I began today taking steps to simplify my life. The easiest thing I could do would be to stop watching so many telenovelas, so of course I chose a different path. I did, however, eliminate several upcoming shows from my TiVo To Do List. I don't need to be watching so much television. I still have to watch Big Brother, of course (and I'll still be monitoring the live Internet feed), but I can live without Trading Spaces and The Real Roseanne Show.

I'm not about to give up TV completely, but I'm cutting way down, especially with the major league baseball season "heating up" (as they say) and the Little League World Series about to start.

Yes, I've heard all the arguments about how the LLWS exploits children. I'm well aware of children's rights issues and I support everything you think I should stand for in that regard. But I love baseball, and I love watching kids play baseball, so as long as ESPN shows the games, I'll be watching. I also like to hear kids sing, which is why I watch American Juniors. I even vote (although, much as with my politics, all my votes are for candidates who lose).

I know. How could my life possibly get any simpler? But I can organize my days better, and that's what I'm really talking about. I can stick to my to-do lists, and I can make sure I get to bed before two or three o'clock in the morning. Part of it is a matter of concentration, and my mind hasn't been focused for the longest time.

Starting — when? tomorrow? — I'm going to stick to the schedule I wrote for myself months ago. It worked for a while, and then I let it slide, and then I forgot about it. In that sense, it's a lot like my healthy eating regimen (that I refuse to call a diet). My perception falls a day or two behind reality, and before I know it I'm back ten paces behind where I started, farther than ever from the target. I can't blame the target, because it hasn't moved. I've just lost whatever momentum was leading me there.

This routine I'm talking about will allow me a little extra time in the mornings to get the sleep out of my eyes and the clouds out of my head. It keeps me on task all afternoon, with my to-do list prioritized every night for the next working day. It lets me quit at a time when I still have enough of the day left to take care of myself. Somehow more gets done in less time this way.

Okay, maybe I won't be starting this tomorrow. But soon. Very, very soon.

That doesn't mean this journal will turn into a blog (not that there's anything wrong with that), but it might mean shorter entries more of the time. I've thought at times about cutting back from daily entries, but I'm afraid that if I miss a day, I might never post again. Besides, writing is part of the "taking care of myself" that I was talking about.