More Time To Recharge
March 31, 2013 § 4 Comments
As an introvert, I know that I need a lot of alone time. I’ve started to realize that I need to give myself even more alone time than normal after stressful weeks at work or multiple social events back to back.
A few weeks ago, I had a very stressful week. I had multiple days where I worked late. I also had to train someone and by the end of the week, I was exhausted and my energy level was so low that I could barely keep a thought in my head. I spent that Friday evening and Saturday morning sleeping and relaxing. Saturday afternoon/evening I spent time with my family and friends and I was out until early Sunday morning. I woke up on Sunday and I needed to run errands but I was so drained that I couldn’t do anything. I hadn’t recovered enough from my stressful week and I added to my low energy level by socializing for several hours on Saturday. I ended up spending all of Sunday recovering and I didn’t start to feel energized until the Tuesday of that week.
I realize that I need to get better at scheduling alone time and allowing my mind and body to recharge properly after stressful weeks at work. I also feel like I need to schedule only one or two social events per week but not on the same day. It’s important for me to be more mindful of how I’m feeling and to give myself permission to say no to events so that I can recharge myself.
As an introvert, do have trouble scheduling alone time? What is your favorite way to recharge?
The best and worst of 2012
January 1, 2013 § Leave a Comment
Even though it is the first day of 2013, I’m going to review the best and the worst of 2012. 2012 was a difficult year for me so I’m glad that it’s over and I’m looking forward to better experiences this year.
The Worst of 2012
This year I had to let go of a few of my friendships and this was a sad and painful experience. There are some friends that I no longer have anything in common with and our lives have gone in different directions. I had been holding on to these relationships because I don’t take friendship lightly but in the end it was best to let things go.
Another event that was difficult for me in 2012 was that my mom found a tumor in one of her breasts. She had to have immediate surgery followed by radiation treatment. Fortunately, the tumor had not spread and there is no evidence of cancer in other parts of her body. Seeing my mom sick made me realize how much I should treasure the short time that we have with the people we love.
The Best of 2012
By far, the best thing that happened in 2012 was the progress that I’ve made in my studies as a translator. I’ve completed the majority of my courses and I will complete my program by this summer. I also attended seminars and events related to the translation industry and I have a lot of goals/plans for myself. I began volunteering as a translator in 2012 as well and that has allowed me to gain more experience.
I discovered a new hobby by creating memory books. I use a book called Smashbook and it’s been a lot of fun to combine my love of journaling with photos and other memorabilia.
2013
I’ve decided not to make any resolutions for the New Year. I read this blog post and it sums up how I feel about making New Year’s resolutions. I will continue to focus on the career goals/plans that I set for myself last year and I will take things day by day.
I Hate Working In A Cubicle
September 19, 2012 § 6 Comments
English: An image of a lot of cubicles that seem to go on forever (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
When I started working at my job, we didn’t have cubicles and I loved it! The floor had been designed with small offices that held one or two people. I shared an office with one other person and we were both quiet people who concentrated on our work. Last year, a decision was make to tear down some of the offices and turn the space into cubicles. My officemate and I were forced to move into cubicles and since then, it’s been difficult for me to adjust to my work environment.
I hate the fact that you have no privacy when you work in a cube. Everyone can see your computer screen and they can also hear your phone conversations. This makes it impossible to have discrete conversations. I work with sensitive accounting information. What I’m working on and the phone conversations that I have about my work should be private.
It’s also very noisy where I work. I sit by people who are loud talkers and insist on putting their phones on speaker each time they get a call. I also sit by a person who sings out loud, which is rude. I listen to music in my earphones to try and drown out the other noise but there are days when this doesn’t help. I miss the days when I could close my office door and drown out all of the noise.
Another aspect of working in a cubicle that I dislike is that I always feel like I’m being watched. My direct supervisor works in a different location and I feel that the other managers in my location are constantly walking by to “check” on me and my other coworkers even though we turn in our work on time and never miss deadlines.
Ideally, I would love to work in an environment where I had my own personal space. I feel like it would help me to be more productive if I worked in a quieter work area.
