the insanity of "to do" lists

My freshman year of college I found myself mortified one Tuesday night to discover that in addition to a major test the next day (which I had been studying for), I also had three projects due the next day, none of which I had started. My upperclassmen friend who was in two of those classes (and had thankfully stopped by my room to see how they were going), recommended that I purchase a day planner and spend the following afternoon cataloguing all the project and paper due dates. I wisely took her advice, and that was the last time a project slipped up on my unawares. (NOTE: I did NOT say that was the last time I was up all night finishing projects...just that I was no longer ignorant of them).
But a new problem arose. Between class, work, and yearbook staff, my free time was very limited. And let's face it, some homework and reading assignments, even in college, are just plain dull. So I quickly learned to ignore items on my "to do" list that were not due that week (except for research papers). yes, that gush of wind you're hearing is my dear "get-it-done-now" Bobby gasping in absolute horror as he reads this.
Now that I'm out of college, I find another problem with my little lists...where did I put them? They tend to disappear even faster than my car keys!
Life without organization (aka - to do lists) isn't fun. It creates a lot of problems. And yet there's something in me that just rebels at a list of things that must be done that day. I mean, the grocery store can wait one more day and I can mop the floor instead, right? They both need doing. And perhaps if I do the one I like first, it'll get done faster and then I'll have time for the other and I'll get TWO things done today! and this is where Bobby's two eyebrows become one and he tilts his head trying to decide if I've reached the ultimate level of insanity
So I wonder, how many other idealistic dreamers are out there? Do you make to do lists? And if so, do you follow them?

where I come from

I'm not actually from Townley (where the above picture was taken). My hometown of Cordova, AL is actually several steps above Townley sporting two banks, a small grocery store, two drugstores, a post office, a video store, and several gas stations (Townley only has a part-time post office, and is where my father currently pastors). But like Townley, Cordova suffers from the past. In the early '60s, like many other places across America, the cotton mills closed their gates and went overseas. Unable to find work, many moved away. Others joined the coal mines. In the late '80s the coal mines began drastically cutting back (and it always seemed they did it at Christmas time). I'm not going to rehash the age old debate of whether the mines were only seeking profit or if the miners and the union's constant strikes and demands brought it about, but the reality is - it happened. Again, people moved away in search of means to support their families.

The above picture is of Main St in Cordova taken in 1993, where most of the stores are located. Every Thursday evening the road is shut down, for the most important reason:

the Cordova Blue Devils football team

The band plays and marches down main street, then the players salter down the street, followed by a 10-20 minute pep rally. If you've ever seen the movie Friday Night Lights, then you get an idea of what my hometown is like.

According to the 2000 census, Cordova has a population of 2, 423 people. And for these 2,423 people, there are ten churches within the city limits, and almost as many immediately outside the city limits. Most everyone considers themselves a "Christian" because they like to think of themselves as good, but not because they know Christ, follow his teachings, or attend church.

WHY am I telling you all this? Because my small town upbringing solidifies a lot of who I am today. I work in a job where things are supposed to be perfect, the smallest mistake must immediately be corrected, and cost, while important, is not to be the final factor. It is a major factor, but almost never the ultimate one. Appearance is everything. And that is such a far cry from who I am and how I was raised. (and yes, I was raised, not reared...) I cringe inside at all the waste, ponder the frivolous lifestyle of people who have no concept of limited resources, and often miss the simplicity of how things "were back when".

And while people do throw out their trash in AL just like people do here (thankfully Bryan Rd has FINALLY been cleaned up once again), at least people have a sense of humor about it back home, as is displayed by the above photo.

:O)

I feel no shame; I'm proud of where I came from;
I was born and raised in the boondocks.
One thing I know, no matter where I go,
I keep my heart and soul in the boondocks.

