Procrastinating

I'm honing the fine art of postponing the inevitable.

The book keeping must be done. Whether I do it first thing in the day to put it behind me ... or wait until after lunch so that I have the morning to do as I please ... or wait until after supper to really tax my evening's resources ... or just wait until the next day or day after that ... It is my choice as to when I work. But the hard, cold fact is: the work isn't going anywhere. Not until I actually start and finish the job. So why do I find it so hard to start?

Income tax. Yes - there are 34 more days until it must be filed. But I've had it done and sitting in its 98% complete phase for several weeks. What is so hard about finishing the job? I have a couple more people who I will do taxes for, within the next few weeks. I have a fourth person's income taxes about 95% complete. Why don't I just wrap that up quickly so that my slate is clear when I get the next few people's taxes?

House work. What is my problem?? In my daycare world, I was obsessive. The house was clean, organized, vacuumed on a daily basis and I had my 'Friday chores' that I squeezed into an already busy day. I didn't love or hate the job of keeping the house clean any more or less when I ran a full time daycare. I had less time at my disposal. But the work got done. Now? I silently groan every time I think of the task that awaits me.

Cooking. What a monumental chore that has become! In the height of my ambitious years, it was one of my 'Friday chores', to write out the lunch/snack/supper menus for the week ahead. Not only did I have the right groceries in the house ... but the energy it takes to simply decide what to cook was minimized. Lately? I want to find the easiest way out of cooking (and my family is sick of McDonald's) and it is simply survival cooking.

Yard work. Spring (or summer, fall or winter) cleaning. Window &/or floor washing. It is all the same thing. A huge inner sigh overtakes my being every time I think of a big and overwhelming job.

What is my problem??

The energy it takes to put off doing something is tremendous. The overwhelmed feeling consumes me and eats me up at times. The act of indecision takes an enormous amount of my inner resources. Looking at the big picture and not breaking the big jobs into smaller, more manageable tasks takes the fun out of life.

Nike's logo "Just do it!" is what I need to incorporate into my minute to minute life. But ... on the flip side ... I do enjoy life a lot more when I follow my own motto: "Just do it ... later".

I'm off to do my work now!

P.S. I've perfected the art of distraction so well, that it took me one and a half hours to write this disjointed little blurb about procrastinating.