Friday Not So Random

Laura asks: "Do you really use those lobotome lists? I wanna see what your lists look like, are they just sitting on your desk in different places? I'm convinced that I need to invite lists into my life, but I'm sort of freakish about everything having a place and I don't have a list "place". I'm stumped."

I LOVE the lobotome lists. I'm addicted. I have the weekly planner and use one on the fridge and just converted another to be on my desk near my computer for my master to-do list. I had been using their smaller lists up until this week, which worked fine, but I find I need to change my system every once in awhile as almost a mind reset. Do you not have a spot near the computer for a pad of paper? I'm still in shock that you aren't already a master list maker. I would have never guessed!

First, the fridge calendar.

We use this to schedule the whole family. I do 2 weeks per sheet and this particular calendar will take us through November 2010 that way. Nice. I don't put my individual to-dos on there; just scheduling. I also use it to jot down the menu for the week and the box off to the side for anything I need to pick up at the store that week. The yellow pad of paper on the fridge is for messages or my actual shopping lists.

Next: my to-dos. They all are on my desk.

The stack of notebooks are my writing projects, notes, deadlines, etc. They are usually only out if I'm working on something, otherwise they go up against the wall with the other books inbetween the orange canisters. The pad of paper to the left is my general to-do pad. It has things such as: websites to check out, books to read, how to freeze zucchini instructions, proposed vacation dates and to-dos, website coupon codes, etc. Just everything I need to jot down for whatever reason. It never leaves my desk and is always changing.

My master to-do calendar:

Same premise as the fridge calendar. I split the page into 2 weeks and I write everything I need to do that day down. Again, it always stays out on my desk off to the left hand side. I find if I give crazy projects an assigned day, I'm more likely to DO them. So, for example, on today's list I have:
-work on blurb.com book (my way of scrapbooking - I do one every year around Sammy's birthday)
-make ENT appt
-present for my niece

It can get a little crazy on the page, but it's nice to schedule things out so I don't feel I just have a huge to-do list with no end in sight. I do have about five different to-do apps on my iTouch, but I never use them, though I've tried. I'm definitely a pen and paper kind of girl.

I have one last group of to-dos on my desk, but they are usually budget oriented. I do the budget once a week and by the end of the week I usually have quite the stickiefest going on!

This is mainly so Isaac doesn't mess up the books. Kidding, of course! I do like how I do them, though, so anything that comes out of our accounts (personal or business), he just puts a note up and I take care of it all once a week.

Before Monday, however, I had about five other medium sized tablets stacked on one another next to my keyboard with different categories of to-dos. It was a little overwhelming and I'm digging the more streamlined version. So far, anyway!

Song of the Week:

(jane's addiction, been caught stealing)
Aw...what to say about Perry? Just, love this song.

A Truly Sad Celebrity Death...

Seriously.

Music First and Lasts

Susan asks: "What's the first concert you ever saw? The most recent? And your favorite of all time? Same for albums."

The first concert I ever went to was to see Don Williams at the university in my home town. I think I was...6? Mom? I really don't remember a lot of it, though. Unfortunately, that was the last concert I went to until college. Sad... Unless you count seeing The Jets when I was in middle school, at my middle school. I totally don't.

The most recent concert I went to was The Finn Brothers in February 2005, a year before Sammy was born.

No. Wait. We went to see Paul Weller in September...was that in 2005 as well? I think so. Sammy was born the next year, so...However, we have tickets to see Depeche Mode in a couple of weeks and then Better Than Ezra in October (hopefully)!

My favorite concert of all time, though, was seeing Neil Finn for the first time in February 2001 in Portland. Hard to duplicate that high. It was also the first concert Isaac and I went to together. Awwww.


The first album I ever bought after I started really getting into music was New Order Substance. Love!


The last album I bought was...I can't remember. I buy songs here and there, but I can't think of an entire album. Oh, wait! Since I buy them all digitally on Amazon, I can just go look it up. Apparently it was Men at Work, Super Hits. Huh. I so don't want that to be the final answer!


My favorite album of all time. I never know how to answer that. I have a thought and then change my mind all the time. I don't think I could narrow it down to an all time favorite entire album. It goes with my moods and there are tons of brilliant choices that are nearly my favorite at any given moment, but... Maybe I could narrow it down to three?

