Morning Routine Takes More Than Four Hours

This post's title sounds like a headline!

Anyway, I don't pay much attention to time, unless I have an appointment or I need to get to a store that closes early.

But I have noticed that I've been getting to work later and later.  I'm on "flex-time," which generally means I can come and go whenever I want (and even work from home) as long as I work 40 hours each week.  Generally I try to work eight hours every week day.  The later I arrive, the later I leave.  I've had to leave later and later, too.

These were my arrival times for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday:

Monday 10:45am
Tuesday 10:15am
Wednesday 10:30am

It takes me only about 20 minutes to drive to work, so I've been leaving at around 10am each day.  And I get up at 5:30am or earlier.  So that means I spend four and a half hours doing "stuff" before work.  Doing what?  I'm not sure.

Well, Monday I was on track to leave by 9am.  But my wife made a 9:30am vet appointment for one of our cats to get his booster shots.  But she was sick and couldn't get up, so I ended up taking him to the vet instead.  There was a bit of a problem with this -- he disappeared just before it was time to go.  This cat is the one we have to tranquilize in order to put him in the carrier.

But on a typical work day, this is my "routine":

5:30 Get up, turn off the alarm, put on some clothes, go to the bathroom, yawn several times.
5:40 Feed the four cats and the dog.  Put out fresh water for them.  Drink water.  Listen to the weather report.
6:00 Take the dog outside.
6:10 Prepare and serve daughter's breakfast
6:20 Clean the spilled food that the feeding cats made and round up the left overs for later.
6:25 Snack on a banana while daughter has breakfast to keep her company.
6:35 Prepare daughter's lunch.
6:45 Open garage door and say bye to daughter.
6:50 Tidy up and set up for my breakfast.  Verify that the bus picks up daughter.
6:55 Take dog outside again and play several grueling rounds of "Fetch" so that he's not a hyper, slobbering beast that follows you around all day with a slimy tennis ball in his mouth.
7:30 Prepare breakfast.  This can take some time.
8:00 Eat breakfast.  Read newspaper.  Fend off the hungry cat.  Take all my pills.
8:30 Brush teeth.  Go to the bathroom.  Shave and/or shower.
9:00 Put on fresh clothes.
9:10 Make my lunch while giving small bits of roast beef to begging animals.
9:20 Get distracted by a cute pet that I need to take a picture of, or a withered plant that needs watering, or a "quick" chore that my wife gives me, or an idea for a blog post.
9:35 Fill the water bottle and put it in my work bag.  Put the lunch in my bag.  Find my wedding ring and watch and put them on.  Put on shoes.  Check all my pockets for  keys and wallet.  Walk around the house looking for my wallet.  Put on jacket.  Move the dog aside (he's barring the door) and go into the garage.  Notice a bag of garbage or cat litter scoopings by the door and carry it to the garbage can.  Pick up the newspaper that was left in the driveway.
9:50 Start the car.  Back the car out of the garage.  Close the garage door.  Fix the flag that has gotten wrapped around the flag pole.  Turn the car around.
9:55 Enter roadway and begin commute.

I wonder if anyone is still reading this post?  Does my routine make you feel tired?  It made me tired just thinking about it!  But that's my morning.

And then after I arrive at work, I don't even get started working until I've gone to the bathroom, gotten some coffee, put my lunch in the 'fridge, set my outgoing voice message to my "day message," and log onto the computer.

Whew.

What's your typical morning like?  How long does it take to get yourself ready?