erasing the stars

Man, my desk is a mess. I've got a pile of tissues here, because I've been sneezy mcsneezerson all week. A bunch of pens I have neglected to return to the pen jar. The rings I was wearing last night. A few used toothpicks, which was my clever idea for helping to stop biting my nails, and it works, mostly, but it's maybe a little disgusting. The other day a man sincerely stopped beside my table in a bar and told me I was too much of a lady to be biting my nails. This is probably nicer than what I usually tell people, which is that their IQ drops every time they put their fingers in their mouths. so toothpicks. My favorite book by Josef Skvorecky, who just died. He and Havel off somewhere having a good beer together, I expect. I used to make little stars next to all my favorite lines in books, and then when I'd finish the book meticulously copy all the starred lines into my journal and erase the stars, give the book away. Now I have a house so I keep the books with the stars inside instead, which probably is a little irritating to people who borrow my books, all those Deep Thoughts so generously pointed out for them, but is easier on my poor old lady hands. My Christmas presents for which I have not yet written a thank-you note, and which therefore cannot be put away. A whole bunch of new music that needs to be put into iTunes so I can carry it around in my ears, so you can whisper to just me. My big Christmas gift this year was a washing machine. It is very happy with me and is not constantly making a break for it like the old one. Also it gets the clothes clean. Also the spin cycle actually spins the clothes, which means they get dry faster. It is not as quiet as I had hoped a new washing machine would be but then I'm hardly going to worry about disturbing my neighbors when they make plenty of noise of their own. Like right now. What else is on my desk? The rejection letter from the school that Squire had most wanted to go to. My voter registration form. Some useful things, like my timer and a calendar, but they're almost buried under what doesn't belong. You wouldn't think of me as a messy person, but this desk, this desk is my dirty secret. 

I'll probably clean it off now that I've told you about it. 

My new year's resolutions, since you didn't ask, have almost entirely to do with improving the quality of the media I consume. Whoa high goals. But seriously planning to read a Pulitzer a month worked out last year, so I'm going to continue with the remaining fifty or whatever that there are. Stuff like that. I have felt lately not very interesting, or not very interesting to others - and a lot of my brain space is taken up thinking about others, which seems perhaps not the best balance. So I will try to think more about fictional creatures, who do not mind my obsessions and whom I do not expect to return the affection. This year starts with The Shipping News, and Book Depository was serendipitous enough to send me a bookmark depicting several knots, so that's quite nice. 

Comments

[Julia@kolo]

I need to improve the quality of what I read too. Last year I read manymany books but most were not books to read again, or mark with stars. Apparently this is what access to Kindle free mysteries does to a reading list.

The Shipping News was my favorite book of the year when I read it long ago, I'm interested in hearing what you think of it now!

[Love, M.]

It is 11:47 AM here in G. Bay. My week was to include cleaning my desk, and the other thing I use as a credenza. I have not started - there are so many more interesting things to do - but I failed to pay a bill on time, and that is embarrasing. Sorry to say, there might be a genetic predisposition to messy desks. Either (or both!!) sides of your family could have contributed. I do not sort piles on the floor, however. Love, M.

[Corbin]

Every otherwise organized person has a secret messy place. Containment, rather than elimination, should be your goal. Is it too late for me to make a resolution? I think most people's have already been given up by now.

[snozma]

My life is like your desk but worse. Every surface of my house--effluvia of who knows what. Tiny mints littered around because I needed the tin for pills.

Sometimes I think it is bad I am so messy and sometimes I don't know why it is bad.

[anne]

Julia - The Pulitzers are really an amazingly safe bet!
M - I will never sort piles on the floor. EVER. I'm too traumatized.
Corbin - It is never too late to make a resolution. In fact, if you are like me, you work better towards deadlines anyway. So I don't have to read a Pulitzer at the beginning of January, just by the end. See? It leads to all-night sessions, but stuff gets done, and that's the actual goal.
Oz- I've said it before and I'll say it again: FLYLADY. After I wrote this I totally cleaned the desk. I even dusted. 15 minutes, tops.

[mig]

I really have to clean my shop, thanks for reminding me. And visit friends more.