1. Neil Finn, Try Whistling This - It's just so very brilliant. Better lyrics? Possibly not.


2. Paul Weller, Paul Weller - He may have better albums, but this one holds a special place in my life, even if it lacks my favorite Weller song.


3. Lloyd Cole, Love Story - I very nearly put this down as my favorite album of all time. When I reached for something in the car pre-iPod, this was the CD that came up most often. It is nearly perfect.

Grrrr. I so dislike embedding being disabled when I want to use them!
Go here and here (LOVE IT!)for some more yummy Lloyd.


Hmmm. That's three. We haven't even discussed The White Stripes or Better Than Ezra or...

In Progress

lbs asks: "What about the books you've been reading? Anything worth the rest of us checking out?"

I've mentioned before that I have several books in progress on my family room table. Unfortunately, I haven't had the desire to pick any of them up for several weeks, so they have all been 'in progress' for quite awhile. Here they are:

1. There's No Place Like Here - Cecelia Ahern: This has a lovely layer of dust on the ends sticking out. It's been on the table the longest, put there shortly after I finished reading P.S. I Love You. I really wanted to give a book by her another go, but I haven't made it off the 2nd page, yet.

2. Bad Mother - Ayelet Waldman: I actually bought this the week it came out. I'm a big fan and I'm really looking forward to reading this. As soon as my reading brain comes back from vacation.

3. Outlander - Diana Gabaldon: Am I supposed to even admit this one? I'm not sure. Heavy, historical fluff...however that works. I'm about 75 pages in, but so far it's not grabbing me as Fabio on the cover of a cheap romance would. Heh.

4. Dune Road - Jane Green: I'm nearly 1/2 way with this one. I do love Jane Green and this is no exception. I love how she has grown up with her books and each reflects the stage of life she's in now. Thank goodness she didn't stay in the hapless 20 year old heroine rut forever. Nice, easy summer read.

5. A Summer Affair - Elin Hilderbrand: This is the reason I'm not completely finished with Dune Road. I've been so thoroughly sucked into this book. It's fluff at its finest. Or, maybe not, but I'm certainly enjoying it.

6. In Defense of Food - Michael Pollan: This has taken a back seat until fall.

7. The Mom's Guide to Growing Your Family Green - Terra Wellington: This isn't so much a sit down and read book, so I'm totally going to count it done. It's more of a list book of products and tips for going green. And completely useful and handy to keep on hand when I need to look something up.

8. Julie and Julia - Julie Powell: I started this about a year ago and put it down. I picked it back up recently so I could have it read before I saw the movie. With the rate at which we see movies lately, my turtle pace with this one should be right on...

9. Parenting an Only Child - Susan Newman: Yeah. This is SO the first book I pick up when I'm itching to read. Maybe I'll get through it by the time Sammy's out of the house!

And this weekend I'll be adding to the pile (hopefully) as my journey continues in finding a good book about Buddhism or Buddhist practices...

BEEEEPPPPP...............

That's the sound of my blog on life support. I've got nuthin'. Anything you want to know? I'm a pretty open book. You ask, I'll answer and then back to regularly scheduled topics later. Go.

Buried Alive

I'm a list kind of girl. I can honestly say - with no patronization what so ever - that I don't understand how people function without lists. I just don't get it. I have no less than about six different lists on my desk right now:
1. one for church
2. one for writing to-dos (notes, deadlines, etc)
3. one for longer projects (editing recipes and making those into one well organized file on the computer)
4. one for the day to day stuff (finally buy a graduation present for my niece, call the ENT, remember to deduct rent for Isaac out of his business checking)
5. one for vacation (figure out what we are doing!)
6. one for house to-dos for both of us (and a mental one of things I've asked Isaac to take care of!)
7. one master that I'm trying to combine them all into. Whew!

This weekend I started getting that panicky feeling; anxious, even. That feeling that tells me I have too many to-dos and I need to get something done. NOW. So I ignored them all.

And made jewelry.

And good food.

Today, however. Today is the day I take all my lists and pare down. I toss what is no longer important and consolidate like items and then schedule them all on my master list. I will put actual dates on these items so they get done! I guess this means my afternoon to-do list consists of getting control back over my lists. That's a little sad.