DOWNTIME.

Your downtime is precious.

It’s when you recharge.

So waste it wisely.

Downtime.

What I mean is, plan your downtime.

Your time off.

As a first principle I recommend you avoid these two things:

1. Anaesthetic.
2. Work.

When I was ‘off’ I very often used to do one of two of these things.

They are extreme opposites.

Yet both are as fucking daft as each other.

Anaesthetic.

Anaesthetic (for me) was getting pissed.

It was binge drinking so that time disappeared.

So that all experience was dulled.

And memories were blurry.

It made me feel regretful.

And empty.

And that I’d not actually recharged at all.

Work.

The other thing that I very often did.

When I was off.

Was not be off.

I worked.

I faffed on with email.

Or phone calls.

Or I was thinking about work problems.

It made me feel regretful.

And empty.

And that I’d not actually recharged at all.

List.

The list of things you could be doing is endless.

For me it includes walking Colin the Collie and Frank the Bichon around in circles.

It’s planning and instigating taking a 3 year old Izobel to do a ‘first’.

It’s listening to an album I bought when I was in my late teens.

End-to-end.

To see what memories it evokes.

It’s cooking something I’ve never cooked before.

It’s asking Lisa what she wants to do today.

Anything.

With or without me.

Without any sneaky, subliminal persuasion towards something that I want to do.

It’s visiting a friend’s small business to boost their cash.

And their morale.

And their confidence.

Or it’s revisiting an old talent.

Or attempting to discover a new one.

Like sketching.

Or singing.

Or baking.