Further Proof That I Still Do Not Get Enough Sleep

In the early morn, cup of coffee in hand, I'm scrolling through overnight emails and slowly getting my brain moving for the day.

My inbox has a Living Social email in it, one of those daily deal super fabulous coupon dealios.  The subject line says: Dog Boarding.

And for the life of me, I cannot figure out why anyone, even here in anything-goes California, would pay to have their dog go surfing, with or without a coupon.

That image?  You can buy it as a sticker!  No, not from me; I thought
since I'm using their fun image, I could at least link to the site
where you can buy it. Click here.

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Untangling Restlessness

I am restless today. Unmotivated. Unsatisfied.

I can't find a way to settle down and be "in the moment," the way we are always told to be.

If I could do something of my own choosing today, I would curl up with a good book: I've been trying to read What is the What for weeks. But I can't do that, now, can I? Of course not. My life is not my own right now. I see people out and about, doing...things. I see them in their yards making progress on home projects. I see them bustling about doing errands and Getting Things Done. I see them spending time with friends. Whatever. Whatever they are doing looks divine, because I can't do any of it.

Two days ago, I spent 45 minutes untangling Toy Story parachuter army men from each other. That night, I found them again tangled in a compromising heap. This morning, I spent 25 minutes untangling a First Communion cross necklace that had four knots in it. So far today, in addition to untangling the necklace, I've done one load laundry, hung our new shower curtain, picked up a payment from a client, and fed people one meal. It's not so satisfying.

I yearn for more. I yearn to be creative and to be engaged in something interesting. Instead, I'm probably going to take the kids to the park, where I will engage in the most mind-numbing of my motherly duties: pushing a swing for as-yet-unable-to-pump-for-themselves children.

I also yearn to lose myself, to stop thinking about myself, to get caught up in something "other." The kids don't count, since apparently my words and actions determine their happiness and success so BAM! we're back to me. It's a sickening paradox: how do I pray for a loss of self, which necessitates being aware that what I want is a loss of self?

And I'm also thinking of the word restless. It means unsettled, uneasy, lacking peace and calm, being fidgety, dissatisfied and unfocused. But it also means without rest. I'm sure I would feel better if I could go to sleep for awhile. I can't.

Oh, and I'm also thinking that I eat too many carbs.

I'm kind of a mess.

And I'm off to the park with my kids.

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Coffee, Stat!

You know you really, really need a cup of coffee when you repeatedly press the OFF button on the coffee maker, getting more and more panicky each time, wondering why the damn thing isn't working and cursing the fate of having a broken coffee machine.

If ever I needed proof that there is mercy in the world, my accidentally hitting the ON button in my frenzied pushing of the OFF button was it.

Boy, did I feel silly. But I'm caffienated now, so I don't care.

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