That Same Old Routine

My latest 'Fess Up Friday spoke about stress. The tremendous amount of stress I've been feeling lately. It just seems like a lot of things have been out of control lately. I want a routine. I want MY routine. Everyday I want to get up and do the same ol', same ol'. I've discovered in my old age that routine is paramount in raising kids and overall daily life.

However, several years ago I would've rather died than accept routine in my life. I lived in the moment. Spontaneity was my middle name. At least it would've been if I knew how to spell it.

I was thinking about this while I was in the shower this morning (one of the best places to think). As a senior in high school, why did I hate the thought of keeping a routine? Then I remembered: I had virtually no responsibilities. I worked about 10 hours a week as the Snack Bar Girl at a roller skating rink. Out of my eight classes, only two, maybe three, required me to do homework. The only real responsibility I had was to be to school on time, and that didn't happen all that often. Nearly every morning I ran through the halls to get to the office. If I could convince those in charge of the morning announcements to allow me to give one of the announcements, then I could convince my first period teacher that I was only late because I was busy with my Student Council responsibilities ("You heard me giving the announcements, right?"). I'm pretty sure my teachers knew what I was doing, but luckily none of them actually called my bluff.

So in summary,

No Responsibilities = Me circa 1996

Tons of Responsibilities = Me circa 2009

And for now, that's okay. I'm willing to be boring if it will keep my life balanced and in check. Although I do miss making those morning announcements sometimes.