It’s Monday

The problem is the overnight, traffic jam, tight deadline agita that was first noticeable at my 2:00 AM research session stayed with me even after the story aired.

I squandered away the weekend. I hardly left the couch and waited until after sunset both days to take a shower. There were things I wanted to do, but never got motivated enough to actually do!

That left me so far behind I didn’t get to my prep for today’s sci/tech story until 2:00 AM.

I staked out my subject, learned a little bit about it and found video. That’s the typical method. The writing part, the part that seems it should be most difficult is actually very easy. I write when I get in.

This morning I was uneasy about the story so I left for work fifteen minutes early. The trip went smoothly until Hartford’s South End. A bad accident on I-91 had created havoc!

As I sat motionless a half dozen firetrucks and nearly as many ambulances sped by. I watched the clock tick away the minutes.

My plan was to be in early. Instead I was ten minutes late.

I work well under pressure. I just don’t enjoy it like I used to.

Dana, our 4:00 PM producer gave me the option to decide what to do. I could bag the story, find something simple to throw together quickly or go with the original plan.

“I’ve never missed a flight,” I said.

I’m not sure Dana understood why I said that. She definitely knew it meant we were going as scheduled even without the original amount of time. As it turned out I “made page” and the story aired as planned.

The problem is the overnight, traffic jam, tight deadline agita that was first noticeable at my 2:00 AM research session stayed with me even after the story aired!

It wasn’t until a few minutes ago when I went to gas up the car and took a deep breath of this gloriously mild spring evening that my internal tension began to finally unwind.

Do I really need four more of these this week? Does anyone? I’ve got to learn to chill.

6 thoughts on “It’s Monday”

  1. Chill on, and be prepared. Always have one on the pocket. ( think like you’re at a cocktail party and don’t know anyone. That one freaky thing you DO know will be the winnah winnah chicken dinnah!

  2. Being a couch potato is a good thing once in a while…..but like a good quarterback, always have a backup plan in your bag of tricks. Chill….time to soak up the sun….

  3. We all have days like that, as life sometimes is hard to keep pace with. I have days like that quite often myself, so I can empathize.  Take a few couch days they are needed sometimes, for all us earthlings. :). Don’t feel guilty!

    Working with the abandoned furries, I do burn out often. The happy endings do bring great joy – yet I must allow my heart to witness great pain often  and still continue to keep on keeping on for them. 

    Here are some survival tricks I’ve learned over the years. 
    Don’t feel bad about couch days – every soul needs to restore it’s energy banks.
    Learn how to pull window shades down in your mind to block out the rays of things you’re unable to alter. Then after rest, move on in drive, not reverse.

    It’s spring, plant a vegetable garden. There is something so internally healing about having your hands in the earth, dirt under your nails, planting seeds and watching them grow. Tending to the weeds and reaping the bounty of your efforts. Weeding a garden after a hard days work can restore a soul. I don’t know why, yet it does. Gardening I believe is natures sedative. 

    I know you love the Giant, but explore a new and different trail you haven’t followed. Its fulfilling. There are tons here in Wallingford that I’m still discovering.  Talk to your local town hall to get a trail guide. This time of year is the best time to explore. Green fingers are reaching out of the earth, in the miracle of re-birth. 

    The plants have down times and so must we, before we bloom. 

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