53

Fifty-three.

That is the number of items on my to-do list at present.

Please note I am not including in that list the usual day-to-day to-dos, like wash dishes or take out the trash, which must still be done regardless of what else is on the list. This is just the Master List of what I feel it will take to dig myself out to ground zero. And from that point on I'll be ready to tackle life! Or so I tell myself.

How do I know this magic number?

If you're like me, and I know I am, you have to make lists and write everything on the list, even if you've already done it, so you can check it off. I've never met anyone who does NOT do this. Then the list quickly becomes overwhelming (like after Item 5), so maybe you will try to subcategorize and break your list down into tinier steps. Or maybe you will try the opposite approach and try to shorten your list by using gigantic blanket tasks like "Clean the basement." I have been guilty of both avenues.

Last night I finally decided I needed a game plan.

I sat down with my notebook and cute colors of pens for a good cathartic brain dump.

{Of course I need a tutorial for that, just like everything else. From flushing my 13-yr-old car's transmission [*ahem* for the first time] to identifying poisonous-looking spider bites and everything in between. What haven't I googled lately?}

I like this one.

My strategy was to create a rough timeline so I could finish the time-sensitive tasks in the correct order. Oh man, if I had a nickel for every time I was frantically searching for my kids' soccer cleats right before a game or my keys so I could run out and buy treats for an entire kindergarten class but then suddenly realized that the lint filter in the dryer desperately needed vacuuming, or the really high light bulb in the garage needed to be changed.

I have been making a valiant effort when I see something that needs to be done and can be done in less than five minutes, to just do it right away! The real problem is when do I ever have a spare 5 minutes to rub together??

Not ever.

Nevertheless, I must take what minutes I can and plug away. So, on to my list.

I listed everything I could think of (plus the contents of my two separate and equally long to-do lists from my phone). Then I marked them with stars color-coded to the time in which I need them done. With Halloween upon us, including parties, costumes, and chili cook-offs galore (yes I volunteered for all of these things, because I am insane), I had a pretty long list that needed to be completed this week. Equally urgent but not necessarily relevant to this week particularly things went on the "ASAP" list, which I'm afraid was very very long. To tell the truth, that list just might be the nail in the coffin. 

Next up, we are having house guests for Thanksgiving, which I am very excited about and want everything to be perfect. That is code for I would really really love for my house guests NOT to see the giant moving box filled with RANDOM PAPERS that is currently inhabiting the guest room, or the craft supplies covering the basement in completely random piles, or the fact that there are no window coverings on ANY of our upstairs windows (true story), or that my closet floor is so cluttered that my arms are now not long enough to reach the clothes on the shelves. And lo, the "Before Thanksgiving" list was born.

I liked the idea of having an "important but not urgent" list and a "not important" list, so those two were the last. Honestly, I was surprised to find items going on the "not important" list. Why do we even have that list? If I have a list of 53 things, why would I even add things that I myself classified as "not important"??? And even more ironically, at least one of the things on that "not important" list was something I was devoting my attention, time, and energy to during this very week!

I forgot to take a picture of the finished list, but it is officially done. Oh, and the final step was to go through the entire list and mark a red dot next to every item that ought to reasonably take me 15 minutes or less. That way when I do find that elusive spare 15 min, it will be easier for me to glance at the list and find something to tackle without wasting one or more of those precious minutes trying to decide where to start (which is how I think I spend most of my day). I actually did cross maybe 3 things off the list today. And added one? I'll have to keep a running total to see if I'm headed up or down. I wouldn't take that bet, by the way. Fifty-three sounds like a precarious number, and one that might rather grow than shrink...