What I've Been Doing With Myself

It's amazing how much of your time is filled when you're not working. My biggest problem is I stay up too late and then get up late. I haven't been getting as much done as I'd like. I feel like a slacker. I feel very inefficient.

I read that the purpose of our lives is not to be efficient, just like the purpose of objects is not to be useful. I'm not sure how that applies to me, but the principles are sound enough.

Here's how I've been filling my time lately:

• I've been taking swimming lessons. The new penguin display pool is going to be three times the size of the one now and eight feet deep. Everyone who works in there is required to take a swim test. Since I have the time I've been taking swimming lessons and practicing at the pool. I can swim a little (more of a dog paddle), but I'm not comfortable in the water. These lessons are really good for me. A huge challenge for me is learning to how to breathe and getting used to the rhythm. After I get a job and get proficient with swimming, I want to take a climbing wall class.

• I've been running errands once a week for one of my friends. She pays me a good hourly wage for my efforts. It gets me out of the house and doing something useful for someone else.
  

• I've been doing some poking around with the job hunting, but nothing too serious. I did manage to get a phone interview for a company I very casually sent my resume too. That was a nice boost.

• I've been volunteering at the Aquarium. It's a really exciting time since we're gearing up to do the transfer back to the new Aquarium in less than a month.

• I've been working through the online classes the employment placement agency offers on their website. The company gave me access to the employment placement agency as part of my severance, and it has been very helpful. In fact, I worked through the "interviewing" module class just before my phone interview and it was really helpful.

Things I should be doing:

• Working more quickly through the online classes.

• Reviewing my health insurance/COBRA information and figuring all that out.

• Calling people I used to work with to see if they'll be a reference for me.

• Revising my novel. I'm sounding like a broken record now.

• Finishing the Gotham Writers' Workshop book I've been really enjoying.

• Working through my Netflix queue. It's pathetic how many movies I haven't been watching lately when I have all this time.

• Exploring neighborhoods in this City so I can do some of those blog posts for a change.
  

Things I should not be doing:

• Obsessing over a lost love.

• Sleeping in every single day.

• Going to see "No Country for Old Men" a fourth time. I just found out the DVD is not due out until March of 2008. Grrr.
  

• Buying unnecessary items. Earlier this week I bought two new bath mats. They were on a shopping list I had. It's true the old ones were over 15 years old, but they would have done just fine until after I got a new job.