Yesterday afternoon, the tree branches were bouncing in the breeze, making that soothing rustling sound that makes me want to stretch out on the grass and roll around in the sound. It was tempting. I had lots to do, and for once, I didn’t feel like doing it. This has been a really busy summer.
But you know how many goats, chickens, cows, and dogs would be on top of me if I sat down on the grass?
Checking off rolling in the grass, I tried to make a list of things I’d do with my summer if I had nothing else to do. Or at least not so much to do. Like, if I had free time. Not that I want free time. I like to be busy.
But sometimes I wish I had free time. Even though I don’t want it.
I’m so conflicted.
So here’s my list:
1. Take a photography course online so that maybe someday I might know what I’m doing.
2. Try out some more creative, gourmet canning recipes. I’m always just rushing to keep whatever from spoiling, so I mostly can the basics.
3. Watch a movie. Or three. That sounds so decadent.
4. Read more books. You know what Morgan’s been reading this summer? Here’s a sampling:
Trouble with Mr. Darcy
Loving Mr. Darcy
Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy: Two Shall Become One
I know this because we share the same account so I see everything she downloads. She has a fixation with Pride and Prejudice. And she has nothing to do.
5. Do something about that 5-gallon bucket of new potatoes downstairs before they rot.
Oh, yeah.
Bye.
P.S. What would you do if you didn’t have so much to do? I need to add to my list. Like, for when I have some free time. And it can’t be expensive fantasy stuff like renting a villa in Tuscany for the summer. That’s cheating. I want to hear real people stuff!
lizzie says:
Well for one I would like to spend some time at the many river’s we have here, but I am to busy selling shave ice in the summer to enjoy them! It also would be fun to enjoy all the events we go to, but once again I never get out behind the cart! canning more, spending more time in the garden, all of these things! Summer is my busiest time of the year! 8)
On July 29, 2011 at 1:51 am
kj says:
NAP. I love that word and I dream of doing just that for 1 whole day.
On July 29, 2011 at 3:10 am
doxie says:
I’d do some digital scrapbooking, which I haven’t had much time for, for a while now and maybe (if I could get myself to brave the heat) go out with my camera looking for butterflies. Love doing that in the summer and haven’t managed it yet this summer. 🙁
On July 29, 2011 at 5:22 am
KellyWalkerStudios says:
I’d organize my studio – no wait, that’s work. OK, I would try to cook some really exotic recipes of things I love to eat but have never tried. And try my hand at making soaps and lotions….and maybe candles!
On July 29, 2011 at 5:39 am
Sonia says:
Lay down beside a gurgling stream and let the sound just take me away! 🙂
On July 29, 2011 at 5:40 am
Granny Trace says:
READ more than one page before I drop my kindle when I fall asleep..Rock in my freshly painted rockers on my clean porch. It will only last for a short time..:)
Granny Trace
http://www.grannytracescrapsandsquares.com
On July 29, 2011 at 6:38 am
Leah says:
I want a Kindle!:)
On July 29, 2011 at 7:01 am
galagal says:
I’d like to open my water colors and spread them out on a outside picknic table somewhere on the Natches Trace and take, no have a whole day to wet the paper and paint trees, and everything green. Being careful to get all the different colors of green and the yellow huges of the sun, and have the a feeling of a cool breeze across the paper. yep. something peaceful
On July 29, 2011 at 7:03 am
miki says:
Good Morning!
1. I would brush my schnauzers more so they aren’t matted up like a brillo pad when it is time for haircuts.
2. I would have play dates for my photography. Used to do this in FL with 2 friends (also photographers). Sometimes we went in the middle of nowhere and sometimes to an event- or maybe a cemetary at dawn with infrared film. It was such fun and we all got together later to compare photos.
3. Actually go to some movies- not just watch on tv. When I watch at home I always feel like I should be doing something else.
That’s all I can think of this early!
On July 29, 2011 at 7:14 am
rurification says:
I would sit down and paint. It’s been ages since I had time to sit and paint.
On July 29, 2011 at 7:40 am
TinaBell says:
Read! I think I remember, once upon a time, that I got to read BOOKS….It’s been so long since I read a novel. It seems so decadent now; I always have something more pressing. How can I relax to read when the weeds need pulled and the garden needs tended and the lawn needs mowed and, and….
*sigh*
I’d love to work more steadily on my knit and crochet projects, too. And sew! And watch movies!
On July 29, 2011 at 8:24 am
BeppyCat says:
I would design some new patterns and printables for my Etsy shop! I’d also get some embroidery and knitting done.
Tell Morgan she should watch the movie “Lost in Austen”. Such a good movie! I think she’d love it.
On July 29, 2011 at 8:45 am
native daughter says:
I’m visiting my new grandbaby in Wimberly,Tx. Went floating down the beautiful Blanco river all day.
On July 29, 2011 at 8:46 am
Miss Judy says:
Quilt
Take a class on watercolor painting
Scrapbook
Take a day and just browse the local fleamarkets and antique shops.
I thought I would do all of those things before school started again, school is coming on faster than a speeding bullet!
