Canada Post Strike: A bummer to a blessing

Canada Post is on strike. I’m still taking orders at my Etsy shop. The moment it’s over all the letters will be popped in the post and start their migration from my mailbox to yours.

I’m hoping everything will be resolved quickly, but as a businesses owner who relies on the post office, I can’t pretend I’m not bummed out. You may recall that this happened already in the past year. It’s all part of the same negotiation and we are all getting tired of it.

It feels like they hold the mail hostage whenever they don’t get their way. Like a toddler. A toddler with power.

It affect small business owners. It affects the side hustlers sending small items through the mail. It even affects people who feel daily joy in walking to the mailbox to see what might be in there.

Today’s Sudoku from the local paper will have to wait.

It’s no big deal in the grand scheme of things but in about a week I’ll start to get messages from people in other countries who don’t know about the strike. Where is my letter?

So there is that side situation to anticipate, however, it’s time to…. drumroll please….

TURN A BUMMER INTO A BLESSING.

Because we don’t whine. At least not after the aforementioned 6 sentences. No, we see this as divine intervention carving out space for us to forge ahead with other projects that could use some attention.

Those tomatoes aren’t going to salsa themselves.

Those cosmos sure aren’t going to deadhead themselves.

And there is the cat next door who need company!

So there has been some thumb twiddling.

It got me thinking about idle time and how we as a people are no longer good at it. We pick up our phones instead of paintbrushes or pens, instead of lacing up, instead of laying down for a proper nap, instead of opening a new document and giving it the title of a new book.

I compiled a list of THINGS TO DO while AWAITING the END of the aforementioned STRIKE.

The list got so long I’m now wondering if I’ll get it all done before the strike ends. Suddenly there is a hustle vibe.

I guess I’m still not that good at idle time. I have picked up my phone too often. I have reshuffled the TBR pile of books next to my bed. I painted a zinnia:

Then I deadheaded some faded zinnias and painted them, too.

Ah the faded cosmos. Therein lies a metaphor. Past their prime but still got something going on. That’s what this postal strike has done. I sure feel faded by it. But, it has reminded me that I’ve got a few practices that need practicing.

So that’s just what I’m going to do.

Catch you on the flip side.

Janice