unfinished business

I opened this "new post" window about an hour before I started writing. Appropriate, considering I am writing about unfinished business. Now, I'm not referring to things from the past with no closure. Those things I let go of with ease. What I am mean are the massive to do lists in my mind and trying to get to all the tasks. Inevitably the list continues to grow so I never seem to get to the end of it. I'm pondering on why it seems to take me a disproportionate amount of time completing things.

I jokingly ponder if I have developed ADD, but check my DSM-IV just in case.

I'm not good at staying on just one task for any length of time.

I get bored with mundane or routine tasks.

I want to jump in to all the creative projects and can never decide which I want to do first. This leads to a severe case of "project jumping" (starting lots of tasks and switching from one to another instead of giving my full attention to one and completing it).

Same thing with books. I'm inevitably in the middle of five books at once.

Being tired enhances lack of focus. My weeks of jury duty while working two jobs did not help. Luckily the trail is done and soon I will be working four days a week.

With the new house, there is so much more to do to make it feel and look as I want it to. I want to be completely done but there are a lot of time consuming tasks, I need to be more realistic with the outcome of this. Or I need to hire someone to help with the tasks I don't feel like tackling.

Sometimes tasks lead to minor setbacks. Sure a huge amount of the gardening was done yesterday, but now I am trying to quell the itch of mosquito bites (they must love the taste of Melissa basted in essential oils). Now, I am avoiding a few tasks I have to do outside. They can wait until I itch no more and wear a hazmat suit for protection.

I'll writer more at another time because the other side of unfinished business are internal changes. They deserve their own post. Plus, I am off to tackle yet another task. Which one? Not sure yet. We'll see when I get up from this chair. Now where did I put my hazmat suit?

s.o.s. (search of snapshots)

In my "unique organizational style" I have completely misplaced my camera battery charger. I even recall telling myself, "I am putting the charger here, so it does not get lost." Unfortunately, I cannot recall where "here" is located.

I wonder how much a personal organizer costs since my "system" is apparently not working. Any volunteers?

mlk day doings

Today, my office is closed and Groovy's at work, so I am taking the opportunity to be productive. This has already included editing and posting the last eight days of 365 photos on flickr. I have not had much desire to be online lately, hence the backlog of self photos. I am now formulating my "Operation Apartment Clean" (or OAC) project for today. (Hey, the news always adds flashy names to each story. Why can't I???)

OAC must be done. OAC will end victoriously. OAC will get accomplished much sooner if I get off the dang computer.

OAC Twin Powers, Activate!

Shape of A VACUUM!

Form of A SPONGE!

om in the home

Two nights in a row, I have succeeded at getting full, mostly restful nights sleep. I think it has helped having completed some deep cleaning in the bedroom; dusting, changing pillow cases, vacuuming and organizing. It amazes me how much more at ease I am when things are neat and organized. Not like this is some shocking revelation since I am fully aware how our surroundings affect us. It is more that I am amazed at the stark difference I feel between chaos and calm. This alone should be motivation enough to keep things clean and tidy, but I'm an artist at heart and like many artists I know, order is not an easy thing to keep.

On a positive, as I grow more aware of how I walk through life, I also become less attached to things. I find it much easier now to part with things than I have in the past. My goal now is to simplify. Yes, it is nice to have possessions, but I want to be realistic. I no longer want to hold on to stuff for the sake of having stuff. I want less things in order to be able to actively use the things I need and want to use, without extraneous things hindering this.

I want to keep my cleaning of the apartment as simple as: keep, toss, donate

I want to be realistic in the "oh, I use this such-and-such someday" and get rid of the "Yeah, I might use it eventually but right now it is useless and taking up too much space" things.

Cleanse and purge the physical in order to calm the internal.

What I want is "om in the home".

