This morning got off to a bad start when I woke up (not by the Snooze alarm as usual) but realizing there was no Snooze (after the first two presses), it was light outside, and we are late! Not the first time this has happened that my Atomic clock seemed to have “forgotten” to continue the Snooze cycle and more or less took its own advice and snoozed. As I awaited the next warning letting me know that I really need to get up, the alarm never rang and I was on my own.
This morning it happened again and I jumped out of bed at 7:19 AM (we normally leave the house at 7:30—at the very latest—and before we do I have cats to feed, lunch to fix, breakfast to make, a litter box to groom, me to get ready, and J to get up and ready to leave. And then I need remember to bring everything we need that day. I was left with approximately 11 minutes to do all of that—give or take.
It is at these times that we are at our gold medal efficiency best. Every moment is optimized, multitasking is in turbo, I can just hear the hum of speed in my head when I push the gear and screech from the starting line.
This morning was no different and while breakfast was cereal (brought into the car), the litter box wasn’t touched, my outfit was plain (no hose, no earnings), and I used the microwave to heat J’s lunch (I try to stay away from that thing) we managed to race out of the house by 7:32. No way! Yep. And, we managed to get to school before the 8:15 morning bell with time to spare.
However, I must point out that this stellar performance, which I have done more than once as a single busy mommy, a student, and a mess of other instances, there is always the potential of some obvious oversight or turbo-like catastrophic spill. Like the time I did all of that but arrived at J’s school and realized I forgot my shoes which sent me racing to Target, running into the store (barefoot) to buy a new pair. Or the time, as I was about to open the garage door, hands full, coffee in one, that fell, that spilled, that sprayed. Spilled coffee, ummm the deal is off, this mishap trumps everything else after it. Whatever it was you were off to do must be postponed. There is no other choice. Coffee stains.
Today, I thought I was at my turbo multitasking best and gave myself extra credit for packing my own lunch, a nice glass container of my slow cooked chicken tortilla soup. I got to the office carrying my purse and the shopping bag with lunch and entered the restroom to do my make up when, as I was about to set down the bag, it slipped from my hand I heard that certain flat glass break sound (even Pyrex breaks, I thought that stuff could be dropped off buildings and bounce). My eyes shot to the bag that was now a puddle of my soup, staining the sides of the bag, slowly seeping out of the broken glass.
There was a no save here. It was a 100% complete tosser: bag, lid (that no longer had a partner), and my delicious soup, that I was so looking forward to.
I walked out of the bathroom and crossed the lobby when the receptionist said “Good morning, how are you today?”
I said, “Fine, and you?” She said she was fine, too.
—SBM
Single Busy Mommy 