You know how some people get really rested, rejuvenated and are in generally good mood after a few days of rest? Well, I am not one of them. This is what happens to me:
Yes. I call it the process of stagnation and decay. First days off are usually ok since I mostly kill time by cleaning. But on the 4th day the process begins. I start staying up longer and longer and of course consequentially get up later and later doing nothing all day long. Today I got up at noon. Yes of course, I’m on vacation … so generally there shouldn’t be any issues. But here’s the thing … I feel like crap.
For the same reason meditation, beaches, relaxation, afternoon naps and whatever else you can stuck in this category never worked for me.
What does work is the most boring or unimaginable thing you can think of. Repetitive work. Doing the same thing over and over again. I remember labeling cans when I was a kid … or assembling keyboards. Packing boxes. 8h of doing the same thing over and over again. It makes sense why the rest hated it … but for me it was grand. I came from work rested. It was years later when I was in college that I could put this into words. I got into a flow.
In positive psychology, flow, also known as the zone, is the mental state of operation in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity. In essence, flow is characterized by complete absorption in what one does and loses sense of space and time.
So I commenced my summer plan. There is always about 2983 things to do in my place and I already have a few projects left from the last summer. Last year I painted all the window and door frames and started working on my “cave library”.
Today I decided to paint my hallway white which I’m half way through. Pictures will follow (if I feel like it).