One thing at a time

Most things I do, I do slowly. I have been called poky and sloth-like (hopefully with affection). I like to think that this trait is partly because I'm very careful and thoughtful. Or else maybe everyone else is just going too fast.

I am usually content to move about my daily routines with the urgency of a slug but I admit I would like to get more done in a day. I thought the best way to stay slow but get stuff done was to multitask. For the past few months I've been drawing while listening to the RadioLab podcast or flexing my butt cheeks while writing emails or cooking and watching a tutorial on how to use Photoshop.

Turns out, multitasking is not for everyone and I am one of the people it is not for. I was unable to successfully divide my attention into multiple tasks. I was half watching an episode of Bones and missing vital mystery-solving clues all the while my sauce was bubbling over and needed a stir. I don't think I got more done. I think what I did I did less well.

So I'm ditching the counterproductive multitasking habit in favor of being fully present in all my daily activities. When I go out to plant my crocus bulbs, I will not be listening to an intermediate Italian lesson on my headphones. Planting bulbs is plenty entertaining for me. Maybe I'm simple minded but same goes for stirring sauce.

If I am stuck doing things slowly, I may as well savor what I'm doing.

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Latke Coma

I made a latke-inspired dinner last night and added parsnips and sweet potato shavings to the traditional potato mix. I also baked apples and made my very own applesauce as an accompaniment. It was so good that I completely overindulged and fell soundly asleep on the couch at 8:30 while trying to watch a movie leaving a huge mess in the kitchen. I also never got around to cleaning up after all my printing earlier in the day. My home is a disaster and to tell the truth, I still haven't completely recuperated from the chaos that surrounded preparing for the Bazaar Bizarre (shown above).

I have made myself an energetic mix of music and I'm going to wrap my hair in a bandanna and scrub until my place sparkles. This is the first step of my process of making my home a more efficient studio. If my home is to be my new workspace, I need to treat it as well as I would if I had a boss watching over me. You know I'm serious about this because I asked for a filing cabinet for Christmas!

Blob-be-gone!

Confession: I have been a blob for over a week with no motivation to do anything other than make toast.

I suspect this self-induced paralysis is the result of being overwhelmed. I have the very unfortunate and counter-intuitive habit of hibernating when facing an overwhelming task. When I have lots to do I can't seem to do anything. I need to prepare for Craftland and Bazaar Bizarre! Goodness!

I have the day off tomorrow. I will exorcise my sloth demon and get going.

Sleepy sloth photo by Pierre Pouliquin.