My Sewing Bucket List

A wintry mix of snow and rain forced me to cancel our monthly fashion sewing group meeting recently. In doing so, I imagined that some people would take advantage of this found time and put the pedal to the metal to whip up something on their sewing machine.

I had all good intentions of doing the same, but as usual my old friend Ms. Procrastination showed up at my house. Ah yes, Ms. Procrastination and I go way back. As far back as I can remember, Ms. P (as I sometimes fondly call her) was always there for me whether I needed her or not. No sooner had I made up my mind that I was going to sew the pants I had been meaning to get to for the past 3 months, there was that old familiar knock at my door. Should I answer the door or let her freeze out in the cold?

Before I could decide, Ms. P's persistent style showed that she was not about to be ignored. The gaps between her knocks grew shorter and more frantic until I couldn't stand it anymore. I had to let her in, I thought. Otherwise, she would just drive me crazy. So I relented and opened the door. Ms. P settled in and made it clear that she was far too comfortable to leave anytime soon. I had forgotten all about those pants.

I have to admit though that Ms. Procrastination can be nice to have around sometimes. For example, we pulled out "The Bucket List" I had rented, popped it in the DVD player, and snuggled under the blankets to watch the movie. In case you're not familiar with the movie or what a bucket list is, this movie is about two terminal-cancer patients who become friends, create a list of things they want to do before they kick the bucket, and then take off on a road trip together with the intent to fulfill their wish list before they die.

It got me thinking about creating my own bucket list. I guess I sort of always had ideas of things I wanted to do before I leave this earth, but never actually put any of it down on paper. So here is my official list:

• See the world
• Learn to ski (I've been trying for almost 40 years)
• Write a book
• Finish my pants

When Ms. Procrastination fell asleep after the movie, I tiptoed over to the computer to begin planning my bucket list to-dos. Suddenly, there was another knock at my door. I thought who could that be? I opened the door, but the snow and wind made it difficult to see the figure at my doorstep and an overwhelming bad feeling swept over me.

A deep voice bellowed out, "Hello! Remember me?" I swallowed hard and then unable to fight the inevitable, extended my arm to shake hands with Mr. Financially Challenged. I noticed the many pieces of luggage and several trunks beside him. Agh! This was going to be a long visit! With both Ms. Procrastination and Mr. Financially Challenged under my roof, things have gotten awfully crowded and somewhat dismal, but I'm optimistic that the mood will change soon. I just put in an emergency call to my distant twin cousins, Do-It Now and Git-R Done, known to many as the consummate party crashers, but they always know how to get things done.

Ah, those two….If only they knew how to sew.