I've been thinking a lot about routines. Or more to the point, I've been thinking about a lack of routines.
I haven't worked since September. Some of that is by choice, some by circumstance. I knew I wanted to take some time off at the end of 2016. I'm so happy I did. I needed to press the pause button there for awhile.
Then 2017 came barreling in and I was antsy. I was bored. I was actively looking for work, getting a few nibbles here and there. Sometimes I felt encouraged, other times less so. I was fine not getting selected for a position until I saw the position being reposted a week after I got my final "Thanks, but no thanks," email. That made me cringe.
I was doubling down on the job search when I got selected to be part of a month-long jury trial. People have a negative view of jury duty. Sure, it's tedious and inconvenient, but I found it to be a very positive experience. It also granted me a bit of a routine. I had a purpose to my weekdays.
Since it ended, I've been struggling a bit. I'm bored. I need a project. I need a purpose.
I need a routine.
I always thought I was bad at routines but it depends on the routine. What I've come to realize is that I actually thrive on them. My routines are never super-regimented. The world will not end if I don't get up at 7am on the dot. But days stretching out into nothingness with no routine at all are awful.
Since September I've actually had a whole series of changing routines. First there was the routine that had me doing Blogilates and walking 5km almost every day. Then I did the reading binge routine. Then the holiday routine. Then it was walk at least one mile on the treadmill each day. Jury duty.
I'm figuring out a new routine now. I know it's not going to last few long. Constant change is hard but it's so much better than not having a routine at all.