Holidaze

I heard a doctor say that before the holidays, Neurology is busy and after the holidays Psychology gets really busy.  Seems the stress of the season brings out people’s ticks and spending time with family requires a counseling session.  The most wonderful time of year has become a survival skills test of modern life.  Why do we do this to ourselves? 

I think the biggest problem is we try to celebrate it too much.  In a concentrated frenzy, we shop for gifts, decorate, and cook for Christmas.  There are work parties, friend’s gathering and family traditions.  (Just from work alone, I got four invites for holiday parties!)  By Christmas Day, you’ve already been celebrating Christmas for 3-4 weeks.   All the sparkly lights and sugary treats become a holiday blur and it stops being fun and starts being a chore.  How do you enjoy the holidays, while not driving yourself mad?

Being on my own this season has made me very conscious of making good choices to be able to enjoy the holiday season.  My major revelation has been prioritizing what is not important and minimizing the time spent on it: 

-          Christmas cards. I skipped this. I admit, I was very tempted (to feel obligated) to send Christmas cards, at least to those who sent them to me.  I resisted.

-          Decorations. I started to rile myself up over decorations and then realized, decking my house out was not all that important to me. Instead, I volunteered to decorate the office.  I get to see lovely holiday decorations five times a week.

-          Gifts.  Shopping for gifts is a chore.  So I got my shopping done early. I simply asked people what they wanted and shopped online, as much as, possible. The day after Thanksgiving, I was at the post office, mailing off boxes.  That’s right, Rani Claus brings you exactly what you asked for!

-          Holiday parties.  I scheduled the important ones first so that I didn’t end up trying to juggle my time.   I also said no thanks to some invites.

I know, I sound a little grinchy.  Like the majority of people, I really want to enjoy the holidays, but the list of “to-dos” and “should dos” has become a burden.  I minimized or eliminated the things I wasn’t really enjoying.  I was left with time to focus on the people and things, I do enjoy:

-Spending quality time with family.  I used to go back to Hawaii for Christmas, but people were busy there too. To spend time with them, I practically had to follow them around while they did the Christmas chores.  Now, I plan my Hawaii trips during non-holidays for maximum quality time.  I direct my attention to the family I do have here.   My sister and I have an annual Christmas lunch with my Aunty.  This year, there are some popular Hawaii entertainers coming to Cali to do a Christmas show, which my sister and I got tickets too! So I get quality family time and taste of Hawaii.

-          Event Traditions.  There is no shortage of events you can participate in for the holidays. Instead of trying to do them all, I decided to pick a couple and really enjoy them.  My picks for this year are Holiday of Lights at Folsom Zoo and ice skating. Ice skating last through January, so if I don’t make it before Christmas, I will be okay with that. 

-          Christmas Feast.  I try to make good eating choices prior to the holiday. By saving special food for the special day, it is well- actually special.

-          Sweets and Treats. Oh the temptations are endless, but I have my favorites like- peppermint mochas. Yes, I realize you can get these year round, but I only get them during the holiday season. That makes it taste even better.  It is amazing how much the little things matter.

So far my post-Thanksgiving time has been manageable. I suffer some residual guilt for saying no to party invitations and not sending out Christmas cards.  But mostly I relish the calmness that allows me to enjoy this season.  This may be the first Christmas, I’ve actually had time to enjoy since childhood.

Perfect is the Enemy of Good

Here I am again… weeks have gone by without me posting a blog. I have no good reason for not crafting a weekly post, but let me try out a few theories: 1) The weather changed- it got dark and cold and I just followed my instincts to seasonally slow down. 2) Life is peacefully, so nothing fired me up to get a good piece going.  3)  Writing both thrills and scares me into inertia.

While all of these excuses make up the truth, #3 is the biggest part of why I haven’t been writing.  Honestly, I haven’t even attempted to write a blog, but I thought about it- a lot. I feel pressure to produce and publish only perfection.   That kind of pressure creates avoidance, because I hate to fail.  I thought about just deleting the whole Rice Kracker blog and stop stressing myself unnecessarily.

But I just can’t quit writing because it is my outlet for creating something. I am not artsy or mechanically inclined, but I can use words to build something.   I love the way you start with a blank screen and sentence by sentence a piece gets created.   You arrange, rearrange, delete and revise until thoughts are shaped into a symphony of words.  

Another reason I can’t quit is writing is an adventure.  I often start writing not really knowing where I am heading and then ending up somewhere I never thought I would.  For example, I wrote this blog intending to expound upon how you shooting for perfection can paralyze you, but instead it has evolved into how much I love creating with words.

Having a blog to write is a good thing for me. It exercises my creative muscles.  I need to get pass perfect inertia and just write. I need to take the time to do this regularly.  I need to face that blank screen and see what adventures are in store.