5 Simple Ways I’m Making the Most of my Sabbatical
5 simple ways I’m making the most of my sabbatical
now that I’m officially on Sabbatical, with nothing else getting in the way like a pesky job, i thought I’d take a minute to reflect on how I’m making the most of my remaining time here in Jerusalem. I only have 2 months until my return flight, and since I don’t know how long it’ll be before I can come back, I want to make the most of that time. Here’s the rub, I have exactly enough money left to pay rent, eat, fly back to Seattle, and pay for my shipment. That’s it. Nothing left over for exotic side trips, weekends on the coast, or for that matter going to a movie. So what am I going to do with my remaining time here on a limited budget of – well nothing?
I have no idea.
There, I said it. I’m really not sure how I’m going to use my time. and that’s the beauty of it. I have some time on my hands. I’m unemployed so that time is my own. but it’s a limited amount of time. I know that on March 28th (at something like 2 am) a shuttle will pick me up to take me to the airport and approximately 24 hours later I’ll be back in Seattle. What happens after that isn’t up to me yet. I’m focusing on the time between now and then. And that’s the #1 lesson I think I’ve learned while here. How to really force myself to focus on the here and now, and leave the future to the future.
I am going to need to find a job. But there’s really nothing I can do until I’m back in Seattle and can show up for interviews. I’m going to need to start planning my move to – let’s say Denver for arguments sake. But again, not being on the same continent makes that more difficult than I need right now, so that can wait too. I’m left with 2 months (am I getting redundant yet?)
Which brings me, in the most round about way I could come up with on short notice, to the topic of this post – 5 simple ways I’m going to make the most of my Sabbatical:
1) Solidify new habits. I’ve been working for some time now on a couple of new habits that I really want solidified by the time I’m working a 9-5 again. These are things that I found really help ground me and get through a long day of work that I really don’t like or want to be doing. They just make it tolerable. Just what these habits are is the topic for several upcoming posts…gotta leave something to the imagination don’t I?
2) Loose at least 10 more pounds. I know, that’s a bit more than the “experts” say to loose if you want it to stay off. However, I’ve lost 35 pounds following this new diet style and have a couple of ideas for ways to speed the process up so I can really wow the hometown crowd when they show up at the airport!
3) Meet 1 new person per day. That might sound cheesy, or actually I could see it sounding kinda creepy, but living in a non-English speaking country leads to a self-imposed insulation. I don’t want to be that insulated. I want to try out my limited Hebrew, make someone laugh, and hope they speak some English. I find people with dogs work well for this, dogs like me.
4) Walk. A lot. I was walking a minimum of 2 miles every day while going to my internship and brief paid job. I’d like to keep up that amount and try for 5 at least once a week.
5) Smile.
That last one is more important than I ever used to give it credit for. You just try to fret, or worry, or pout with a smile. It just doesn’t work.
I’m tellin’ ya, Jessie, Denver’s heaven. No “argument’s sake” about it. Best of luck as you pursue these 5 fabulous goals. I’m always surprised how far a simple smile takes me (and it’s spoken the same in every language!). Also, like the new layout.
Thanks as always Sunny! I’m keeping you on my short list of people to contact when I know what’s what and when I’ll be needing a tour guide…;-)
On the layout, I’m still trying to find a clean, simple theme that still allows comments, RSS buttons, etc…without being too fussy. In the meantime, this is the original WP theme from back in the day…