Plans

There was a time when much effort went into making plans. What with work, family, and other commitments scheduling one’s life took a bit of work. I can’t say when it became apparent to me that this was no longer the case. My guess is not long ago with the passing of Seymour, Charlotte’s father and the last of the ancients, that was a turning point. But it had begun long before.

 

I was guilty in my youth of being an expert procrastinator. I did manage to get things done though usually in a panic. When I decided to go back to school the first time, the deadlines for applications and the need to obtain historical data in time for said applications caused me no end of stress.

 

The second time I decided to go back to school was worse. At this point I already had a career. Problem was, I was not satisfied with it. To reach my goal I needed to return to the university to finish requirements and simultaneous apply to medical school. The internet was in its infancy. I poured over many pages of text in many school catalogs, and mined them for information, much of which concerned deadlines. 

 

The dates were noteworthy because missing any of them meant a lost year in the application process, and I did not have a year to lose. Between the USPS, faxes, emails, and even hand retrieved and delivered documents, I accomplished the task on time and as it turned out, successfully. It was a lesson learned without realizing that learning was taking place. 

 

Now I suppose long suffering readers are wondering what this diatribe is about considering I am sitting on Carrie Rose in the Maine fog. Well, Charlotte and I need to make a plan for how to end the summer. This year was a challenge from the beginning. I will spare you the details. We almost faltered but persisted just long enough to find a solution. Another lesson learned.

 

As I remind myself frequently, I am not getting younger. (I will let Charlotte comment - or not - concerning this topic.) There seems to be only so much energy, psychic or otherwise, to consume and then to recover. So, the plan for when Carrie Rose is coming out of the water rests on our collective energy evaluation. 

 

One of the fixes on Carrie Rose was the installation of a sophisticated battery monitor replacing the original quirky volt meter. The new device displays the percentage of power left in the batteries and for how long, at the present usage, the batteries will continue to provide power. It also, using Bluetooth, sends the data to my iPhone. Now would it not be convenient to have similar personal data sent.

 

I assume there exists an app for this on my phone. I am just too busy procrastinating to search and install it. My mind is preoccupied with the near future when I will be forced to declare a plan. I may leave it to Charlotte as she is well versed in spread sheets and seems to relish in making list and declaring deadlines! 

Seal Bay, Vinalhaven Island, Maine