On July 29, 2011 at 8:49 am
bonita says:
here we’re not dealing with trees in the breeze, we’ve got limbs in the wind…wind 60 mph during thunderstorms every other day for two weeks…But if I did have time, I would quilt, maybe take a class at the arboretum,
On July 29, 2011 at 8:58 am
Donna says:
Take naps in a hammock under the trees, or just lay in it and look up and watch the leaves flutter in the breeze…
Go wading in the creek and catch frogs…
Pick blueberries – yes, it sounds like work, but picking them and not being in a hurry to do so is kind of relaxing… and then I could pick way more than I ‘need’ and could take bags of them around to all my elderly neighbors for their freezers and sit with them on their front porches for hours and listen to their stories of days gone by and not be in such a rush to get home to my chores…
Hmmm… maybe a change in the chore schedule is in order… :clover:
On July 29, 2011 at 9:08 am
quietstorm says:
Hmmm…. drink my morning coffee sitting on the porch listening to the birds…read, sit in the cool creek with a glass of wine, nap while the cool breeze is coming in thru the window, go for a bike ride, go to the BEACH!!(a mostly empty/quiet one)
Suzanne, I found this site this morning. Applies to #2 on your list…. https://www.foodinjars.com/
Love the chive blossom vinegar – PINK! Makes me smile just looking at it!
On July 29, 2011 at 9:24 am
DancesInGarden says:
Oooh time? I’d build a “dog house” for my shared chickens so they can have shade and something to sit/stand on in the chicken yard. And make another dust bath area or two – they love it so much. Try my hand at more quilting projects just for my own pleasure. Paint a few things. Take a nap or two. Sigh. TIME?!?!
On July 29, 2011 at 9:26 am
foofeee says:
If I had free time, I’d buy a natural book (one with paper pages), crawl in my bathtub and spend an hour reading. I won’t take my Kindle anywhere near the tub. My youngest always comments when I read a book other than on my Kindle that it is a Natural Book. After that, I’d take a nap on fresh, line dried sheets. That won’t happen, it’s a drought here with dirt hanging in the air, my sheets would be covered in dirt, but a girl can still dream! After my nap, I think I’d like some Buffala Mozzarella with Tomatoes and Basil. Oh yes, and no one else in the house, just me. I might even have to send the cats away!
Back to reality, 8 hours of work, hair appointment, sewing four skirts for a musical we are rehearsal every night that opens on Friday and maybe I can pull something out of the freezer for dinner!
On July 29, 2011 at 9:40 am
holstein woman says:
Well, I have 5 antique bathtubs that I have plans to fill with growing matter (cow manure and dirt mixed) and plant my rhubarb, lilies, horseradish, peppermint, and herbs other. One has a date of 1429 on the bottom, it doesn’t look like the others.
Or I have a friend who lives 60 miles from me that I would like to spend a few days with and she always welcomes me. It only costs me gas to get there in Astoria, Oregon.
On July 29, 2011 at 10:05 am
Catherine says:
I am fortunate enough to not be busy this weekend so the hardest thing I’m going to do this weekend is find a tree to hang my Mayan Hammock Chair from and then re-read the Terry Pratchett Discworld series (I’m on book 5). There will also be napping breaks. And swimming as I’ll be at the lake. And eating but only easy stuff like corn on the cob, new potatoes, steak, wild blueberries with granola and yogurt.
On July 29, 2011 at 10:14 am
tinamanley says:
A nap sounds awfully good. I’ve been canning forever and am ready for a break with my feet up!
On July 29, 2011 at 10:29 am
cabynfevr says:
I thought about that a bit and couldn’t come up with a list….or even one thing. After experiencing so much loss in my life the past few years, especially after the death of my sister, I make sure I take a little bit of time, make the time if I have to, just for me. The little things. Reading, laying in the grass or hammock, gazing at the stars. “….. there’s no dollar signs on peace of mind….” (Zac Brown Band)
On July 29, 2011 at 10:52 am
lattelady says:
Quilt more! I also love reading, so load books down to my iPod and listen while sewing.
Currently rereading the “Dune” Series, next up on my list is rereading “The Stand” by my favorite author. Stephen King. He thinks like I do. 😆
As soon as I get rid of the bed in the spare bedroom, I will finish converting it to a proper quilt studio with design walls.
On July 29, 2011 at 11:00 am
Zusiqu says:
I’d be sailing. No, really! That is my ultimate fun and relaxing activity.
On July 29, 2011 at 11:53 am
jeepdriver says:
I’d take my stack of books and magazine down to a dock and danble my feet in the water and let all the little fish nibble on my toes. Or toss my camera in the car and drive on local roads only, eat when hungry, etc. Explore. No destination. Oh, I guess that might be running away from home. Hmm….
On July 29, 2011 at 12:18 pm
mrsdmahogany says:
I would, in no partiular order:
Get caught up on my Coronation Street episodes (seriously addicted, no time to watch!), sit and learn how to do folk art painting; bought a learn to do at home kit, no time!! Finish our house to put up for sale, bake, cook, freeze the said baking and cooking, and perhaps just get caught up with Me. That would be nice!
