I’m running and running and running. Once in awhile I jump off the track drink and eat and then jump back on… I’ve taken to calling it “Hamster Wheel”. Sadly, it’s my life.
Lately I feel like I’m on a wheel like a hamster. Running and running and never going anywhere.
Get up. Make up, hair, pack lunch, go to work, work, work, work, come home, kiss kids, make dinner, eat dinner, bath, bed, sleep, get up…. Hamster wheel.
Does anyone else feel like this? After one very stressful return to work day and night my hubby asked why I was so stressed. I told him as nicely as I could (or not so nicely) that I haven’t had a chance to stop, not to pee, eat, or breathe. The good news was that the kids were fed, BUT I still needed to do the dishes, shower, bathe said kids; put them to bed and possible throw in a load of laundry. The laundry was a must since I was pretty sure that Caitlin was going to have to wear clothes to bed and this was most certainly going to cause a riot of Beiber proportions. Oh and did you notice that its 6:45 and the kids are going into the tub between 7 and 7:30.
Who wouldn’t be stressed, right? A husband apparently since by the look on his face I had lost him at “time to pee”. He never understands why I pour on the pressure and guilt in situations like this. And of course my response is simply “hamster wheel”
We have all had those days or nights. It really is laughable that I actually thought that I could get it all done before 7:30 bath time. Reality is that it NEEDED to be done, and that is what was so stressful.
Is it just me or are we on a timer as well? An old fashioned kitchen timer ticking away on the counter, as you try in vain to finish 101 tasks before the ding. In other words running full steam and sadly going nowhere or accomplishing anything.
Saturdays are always a good day for hamster wheel. I swear every Saturday morning I look at the clock and it says 9am. I have the day at my disposal, then before I know it the second time I glance at the clock it says 4pm. Seriously? Where did the day go? Oh yeah, pancakes, naps for the baby, Target trip, a couple loads of laundry…Do I seriously have to make dinner? Crap, Hamster Wheel.
My favorite hamster wheel story is from way back before I started calling it hamster wheel. It’s when Caitlin at a little over a year old started smashing pop tarts into the carpet. My Husband came home, walked into the living room, saw smashed pop tart, and asked “Why is there pop tart in the carpet?” Me: Oh I forgot to clean it. Husband: Why didn’t you just clean it when it happened? Me: Well, when I realized there was pop tart in the carpet I was finishing breakfast. I went to get her and clean it up and realized she pooped. As I was changing a poop diaper the phone rang, I took a diaper less but clean Caitlin to get the phone. It was my mom she wanted a phone number I had to look up on my cell, which was in my purse, which I couldn’t find. Got number, diapered child who then began to scream as it was nap time. Gave her bottle and she fell asleep in my lap and since she would wake up if I laid her down, she slept soundly there for 2 hours. She woke up at 3 I changed her, and then put on real clothes since I was still in pajamas, and then realized that I should probably figure something out for dinner. Dinner is cooking and I’m doing dishes. I’ll get it right after the dishes….
HAMSTER WHEEL!
My husband gladly cleaned the pop tart in the carpet and cleans most floor messes to date. His eyes glazed over at poop diaper and he had totally tuned me out and was cleaning the mess himself at cell phone. Did I mention that I’m easily distracted?
Since my return to work I’ve started to whisper “Hamster Wheel” when I feel like I’m running and going nowhere. It forces me to smile and refocus. Re evaluate. Why are you running? I frequently ask myself.
Today as I wrote this post, on paper first, during a very boring 3 hour meeting, I received a phone call. My mother, tearful, telling me my Grandpa had passed out on my front porch and the ambulance was there to take him to the hospital. Of course I was instantly in panic mode. Looking for keys, phone, my manager. Hamster wheel.
On the drive home road work forced me to double back and try a short cut, which turned into a long cut. Hamster wheel! I made it home; Grandpa made it to the hospital, and so far is undergoing tests and observation.
No matter the situation I guess there is always a chance for Hamster wheel.
So next time you are running and going nowhere, getting nothing accomplished. Take a moment, and whisper “Hamster Wheel”. It will make you smile and refocus.
Happy Blogging,
Megan
