Every week I jot down my to-do lists in hopes of tackling numerous chores that invariably include cleaning the house and putting away the laundry piled on the couch.
But as the weekend approaches and the family schedule fills up with church, hiking and kids’ activities, those same to-do items continually get pushed onto the following week’s list — which is why I haven’t seen my couch in years.
Pay those pesky bills, wash the car, clear the clutter! Those are perpetually on the list. But ask me the last time my car was clean and I wouldn’t be able to remember.
I am often overwhelmed by the mounting duties I have to accomplish in such a short window of time, so I ignore the heap of clothes yet to be folded and the annoying jumble in the back seat of my car — a disarray of mismatched slippers, stinky socks, lost books, forgotten jackets, half-empty water bottles.
I try to remind myself to check off some things — including writing my monthly column — during the weekdays. But like the other chores, it often doesn’t get done until the very last minute. By the time we get home from our lengthy commute between town and Mililani, I have no energy or patience to tackle my errands. And I’m never home long enough to make headway in domestic drudgery.
Weekends are often more chaotic than weekdays. With active kids full of endless energy, we’re always on the go. Besides the usual activities, there are parties and family outings.
“Mom, can our cousins come over? Where are we going today?”
On the rare occasion when we must stay home due to inclement weather, illness, etc., they are dumbfounded.
“What? You mean we’re staying home?”
To them, days off are all about play, play, play. In their mind, anytime they can hang out with their cousins, ranging in age from elementary school to college, that’s a weekend well spent. They don’t care at all about my backlog of mundane duties.
But procrastinating and letting my to-do lists fall by the wayside have become bad habits, so much so that when I get one thing accomplished, it’s a huge achievement.
With a new year, comes new hope. OK, it’s not quite the new year but I haven’t finished drafting my resolutions yet — it’s on my to-do list.
And so my Chinese New Year resolution is to be more organized and tidy, and more determined to actually complete at least one assignment in a timely manner.
And now that I’ve finished this column, I have one thing checked off my list … until next month.
“She Speaks” is a weekly column by women writers of the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Reach Kristen Consillio at kconsillio@staradvertiser.com.
