Daily To-Do

I am a big fan of to-do lists.  And I'm one of those people who will do something that isn't on my list, add it to my list and then immediately cross it off.

I've started keeping lists on my iPhone.  I like the Reminders app that allows me to keep multiple lists, set reminders and then check things off.  I have a Shopping list and a Reminders list; a way-too-long Honey-Do list and a growing Home Improvement list.  I'm good at adding to my lists but have been struggling with getting things crossed off.

Yesterday I started a new list and called it my Daily To-Do list.  I purposefully limited the number of things on the list and intentionally grouped them around one particular space.  Since we just finished painting the spare room, I want to move towards reassembling that room so I can feel that at least one thing is done (for now).

Even with everything I have to do, I decided to make time for something I love.  First.  I needed a reminder of why I'm doing all this.  So before buckling down, I went for a ride.  I jumped on Cricket and we walked the fence line all the way to the back of the property.  Her pasture-mate was very distressed at being alone so we tailored the ride so Etruska could follow on the other side of the fence.  The total ride was probably 15 minutes, if it was even that long.  But it was enough.

I grabbed some leftover pizza for dinner and when that was done, I got down to my to do list.  I accomplished all five things: vacuum the floor, clean the baseboards, clean the window sill/molding, wipe down the doors and shampoo the carpet.

It was a great feeling to check everything off the list.  It was a great feeling to prop up my feet and veg out, knowing I had accomplished what I set out to do.

So I've reset the daily to-do with some more tasks for this evening.  I think there are 6-7 and my goal is never more than 7.  Even if that means stretching out a major event (like cleaning out and organizing my filing) over more than one day.

Discipline

I am struggling with my discipline when it comes to organizing and settling into my home.  I think this stems from my "all or nothing", slightly manic and obsessive-compulsive nature.  That has to be it.

See, I have a hard time functioning in chaos.  Instead of finding all the little things I can do in order to chip away at the mess, I prefer to bury my head and simply do nothing.  I become paralyzed and overwhelmed. I end up wasting my time on Facebook or computer games or watching a moving I've seen a hundred times for the hundred and first.

I have great vision and great plans.  I have wonderful ideas about all the things I want to do.  I lack discipline and thus lack follow-through.  My house, even before the move, has always been filled with things half done.  Scrapbooks started and then stashed away; cross-stitch projects with the vague shapes of flowers and words.  The move has magnified my negligence and gross lack of organization.

So my challenge, now, is to create a workable plan of attack.  My goal is to develop some discipline.  I'm not sure how I stumbled upon the link but somewhere, in rambling through the various blogs I follow, I found 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life from Money Saving Mom.  It's worth a shot . . .

In the Beginning

But what is happiness except the simple harmony between a man and the life he leads? ~ Albert Camus

It is time to restore some harmony to my life.  The last year has been filled with drama, upheaval and dissatisfaction.   It has been as far from harmony as one can get.

That's not to say it's been all bad.  It's just been a roller coaster ride and I don't particularly like roller coasters.  And by "particularly" I mean "not at all."

For the past few years, I've been using a blog to chronicle my horsemanship journey.  I've decided to employ the same strategy for my personal journey towards a more minimalist lifestyle.

Minimalism is not necessarily some crazy acetic lifestyle and it's not defined by owning a prescribed number of things.  I don't know if there is an agreed upon definition but I know what it means to me: the freedom of knowing I have enough.  Enough clothes, enough food, enough money.  Enough.

I have entered into a big commitment with the purchase of my farm.  There are times I feel overwhelmed, inadequate and scared.  How can I manage all of this?  How can one person, with one limited income, manage all of this?  The answer, for me, is found in minimalism.  Reducing clutter, eliminating excess, intentionally choosing where to spend my limited resources, relieving the stress of obligation to all my stuff.

I was first introduced to the ideas of minimalism by stumbling upon Joshua Becker's blog Becoming Minimalist.  It has been my starting point and continues to provide inspiration.