Whoa! I just learned how to text message!! I even had text messages on my phone! Who knew? Of course they were "pay your phone bill!" - but still - how 21st Century is THAT?!?

I know, I know, you talented technical guys are all laughing at me. Every 5th grader could text message years ago, etc, but you learn something new every day.

That's part of my "new thing" - you know how, every year I try to get my life under control. I try to take one day at a time....but several days gang up on me at once....and the next thing you know you're reading my blog entries in which lost socks have become a major issue and the only reason why we haven't lost the dog is because he weighs 200 lbs.

....of course, we've never lost the parakets, but they're very loud.

For instance, right now, everything else is lost. Because of the "piece meal" way in which we are moving, and The Hub comming down with a bad cold over half of my clothing is missing in action, under my boots I have on two mismatched socks ( but at least they're clean!!) I'm wearing a summer skirt paired up with a lot of tweed and nuetrals. I'm hoping I look "boho" but I'm guessing I look like I don't have any clean laundry. We lost the lighter, but I did find some benedryl. Something brown is leaking out of the "non-perishable food" basket and I'm a little afraid to look into it further. I put my pots and pans away and located the nub for frosting cookies I was desperately trying to find 6 weeks ago.

And The Hub has still not begun to move the workshop. He says he won't until we sell the house, which, I guess is smart. Still, just knowing all that industrial looking grey metal stuff with sharp edges...stuff that sounds like an aircraft taking off when you turn it on being by itself, unsupervised, in the old house makes me nervous. What if all his power tools form a gang and beat up the washer and dryer? What if they form a union and demand a room with a view?

Incidentally, lack of sleep is also a problem. The dog, who is understandably stressed about the move is taking out his anxiety on his bone. That's what we want him to do...as opposed to knawing on the piano, for instance. We all head into the room with the bed in it - a double bed, which is a little smaller than the queen we haven't been able to get down the stairs of the old house yet- and attempt to go to sleep. The Hub can do it, but there's something about the sound of Winston masticating a bone bigger around than my ankle which is not conductive to sleep. Then, eventually he stops chewing and falls asleep....and he snores, and The Hub snores, and so they are snoring in stereo. The weirdest thing is that they snore in PERFECT HARMONY. I mean, it's like synchronised snoring - so they don't wake each other up. They just keep ME awake.

I go out into the living room and try out the sofa, on which it is sometimes possible to get comfortable. If that doesn't work I try the floor, which is comfortable, but cold. After awhile, the dog wakes up, and realizes I am no longer in the room, so he comes looking for me. Spotting me on the floor, he sniffs me rigerously for signs (smells?) of trauma. So far, each night, he's found me to be "in order" but, clearly, he feels that I must be lonely ( or need supervision? super sniffin?) so he lays down beside me.....and he SNORES! And he's still in sync with The Hub who is in the bedroom! So we have two rooms of the house litterally shaking with snoring that's enough to wake the dead! I'm about to go sleep in my car!

But, I digress.

My new way of trying to impose some order in my life is a new journal. Because if I don't watch myself I will make lists of things to do in a day that cannot reasonably be accomplished if there were 4 of me - and then beat myself up for not getting everything done - I'm expanding on the "list of things I DID" concept.

Now, I have my goals, and I write in what I did to accomplish them. They're pretty simple. There are 8 catagories.
1. What I did for The Lord / Someone Else: This is under the concept of "whatsoever you do for the least of my brothers you do for me". Call me a way old girl scout but I really do still try to do my good deed for the day.

2. What I did for the Household: That's all housework, cooking, shopping & stuff
3.What I did for My Husband: Self explanitory
4. What I did for myself: - Amazingly hard to fill in. So today I dyed my hair
5. Something Difficult: This includes all the stuff I procrastinate on
6. What I organized: What I did to impose order on my chaos, like sorting coupons or making sure I have the right "club cards" on my key chain
7. 10,000 steps? : That's my excersise goal.
and
8. What I learned: If you write it down, it's AMAZING what you learn in a day! I learned 3 new things on my job, that mooning is now legal in Maryland, that my co-worker has a dog that's a cross between a shitsu and a poodle - he calls it a Shit-Poo!!! - AND how to text message!!

It may sound corny, it may not work for everybody, but it's keeping that voice in my head that always talks about what a bloomin' failure I am quiet, or at least toned down for the time being.

But one day, I may learn how to turn it off. That's worth getting up for!