Fiddlernotes – Lists, Lists, Lists

Slides into the room, takes a deep breath and sinks into a chair.

Hey y’all. Not to put too fine a point on things, but November?  It’s the start of the busy season.  Weather in the valley has finally cooled off enough (and school functions have slowed down enough) to do fall planting, getting the live recording sorted is in full swing, Brian’s annual birthday Scavenger Hunt was a roaring success (more on that in a sec), Wolfenoot (or whatever autumnal feasting day you hold) is right around the corner, which means the pile of winter holidays, kids performances, and events are lurking in the shadows beyond.  Like I said, busy.

Remember when I said I have a large collection of hobbies/pastimes?  One of them is gardening.  See, when I was a kid, I thought that the fae blood I had was fairy, like Tink; wings, pixie dust, the whole bit.  My fae is a little more earthy though, and I found that I tend more toward Hobbit.  Tookish, mind, but hobbit nonetheless.  I need good Earth between my toes and under my fingernails on a regular basis or I don’t feel right.  

Aaaaanyway, with the weather cooling off a bit I can get back out, get the kitchen garden re-planted, and expand the beds in the backyard (and front yard, which currently looks like a construction zone…but it’s getting there.)  That eats daylight hours and gardening has gotten pushed off a lot because kids and school takes priority. 

Speaking of school, the gothlings are also super busy, with classes to study for and after school there is Robotics, inventing new recipes, theatrical performances to tech for, etc, etc.  All of those need calendar coordination, transpo, and the cheering squad, which I am SO here for.

November is also for a VERY special time of year.  Brian, as Paul has mentioned, throws a Scavenger Hunt every year, and every year for the past several (excepting when it was paused for pandemic reasons) I headed up a hunting time.  THIS year I had the honor and privilege of being a Judge for the Hunt.  It’s awesome seeing the Scan from both sides of the sheet, and by sheet, I mean THE list. 300+ items  that aren’t just “Find me a left pink stripey sock” 

Example: “Build a cabinet of Curiosities, out of snack packet packs.”

Creating this hunt along with Brian and my fellow judges was the highlight of the last few weeks, but it also was the start of the list season.

THEN there’s the autumn dinner plans, which this year my house is celebrating Wolfenoot (https://www.wolfenoot.com/about) because…well I’d rather celebrate canines and caring than colonization?  That’s really a discussion for a whole separate post though.  Either way, whatever you’re celebrating, there’s usually a huge meal.  Lists and schedules are how I get through that.

Tis the season though!  There’s lists of seeds to plant, lists of where to plant them, shopping lists for dinners, Scav lists for hunters, gift lists, and wrapping supply lists…

Honestly, without the lists, my ADHD tuckus wouldn’t  know which end was up.  So this was a long winded ramble to get to, which are YOUR lists?  How do you navigate the tricksy waters of the holiday season?

Now, I’m going to go find a cuppa and start checking that recipe list…