This just in: It’s been more than seven weeks since I got on a plane. This is the longest period of time for me that this has happened for the last 30 years. I travel a lot and now, being stuck at home, I have to find a way to survive.

Here are a few things that I am doing. I’m not saying you should do them as well but…they work for me.

Routine: I have things that I make myself do every day. I don’t want to simple sink into my couch, eating Coco Puffs and watching reruns of Leave It To Beaver. To make sure I do something, I have, of course, a list. I have 20 things to do every day and my goal is to do at least half of them. My list includes things like spending time learning a second language on Duolingo (an app that I strongly recommend). Reading a book is on my list as is writing a story or a blog post. I pick up a guitar and strum it a bit (that’s all I know how to do) and then I get credit for advancing my guitar skills. If I go to the driving range (which is now allowed), I get a check on my list. At the end of the day, I should be able to look back and say, “Today, I did something worthwhile.”

Exercise: This is a tough one. For me, I have three keys things that define my exercises: (1) It has to be something I can do easily so I don’t find an excuse not to do it (2) It can’t hurt my “old man” back and (3) I pace myself. So, every day I either do pullups or pushups. Every day I do core work and yoga (these help my back). Every day I ride my stationary bike for 25 minutes and walk at least 4 miles. I try to never over do exercise. My natural tendancy is to do just a little more every day. However, if I do that, I’ll eventually get to the point where there is too much to do and I won’t do it. So, I pace myself and stop when I plan on stopping even if I think I can do more.

Food: If you know me, you know I love food. When I have a lot of time on my hands, my mind naturally defaults to “A donut would be nice right about now.” So, I do a few things to fight this. First, my list of things to do includes one thing “Not to Do.” I actually get a check on my list for not eating anything sweet. Secondly, I track my weight and if I come in at over 200 lbs, I have to record that figure in red. For some reason, I find it motivational to try and not have any red numbers in this list. Thirdly, I use a smaller plate for meals whenever possible. Avoiding dessert has very little impact if you eat 5,000 calories a day of other stuff that is not considered dessert.

Relationships: We all need time to ourselves as do our spouses. Years ago, my wife and I came to an agreement about CAVE TIME. At any time, either one of us can say, “I need some cave time.” This is a way of saying, I just want to be left alone for a bit. There is nothing bad about it. It’s not saying, “I don’t want to be around you”…instead, its saying, “For now, I just want to be around myself.” When one of us wants cave time, it is immediately granted without question and no hard feelings are ever incurred.

Binge TV: I watch the morning new and the evening news and then I binge. I have Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hulu. The Hulu package costs half as much as my Direct TV package and offers more channels and services.

Fear: The future is unknown. Thus, we can make up whatever we want to make up about what may happen. We each get to choose what we want to let occupy our minds. If you choose to be fearful of the future, fine. However, I recommend realizing that you are afraid of something that has not yet happened. Want to get out of that Fear Rut? Make a gratitude list. My experience is that you can’t be grateful and fearful at the same time.

Now…gotta go save the world.

Up, up and away…
Jim