Dianna
On July 29, 2011 at 12:31 pm
denny144 says:
1. Scan all our family photos and put them on a disc since I never got around to organizing them into albums.
2. Spend the day at the library reading all the magazines I’m too cheap to buy, especially the expensive ones like Architectural Digest, even the back issues.
3. Get an Australian Shepherd of my own (I borrow my son’s dog) and do agility training. This would require major free time, maybe even retirement.
On July 29, 2011 at 12:34 pm
farmgrammy says:
Nothing to do… what a thought! I would sit on the glider on the porch, with two fans on me and the goofy dog at my feet, and look at freshly mowed grass, weedfree daylily/pink snowball bush beds, lavendar crepe myrtles that are actually in full bloom, and read one of the 12 books waiting for me on Kindle. The ex-feral tomcat would come and cuddle with me.
Or… in the back… I would lounge on the still imaginary screen porch and look at the chicken pens, baby pecan trees, roses with no grass, and over the top of the chicken pens, would see NOTHING in the way until you get to the lovely cemetery. SIGH… and the breezes would blow and windchimes would tinkle. The neighbors donkeys would bray.
BUT. The flaw in that is that I must do the mowing and weedeating and hand weeding, and clean the porch, and, the tomatoes need picking again, the green beans are just right to pick, something is eating the brussel sprouts, and there is not a rose in sight that wants to bloom. There is never “Nothing to do.”
On July 29, 2011 at 12:38 pm
mamajoseph says:
-Go to the nursery, buy flowers to plant.
-Road trips to cute little towns with neat little shops and farms for fresh summer produce.
-Come home and make jams and jellies and artistic relishes and chutneys. Eat them all with homemade bread and fresh milk.
-Stop at every roadside produce stand on the way to above mentioned cute little town.
And this is exactly what I’m planning to do, NEXT summer when I’ll be on that other side of the pond. :wave:
On July 29, 2011 at 1:46 pm
mamajoseph says:
Oh, yeah, add flea markets and garage sales to the list. :snoopy:
On July 29, 2011 at 1:51 pm
MissyinWV says:
– Clean out “that” walk in closet in the spare room
– Organize my photos
– spend the day watching Lifetime for women
– take a cooking class
– my favorite …stay at the lake on a houseboat where life is simple and peaceful
On July 29, 2011 at 3:46 pm
Alexandra says:
Read, and read, and then read some more. Maybe watch a movie? Nah, read on and on and on.
On July 29, 2011 at 3:47 pm
gardnerh says:
Can we have a bit of money – not so much to travel to Italy (although that does sound good), but enough to pay for classes? I would take a pottery class, knitting, fruit tree pruning, piano, quilting….I love new things.
I would also go to more farmers markets. We seem to intend to go and get so busy in the morning that by the time we remember, they’re closed.
Also, if you would like an interesting canning recipe, I have one for European Fermented Raspberry Syrup. It’s delicious on crepes or with soda water. It’s easy and seems exotic.
On July 29, 2011 at 4:06 pm
Johannaswolf says:
Spend time actually RIDING my horse. Learn to drive the other horse and teach her to be a riding horse too. Sew the fancy historical barding I have always wanted to put on the horses. Raise chicks from the eggs the my chickens lay rather than buying chicks. Breed Pygora goats. Have a cow (like BP or GB) Learn to run the tractor and plow and all so I can be a real farmer instead of a wannabe…wait, that would kill all that free time I was just dreamin’ about!
On July 29, 2011 at 4:38 pm
Keeku77 says:
oh, free time, I barely remember what that feels like! I would go hiking, just me, my camera & my dog…..total bliss!!
On July 29, 2011 at 8:02 pm
Texasgal143 says:
How about a tent and the hubby, kids and me splashing in the cool lake. Green tree covered hills all around. No sound from the highway or city! Hamburgers and smores and night time fishing with lighted bobbers. That sounds like the perfect free time activity to me!!
On July 29, 2011 at 8:32 pm
whaledancer says:
Since I have ME/CFS I have to spend most of my time doing nothing, so my dreams are of doing something: mainly the things I read about here. First, I’d give my whole house a good cleaning, closets, drawers, windows, everything. Then I’d be out in the garden digging in the dirt, weeding and planting. I’d go to the grocery store and K-Mart. And cook…ooo, I’d be cooking up a storm, trying out some of the recipes I’ve invented in my head, baking bread, maybe trying my hand at cheese-making. And then I’d go to the beach and walk barefoot in the wet sand, with the waves lapping at my ankles. And I’d take my camera and drive around town photographing funky old signs and buildings, before they disappear.
On July 29, 2011 at 10:20 pm
Drucillajoy says:
if there were ‘like’ buttons for each post, I would definately click on it for the last post from whaledancer…it’s a good reminder that although most of us are overwhelmed & exhausted a lot of the time, some people aren’t. I was reminded of this a couple of years ago when I sat around with a very broken ankle. At that time & on several other times thru the years I’ve had to remind myself to be careful what I wish for, I just might get it.
Whaledancer I wish for you to feel well & be able to do all of the above 😀
As for myself; if I had nothing to do, I would nap, knit or go shopping at some thrift stores or antique shops :yes:
On July 31, 2011 at 7:35 pm