By PATTIE MIHALIK

Are you one of those people who keep saying they don’t have enough time?I am.I look at my little pocket calendar trying to find an open date when I can do something new or perhaps go to a concert I want to see. All I see on the calendar are days filled in with appointments, interviews or previously scheduled events.Ahhh, I wish I had more time.Here’s an intriguing question for you to ponder.If you had more time, perhaps one more day in your week, what would you do with it?Well, today when I answered that question I said I would go to a yoga class on a regular basis. I found a yoga studio with the best, most-caring teachers.After interviewing people of all ages who tell me it’s yoga that cured their bad back or hurting body, I’m realizing I need the slow stretches of a gentle yoga class.I definitely want to schedule gentle yoga on a regular basis. But so far I can’t find a time when I can be assured of making most of the classes.I first tried beach yoga at our local beach. What a great experience. Doing a relaxing stretch while listening to the ocean and watching the sunset is so rewarding.There were times when I limped there in pain, thinking I might not be able to do the class. But I was always surprised at the end of class to see my pain was gone.If yoga can do that, I definitely want to find time to do it more often.While I was still searching in my datebook for an open time, I realized I also need to make time to attend the new exercise class at our local Y. It’s a dance class that combines everything from waltzing to line dancing — all designed to get you moving.I’ve been hearing rare reviews about the teacher and I definitely want to try a class. If only I had time.Every now and then I take a critical look at how I am spending my time, searching for things I can eliminate from my schedule. I did away with one club I enjoy, gave up the bimonthly ladies lunches in my development, and reluctantly stopped attending every writer’s guild session.Yet I still can’t find the time I need.My friend Jeanne, who knows me better than most people, got tired of hearing me say, “I don’t have time.”“If they gave you another day in the week, you would still not have any time because you would fill it up the way you always do,” she said.I have to admit she’s right.The only person I have to blame for a crowded schedule is the person I see when I look in the mirror.The problem is, there are so many nifty things I want to do.Did you ever go to a smorgasbord filled with one tempting offering after another? If so, maybe you’ve had the experience of helping yourself to tasty-looking things along the buffet line. But by the time you get to the main offerings, you don’t have any more room on your plate.If you’ve never had the problem, you’re a lot more disciplined than I am. I’ve learned to first look over the entire buffet, noting the things I most want so I don’t run out of room.Well, to me, everyday life is like that delectable buffet. There are so many wonderful choices. No wonder I don’t have time for all of them.The same thing is true of most people. I truly am a “people person.” There are so many wonderful people with whom I would enjoy spending time.I have to settle for seeing favorite friends every now and then instead of how often I would like. Of course, that makes it special when we do get together.One of my friends tells me the cure for that is to plan activities where you can gather several of your friends in the same place. After she moved from our area and only returns every now and then to visit, she says it’s impossible to spend time with some friends and not others.She solves that by calling her friends when she is going to visit, inviting us all to join her for lunch.Well, to tell the truth, it’s not a very rewarding visit for me because I don’t get to spend any one-on-one time with her. We used to love walking the beach together, sharing our stories and philosophies.I have a new neighbor I really enjoy. She didn’t count on the fact that her husband would die as soon as they moved here. Now, she’s really lonely and her problem is filling her empty days.I tell her about our great shell club, the other clubs in our community and the ladies’ lunches where it’s so easy to make friends. She says she’s not the type to try to talk to “a bunch of strangers.”I believe Will Rogers was right — strangers are just friends we haven’t met yet.Yes, life is one grand smorgasbord. But it’s our individual appetites that determine how much we pile on our plate.My problem has always been that my appetite is just way too big.Contact Pattie Mihalik at

newsgirl@comcast.net.