Who's with me?

organizing

I was inspired the other day by Nina's blog to make a one item "to-do list" so I decided to make "finally get the kitchen organized for the first time since moving in to this apartment" my task. I did it. Moved the furniture around to a more functional placement (difficult to do when you have a tiny kitchen), cleaned above the cabinets, decorated a box to hide some "not for daily use" items, cleaned under the refrigerator, emptied and organized the cabinets and I was inspired the other day by Nina's blog to make a one item "to-do list" so I decided to make "finally get the kitchen organized for the first time since moving in to this apartment" my task. I did it. Moved the furniture around to a more functional placement (difficult to do when you have a tiny kitchen), cleaned above the cabinets, decorated a box to hide some "not for daily use" items, cleaned under the refrigerator, emptied and organized the cabinets and reinforced the island that was really wobbling from the move. Whew! Quite n job, but it is done and I feel much better about it. Next tasks: finish sorting through the boxes of papers and random stuff while making an organizational system for the keep stuff.

organizing
Originally uploaded by misslissa13

Also, organize the incredible desk hutch that Greg's father built for us. Since our desk only has a keyboard drawer and small hutch, we desperately needed office storage space. Now we have it.

I will take a full view picture when I have it all organized and pretty-like. Of course, a Buddha was the first thing to adorn this lovely hand-made piece.
The apartment is starting to feel more like home.

martha's got chocolate on her sweatshirt

You know what is the only thing that makes me tolerate Martha Stuart and her perfectionist image? Picturing her at home, with dust on her shelves, dirty dishes in the sink and her donning sweat pants with a hole in the knee and mismatched socks and eating Ben and Jerry's from the container. It makes it easier for me to be kind to myself with the fact that I am far from the "perfect homemaker" as you can imagine. I attempt to be organized and cleaver with things, but it just does not happen.

I began packing this week for the move. Not in any kind of methodical way, not in any way that makes sense, I just dove in. Books with shoes, big piles of semi-organized stuff to go through, a vague plan of what order to do thing......and I like it that way. I do not want to stress about things. It will all get done. It always does. I have become a master mover over the past five years. I look forward to settling down in one place for a few years and saving up to buy our first house (our "Ikea House" if you will). And even then, I will be an Ikea Homemaker. Making it look good on the surface, while knowing that, underneath, things could be done to a higher quality. And I will be okay with that, knowing that things are good and somewhat together and neat in it's own way. And in my world, shoes and books co-mingling in the same cardboard home is perfection.

productivity, in a productive way

Despite spending hours on Saturday merely spectating the soapbox derby, this weekend was a highly productive one. We got a lot of cleaning done so the apartment can be presentable for potential tenants. This organization will also make packing much more efficient. Two weeks ago, I got my desk at work completely organized. Of course, the biggest boon of all of this is a calmer state of mind. It is amazing how much more clarity my mind possesses when my space is in some sort of order (organized chaos). I gain a greater sense of control over myself and my life. I feel motivated! That unto itself makes organization worth it. As previously posted, I have motivation that wanes and waxes. It is currently waxing and I plan on taking advantage of that.

Of utmost importance is utilizing this motivation to get more focus on my health and well-being. I feel energetic and strong. Healthy eating is back on track. Last night, I made a killer spaghetti squash with a tomato-sauteed portabella mushroom-chopped kale sauce. Dang yummy! I skipped my morning all-fruit smoothie today in lieu of two pieces of fresh whole fruit. I packed up an avocado, clementine, banana and red pepper to snack on at work. I have been taking my vitamins/herbs consistently (wow! How did that happen???). Saturday included a bike ride and walk, and now I feel like added jogs back into my days. I feel good and I want to feel great.

On another positive note, my mood has stabilized tremendously these past couple of months. Perhaps the healthier eating (added much more raw foods then before) and regular acupuncture sessions are taking effect.

Whatever is prompting all of the positive action, I am not going to waste it. There is much to do with improving my health, the pending move, continued job searching and getting all the loose ends tied up in Rhode Island before we move. I suppose the timing is right. I am going to attempt to keep my awareness on when the motivation starts to wane, then try to head that off at the pass. It is all about G.S.D. (Getting Shit Done)!

Productivity, onward ho!