Mental health morning (152.0)

I took this morning off. I told my husband as he was making his breakfast shake--and I was feeling bitchy & irritated at every move he made--that I needed to go into work late.

I have been feeling overwhelmed by all the things I need to do and all the places I need to go, and it makes me off balance to feel so buried. I have also been hormonal (and there's a full moon, which I swear affects my moods) the past three days. So in order to avoid my killing someone, I came into work today at noon.

What I did:

Luke got on the bus at 7:20 (Sophie's is at 7:00), and at 7:30 I was mowing the yard. I didn't have time to get to it this weekend, and it had been 2 weeks since it had been cut. It was a "pile" that was under my skin every time I left the house or came home or looked out a window.

I don't mind mowing. I like the feeling of accomplishment and seeing results of my labor right away. It takes 45-60 minutes with a push mower, depending on whether I mow vertically or horizontally. Today was a 60 minute day. I saw two cicada's molting, and let me tell you, that was disgusting. There are dozens of shells all over our trees. Totally grosses me out. I hate those things--hate the way their garish sounds drown out everything else outside, and I obviously hate the way they look. Blech. Other than those monsters and the spider webs I walked through multiple times, it felt good to get it done.

Then I stripped the sheets and duvet off of our bed & set them to washing.

Then I put on my running clothes and went for a run/walk. YAY! It felt soooo good. I left at 9:15, listening to Mumford & Sons and thinking it's going to be a hot one. I started runnning right away because I've missed it so much. I ended up doing intervals and walking more than running. My running pace was often in the 10:30-11:00s and my walking pace was in 14:30-15:00, so my speed wasn't horrible. It was hot and humid, and the sun was strong, and my lungs weren't real happy with the thick air, and my heart is out of condition--despite all that, it was a great run. A reminder of WHY I love running in the first place. I hope I can build on it to keep moving forward.

I got home a little before 10, and I did more laundry and vacuumed and dusted. Then I got ready for work at 11:15, at work by noon.

It wasn't a lot of time off, less than 4 hours, and I didn't get everything done I'd like to, but it was enough for me to feel like I have a jump on things now.

I still need to finish my laundry and finish making the bed, and grill 3 pounds of chicken & beef tonight, and give Luke a bath (and check his hair for lice--2nd treatment was Sunday and he still had those damn things in his hair), and get the kids and myself fed, help the kids with homework if they need it, and be at church choir by 7.

I look at that list and think, is it any wonder I feel overwhelmed? Which is justification to start taking better care of myself, mentally & physically.