Checking it twice

Welcome to NaBloPoMo. Count me in, ladies and jellybeans! I'm not really sure why I want to do this. Partly, I think, it's my continued need for setting goals. I am a very goal- and task-oriented person by nature. I keep lists. And lists of lists. And I really feel a high from crossing something off one of said lists.

Each morning, upon arriving at the office, I sit down and make a list on one of my many sticky notes. When my boss arrives, I chat with her to ascertain not only if there are additional items to add, but also what the priority of all items might be. I then create a new list, detailing how I will run my day. I've done this since I can remember. In grad school, my list-building compulsion hit its all-time high, usually resembling something like this:

7:00 - up
7:15-7:30 - tea
7:30-8:15 - shower, dressed, make bed
8:30-9:00 - bike to school, locker
9:00-10:45 - class
11:00-12:00 - practice
12:00-1:30 - lunch, errands (see below)
1:30-5:00 - warm-up, orchestra
And so forth.

Seriously. You think I was making it up? Just wait. I've misplaced my old planner at the moment, but there will be photographic evidence asap.

My list making skills have also made a frequent cameo appearance in the blog. They show up here, here, and here. And that's just in October alone.

Okay, that's scaring me now.

Despite sounding too Type A for my own good, I think my list-making tendencies counterbalance the general lack of stability in my chosen profession. There will never come a day when I have achieved everything possible for a musician. I will have to practice every day until the day I stop playing for good and all. Every day I will play the same warm-up, every day I will try to make certain things more perfect. Never will I wake up and say to myself, "Well, that's done. Good work. You've learned to play the flute."

Crossing things off my list gives me that sense that certain tasks are achievable. Once completed, they are done. I never have to do them again.

So bring it on, NaBloPoMo. You're on my list!