First peripheral neuropathy … and now a sepsis infection? $%*&#@

@dbeshears1 - Debbie - Wow...you are a list maker as well. Nothing goes on my list that I can't do however, I' will put some things on my list that I might be able to do. Call it a challenge. I made a list this AM of things I need to do today, two have a question mark. For me, it means give it a try. We all have good and bad days with PN. If I can't do it, I'll then put it at the top of the next day's list and yes, with a ? For me it makes me push a little beyond my comfort zone yet being safe. No second-floor window washing from a ladder, you get the drift. Keep crossing things off and smile, accomplishments are important and if you don't get to it today, there is always tomorrow. Stay well, keep moving.

Good morning, bjk3 (@bjk3), Debbie (@dbeshears1), NJ Ed (@njed)

List-Makers, Unite! It gives me a boost to wake up a bunch of kindred spirits.

I will confess, however, that some years ago, I refined my list-making; I was once like so many people and, during a single day, would create a half- or full-dozen “micro” lists: little bits of paper scattered here and there, around my house, on the front seat of my car, jammed in my pockets, inked on the palm of my hand – wherever I’d turned, there’d be another micro list. At day’s end, I’d have all these little reminders of how much I’d NOT gotten done.

I now adhere to what I call Ray’s Principle of One – ONE of each day’s necessary things: one journal (with one good pen attached), one book (whatever I may be currently reading, fiction or nonfiction), one periodical (e.g., the latest New Yorker), one book of poetry (to sustain my spirit; at the moment, it’s the Collected Works of Wendell Berry) – and one SMALL spiral book which houses the day’s micro lists, all side-by-side in one master micro list. (Master micro list? Mmm?)

So again, List-Makers, Unite! Let’s get this day underway. Let’s whip through the day’s lists and look forward to an evening of knowing we’ve gotten everything done. (Or almost everything, anyway.)

Cheers!
Ray (@ray666)

@bjk3 , @njed , @ray666 My daily routine starts with coffee in bed, checking my electronic gadget stuff, which includes this Mayo Clinic Connect group, watching our mentors and administrators trying to herd us cats. I have my electronic list from yesterday that I change to today’s date, hopefully adding less than I was able to remove as completed the day before. I reorder based on what my body says; today it’s telling me sunshine at the pool. I think it’s important because it’s the only way I’ll be able to keep assessing when the water will be warm enough to get in and do some water exercises 😅😅😅. Have a good day!

Ed - You are so right! Everything on the list must be attainable or on the list because you need to call someone to hire. A few years ago, I took my list of Goals to my PCP. The #1 item was “Get Off Disability and Get Back to Work”. I obviously wanted my income restored to employment level but the general gist was I wanted to be healthy enough and also wanted to contribute to society. My PCP stopped me on #1, squelched it right there, and instead helped me break it down into bite-size, realistic, attainable items. It is a big mental boost to see how what things we can and are achieving!

Debbie, that's a great topic in itself: What's your No. 1 Goal? It's too easy to say To get better, To feel well, or To get up and about and not spend the day feeling sorry for yourself. Your post got me thinking: What's MY No. Goal for today? I've decided it's To be cheerful. I began the day grumpy. I didn't like being grumpy, Who can change that? Only me. So that's my No. 1 Goal for today: To live wholeheartedly. Not only will the people around me be better off for it; I'll be better off for it, too. 🙂 –Ray

@bjk3 - You and I have shared so many similarities in our journeys and you’ve reminded me of the realities we face. I can’t help but to keep a To-Do list (formal) or I’ll forget things! I often think of what @njed coached - Focus on what you CAN do, not CAN’T do. So when I see what things are still on my “list”, I am not so bothered because of the thankfulness I have for the things that got crossed off of it. As you said, budgeting our energy for long term survival is key, so we do this one step at a time! I hope you’re moving along well!

Good morning, bjk3 (@bjk3), Debbie (@dbeshears1), NJ Ed (@njed)

List-Makers, Unite! It gives me a boost to wake up a bunch of kindred spirits.

I will confess, however, that some years ago, I refined my list-making; I was once like so many people and, during a single day, would create a half- or full-dozen “micro” lists: little bits of paper scattered here and there, around my house, on the front seat of my car, jammed in my pockets, inked on the palm of my hand – wherever I’d turned, there’d be another micro list. At day’s end, I’d have all these little reminders of how much I’d NOT gotten done.

I now adhere to what I call Ray’s Principle of One – ONE of each day’s necessary things: one journal (with one good pen attached), one book (whatever I may be currently reading, fiction or nonfiction), one periodical (e.g., the latest New Yorker), one book of poetry (to sustain my spirit; at the moment, it’s the Collected Works of Wendell Berry) – and one SMALL spiral book which houses the day’s micro lists, all side-by-side in one master micro list. (Master micro list? Mmm?)

So again, List-Makers, Unite! Let’s get this day underway. Let’s whip through the day’s lists and look forward to an evening of knowing we’ve gotten everything done. (Or almost everything, anyway.)

Cheers!
Ray (@ray666)

@bjk3 , @njed , @ray666 My daily routine starts with coffee in bed, checking my electronic gadget stuff, which includes this Mayo Clinic Connect group, watching our mentors and administrators trying to herd us cats. I have my electronic list from yesterday that I change to today’s date, hopefully adding less than I was able to remove as completed the day before. I reorder based on what my body says; today it’s telling me sunshine at the pool. I think it’s important because it’s the only way I’ll be able to keep assessing when the water will be warm enough to get in and do some water exercises 😅😅😅. Have a good day!

Good Afternoon, Ray ~~
I got a chuckle out of your post because it so closely mirrors the way I sometimes handle the making of lists. If "to do" thoughts present themselves like a batch of corn popping in my head, I find I write on whatever piece of paper, Post-It, or periodical, etc. that's close - in hopes of not losing those kernels of plans needing deliberate and undivided attention. After some time passes (and hopefully some of the tasks can be crossed off) it's time to "UNITE those Lists" into one or two Master Lists. (Better for me to put one list for kitchen-type duties on the refrig. and one list for the rest on my desk in the living area). Ahhh, feels like I've decluttered already! ✍️😃

Best to you, Ray! Hope you and your partner have a wonderful, classic R & R holiday weekend, and may all who love Connect find refreshment in whatever special way they choose to observe it.

Barb

Hi, Barb

I love "corn popping"! What a perfect way to describe the snap, crackle, pop of the day's little reminders. I wonder, though, if I'm the only one who's given up on the idea of lists. I used to be a furious list-maker, lists of all sorts. I gave up making lists a couple of years ago because I only found they depressed me, not the day I made them but the following day when I'd be made to face not the handful of things I had gotten done but the gazillion things I had NOT gotten done. 🙂 I decided I'd take a chance and trust that if an item were really important enough, it would have a way of reminding me without some angry post-a-note dangling from my Mr. Coffee. I do make one exception, however, and that's a grocery list. Without a grocery list, added to day-by-day, I end up drifting about the aisles of the supermarket for hours. Maybe days. (List-less-ly?)

Ray