The closet is another bookcase, one on which I can shut the doors and not have to look at it, but it houses binders filled with excellent teaching materials and ideas that I plan to hand off to the next generation.
The actual shelves in the room are a huge mistake: coated wire shelving through which most books slip but which also attract an amazing amount of just plain desert dirt. No matter how often I take the items off and clean them, in a month I have to do it again. My plan is to replace those wire racks with closed cupboards and slow down the getting dirty process. It also will just plain look better!
However, on the bottom shelf, I came across an old favorite, my values clarification bible from the earliest days of my teaching career, and I took a nostaglic trip down memory lane. As I thumbed through the chapters, I came across the activity (Strategy #71) for getting ready for summer, prefaced with the warning that ...
"Summers are often menacing to people. They provide a long stretch of time, we often think, in which we can accomplish an amazing amount of work or learning or playing. Frequently, we become frustrated because we're not having as much fun as we think we should or are not getting as much work done as we think we should."
Yep, that is I: my plate is never empty and it's often too full, so I must learn and practice moderation in all things. Therefore, I set up a blank chart, using all the little "requirements" of Strategy #71, to see what my Top 5 are in each category--and it's awesome. I doubt that I'll ever finish my initial list in the 3 months of summer, but I'm known to accomplish what I set my mind to do, so we'll see.
It was easy to fill in the places I want to visit and the chores, but I altered the books to read column to include movies to see because I'm always reading something, and often more than one book at a time. This habit has to become USE THE LIBRARY as I tend to purchase books, proofread them, and then pass them on to hospitals and libraries and friends. I'm retired now, so have to learn to be more practical.
Anyway, I attached a copy of the list for my top 10 people to think about because they, too, are highly-motivated over-achievers, and emailed it to them. I really don't know how many of them are actually motivated to set short-term goals, but I'm going to assume we ALL have a "to do" list, of which this is simply one more.
Anyway, I attached a copy of the list for my top 10 people to think about because they, too, are highly-motivated over-achievers, and emailed it to them. I really don't know how many of them are actually motivated to set short-term goals, but I'm going to assume we ALL have a "to do" list, of which this is simply one more.
There are 5 categories, with 5 fill-in-the-blank spaces for how to can accomplish these top 5 goals. Mine is not quite finished, but once it's printed, I'll have an action plan and won't feel quite so free-floating as I transition into retirement.
And, yes, cake decorating is on my list, as well as daily exercise, for which Mia will be most grateful.
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