HOW TO RELAX
(okay so i'm really writing this for myself)


supposedly we all think life is stress. the happiest time in my recent time was when i was unemployed this summer--i went running twice a day, prepared soups and elaborate (for me!) meals, played with luna, worked on stories and writing, read books, listened to bille holliday while drinking tea and staring out the window from my rocking chair, practicing yoga. what's now to love about being unemployed? you tell me!

oh, the money. well who needs money anyway?

okay i really don't want to be evicted...

but since i'm taking three classes and working full time, trying to finish editing my novel, and raising a curious cat, i am very stressed.

i miss being unemployed.

i want to be finished with school.

well, i do need money to pay rent and i do need to go to school so i can get my degree. so how to deal with it?

1. take a day to say, "i don't care." this can involve going out and getting really drunk and spending all the money in your wallet. you might go shopping for a day when you should be reading some trite theory, or go dancing when you have a paper to write. you are not going to absorb any of that knowledge if you're miserable. RELAX!
2. figure a way to maximize your time--do your homework on the train, read novels in the bathtub, brush your teeth while peeing, mop your floor while talking on the phone.
3. order out. why bother cooking? you need more time. get disposable plates from the place and cutlery if you are really too lazy/busy to wash dishes.
4. drink lots of tea. that's really relaxing.
5. laugh a lot. even if it's not funny.
6. practice yoga.
7. take baths.
8. light candles around your apartment while you study.
9. read something by andrew weil and be convinced you just need to eliminate dairy. or learn his awesome breathing exercises--4-7-8!
10. dance. put on a cd, and study with it playing softly. when track 19, or whatever your favorite track is, comes on, get up and dance. crazy. play it loud. then reduce the volume and resume studying. put on repeat. repeat.
11. make to-do lists and cross things out. how satisfying.
12. meditate.
13. sleep. (rip van winkle, my boyfriend, told me that one.)
14. spend some time with somebody who is not stressed, like your grandmother. play rummikube with her and hold her hand. sometimes being around people who are not stressed is relaxing--and often they can help out, whether it be brushing your hair or just spreading their love.
15. tell your cat how stressed you are. then give your cat a treat. she is fine either way, but happier with the treat. now drink lots and lots of water. make sure your cat does the same.

DON'T YOU FEEL BETTER NOW?
i don't know how to do it. so i figured i'd post and you can email me at cheriecat@aol.com and we can help each other out.