A "Listful" Morning

When I cannot bear outer pressures any more, I begin to put order in my belongings… As if unable to organize and control my life, I seek to exert this on the world of objects.  - Anais Nin - See more at: http://simpleworksorganizing.com/blog/2013/4/29/quotes-for-organizing#sthash.H9ftn4aS.dpuf

When I cannot bear outer pressures any more, I begin to put order in my belongings… As if unable to organize and control my life, I seek to exert this on the world of objects.  - Anais Nin - See more at: http://simpleworksorganizing.com/blog/2013/4/29/quotes-for-organizing#sthash.H9ftn4aS.dpuf

Early in my career I felt that organization would destroy my creativity. Whereas now, I feel the opposite. Discipline is he concrete that allows you to be creative.  - Verna Gibson - See more at: http://simpleworksorganizing.com/blog/2013/4/29/quotes-for-organizing#sthash.H9ftn4aS.dpuf

Discipline is doing what needs to be done, when it needs to be done, when we don't want to do it.  --Bobbi Porter

This morning, I woke from yet another terrible dream at 2:34 a.m.  This one began, as they almost always do, with a Very Bad Man attempting to do me harm.  As I (almost) always do, I ran [note:  there have been a couple times when I've turned around and punched and kicked the Very Bad Man...those awesome dreams did NOT wake me up].  But, running in these dreams is never easy.  My path is almost always treacherous or difficult.  This morning's iteration had me jumping over shrubbery and enormous tree roots on a steep uphill slope.  Don't worry, this blog will not focus on dream interpretation...I just thought it important to begin at the beginning this morning.  I just want to be clear about how I got where I am this morning.

When you wake up with your heart pounding and your adrenalin rushing, it's often pretty difficult to return to a peaceful snooze.  And so, because sometimes deep down I think I hate the idea of a good night's sleep, I began to think about everything that I have to do.  Everything.  I began to focus on the fact that my white kitchen floor never seems to get clean.  I thought about how I need to remember to buy longer black pants for Thing 1's upcoming band concert.  I wondered who came up with the gecko idea for Geico.  After a half an hour of tossing and turning, I had a Grand Epiphany:  MY LIFE WOULD BE BETTER WITH LISTS.

I have a dear friend who crafts the most amazing lists.  She has lists for EVERYTHING from housecleaning to gift giving to "how I need to spend my day."  She shops for groceries with a list instead of using my time-tested method of wandering aimlessly up and down aisles in hopes of remembering to buy toilet paper at the end.  It both amuses and amazes me.  She gets way more done in a day than I do in a week and she doesn't wake up at 2:34 a.m.

My epiphany was substantiated when I opened up the pantry to retrieve the canned cat food.  There wasn't any.  I went to the grocery store (without a list) yesterday and forgot to buy some.  On that SAME trip, I had forgotten to purchase dishwashing detergent...which was one of the two items that had spurred me to MAKE a trip to the store in the FIRST place.

So I sat down to just start a free form list of things that are on my mind this morning.

THIS is why I never get anything done:  nothing but crap ever flows from my head.   

I started again.

Most of my lists revolve around figuring out how to make a list.  Do they teach this skill in school or do you simply have to have a mind that thinks about one thing at a time?

OK.  One more time.

Did I mention that I am a smartass EVEN to myself EVEN on lists?  (Whenever I tell myself I'll think about something tomorrow I ALWAYS add the "at Tara."  Sometimes, I even add "I'll never be hungry again."  And if you don't get those references, you need to read more.  Or, perhaps, watch the classic movie channel.)

Pffft.  I think I'll drink more coffee.  Or start my morning walk early.  Or call my friend and ask her to make a list for me.

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