by Tish MacWebber | Feb 12, 2017 | His & Hers
We are both home this weekend. He works one in three weekends, and this is his favourite, the three-day weekend. He has been off since Friday. I have every weekend off, and rarely go in for overtime on the weekend unless there is a need for extra cash or to make up for missed time.
I am on a mission this year to clean my house, so I can be guilt free when I settle in to write my book, and work on various craft projects. So I am working on a cleaning challenge, and an organizing challenge. I also have a plan for maintenance cleaning after the main cleaning is done. They say it goes quicker every year, and this is the year I plan to finish it.
I am not a hoarder (except when it comes to craft supplies; I am dreading the necessary purge of them), and I know how to clean. Laziness is my issue. Combine that with a poor sense of time management and a healthy dose of procrastination, and you get the mess my house is in. It is lived in, I can find what I need almost every time I need something, and I do enough to get by. I don’t feel comfortable with guests seeing the disaster zone. So I have taken it upon myself to get this place clean and tidy before I dive into my next creative projects.
I also go in circles, and am finding this is creeping into the cleaning and organizing schedule. Yesterday I just could not bring myself to continue the projects started on Friday after work. I am procrastinating the dreaded craft supply purge, even though I have decided that I will donate the items to the annual Relay For Life Yard Sale in support of my team from work in their fund-raising. I will be joining the team again this year. I am moving my craft supplies into my bedroom, out of the guest room. I have the cutest shelf that I bought for this project. Last weekend we got it assembled. Friday the old mattress was removed from the master bedroom, so we could get the new shelving unit in place. I bought plastic bins for it, and it really is pretty to look at. Now I am over thinking how to organize it. So I have stopped that project.
He went to work on the man cave yesterday. He put his new bookshelf in place Friday night, but needed bolts to complete his project. Yesterday he went out to get what he needed, and today the man cave looks a lot more organized and there is room to move in there. We can even sit on the fold down couch that doubles as a guest bed to watch movies in there if we want to. It hasn’t been cleaned the way I intend to clean in my challenges, but one thing at a time. I do not plan to clean it for him. He will have to do that room himself. I will make sure he knows what needs to be done for spring cleaning in there, and leave it to him.
Yesterday I asked him what he wanted to accomplish this weekend. He was going to putter in the man cave. I was OK with that. This morning, we are taking a bit of time to relax before diving back into the weekend projects. I asked him what his plans were for today. As expected, he wants to rearrange furniture for the new fish tank we bought a couple of weeks ago. The next question was to define my role in his project. I have been drafted to help lift and move furniture around. That is fair. So I am left to figure out what I am going to tackle today, when I am not moving the sofa and chair.
This is the progress in the man cave so far:
The bookcase on the right, and the shelf between the two bookcases that the TV is on are new. We both have a long way to go in finishing our projects, but progress is progress.
Last night I started cleaning and organizing around my desk. I wanted to just watch TV, and needed to feel like I was being productive. So I started. My office is in the living room, and I need to work on purging paper, and cleaning and organizing the desk and office corner. All areas of the house need this, so I am not wrong to find something that I can do from my desk. However, it is not getting the kitchen or the craft supply project finished, either.
This is where my creative mind needs to be put on the back burner for a bit. I NEED to finish in the kitchen. It is the first project in my larger, more in-depth challenge. I am also going to have to delegate some chores for my husband, or I will never get to write my books. He is going to get the list for the living room. He will be exempted from my office area, as I am not going to tackle the man cave. So he will get the responsibility of 3/4 of the living room. He doesn’t mind some chores, so if I pick the ones I don’t feel like I need to be in charge of myself, he is fine with pulling his weight in maintaining the household. Thank goodness! We both work outside of the home, so we need to team up to tackle things around here. Sometimes we growl at each other if we are in each other’s way while working on the same tasks, so we work better alone for some chores. Depending on what it is. I am fine helping move furniture around. He is fine pitching in when I need help. We do work well together, and can count on each other to get things done.
