Sunday Inspiration: Time for Everything

Sunday Inspiration: Time Enough

Sunday Inspiration: Priceless

It's WHAT?

It's the last week of August, y'all!  The last week!  Of August!

I don't know about you, but for me this year is flying by just way too quickly.

Especially once we hit this point.  School started yesterday.  Which means that in the blink of an eye it will be Halloween. And then Thanksgiving is just around the corner, which starts the whole holiday season time warp.

That's right.  Christmas is less than 4 months away. Which for some of you might seem like just all the time in the world.  But for the craft minded - those of us planning to crochet/knit/sew/etc many of our gifts - it is time to get busy!  For us, those months are short, short, short!  (If you've ever been crocheting like a crazy woman on December 23 - or worse, Christmas eve - you know what I'm talking about!)

I'm getting my plans in place for what I want to make a few certain special someones.  And no, I'm not sharing what they are - because I know most of those special someones happen to read this here blog.  You'll just have to wait and be surprised.

I Probably Have Time

It was the first new car we ever bought.  She had served us well for over 18 years, but the time had come for her to retire.  We had to face the fact that she didn't run as well as she used to.  The days when the speedometer first read 100,000 miles could potentially be referred to as "the good old days".  And the big dent in the front driver's side testified that she had seen better days. 

We considered several options.  Junk her, or sell her for parts.  But in the end we decided to donate her to a charitable group and let her have one last act of benefiting a good cause; while we got the tax credit. A win - win arrangement.  Emails were sent, phone calls were placed, arrangements were made for her to be picked up.

The morning the tow truck was expected arrived.  The car would be picked up "sometime in the morning, before lunch time".  Not a very narrow window, but I was assured that the man of the house was to receive a phone call when they were on their way and he would let me know to expect them. 

I started about my day, and since it was still early and I had no message from the man of the house yet I decided I probably had time for a quick shower before the tow truck arrived.  After all, I could leave my phone on the bathroom counter where I would hear it.  If the man of the house called or texted, I would have time to wrap up the cleaning process and get dressed before they arrived.  That was a huge error in judgment.

Just as I put a nice thick coat of conditioner on my hair I heard the noise.  "Hmmm.  That sounds like a big truck"  I know that the garbage is picked up on Tuesdays in our neighborhood, so that couldn't explain the large truck sounds.  "No.  Oh no. It can't be!"  I leaned out of the shower and peeked through the window.  Oh yes, it can be!  There coming up the road was a flat bed truck!

I immediately went into panic mode.  No time to rinse the conditioner out of my hair!  I leaped from the shower, gave my phone a quick glance (no missed calls or waiting text messages) and grabbed a towel.  No.... no.  A towel is NOT going to cut it.  As I hastily dried, I glanced around the room at my possibilities.  No way I am answering the door in a robe.  PJ's?  Not much better. 

Feeling my anxiety growing, I grabbed a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt and threw them on; slipping my feet into some flip flops as I rushed to the front door to greet the tow truck driver.  No makeup.  Hair still wet and full of conditioner.  But it was better than the other immediate options.

Once I had given the driver the paperwork needed for the car, and made sure he had the keys; I trudged back through the wet grass in my flip flops and into the house.  Sent a text to the man of the house.  No, he hadn't been given the promised heads up that the truck was on the way either.  (sigh)

In the end, all was well.  The car was donated.  The possible worst of the embarrassment was avoided.  And a lesson was learned:

The next time you find yourself thinking "I probably have time for a quick shower before they get here." - DON'T!!

Hitting the Small Time

Definition of SMALL-TIME:  insignificant in performance, scope, or standing. - Merriam-Webster.com

Recently I found myself pondering as to why some blogs are so small (I like the term personal), while others gain a much larger following. 

The ones that hit the "Big Time" get a column after column, and row after row full of tiny photos in the "Followers" section.  They get comment after comment, with reply after reply to those comments.  They get featured on other websites.  Some of them end up being interviewed on various talk and news programs.  Some even find themselves on the cover of Time magazine (ahem... yeh...quite enough has already been said on that, I think). 

What's the difference between all those blogs and this little cluster of thoughts I have going here?  After a bit of careful consideration - I think I've figured out two very possible reasons why I'll never make it big or get rich as a blogger.

First, I write like I talk.  What I think in my head, I type with my fingers.  It's sometimes not grammatically correct.  (OK, maybe it's often not grammatically correct)   I use incomplete sentences.  I use a lot of contractions.  I say and type word like "nothin'" and "y'all".  My former English teachers would probably be appalled at what is on the screen after I hit 'Publish".  

