LISTING !

I have committed myself to this blog and feel compelled to make sure I write something every day. There is always some tidbit that is significant to me, but may not interest you at all. My son says the most popular blogs are written by people that do it regardless of who else reads it. I am doing it because I have always wanted to write and it is cathartic.

So today I am contemplating the seemingly endless things I need to do. I have to file the final tax return for my husbands business and our personal return. Blah paperwork! It would not be nearly so bad if I knew what I had done with all the papers. It was my plan, early on (after my husband died) while I was still running on adrenalin, to have everything ready on January 5th. I did not have it ready, because by then, I was too busy running away from my life.

Another thing on the list, is getting rid of the excess stuff that I have been accumulating since December 2001,when my paternal grandmother died. Her death was a life changer for me. I started shopping and buying things I didn't really need. Until then, I had always been the kind of person that got rid of anything that I had not used in the past twelve months. Maybe it was some sort of coping mechanism. My grandmother and I were very close (the first person you call in the morning, while you drink your coffee, kind of close.) I had promised her she would not be sent to live in a nursing home and was able to fulfill that promise. She lived with us the last six months of her life and that changed our relationship. She was a woman of substance that had always been the one to help others. She had helped me all my life. It was uncomfortable, for both of us, for me to be the one giving all the help. At the end, she was in so much pain it was difficult for her to be awake very much. She slept later and later in the morning and I had already had my coffee by the time she wanted hers.

I desperately need to work in the yard. It has been on the list since last winter/spring when my husband was going through his battle with melanoma. I bought plants at the discount nursery right down the street from his oncologist's office. I would put them in the area of the yard that I wanted to plant them and then never do it. By the time that we got through breakfast and morning meds, talking through the plans for upcoming appointments and taking our daughter to college or work and sometimes taking our grandson to 4K, then me to the chiropractor, the cool of the morning was gone. I had no energy for planting at my house where the sun hits the front yard about 10:30 and doesn't let up until sundown. I did, however, plant a little shaded garden with my grandson at his house.

I also have to pack for my upcoming trip. This past week I bought some colorful cotton dresses to be able to wear on the ship and in the heat of the Caribbean islands we will be visiting. It has become a tradition for my oldest daughter and her family to share their time with us on an annual cruise. We like to go in the spring, but last year we had to wait until August, because the baby girl was not old enough to go until her brother's birthday. It was terribly hot, but my daughter and my husband thrived in it. My younger daughter, my son-in-law, and I all prefer the air conditioning, but we haven't found any beaches with AC.

            

Well, I have finished one thing on my list for today! Until later~ Rita Darlene