Perpetual Organization

And so, it's ten till 4pm. I was able to get TWO things done that I didn't get done last Friday. Part of me wonders: should I be ashamed to say that it took me longer to get these two things done because I was watching an episode of The Wire and part of The Island as I was working? Perhaps. The other part of me just wonders why my S.O. can spend a total of about six hours playing Halo2 and not express the kind of guilt that plagues me. Who was it that said life was fair? Probably the one who said, "what's good for the goose is good for the gander."

But I've gotten organized today too--I have a list of twenty or so work-related projects & tasks, I call it my "Big Deal Loose Ends" list. Keeps me tuned into trying to make progress and wrap things up. The list is divided into (1) Short Term Big Deals (like a conference proposal due in two weeks, and a presentation and travel to do another presentation that happens next month); (2) Long Term Big Deals (like my plan for tenure and book development ideas; (3) Easy To Take Care Of Stuff (like emailing people to say, on second thought, I don't have time!); and (4) Long Overdue (speaks for itself). Sort of complicated, but it makes sense to me, at least for right now. But...after having completed this list, I was sickened to think of how the parts of my life that DON'T involve work could have similarly long and detailed lists of projects, especially since I opened a fortune cookie last week that said "Don't let the things you love slip away."

So, speaking of life beyond work--I had a good phone conversation with a friend this morning, she's got two boys and is preparing for a high stakes tenure review. At the end of our conversation, she asked if I'd thought any more about trying to have a second baby...Jokingly, and because S.O. was in the room, I told her that I'd have to get her a draft of an abstract for that project next week. Kindly, she gave me a tentative title to guide my thinking:

Motherhood the Second Time Around: Problems and Possibilities

It has potential, don't you think? And, conveniently, it fits all of the above-mentioned categories. It is a "short-term-long-term-easy-to-take-care-of-long-overdue" kind of project if ever there was one...