Just finish something already!

One of the dangers of having a busy, active mind is getting too many fun little projects going at the same time. I could think up projects all day long. It's the finishing of said projects that takes some discipline.

I temporarily misplaced my iphone over the weekend, and I could hear it vibrating somewhere in the vicinity of my closet, so I started to clean out my closet while trying to find the offending phone. I got most of it cleaned up, except for the "give away" pile and the "can't decide" pile, which are now stranded on the floor outside the closet waiting for me to come back to that project. But it's going to be oh so orderly when I'm done.

I'm almost finished painting and hanging new cabinet doors. So my painting "booth" is set up in the dungeon (aka garage-ish room). Oh, and I decided to paint the kitchen chairs too. So there's paint cans on the kitchen table and a path of footprints between the painting booth and the kitchen, and cabinet doors and chairs in various states of undress. But it's going to be oh so fabulous when I'm done.

I'm working on a new website project, so there are books and computer cords and multiple laptops spread around the living room. But it's going to be oh so cool when I'm done.

The Wii Fit board gets a spot in the middle of the living room also, because another project is to actually use it. But I'm going to be oh so healthy when I'm - well, you get the point.

The list could go on for a while. The point is, the house is disheveled, and it's a direct reflection of my brain. This is the point in ProjectLand that I must discipline myself to not start any new projects, and to methodically finish those I have started. It will be good for the mind and good for the soul and good for the state of my house.

boo hoo

I made it home from Idabel late yesterday. Today I'm tired and cranky and ready to quit my job. But since I don't have the luxury of living without a paycheck, and since it's just a passing feeling that will be gone once I've rested up some, I won't do anything drastic. Just feeling overworked and under appreciated, probably like 99.9 percent of the working world feels at some point in any given month. Even if you do something you feel passionate about, as I do, there are just days when it doesn't seem worth the effort. Wow, do I need a nap. And some chocolate.

For me the quickest path to depression/discouragement is feeling powerless. Or maybe feeling that something is unfair. Fairness is a big issue with me, along with loyalty and transparency. But back to the powerlessness conversation. When I start to get all woe is me, I am learning to stop and ask myself where that feeling is coming from. Then if I can do something about it, I do. And usually I can do something about a situation. At the very least, I can look at it from another perspective. But very often I can change something, or shore up a boundary that has gotten out of whack, or do something just for fun or creativity to lighten up the dreary winter dullness.

So I'm off to lighten the load somehow. Wii Fit maybe? Cook a yummy and healthy dinner? Music works. I need to update my music files with some new purchases from iTunes. Thinking happy thoughts...

Rural Walmarts Rock

On the road again. The benefit today was that Atoka Walmart had a Wii Fit! Wiiiii!!! We've been popping into Walmart, Target and Game Stop to see if any Wiis are in stock waiting to be snatched up. While I was in Walmart this afternoon buying some supplies I remembered to stop by the electronics section and ask. And of course, no Wii.

Then about 10 minutes later, over in the pharmacy section looking for Tylenol Sinus medicine, I hear "Would the customer who wanted a Wii Fit please return to Electronics" over the loud speaker. Me! That was me!! Here I come, don't give it away, make way for me through the stampede of the 152 other customers who heard there was a Wii Fit available and were rampaging towards the unsuspecting Walmart Associate innocently holding one of the most sought after items since Tickle Me Elmo.

Except no one cared. It was just me who stampeded, heart racing, to electronics. Maybe they just aren't that into Wii Fit in rural Oklahoma. Maybe it's just us folks in "the City". All I know is I didn't have to use my nunchuck skills to get the Wii. The Walmart Associate just handed it over. She didn't unlock anything or make me buy it right there. She just put it in my basket and told me it might set the security buzzer off when I leave (presumably after paying for it) but just keep walking like I knew what I was doing. Apparently there's also a low crime rate in Atoka.

Now at the hotel I'm watching HGTV 'cause I don't have it at home and I only get to indulge when I'm traveling for work. So I better go. I'm learning the 25 Biggest Decorating Mistakes so I can come to your house and point them out. Just trying to be helpful.

Oh, and happy birthday to my Bonus Dad. Hope you have a good one.

Electronics R Us

It was an electronic Christmas for me. Yay! My gifts included a mouse, laptop lap desk, and an iHome. Now I never have to leave my corner of the couch. It was a relatively balmy Christmas in Oklahoma - warm enough to take a walk with just a light jacket. At least that's what people appeared to be wearing when they walked past the window. I found it difficult to walk very fast while carrying a plate loaded with delicious food.

On Christmas Eve Mark found the last Wii in Oklahoma City. After 4-5 stops, he checked a Best Buy just in case, and there was one little Wii on the shelf. The UPS driver had discovered one case that had been missed the day before, so four lucky people got a Wii from that box, including us. Now we just need to find a Wii Fit so we can get, well, fit. Because that's going to do the trick where nothing else has!

• Doctors are now warning about "Wii-itis" or "Wii-knee", a repetitive motion injury.
• More than 1 million Wii units were sold in the US last week.
• Wii-habilitation, physical therapy using the Wii, is helping people recovering from orthopedic injuries, brain injuries or stroke.
• Wii games are showing up at unlikely places like local libraries, schools and senior centers.