...I need order in my chaos. Here begins a saga of seeking such.
Do you ever have the feeling like there's so much that you want to do that you simply don't know where to start? And as a result, you do nothing? I've been there for a long, long time. I've formulated a plan that I hope will help me address this problem.
It starts with a spreadsheet in Excel. I divided my empire up into thirteen sections - Master Bedroom, Master Bath/Linen Closet/my closet, Boys' Room, Half Bathroom/Pantry closet, Girls' Room, Upstairs Bathroom/Guest Room, Kitchen, Office/Laundry/Hall Closet, Living/Dining/Sun Rooms, Basement, Garage, Attic, and Pasture/Barn. I made a worksheet for each location, and listed the tasks that I want to accomplish in each area. Each area gets a week, and the whole thing rotates four times a year. I fully expect that the first time through will be the most difficult (and painful), as there is a backlog going back years in some cases. I want to sort through all of it, and stop putting it off.
The Master Bedroom checklist (alphabetized, not in order of priority) reads thus, and there's room in the subsequent columns for the date each job is completed. I have found amazing things already - the missing cover for Amanda's microwave-able rice pack on the nightstand, a stack of photos dating back to when she was in preschool (she's in 5th grade now) and enough dust and grime to choke a dinosaur.
Clear off night stands
Dust bookshelves
Dust dresser
Go through dresser
Launder linens - spring
Put away books
Tidy cedar chests
Vacuum under bed
Vacuum window quilts
Vacuum window wells
Wash light fixture
Wash mattress pad
Wash picture glass
Wash windows
I have taken the opportunity to rearrange some of the furniture as well. I hope this will enhance the feeling of being freshened up. The dogs are rather freaking out, though.
In other news, there was 2" of snow yesterday morning, and an additional inch this morning. It's all nice and fluffy, which makes it easy to shovel. I did slip and go top over teakettle in the back yard yesterday, but landed on my elbow rather than my back or posterior. Thank goodness! I'll take an egg on my elbow over further damage to my back any day. I go tomorrow morning for another shot of cortisone, this one in a new and different location, in my continuing pursuit of healing and pain relief.
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I'm sorry you're still hurting with all that back stuff. That just affects everything, doesn't it? But, I commend your organization; I need to do something like that, too. I hadn't thought of spread sheets--but then, I'm a hard-copy kind of gal in most cases. Let us know how it goes!
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