard to break up with Chris Cuomo and Don Lemon (sleep hygiene is high on my list of habit change!).
I also have moments where I am frustrated that I haven’t actually finished any books.
When I noticed my “to be read” piles stacking up in three locations, I thought I needed some reading guiderails. So, voila - Monthly Reading Syllabus (MRS for ease). My MRS also comes in super handy to help me stay on track to hit my Good Reads Challenge of 52 books in 2021.
As March wraps up, I’m finishing up both my nonfiction read and my bedtime fiction with just days to spare. And because this system works imperfectly, I couldn’t resist starting one of the books on my April MRS….
