4. The Love of Lists, or "How do you Eat an Elephant?"

I'm sure there are others out there like us - my sisters, daughter, mother and I:  We just love a good list.  Just the thought of a trip to the store (dare I say  to another country!!) can cause a feverish penciling of all the possibilities.  Imagine what volumes of yellow ledger- and quad-pad crumples will have been generated by the time an entire renovation project is finished!  Excuse me, I misspoke.  Nothing is ever finished, and this is not a bad thing.  The list hits the bottom of the page, and although the majority of items have been scratched through, modified, with marginal notes and telephone numbers scribbled all over the place, a few stragglers still remain.  What happens then is like the proverbial story of the cruse of oil:  another blank page appears and anything left on the original that still needs doing is lovingly transcribed to the new sheet.  A new beginning!  A fresh start!  And thirty more spaces just waiting to take on the next challenges that face me.  Each humongous task broken down into manageable to-do's, some of them so simple I can do them right now!  Check!  Check!  Already crossing things off on my way to the bottom.

So, like the schoolgirl on her first day in class, I got out a new quad pad (that's a pad of paper with squares instead of lines - enabling sketching or listing as the need arises).  A stack of cute, colorful folders and a neat box I couldn't pass up at a yard sale months ago.  A really nice mechanical pencil I haven't used since my European vacation last year.  And I started two lists.

The first is a basic "TO DO".  I don't need to put everything on there, just the first few.  And some of these items will generate their own lists (spontaneous list generation).  This is where I will write things as they come up, that I don't want to forget.  Some will remain on the list, and be transferred to several others in progression, before they are marked through.  Others will be done by next week.  Just writing them down gives me a sense of accomplishment,  it's like a drug I tell you!

Here's my list so far:

1.  Get 4-point inspection and wind mitigation inspection (Jake) to submit to the insurance company.
2.  Allstate - insurance policy to start on the day of closing.
3.  Call ADT about security system (meet with them after closing)
4.  Meet Tuesday with Jeanne (City Redevelopment) re:  grant money for historic residential
5.  Purchase three exterior doors (front door must meet City requirements)
6.  Make up tool kit to take to Grandview.
7.  Start staging area at home for stuff to go to GV.
8.  Make a "TO BUY" list of household items and tools to buy at garage sales/thrift stores

Man that last one is a real gem.  To have "make another list" on your list means you're almost ready for a 12-step program.  Of course that was my favorite item.  I have already done it, but I'm debating whether to share it here, since I've already written four paragraphs about lists. Hey, this is how I get things done.  I figure I'm writing this blog, not only so family and friends can share the experience with me, but also, dear reader, so I may pass along some information you might use yourself one day.  I am hoping to inspire the amateur renovator, or the person who's dreamed of it but never dared to try... the motto for today is:  If you break the whole thing down in to baby steps, not one of them is all that hard to accomplish.