I am going to head back into the kitchen today. I really need to be puttering at it all week. I sent out a message that I may be needing help next weekend, as I grew up with sisters, and I am used to sharing the workload. My husband was an only child, and he is fine going at his own pace on chores by himself. He will be working next weekend. I don’t expect my friends to clean my messy house for me, not at all. An extra pair of hands is appreciated, but even more importantly, someone to chat with while I work, and help keep me from wandering off to procrastinate is what I really need. Sometimes, the music isn’t enough. When I feel like I am OK having a friend over, even if they bring their own craft project to work on while I am cleaning; it helps me stay on track. It also keeps me from starting ten projects at once; as I wander through the house. Yes, I find a way to go in circles, even though I live in a mini home. It is how my brain is wired.
by Tish MacWebber | Jan 22, 2017 | Weekend Warrior
I have made some progress in my kitchen and in my health. These are things that are important to me right now. I am getting my environment ready to write a book. I am preparing myself to be healthier when I write. So tonight I plan to sit back with a nice glass of wine for a mini celebration of my progress.
The trick is to keep going. A small celebration is OK, but it doesn’t mean I am done working on my projects. Far from it. The old me would have stopped, because I got something accomplished. The new me that wants a more productive life, wants to finish it all. So I am taking a break. Having a treat, and then getting some prep work done for lunches this week.
It looked like I missed throwing out expired bottles of salad dressing and the like last year. That makes sense, as a year ago I was under medical restrictions concerning movement. I was fighting a knee infection, and not able to move around as much as I like to. It was a scary experience, being told to stay as still as possible to prevent spreading the infection, and it was hard to comply. Yet here I am, working on a deep cleaning project of my house, a year later.
I am back to normal (as close as I get, anyway) and focused. My end goal is a book. Then another. It will take three to write a trilogy. However, if I didn’t start with my cleaning projects first, they may never get done. That’s not OK. I have to be healthy to be productive, inside and out. So I am not procrastinating about writing, not at all. I am being realistic. If I don’t make myself do this first, it won’t get done. I know myself. I will get sucked in to my imagination, and not come up for air for days. Maybe weeks or even months. The point is, I am doing it. Working on my home, and working on making myself healthier also.
It is hard to sit at my desk, and not work on the immediate area. I am creative, and would rather make a mess than clean it up. I have to focus on the kitchen now, and another project will be my living room/office cleaning. As my husband and I generally do work on the living room together, I will have help in that room. Which is good. I am not living here by myself. I sent my husband out for groceries while I got ready to tackle the fridge. I wish I could say I was ready when he got home, but I was in the middle of it. So he put the freezer things away, and helped a little here and there. He made me a kaiser roll with ham and swiss. A regular roll is not on my plan, but sometimes if someone offers to make you something to eat, you have what is offered.
Another reason I do not want to start working on the living room/office right now is that I won’t finish either room. I get distracted easily, and if I am working on multiple projects simultaneously, chances are one won’t be completed, maybe more than one. So I have my reasons for working on things in order. Once the whole house is clean, then I will begin a maintenance routine, something quick and efficient.
In terms of my health, the scale was nice this morning. I am working harder to stay on plan, so I can start losing weight. It is so much easier to be lazy about everything. Last year I decided that what I was doing then was not working, and I decided it was time to make some changes. Trim Healthy Mama was in an ad on facebook one day, and I thought it was worth a shot. I am still working on it, and have lost weight. If I stick to it, it works, and I do try. This year I am trying harder, and this will show me more results.
My snack for my celebration will include cheese, turkey pepperoni, some pickles, and that glass of wine. I have a bottle that has been open a little too long, so I am going to have a glass from it. Then I will have to go back to the kitchen. I am not going to finish tonight. I am going to finish up some dishes, and find some order in the chaos that happens when I clean. Things move to where they are not in the way until I find a place to put them to stay. And when I go to bed tonight, I will have a restful sleep after such a productive day.
As long as I continue working on my projects, I can have little celebrations along the way. And chocolate. 85% cocoa chocolate IS on plan, and something I am also happy about! Celebrate the little successes along the way, and keep going. Whatever you are working on, do it. It will be a giant snowball of positivity when you finish, and when you are on a roll, it’s easier to keep going than to stop.
I wish I had gherkin pickles. Oh well, another grocery run in 2 weeks will fix that for me!
I made my husband look at the completed fridge. Hearing him say, “Nice!” as he looked at the way I have organized our food was validation. I did a good job.
