Yesterday I was talking with a neighbor and during the conversation it came out that I write short fiction and that I blog. She already knew that I do all the shipping for Schlock Mercenary. Add to that taking care of 4 kids and doing the Webelos job and she was prepared to be completely impressed with how much stuff I manage regularly. Not only was she impressed, but she was also ready to be down on herself because she wasn’t doing all of that.
I have to acknowledge that yes I get lots of stuff done daily. But everything in life has an opportunity cost. For everything that I do, there are myriad things that I don’t do. Some of the things I don’t do are things that I have no desire to do. Others are things that I used to do, but don’t right now. Still others are things that I’ve never done, but always felt that I ought to do. For my own amusement and enlightenment I have decided to list the things that I don’t do:
Decorate my house (I wish my house was beautiful, but I never spend the time or money to make it so.)
Scrub bathrooms (I really should do this more.)
Wipe baseboards (Never done it, not once. But I know a woman who does it regularly.)
Scrapbook (I used to. I may again. But now I just don’t have the time)
Be involved in PTA (I occasionally donate money, but no time.)
Be a room parent (class party planning isn’t something I would enjoy.)
Decorate for the Holidays (A little for christmas, nothing for the others)
Dress kids nicely daily (I see children who are always dressed perfectly with beautifully done hair. My kids dress themselves. Matching is optional.)
Make beds (Howard makes our bed, I almost never do. Thanks honey!)
Dust (Ditto on the should do this more.)
Take kids to the library (I was great at this last year. Haven’t done it once this year. Maybe next year.)
Take kids to museums/parks/zoos (Maybe during the summer…)
Dress nicely every day (Sometimes I get into bed and realize I haven’t even brushed my hair during the day.)
Wear make-up (rarely, for special occasions)
Pedicures/manicures (I stick to “not ragged” as my criteria for good nails.)
Mop (Again with the “should do this more”)
The list could go on, but I don’t want to depress myself. The key point here is that the things I spend my day doing reflect my core values. I can not do it all. No one can. So we each have to pick the things that are most important to us. My list of important things will be very different from someone else’s list. That’s okay so long as we are all putting our important things first