Organized Chaos

My life is in organizational shambles right now.

I'm a nearly OCD kind of gal, and so the mountain of clean laundry taking up most of the floor space in my room is really wigging me out right now. My bed hasn't been made in a week, none of my blouses are ironed, and my ceiling fan is currently blowing some receipts across my room. I have a stack of library books I haven't touched, a magazine rack full of fall issues of style magazines practically begging to be tossed, and a stack of opened mail I haven't dealt with yet.

Sheesh. When did I stop being on top of things?

One of the hardest things I've struggled with is transitioning from full-time student to full-time worker. I feel like I wake up, scramble to get ready, and then come home 10 hours later absolutely wiped out. By the time I drag myself in the door, the last thing I want to do is fold laundry. I took a full course load in undergrad, worked 10-20 hours a week, and participated in several extracurriculars, but my apartment was always spotless, I cooked all my food from scratch, and I never felt exhausted like this at the end of a day. I seriously spent tonight debating the -merits of several different pairs of metallic Sperrys while munching on some Cheez-its, grapes, and a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch for dinner. I periodically gazed at the pile of (clean) clothes and felt guilty... and then went back to watching SNL clips on Hulu. Where did my motivation go?

I think the biggest problem for me is being gone for so long. I am definitely not the person that can be go-go-go for hours on end without feeling burnt out. One of my favorite things about classes was being able to have little breaks throughout the day to go home and relax and get some chores done. I didn't have to wait until the end of the day to tackle my to do list; I could do little chunks as I went through the day. Now I get home and all I can think about are the cookies I haven't baked, the dinner that isn't cooked, the workout I haven't done in a week, the laundry that isn't folded, and my bathroom mirror that's starting to look awfully spotty.

I'm asking all of you girls (and maybe some guys) out there - how do you fit in chores around a full day at work? A thing that, despite my craziness, seems to work for me: I utilize my lunch break at work to go run errands like grabbing groceries or filling up gas. Please please please, give me your best tips for motivating yourself to still do things when you come home from work. I (and Mount Laundry) need your help.

XOXO Samantha