Life in progress

Tag Archives: procrastination


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#SoCS – Just plain lazy

There’s no other way to describe my weekend than just plain lazy.

I’ve barely done anything this weekend.

Well, I did go for a mile-long walk with Alex today.

And I am going to write “The End” on a 93,000-word novel tonight, as long as life doesn’t go sideways on me.

But I didn’t write all those words this weekend. It’s taken me three months.

Maybe I’ve earned a lazy weekend.

Happy Easter!

2019-2020 SoCS Badge by Shelley! https://www.quaintrevival.com/

This short, day late, plain lazy post was brought to you by Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Find the prompt here and join in! It’s fun!


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#SoCS – My spare … bedroom?

When I decided on the house I’m living in, one of the things I liked was that it had a spare bedroom. Somewhere my mother could sleep when she came over for a holiday.

And it worked out well for the first … I’m going to say eight years I was here.

Then it was 2020 and my mother stopped coming over. She moved to a nursing home and I needed somewhere to put her stuff.

Guess where it went.

Guess where some of it still is.

I decided to repurpose the room as my office since it already had a desk in it, at the foot of the bed.

The bed that’s piled two feet high with stuff I didn’t have anywhere else to put.

But my back is to it, so I only see it if I get up. Or if I’m on a video call.

My office is where I work. Where I procrastinate.

I have evidence.

It’s sneaking up behind me.

2019-2020 SoCS Badge by Shelley! https://www.quaintrevival.com/

This cluttered post was brought to you by Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Find the prompt here and join in! It’s fun!


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One-Liner Wednesday – Why is it?

Why is it that every week I decide I’m going to write a bunch of one-liners and schedule them out for a month and yet every week, I’m scrambling to come up with a one-liner on Tuesday night at 11pm?

If you would like to participate in this prompt, feel free to use the “One-Liner Wednesday” title in your post, and if you do, you can ping back here to help your blog get more exposure. To execute a pingback, just copy the URL in the address bar on this post, and paste it somewhere in the body of your post. Your link will show up in the comments below. Please ensure that the One-Liner Wednesday you’re pinging back to is this week’s! Otherwise, no one will likely see it but me.

NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, like Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

As with Stream of Consciousness Saturday (SoCS), if you see a pingback from someone else in my comment section, click and have a read. It’s bound to be short and sweet.

Unlike SoCS, this is not a prompt so there’s no need to stick to the same “theme.”

The rules that I’ve made for myself (but don’t always follow) for “One-Liner Wednesday” are:

1. Make it one sentence.

2. Try to make it either funny or inspirational.

3. Use our unique tag #1linerWeds.

4. Add our lovely badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!

Badge by Laura @ riddlefromthemiddle.com

Available now! Click the image!


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#JusJoJan the 29th/23 – The treadmill

Our prompt word for January 29th is “exercise.” Thanks so much, Wendy, for the energetic prompt!

I try to exercise every day.

Okay, maybe try is a big word.

Maybe it’s more like I plan to exercise every day.

Okay, okay, okay. I think about exercising every day.

During the height of the pandemic, when Alex wasn’t going to school and the library was closed so Chris, my other son, stopped going out once a week, I bought a treadmill.

Are there months when it doesn’t even get used? Sure.

I still try to go out for walks when it’s not too snowy or icy or cold or hot and humid.

But does it get used when those conditions are not the case?

I used it a whole three times last week. And once so far this week.

I need to try harder.

 ***

This self-motivational post is brought to you by Just Jot it January and Wendy! Please be sure to check out Wendy’s blog here!

For Just Jot it January, click the following link to see how you, too, can join in! https://lindaghill.com/2023/01/29/daily-prompt-jusjojan-the-29th-2023/ It’s fun!


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#JusJoJan the 6th/23 – Sweet spot

Thanks so much to Ritu for her delectable prompt of the day, the word “sweet.”

I’m going to write about how busy I am—yes, again—because A) it’s what’s on my mind, and B) if I start talking about sweets … Let’s just say there’s an unopened tin of Quality Street chocolates upstairs and I’m trying to not tempt myself into opening it until I’ve completely digested my holiday dinners.

On point “A,” I’m discovering (today—this is an observation I’m just making today) that if I’m only a little bit busy, meaning I’ve got nothing currently on my plate to get done on a deadline, I get less done of what I need to do and more procrastinating done than if I was busier.

