Reality Bites!

I like to get things done. I am a thing-doer. I make lists, I check things off and then I feel accomplished. Want to know a secret? Sometimes I even add things to the list that I've already done, just so I can check them off! It's a little sick, I know, but it makes me feel good!

Yesterday I took a personal day from my "day job." I say "day job" because I don't really consider that to be my real job. My real job is to be a good wife, friend, sister, daughter, and to serve God. The other job just pays the bills. Anywho, I took the day off to enjoy the weather (63 degrees here in Minneapolis - praise Jesus!), clean my house and get organized. My calendar has been packed with places to go and people to see the last two weeks and cleaning has taken a back seat. Needless to say my house was looking a little rough! So, I got up early, sent my hubby off to work with a yummy lunch and a hot cup of coffee and set into Martha Stewart mode. My floors were scrubbed, my mirrors and windows were polished, my kitchen counters were de-grimed and de-cluttered...and I have the garbage full of hair balls and windex stained paper towels to prove it! And look out Good Will, you have some silk floral arrangements and seaweed scented candles coming your way! By the middle of the afternoon I felt elated and accomplished! Slap a Susie Homemaker name tag on me and call it a day!

And then this morning, reality hit. In my zeal to return my house to it's original sparkling state, I had taken on the task of cleaning the cat box (a chore usually reserved for my husband) and had inadvertantly placed the cat box lid on backwards. Neither of our two cats were able to open the door! We awoke this morning to quite the racket and just assumed the cats were playing in the litter box. Our resident evil cat, Portia, alerted us to the mishap by peeing all over our bathrug. Good morning!! Upon closer examination of our house I found the following scenes: Nose and tongue marks on the freshly cleaned windows (our nerotic dog licks everything his tongue can reach!), cat hair and napkins stewn about the counter tops in the kitchen where the cats had taken to playing in the middle of the night, and muddy paw prints on my brilliantly white floor in the back entry (which I'd scrubbed on my hands and knees). All those things on my list that got check marks yesterday have to be added to this week's list, re-done and checked off again. Grrr!

I think I'm going to make a new list, one that's easier to maintain. It might look a little something like this:

1. Faux paint the back entry floor with black paw prints. That way the mud will just become a part of the pattern.
2. Embrace cat hair. Maybe gather it occasionally and knit it into a decorative throw for the couch.
3. Fill the kitchen, dining room, and living room floors with sand. Make the theme of the house (Sandbox Fun) and decorate with beach balls, beach chairs and sandcastles. Hang seashells on the wall. Insist that guests bring their flip-flops. Never again worry about vaccumming, sweeping or washing the floors!

I'm pretty confident that this way of living will cause me much less stress. Plus, I think it makes me look less crazy than if I were to shave our pets, make them wear rubber boots outside, and teach them to use the toilet.