Me & My Quite Contrary Life

NUDGED: "Tackle a nagging task" BACKSTORY: I have many tasks that are constantly on my to-do list, week after week. These "minor" things annoy me so I consider them "nagging tasks". For some reason, I never get around to completing them, so they are always there continuing to annoy me. Can I break the cycle of suck this week, and accomplish at least one thing?! QUOTE: "When we accumulate projects on our to-do list, they eat up our attention, even if unconsciously, and even if we never start them." - from "Thrive" by Arianna Huffington HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK: I have been in a season of tackling projects recently, so I had momentum going into this nudge. I cleaned out a pile of books that I finished reading but don't want to keep, and donated 20 of them to a good cause. I also just finished cleaning through all my papers in a four-drawer file cabinet, which resulted in two bags of paper to be recycled. I am on a roll! I qui...

NUDGED: "Teach Coco a new trick" BACKSTORY: We adore our 11-year-old dog, Coco. She brings so much energy and laughter to our home. She is a lab/doxie mix that we adopted almost 10 years ago, and we consider her a part of our family. We completed a dog training class with her years ago when she was younger. She still remembers many of those commands (sit, stay, leave it, lay down, roll over, etc.) but we haven't taught her any new tricks since then. This could be challenging! Can we teach an old dog a new trick? QUOTE: "If you think dogs can't count, try putting three dog biscuits in your pocket and then give him only two of them." - Author Phil Pastoret HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK: We tried. We worked really hard  to complete this nudge but still came up short (excuse the pun! Sorry Coco!). Since Coco is food motivated, we first tried to teach her "fist bump" while rewarding her with treats. I wanted her to tap her paw on top of my cl...

NUDGED: "Use good china and glasses" BACKSTORY: We have cabinets full of beautiful dishes that we don't use very often. They might be taken out and used when we are hosting a large holiday gathering at our house, but are otherwise always kept in the cabinets. I was nudged this week to use them without having a big occasion. Even if it was just the two of us having dinner on a normal day. I don't need to keep things for only "special" occasions. Every day is special - right? QUOTE: "The question of what you want to own is actually the question of how you want to live your life." - Marie Kondo HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK: It took us until Saturday night to complete this nudge. We are so in the habit of using our normal dishes that this nudge slipped my mind most of the week. On Saturday, we got take-out from Famous Dave's and ate our food from the feast platter on our fancy white plates. It was fun! So fancy. LESSONS LEARNED:  I was su...

NUDGED: "Wipe down the kitchen cabinets" BACKSTORY: We painted all our kitchen cabinets in the spring of 2018, going from a medium wood color to a dark blue/gray. It was a lot of work but we love it! However, I haven't spent any additional quality time with our kitchen cabinets since then. I know I should wipe them down occasionally...but I don't. Not all nudges are fun. Some nudges "encourage" me to finish tasks that I don't want to do. It is definitely a challenge! Will I feel joy this week as I wipe down my cabinets? Will it inspire me to do more cleaning? (taking a minute to pause for knowing laughter) QUOTE: "Tomorrow becomes never. No matter how small the task, take the first step now!" - Tim Ferriss HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK: I would rather buy new shoes or make crafts like my previous nudges. That was one thought that went through my head as I used a damp towel and wiped down all the kitchen cabinets. I waited until Thursday n...