I was just checking out my own flickr photo stream and realized I really haven't taken or posted any pictures in... like, a year or two. I know why that happened, but it's time to turn that sucker around, too.
Well the day is off to a fabulous start -- managed to get to work late and I'm working on a lovely rip in my stocking. Fortunately, my pasty skin is about the same color so it's not terribly noticeable yet. I started to sit down and compose an entry last night and realized that I just didn't have anything to say. And I thought, "Self, you need to just write something anyway and get the old creative juices flowing." But somehow, flipping back and forth between American Idol and The Biggest Loser, neither of which I watch regularly or actually enjoy, was much more satisfying. At one point, I think my brain was actually leaking out my ears.
On days when Wilbur is out of town, it's really difficult to actually accomplish anything at home. A fenced back yard would help somewhat, because right now, in order for the Beast to get any exercise and be outside to do his thing, one of us has to go with him. Now, I am in no way comparing caring for a 120-lb grown dog to caring for a child -- I know they are entirely different animals and I have the luxury of actually leaving him at home to his own devices during the day -- but in the sense that it is another being depending upon you to feed it and provide it with basic necessities (like a nice spot to stretch its legs and poo) it is the same sort of unavoidable task. And it's always surprising how much time out of the day it takes, especially considering that he is, unlike a child, more or less self-sufficient.
Moving on from how put-upon I am to care for the dog... the normal tasks of just putting the days clothes' away, getting something to eat, cleaning up after eating it, getting and vaguely sorting the mail, and caring for the dog take up an inordinate amount of time. If I add anything to that like laundry, the dishwasher, etc., there's about a half-hour window in there before it's time for bed where I have a really hard time switching gears to start and finish anything else. And if I have work to do in the evenings, there goes that window and most of the other things (well, except for the dog).
All of that whining is to say -- no wonder we can't make any progress on any of our house projects or, say, life projects! No wonder we never make dinner plans with friends (or, if we do, no wonder it derails a whole day)! Do you think if I scheduled my evenings like I do my days -- treating laundry like a conference call and playtime with the dog like a board meeting, I'd be able to be more efficient and fit more things in?
The first thing going on my to-do list is to win the lottery and pay someone to do all this stuff for me.
Well the day is off to a fabulous start -- managed to get to work late and I'm working on a lovely rip in my stocking. Fortunately, my pasty skin is about the same color so it's not terribly noticeable yet. I started to sit down and compose an entry last night and realized that I just didn't have anything to say. And I thought, "Self, you need to just write something anyway and get the old creative juices flowing." But somehow, flipping back and forth between American Idol and The Biggest Loser, neither of which I watch regularly or actually enjoy, was much more satisfying. At one point, I think my brain was actually leaking out my ears.
On days when Wilbur is out of town, it's really difficult to actually accomplish anything at home. A fenced back yard would help somewhat, because right now, in order for the Beast to get any exercise and be outside to do his thing, one of us has to go with him. Now, I am in no way comparing caring for a 120-lb grown dog to caring for a child -- I know they are entirely different animals and I have the luxury of actually leaving him at home to his own devices during the day -- but in the sense that it is another being depending upon you to feed it and provide it with basic necessities (like a nice spot to stretch its legs and poo) it is the same sort of unavoidable task. And it's always surprising how much time out of the day it takes, especially considering that he is, unlike a child, more or less self-sufficient.
Moving on from how put-upon I am to care for the dog... the normal tasks of just putting the days clothes' away, getting something to eat, cleaning up after eating it, getting and vaguely sorting the mail, and caring for the dog take up an inordinate amount of time. If I add anything to that like laundry, the dishwasher, etc., there's about a half-hour window in there before it's time for bed where I have a really hard time switching gears to start and finish anything else. And if I have work to do in the evenings, there goes that window and most of the other things (well, except for the dog).
All of that whining is to say -- no wonder we can't make any progress on any of our house projects or, say, life projects! No wonder we never make dinner plans with friends (or, if we do, no wonder it derails a whole day)! Do you think if I scheduled my evenings like I do my days -- treating laundry like a conference call and playtime with the dog like a board meeting, I'd be able to be more efficient and fit more things in?
The first thing going on my to-do list is to win the lottery and pay someone to do all this stuff for me.
posted by JAM at 8:55 AM
2 Comments:
If it makes you feel any better, I have three kids but have never owned a dog because I'm scared of the responsibility.
Main difference: Kids can go to the bathroom in their diapers and then you can clean that up when you're ready. With dogs, you have to be there when they want to go. And you have to think about their potential need to go, and the timing of it, and etc.
(Also, you can communicate verbally with kids when you're potty training them.)
Ha! You mean the Beast isn't picking up on my verbal communication? :)
Well, I may be projecting and should probably give my friends more credit. Since we are one of the only childless couples we know, I feel like anything I say about taking care of the dog is going to be construed as somehow implying that I think it's just as hard as dealing with double ear infections and evil kindergarten teachers and careless babysitters and whatnot. But you're right -- there are definitely trade-offs!
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