Eating the Frog
Not the chocolate variety, the productivity type
The only frog I’d eat in real life is a chocolate frog, preferably while on the Hogwarts express1
Lately I’ve been eating the metaphorical frog. I’ve been writing and crafting in the mornings.
Eating the frog is a time management concept. Basically, what’s the item on your to-do list that you’re least looking forward to? That’s what you should do first.
Writing and crafting aren’t exactly activities that I dread. They just tend to be the items on the very bottom of my to-do list.
Left to my own whims, the very first thing I’d do each day is clean. There’s nothing I love more than puttering. After that, I’d respond to emails. Dive into work. Write a long to-do list of life admin tasks (how are there always so many appointments to make and things to follow up on!?!) Then, I’d make a shopping list and head out on errands and returns. Finally, scrawled at the bottom of the list, the things I love most: family, friends, and hobbies.
As Annie Dillard says, how we spend our days is how we spend our lives. GULP. With that existential pressure, I’ve been writing during my kiddo’s first nap of the day and crafting during her second. It’s a fun pomodoro method. I never know if I’m going to get a long nap and the opportunity to sink into a project or if I’ll get set up to quilt, sew one seam, and hear a tell-tale cry from the next room.
Admittedly, I’m in a pretty clutch spot for testing out this method: Currently on parental leave with a baby who sleeps enough to give me brain space to work on fun projects. Still, it is truly a test for me to be sitting here now with a both a basket of dirty laundry and a sink piled with dirty dishes within view.
What I’m Making
I had a piece published in Belladonna Comedy earlier this month! It combines one of my favorite things — hiking — with something that bothers me very much: the impossible tightrope of being a woman in the corporate world. Check it out here.
Still in Christmas mode this summer. I quilted this wreath wall hanging and am now in the final stage of binding the piece. Binding is creating the smooth edge to the quilt. It’s the perfect activity to do while watching TV.
What I’m Enjoying
When I asked myself “what am I enjoying” the first thing that came to mind was pelvic floor physical therapy. This is a soapbox I’ll gladly get on anytime. Pelvic floor PT should be standard care for postpartum people. I’ve learned so much about my core and breathing and I wish I’d been taught this stuff years ago. So, my recommendations is physical therapy. Also, if you’re like me and looking to do some cardio after a long break, I’d recommend Allie Bennett’s treadmill struts. A fun workout. I’ve loved the hot movie villain and Rihanna playlists.
I was at the gym yesterday doing some strength training and enjoying the part of the workout where I get to sit on the bench and rest/read my emails. I was so drawn into this essay about deciding to have one child from Tina Neidlein that I temporarily neglected my workout. I also really liked this piece from her.
I dislike JK Rowling, but have been impressed with Daniel Radcliffe and how he’s responded and stood up for what’s right over the years. Related: I like him even more after watching the documentary The Boy Who Lived, about a stunt double who was paralyzed on the Harry Potter set.
Wow thank you for sharing that only child piece! As a mom of an only, I’m always wanting to hear more about how others navigate it. The questions stopped for me around the time my daughter was five, and that was a relief!
Great piece in Belladonna!!
Amen to the pelvic floor physical therapy soap box. It's an unsolicited Ted talk I give ALL THE TIME.