A Leap Month of Little Joys and Satisfactions: Getting One of Those Jobs Done

I was wondering to myself why I dislike some tasks more than others. What I think it all boils down to for me is that some jobs have either little positive feedback, or the negative feedback overrides the positive feedback. 

One of a dozen gouges in the wall from moving furniture up/down the stairs

Here's an example: I've been needing to repair the gouges in a wall for about a year. There's really very little positive feedback for me in this job. No one in my household will gush over how great the repair looks. I could easily find a dozen other jobs that would have more tangible rewards. 

Patch and Paint quick-dry spackling -- this brand is 3M Patch plus Primer.
This stuff is ready to paint in 30 minutes, needs no primer.
I use a straight-edged putty knife to apply and smooth the edges.

I'll have to hunt down all of the tools and supplies that I need, which could prove problematic because our tools and home repair supplies are not well-organized. And I could (and did) cause some sort of injury to myself in the process (I punctured my finger when digging through tools in the garage). 

When the gouge has rippled the paint, as in the left photo, I use an X-Acto knife to trim away the ripple.
The final image shows the same gouge after spackling.

So, can you see why I'd think there is far more negative feedback in the completion of this job? To counter all of this presumed negative feedback, I needed to build in some positive feedback that may only exist in my mind; but that could be enough in itself. 

Okay, so positive feedback on this job:

• I would gain more experience with minor household repairs, which would boost my confidence for future repairs
• I may even get good enough at this kind of repair that I could instruct or inspire someone else to do it
• I would notice how nice the repaired wall looks, even if no one else does
• a house in good repair is always easier to sell than one needing lots of work
• I would finish a job that I start, do what I tell myself I'll do, and become more accountable in my own mind, leading to improved self-esteem

the various gouges all ready for paint

So, I talked myself into taking care of this job. I think I tipped the scales in favor of more positive feedback compared to negative, even with a punctured finger. I'll hunt down the paint in the next days or so. I'm feeling pretty good about myself for getting this done. That's a win!

A Leap Month of Little Joys and Satisfactions: Another Week of Good Food

I went shopping last Friday to pick up some special weekend-only deals and a couple of special foods for Valentine's Day dinner. I bought some fresh asparagus, unseasoned wild rice/red rice/brown rice blend (bought from bulk bins, less expensive per pound than Rice a Roni), 5 pounds of pasta (49 cents/lb with coupon), 4 cans of tuna fish (50 cents/can with coupon), 1 pound of bacon ($2.99 with coupon), and a quart of Core Hydration water (freebie), spending $10.69, leaving $59.56 remaining. 

Mid-week, I went to Walmart and Cash & Carry and spent a combined total of $62.97. I am now $3.41 over budget for the month. The good news is we are well-stocked going into March. I maxed out my spending at Cash & Carry and bought larger sizes of 3 items in order to save on the per-pound price. Plus I bought a couple of items to use next month. I won't feel I need to go back to Cash & Carry so soon. I'm now finished with February's grocery shopping and beginning to put together March's shopping list.

Here's what we ate this past week:

Friday

Friday -- Valentine's Day
boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded to tenderize, then dredged in seasoned flour, and cooked in a skillet, then topped with sauteed mushrooms
fresh steamed asparagus, seasoned with lemon-rosemary finishing salt (found at the back of the cupboard when cleaning)
multi rice blend, cooked with some onion powder, dried thyme and salt
dark chocolate cake (my daughter made)

Saturday  (daughter's night -- I did her night last week, so she'll do 2 times this week)
pizza
cole slaw
orange wedges
leftover cake

Sunday

Sunday
turkey, potato, carrot, stuffing hash
orange wedges

Monday

Monday
bean, cheese, corn, and tortilla casserole

Tuesday (daughter's night)
vegetable lentil soup
drop scones

Wednesday (other daughter's extra night -- she didn't have much time so she opted to pick up frozen stuff from Walmart at her own expense)
frozen pizza (Great Value brand)
frozen peas (also Great Value brand)

Thursday

Thursday (clean out the freezer and fridge dinner, part 1)
meatloaf (freezer)
stuffing made with frozen corn muffins and biscuits
turkey gravy (freezer)
tomato-basil soup made from frozen tomato paste and frozen basil
oven-roasted frozen sweet potato cubes
last of the grapes that daughter bought over a week ago
cookies from frozen cookie dough


You can see that in addition to cleaning cupboards, I am also cleaning out the freezers. Last night was the beginning of meals based on leftovers in the fridge and freezers. I have a few more containers of leftovers to open for tonight's dinner, some of which I'm not even certain of their contents. This should be interesting!

What was on your menu this past week? Anyone else currently working on the contents of their freezers? 

One last photo to offer you -- I have purple primroses popping up all over the yard. The purple ones are the hardiest in my area. They're usually in a shady spot, so it's a bit like going out for a treasure hunt to find them. This clump was beneath a bush near the kitchen door.