That's the question Gretchen Rubin of The Happiness Project blog poses today. Actually, she posted a video on the topic but of course I didn't watch it--one of my cardinal rules is to avoid watching videos online. At the speed of our internet, videos are about as fun as paint drying (possibly more because I enjoy a freshly-painted room.) Usually the only thing that filters up to me wanting to watch it online is the latest video of my niece Emery.
But I digress. One of Rubin's happiness discoveries is that you can choose what you do but you can't choose what you like to do. I've found this particularly helpful in thinking about how I want to spend my time in my new two-kiddo-but-no-paid-work world. Here are the things I loved doing at age 10:
-Reading
-Writing (I think I self-published my first serial novels in kindergarten, about monkeys)
-Making quilts (no joke, I used to march into my parents' room on a Saturday morning while they were asleep, and suggest helpfully, "Let's make a quilt today!")
-Playing with my dollhouse
-Swimming on a team
-Walking my dog
-Organizing things (like quotes, rocks, etc.)
-Playing kick-the-can with the neighborhood kids
The things I enjoy now are remarkably consistent. Give me a free day and what will I do?
-Read
-Write
-Do crafts/projects
-Play with my dolls, I mean, kids
-Go to the gym, preferably a class that recreates a demanding coach barking orders at a group of us
-Snuggle with my dog on the couch
-Organize anything that doesn't run away from me
The only thing I really don't do anymore is play kick-the-can. Maybe it's time to start. :)
I'm interested to know if this works quite so well for anyone else.
