Wheel of Misfortune?

Round and round she goes. Where she stops, nobody knows.

Ever feel like you are moving but not getting anywhere? This is me lately. I know I'm accomplishing much of what I set myself to do, but somehow the finished deeds become lost in the myriad items still pending. As well as the things accomplished take so little time to be undone.

I paint the hallway and in a few days Howard has started up with his splattered slobber artwork again. I wash windows and Grace puts mud on the kitchen door because the only way to let us know she wants in is to jump, multiple times, leaving mud streaks on the glass.

I know, the world seems to be melting down around us and I am whining about dog slobber and mud. I believe I am finding refuge in the everyday in order not to focus so much on the vast problems around us that I cannot solve. So I focus on what I can; painting, cleaning, planning. A timeless coping mechanism, I think.

So in my desire to cope I find one project after another to tackle. The problem is, I am overwhelming myself! Which led to a strong talking to, me to myself. Slow down. Finish one thing before you plan another. Since this is Minnesota and it is November, get the outside work done first. There will be a very long, cold winter in which to clean and organize to my heart's content. Or, as is more likely, to forget all about it. This last is probably why I feel the sense of urgency. I know myself and it is best to strike while the iron is hot, otherwise there will be no striking at all. Which is why there is so much on my to-do list. I rarely 'do'.

So while I wonder when the next Wall Street bubble will burst, what piece of junk legislation will finally be passed as healthcare reform, how many more jobs will be lost to cheap labor elsewhere, how many more years corporate money will be sheltered offshore to avoid their duty to pay taxes; among just a few wonderings. I pick a paint color for my bedroom. I decide to save my pennies for a tin ceiling in my kitchen. I change my mind on a glass tile backsplash in favor of stainless steel tiles. My mind is sometimes drawn back to the problems of the world because I now need to plan for the money to pay for my schemes, which means waiting. Which is not the worst thing in the world. Instant gratification, I think a sad American trait many of us are unlearning.


Now to jump back onto the hamster wheel and spin myself crazy.