There's So Many Dreams I've Yet To Find

A long time ago, the Platters had a hit with singing "The Great Pretender".  Too bad there's only three syllables in pretender because substituting  "PROCRASTINATOR" fits me so much better. I'm always planning things I want or need to do, and then waiting until the last minute to implement them. I've scammed a lot of people thinking that I've got my act together.

Take for example, a recent chili cookoff. I had a recipe for what I thought would be award winning, but since I was immersed all day watching Hallmark movies, I was late making it. Since I didn't get there until everyone had eaten and voted, I had to drag home what I brought and freeze it. So now I have to eat at least one container every week to be done with it by summer.

Wingman was Type A (totally anal) in our marriage. He could move a manual sprinkler around the yard every hour to achieve a carpet-like lawn.  Mine only got somewhat that way after I installed sprinklers, and only because the sprinklers went off on a timer. His garden was lush. My under-watered tomato plants were an embarrassment even to me.

I'm admittedly horrible at finishing what I've started. I've got a whole closet of yarn and craft materials in one form of completion or another. There are 25 blog entries started that need endings. My passport stands waiting in the file of cruises and trips that intrigue me. And my accountant wants to fire me for always bringing my tax stuff to him late.

So this year, like an old tee shirt my son has that says "the low man sets the bar", I'm going to do some of the many things I dream of doing that don't have hard timelines or deadlines. Things like:

See the sun set.  Pretty easy to do on my way home from work. I can stop by the river and chillax after a tough day.

Watch the sun rise.  This is a little harder because it means I have to get my lazy butt out of bed instead of checking social media. I did it last Sunday-took the dog with me for a long walk as well.  More about that later.

Take rides to towns I've never been to before like Cape May. Smithville. Lancaster.  Nothing that needs a passport. Drop in with a cake or pie or a bottle of wine and see people I only call or text. Visit local food festivals and craft fairs. More crafts? Maybe I'd better just keep driving past those.

Clean out my closet and donate things I don't wear. I can think of more than just a pair of pink jeans that need a new home. In the same respect, I'm going to dress up for no reason. What good was working in retail the last decade if I can't wear those nice things I just had to have? Pink jeans not withstanding.

Try new foods of different ethnicities.  I have Italian down pat, and know my way around grilled meats. But French, Thai, Vietnamese and Indian cuisine?  The worst I can say is I will never eat it again.

Watch documentaries.  I can't say that I'm totally through with Hallmark movies, but really, are there that many good looking widowers out there (with two perfect children) waiting for their ultra-successful single high school sweethearts to come back to their hometown and decide to stay?  The Royal House of Windsor provides the dirt, and Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez makes me realize that all those squeaky-clean single Hallmark guys aren't half-bad after all.

Do random acts of kindness.  Anything as simple as letting a stranger go in front of me at the grocery store or complementing someone who looks frazzled. I bought the cop behind me a cup of coffee at a Dunkin Donuts one Sunday. He pulled me over a couple of minutes later-just to say thanks and I spilled my coffee all over the seat of the car.  Gave a new meaning to warm and fuzzy.

Walk more-by myself or with the dog because both of us can use it.  And remember when I said I took him for a walk to see the sun rise? The boardwalk was a sheet of ice so we had to walk on the grass. We carefully made our way down the ramp UNTIL he got to the grass and lurched because he had to pee.  My feet came out from under me and I landed flat on my back which was not how I intended to watch the sunrise.  I have bruises everywhere except my butt, which I guess isn't as lazy as fat.

So maybe I should think about losing weight. No, that requires the discipline to shop and plan healthy menus. Something that, like Scarlett O'Hara said in Gone With The Wind, follows my procrastination motto:"I will think about it tomorrow. Tomorrow is another day."