How to Have a Morning Luxury for a One-Time Fee of $6

So, let me just get this out of the way.  My new year has sucked.  Like nothing bad has happened... at all, really.  I count my blessings because with 5 people in a nuclear family, there is high likelihood of catastrophe at any given point.  And I definitely have some friends who have already been through the wringer before January is even over.  So, I guess I'm saying that this is silly for me to feel this way, and I acknowledge it and I aim to move past it, but it's where I am.  2014 has thus far been the year of suck.

One of the reasons is that I really intended to get a grip on my life and what I'm doing and where I'm going.  There are lots of reasons that I won't go into, but the short of it is that I have many loose strings that I am certain could be the beautiful bow on top of a much-needed gift to the world and humanity if only I could figure out how to tie them all up.

I have not yet been successful.  And I know what you're thinking... 2014 just started.  You have the whole year to tie them up.  That's the point, right?  Yes.  It is.  It's the year to tie them up.  But little impatient me wanted to tie them up at least enough to have a plan for the beautiful bow by now.

Kind of like... I wanted to at least have googled "How to make a beautiful bow out of all your scraps of string" and to have scoured all the e-hows and instructables so that I could move forward with the actual crafting.  But I have barely sat down to open up my browser.

And what, you ask, does this have to do with morning luxury?

Well, this is my one success story, so I share it here.

One of my epiphanies was that I need to have tangible rewards for the behaviors that I seek to change.  One of those is to enjoy exercise more.  I already exercise 3 times a week, but I wanted to change my attitude toward it, so I started eating one small square of some amazing chocolate that I won in dirty Santa at Christmas.  It has significantly increased my desire to exercise, and surprisingly, I haven't found every other excuse to eat it in the meantime.

Another habit that I wanted to reestablish was that of waking up and spending time reading the Bible and praying.  I haven't had this habit for ... oh, 7 years.  It's really been since Ashlyn was born that I haven't had any kind of consistency with daily faith experiences.  I mean, Christ is my life, so I absolutely would think about him or shoot some prayers his direction here and there throughout the day, but I'm not a surface-type person.  I'm a dig deep and explore kind of person, and so it was frustrating that I wasn't having those moments consistently.  I also find that time to be a grounding as I go about my day.  It reminds me of the truths I believe and when I get stuck in a rut of selfishness, it jerks me back to reality that everyone else is just as precious as I am, and that in no way undermines my worth, it only testifies to the vastness of love.

So, I needed a reward because Heaven knows that waking up early is not my strong suit.

With no further ado, here's the 4-step process of how I get to have morning luxury for a one-time fee of $6.

1.  Sell a high-priced item on eBay.  I sold Rosetta Stone, which I've since found out is illegal.  So, maybe try something else.  You will earn almost $15 in eBay credits.  If your buyer flakes out and doesn't pay like mine does, you will still have your product and eBay will not take away your credits.  I found this to be very considerate of them.

2.  Buy a 1-cup coffee maker on eBay 3 months later when your reward bucks are valid.  I did hours of research for you, and I've found that the best one for the luxury of a porcelain mug is by a brand I've never heard of.  You might be hesitant to go with something you've never heard of, but it will be worth it.  Hundreds of reviews can't be wrong, and besides I have it and can vouch for it.  On eBay it will actually be $3 more expensive, but remember... you have $15 of credit.

3.  Set up the coffee maker in in your master bathroom.  Also, be sure to get everything prepared the night before you want to use it, or else it kind of defeats the purpose. If you don't drink coffee... #1. What's wrong with you? and #2. This is not quite hot enough to dissolve your hot chocolate, but it will brew a tea bag instead.

4.  Enjoy coffee (or tea or lumpy hot chocolate) in your nice warm bed while reading under your cozy blankets.  

Bonus step:  If you have a reliable digital outlet timer, you can set it to start brewing about 7 minutes before you want to get out of bed.  I tried this with an analog timer, and it was not accurate enough to be worth it, so now I just get up and turn the machine off while my alarm snoozes.

In the Meantime...

The other day, I quasi-promised myself and you (my loyal 2 readers) that I would get my rear in gear this week and move forward in this new year, new life mentality.  That is, I will take it from a thought to an action.  How I will do that is still a question for debate, but right now I'm giving myself the continued excuse of waiting for a book to come in at my library that should revolutionize the way I look at writing and, shortly thereafter, change my entire existence.  One of these days I will write that kind of book.

But for now, I thought I would just give you a glimpse into today.  This dull-drum day that begin at 6:10 when I miraculously arose in accordance with my alarm clock.  Actually, this isn't so miraculous these days, as there is a simple explanation, which I will share in the form of another sarcastic post on another day.  For now, you need know nothing except that I arose.  And from that you should be proud of me.

Well, I'm proud of myself anyway.  You probably don't really like me telling you what you should or should not know, feel, or do.  If you do like it, um, that's a little weird.

The day quickly, and for no reason whatsoever, met a not-so-subtle decrescendo after Billy left for work.  Today, I took it as my queue to be completely self-centered and to neglect the fact that I alone am responsible for my child's education.  Me and no one else.  And I just let my kid sleep until she awoke on her own.  Mainly because I wasn't up for a fight.  Which is a large portion of why we are sending her to school next year (ooops, hadn't you heard that yet?)

So, I was well aware that I was only affirming her negative habits, but that knowledge wasn't enough for me to change my course of action.  I am happy to say, however, that I did not get on facebook and play Pet Rescue Saga.  So, I have that going for me, which is nice.  In reality, I planned my outing to CVS because shopping there on a budget takes some serious manipulation.

And that was my morning.  The girl eventually woke up and we got along with our day, still somewhat lethargically, but at least we did enough to technically count it for credit according to bare minimum state standards. 

Happy Chinese New Year, maybe?

I had intended to write sooner.  I had all these end of 2013 reflections that kinda kicked me in the rear with a big, "Get moving, woman!" thrown in for good measure.  I have many things that I'm seeking, many things that I'm thinking... many more that I haven't even begun to grasp.

But procrastination has been my companion these weeks.  Not even that kind of procrastination that stems from the lack of motivation or a particular distaste for a given task.  Rather, there is nothing this writer enjoys more than writing.  Well, I can think of something, after all, but it's not really your business but I'm not too much of a prude to talk about it.  I just think it would embarrass some of you, so I'm going to hint around the topic and carry on as if you knew what I'm talking about.

So, yes, to me, writing is a pastime.  It's not simply the production of an end-product.  It is the experience.  It is the unveiling of my heart on paper.  It is the exploration of my thoughts, the time when I myself only begin to understand what I think.  It is the mean I use to know myself, to conduct logical exercises, to confirm my beliefs, to challenge my preconceived notions, and to share myself with those around me.

Yet I have forsaken it.

Because there is too little time and too much content.  Those times when I have sat down to write have ended with ramblings, cursory glances at the myriad of topics bouncing around in my head.  To say I scratched the surface would be generous.  I merely realized that the surface existed.  And perhaps that it was quite itchy.

And here is where I betray myself.  Because I have too many directions to go from here to effectively communicate myself to you.  How do you say something when you don't know what there is to be said?

So, I hope yet to take this desire for knowing myself and sharing myself and to come to some understanding about what I have of value to give to you.  So, perhaps, I will be able to know what goals I have for the future by the time the Chinese New Year arrives.  Because really... what's a new year except a page on a calendar?  And what makes my new year more worthy of my offerings than one from the other side of the globe?

So... yes, that's what I will attempt (you see my hesitation, as if I don't even believe myself?)... to have a place to start... next week.