Self-discipline

A few days ago I talked about routines and how important they will be during my retirement.  One of the routines I plan on establishing is to blog everyday.  It’s obvious to myself and anyone reading this blog that I have not yet disciplined myself to this daily practice.  I need to remind myself that it usually takes me most of the summer to establish a routine.  But one of the reasons I began the blog was to help me be accountable to myself – to move myself forward, slowly and with precision, in the eight ” disciplines”  I have determined are important.

I am considering how to best meld discipline and slower pace.  As a teacher I was fairly disciplined.  Anyone who has taught within the last five years, maybe anyone who has worked at any job in the last five years,  understands that the constant multi-tasking required  precludes working at anything other than a quick pace.  (Frantic pace was the first phrase that came to mind but that might be too dramatic.)

So, for right now, I am blogging when I feel that I have something to share that will provide insight to myself or others.  Maybe the infrequency of my blogs is really not a result of lack of discipline but a  sign that I am actually decluttering my mind, as I told friends I would do for the first month of retirement.  It could be due to the fact that I hate typing with one hand and when I try to use only my thumb and index finger on my left hand the splint protruding from my other fingers hits some unknown function key which sends my computer into a tailspin which I struggle to untangle.  Who knows?  But I guess I have all summer to figure it out.

 

 

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Routines

As a teacher, I usually attended about a dozen summer workshops, and some years I taught summer school.  Of course I squeezed in all of my doctor and dentist appointments during this ever-shortening break. I tried to catch up with errands and housework.  So far my retirement has been just like a normal summer break except for the broken finger which makes most things take twice as long as they otherwise would.

One thing I have learned through the years is that if I establish a loose weekly/daily routine I feel more satisfied and relaxed throughout the summer.  I expect that this will be true of retirement also. Usually it takes me most of the summer to get my routine flowing.   I have given some thought to what needs to be part of my routine each day or each week so that I feel energized instead of harried, productive instead of mindless and lazy. The experiences that I think are important are for me to continue to develop are:

Creativity

Spirituality/Faith

Service/Usefulness

Gardening

Healthy Lifestyle

Intellectual Endeavors

Home Organization ( Maybe not so much, Hah)

Relaxation (this one shouldn’t be on the list because it is too easy)

 

I started retirement with the spirituality component by attending the retreat and am working at a daily routine to make sure I don’t neglect this area of my life.  Healthy Lifestyle is tough for me but needs to be tackled so that I will be physically able to do the other things I intend to do.  I don’t eat as many healthy foods as I should, and the weight I lost last summer crept back on me during the school year.  I despise exercise and usually injure some part of my anatomy when I attempt it. I started back to Weight Watchers this week after discovering yet again that just paying the fees without counting the points doesn’t cause the pounds to melt away.  Now I need to figure out what time of the day will work best for me to walk and to start building strength in my core and the muscles around my weak knees.  I will check in next Friday with myself and whoever reads this blog to see how that is going!