The Queen of Half-Done Projects

Maybe you know someone, besides me, that digs into projects only to get distracted and move on to another one before the first one is complete. I realized this morning that I am "the queen of half-done projects." Not a super-endearing term, and I wish I was different, but an honest statement about me.

Perhaps the statement popped into my head when I looked outside and saw the leaves that I raked out of the flower beds last week were still sitting in piles along the sidewalk and the edge of the grass. I did honestly want to pick them up last week, but when I walked over to the shed, I found the wheelbarrow was buried under multiple stiff hoses (my attempt last November to get everything inside while it was snowing). Rather than deal with that, I moved on to a different flower bed and made another pile. Then I started trimming back some 4-foot, gangly, *sharp* rose bushes that we are eventually going to pull out. Halfway through this project, I got some severe, stabbing stomach pain, so I came inside and took a nap in attempt to send the butcher knives packing. Needless to say, this rose bush project was left half done.

Another example might be the computer room. After months of working on wallpaper removal, I finally got it painted. In the midst of cleaning out the office, we tried to go through stuff to get rid of so we'd start the year more organized. As I sit here typing, the office is a mess again, I haven't kept up on filing like I wanted to, and I have a pack-rat problem, so I simply re-stacked some piles rather than going through them this winter.

I go into my bedroom and there are piles of clothes. Some for Goodwill, some from MIL for Conrad to go through, some of mine that are in skinny/fat limbo, etc. What I need to do is just go at it hard-core and bring Goodwill what is rightfully theirs, but that requires some organization, since I itemize things for a tax deduction.

I was telling a friend one time that as long as I keep my living room clean, I feel okay about things...I get overwhelmed about clutter, etc., I just go in there where it's organized to feel better for a moment. But there's a flaw even in this plan! Last night as I was dusting, I came across (again) the stack of VHS tapes from my highschool years where I taped shows. I should just toss them, but heaven forbid I throw away the ones with my favorite Dawson's Creek episode, or that one Felicity episode that I loved! Oh, Adriane, live does go on after teenage sitcoms. Not to mention, I could probably watch them on the internet now if I was feeling nostalgic and needed to revisit Dawson, Joey, Pacey, and Jen.

Now, these are a few examples of the MANY I could have given. I don't know what to do to change. I have all these things I want to get in order before we start a family, so the ADHD trend will be stopped and the house can be orderly, but I must not want to change bad enough. There are times when I can see a project through, if I'm really excited about it. The mundane, difficult tasks are the ones that I easily move away from, knowing that some day, week, month, or year, it will still be waiting for some attention. Hmmmmmmmmm.

My name's Adriane, and I'm the Queen of Half-Done Projects.