Second (and I think this is the Key), I'm not controversial enough. I don't write flaming posts filled with my personal opinions.  I don't write entire series of posts about politics, religion, or any of the other hot button topics of our day.  I don't write posts which incite or inspire people to comment.  Or share through other social media outlets.

I'm accepting that I am just a quiet, moderate, small time blogger.  I write about the things that happen to me and the things I know about my quiet, moderate life.  That's all I've got people.  And I'm much more than OK with that.
As I write this, I have the song "Big Time" by Peter Gabriel blasting away in my head. (The Man of the House will be so proud! LOL) :

"The place where I come from is a small town.
They think so small
They use small words
But not me
I'm smarter than that
I worked it out
I've been stretching my mouth
To let those big words come right out"

Not Enough Hours

Let's face it - there just aren't enough hours in the day.  I personally could use at least 28 hours; but I also feel pretty sure even that wouldn't be enough.  There is just not enough time for all the things I need to do, and the things I want to do. 

Right now is a prime example. I need to straighten up the room I am sitting in right now and make the guest bed up for an overnight visit from my mother.  Instead I am sitting here blogging about how I should be doing that rather than actually doing it.  Need vs Want.  I need to clean. I want to write.

I need to clean the bathrooms.  I want to read.

I need to do laundry.  I want to paint my toenails.

I need to vacuum.  I want to google new recipes and crochet patterns.

I need to crochet.  OK.. that doesn't really fit because I kind of want to do that also.

It really doesn't seem fair that I should have to chose.  If I just had a few more hours in the day, I think I could get everything completed that I need to do and still have time for the want to's.  I could have clean dishes and an afternoon nap.  Imagine it.  Just...  imagine... 

But until the time when The Powers That Be decide to extend the day by several hours; giving all of us a little more time - all I can do is get as much finished on the To Do list as possible and hope I have a little time for the Want To Do list left over at the end of the day.

One Minute Wednesday: Decisions

I've made the decision to explore my creativity.  I've made the decision to try and make a go of selling some of my crochet items.  Now I am faced with the challenge of trying to find time to work on some start up inventory in order to get things rolling.  How do I fit that into my already busy schedule; when I already can't seem to find enough time to keep my house in order and give The Man of the House and the offspring the time and attention they deserve.  Which might mean more big decisions.

written in response to a prompt on The One-Minute Writer

Breaking Radio Silence

Perhaps you've been wondering where I am.  Missing my blog posts.  Checking every day to see if there is anything new posted.  Holding your breath, eagerly hoping that the silence has broken.  Crossing your fingers that there will be a new little gem to delight you. 

Or maybe not...

Whether you notice my absence or not, I wish I had some fantastical story to share with you which would explain my silence.  But the truth of the matter is that every day I either:
a) haven't had time to get to the computer
b) haven't had a decent thought in my head to put into writing

And so...  one missed day of blogging somehow becomes two missed days.  Quickly turning into a week.  And next thing you know it's a whole new month and you haven't written anything in who-knows-how-long.

It's frightening how quickly time gets away from you.  Especially once you hit 40.  (Trust me, if you aren't there yet - it's going to take you completely by surprise.  You think time flies now - just wait)

Empty Spaces

I have two brass lantern-style candle lamps on my mantel.  They were once a treasured bargain find from 'Tuesday Morning'.  Now, I just find them tired looking.  Something which I don't even think much about unless it's that they need dusted or polished.  I don't care much for dusting or polishing; and it's because of this that I have decided it's time to find them a new home.  I was thinking about just that very thing this morning - moving the lamps off the mantel and on to the local Goodwill, perhaps.  The natural progression of that chain of thought seemed to be considering what else would go in their place.  I had no ideas and began thinking that maybe nothing should go there.  Maybe I would just like some empty space. 

Oddly enough, the next thought that popped into my head was how it would be nice to have some empty space in my life as well.  Space with no need to/have to/want to moving me along.  Empty space to just sit and be still.  No obligation looming.  No chore that needs to be completed.  No where to be.  Time to just sit in the silence.  Enjoying the quiet buzzing around us, listen to the birds, hear the breeze, the quiet whisper of God in my ear, or just my own thoughts.  Time to just BE.  Filled with absolutely nothing.

So many of us fill every waking moment with busyness.  Activities.  Places to go and things to do.  When was the last time we left room for some empty spaces?

How Is It December Already?

Really?  How did this happen?  How can it be December already?  Wasn't it just Halloween?  Thanksgiving?  Even the 4th of July doesn't seem that long ago.  I feel like I've missed some time somewhere along the way.

Yet, here we are.  December first.  The last month of 2011.  Only twenty-four days until Christmas.  Thirty days until 2012, a whole new year. 

Time is flying past so quickly!  In the words of Ferris Bueller:  "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."