January 1st is the Promised Land of all Dates

January 1st is the Promised Land of all Dates. It's the beginning of the beginning. The alpha point of the year. The clean slate promise of what's to come.

Now, I don't usually make New Year's Resolutions. I call that being a realist. I *NEVER* manage to keep them past oh, um, January, so years ago I decided making resolutions were a pointless tradition for me.

You know why? Because I wasn't being a realist at *all* when I made the resolutions. My resolutions would be a mile long list of skyhigh dreams and no real clear path to achieve any of them. I wasn't keeping them. I was standing and watching them as they swiftly sailed past, lovely, admirable, and completely unobtainable.

I'm not making a list of New Year's Resolutions this year either. Why? Because once I start thinking "New Year's Resolutions" the old habits kick in. My mind starts whirling with wonderful dreams of what I'd like to be, achieve, create. I know where that path leads. It leads to another impractical, impossible list that will eventually be frustrating and discouraging. And of course, when I can't be the wonder woman I want to be, I'll feel like a failure and not do *anything*. That's always been my greatest struggle. This all or nothing pit. I jump for the *all* with neither ladder or safety net and then plummet into this defeatist pit of "do nothing".

So my goal is just to do *something* each day. A small, reachable, doable something each day.

I might post with my somethings. I might not. I like the idea of having a nice little log of my somethings, so I can look back and remember I'm doing something on the days I feel the pit yawning beneath me. (Do pits yawn exactly?) On the other hand, if I say, "I'm going to do something every day and post each day", then I'm actually setting myself up for a fall. Because what will happen is that a week will go by where I'll not post my somethings...and then I might as well give up, even though its only March 1st, and there will be another year that I've failed, so I might as well give up on everything (house, school, etc) and just go read a book for the next couple days. See the vicious cycle?

Lets just leave it with, I might post with my somethings. Even if they are unfinished.

Two notes on Christmas in Canton that are almost relevent:
1) Window Artist has no compuctions against haning up her unfinished paintings on the walls of their home. I think that's awesome.
2) Buna gave me a set of dishtowels for Christmas. My first thought was, "I can use these to shine my sink." I haven't been doing any of the routines that I was so proud of this summer. You know why? Because, during the summer, it didn't really matter how long my morning routine took. I had all day. And I worked on my "morning" routine, off and on all through the day. The house looked great. Even the Jedi said so. School started. I no longer had all day to do my "morning" routine. But, instead of changing my morning routine, simplifying it, paring it down...I added MORE little routines to be done during short breaks in school. Then, of course, I couldn't get any of them actually finished, so I totally gave up. By Novemeber, the house was in chaos, school felt like it was dragging, and I didn't even want to get out of bed in the morning.

So, I got dishtowels, and that started a thinking process that got me back to small, doable steps. I got out a new sheet of paper, and made a new morning routine. Here they are for comparison, and cause I know Christopher Robin is reading all this and shaking her head at me. Or rolling her eyes. Or both. Don't make yourself dizzy there.

Old routine:
Get up and make bed. Fill water bottle.
Shower, hair and face. Start scent machine.
Excercise (m, w, f). Stretch and shoes.
Transfer laundry. Fold and Hang. Weigh self (m, th)
Shine kitchen sink. Swish and swipe bathroom.
Check email 5 minutes.
Clear clutter Hot spots 5 minutes.
Weekly housework 10 minutes (m: tub, waterplants, calendar, t: sweep n mop kitchen, w: vacuum, th: dust, gather laundry, f: windows, mirrors, sweep kitchen)
Zone work(decluttering and organizing) 15 min
Put phone and PDA in purse. Pack for outings.
Breakfast and devotions at 8:30. Give Sweetling vitamin.

See why this wasn't happening?

So, here's my new list. It worked really well this morning.

Smile. Sit up. Sing a happy song.
Put on some comfy clothes.
Turn on the computer. Drink a glass of water. Start scent machine.
Bathroom. Brush hair and put in quick ponytail.
Excercise/stretch.
Shower, hair and face.
Check on Sweetling's progress.
Shine kitchen sink.
Swish and swipe bathroom.
Make breakfast.
Devotions. Give Sweetling vitamin.
Send Sweetling to brush teeth.
Transfer laundry.
School time.