Process

For some reason the word "process" has been on my mind lately. There are all those sayings like "success is in the process" and "life is a journey, not a destination." Or, as Miley Cyrus squawks, "It's all about the climb."

I've also been thinking about something I heard an English instructor say, which was that she didn't enjoy the process of writing, but she loved the end result - the feeling of having written.

So, I started thinking about my processes - those I enjoy, and those I don't.

I love the writing process. I love generating and rejecting ideas, revising organizational structure, putting commas in all the right places, and searching, searching, searching for the exact perfect word - pulling it out from the tip of my brain and placing it on paper. Ahh, I'm glowing just thinking about it. I love writing, and I love having written. That's a good process for me.

I also love reading and having read. Sometimes I look at my bookcases and feel overwhelmed by both how much I've read and how much there is left to read. For me, reading is a part of my definition of "the good life."

Decorating is something I have conflicting feelings about. I know what I like and have good taste. I can make one or two decisions at a time and enjoy making them. But, overall, I don't think I particularly enjoy this process. We are having a dining-room-light-fixture-crisis at our house. We searched forever and finally found one we liked. We installed it, and no matter what we did it hung totally crooked. It was a 3 light chandelier and the lights weren't evenly spaced apart to balance it out. So, we think it was just a poorly made light. However, we have been to several stores multiple times and still don't have a new light. I'm absolutely exasperated by looking at light fixtures. After a while, they all start to look the same. I'm over it. My mom and her friend (who both love decorating) are going to come down and try to help. We'll see how much longer this situation drags out! What I'd really love is for a designer to come to me and say, "These three chandeliers are the right style, size, and color for your dining room. Pick one." I could do that. I do have an appreciation for interior design. I can admire a designer's work and feel the effects of a design - whether it calms, inspires, excites, etc. So, I'm not immune to the artistic merit of decorating. I enjoy the results, but I just don't so much enjoy the process.

I think that for me - like most people - working out falls in to that category of having a more enjoyable result than process. I don't like working out, and at first I don't even like the feeling afterwards. I just kind of feel sweaty and tired. But after a week or so I get in the groove, and I do eventually get that little high after working out. I start to feel energized, productive, and healthy. It helps me sleep better. I've been slacking off on my workouts and need to do better.

I hate the process of shopping for clothes. I've been clothes-shopping 20 pounds heavier than I am now, at my current weight, and at 20 pounds lighter than I am now. It's always the same. Nothing ever fits (except Gap Long and Lean jeans, which is hilarious because I am neither long nor lean). I know you're thinking, "Really. Nothing fits?" Well, okay. Obviously some things fit because I do actually wear clothes. But, it's always a difficult, draining process to buy clothes. I usually end up buying stuff that fits regardless of whether I really love it or not, just because I need things to wear. I don't really care about fashion, but I only have a few items of clothing that I actually love. I wish I could find more. I have an hourglass figure, which I like and most people agree is a great body type. Except clothing designers apparently. If the pants fit in the butt and hips, they gape at the waist. If the dress fits in the chest and hips, it is way too large in the waist and hangs like a moo-moo. Regardless of how cute I may feel on an average day, a trip to the mall usually leaves me feeling like some Frankenstein monster freak whose torso is too long and arms are too short. It's humiliating. And no, I don't have these problems because I'm trying to shop in the junior's section. I'm talking about real grown up clothes. My mom always has better luck when I shop with her and pick out things for her. I should probably find a friend who can do this for me. I think I'm hesitant for fear that it will go how it always does, only now I'll have a witness to the disaster. I hope wedding dress shopping does not go like this! (I'm going Saturday with my mom.)

When it comes to cooking or baking, I usually enjoy the process and nearly always enjoy the end result. I suppose food is part of the good life as well!

What are your processes?