goals for the week

I had some productive days this week.

Things I've accomplished:

• Cleaned up a few little piles of stuff that I had made of things I wasn't sure what to do with. They had been there so long that I'd forgotten what was in them. I've sorted, made decisions, and then filed, shredded, put away, and otherwise dealt with everything in those piles. I also went through my "regular" piles of stuff and did the same thing; these two piles - by the telephone and on the desk - are a sort of holding area for things that I use all the time like my address/telephone books and temporary things like coupons, school notes, business cards and other bits and bobs that I might (or might not) need in the near future.
• Went through two desk drawers and pulled out and shredded old bills and insurance documents that I no longer need to keep.
• Found a place very near my home that accepts plastic bottles and cardboard for recycling. (The recycling bins at our elementary school across the street only accept paper.) In the true spirit of recycling and frugality I have turned sturdy, waxed cardboard boxes into recycling bins for paper/cardboard and plastic bottles. I have yet to create a system/routine/habit whereby I actually take these items over there in a timely manner, but it's still a tiny step forward. The goal there is to not turn the garage into a hoarded-out trash heap propped up by good intentions.
• Made some delicious but simple meals out of ingredients I had on hand, which was good because that instantly freed up some room in the budget to get the big, acorn-laden oak trees in our front yard trimmed.
• Searched for and printed out recipes to use up some of the things in the pantry that will otherwise never be used. I've realized that although some of the responsibility is mine, other people do play a part in this by buying items for themselves that they don't have a plan for or never get around to eating, or by people outside my family giving food items to us as gifts that I don't know how to use. It is my responsibility to eliminate food waste coming out of my own kitchen and at the same time not become intolerably controlling of the other people I live with or an ungracious receiver of thoughtful gifts from people who care about me.
• Kept myself caught up on daily tasks like laundry, dishes, and tidying up. It really is true that when you have fewer things you have less mess to clean up at the end of each day.

Goals for next week:

• spend time each day with Jake discussing algebra and the Spanish language.
• clean up the pine needles out of the flower beds and rain gutters.
• organize and contain our camping gear. This includes trying to get the musty, mildewy odor out of the family-size tent.
• get everything out of James's closet and put painter's tape around the shelves and trim in anticipation of painting the walls in there.
• Organize and contain more efficiently the items that James has kept.
• work on handmade Christmas gifts for extended family members.
• order supplies I still need for other handmade Christmas gifts.
• call a couple of dear friends and set up a time that I can visit with them.
• stop dilly-dallying about whether or not I should continue with a nasty book I've been reading and just throw it away.
• finalize the menu for our Thanksgiving dinner, study the sales circulars and shop for the ingredients, prepare as much as possible ahead of time, and make meal plans that use up the leftovers.
• make and pressure-can stock with the turkey carcass on Black Friday.
• make a Christmas card list and start collecting addresses.