One strange upside to working from home full-time these last few months is that my to-do list is far less time — or location — dependent. Besides errands like getting groceries, almost everything I can and need to get done is accessible.
While in a virtual meeting upstairs, my laundry can be spinning in the machine and dinner prep can be done casually between work tasks.
At first, I thought this was awesome.
If I was efficient, I could meet all of my work responsibilities for the day and get my chores done, meaning that my after work hours could be spent in pure relaxation mode.
Which was true, for about a week.
The thing about humans is that if we have free time, we seem driven to fill it with something. Oh, are the dishes caught up, the laundry washed and folded, and the house tidy? Great! That means it’s time to start a Project .
So now instead of being all chill and relaxed — as much as one can be in these uncertain times — my to-do list is gaining sentience.
It doesn’t matter that I’m swamped with work and have the attention span of a socially-isolated goldfish right now; my subconscious wants to mentally plan a trip to IKEA to purchase stuff to decorate my home’s entryway.
My rational, conscious mind is mostly able to calmly remind that stupid part that I’m already neck-deep into installing a new kitchen backsplash.
But then my goldfish brain is all “Oh look! A castle!” and all bets are off again. That list is screaming to be freed.
And I don’t even have the excuse of being at the office to get out of letting it run wild.
Last Updated on August 8, 2020 by Amy Pilkington