Down Time

What do you do with your free time?

So what do women do when the Womenzwerk is at a low ebb and it's time to relax? Logic would say that we should spend this precious time in any activity that refreshes our soul and makes us happy. But let's get real.

Down time is a thing we experience between loads of laundry, cleaning the kitchen, driving the kids around, calling Mom and working in the workplace, the yard or the homeless shelter. Womenzwerk requires that our down time comes in spurts of a few hours, maybe a day and rarely an extended period. So when it hits us that we have time to unwind, we may suddenly need to come up with something really fun in about fifteen minutes that doesn't last more than two hours and can only involve any girlfriends or others who are available at that moment. Kind of limits the excitement.

Just trying to come up with something that will really make us feel great between our work can produce a weird sort of anxiety. Most days, and it's usually on the weekends, I just resort to naps. Naps are the one true source of bliss for me where I'm not thinking about anything that I have to do next. Of course, when I wake up, I realize I've wasted the two valuable hours of downtime where I could be doing the kinds of things Oprah recommends to balance and restore my soul. And then I'm stressed again as I launch into the rest of the day's to-dos. Is it just me? I'm interested to know how women find joy in the midst of a daunting amount of Womenzwerk.

Maybe the joy has to come within the framework of our essential tasks. Ways of doing the basic requirements of a responsible woman's day while feeling totally hopeful, joyful and relaxed. Maybe it's just the approach that matters. Snow White and Cinderella come to mind. But then, I've always enjoyed a good fantasy. Share the joy, let us know how you maximize your down time. Or any time. Let 2009 be the year we find hope and joy.

So, what do you think? Do you have any free time and, if so, how do you spend it?