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My afternoon break evolved into a full-on nap today. It's a good thing I set the kitchen timer for half an hour. (I'm a pretty generous supervisor when it comes to breaks for my hard-working underling. And I'm a grateful underling because of my supervisor's generosity.)
This was the first time I've used the timer for my break. Actually, it's the first time in about two months I've taken the time to take a break in the afternoon. It was a wild success, too. I got more done today than I have in — oh, I don't know — about two months. More than in any one day, anyway.
It helped that I was on one task more or less all day. I was paying company bills (with money we don't have yet, but that's another story altogether). A little interruption sometimes slows me down so much that I can't get going again, but that timer's ringer is loud. There's no way I was going back to sleep.
It didn't really start out as a nap at all. I was going to read. I haven't taken enough time for reading so far this year, and I'm feeling deprived. I don't like reading at night because I can't see as well, so that leaves the brief few hours of daylight we get in the winter. If I don't make time, I don't get time.
And it's no reflection on any of the three books I picked up just after I set the timer. Once I sat in the recliner, nothing was going to keep me awake for long. I'd like for this to become a planned part of my day, but I don't know if it's possible. Each day flows differently, and sometimes I'm at the mercy of the current. I'm not always in control. I've lost a lot of oars over the years; they must all be downstream somewhere.
But when I can, I'd like to take a half an hour in the afternoon to read or nap or just get away from my desk. I worked later than usual today, not because I'd taken that time out, but because the time out had energized me. I'm just happy the phone didn't ring while I was out cold. I probably would have had to start over and reset the timer. | 
