Brother, can you spare me the time?
All I need is a bit of time.
Listening to experts, I am time poor improving my life with just a few minutes of time invested here and there every day.
From my allotted 24 hours, I wisely invest eight hours hanging out at the office because all the business counselors guarantee showing up for work every day impresses the boss and shows up favorably on the yearly review.
16 hours left to do everything else, except no one mentioned that I would also spend another 30 minutes every day driving to and from work – plus 15 minutes running around gathering up a sack lunch, my keys and odds and ends needed for errands before or after work. Add in 15 minutes on average everyday for errands – dropping a coat off at the dry cleaners, a book at the library or grabbing a gallon of milk at the grocery store – and I’ve blown another hour a day just coming and going to work.
15 hours still bankrolled to spend daily – until I realized none of the authorities mention time expended every day dressing and grooming – at least half an hour a day – longer if I do anything other than brush, wash, comb and make-up. Add in flossing, styling, a pedicure, manicure and laundering clothes and the clock ticks me down another hour.
14 hours is great riches in time – except I haven’t eaten a thing – not a thing all day. And all of the health gurus emphasize the need for eating regular, healthy meals – sitting comfortably at a table. So there I am well dressed, exercised and I still need at least three meals a day or I will definitely faint right off the face of the earth.
A meal, whether one drives-through, prepares it at home, pours a bowl of cereal or pops a TV dinner in the oven takes time.
My husband testifies to everyone he knows that within 20 to 30 minutes of my walking in the door each evening I have a meal on the table – not take-out, not a TV dinner, but home cooked he says and I refuse to enlighten him.
Since he sets the table with place mats, dishes, silver and napkins, I don’t have to include that time, but it still takes nearly an hour to fix, eat and clean-up after supper. Add in 15 minutes for a simple breakfast of cereal, 15 minutes to eat the sack lunch I packed and I bestow a minimum of an hour and 30 minutes to just eating – if I don’t count time for that late night bowl of popcorn or mid-day tea break.
12 and a half hours a day left to do everything else. Still plenty of time to sit down for at least 30 minutes to read the Bible, pray and meditate as spiritual advisors advocate.
With 12 hours a day, I have plenty of time left for a few minutes at the computer to check my email, weblog and Facebook or to make phone calls. After watching my mother maintain contact with family and friends with frequent and regular letters and phone calls to her extended family I know its importance, but it takes time – at least 30 minutes a day.
11 and a half hours – plenty of time to squeeze in a hobby. One avid hobbyist said any woman with a hobby should dedicate at least three hours a day to it. I’ll use that time any day. I only have a few hobbies: cross-stitch, sewing, garage sale shopping and knitting.
Reading though is NOT a hobby, it is a way of life, as essential as eating, breathing and sleeping. I must have at least an hour day to just read – books, newspapers, the backs of cereal boxes, a novel, biography or a collection of essays including 15 minutes of reading before I fall asleep.
7 and a half hours left to be a writer and responsible citizen means using 30 minutes a day for jotting down my thoughts and experiences, checking snail mail and paying bills.
Seven hours, and I haven’t said a word to my husband, done a bit of housekeeping or slept a wink.
Let’s say I can squeeze all that in 45 minutes.
6 hours and 15 minutes left to my day. Here is where I always come up short. According to the National Sleep Foundation’s website – the recommended number of hours per day is seven to eight hours for optimal health.
So brother can you spare me some time? I need some sleep.