December 31, 2012
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completely incomplete
I’m having issues with completion.
I’ve been thinking. I was working on all kinds of deep, meaningful posts in my head. For days now. Have you read any of them? Of course not, because I can’t finish the thinking. Really, it was great stuff.
And I have all these ideas about stuff to do, but I can’t finish any of it. I’ve been working on the same 5 inches of crochet for 3 days which I’ve had to rip out repeatedly because I keep messing it up.
And yet, I have a resolution for the new year. I usually avoid that kind of thing, because truthfully, follow through is not one of my strengths. However, this is a completely doable resolution because it will keep me entertained!
I’ve been working in our “disgusting” basement. (quotes because Spawn called it that, not because it isn’t.) I have unearthed some truly amazing things. Also lots of garbage and some fine things to pass along to our buddy Good Will. I should tell you a story of good will. But maybe I already have. Who can remember these things. In any case, finding these amazing things gave me the idea that I could do projects out the wazoo this year. I can finish things I’ve started! And this can be interpreted loosely. See, if I own a book, I can do a project out of it. If I own a piece of fabric, I can do a project out of it. (Which is one of my plans for tomorrow or today, whichever comes first.) I’m not limited by what I thought was a project once upon a time!! I can do those too. (Actually I am working on one currently. The 20 year old sweater project, which is now close to starting sleeves. yay, me.)
And some of these things I thought were a good idea whenever I thought they were a good idea, I can decide now are not! I can ditch them. Dump them. Goodbye, I don’t have to do you. Can you imagine? Letting go of baggage? I can do that!!
Retraining as well. That’s on the agenda. Speaking of which. The Good Will story. When girls were much younger, they had Barbies. Not my fault. Lots of Barbies and lots of Barbie stuff. Also, a place to put on the Barbie stuff (we were bin-land at one point). Putting away did not appeal to my girls. (does not) And so one day I said that the Barbie stuff needed to get put away or they were all going to Good Will. LLO, completely serious, said that the nice boy would enjoy them. I’m sure he did. Or someone did. When we go shopping at Goodwill, which is way more often than anywhere else- we are that cool, it’s actually “nice boy”. Anyhow. These people will bend to my will or their crap will go. And that is not being mean, it’s parenting.
You know what I love most about my resolution? I can do whatever the heck I feel like doing, and I’m still working on improving my life. How cool is that.
Comments (40)
You know what I love most about my resolution? I can do whatever the
heck I feel like doing, and I’m still working on improving my life. How
cool is that.
HAHA, Awesome!!!
My wife and I were Good Will Hunting the other day. We said hi to the nice boy for you. I saw no Barbies.
I have a lot fewer Shoulds in my head than I used to. The unfinished projects and things I Ought to do were an uneasy burden of guilt for many years. Now I have things I Hope to do or even Plan to do, but if I don’t get to them, it mostly won’t matter. Guilt is no longer a major factor in directing my behavior.
@Roadkill_Spatula - i’m working on physically and mentally simplifying my life. guilt is the first baggage i want to be rid of.
My wife drives me nuts—-she starts something, then starts something else and finally gets frustrated.
I have always had a To Do List–doing the hardest things first and fully completing them before starting the next one.
lol
Happy New Year’s Eve,
frank
This post really got me thinking about the things in my
@godfatherofgreenbay - i see what you did there.
@ANVRSADDAY - it’s people like you who make people like me look bad.
Ah the Barbies! We had TMNT everywhere. I finally got sick of them and sold them at a garage sale. Oh the wailing and gnashing of teeth! But I have not regretted it. Declutter, simplify, let go of the guilt and find closure – a perfect way to happiness!! Hope 2013 finds you very happy!!
I have a 3 huge boxes of books that have been placed in my garage, up against a wall since we moved in 2 years ago. I’m bound and determined this spring, to get plastic totes to replace the falling apart boxes. I wish you luck with your project.
My mom and I have been cleaning out our basement. You definitely find some interesting things and things you forget about.
that is way cool mornin glorie
Happy New Year!
Loved your last paragraph. You rock Carrie.
I’m quite exactly the opposite… I’m incompletely complete, and I’ve not been thinking at all. Best way to roll in the new year.
Good luck! It will work out
Very cool indeed.
Happy New Year dear friend.
@murisopsis - and write more and read more and. and. and. (so much for simplify)
@armnatmom - when we moved here, we actually moved boxes labelled “yard sale”. i think i’ve finally gotten rid of them all.
