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Just a few thoughts I feel worthy of jotting down!
Spontaneous……impromptu……unplanned……off-the-cuff……these are words that used to make my blood curdle…..words that would totally upset my apple cart and send me off the deep end! Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I am and always have been a planner…..I want to think all my options through, consider everything very carefully, and plan out every detail to the nth degree……I am the Queen of check lists, pros and cons lists, and synchronized calendars…..and, when I have made my plans, don’t you dare throw a wrench in them unless you want to watch me spiral into a tizzy that may take all day to settle down from!
Until lately…..
Lately, I have grown to love spontaneity and have been known to take the term “winging it” to a whole new level!!! It was one of the hardest changes I made to my lifestyle when I retired – it was a LONG time before I stopped thinking that I had to plan out my time in order to get everything done….that I had to do certain things on certain days…..and losing the fear that if I didn’t do it NOW, I may not have time again to do it until it was way too late to bother!!! But, once I reconciled with all of this, I am enjoying my life so much more than I ever have!!!
I have learned that plans are changeable – it isn’t the end of the world to change a plan at the last minute! I have learned that it is OK to head out without any specific plan at all and just “wing it”! I have learned that, with a few important exceptions, even if it is already planned, scheduled, or booked, it can be changed, moved, rescheduled, unbooked! It’s OK! It won’t cause me to fall into a deep, dark hole that I need to claw my way out of! Spontaneity is a good thing…..it keeps you on your toes…..it allows you to experience grand new adventures that thinking and planning might have overlooked!
Case in point……take today, for example:
I woke up and began my day like every other day…..took care of my dog, did up the dishes I put to soak before I headed up to bed last night, got dressed and primped, and turned on the computer to read the news, daily favorite comics, and check out Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. etc. etc……I thought briefly about what I might want to do with the day – nothing was on my calendar and I didn’t have any tentative plans! So, I just decided to make it a lazy day…..I went out to fill the bird feeders and was going to sit on the porch for a while to take photos of the blue jays and squirrels and other birds as they began the inevitable frenzy that fresh bird seed and peanuts always tend to cause! Then, later, I would decide if I wanted to go for a ride to see what catches my eye to photograph or if I’d rather just sit out on the patio and read or what, exactly, I might want to do that didn’t require a lot of energy…..then, cap the day off with dinner with Mom for Fish Fry Friday!!!
Then…..the upheaval happened……I got a phone call from my “adventure buddy”, Cathy……she said she was going to Batavia to the Farmer’s Market and Kohls and asked if I wanted to do a ride-along! I’ll admit, I hesitated – my first reaction was to slip back into my old ways…..I thought, rut ro – I already thought through what I wanted to do, today – no, they weren’t important or even really solidly finalized plans, but they were plans, just the same!!! But…..luckily, the new me jumped up to take over and I said, why, yes! yes, I would like to ride along!
And…..the spontaneity continued……I finished filling the bird feeders and waited for her to pick me up. We headed to Batavia where we did lots more than the original suggestion……we went to Office Max, Kohls, Marshalls, the Farmer’s Market, and lunch at O’Lacy’s……then, Cathy wasn’t able to find everything she was looking for, so we decided to hop over to Brockport to shop at Wegman’s!!! I bought something in every store we stopped at (my original plans wouldn’t have cost me anything…..spontaneity is sometimes quite costly)……and, I still made it home in time to cap off the day with dinner with Mom for Fish Fry Friday – if she’s still interested in going!
And…..the best part???? Today wasn’t unique…..it isn’t the exception to the norm, anymore……MOST of my days are filled with last minute adventures and changed plans and “let’s just head out and see where we end up” kinds of days!!!
AND….I…..LOVE…..IT!!!!!
Kim's Thoughts 
Dear, I am sooooo proud of you! Life is toooo short to waste all that time planning things, just wing it and fly by the seat of your pants. It’s fun!!! Tom The Backroads Traveller
🙂