Lately I have noticed that my unparalleled skill (bragging, yes) in making lists at school has not seemed to follow me home like you think it would. In special education, we call this generalization. We teach a skill, and then we hope and pray the kid can actually USE the skill outside the environment where we originally taught it. I need to figure out how I can generalize my list making and organization skills at work and make them transfer to my home life…here’s hoping. This is going somewhere…just hang in there with me for a minute.
On the Sunday before Valentine’s Day, I had the greatest of intentions. There were cards to write, Girl Scout cookies to box up and address, and Valentines to prepare. At least, this was all in my head. When I didn’t do ANY of that on Sunday, I thought to myself, “Well, there is always tomorrow.” Of course, that is the procrastinator’s creed. Since I am a card carrying member of that society, I know the creed well. Guess what? Monday came fast. We had a teacher workday, so I had this great list ready to go as soon as I got to school. It was on my favorite sticky notepad…the big kind, with lines. After the quick faculty meeting, I settled right down to work…and I did, for like two hours straight! So proud…then, things started to fall apart. A couple of teachers came by, I chatted, ate a couple of Girl Scout cookies (wasn’t I supposed to box some of these up to send somewhere???), checked my e-mail, ate some more cookies (something about boxing them up?), and then, wonder of all wonders, it was lunch time (ding ding, something is going off in my head about meeting Greg and the girls for Valentine’s Day dinner (a night early)!
Since I am still kind of new at my school, I had accepted an invitation to go to lunch with some teachers. It was right down the road, and it was a salad a soup bar kind of thing. Harmless, right? The restaurant was very nice…the black tablecloth and coordinating waiters kind of place. The food was okay. The price tag? Thirteen bucks for lunch with the tip!!!!! Seriously??? Looking back, I should have known. Most of the teachers go to lunch down the street in a little community called Wyndhurst, a.k.a, the most expensive section of Lynchburg. Sigh…this was when the day really started to unravel.
By the time I got back to school, I was kind of irritated with myself for spending that much on lunch. I was thinking that when my whole family goes out we try not to spend over twenty bucks (that tells you where we eat). As I am thinking this, I am remembering that I was supposed to meet up with Greg and the girls for dinner after the teacher workday. We had a gift card to the Outback (certainly not our $20 norm for dinner). Gift card. Oh shit. Did I bring it to work with me? I don’t know. I pushed it out of my mind for a while (procrastinator, remember?) while I answered some more e-mails and tried to get some work done. Around three, Greg calls and we attempt to make some plans. We decide to meet at the restaurant at four because Kiley has swim class at 5:40. I head out to my car and suddenly remember that I need to go to the cute bakery in…you guessed it…the aforementioned Wyndhurst to get cookies for Kiley’s teacher, ballet teacher, and my secret pal at work. In the five minutes it takes to get there, I suddenly remember my “oh shit” moment from earlier. The gift card, no, make that gift cards. I had a gift card to the bakery. Did I bring it? Did I bring the one for the Outback? Who knows! I park and tear my car apart looking for the gift cards. No where. I dump my purse out. Nothing. I am sweating at this point, and I'm not normally a sweat-er. I call Greg, “This isn’t going to work because I can’t find the gift cards. I think they are on the kitchen table.”
“What do you want to do instead,” says Greg. “I don’t know,” I sigh. “Let me go back to school and see if they are there.”
So I backtrack. I tear through my room, which is really only a storage closet, so it doesn’t take me long. Still no cards. Back out to the car, and wonder of all wonders, the gift cards are in the consul. Why I didn’t check there, who knows? I call Greg, we can still make it, and I head to the bakery and find the cookies. Okay, everything is good. I head out to the Outback, and get there at 4:15. Greg calls and he is five minutes away, but Kiley has to pee so they are taking a detour. “No problem, I’ll just go in and get a table,” I think. Get out of the car, walk up to door, and it is CLOSED. Apparently on Monday through Friday, no one eats dinner before five. Big, big sigh.
While I’m discovering all this, Greg has stopped at a restaurant nearby to use the bathroom. He gets Kiley and Mari out, walks up to the door, and guess what? It is CLOSED!!!!!! Kiley is hopping up and down in a great rendition of the tinkle dance, so Greg spots some bushes and Kiley makes a bee line for them. He is still holding Marianna, who exclaims, “Ah pee! Nannie pee!” Yep, she sure is. What a day.
We ended up going to Cracker Barrel, which is my favorite place to eat anyway…and more in our budget.
You may be wondering where the whole list making thing comes in…maybe not if you are good at making inferences. Why is it that I can keep up with everything at school, yet at home, I live night to night, laundry load to laundry load? Why can’t I make lists at home? I could of checked Outback's hours ahead of time. No one got Valentine’s Cards this year. Annie and Joseph didn’t get cookies (there is still hope though). Did Greg and I get each other anything after the failed attempt at dinner? No (as far as I know, anyway…I am writing this while Kiley is doing ballet. Greg could be at home whipping up a six course meal, who knows?).
I think this day was further evidence of me losing my mind. Good thing I’m cataloging all this…
