a good daily ritual

Daily Routines is a new favorite blog courtesy of my friend Allison. It's all about "how writers, artists, and other interesting people organize their days." God knows I have my own specific [neurotic] rituals to feed good writing or just day-to-day life. In my opinion, both circumstances must be as inspirational as possible with a healthy dose of structure.

Yesterday 'twas:

-Opening all the window blinds,
-meds + a few vitamins,
-Enfusia yerba mate + rooibos vanilla tea (a great combo.),
-Japanese incense,
-breakfast on the couch while reading my favorite blogs,
-a few more vitamins,
-reading Genesis,
-writing in a red Moleskine,
-late morning prayer with my husband,
-baking nutty-chocolate coconut cookies (my yeast-free recipe coming soon),
-closing all the blinds,
-an evening walk around the neighborhood,
-dinner & LOST,
-African Nectar tea,
-Baby Silk lotion and pomegranate lip balm,
-and sleep.

Today:

-Opening all the window blinds,
-meds + a few vitamins,
-a load of dark laundry,
-Texas piñon coffee,
-more Japanese incense,
-breakfast & blogs,
-a few more vitamins,
-taking photos upstairs (for that project I mentioned),
-an eye doctor appt. to make sure pinkeye has gone bye-bye,
-reading Genesis,
-writing in the red notebook,
-evening prayer w/Johnny,
-closing the blinds,
-a walk,
-a long bath,
-dinner,
-African Nectar tea,
-hopefully reading Eventide near candles and the fireplace (or watching Wall-E),
-lotion & lip balm for my dry skin,
-and sleep.

Of course my daily rituals vary sometimes according to whimsy, but that's the gist of a good day or two. Also, I'm trying to heed St. Matthew's advice to not worry about tomorrow, so I've only been mapping out the present day in my Moleskine planner save for the upcoming doctor's appointment or coffee date that should be jotted down. Or even my Curator writing schedule, but my goal is to no longer frantically schedule each hour of the next day.

To give you a little taste of the Daily Routines blog, here's an excerpt from the C.S. Lewis entry - a kindred spirit, I do believe:

"We now settled into a routine which has ever since served in my mind as an archetype, so that what I still mean when I speak of a 'normal' day (and lament that normal days are so rare) is a day of the Bookham pattern. For if I could please myself I would always live as I lived there. I would choose always to breakfast at exactly eight and to be at my desk by nine, there to read or write till one. If a cup of good tea or coffee could be brought me about eleven, so much the better. .... The return from the walk, and the arrival of tea, should be exactly coincident, and not later than a quarter past four. Tea should be taken in solitude, as I took it as Bookham on those (happily numerous) occasions when Mrs. Kirkpatrick was out; the Knock himself disdained this meal. For eating and reading are two pleasures that combine admirably. Of course not all books are suitable for mealtime reading. It would be a kind of blasphemy to read poetry at table. What one wants is a gossipy, formless book which can be opened anywhere. ...."