My ideas usually come not…
August 6, 2012 § 2 Comments
My ideas usually come not at my desk but in the midst of living – Anais Nin
Feeling Frustrated
May 15, 2012 § Leave a Comment
In the past, I’ve written about my dissatisfaction with social media and Facebook in particular. Over the past few months I’ve been feeling depressed in part because of things I’ve been seeing on Facebook. I’m not sure how this happens, but I can see when my friends comment on the status updates and photos of their friends even when I’m not friends with these people. This has lead to me finding out about the lives of so many people that I’ve gone to college with and they’ve become very successful in the professional and personal lives. It’s seems like so many of my former classmates are married, have kids, have really good jobs, and are working in careers that they enjoy.
I’m not the type of person that compares my life to the lives of others. I think that we all have our own paths to take and no ones path is the same. Recently, I find myself becoming sadder with the way my life has gone. When I was in college I did not envision my life the way it has turned out. I thought that I was be able to find a job that I really enjoyed and to live the life that I really wanted but that hasn’t been the case. I’ve struggled in my professional and personal life from the moment I graduated and on top of the that I’ve been supporting myself financially since there was no way I could live with my family and have them support me. I wasn’t able to take internships and really low paying work to explore certain careers because I would not have been able to pay my bills. Another issue is that I have depressive episodes in my life and it’s hard to deal with issues when you feel sad and anxious.
I found some of my old journals from ten years ago when I was 25 and many of the issues that I was dealing with then are the same issues that I’m dealing with now at the age of 35 and it doesn’t seem like I’ve grown at all. Back then I was single and I’m still single which is fine because I value my independence. I always thought I would have met someone who I’d be happy with by now. When I was 25, I was working in a bad job but I had to stay there in order to support myself and that was a struggle. Even though I’m not working at the same job, I work in a job that makes me unhappy. I was also dealing with my depression back then and I still deal with it now. The only thing that has changed in the past 10 years is that I’m in grad school and this is something I’m really proud of.
I’ve decided to stay off Facebook for a while and to focus on my goals for work and school. Once I’m finished with my classes I’ll be able to focus more on other aspects of my life this summer.
If I Could Make a Living by Creating Art…
May 12, 2012 § Leave a Comment
Plinky Prompt: If you had a chance to make a living by creating art, what would you do?
If I could make a living by creating art, I would be a painter or I would make ceramics. When I was in middle school, I participated in an art program for kids that lived in my neighborhood. I learned how to make canvases and to paint with acrylics. I spent 2 years in this program and I produced two large canvases, which I still have. Painting is a therapeutic process for me and this is why I began learning how to paint with watercolors last summer.
In high school, I took up ceramics and I loved this course. I took it all four years of high school and I was even an assistant to the ceramics teacher. I learned how to make clay, how to glaze pieces, how to make my own glazes, how to throw on a wheel, and how to fire pieces in a kiln. I miss ceramics and there have been many times when I’ve considered taking a ceramics class for fun.
There are many aspects of having an artistic career that I would enjoy. It would be fulfilling to wake up every morning and to work on something I love. I could see myself wanted to formally study each craft and to become part of an artistic community.
Stressed Out
May 10, 2012 § Leave a Comment
My life has been feeling out of control lately and I’m stressed out everyday. This has been one of the hardest quarters for me in school. My course is challenging and so is my job. The amount of work I’m responsible for has increased each month since the company I work for is growing. This is obviously a good sign given the economic situation however; I’m starting to feel burnt out. I only have four more weeks of school left and I need to put myself on a strict study schedule so that I finish my course and keep up with all of my responsibilities at work.
-I need to keep up with my schoolwork: I’ve gotten behind in my schoolwork over the past two weeks because I’ve been working late. I’m almost caught up with everything but it’s critical that I stay caught up for the rest of the quarter. I also need to start doing research and creating my final project so that I’m not trying to do it the last-minute.
-Go to bed by 10:00 pm: My sleep schedule is totally off. In the past I would go to bed by 10:00 pm but late last year I started going to be at midnight. I get up each morning at 5:45 and I’m not getting enough sleep. There are various reasons why I’ve been staying up so late but starting tonight I’m determined to be in bed by 10:00 pm.
-Wake up on time: I know I’ve stated this before but I’m not a morning person. Regardless of whether or not I get enough sleep, it’s really hard for me to get out of bed in the mornings. I hit the snooze bar multiple times and when I finally get up, I have to rush around to make sure I catch the bus on time. This morning I actually got up on time and things were so much easier for me. I was able to get ready for work and I didn’t feel stressed and worried about missing the bus.
