Ten on Tuesday: Spring To-Do List Edition

Last night, at about 9 p.m., I hit “submit” and sent in my students’ final grades. I had a lot of seniors this semester, so the pressure was on to get grades in quickly, which worked out just fine for me: I am officially done for the season! I’ll have prep work for my fall classes, and a grant-funded project to keep me busy this summer, along with my personal projects. Still, my schedule is (essentially) my own until September.

To make sure I accomplish my goals, I’ll be drafting up a lot of lists, so when Carole asked for a spring to-do list, I was ready! Here, then, are Ten Items on my Spring To-Do List:

1. Clean and organize my studio. That, my friends, is how my desk looks this morning. It is NOT acceptable, yet that is end-of-semester at play. ETA: desk is cleaned! I can do more to organize, but at least I can function serenely in here now!

2. Join local CSA. I finally admitted, to myself and Neal, that I am not as good a gardener as I like to imagine. I’m investing in a CSA membership and limiting my veggies to a few pots with tomatoes and a bigger herb garden. ETA: I pick up my first share on 6/5!

3. Krylon our two plastic Adirondack chairs. They are hunter green and not at all adorable. I’m looking forward to giving them a spiffy, bright, adorable new look. ETA: for less than $15, the chairs are now aqua. They look so sweet!

4. Set up a new laundry line. Well, this one is actually on Neal’s list, whether he realizes it or not. He’s taking down the deck, where I usually string my line, to build us a screened-in porch. (Yes, I am beyond excited about this!)

5. Move the wood pile. After the fall storm, our amazing friend Brian of Arborworks dropped off a whole lot of wood to help us through the power outage. Neal stacked it next to the driveway, but it needs to be moved to the back of the yard. Since I want to strengthen my arms and prefer activity to workout routine, I have volunteered to take on that task. I’m expecting buff arms by the time I finish.

6. Dress the windows. I have had material to make Roman shades for my studio for about two years. It is time to make them. I’d like to get the other windows in the house new curtains, too.

7. Decide on fruit tree varieties. Since I’ve declared myself a gardening failure, the large open area on the side yard is no longer destined to be a mini farm. Instead, I’ll get the mini orchard I’ve wanted. One of my colleagues just planted a number of heirloom apple trees, so I’ll pick his brain as a start!

8. Cull clothes and shoes. I have some lovely pieces that I no longer wear since my minimalist approach to style took hold. It is time to go through the last remaining extraneous clothes and sell or donate them.

9. Create a list of spring/summer meal plans.

10. Get back in my letter-writing groove. I was going gangbusters on letter writing, then the semester ran away with my spare time. Now that I am the mistress of my schedule, I can get back to work on my 52 letters in 2012 project!

What’s topping your spring to-do list?