A Kind Word Goes A Long Way
by Tish MacWebber | Jan 21, 2017 | Poetry
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Copyright ©2017 Tish MacWebber
All rights reserved
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Grace has its place
in my everyday life
I need it because
it grants a respite
If you allow
yourself some grace
it lets you be human
in the daily race
for perfection
The unobtainable goal
can taint you
deep inside your soul
By letting a little
grace in your life
It removes the guilt
that causes you strife
Stop looking up
at the bar over your head
Grab on and pull
look over the top instead
Take that dose of reality
and swallow it down
Learn how to float
rather than drown
Take a break; catch your breath
it will be okay
Don’t worry yourself to death
tomorrow is a new day.
by Tish MacWebber | Dec 31, 2016 | Coffee and Stories
Coffee in a pretty yellow cup and saucer.
I have been taking care of a friend’s coffee mug for about three years now. She has moved out of the country for work. So I have a few of her things in storage, some of them I have promised to use carefully, and one of them is an extra large coffee mug. It holds more than 20 oz of coffee. When I enjoy my coffee out of this mug, I tell people I am having a bucket of coffee. It really is that big, much bigger than the pretty yellow one in the picture.
I am not the type of person that has to have the coffee piping hot to enjoy a cup. I like it warm, not too hot, but with some heat left in it is optimal. So when it gets cold, I have two choices. Reheat it in the microwave and wait for it to be at that perfect temperature again, or go get a straw. Today, I choose the straw.
I know, some people that read this will shudder, and think that cold coffee is disgusting. When I drink coffee, I don’t put anything in it, I drink it black. I used to dress it up, but I decided to go cold turkey a few years ago, and I convinced myself I would learn to like it. I now enjoy it this way.
I have tried bulletproof coffee. Who comes up with this stuff? Maybe I just don’t know how to make it right, but I did not enjoy my only attempt at this creation. I will stick to taking my coffee black and sometimes flavoured. Some of the flavoured coffees work for me, and some don’t. I like a good variety, and when I decide to splurge on K-cups, I try new flavours whenever I can.
I was talking to someone the other day, and he said I should drink Ethiopian coffee. He said it will keep me up for nine days; and that I will save money because I won’t be running to Timmy’s all the time. I live in Canada, Timmy’s is a reference to Tim Hortons Coffee and Donut restaurants. When I was a child, I thought it was Important Donuts. They are the main Canadian preference for coffee shops, and a place a lot of people like to spend time, cafe style. If you ask your friends if they want a Timmy’s, you usually get replies that include a double-double in them somewhere. Now, I’m all for a good cup of coffee, but to me, being awake for 9 days sounds a little extreme.
Why the bendy straw? Well, the bucket is fairly tall. I like options, and bendy straws are more fun. Why not? I am sitting here getting ready for New Year’s Eve in my mind. I have a lot on my to-do list for today. I am invited to a house party, and it is a potluck. My husband and I have gone to this party for several years now when the weather cooperated. The forecast is good for tonight, so we plan to attend. He will be working until I pick him up on my way to the party. With a big list of things to do and only me here to do them, as much as I would have liked to drink a cup of coffee at that perfect temperature, it wasn’t in the cards today. So a bendy straw it is.
I am feeling a little nostalgic today. 2016 was a difficult year in many ways. A lot has happened. I lost some weight, so that is something I would like to continue in 2017. Living a healthier lifestyle is one of my resolutions this year. It will be something I blog about, because it is important to me, and I want to share my successes. Maybe it will help another person in their struggle, and it will do some good. I started this blogging adventure in November and decided that I need to write those books I have wanted to write my whole life. So that is going to happen. Writing the Fantasy Trilogy is another resolution. I hope that the music world stops in to read my lyrics. I dream of a collaboration with musicians to make my songs audible for the world, not just to be poetry in a blog. I have had the pleasure of making new friends online through this project, and I am grateful for those who took the time to help me get this blog from an idea to a reality. I thought I was only going to make the two resolutions for 2017, but something joined the ranks in the last 24 hours. I have attempted to complete home cleaning and organization challenges for the last 2 years. Last night I signed up again, and I am not committing to finishing it in 16 weeks, but I am committing to finishing it this year. I joined two last year, as one is more for in-depth cleaning (16 weeks) and the other one is for quick organizing (31 days) so I will be working on both challenges in 2017. My final resolution is to finish them within the year.
Well, I am now making that annoying noise through the bendy straw. I have finished my coffee. Time to walk away from the desk for a while, crank the tunes, and tackle my to do list. However you ring in 2017, I wish you well and hope you accomplish what you need to do in 2017. Happy New Year!
