Saturday, November 10, 2012

Time to get to work

Ok, good, Obama won.

I've talked to numerous friends that have all kinda said, "Now I can get back to work."

I feel the exact same way. Definitely since we got back from Morocco (did we really do that? It's starting to already fade and I'm amazed we even went there) my mind has been on the elections. I switched to CNN whenever I could. I was mesmerized.

But now, phew. We can all get back to work.

I feel like I'm always waiting to get back to work. When one is self-employed, one discovers that there is still not all the time in the world. And one discovers too that even though you are in charge of everything in your life, stuff pops up - essay readings, slide tests for your tour guide certification tests (it's on Monday!) and I wonder why I picked up those things to work on, because they're getting in my way of WORK.

Of course, one answer is to turn off the TV.

The other answer was pushed forwards in my Buddhist podcast this week. All the time the Buddha is telling you to say YES. Say yes to everything, even if it's pain or sadness. Accept it. Say yes to it. Feeling like shit? Say yes to it. Pain? Yes. Happiness? Yes.

And then the other day this guy started talking about NO. How important it is. How Buddhism is all yes and it's also no. No to the things that don't further your spiritual/mental/whatever health.

Sometimes I feel like I'm throwing so much shit against the wall, trying to see what sticks and my thinking these days is that I have two things to concern myself with. Chicago Elevated and Lost and Found.

Even this slide test that I'm working on, I have to talk for 2 minutes about a random selection of 10 slides. This is to get my tour guide certification for the Chicago Tour Guide Association. Which is a totally made up thing really, they'll even tell you that. The CTGA is awesome, totally awesome, but the only thing this certification does is certify me with this local organization AND, it's to certify me to give bus tours, which I don't want to give.

So why, WHY am I taking time out to study for this?

I'm not sure, partly because I like being tested on my Chicago knowledge and I find this infinitely interesting and hilarious and awesome, but partly because I think sometimes I just say yes.

Guillebeau always says "If it's not 'HELL YES' the answer is really 'NO'.

I have to remember that. I want to focus on what I want to focus on, not look at sparkly distractions.

Oooh...travel writing contest....ooooh....a reading?....oooh....Christmas?

No. Work. Heads down everyone.

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