Jan 26 2007
getting things done
Back when I was in AmeriCorps, that was my motto. Well, not my personal motto, but it’s the AmeriCorps motto. AmeriCorps: Getting Things Done. You know, I actually had to raise my right hand and pledge to get things done for America. It was rather somber, and then afterwards, I went to this thing and there was an open bar, so that was pretty cool. This has nothing to do with anything, but I’m mentioning it because I am fond of mentioning things that have nothing to do with anything, which you probably already know.
Anyway, the weekend is here (and not a moment too soon; this week felt about 50 years long) and I need to get things done for Jamelah. I seem to have this problem where I make grand plans and then end up not getting around to them, being a lazy, shiftless type and all. So whenever a weekend comes along, I always think that I’m going to do a lot of stuff, but then I end up sitting around, drinking coffee and thinking about how I should do something. And then I look at the clock and it’s 2 p.m. and I’m all, “Crap! How did it get to be so late? I’d better go do something… or something.” And then, like, 5 minutes later, I look at the clock again and it’s 6:30 p.m. and I’m all, “Crap! How did it get to be so late? I’m hungry.” And then it’s Monday again and I’m disappointed with myself. So, in an attempt to have a weekend where I actually do the things I mean to do, Caryn and I have challenged each other to be productive. We’ve done this before (my report is here, and I’m still really proud of how I showed that window who was boss, by the way), and whoever gets through her list first wins a dollar. Yep, a dollar. Because we are high-rollers that way.
Here is my list of things to accomplish this weekend:
- Fold and put away laundry that is threatening a hostile takeover in the corner of bedroomWhoo! Hostile takeover averted!
- Go to post office to mail (ahem) Christmas presents
Okay, seriously. I ALWAYS hold doors open for other people. So you would think that I’d have some really good door-opening karma by now, but hey, not so much. Because today when this lady saw me approaching the post office doors, my arms laden with packages, she actually ran to the door and inside the building and did not hold open the door. Perhaps she was afraid that I’d get in front of her in line, but whatever, because she totally took longer than me because she had to ask about EVERY STAMP AVAILABLE from the United States Postal Service. Whore.
- Cash check (No, but really, I have to go to A WHOLE OTHER TOWN for that.)Also had lunch and somehow ended up buying fabric to make myself a skirt.
- Sort through Flickr mail pileupI have nothing even remotely interesting to say about that, except hey, done!
- Reply to emailsAt least the ones I’d been meaning to reply to and hadn’t gotten around to yet.
- Give Sweet Pea a bath, because she smells like Fritos, and then clean the bathroom
I should not be allowed to have so much adventure in my life.
- Watch Monday’s episode of 24I was going to break up with this show, but somehow I’ve ended up with watching it being an item on my to-do list. I find that on television, Arabs don’t really sound like Arabs, but instead just have this generic foreign accent. Also, I’m really tired of Arabs always being the bad guys. Why couldn’t they do something original, like have Canadian terrorists. Think of it! Terrorists! From Canada! Nobody would ever see THAT coming!
- Back up photosYou know why I never do this? Because it’s boring, that’s why. But it’s done now, and even though I always tell myself that if I’d do it more regularly it wouldn’t be so horrible, I probably won’t get around to it again until, oh, June.
- Treadmill + Jamelah = Love
So I didn’t have much time for this, since I had to get it done and then get the dog in the tub and then clean the bathroom and then take a shower and get dressed so I could go to the bank, which meant that I brilliantly decided to try to kill myself via treadmill running. While doing so, I wondered if maybe I should put that Libertines song “Death on the Stairs” on my workout playlist, since there were definitely times that the line “please kill me” from the chorus was my mantra.
- Pedicure
Done! New nail polish and everything! Whee! (Note: in case you’re concerned, I’d like to assure you that my pants didn’t actually eat the pinky toe on each of my feet.)
And there you go. I’ll keep you updated on my progress, and I’m sure that you’re as excited as I am. If you’d like to follow along with what Caryn’s up to, her list is here.Let the productivity begin!
[…] That’s it … I actually have more stuff I want to do (like record the Dukes of Hazzard theme song or make a trivet) but this is my official list. Feel free to join in the challenge and post some blog motivation for yourself … I can’t give you all a dollar, but maybe you could throw down the gauntlet to someone you know is totally not going to get their laundry done. (PS: Here’s Jamelah’s list … do you think she’ll get her laundry done? Will I be crushed under a pile of unfiled paperwork? Stay tuned to find out!) […]
Don’t forget …
– think of a good topic for Wednesday’s LitKicks article.
Nooooooooo! heheh … good work, Jamelah. The dollar is in the mail. Uh, or it will be whenever I get around to going to the post office. Ahem. PS: Nice toes.
I am so proud of you girls. You are both totally awesome and all this industry going on, on a Saturday no less, is completely applaudable.
See, now I’m convinced you’ve only got eight toes.
What a great post. I can relate to it. I work the opposite way round though. I am still looking for a job and that means that my weekdays are when I can work on being most productive. Usually I make a list for each week, starting on Monday morning, and then a list for each successive day ticking off items from the week list and day list as they are done. It gives a sense of accomplishment, other time just flies and I get that horrible sense of drifting. I applaud the idea of putting a list as a blog posting. Anything that can motivate and encourage you helps! I will visit your blog again in the near future just to see how you are doing. Good luck and ‘all power to your elbows’ as my mother would say (its a phrase local to the area of England I grew up in)!
Next time you get to feeling productive, let me introduce you to Guild Wars. That’ll put an end to any plans you might have to get out of the house, and it fits so easily into that five-minute 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. hole.
Levi — Well, you know, I like to think continuously about the potential subject of my LitKicks posts until I have to commit to something. I’m pretty sure I know what I’m writing about this week though, and, as always, it’s gonna be fab.
Caryn — Yay! Nothing like a little competitive productivity to get me going, I suppose.
Ma — Well, you know me — heh — always worthy of applause.
Fraulein — No, really, I have 10!
Tony — Hi, thanks. This is probably the most productive I’ve been in… well, maybe I shouldn’t say.
Linus — Heh. What about the 10-minute slot between 6:30 and 11:45?
That one’s for going back in and playing the mission that didn’t work out so well the first time. And also for watching an episode or two of Deadwood or 24 or whatever it-has-episodes thing is currently in the DVD player. Amazingly, the Guild Wars mission and the DVD episode sometimes both fit into that 10-minute slot. Life is good that way.
Note that this does not work when your it-has-episodes thing is the extended edition of Lord of the Rings, which takes up a 10-minute slot all by itself.
So then it’s like when I watch Pride & Prejudice? That may be longer than 10 minutes, though.