I Need Lazier Ways To Procrastinate. Rather, I Do Marathon Clean-Up Fests and Hyper House Cleaning

Guilt from Friday night (a bar) and Saturday (a road race, art show, and movie) usually deliver me to Sunday feeling like a schlep. Yes, I get up at 7 a.m. and quickly get to writing, but then when the dog is moving, breakfast is served, and Tunga leaves for work, I think, "I should go for a walk." This leads to, "I should also go for a run." And this leads to, "Bryan, the temperature just dropped, you should prep the house for winter."

I mowed the leaves, stored the outdoor chairs, exchanged the lawnmower for the snowblower, cleaned out the garage (well, rearranged Chitunga's crap because he still hasn't sorted through his boxes and bags out there), recycled all the bottles, un-stored the shovels, then came inside to rearrange the furniture so everything got a good cleaning. I didn't settle back to writing until around 7 p.m.

Of course, then I was too tired to think, so I procrastinate by working on presentations for NCTE (which is visual and mindless in a creative way). I think it was the falling temperatures that went from 75 to 55 that got me in the pre-hibernal set-up fest, but I now feel prepared for snow...well, if I get the snowblower auger in the mail that I ordered. I'm do for a new machine, but I'm hoping I can make this one last one more year.

I do miss my wood-burning stove, though, and within minutes of Glamis un-hiding from the clean-up (she HATES cleaning utensils and hides under my bed), she got out every toy and began destroying them all over again. You'd hardly noticed I picked up after her - she definitely is a toddler right now! Strings...tennis balls...rubber nuggets...biscuit crumbs...sock pieces. This is her house. I simply am there to throw things to her.

But I'm feeling good: Ginette left chicken Alfredo with broccoli so I didn't have to cook, and that saved a good hour of life. The laundry, too, is caught up.

I'm ready for you Monday. We got this.