Time Pie

A curry tiger pie, photographed by The Food Pornographer. Pies are more of a British food than American. I love the pastry crust. The curry tiger pie has gravy, mashed peas (the green gook), and mashed potatoes on top of a curry meat pie. Sounds like a good mix to me--I love peas, meat, and pastry. Unfortunately, this pie was photographed in Australia, so I won't be able to taste it anytime soon.

For contemporary issues in dance, we did an exercise called the Time Pie that helped us figure out what we spend most of our time on. This is mine:

My present schedule (168 hrs total)
1. Sleep: 33% (56 hrs a week)
2. Meals (including cooking): 12% (20 hrs a week)
3. Personal maintenance (showering, etc): 10% (16 hrs a week)
4. Classes: 11% (18 hrs a week)
5. Extracurriculars (volunteering, dance, church): 6% (10 hrs a week)
6. Work: 2% (4 hrs a week)
7. Commuting: 4% (7 hrs a week)
8. Reflection: 4% (7 hrs a week)
9. Homework and administration: 18% (30 hrs a week)
10. Groceries and chores: minimal
11. Social time: 2% (4 hours)
12. Chilling out: whatever’s left
Total: 102%

So I went a little over the limit. Minor detail.

After sleep, the majority of my time is spent doing homework(!) I defined homework as anything that involves sitting at a desk. In general, anytime I am not engaged in a scheduled activity, I am usually doing homework. So I subtracted off all other activities to find how much time I spend on it. Of course, there are some minimal overlaps with my work [as a resident advisor, much of my job involves answering emails], social life and relaxation time. I know, though, that when I sit at a desk I am usually either studying or working.

I was surprised to realise that I can afford to spend so much time on homework. Often, I feel rushed while I'm doing it, probably because I underestimate the amount of time I have. That's part of the reason for why my weeks are such emotional rollercoasters this semester; I'm alternately stressed and happy [like a sinusoidal curve with time on the x-axis and mood on the y-axis].

I usually get stressed out about completing work that is due on Thursday earlier in the week, and by the time Thursday comes I slow down. My recent lack of sleep (especially on Monday and Wednesday nights because I have to wake up early on Tuesdays and Thursdays) does not help either. Weekends are wonderful relaxing times where I feel I'm getting work done but am not being rushed. Dance class, friends, and the wonderful recent spring weather make me feel happy and thankful to be alive.

A few weeks ago I was beating myself up about not being in a good mood throughout the day, always worrying and stressing out. I was frustrated that my mood was spoiling my experiences, but this compounded my existing frustration and did not help matters at all. So I've decided to just leave it. I can feel busy or rushed; I'm trusting that eventually I will learn how to better manage my feeling pressed for time or the insomnia that plagues me.

I'm discovering that I can actually live on very little sleep.