Sunday, December 5, 2010

"Nothing is really work unless you would rather be doing something else."
-James M. Barrie

Isn't that the truth! Funny how so many things we do are not work....once we get into it. I sometimes think of something as "work" until I'm working at it. Sadly, I have occasional trouble with procrastination. Mostly, I try to live by the owner of Biff's company,"GET IT DONE!" rather than my "sister" at college, Buffy, who had lots of work to do.with little time to do it. Today, when I have some "work" to do, I laugh at myself  when I  become aware that I am thinking like Buffy during that crunch to get school work done.

After locking herself in her dorm room for hours, our friends pleaded with her to open her door....we just wanted her to take a break from her hard work....we brought coffee and cookies.....when Buffy eventually caved and let us into her serious work zone, we were amazed to see the construction paper wallpapering her walls...a variety of brightly colored papers.....taped up high....lovely scrolled  cursive, in perfectly straight lines, with bold  magic markers, above her immaculate desk with unopened books read, "You Jerk Get Working!" That's why she was holed up in her room....to prepare her highly motivational words on paper while working up the energy to get the lurking work done! How often that happens to me.




















Not necessarily sitting, taking the time to write in sprawling letters some clever little words like Buffy.........
I might consider those big puffy letters on clean, shiny poster board. 
I might have to go downstairs to my artsy zone filled with crafts, paints, pastels and markers of all different colors and a variety of pointed tips.
I might have to take out the box of new markers, a giant glass jar filled with favorites, a canvas bag of "travel markers" that I like to have with us on vacations or road trips, a jar loaded with paint markers used to write on plastic cups  for parties or Rubbermaid  bins and a spiffy new box for those special occasion projects that call for only the top of the line lettering. 

After sorting through the wonderful world of projects my creative juices might be lusting to fill my artistic yearning and pent up desires.

I might begin by testing some of the markers that look less than perfect. 

If I were to find a problem marker I might go upstairs to get the nail polish remover from the bathroom,
 go back down to my artsy zone and get involved in the long process of dipping the dried our markers in the nail polish to resuscitate those that might be less than perfect. 

 



















After "working"  on some of their issues, I might have noticed that the jar was a bit dusty. I might take the jar upstairs to the sink to scrub it clean. 

While cleaning the giant jar, I might need the Windex glass cleaner that Biff may have used on one of his weekend projects.

At that point, I might have to go on a hunt to track it down or perhaps go out to the store to get a new bottle of Windex.












Alternatively, I might find myself  unsettled noticing that my art supplies had been tampered with, by an unknown teen for a class project, and take on the organizational project right then and there.

Not quite "You Jerk Get Working" but it is the same preparing for the task at hand!

This afternoon something similar occurred. We had  a neighbor offer our hard raking family his super duper leaf blower. An offer that filled my heart with joy! As I discussed the proposition with our good neighbor, he realized that it would need to be filled with gasoline. As Biff and the kids raked, I interrupted to inquire about our gasoline inventory(from the boat)...the raking was loud.  the slaving family had to halt their attempts at clean up, we had to discuss which red plastic gas jug to use, how to open the jug, look at the leaf blower's instructions (because some of the details escaped my memory during the question and answer session with my family), drive to the gas station while the others did the shake ad rake thing, put gas in the car out of habit and remembered .I was there to fill our red jug, filled the jug, drove home, got out of the car to let that machine rumble, Biff stopped raking to oversee my efforts only to realize we needed an additional ingredient...oil, had to stop and look for "the big yellow bottle" to pour into the "small yellow bottle" and start'er up!

I started up the machine and with all of the power of a 747 jumbo jet, I blew those leaves to Timbuktu! I was ecstatic and empowered. I first moved the leaves that had had been like a pricker bush on my back. Lugging the lawn/leaf blower over slate and rocks could not have been more gratifying.


 



 















T.J. approached me and motioned that he wanted the 747.  No I nodded emphatically. He pleaded his case above the noise and wind like we were out on the runway at Kennedy International Airport. Nope, I wasn't budging. After the 234 steps to make this event happen, it was mine..all mine



 




















After lumbering along for an hour, with approaching darkness, Biff began his approach....he was hoping for a turn.....how could I turn him down. Besides, I had worked myself into a deep sweaty mess.

I left him to power on. I made my way up the driveway to the car. As I walked by newly washed car, I realized it was my plan to Windex the windows on the inside and vacuum out some sand and golden dog fluff from the rear. As I cleaned the windows, I remembered that I had Armour-all cleaner in the house, got it with paper towels, began to clean some of the dashboard.....one and a half hours later, I had the whole car good as new, with a collection of misplaced  mascaras, random wrappers, candy wrappers, coins, sunglasses, reading glasses, phone chargers from phones long retired, lipstick, blush, hand creme, one dollar, store receipts, hair clips, toothpaste tube,Vi-sine from Spring allergies, one Swiss Army Knife and one Revlon #210,

Electric Pink nail polish.....after Windex-ing  all of the interior windows, Armour-alling every surface available, sweeping out fur to be followed by a trip to the voluptuous vacuums at the car wash..that I could not use yesterday due to aforementioned STUFF. I guess it 's good to "GET IT DONE!" but after today, I'm thinking, "You Jerk Get Working" might keep life simple.....so I'd better get started on my construction paper notes. Mine will read....."Keep it simple."...not like my blog post today!