Saturday, April 02, 2011

Feeling bad about your life/house/slatternly self?

Well, I am here to make you feel better.

Does your sink look like this?

Does the walkway to your front door look like this?

Does your son's room look like this?

Does your "garden" look like this?
Did goats knock down the bee hives on your back deck? 
Are you having company for dinner in 3 hours?

See? You're in great shape.

People, I'm so under water, what with finishing my book and cleaning out my mother's house and then I start feeling bad about broken promises regarding this blog. So I suppose this is my way of apologizing and explaining.

I made Danish pastries this morning. For the book. Of course. They're pretty but they puffed way too much and I don't know why because I made them as I always do and now I'm worried about the recipe which means I'll have to test it again.


As you can imagine, the prospect fills me with joy.

30 comments:

  1. I do feel better. Thank you.

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  2. I feel better too. And I like you just that much more. I love seeing that people I admire are not compulsively clean.

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  3. It's amazing how many things we get ourselves into. Glad to know that my house is 'normal', because sometimes I feel that everyone else is so organized and I am just a mess. Thank you.

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  4. Yes, in fact, my sink does look like that. And if I were willing to traverse the Legos underfoot, I could go toe-for-toe in the boys room too. Thank you for your blog honesty. And the danish look great to me as is. Good luck with them!

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  5. I'm not sure you should sweat what your house looks like. I have three kids and one room looks just like that and the other two look like the proverbial "queen" is coming. Now, this is through absolutely NO influence on my part. Embrace your inherent messiness and now you just have to convince your quests that they really want to wash some dishes before they eat!

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  6. there's just not enough time for everything....I was saying the other day I need a kitchen slave, and my 11 year old is not cutting it...

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  7. Georgia Jewel4/2/11, 6:00 PM

    I feel better. Please don't be so rough on yourself. I'm looking forward to your book. Life has a way of getting in the way of our best intentions and sometimes that's just got to be okay. Hang in there.

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  8. Does the puffing too much affect the taste? Cause they look amazing.

    I generally don't feel all.that bad about my slovenly ways anyhow, but I wanted to point out that your clutter is so pretty (except for the dishes... not sure dirty dishes can ever be pretty no matter how eclectic) and your son's room doesn't look any worse than I'd expect most pre-teen boys rooms look.

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  9. Jennifer-
    I know. I know......when your home is disorganized etc, you (or at least I and my (former) colleagues do). BUT! You are working 3 jobs ( at least) simultaneously- none of which has the 'benefit' of staying at the 'office' and ALL of which have added emotional freight - and RIGHTLY so!- a book, part of you, your home, part of you (as wonderful as your husband may be, he doesn't identify with the state ofyour(adorable-is that an allowed word for a 12(?)yo), and attendingto your mother's affairs-surely the most emotionally fraught.
    Please! Give yourself break! I love your Blog! It j
    Helps me stay sane w/o work. Please keepblogging - but not if time & toll are overwhelming. Youv'e got a TON On your plate. You can do it.

    I can't wait for your book! No! Wait! Ican wait! Just....hang in there!

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  10. I do feel better, except that I also feel a little like an underachiever now...I thought I was busy. PS - Your pastries look amazing.

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  11. Yeah, well, it's one thing for my home to look kind of like yours. It's a whole other thing, that platter of pastries you made.

    See, if I'd made those, I'd say, "Screw you all! So what if my house looks like drunk squatters took it over for a month? I made Danish PASTRIES!! Want one?" and no one would even notice the goat wandering through the living room.

    But me? No. I have no pastries to show for it. Nor any impending dinner guests.

    Rock on.

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  12. Rock on is right! I love your blog and look forward to your book and I feel bad about your mom and my house slides in and out of chaos too.

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  13. My brain looks like your sink. And your willy nilly bee hives. But also at the same time, like your stagnant weedy garden. So thank you for making me feel better.

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  14. I laughed until I cried. Thank you. Did me good. Now will go deal with a floor full shredded paper (my two year old is learning to 'snip'; her words) and also the dead diaper which greets all visitors who come in by the front door. And there were surprisingly many today.

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  15. those danish look wonderful - don't sweat the mess.....

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  16. Tipsy- There comes a time when your kids will grows up and out that you'll wish for the mad chaos of a full house

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  17. My sink and front walkway look at least as bad, and your son's room looks better - can't find the floor in my son's room. Also can't find the garden beds in amongst the weeds. Fortunately the goats and their guard dog are staying in their pen this week. We just had all the family over for Christmas, so we spent a week trying to get the place cleaner than the usual. Jobs, kids, church and community involvement, and farm animals don't leave much time for tidiness. But your kids will remember the great food and good times more than the mess when they grow up.

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  18. I don't mean to sound completely off topic but I love the brickwork on your house (in the front walk picture)!

    Good luck with testing your pastries!

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  19. I hope you don't mind but i'm saving your pictures so the next time anyone makes a comment to me about "the mess"...well I will have something to back-up my theory that it's not a mess....this is called "lived-in" . I should start a file in pinterest under the headline "lived-in".
    But you know what will happen some day....and it will shock the shit out of you.
    Your slob of a son or daughters (all mine...not yours) that never ever cleaned their rooms or picked up their clothes or ever ran a vacuum. (I'm surprised as adults that they actually know how the use a vacuum) will one day criticize YOU about the messy kitchen you left in their house after preparing a meal for THEM or criticize YOU about the mess THEIR kids left in the livingroom while you were babysitting THEIR toddlers. All three of my kids have turned into these neat freeks from hell that drive me crazy. My son actually removed all the toys from his house to teach his 5 yr old (my perfect little 5 yr old grandson) that he had to clean up his room .....he got a little testy when I called him a hypocrite. I always think there's something wrong with people if their house is too clean. Who has the time for that shit.

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