2011 has become quite a transformative year for me. I’ve changed jobs twice, had an addition built onto my house, gotten a dental implant drilled into my jaw, and began getting fit. All of that happened in the last eight months.
Only one of the job changes was on purpose. The first change was an opportunity to go do something a little different from what I had been doing in a part of our organization I really admire. The second time my job changed by force because the division I joined was merged with another division and started a massive reorganization – a transformative change, not just a moving of chairs – about the time I started the new job. Let me just say, that alone was very stressful for me.
But job change wasn’t my only stress. I waited for months for permits and got them and we began construction shortly before I was notified that my “new” job was being terminated. I was scrambling to create a resume for entirely different jobs at work as I was living through troops of construction men invading my house on a daily basis as they worked to build an addition onto my little row house.
Living through those two things didn’t allow time for much else, so I decided to set my writing aside for a few months and get everything else in order. I made this decision because it seemed wiser to officially set writing aside than to beat myself up because I didn’t have time or energy to focus on the stories. At the time, I worried about that decision, but any of you who have ever lived through a reorganization OR a home renovation project know that either one of those can and will consume your life. Living through BOTH at the same time is an exercise in survival without going insane.
Throw in dental implant surgery right in the middle of that, and I’m amazed I lived through all of it with my sanity and new diet and exercise regime in place.
Actually, the diet and exercise might have helped me weather the storm. I started by ordering a fitbit back in early March. By then, the reorganization crazies were setting in and construction was about to start. I knew I had to do something to keep myself steady, and I was already worried about weight I had gained in the last few years. My friend Jeanne Adams had been raving about the fitbit, so I decided to give it a go. I’m competitive enough that it didn’t take me long before I was trying to personal best the number of steps I took each day. When I started out, I was happy to make sure I hit 10,000 steps each day. Six months later, I’m disappointed if I don’t get at least 13,000 steps each day. So far, I’ve lost twelve pounds and I’m not in my “fat” clothes any more. That works for me!
I have to stop now, but I have more to say about this transformation I’m going through this year…
