Scones

It's a cloudy, foggy Saturday morning over here and I'm the first one up in the house. I'm about to pour myself a cup of coffee and the cranberry scones will be out of the oven in 10 more minutes (I woke up, for whatever reason, craving scones). It's kind of cold in the house and so I've had to add thick wool socks to my normal just-out-of-bed attire of gym shorts and hoodie.

I was able to sleep in for the first time this week, which might sound strange coming from someone who now can work from home. With my only real commitment being class on Mondays and Wednesdays from 6:30 to 9:30, I've found myself with the blessing/curse of unstructured time. I am working 20 hours a week for North Cascades and of course have homework, but essentially I determine when those hours are spent. It's a new experience and I'm doing my best to be self-disciplined:

Mondays- 4 hrs of NOCA, class in the evening
Tuesdays- Studio, hw day
Wednesdays- 4 hrs of NOCA, class in the evening
Thursdays- 6 hrs of NOCA
Fridays- 6 hrs of NOCA
Sat and Sun- off

The hardest thing about this schedule, and in the grand scheme of things in the world this is admittedly silly and minor, is getting myself out of bed in the morning, knowing that I don't really have to until 6:30 at night. The cold mornings and warm bed comforters don't help.

But thus far, everyday this week, I've been able to get up at 7:00am, work out, have a nice breakfast and be out of the door around 8:30-9:00. Two things are key in successfully working from home: exercise, to help wake up and start the day energized...and getting out of the house to get work done. Thank god I have a laptop.

This also is a great way for me to explore the city and find new coffee shops and neighborhoods. So far, my favorite places to work and study are the Seattle Public Library, the Bellevue Regional Library and the University of Washington Law Library.
I've yet to find a Sweetwaters equivalent nearby.

This schedule seems to work fairly well, though I may switch my studio day from Tuesday to Friday, so that my "work week" is more consistent. I'm also trying to find things that force me to a schedule--like a volunteer opportunity or maybe meeting up with other graphic designers in the area. This is all about habits and I need to establish them now because it's probably going to be harder in the dead of winter.

And yes, I know, I'm very lucky to have such a flexible schedule and to be working and studying what I love.

Oooo, the scones are ready!