Conquering the Snooze Addiction

As I thought about what I could change my blog title to, I first had to determine what I wanted my blog to be about. I couldn't very well carry on with 31 reasons for being 31 (it just doesn't have the same ring to it, right?), because aside from not sounding nearly as good, I either had to increase the number of posts this year (and 30 seemed pretty difficult last year) or I only had to add one more and call it good. So... what now?

I am actually fairly well known to have grand intentions for myself (so grand they are hard to follow through with), and also equally well known for being somewhat free-spirited. I wanted to put into writing for my own observation (and maybe for a little entertainment) some of my grand intentions, and the process I go through in trying to follow through with them. Yellow Flats, Red Stilletos seems to illustrate to me the fun-loving and spontaneous aspects of my personality, as well as the driven, powerful side of me that tries so hard to take charge, but can only hope to consistently temper my impulsive, curious nature. And shoes as metaphorical objects used to describe my personality couldn't be better a better fit (pun intended).

My most recent grand intention is to conquer my severe addiction to the snooze button. I realize that many people snooze at least once on any given morning. I think most would agree, that the feeling of snuggling back under warm cozy covers for 9 extra minutes is blissful, even if it is only temporary. I know I am not the only person who feels this way, because nearly every alarm clock available has a very large button on top labeled "snooze". However, I am one of few that can't seem to stop snoozing, regardless of the fact that I know I am not getting good sleep, and that I will be persistently startled by a "wha-wha-wha-wha" sound every 9 minutes. Still, I might go through this for up to two hours if I've given myself enough opportunities to do so in the morning.

Here are some of the dilemmas that keep me from overcoming this habit:

1. I always want to get so much accomplished in the morning, and therefore I set my alarm for earlier than I actually have to get out of bed.
2. I am expected to be at work by 9am. So, if I decide I want to go in early, it is purely up to me to get there early, and therefore, if I am tired and decide to hit snooze once, or 10 times, I know that it won't really matter because I am only adjusting my expectations and my schedule (I actually tried to change my schedule to an earlier one for awhile and then just gave up).
3. It is extremely difficult to explain to a semi-conscious mind that it is better to get up and face the cold immediately rather than in 9 more minutes, because all the semi-conscious mind really cares about is that it's warm and cozy in bed, and it's not so warm and cozy out of bed (I've tried leaving my heat up a bit at night, so far it hasn't really been that helpful).
4. The simple truth is that I was not good at waking up in the morning, even when I was a little tiny girl. (My mom had a little poem that she used to recite with me in the mornings. Somehow over the years I had the impression it was a happy little poem recited by a happy little girl. It turns out it was my mom's way of trying to help me be a happy little girl in the morning. Oops. Sorry, Mom.)

So, I have a new plan. Well, the start of a new plan. First, I've decided that if I can go an entire month without hitting the snooze button once, I will buy myself the pair of white sweater boots that I've been wanting (I know, here we go with shoes again). Now, I am not good at holding myself to this kind of commitment. Eventually I tend to buy myself what I want anyway. But if I am putting it in writing, then I have to admit, in writing, if I give in and buy the boots anyway. I also realize that I have to be realistic with the time I will actually get out of bed. That is still an issue I'm working out with myself.

In the grand scheme of things, aside from the worthless sleep I'm getting each morning that I continually hit snooze, is the snooze button such a deadly vice? Not so much... just a silly one. However, I know that making and keeping these small commitments to myself will help me make the bigger and more important commitments to myself and to others. And I have learned through many hard lessons, that if I can't keep a commitment to myself, it can be equally as hard to keep my commitments to others. And as my mother has said many times, life is all about sacrifice and commitment (Mom, are you feeling all your preaching has paid off a bit?? I love you.).