It’s the mindset of Oh, I can get that done in five minutes! I can play a game or scroll through my Facebook feed first … what do you mean it’s four o’clock already?!?

It’s as destructive a mindset as, say, opening a tin of chocolates and eating all the orange ones … *slaps self*

My point is, there’s got to be some kind of sweet spot where I’m busy enough to convince my brain that yes, I have to get some work done today, and no, it’s not okay to waste an entire day doing nothing, or on the other face of the coin, being so busy I just want to crawl under the bed with the cat and go to sleep instead of digging in and getting it done.

And if there’s no sweet spot, how do I create one?

The answer is, of course, discipline. Not chasing after that shiny bit of string (apparently I’m easily influenced by the cat) like Facebook when I could be getting the few things that need to be accomplished done first.

Writing everything down in a planner is helping. Being able to see my to-dos without having to remember them (or conveniently forget them) works well as long as there aren’t too many gaps in my schedule.

Maybe I need to find a way to concentrate all my tasks into a set time. Like, say, 9 to noon and 1-5, and then take my scrolling time after those hours.

Now there’s a concept.

I’ll have to contemplate that over some chocolate.

 ***

This proactive post is brought to you by Just Jot it January and Ritu! Thanks so much again, Ritu, for the sweet prompt. Please be sure to check out her blog.

For Just Jot it January, click the following link to see how you, too, can join in! https://lindaghill.com/2023/01/06/daily-prompt-jusjojan-the-6th-2023/ It’s fun!


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One-Liner Wednesday – Thief

Photo: A quote on a starry background. “Procrastination is the sneakiest of thieves. It steals from us time, our most precious resource, yet we allow it to live under our rooves.” ~ Linda G. Hill, from an untitled WIP

If you would like to participate in this prompt, feel free to use the “One-Liner Wednesday” title in your post, and if you do, you can ping back here to help your blog get more exposure. To execute a pingback, just copy the URL in the address bar on this post, and paste it somewhere in the body of your post. Your link will show up in the comments below. Please ensure that the One-Liner Wednesday you’re pinging back to is this week’s! Otherwise, no one will likely see it but me.

NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, like Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

As with Stream of Consciousness Saturday (SoCS), if you see a pingback from someone else in my comment section, click and have a read. It’s bound to be short and sweet.

Unlike SoCS, this is not a prompt so there’s no need to stick to the same “theme.”

The rules that I’ve made for myself (but don’t always follow) for “One-Liner Wednesday” are:

1. Make it one sentence.

2. Try to make it either funny or inspirational.

3. Use our unique tag #1linerWeds.

4. Add our lovely badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!

Badge by Laura @ riddlefromthemiddle.com

 


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#SoCS – Above and beyond

Okay, so what’s the opposite of above and beyond? Below and back? Below and insufficient? Doesn’t have much of a ring to it.

My expectations for myself, for the future, are often on the side of above and beyond. Which leaves me in a state of feeling inadequate and causes me stress. Which sucks.

Yet, those expectations are often what pull me through and help me succeed. I’m one of those types who waits until the last minute to do what I need to do in order to hit a deadline. Most of the time. I’m much better when I’m editing for a client. My self-control is far better.

So what’s that about? Basically, when you boil it down, it comes down to my caring about other people more than myself. The old, “It’s just for me, so it can wait” thing.

Turns out self-care is difficult.

Can you relate?

Oh, and happy Valentine’s Day to all you lovers out there. For the rest of us? Let’s love ourselves a little bit more today. ❤

2019-2020 SoCS Badge by Shelley! https://www.quaintrevival.com/

This off-the-rails post was brought to you by Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Find the prompt here and join in! https://lindaghill.com/2021/02/12/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-feb-13-2021/


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#SoCS – More than anything

More than anything, I wish people would stop asking me what I like “more than anything else.”

Okay, maybe that’s not what I want more than anything, but hey, it’s a prompt and I’m writing the first thing that comes into my head.

It’s such a difficult thing to choose! Which colour do you like more than any other? Which song? If you had one wish that would change the world, what would it be?

How can anyone decide what, more than anything else, would be the best thing for everyone? Or for yourself? I suppose if you were singularly focused on yourself and cared about no one else, it might be easier.

