How do I do it?

Hypo Butter

I feel like this question comes from my often outspoken complaining about my own life, which I really don't particularly mean to do.

There are days where I just feel completely overwhelmed, and I need to vent. The blog is usually the place to do it, and I tend to do it more so than is probably necessary.

But...

I did get the question from my friend, Chelsea, about how I manage to do everything.

Well, Chelsea, sometimes I don't.

But I try my damndest to do it.

Right now, I am only doing one class, and I will be done by the end of this week. (YAY!)

I work full time, and I am never going to be done with that, until I make a career change or something else dramatic happens. I work in an industry that is relatively demanding, but I personally choose to keep my home life and my work life separate, aka I don't bring my work home with me when I leave the office. I tend to make that a rule, considering I have enough work to be done at home with the snakes.

Calico

This helps immensely with being able to draw a line in the sand between "real life" and "snake life."

When I get home, home life does happen. Joel and I, being newly weds, but being long time partners (nine years and counting) has been relatively easy in terms of a transition. He knows what I have to do for the snake stuff, and he helps where he can.

I do tend to get lazy and not be the ultimate domestic goddess that I would love to be, making a six course dinner after a 8+ hour work day and dealing with the snakes and the dogs and the other things going on. I tend to opt for canned soup or going out when time is of the essence. (Going out is not cost effective, by the way, but sanity effective, which is sometimes more valuable)

Yes, we have fuzz children, and they are awesome, but they do require attention and care as well. Xena is a fantastic addition to our family, but she does have some baggage from being in a kennel for a year, so we are working on that as well. Regal is getting old (he is 11), so we are making more trips to the Vet to make sure he is living a healthy life.

Super Pastel Mojave

All of this is not including the snake cleaning, the e-mail responding, the blogging, the feedings or lack there of (with the lack of rodents in the area), the room checking, the constant vacuuming of sani-chips, etc... 

But I have to say, and I fully admit this, there are days where I fail.

I have lost animals that I feel I could have saved if I had more time to pay attention to them. Sometimes you don't notice that some animals aren't eating until they are just not interested at all for a long period of time, and depending on that time, it may be too late.
I get annoyed with myself when I find a rodent that should have been removed from a tub still sitting (or rotting) there...

But honestly, I am not doing too badly. It is partially a head game. I know I can do this, I've done it before, I know what needs to be done.

When you get too wrapped up in the bad things that happen, you make it even easier for the bad things to happen again.

Live and learn from it, move on, and know that this too shall pass.

This is true of school, true of relationships, true of pretty much everything.

Cliche B.S. aside, it is very comforting reminding oneself that this is life.

It happens.

And if you aren't living it the way you want to, change it!

You are the only one who can.

Have a great day, my friends.