Friday, August 13, 2010

Because it's never too early to stress out about Thanksgiving

I just spent part of my lunch break writing a preliminary to-do list of things I need to get done before Thanksgiving, complete with parenthesized notes and commentary:

  • Fix downstairs commode (parts already purchased).
  • Fix kitchen chair that you broke with your toe, for pity's sake (need wood glue, twine, brown paper).
  • Refinish craft room chairs (supplies hiding in craft room).
  • Compose and distribute Thanksgiving menu (consult your shiny new copy of The Joy of Cooking).
  • Test some recipes for Thanksgiving (use up that frozen turkey breast that's been hanging around for a year; try the apricot whosit you want to make for Dad because he can't eat cranberries. Need cumin).
  • Shampoo sofa and "freecycled" recliner (rent upholstery cleaner).
  • Either shampoo or replace living room rug (Resolve and a long-handled scrub brush might do for this year. But really, it should be replaced with something that looks more like an area rug and less like the jagged-edged remnant it is. Something that isn't packing-taped down in the doorways by the previous owners might spruce the room up a bit, you know?).
  • Rearrange furniture in living room (because now you have some, and it's all huddled together in one corner like a group of people sharing an umbrella. In other words, get rid of the boxes!).
  • Is there time to sort out and arrange the craft room? (Probably, but what does this have to do with Thanksgiving?)
  • Fix cracked, spackled bit under window (need spackling tape).
  • Buy a new roasting pan & rack (preferably one where the finish from the rack doesn't rub off on the food. Gross. And possibly dangerous).
Yes, I really do write myself notes like I'm writing to someone else. It helps. And it amuses me when I look at them later.

3 comments:

Just Me said...

Craigslist.org and Overstock.com are excellent places to find stuff you want or need without paying through the nose.

I love my Joy of Cooking and my New Best Recipe. I don't know how I negotiated a kitchen before they landed on my shelves.

I'm also a heavy creator and user of lists.

Anonymous said...

Who's coming?
notdotdot

--V said...

My parents, my sister, my brother-in-law, his parents, my parents' dog, my sister's dog. So, including my household (1 human 1 cat), that's 7 people, 2 dogs, 1 cat. Same as last year, but with a different cat.

I'm slightly less anxious this time around, probably because I made it through last Thanksgiving without bursting into flames. Or tears. Or song. Wait. Not sure about the song. There may have been some of that. It's kind of a blur.