Beech Tree News Network

With a seasonal change, I instinctively seem to scan my environment and create a to-do list. I like to-do lists because they help me focus, but looking at a long list of chores can be unnerving. Fortunately, I remember that I’m the only one who cares whether my lists get done or not.

People feel differently about to-do lists: some use them and some don’t. Why might people want to use a list? In the article “10 Reasons Why We Love Making Lists” (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=101056819), Linton Weeks explained that lists bring order to chaos, help us remember things, relieve stress and focus the mind, and keep us from procrastinating. Alternately, in “Millionaires Don’t Use To-Do Lists” (https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevinkruse/2015/07/10/to-do-lists-time-mana...), Kevin Kruse stated that to-do lists don’t account for time, don’t distinguish between urgent and important, and contribute to stress. Finally, in “Successful People Have Short To-Do Lists,” Laura Vanderkam summarized: 

“Really effective people … view a to-do list as a contract with themselves. Once they’ve chosen to do something, they do it by the end of the day. That’s why it’s smart to make success possible by putting fewer things, rather than more, on the list. Life is a marathon, not a sprint — and it’s better to finish than sputter out” (http://www.ceo.com/news_and_insights/successful-people-have-short-to-do-...).

Thinking about my projects this spring, I wondered whether others also had work to do. So, I asked friends and family: “Looking toward the warm weather season, do you have any inside or outside tasks/projects you want to get done – beyond the weekly routine?” Their responses were:

•Seal the driveway, plant flowers and clean exterior windows – exciting stuff.

•Getting the house ready to sell and having a moving/garage sale.

•Yard sale!

•Vegetable garden. Window gardens. Earthworks revision.

•Wash all my outdoor furniture and buy hanging and potted plants for outside.

•Deck staining.

•Inside project – rooms painted.

•I don’t! My wife does! So that means I do. Never ends. I know my daughter needs to power wash her fence and put some protection on it, and we do, too.

•Yes, I have tons at my house to do and at my daughter’s, such as going through closets  and getting yard sale stuff ready, cleaning my house, and setting out flowers. So much – I dread it, but it’s got to be done.

•Haven’t gotten any inspiration yet!

•Need to mulch, power wash, and open the pool.

•Get some grass to grow on my side yard.

•Wash windows, inside and out.

•I want to replant all of my herbs now that they can live outside. Love my cilantro and parsley!

•I need to plant my garden and flowers and get the swimming pool ready. The house needs to be power washed to get rid of wasp nests. They are terrible already!

•Yes. So far, I have had the house washed, the sidewalk sealed, and the trees trimmed. Last but not least, I washed all the windows in the house. Painting remains on the list.

•Wash windows, get the back porch washed down and porch ceiling fans cleaned, and get the outdoor furniture and chair pads in place. Love that back porch sittin’!

•No, not really.

•My project is to get my yard in good condition. I’m planting more flowers and mulching. Then I can relax and enjoy the rest of the summer!

•Yes! I want to do more work in a certain flower bed. Inside, I want to clean windows and baseboards and reorganize a few areas. Makes me happy!

My spring to-do list has been whittled down this past month, but I still have a few things left to do. For example, I want to wash windows and outdoor furniture. Of course, I want to plant a few bushes and some colorful flowers. I’d also like to clean up the leaves that have collected along the back fence line during the winter – likely my hardest job. 

Sandra Bullock said, “I like lists, I'm controlling, I like order. I'm difficult on every level” (https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/lists.html). Many of us have a list in our heads even if it’s not on paper. But whether you’re a list maker or not, I hope your spring projects are nearing completion.