"The Checklist" revisited

Some of you may recall that awhile ago I set up a checklist to maintain a sort of minimal functioning sanity. It worked fairly well for awhile, but like all rigid things, fell by the wayside. Fortunately it did pass on a certain rhythm to my days, which was the whole point.

I have since acquired a desire to finish (REALLY finish) my job by 6:00 pm each day (Apologies to colleagues who have now alarmed their mates and pets by guffawing loudly over their morning coffee). I don't mind starting two hours early, but I don't want to continue two hours past quitting time. So the list is coming out again for a major overhaul.

There is a notable difference between the last list and this list. The last list placed "things to do" one at a time. This list recognizes that "one-at-a-time" isn't going to cut it. So it starts out with "Make coffee/wash dishes/pick-up," moves onto "laundry/bathroom," progresses to "birdfeeders/fetch paper" and ends up at "Break on porch/check work messages."

Alas, I'm at "break on porch" and as I try to check my messages, the voice mail system thwarts my good intentions by ringing busy. I now waste five vital minutes calling my work phone from my home phone (and vice versa) to make sure the issue is indeed the voice mail system and not my phones (it is indeed the voice mail).

Curses!! So I shall blog instead, since that also needs to be included on the checklist somewhere.



Post Note: Gremlins at large. The laundry didn't spin out! Oh well. Moving onto "save faxes/take a shower."

More later...

Discover your impact day...

This week was Discovery's 25th anniversary, and today was a company-wide day of service. Working from home in the frontier called Central New York, I wasn't near any of the volunteer projects that people were doing around the globe. Discovery had some projects for people who were needed at their desks, so I signed up to make happy cards for kids at The Children’s Inn at NIH. At the main offices they had supplies set up for people to use, but I raided my craft drawer.

Believe it or not, for once I did a simple project and I actually owned everything I needed! Seriously---that never happens. Can it be that I have become organized? Well, I could have used a hole-punch, but I can pick one up tomorrow before I put these in the mail. I even had little kitty charms and tassels.



I printed the kittens off adoptable pets on Petfinder. Here is the real miracle: I didn't even run out of printer ink. Amazing! I even had glossy photo paper. I nearly shocked myself.

I hope my disorganized readers will understand why this was such a pleasant surprise.

Sometimes you can almost feel guilty doing something so simple and enjoyable and calling it "community service." Maybe "community fun?"

If you work with an organization (from work to Scouts) and want to help the Children's Inn, you can learn more here.

Post-note: I now own a $1.99 single-hole punch.

Oh Home Depot...bait and switch...not you?

Oh yes. There was some sort of pile of tools, or a grill, or something at Home Depot by the door--sign up to win, you know. So I dropped my name in. Today I received this little card. I noted immediately that it didn't say I won anything and figured it was a marketing ploy, but I gave a call.

I did not, of course, get Home Depot. I got some "mumble fast mumble Consulting" whatever. "Mrs. Burke" put me on hold to "look up my information" and came back and asked me how often I shopped at Home Depot. I told her I would be happy to answer her questions if it were only going to take a few minutes, as I was at work. I figured it was just marketing research. Annoying, but necessary for businesses, now and then. She assured me yes, just a few minutes. And she asked if I were familiar with Home Depot's "water mumble mumble." She wasn't really mumbling, but she certainly wasn't telling me about the grill I'd won. She was telling me about a water test. I'm thinking "OK lady, put it in the mail," then she said, get this...

"Would there be a time we could set up where you and your husband, or significant other, would be available so a team could come by...."

...and I realized Home Depot--or whoever had bought the opportunity to plunk a pile of tools down on a table to get the phone numbers of homeowners--was trying to string me in to buy a water filtration system.

I told her thank you but no, I don't let unsolicited strangers into my house and she said, get this "Oh, well you could have a neighbor there if you wanted..."

Wow.

I told her no, and thankfully she said OK so I didn't have to spoil my day by hanging up on her. And of course I stepped to the computer and discovered I was right.

How sad. You think you maybe are in line to get a cheap pack of screwdrivers (and wait all day for 4:00 to call, knowing it's a scam, but maybe...) and your instincts were right. Scam.

Today's recipe

Ravioli with Spinach Pesto

In the interested of eating better, I've been writing down the very rare recipes that sound good to me when they pop up on Yahoo.

This is one. I hope to make it soon.

Creamed corn pancakes

I was sulking through my cupboard and refrigerator this evening, grumbling. Nothing to eat. Nothing to eat. Unless I wanted to eat chicken soup -- again (on sale, 50 cents a can last month at the Shur-Save, so I bought about 20). I cast an eye at the cans of creamed corn I had purchased to make scalloped corn. I was just too weary to deal with baking.

I seemed to me I should be able to fry something up, but all the recipes on the internet for "creamed corn pancakes" seemed far too involved. I was able gather some ideas of what, in general, was needed to make corn pancakes stick. I threw together something quite simple:

One small can creamed corn
two eggs
about twelve crackers, crushed
That's it!

I used Multi-Grain Club crackers.
I think next time I would use unsalted saltine crackers.

Mix, spoon onto a medium-hot frying pan, add a tiny bit of pepper while cooking, and there you go.

It made seven small pancakes, which would be enough for two people if you had something else along with it. I didn't, so five of them became dinner for me, and they were quite good. I may throw in some diced fresh tomato next time. Probably all sorts of things could go in there (a bit of spinach, etc.).

The one pancake in the picture looks like it has a bit of tail. In fact it's the cat on the plate. :)

The cats and the dog all requested a bite of the last two pancakes. I gave them a small amount. They would have eaten them all up, but it didn't seem to me that corn was a great option for feline and canine digestive systems.