What frustrates me more than anything else at this very moment is my own failings. This is “Stream of Consciousness SATURDAY” and here I am writing my post on Sunday.

Yesterday, more than anything else, I spent the day procrastinating. What is it when you think of something you need to do and just can’t bring yourself to do it? What is it called? Because I seem to be stuck with it, whatever it is.

I’m happy to say if it concerns doing something for someone else, I’m on the ball. I spend hours of my every day looking for things to do for other people so I can procrastinate on my own stuff.

Why?

No idea.

One thing I ain’t procrastinating on any more at this very moment?

Getting my second cup of coffee. But yeah, I do procrastinate over feeding myself often these days. Don’t worry! I get there eventually.

2019-2020 SoCS Badge by Shelley! https://www.quaintrevival.com/

This questioning post was brought to you by Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Find the prompt here and join in! https://lindaghill.com/2020/07/31/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-aug-1-2020/


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#JusJoJan 5/20 – Goals and Intentions

First off, thanks again to Faye Therborne for the prompt! You can find her last post here! Go say hi!

Warning: Rambling ahead.

I’ve figured out that Goals x Intentions = Results, at least most of the time. But where does procrastination fit into the equation? Does it come before Intentions, making them negative, resulting in zero Results? Or does it come after Intentions, i.e. Goals x Intentions + Procrastination = Fewer Results? (I added Procrastination since it’s already negative, in the grand scheme of things.)

I suppose where it comes in depends on how much procrastination one commits oneself to.

Which is an interesting statement in and of itself, I realize now that I’ve written it. If I commit myself to procrastinate, isn’t that an intention? But that would be essentially deciding to fail at my goals. So why have them at all?

In case I lost you with the math (which, I admit, probably doesn’t make any sense anyway), I’ll put it another way. Goals are useless without intentions to back them up. For instance, if my goal is to win a million dollars but I have no intention of buying a lottery ticket, chances are I’m not going to magically win a million bucks. If I do follow through with my intention, I may get results. But if I procrastinate so long that I don’t get to the store in time to get my ticket, I’m back to square one, which is NOT a million dollars richer.

But hey, I’m probably preaching to the choir on the procrastination thing, am I right?

It’s an age-old question: why do we sabotage our goals with procrastination. Are strong, solid intentions enough to stave it off? Sometimes.

Definitely worth pondering.

This rambling post is brought to you by Just Jot it January! Click the following link and join in! It’s fun! https://lindaghill.com/2020/01/05/daily-prompt-jusjojan-the-5th-2020/

Love quickens beneath the moonlight …

Get your free copy of The Magician’s Sire: A Paranormal Romance → Click here


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#SoCS – Cozy Mosey

I’m just gonna mosey on over to my laptop like I didn’t promise last week to hit it early, and write an ol’ blog post. You know, I could just change the prompt to Stream of Consciousness Sunday. Would anyone notice?

Nah.

I went to great lengths to get some writing done today. I sat in the back seat of my car with my computer–no Internet access–all cozy-like while a thunderstorm raged outside, and I still managed to procrastinate a bit as I tried to type. I managed a little under 800 words, bringing my third book of my series up to 72,600 words so far. I figure I’ve got about 18K left to go to get to the end of the story.

I’ve been procrastinating a lot this week. I meant to post the mid-month reminder for the Escapist Coloring Club but I didn’t get around to it. May is also the month I should have posted the contest for the new One-Liner Wednesday badge. I’m seriously, honestly going to miss our monkey friend. But I suppose it’s only fair to give the picture back to Cheryl and let someone else have a chance. I won’t complain AT ALL if she decides to enter the same badge back into the contest, though. (hint, hint)

I shall do that this week. As for the Coloring Club thing, may as well wait for June 1st, eh?

I don’t mind putting it off. In fact that’s what I’m best at these days.

But only when it’s my own stuff I’m working at.

I need to start treating myself as if I was my own client. Then I’d get everything done. On time.

SoCS badge by Pamela, at https://achronicalofhope.com/

This post is brought to you by Stream of Consciousness SATURDAY. If you’d like to join in, just click the following link. You’ll find all the other posts in the comment section! https://lindaghill.wordpress.com/2019/05/24/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-may-25-19/