And I can feel that muddy water runnin' through my veins;
And I can hear that lullaby of the midnight trains.
And it seems to me that it's so familiar...
~ Little Big Town's "Boondocks"

totally disgusting

Tonight as I was taking the trash container to the road, I noticed Linus had something sticking out of both sides of his mouth. To my chagrin and horror, it was a frog. I don't think he actually bit it, just carried it around for a while. Later he put it down and Lucy had it hopping by pawing at it. Poor little froggy.
Even more disgusting, while working in the garden, I came across a leaf on my tomato plants that looked like it had a fungus on it. So I pulled it off, but made the mistake of examining it before tossing it out. Turns out, it wasn't mold. It was actually a caterpillar with little white things all over it. Then I spotted another one. So I called Bobby outside and had him look at it. The little white things I thought were worms on the caterpillar, according to my farmer husband, are actually...eggs. I refused to touch the next one, and instead shook it off the plant. I think tomorrow I will actually wear my work gloves for a change.

tomato & corn salad

4 large tomatoes
1/2 tsp salt
2 T balsamic vinegar
1/2 c extra-virgin olive oil
2 c fresh corn kernels (cut from 5 ears of corn)
1/4 c chopped basil

Cut the tomatoes into small pieces (remove seeds if you prefer). Toss with salt.
In a seperate bowl, put vinegar, then gradually add in oil. Toss in remaining ingredients. Season with salt and pepper.

I tried this recipe yesterday. It was my first experience with both balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Contrary to my initial reaction when I saw the recipe ingredients, I actually liked the taste. So imagine my surprise when I pulled it out of the refrigerator tonight, and saw that the oil/vinegar had hardened. ?! I heated it slightly in the microwave, but it made me a little hesitant about eating it. The taste was still the same.

So for all my cooking connoisseur friends, I have some questions.

1. What is the difference between olive oil, virgin olive oil, and extra virgin olive oil?
2. What is balsamic vinegar?
3. Does olive oil have more fat than regular vegetable oil?
4. Should this dish have been refrigerated?

the country gal cook

little by little

I like that song Dave plays on Wed nights:

Little by little, inch by inch,
by the yard it's hard, by the inch, what a cinch!
Never stare up the stairs, just climb up the steps,
little by little, inch by inch.

That somewhat describes me these days: tiny, minute movements that don't seem to accomplish a whole lot. I attempt not to focus on the big picture but to look at the tiny things, but I've inherited my mother's gene of randomness. For example, I start cleaning Tonya's room. There's a small batch of clothes that need to be bagged to give someone. So I go to get a bag from the kitchen. While I'm in the kitchen I see a half-made grocery list, so I get side-tracked by the grocery list. In the process of finishing my grocery list I head to the bathroom for a "quick" inventory, and wind up cleaning there instead. One of the cleaning supplies reminds me of something that belongs in Tonya's bathroom, so I head back in that direction. I'm close to where I started, but not quite. Our day is approaching near over, and I have 1/2 of Tonya's bedroom ready, and 1/2 of her bathroom cleaned, but nothing is finished.

Perhaps that is why I like Laura Numerhoff's books so much. (If you give a mouse a cookie; If you give a pig a pancake; If you give a moose a muffin) I've met many children's authors who absolutely hate her books, but I can so relate to them. I like things that come full circle. (and having a cute pig or mouse as your main character enhances the story line, as well). A friend of mine took her story line, and changed the first sentence to "If a Christian prays for ________, then ____________." Each person in the room had to complete a line. It really made us stop and think about what can happen when we sincerely pray.

So now you know how random I am: we start off with music, switch to my cleaning projects, hop to children's books, move toward devotions, and now I've got to abruptly end.

August project list

Happy August 1st!
The kids are gone, and have arrived safely in Belarus.
Bobby is home, and his surgery was successful.
I am at home, and actually got a nap this afternoon!

So now that I'm almost caught up on washing clothes (and I've just come to accept the reality that I will NEVER be caught up on ironing), I'm making my major project list for the 31 days August:

• get caught up at work
• clean and sort all the stuff in the kids' bedrooms
• baste the layers of Bobby's quilt together
• put up the apples and pears
• find a decent grape juice recipe for next month
• start and finish a painting
• start the rough draft for the children's Christmas play

I could easily keep adding to this list (I like thinking up stuff!), but I'm working very hard on setting realistic goals that I can reach. (That should be a goal in and of itself!) So if I look a little haggard these next 31 days, you'll know I'm probably stretching myself too thin (haha!) once again.