The Stress List

Hmm, life's little stresses . . .

• 33 comments on the blog that need to be moderated, mostly advertisement for Viagra and dates . . . yuck!
• that stack of analytical papers that I really don't want to grade
• this nagging headache that won't leave me alone
• trying to find a comfortable place and set-up for the Summer Institute
• worrying about Brenda
• wondering if Spring Break might allow a quick beach trip
• trying to find time to call my aunt to see if we can borrow her condo
• wondering how upset my niece will be if I miss her bridal shower to go to the beach for a long-overdue mini-vacation
• fretting about my messy, messy house
• needing to get to the print shop to get the articles photocopied for the ISI
• needing to order binders for the ISI
• being kicked off the Internet at home by my temperamental router--it throws temper tantrums at the most inopportune times
• the committee meeting tomorrow that I still need to prep for
• the eighteen copies of fifteen-entry bibliographies to check before Thursday's class
• the twenty-one reading responses to grade before Thursday
• the chapter in Burke's The English Teacher's Companion I need to read before Thursday
• the laundry room that needs to be swept and mopped and rugs vacuumed
• the bathroom that needs to be swept and mopped
• the clothes that need to be washed and ironed
• that nap that won't happen despite my burning eyes
• the overdue invoice for NWP

Hmm, right now, it might be easier to list what isn't stressing me: Wes, my students, my family, my colleagues, my friends. People don't stress me (for the most part--I can think of one or two NOTABLE exceptions); assignments stress me.

Despite all this stress, I'm having a good day. The house will get cleaned when it gets cleaned (although I know it will be straightened by Thursday night when Wes's mom spends the night with us). The overdue papers will be graded over Spring Break at the latest, though I'd love to return them Thursday so that they're not hanging over me during the break. My headache will eventually go away. I'll drop the photocopies off this week at the printers, and I'll ask Katina to help me order binders for the ISI. Katina, Heidi, and Emily have been godsends this semester, significantly lowering my stress levels. I've finished checking the journals that came in today, and Emily is meeting with the publications person tomorrow to send off the anthology. We are making progress, and Spring Break is next week.

I like my life, my husband (okay, I love him), my job, pretty much everything. Stress isn't overwhelming. I just need to mark off those tasks as I accomplish them. It helps me to see them in print. Just writing them down releases stress because it moves from general stress to specific stress, and the stress lessens with each marked-off item.

Stress Relievers

• warm bubble bath
• massage
• nap
• good book
• chewing gum
• hitting, kicking, throwing stuff
• venting to a friend or on paper

Hitting stuff is probably my favorite stress relief, but then, maybe I just like to hit stuff?