Today, I shared this image on social media with the hashtag #selfcareSunday. It might not be what most people expect of that hashtag- usually, those posts are of books, bubble baths, spa days, wine, tea, all sorts of relaxing/unwinding/a sort of plush treat for oneself. So a picture of food, supplements (there are four in total) and work not quite out of the picture is not the norm. The nice thing about caring for ourselves is that it takes many different forms- later today I fully plan to do absolutely nothing productive while drinking a cup of tea and reading. Right now, though, and often, a lot of my personal care routines revolve around the things I consume- I am on an elimination diet and have an array of supplements meant to get certain things back on track (really, you don’t want to know ;P) as I complete the elimination diet.
So why the work? Well, I enjoy it. I love getting things done, and I have been nose to the grindstone with so many other things that the bookstore (and consequently, the bookmobile campaign) have taken a back seat for too long. So the chicks are minding themselves upstairs (quietly, since I can hear them through the vents) while I do the work I enjoy, and I convince myself that at least this one thing is right in my little chaotic world. And that’s why the self-care- when one has a full-time job, a part-time “hustle”, kids with activities that are slowly and carefully winding back up, and volunteer opportunities, it gets chaotic, and there have been many times in the past two or three weeks I have felt as if every single thing is going a different direction shouting “nyah nyah you can’t catch me!” So I chase them down one at a time (4/h fair volunteering- nearly complete, chick’s fair entries- done, cross-training at work so I can take a day off every three or four months instead of once or twice a year- nearly there) and remind myself that nothing is so urgent I can’t sit down for a cup of tea and bless the names of all the people who thought “wow, books are nice, but we can’t work and read- what if we recorded people reading books to us?”. Audiobooks are my favorite way to make it through the stressful chaotic days- I can work, listen to a book, and tune out the things that aren’t so urgent I need to drop everything and address them. To round out my ramble, a list of audiobooks I have listened to and enjoyed (and maybe had to hold back laughter, giggles, and tears while at work and listening because I have a semi-professional image to maintain): *all of these books are from Libro.fm, that joy of an audiobook service that partners with Indies
- The Empire of Gold by S. A. Chakraborty- the conclusion to the Daevabad Trilogy, I just finished this one and really did almost cry at work while listening. It is a wonderful conclusion to an incredible trilogy.
- The Faithless Hawk by Margaret Owen- I just started this one. I loved The Merciful Crow and was excited to see the Faithless Hawk on my ALC list from Libro.fm
- The City We Became by N. K. Jemisin- I mean, N. K. Jemisin. Enough said? This was an awesome listen, and so important.
- A Queen in Hiding by Sarah Kozloff- this one came out a while ago, and after I finished it I immediately wanted the story to continue.
- To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers- another older release, I love science fiction and speculative fiction, and this was a wonderfully thought-provoking book.
There are many many more books, both audio and physical I have loved and would revisit over and over again as many times as I can (as soon as our library opened, I *had* to check out Green Rider and First Rider’s Call by Kristen Britain- total comfort reads that I absolutely needed)