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Friday, October 26, 2007

filibuster

So I wanted to show you my new-ish coffee cup...well normally a coffee cup. Today it has tea in it. Tea from Connecticut, in a tin made in china, bought from a Starbucks in Oregon, brewed in a mug from Starbucks in Mexico City.
Ain't I cosmopolitan?

My kids are watching Meet the Robinsons
I highly recommend it if you don't mind a little chaos. This is a rare children's movie because there is nothing crude in it. I didn't think they made those anymore.
So back to the original story: I was noticing that Anthony was warming Irene's hands for her--since it is flipping cold in Oregon, right now--and I told him I thought that it was nice of him to do that. He replied that he was doing it because Irene was warming his hands, for him, the other day. Isn't that sweet?

The other day I was cleaning my table and I broke the pottery urn that I have in the middle. The urn holds the corks from special occasions. I loved this particular piece of pottery because it was small and white and plain. It made a nice contrast against the dark wood of the table. This confirms my belief that nothing good ever comes from cleaning.

So I think I might be stalling a bit. I don't want to get to that moment where I have to tell you the results of my 7 days of perfection. It will be very embarrassing to tell you it turned out to be 2 days 1.5 days of utter mediocrity. Yet, I did learn some valuable lessons. When someone---even me---tells me what to do, I dig my heels in and resist for all I'm worth. Okay--I might have known that one already. I also learned that I am unhappy with such rigidity. I love the challenge of trying to overcome my faults one by one...in time...which takes a lot more time than 7 days. I know, too, that I am getting better, even though I seem to be fighting with the same old things. If I really examine things, I see that I am better than I was a year ago. And I will have improved even more in a year from now. I am okay with that. Once I realized my 7 day challenge was a complete bust I started doing most of the things on my list quite naturally. Each day can be either a hit or a miss, but I can live with that, because ultimately I will be happier than setting myself up to fail in my own unattainable idea of perfection.
So was I successful? No, not technically. Did I fail. Not at all. I am filled with a new resolve. I have accomplished more than I might have, had I stuck with my 7 day list. Especially considering that, according to the list, I couldn't stay up late. It is hard to get much done when you can't stay up much after the kiddoes go to bed. Last night I stayed up and rearranged my furniture in my dining room and living room. You may call that neurotic...I call it ..well, I call it neurotic too---but it was really fun.

8 comments:

  1. Nothing good comes from cleaning...

    I've never heard a more true statement. Last time I cleaned I lost everything that I put in "safe spots" because now I can't find my safe spots.

    What is life without staying up late anyways???

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  2. See...? I do the same thing...I can find all my stuff in a mess and once I clean, I then find myself pacing up and down my house like la llorona. Only instead of "ay mis hijos" I am crying "ay mis cosas"

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  3. What a precious sight that must have been, Anthony warming Irene's hands.

    I think you are on the right track taking one thing to work on at a time, Rachel. Life is too short to get too serious all at once.

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  4. I HATE being told what to do too AND I was up all night last night as well. We have some sort of weird vibe thing going.

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  5. Wow, I couldn't agree with you more about cleaning! And I'll have to check out that movie...

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  6. Linda: I feel very blessed that Anthony and Irene are so close.
    And I agree with you that life is certainly too short to try to do all of that. How good is trying to achieve a false perfection when I am miserable at the same time?

    Rachel:I think it is so much easier to get stuff done at night!

    worksformom: Like I said, it is quite the chaotic movie, but if you can stand that, I think it is well worth it.

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  7. You be so cultured...

    I had a picture up a while back of an American Flag we got at a July 4th parade...made in China...of course :)


    Bradley
    The Egel Nest

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  8. Bradley: I always like it when you buy something in the u.s...with parts from china and then assembled in Mexico. Or the reverse. But the flag thing is just funny....and ironic!

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