Lists

June 5, 2020 – I’m making two lists of things that I need to do. One list is for the things that I want to do this weekend. It’s ambitions but do-able. The second list is a bunch of smaller lists that feed into an overall plan if I have to move out of town.

There’s a small irony to making all of these lists. My last boss was a list person, like me. He raved about a book, “The Checklist Manifesto” and how it changed his life. My boss was (and probably still is) kind of absent-minded. He had so much on the go and was very forgetful. So lists helped him with that. I read the book and it is a good read. And, yes, it reinforces the importance of checklists. I actually tried to use our love for lists/organization as a bonding mechanism. Unfortunately it didn’t work (see other posts). And, because I’m unemployed, I’m looking for jobs anywhere in the country. So now I find myself having to plan for a possible move – out of town or maybe even out of province. All because I lost my job. Thank you ex-boss!

I digress.

The second set of smaller lists are trying to anticipate what I will need to do if I get a job that is in another city or in another province. These lists are very premature. I only have Stage 1 interviews next week. so that means nothing in terms of planning a move. However, it means a lot in terms of my job search. The job opportunities have been few and far between. The fact that I have 3 (count’em 3!) interviews next week is a miracle. I should buy a lottery ticket. 2 of the interviews are out of province and one is local.

Mom was very happy for me. She knows it has been a long haul and she’s been there through all of my highs and lows. However, when I told Mom that one of the jobs was in Yellowknife, she responded with a loud “What?” and then a “Where?”

So I reminded her about our conversation that I had been applying for jobs anywhere. I said I couldn’t rely on EI forever – you can only collect it for so long. My financial planner says they’ll probably extend my claim because of COVID-19. I can’t count on that. So I had to expand my job search by (a) lowering my salary expectations, (b) “dumbing down” my resume, and (c) applying for any kind of job – anywhere.

That was on Tuesday. Needless to say, Mom has now seemed a bit distracted. I’ve asked her a couple of times if she would leave/move with me. “It could be an adventure.” She just shakes her head. I know she doesn’t want, or need, any adventures at 88. However, I’m only suggesting for purely selfish reasons. If she isn’t with me then I will worry. Plain and simple. I told her that and she said I didn’t need to worry about her. She got along fine before living with me and she’ll get along fine after I’m gone. I just don’t think so.

But I digress…. again! Back to lists.

I make the lists because there is so much to consider. All of the possibilities clutter my brain. The lists help me sort things out and I figure that if I put the things on paper then they can stop cluttering my brain. Most of the time it helps. It helps me feel organized and in control. It helps me look at all of the angles and consider all of the possibilities – as remote as they may seem.