We’re twenty days into the new year and I haven’t finished everything I wanted to do for 2017. That’s not good. I don’t want to spend all year playing catch-up. So . . .
To finish by January 31:
- Put my Christmas butterfly ornaments away in the new acid-free boxes that I bought last January. The ornaments were supposed to go in the boxes last year, but that never happened. At this time, the ornaments are off the tree but not put away, so this is the perfect time to make the switch to the new boxes. I can tell you exactly what’s been holding me up. The ornaments will need to be wrapped in protective material before I put them in the boxes. I bought acid-free tissue paper, but I will need to figure out the best way to cut it, then wrap all the ornaments, and figure out the best arrangement in the boxes. Figuring out this new storage system will take time and effort, and I might make mistakes and have to change direction, maybe even order more paper or a different kind, which is all potentially going to be annoying. (Yes, I do have a terrible habit of fretting over problems before I even get to them.) But if I want to keep my ornaments in good condition, this is what needs to be done, so I’d better get on it.
- Listen to the Christmas CD my friend gave me. My Christmas spirit is always a little slow catching up with the season, and I often have no tolerance for Christmas music until January. But the month is almost over, so I should do that now, while I’m still feeling a little Christmassy and doing Christmassy things like putting ornaments away.
- Finish up 2017 photo album. I can’t believe I haven’t finished this yet.
- Finish up 2017 blog posts. I still have a bunch of posts about the children that I want to write so that I can include them in my album. I wish I had kept better notes along the way. Some of my notes are cryptic. For example: “Marshall’s perfect grades.” Perfect grades on what and when? I have no idea. So that story, whatever it was, is never going to be told. I need to finish up what I do remember, while I still remember it, and while it still feels relevant.