After two days of torrential rain and cruddy weather, the sun is shining...ish... and we saw Carl the Carp in the lake this morning! Carl is the stuff of legends, and rightly so. If you sprinkle corn (??) into the lake, spit on your shoe, and spin around three times, he just might appear (...okay, only the corn part is true - I wanted to see you spit and twirl). Well, we saw him and he is HUGE! Like Loch Ness Monster huge. Like you would walk on water if you were swimming and saw him coming huge. That big. Now, the hubby assures me that Carl has no interest in eating my toes, but I'm not convinced - he eats corn, which proves that he is a deviant fish and would clearly find my toes appealing.
Today, I'm tackling the proverbial To Do List and our love/hate tango. On the one hand, I love lists almost as much as I love libraries. Almost. But at the end of the day, I never actually finish what I set out to do in a fit of coffee-fueled ambition; I am left feeling burdened and weirdly guilty that I didn't get to, oh I don't know, make my entire household completely eco-friendly. What to do? Bring in the experts!
I am FLOORED by how many zany list sites come up when you google "to do list"; there's even a blog about them! http://todolistblog.blogspot.com/ Go figure. However, I'm not looking to write more lists, but to make the one I do have more efficient. So, after reading several (rather dry) articles about how to write an effective to do list, I've cobbled together a few helpful rules that might actually help mamas, for whom the challenge of actually getting through a to do list is monumental.
1. Put only three things on your to do list each day. This way, you actually have a shot at finishing it (completion = feeling of accomplishment = RARE). Anything you do beyond those three things is gravy. Check.
2. Prioritize. Don't color code it, don't categorize it, don't powder and diaper it, just weigh the consequences of not getting it done today. Check.
I am someone who has even kept lists of lists, so only having two rules and three items is a toughie. My natural inclination is to try to make some sort of intricate system (that I will never follow) and rarely have fewer than ten things on my agenda, so this is weird. I am however looking forward to actually FINISHING something! Stay tuned to see if I actually do....
I like the idea of a "Don't do list" everyday I put down things I didn't do, like laundry or yell at Oliver. It reminds me that I don't have to get everything done and my life will still move on.
ReplyDeleteBut in reality having only three things on a list is probably much easier then a don't do list.