Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Don't talk to me until at least 10:00a.m.

The family has been passing around a few emails about our planned June trip to Portland, Oregon. I returned one email with what Tessa described as "very direct" response, i.e. rude! Which somehow got us on the topic of trying to be nice to people when we don't feel like being nice at all, or when tired, or when distracted by other things. Many of us claim to be introverts and I think I'm in that group. No, I know I'm in that group. I'm not the uni bomber. I don't want to live in a shack in the woods and plot evil. I want to connect with others. But being with people is often an energy drain rather than an energy gain. I need some recovery time.

One lesson extrovert Mark has struggled to learn is my desire for a calm and talk-free morning routine. Nothing makes me crankier than a chipper verbal greeting and a big hug to greet the dawn. And when I'm fixing my oatmeal, there is no need to choose that moment to fill ones cereal bowl, dig for a spoon, reach around me to open the fridge for the milk. One could wait 30 seconds and have the kitchen all to ones self. Hypothetically speaking, of course.

I've been trying to think what else is in the energy-gain category for me: Being creative, learning something new, helping one of my daughters with a project, organizing things, finding some alone time to read a book or putter around the house. Nice. I wonder how I could restructure my world to include more of those things. At my age I want the how-I-spend-my-time scale to be tipping way over to the side of energy gaining activities. Or at least tipping more towards peace and contentment.

6 comments:

Stephen said...

Amen, Sister.

ReRe said...

came across your blog on jenx67 and i love it!

i'm an extrovert, but have an introvert in the house and it has taken me a few years to understand that i don't need to sing "oh happy day" to him first thing in the morning. when i do that, our day turns out to be anything but happy

tessa said...

I have a GREAT idea for tank filling!!!

You, me, and my adclub scrapbook thursday night, am I not the best kid ever :)

Cari said...

ReRe - Welcome! Glad you recognize that early morning singing is not the way to win the heart of an introvert :)

Tessa - I'm in.

Shari said...

The early morning sing used to be my last and best weapon in the wake up Cori and Alli arsenol. "Rise and shine and give God the glory, glory!" (Sorry Jesus)It was WAY after the gentle cycle; LONG past the shake and shout. So, if it was annoying, IT WAS DESIGNED THAT WAY. Now they wake themselves up. So I just sing quietly to myself in the mornings.

Extreme Educators said...

I had a friend who used to do the "Rise and Shine" medley in the morning. She would also sit on my whilst singing. Unfortunately she was a gymnast and was 100 pounds of pure muscle so all attempts to shove her off the top bunk were futile.