I am a natural-born procrastinator. Putting off what I should do today for tomorrow is my modus operandi. It is a habit I have to actively and intentionally overcome. My downfall is not the television, but this darn smartphone that brings everything I like to do to my fingertips.
I don’t need a 65-inch TV to watch movies. I have become perfectly content with the tiny screen. I have watched 10 years of a television series on it without a hitch. I can easily go from Netflix to Facebook to YouTube videos, all with several swipes of my finger. I started writing this column on my desktop in the beginning, eventually moved to a laptop, and now I’m quite comfortable with the smartphone. To say “I love it” is an understatement.
The only way to win against procrastination is to just do it and not think about it. That is how I am motivating myself to get things done. Thinking about it gives me an opportunity to come up with an excuse. The day following Halloween, as soon as I parked my car coming in from work, I fought the excuse of being tired. I resisted the temptation to go lay down for a bit before tackling the chore. Those things are part of my downfall. Instead I grabbed a storage bin and headed for my front. It took me less than a half hour, but I got all the Halloween decorations down. They are now packed and stored away until next year.
I have three areas of my property (front yard, back patio, and second-story deck) that I have to close down for the winter. By closing down, I mean covering things with a tarp and tying it with rope to prevent moisture from getting into them. Moisture can expand during the freezing temperature which can cause things to either crack, chip, or completely break. I had hoped to be done this past Sunday, but I can guarantee I will be completely done this week.
I got delayed because I came up with the idea of trying to save my potted Hydrangea plants. The containers they are in are too large to bring inside. Plus I don’t want to bring in tiny bugs. So I’m going to cover the base pot with a moving blanket. I’ll use a large cardboard box to create a windshield around the plant, add in about 3 to 4 inches of mulch and protect the entire thing with a tarp. My goal is to protect the plant’s roots from freezing. Once a month, I’ll give the roots a cup of water. My hopes is that the plant will go dormant and begin to regrow in the spring.
I write a lot about all the things I do because a house is not a “buy it and forget it” proposition. It takes a lot of work to maintain property. However, all that work is worth it when the house exudes pride of ownership and curb appeal.