@Shining_Garnet - seriously interesting things. some even good.
@mlbncsga - happy new year to you also!
@ZSA_MD - so many wonderful things to look forward to.
@JstNotherDay - you think all the time.
@saes2013 - and if it doesn’t, that’s ok too.
@Bricker59 - thanks, thom. happy new year.
“I don’t have to do you” sounds like something you would discuss at the emporium.
I hope you do get some of these things done. I have … no projects like this laying around. I’m wondering what’s up with me.
happy new year, Carrie.
@plantinthewindow - for that first thing, i just have to say
why would you need to have projects lying around? you do what needs doing. i always overestimate how much time i have for doing stuff. which is why i have a basement full of projects. also, i have concentration issues. i’m working on 3 projects at the same time right now. and getting nothing done. so i think i’ll go read a book.
happy new year, john.
way to take out the baggage!
baggage. sometimes I wonder if I might have some. or be some. damn.
I like your resolutions. Best I’ve seen so far. Happy happy happy.
@distractedbyzombies - we all have baggage. don’t think about being someone else’s baggage, think about being an opportunity for them to grow.
also if my people keep thwarting my plans, they’re gonna get tossed. i’m kidding. mostly.
Completion and follow through? WTF are those??
I love LLO, she steals my heart with every post. I am just starting to work on my resolutions, any ideas? I was thinking about less procrastination, but I will make my mind up about that later..
@BoulderChristina - i know, right? i finished a book yesterday and i’m not starting a new project until i finish one of the others. and i finally decided to give up on finding the perfect calendar in a store and just ordered the dang thing online. i already feel better about the world. (except that i want a cookie)
@promisesunshine - Oh what book? Again, I am going to try to do the book a week thing, but I lose track of that pretty fast. I just finished Hangman’s Daughter. Not bad. Any suggestions?
@BoulderChristina - it was an annoying book. nothing else to recommend at this time.
Sounds like an absolutely fantastic resolution! Haha. And I love the goodwill story.
I figure none of my work is complete, until I die. Then, I will be finished with it all. Even the paintings that I sold or gave away, If I ever happen upon them sometime I might add a brush stroke or line if I am so inclined… years, even decades later!
Hmmm. I wonder if I can figure out how to keep changing a painting after I die…. Maybe a slow drying, color changing pigment that takes a hundred years to set…
I have some research to do…
@Aloysius_son - this is a cool thought. doesn’t a painting change over the years just by who has it, what they are experiencing when they see it? i may ponder this until my head explodes.
besides. i think you are a real artist and i’m not. maybe i will be someday.
HA… real? I am an artist in my imagination. In reality I am a roofer! Or maybe it’s the other way around? Lordy, I hope not… If that were the case I would say that my imagination sucks! LOL!
I am a scientist who like to explore the world with renderings…
@Aloysius_son - i like your art more than i like your roof. (well, unless you end up roofing my house. ha ha. in which case i’d be real fond of your roofing skills too.)
perspective. it’s a wild thing.
@promisesunshine - HAHAHAHAHA! I am ripe with opportunity.
I thought thwarting your plans was a good thing? Then you have even more reasons not to worry about implementing them.
“I don’t necessarily agree with everything that I say.”
―Marshall McLuhan
@vexations - wait 5 minutes. i’ll have another opinion.
This post was written on 12/31 and had 31 comments, so I didn’t want to comment and ruin it. But I couldn’t resist. I think your resolution sounds like genius.
@ordinarybutloud - i have finished one little thing and moved a whole lot of dust. i’m exhausted by my resolution. but i see progress. did you see that anvil has another scavenger hunt?
@promisesunshine - I did.
I’m thinking about whether I can work it into my daily writing life in a way that won’t bother me later. (i.e., I really wish I hadn’t posted that!!!)
@ordinarybutloud - it’s practicing your craft. anything you write for a hunt can be justified as leading to better writing in the future. right?
@promisesunshine - yes of course. but then i get all anxious that I’m going to run out of ideas. Or I write a character I like and feel guilty about using him/her again in a “real” story. Or…yeah, I know. I’m a freak.
@ordinarybutloud - in other news. all hell is breaking loose here.
uh oh. what kind of hell. why.
@ordinarybutloud - homework missing. cat scratching. death. dismemberment. the usual.
@promisesunshine - oh, fun. we still don’t have school until tomorrow. and then one has a doctor appointment. so the vacation drags on.