-Stop checking social sites on cell phone at work: I keep checking Twitter at work because I follow a lot of good magazines and blogs and I wanted to read all of the interesting articles that are posted. I need to wait until lunch to try to read these articles so I don’t get behind in my work.
-Exercise: I haven’t been exercising like I normally would. I have so much going on and the last thing I want to do is to go the gym. Starting this weekend, I’ll be going back to the gym. Exercising is very important to me because it helps me to deal with the depressive episodes that I have from time to time. Over the past 3 or 4 months, I’ve started feeling more and more depressed and I need to return to doing yoga and Pilates.
Do you ever feel like you’re way too stressed out? How do you deal with stress?
Coffee
May 2, 2012 § 2 Comments
From Plinky: Do you need coffee to wake up in the mornings?
I absolutely have to have coffee in the mornings not only to wake up but to function as a human being. I’m not a morning person and coffee gives me the jolt that I need to be productive throughout the morning. If I’m having a hard day, I’ll also take a break in the afternoon to go and get coffee.
I didn’t always like coffee and I didn’t always need it to wake me up in the mornings. My father is a coffee drinker and when I was in high school I tasted his coffee for the first time. It was the most bitter and disgusting drink I have ever tasted and I never thought I’d drink coffee again. My opinion of coffee changed when I was living in Latin America. I lived in a country that produced a lot of coffee and drinking coffee every afternoon with family and friends was a large part of the culture. The coffee there wasn’t bitter and I began looking forward to drinking coffee and spending time with my friends every afternoon. When I came back to the USA, I continued drinking coffee and I found that it helped me to function in the mornings.
I’m not a “coffee snob” and I’ll pretty much drink anything including the bitter stuff my father still drinks. Two of my favorite coffee shops here in Denver are Ink! coffee and Dazbog.
Related articles
- Plinky Prompt: Do you need coffee to wake up in the morning? (hibernationnow.wordpress.com)
- Do I Need A Coffee To Wake Up In The Morning? (deafiablog.com)
An Almost Accident
May 2, 2012 § 4 Comments
About two weeks ago, the bus I was riding home from work was almost hit by a commuter train. I’m not sure why, but the bus driver didn’t stop at the traffic light that was before the train tracks. She just kept driving and the next thing I saw was the train coming at full speed towards us. It was honking loudly and I sat frozen and extremely frightened because the point of impact was right where I sat. I was so paralyzed that I couldn’t move! I have no explanation as the why the train didn’t hit us but I believe it was Divine Intervention. The train was coming so fast and it couldn’t stop.
Everyone was yelling at the bus driver about how the bus was almost hit by the train. The driver was uncaring and unapologetic. She claimed that she had the right of way as if it was the train’s fault. I don’t like this driver and I’ve noticed her “I-don’t-give-a-care” attitude in the past but this situation was awful! To be honest the situation was dangerous, disheartening, and disturbing. Needless to say, I reported the incident to the bus company.
I’ve kind of developed a small phobia now when we drive across the train tracks. I pay close attention to the traffic lights and whether or not the train is coming. I’ve also stopped catching the bus at the time this woman drives. I don’t want to ride with her driving ever again.
Daily Writing
April 29, 2012 § 3 Comments
One of my goals for this year is to write every day. I recently learned about the idea of writing “Morning Pages” and I decided to use some of the ideas from this method in my daily writing. I really liked the idea of handwriting three full pages of stream-of-conscious writing however, I did not like the idea of waking up early in the morning to do this type of writing. I’m not a morning person and there is absolutely no way that I’d be able to get up 30-40 minutes earlier than normal just to write. I can barely get out of bed in the mornings as it is.
I decided to write in the evenings right before I go to bed and this method has turned out to be perfect for me. I’m able to clear my mind by writing about everything that’s in my head and it helps me to relax and to sleep better. It’s a quiet and reflective way to end my day and I find that I don’t have trouble filling up three pages with my writing. Some of these thoughts that I’ve written about have led to blog and short story ideas. I feel that this method is helping me make writing a priority in my life which is very important to me.
