A Crafter's Life, Books, Music, Podcasts, Library Adventures

A Case Against Procrastination

tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

Duh. Tierney we all know procrastination is not a good idea.

Yes, very true, and I have a recent example that reinforces why it is not a good idea.

In my 12/04/17 post Library Stack Catch Up, I shared a photo of a recently completed knitted hat:

2017-12-03_09-55-47_508

I also stated in this post: “I have another skein of the same yarn for my hat and I am thinking of making a coordinating ribbed scarf.”

I did start knitting a coordinating scarf. I was feeling lazy and decided to do a mindless knit a row/purl a row pattern (even though it tends to curl on the ends) instead of a ribbed pattern which required more thought. My plan was to finish up the scarf while watching television in the evening.

However as we moved from December into January in Central Oregon the weather was not too bad. No snow and on and off in January we had that “Sprinter” (Spring-like in Winter) weather I’ve mentioned in previous posts (see recent post A Beautiful Monday where were are on a hike in 60 degree weather).

So I procrastinated.

I did get nearly 13.5″ of scarf knitted but it is not enough to wrap around the neck of Mike the Miniature Schnauzer much less a human:

2018-02-25_07-07-07_379.jpeg

Then…Bam – Snowmageddon is back in Central Oregon! Sprinter is OVER! Winter is here, for real (heavy snow and frigid temperatures)!

2018-02-24_10-29-33_811.jpeg
No that is not a grainy photograph, that is snow falling live
2018-02-24_10-34-54_369.jpeg
Terry the Quilting Husband and Mike trudging through the snow

And because I procrastinated, I had no scarf to match my hat! I had to face the elements “less coordinated” as I could have been (smile):

2018-02-24_10-35-39_085.jpeg
On a chilly, windy, snowy dog walk (I am wearing an old ribbed scarf a friend made me).

I am now trying to finish the scarf, no more procrastination, I have learned my lesson!

Postscript

In my series of posts, The Library Stack, it is apparent that I love to borrow a huge stack of library books at one time.

In case you ever wonder how I manage the borrowed library books I have finished that are ready for return to the library (okay you likely have never wondered this but I will share anyway), I wanted to share my system.

We have an old IKEA shoe rack that we keep under the coat rack by the front door. On top of that shoe rack I have a wire basket that holds all library books ready for return:

2018-02-24_09-59-42_932

2018-02-24_09-59-51_548
Please ignore the winter mess of coats and Mike’s Winter-Walk-Drying-Towel on the coat rack above 🙂

We also keep a tray with a box of tissues (for runny noses during winter walks), earphones for audiobook listening, and keys for easy access. Yes I guess I could have tidied the area up before taking the photo but I decided to “keep it real”!

I started this library wire basket system years ago after hearing a cautionary tale from a friend:

Her husband was trying to be helpful and returned a stack of books for her to the library. Turns out these books were expensive new art books she just purchased, not library books!

Her husband went back to the library to plead his case and ask for the books back but the library had already given them to the Friends of the Library Group for the next fund raising sale. They were integrated with the other donations stored off site and not retrievable (they don’t give back donations or have the staff to search for “oops” donations). So my friend never saw her lovely stack of new art books again! (I think she tried to find them at the annual fundraiser book sale but they were gone).

So I can safely ask my husband to return my library books for me as they are only kept in one place!

Published by tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

Quilter, crafter, obsessive tea drinker and lover of all furry creatures (especially dogs and cats) - join me on my tierneycreates blog as I share stories from "A Crafter's Life".

27 thoughts on “A Case Against Procrastination”

  1. Feeling guilty here …. but aha not alone! I spent the last few hours watching a Tom Cruise film thinking about what to knit next rather than just sitting watching and knitting one of my easy ‘tv watching’ knits! Good idea re the basket for books – I used to scrabble around the various book piles in my house to find which were books borrowed from the library and which were mine/which were lent by friends!

    Liked by 1 person

  2. GASP!!!! You were seen in a hat and scarf that did not match??!! I am sure the scarf police were ready to make an arrest! I can tell you were smiling under all those layers. I wonder what Mike was thinking as he followed in TTQH’s path? Maybe he was hoping you would share your scarf?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I know! I had to duck and cover to avoid the Scarf Police! Mike was happy to be following in TTQH’s tracks in the snow instead of making his own – he gets his legs filled with snowballs when walking in snow! 🙂

      Like

  3. Well, I think your winter garb looked very colorful and stylish! Who says winter clothes have to coordinate? Any color other than white looks spectacular against the starkness of snow. I bet you will finish that scarf someday. Love the entryway. Looks organized to me. Sounds like you have a great system. How sad it would have been to loose those treasured books. I bet her husband was more devastated than she was. Thanks for sharing! 😊

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks Cindy and yes my friend had a great sense of humor about it and appreciated that her husband was trying to be helpful. He felt terrible about it. Interestingly my friend never repurchased those books, she just figured she was not meant to have them! I am going to finish the scarf someday 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  4. Shocked to see that winter is back in Oregon! I was pretty sure the north west was in the clear! (and had put away most of my winter knitting, too. Our midwest temps have been mild). But what a cool scarf you’re working on, in a lovely colour! It looks like it will be very warm and come in handy on future snow days. 🙂

    Thanks for sharing the library-return system. That’s an ingenious idea for making sure the right books get returned. I go to 3 different libraries (yes, it’s a bit much) and often have to remind myself of which books go where, so I might a 2nd or 3rd basket if I use this system! 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  5. Thanks for brightening my Monday morning!
    Lovely hat, lovely smile. Never mind the procrastinated scarf.
    Brrrrr to that snowfall. It is summer and HOT where I live.
    Ouch about the inadvertently donated artbooks.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks for your comments and for reading! Summer and hot – I am envious but then when it is summer and hot here I sometimes yearn for cooler weather. I guess I will embrace Winter for now 🙂

      Like

  6. Had a chuckle about the donated NEW art books. Well, Friends groups are always happy to have such generous donors! Your snow scene is more beautiful than our drizzly, dreary wet streets and 75 degree weather. You look cute in your knitted hats and scarves.

    Liked by 1 person

  10. Tierney,
    I have so many UFO’s on the needle. I always hope I will finish when we are in winter. Usually not the case. I do love your bundling of colors wrapped around your face and neck.
    Thanks for sharing,
    Hugs Kathy

    Liked by 1 person

  11. Pingback: TTQH Update – tierneycreates
  12. Pingback: Sewing & Stitchery Expo 2018, Part I – tierneycreates

  13. Hahaha! Don’t worry, I may be the queen of procrastin-knitting! 😂 And you might not be coordinated, but at least you still look lovely and toasty. Good system with the library books, too… I can only see my borrowing habits escalating (going to the library is addictive, isn’t it?) so there may be wire baskets in my future to keep everything organised! 😀

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Procrastin-knitting! Okay you have an awesome sense of humor! Between that and “Craftsquatch” comment on the post you have me cracking up laughing 🙂

      Like

Comments are closed.