Time Gaps

I've been thinking a lot lately about wasted time. I spend two hours a day on the bus on the way to or from work. Then I drive home. Often, I wait for something. For the bus, for someone to meet me, in line at the grocery store or the post office.

I read an interesting post today from Marc and Angel Hack Life. I find a lot of their posts to be a bit trite or overdone, but every once in a while they hit the nail on the head. This particular post was about doing "good-karma" things with your little bits of free time (anywhere from 5 mins to 3 hours). I don't know about you-all, but sometimes it's the waiting, the bits and pieces of time I have, when I'm too agitated to just sit and be, that get me - I tend to fall into thought-spirals or stare at my phone waiting for it to entertain me. It got me thinking - what is my list of good-karma things to do in my "time gaps"?

**Note - I hate the idea that we have to fill every minute with something. I'm not endorsing that kind of anxiety - in fact far from it. This is rather an exercise on my part - to spend my extra pieces of time doing something productive or wholesome instead of refreshing Facebook obsessively.

1-5 minute gaps

• send someone a nice text about how much you love them or with a funny joke.
• grab one thing you don't need anymore and throw it away (or start a Goodwill bag)
• read a quick inspirational text to get you thinking (here are some examples)
• grab your own grocery bags to take to the store, or put them in your car
• smell a pretty flower; maybe pick it to put in your hair
• put one thing back in its place
• wash 3 dishes
• think of someone you haven't seen in a long time and wish them well with all your heart
• watch a funny Youtube video to make you laugh (these ones are pretty great)
• hug an animal (make sure you ask if he/she/it doesn't belong to you!)
• click t0 get sponsors to donate at the Hunger Site (no commitment, just literally clicking a button and then advertisers donate $)

15-30 minute gaps

• flip through your recipe box or a cookbook or your browser bookmarks (I know you use Chrome by now..), pick a new recipe, and put it on your calendar to make it sometime in the next 2 weeks. [these look tasty!]
• write a postcard to your family member/best friend and include an observation of something beautiful.
• go on a walk with a jar of water and water 1 plant that looks sad and like it needs some love.
• call your best friend and talk about feelings (sometimes this may take longer if you are me).
• find a place you'd like volunteer for an afternoon or a few hours.
• plan a day to volunteer and put it on your calendar.
• call your grandma or grandpa and ask them to tell you a story. (grandparents are awesome!)
• do something silly to make someone else laugh.

1-3 hour gaps

• Make dinner for a friend who is overworked and hates cooking! Tell them they can bring something if they want but no obligation.
• Plan an afternoon with your friends to go somewhere and volunteer together, like a community garden or a shelter lunch.
• Educate yourself about something new. Google Books, How Stuff Works, and hell yeah Wikipedia are a good place to start. Also the real-live library which is my favorite!
• Take at least 1 bag of giveaway stuff to Goodwill. They take just about everything and have store everywhere.
• Think of 1 way you can improve your home and plan it out. My current ideas are: 1) organize the corner of my living room that should have a couch in it, 2) convince my building owner to order a compost bin for the building, 3) figure out a good laundry system that prevents a month of laundry backlog.
• Invite someone over to do nothing with you. Drink wine, read poetry to each other, whatever you want. Just enjoy being with someone you think is awesome and who you know thinks you're awesome.

Enjoy.. of course the irony is how long I've spent on the computer composing this. Oh well. Worth it. Gonna go read poetry in bed now.