Old Life Post - Oct 28, 07

Today: I feel very behind. I had my family fly out for a week-long visit, and then I went to Vancouver for a short work-related walkabout. Like I have time for that. Every day I spend hosting people or traveling I get further behind in my editing work, the house doesn’t clean or declutter itself, and the ducks start quacking. I can’t hear myself think over the noise in my head. I definitely can’t sleep.

Things to deal with today and this week:

• Are we moving to Redmond? Are we staying here in Bellevue for four months, for another year? This place is incredibly expensive for all of 600 square feet. We can save thousands of dollars and have much more space if we move…but then, moving is a big hassle. Hassles are not great for my sanity and this marriage. I need a fairy godmother to tell me what to do.
• I’m really caught up in this moving thing.
• Need a nightlight for traveling. I keep people awake whenever I share a room in a hostel or hotel; I can’t get to sleep without reading first. Makes me feel pretty crappy.
• Need better luggage for my lugging ways. Territory Ahead has some rugged bags that might withstand the abuse I heap on things, and look pretty Indiana Jones-esque to boot. Problem - which bag or combination of bags to buy? They ain’t cheap. What if I wreck the wheels - is there a guarantee? Are they fixable if I bust the seams? I tug my luggage for miles along sidewalks and up curbs…and I pack things to overflowing.
• We need binoculars if we are staying here - the view is too good to not really use it. I have numerous pairs in storage (in Arizona) and am reluctant to buy another. Yet every day here I wish we had a pair.
• I have a lot of things I need to return. And errands to run - Frodo’s nails, for one thing, are so long they are curling under. Nice, huh? Deposit some checks. And for some reason I hate leaving the apartment. It’s a scary world out there.
• I still can’t stop wondering if we are going to be moving.
• Download free music, figure out how to use iPod, organize phone categories.
• I need to find a therapist.
• Pay some attention to myself. Pedicure, eyebrows, facial gommage, etc.
• I have to figure out how to use the Dawn Simulator we bought a month ago, costing $180. Dan and I woke up at 3am and had a bizarre argument about this item last night. It’s supposed to help with SAD.
• Sell stuff on eBay and Craiglist; list books on Half.com.
• Our place needs some really good cleaning and decluttering.
• I need to call people back. I have actual friends I never return actual phone calls to. This is a source of low-level but constant guilt. I can’t seem to ever pick up the phone. It’s so much easier to crawl into bed and shut the blinds.
• Need to get back on my daily workout regime. I love working out. When I have disruptions in my routine - such as traveling or hosting visitors - I fall out of all good habits.
• Calls, non-personal. Call Sephora - missed one sample. Call Paula’s Choice - spray bottle only squirts. Call Sci Am - one issue arrived missing the entire innards. Call Scottrade to complain about credit issues. Follow up on several money owed situations that never resolved themselves on their own.
• Plan week ahead - library night? Workouts and programs to watch?
• Bathe stinky dog.
• Order supplies from Flylady.
• Drop stuff off at Goodwill.
• Take car in to check brakes.
• Find out if I can renew car plate tags outside of Arizona.
• Thank you cards - Ginger for gifts, Well Fargo for credit repairs, Jen Miner for hotel room sharing, Fiona for letting me crash on her couch.
• I hate figuring out what to eat every day. I often think about hiring someone to make easy, weekly low carb meals for us. Well. Okay, for me. Dan just eats cereal all day.
• I also wonder if I can outsource any work or worries to personal assistants - a la the Four Hour Work Week. Just pay $5 an hour to someone in Bangalore to follow up on my credit repairs, roll over my old 401K and research housing and jobs in Southern California.
• Decide if we are actually moving to Southern California next year.
• Need an update on meds for SAD and could seriously use sleeping medications. I just cannot sleep through the night and lying awake is getting old. I should research Ambien, Lunesta, Sonata, etc and see a doctor soon. Would OTC Benadryl do the trick? Is that considered abusing drugs?
• And figure out our travel plans for Christmas. We are thinking maybe just after Xmas itself and before New Years to save wear and tear on the wallet and/or brain pan.

These things aren’t even properly Ducks. These are just mostly pressing life irritations and misc things to be done. Running to stand still. When I feel more caught up, I can return my attention to getting my Ducks lined up. I am thinking 2008 will have to be another Year of the Duck, yet the very thought is exhausting.

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