To-Don't List

Here's what I should have done today:

1. Raked the leaves on the lawn

Here's what I did today:

1. Perused the newspaper and read all the movie reviews (it is Oscar season after all)
2. Decided to run out to the store to pick up a present for the birthday party my son is going to. Ended up buying candles and a new napkin holder because really, the napkins shouldn't have to live in the perfectly functional basket they are in right now! Oh no, they need the stainless steel Europa model I ended up buying. Oh yeah, and I totally forgot the birthday present.
3. Went running. I really, really wanted to run 12 miles but stopped after 10. My MP3 player gave out after 9 miles so I had to run in near silence, the only noise (besides the traffic) was the sound of my knees complaining. And you know, those knees are really loud.
4. Had to stretch and shower after the run.
5. Read a few blogs.
6. Polished a candlestick for the candle I bought.
7. Decided to blog about not raking instead of raking.

And now, it's much too late to start raking now. I mean it's going to be dark soon (well, in a couple of hours) and the kids will be home. I wouldn't want to be considered a neglectful mother by not meeting them at the bus stop. I don't know how the hours slip away from me. The person who said you can have it all--you know the perfect napkin holder and a raked lawn--probably had a lawn boy.

What's a girl to do?

Have a good weekend everyone!!

Growing the Freakin' Garden

Candide has been over for a week and it's time to face the inevitable: yard work. It's the bane of my existence. Never mistake me for a green thumb. When I tell people that I don't garden, most say, "Oh, I don't have a green thumb, I just play in the dirt." What I do is not playing. It's more like the torture imposed on the scarecrow by the flying monkeys in The Wizard of Oz.

For three months, I was happily ensconced in Westphalia and so had the excuse of being much too busy to weed, mow, rake, or edge the lawn (not really sure what that is but I know I have to do it). Now, I sit home all day knowing that I have to pick up a rake. I've tried to stall by cleaning out the attic and donating clothes but I just donated clothes 3 months ago so there aren't many left.

And what has Brian been doing these past 3 months? Well, he hates yard work just as much as I do and his excuses include, "I had to watch the kids and besides, I work all day every day making the money we live on."

Which, when you think about it, is a really good excuse.

Here's the thing I hate about weeds; they just keep growing. Ignored for most of the summer, the weeds don't slink away. No, they demand to be recognized--growing fat off the loneliness of the other plants. If you ignore a person long enough, he usually leaves; with the weeds--not so much.

I swear the weeds are taunting me as I plod out to the garage to find the rakes and shovels. It might help if I got a real shovel to attack them with. The one I'm using is green and plastic and it came with a pail that I bought for my daughter when she was 2. Since I hate yard work, I find it difficult to spend money on tools.

Armed with my woefully inadequate tools I approach the yard and the inevitable thought pops into my head, 'why did we buy a house with such a big lawn?'

I know why we did it of course; I fell in love with the house. Not only do we have a bathroom on every floor, we have a finished basement. It's not beautiful but it's finished. Plus, and it makes me giddy to think about, I have a huge bedroom. It's perfect for yoga and when the light streams in--pure bliss!

So of course when we looked at the house and my husband said, "Wow, what a big yard." I jumped in with "I'll mow!" I was dizzy with the possibilities of my bedroom and the luxuries of a bathroom on every floor. Naturally, I couldn't see the lawn correctly.

But now, I'm stuck with a large lawn, lots of weeds, deficient tools and no excuses. I feel like David going after Goliath. Unfortunately, I think this time, Goliath might win.