Turning “that age” has really thrown me for a loop. A couple months ago when I was approaching this milestone, I came up with a mantra for my daily life:

• Fix Something
• Make Something
• Clean Something
• Read Something
• Move more
• Be Thankful

So every night I mentally go over the checklist and see how many items I can check off. (I’m surprised I haven’t actually made a physical list to check off). Turning “that age” reminds me that the road ahead of me is much shorter than the road behind me and I  want to make the most of each day and not waste a moment.

I’ve had string lights on my deck for several years. I like how they look at night on my covered deck instead of a black yawning hole off my dining room. A week or two ago, I noticed one-half of one of the strands of lights had gone out and then a couple days later, the other half went out.  Good ole Amazon to the rescue.

I’ve been looking at my deck lately and realizing we don’t use it very much except as a way to get to the backyard. It is a nice size, 18′ x 12′ but I have too much furniture and none of it is very comfortable. But deck furniture is expensive, so I have to make do. The other thing is because the deck posts are so close together, they tend to block the view of the yard.  Nothing short of redoing the deck would fix this , so again, I have to make do., but maybe, I could rearrange the furniture. What a novel idea.

I went out to the deck this morning to put up the new strand of lights but then I got distracted looking at the dirty furniture cushions. I decided to wash them before I began putting up the lights because they were pretty funky. Naturally, most of the cushions did not come with zippers so I had to cut them apart and remove the stuffing before I could put them in the wash.

Then, of course, I decided  I really wanted a new rug. The rug has been on the deck for probably ten years, so it’s time. I decided to go to Lowes and see what they had left.

I was in a hurry so I didn’t change my clothes even though I was wearing black shorts, and I never wear shorts in public. Capris yes, shorts no. I parked my car, turned off the engine and then realized there was dog hair on my shorts. Having two white/yellow Labradors, I always have dog hair on me so I always carry a lint roller in my car. A couple of quick swipes and waa lah! I was good to go.

I bought a rug on sale and carried it out to my car. I reached for my car keys which I ALWAYS attach to the shoulder strap ring, and they weren’t there. It didn’t take me long to realize what I had probably done, and sure enough, lying in the passenger seat of my car were my keys. I had set them down when I was distracted by the dog hair on my shorts. Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time I’ve done this.

Okay, fine, I thought. I’ll call the Great Hunter and see if he can swing by the house to pick up my extra keys and drop them off to me. Great idea, but after searching my purse, I realized I FORGOT MY PHONE! Sigh.

I went back into Lowes and asked to use their phone, explaining I’d done a “double dumb thing” by locking my keys in the car and forgetting my phone. The Great Hunter isn’t supposed to use his telephone while he’s driving, so I knew there was a good chance that he couldn’t answer and he didn’t. I left him a message telling him what I had done and that if he didn’t call me back in a few minutes, I’d just walk home.

After I hung up, I realized he couldn’t call me back, so I left my rug at Customer Service and walked home. It’s only a little over a mile to my house and I made it in (according to my Fitbit) 23 minutes. I haven’t been able to walk for more than a few minutes at a time without hip pain so this was great. By the time I got home though, I knew I didn’t want to walk back to the store. Luckily for me, I got a ride back with my daughter.

I spent the rest of the day on the deck, stringing lights (of course, even though I had checked the strands of lights before I put them up, only half of one strand lit up), washing the siding and floors, washing the cushions, taking down the curtains and rearranging the furniture. Then, of course, after I’d washed the curtains, I decided I’d do what the Great Hunter has wanted me to do for a long time, shorten the curtains and make them into valances.

I think I’m pleased. I know the Great Hunter is.

But I did add one other item to check off on my daily list,

• RELAX!