←  
  »
June 3rd, 2012

making some time.

I am tired of wishing I had time for [insert thing-I-want-to-do here]

Most recently, I was lamenting the fact that I no longer listen to music. I mean, I do, but not as much as I used to. And I am definitely not discovering any music. In the past, I could easily chart the seasons of my life by the CDs in my 3-disc-changer. But now — now, I have no theme song. And it sucks not having a theme song.

Then I thought: wait, this is something I can fix!

So, with some help from TasteKid and Grooveshark (Pandora doesn’t work in Korea) I began to compile some musical suggestions and I loaded my iPod with new selections, as well as some old favorites and guilty pleasures. Then – I listened to it! It sounds so easy, but it was something that previously I was way too busy to make time for. In the past week or so, I’ve listened to music while I wrote blog posts, read my Kindle, edited my book, or when I was just killing time at work.

I had a similar complaint regarding books last year: I never had enough time to read. Obviously I was overreacting (since I was unemployed and doing nothing) but this year – I made time. I read at work, at lunch, before bed, before work, while Jared plays Skyrim — anywhere I can find 10 free minutes. Since January I’ve already read more books than all of last year combined (my Goodreads list).

I’ve done the same thing with working out, cooking, drinking tea, and painting. If I can just find a few minutes to practice my ukulele, I will feel justified in obnoxiously referring to myself as a “Renaissance [Wo]Man”.

What amazed me most was how easily I managed to find little moments in my day to incorporate things I truly want to do. Our greatest commodity in life is time. I want to spend it doing things I enjoy!

And I still don’t have a theme song, but I am actively looking.

posted by abby_cake | Category: being abby
  • Amy Estes

    I used to say I didn’t have time to live a healthy lifestyle; the truth was, I didn’t want to make the time. It’s an important distinction. We all have time for whatever we want to have time for. This is a great post.

  • http://twitter.com/Cayers05 Cuyler Ayers

    Great post! I need to adopt your way of thinking. I learn a lot from your posts, FYI. I love your new tattoo!

  • http://www.ginamarierose.com/ Gina

    I used Grooveshark while in Korea, too. Loved it! Definitely compensated for the fact that Pandora doesn’t work there.

  • http://terra-bear.com terra

    We spent a ridiculous amount of time in one of my last classes talking about time as a commodity and how it’s something we sell and it’s really the only thing that actually belongs to us, that is inherently ours. It’s all very Marxian, but it’s so true – time really is our most valuable commodity.

  • http://twitter.com/_karenbee_ Karen Bee

    I think more and more in America, people are being asked to devote their free time to career-related activities. I found with my last job, people who were well thought-of were those that put in long hours and sometimes came in on the weekends, which isn’t how I want to spend my life. I found myself constantly caught between wanting to be well thought of in my career but wanting to spend my time otherwise before ultimately deciding the job I had wasn’t for me. Now, if I want to volunteer, I’m doing it because I want to and I believe in the cause, not because I’m trying to impress my higher-ups and get some sort of award. Now, if I read, it’s books that I find interesting, not something on a leader’s “recommended reading” list. If I choose to go back to school for an advanced degree, it’ll be because I want to learn more, not to get ahead in my career by “checking a box”.
    Hm. I didn’t meant to rant here, but the concept of free time is a touchy subject for me. People spend too much time living to work and not enough time just living.