Annie gives and takes her own advice

According to my stat counter, readership is way down. Maybe you, like me, are suffering from the winter gloomies. I address this in my upcoming article for the Home and Garden section of the Daily Sentinel. I'm posting it early because I think we need it. BUT, I am contractually obligated (Well, not really, but I think it was mentioned in a phone call at some point.) to not reveal the full text of my article until after it comes out in the newspaper....so, I 'm just gonna take out a few words.

1/29/2009 It's now Saturday! Here is the full text of the article as it appears in today's paper:

One week ago today marks the day considered by those who have the time and energy to figure these things out as the most depressing day of the year.

Apparently, by January 24th bills from Christmas come due, people have already given up on their New Year’s resolutions and winter temperatures are at their coldest. So, if you were feeling inordinately crummy a week ago, there was a bona fide, scientifically-proven reason for it.

You are not alone. Many people feel like hibernating during the winter months. Couple that instinct with economic woes and feeling lousy over another failed resolution, and you find yourself with only enough motivation to keep your couch company while your dog gives you a foot bath.

Here are a few tips to get you and your household duties through, what I call, the Winter Gloomies:

Dress from head to toe first thing in the morning
I took this advice from cleaning guru “The Flylady” of Flylady.net. Shuffling around in your slippers and bathrobe all morning won’t help you feel motivated to accomplish the tasks of the day. Flylady suggests dressing from head –to-toe each morning. Being completely dressed will help you feel ready to work and help you fight the urge to crawl back into that warm bed.

Set a timer for 15 minutes
I can do anything for 15 minutes, regardless of the unpleasantness of the task. Whenever I have a household job I need to tackle, but can’t muster the motivation to get started, I set a timer for 15 minutes and get to work. When the timer goes off, I allow myself to stop what I am doing, even if I’m not finished. But, more often than not when the 15 minutes are up, I have hit my stride and I am willing to see my task to completion.

Using a timer is also a great motivator to help kids complete their chores. They love to try to “beat the clock.” My boys have cut their dishwasher unloading time down to an Olympic-worthy three minutes!

I believe in this advice so much, that I actually give timers as gifts to friends and family.

Clean during commercial breaks
Give your DVR a rest for the evening and use the commercial breaks to tidy up. You’ll find that by the time American Idol is over, you’ve managed to straighten your family room, sweep and mop the kitchen floor and fold a couple of loads of laundry.

Let the sun shine in
Even when the temperatures are cold, western Colorado is blessed with lots of sunshine. Exposure to sunlight helps the body keep higher levels of serotonin, a chemical in the brain that helps a person have a sense of well being. So, open up your drapes and blinds to fill your home with natural light during the day. Set yourself and your ironing board up in a sunny spot and iron those winter blues away.

Don’t start any big cleaning projects
Yes. You read that right. Don’t clean your garage. Don’t clean out your closet. Don’t start any home improvement projects. Just like hibernation is a natural state, so is the renewal of energy that comes with spring. Save the big jobs for when the bulbs bloom.

Instead of a big project- try a little one like, organizing your cupboards, refolding the sheets in your linen closet or changing out the accessories in your bathroom.

I just recently bought new pictures and towels for my guest bathroom. The little effort I made to spruce up that room motivated me further take on other projects.

Focus on bathrooms and kitchens
If the Winter Gloomies have such a hold on you that you can only manage to do the bare minimum of household chores, focus on the bathroom and kitchen. Keeping these rooms clean will help you to stay healthy. The last thing you need on top of everything else is the flu.

Plan your vacation
Give yourself something to look forward to by planning your vacation. Perhaps looking at warm, sunny beach destinations on-line will not only help you beat the blues, but it may also help you renew your weight-loss resolutions and deter you from finishing off that calorie-laden seven layer dip from your Super Bowl party.

Give your toes a treat
Take your tootsies from “looking Minnesota to feeling California.” It may not be flip-flop weather yet, but your toes don’t know that. Get a pedicure in bold and bright summer colors. Don’t worry about clashing with your winter wardrobe, nobody will see them under your woolen socks and boots, but you’ll know they’re there.

In the immortal words of the early 90’s icons Wilson Phillips, “…hold on for one more day…things will go your way.”
You may feel down, irritable and unmotivated now, but the very first whisperings of spring are literally just days away. Don’t make any major decisions; don’t take on any big tasks, just white- knuckle- it through the last dark days of winter. You will see that when the bees start “abuzzing” and the birds start “asinging,” you will too.