Making a List, Checking it Twice

I’m a little hesitant to post this.  One of my sisters (whose calming presence and laid-back personality make

her a phenomenal massage therapist and an ideal confidant) unleashes her otherwise non-existent fury when “a certain holiday” unfairly takes the stage before Thanksgiving has been given proper festivity.  She mandates that carols, themed movies, and décor remain under wraps until after the pumpkins and cranberries take their bow in the limelight.  I've chosen to acquiesce to her demands for two reasons: she’s my older sister and I can’t afford to pay for massages.  Truly, I agree with the notion that Thanksgiving is an amiable holiday, full of noble sentiment and historical value. I’m very much looking forward to the entire turkey-topped season.  I also agree that the “other major holiday soon to come” has greedily begun chomping on other calendar pages because of outlandish consumerism, nothing more.  However, as a homemade gift giver and a busy woman, I am required to turn my thoughts to December’s celebratory season long before the temperatures plummet.  So…with a bit of trepidation and a wish and a prayer to remain in my sister’s good graces (and within reach of her stone-melting thumbs), I’m posting about my preparations for "you know what".

I distinctly remember that last year November 1^st and January 2^nd transpired like today and tomorrow.  So, earlier this week I set out to make a list and check it twice.  I madly scribbled everything I could think of that needs to be caught up, redone, pre-baked, purchased, gathered, scrubbed, organized, or constructed.  The best way I know to handle this time of year is to prioritize, cull hard, keep on truckin’, and enjoy the ride.  Common sense, yes; but easier said than done.

To face the storm head on, I made two lists: short-term and long-term.  From now until the bells of 2014 ring out I’ll make a list for “This Week” to include normal chores like laundry and bills and bigger items like washing windows and exchanging summer’s garb for winter’s warm-wear.  The long-term list will be nibbled on slowly; small morsels from it will showcase on the weekly list as the window of opportunity arises or the deadline approaches. Naturally, I’ll also keep homestead tasks draped across both tallies: make broth, plant garlic, process and store the ginger, sell the milk cow, you know how it goes. Then, I’ll pounce on it when I get home each afternoon and tackle what I can.  Rest assured there will be nights when, with lists flung in the air, I will slump on the couch in blatant denial and press “play” on my DVD player.  However, any items that aren't completed by Sunday will roll over to next week’s new and improved list.  This is a wonderful motivation NOT to procrastinate.  Wise men know, “Sufficient to the day is the evil thereof.”  Next week’s got its own litany of assignments.  Hopefully, as the weeks roll on I’ll have a decent handle on the big projects while keeping the little ones in tow.

More than most times of year I’ll be venturing out into the wide world (or sending Weldon whenever possible) to ensure I have supplies, material, and ingredients at my fingertips.  Nothing’s more frustrating than a project at the head of the queue for which I’m missing a key component.  Toward this end I try to assemble my shopping list extra early so things can be picked up while we’re already out...even if the errand run is long before I plan to start the project.  (Obviously, fresh ingredients are the exception.)  Guerilla shopping tactics such as this keep us from long, drawn-out excursions amidst the crazed shoppers that swarm the roads and aisles this time of year.  It’s not unusual for Weldon and I to go “Ch__st_as Shopping” once toward the tail end of the season as an excuse to be festive and have a decent dinner out.  Technically, it still qualifies because we sweep through a store or two and come home with a couple items to finalize the gift roster.

I realize that some of my myriad tasks will get lost on the editing floor because of a lack of time, energy, or enthusiasm.  I have no qualms about this fact.  Part of the enjoyment of the ride is to go with the flow and be functional enough to fully absorb what really matters during this season.  If the laundry or vacuuming lingers a time or two, so be it!  If an intended recipe gets replaced by a tried and true (simpler) one, no worries!  If I buy a gift for someone I expected to make one for, it’s the thought that counts!  The older I am the more settled I become with the age-old nugget of truth: “It’s not worth getting your panties in a wad.”

However you spend your time preparing for this wonderful year-end holiday (the red and green one between Thanksgiving and New Year’s), I hope it’s much less taxing than you expected and much more rewarding than you dreamed!

Hooray! Now I can cross off “Post Blog” on this week’s list!