Sleep deprivation

I am a creature of habit. If I can create order out of chaos, I will--in fact I relish in it. I need to create schedules too, because if I have too much free time on my hands I will while away the hours doing just about anything my self-diagnosed ADD little mind can flitter to next.

Case in point, this blog. Wait, no. It's bigger than that. I'm going to say the Internet. Online dating, personal e-mailing, the blog, reading friends' blogs, reading strangers' blogs, learning about Hollywood's juciest gossip. I find myself getting drawn in to the hugest time suck and it's driving me crazy. I'll sit down at the computer (with plenty of other things to do) and suddenly I look up and 3 hours have vanished.

I used to go to bed early, but now I find myself staying up 1-2 hours later. And I blame the Internet. Okay, really, I should blame myself. I'm lacking the self-discipline these days to turn off the computer, just say "no" the latest Brittney scandal on TMZ, or write a post to the blog prior to 10 PM.

When I logged on to write this post, I played a little hardball with myself. I gave myself 15 minutes to write and post and then it's time for bed (and then I'm not allowed to dilly dally around on the computer, following the shiny objects and bells and whistles). Ack! I only have 5 minutes left.

But seriously, I feel so much more at ease with my life--in every aspect of it--when I'm in a routine that is somewhat predictable and allows me the 7.5 hours of sleep I really need. So this week, I'm going to work on re-establishing my habits.

Note to self: Time to turn off the computer and turn on the rest of your life. Make the time you need to for the activities you value most (the blog: okay, sleep: definitely, cleaning the house: if I have to, surfing the web: life will go on even if you don't know "The real reasons he won't commit" and other recycled articles brought to you by Cosmo and MSN--but man, why am I such a sucker for those ones?).

With 30 seconds to spare...