a preguiça

i strive for efficiency:

don't want to waste my time ... don't want to waste yours.

and over the years, i have come up with several ways to save time -- ways to perform more efficiently those mundane things that fill my daily life.

1. make the bed: in high school my dad got really particular about requiring us to make our beds before school. which usually meant at least one guaranteed argument to start each day. i mean really; why make it when i am just going to be getting back in it in a few hours? that seems a bit defeating. but dad didn't see the logic in that.

   well, after a few years of such daily contention, i had a brilliant idea: if i never get in it, i never have to make it. yeah. really. so ... for the past 10+ years i have slept on top of my bed, not in it. i have a blanket that i can pull over me for cold nights, then i just fold that blanket in the morning, straighten the sheets and i'm good to go. in less than 15 seconds. absolutely brilliant efficiency!

2. cook: i like to cook. probably because i like to eat. but the task, quite honestly, seems a bit daunting -- especially when i remember that after i put in all the effort to create a fabulous meal, i have to put in the rather less-rewarding effort to clean up the fabulous meal. yeah. so i've come up with some efficiencies.

   • forks: as many of you know, i like to eat with forks. as such, most of my meals are "fork" meals. and since i am going to be eating my meal with a fork, i cook with a fork. makes fewer utensils to wash afterwards. efficiency!

   • measuring: the well that forms in the center of your palm when you cup your hand is about a teaspoon. so is the cap to a vanilla or maple flavoring bottle. 3 teaspoons make a tablespoon. a cube of butter is ½ cup and contains 8 tablespoons. there are all kinds of ways around dirtying your measuring utensils.

     if you break down and decide that you really must use a measuring cup, at least only dirty one ... work the fractions! half of a 1-cup is ½ cup. two ¼-cups is ½ cup. two-thirds of a ½-cup is ⅓ cup. see? mathful *and* efficient!

   • frying and grilling: why use a spatula? i have fingers. i'm probably going to wash my hands when done cooking, anyway, and it's not like i plan on holding the food for a long time anyway, so just grab it, flip it, and move along my merry way, knowing that i will have one less spatula in the dishwasher that evening.

   • clean as you go: while the mixing bowl is mixing, wash everything you are finished with. after you put the bread in the pans to rise, wash the mixing bowl and other utensils. after you pull the bread out of the oven to cool, wash the bread pans. a lot of post-creating clean-up can be done along the way so it's not a big task at the end.

3. keyboard shortcuts: when i worked at ibm, we used an SQL-based database that was in the process of being upgraded to a web-based, more user-friendly interface. however, i fell in love with SQL and particularly being able to access all the information and functions that i needed without having to use my mouse. after starting work there, i soon found that lifting my hands from the keyboard in order to grab my mouse and move the pointer wasted so much of my time.

   since leaving ibm, i have grown an obsession with learning new keyboard shortcuts and incorporating them into my daily life. for example, did you know that [Alt + F4] not only closes the active program, but if there are no programs open, it will bring up the shut down prompt? keyboard shortcuts in excel are awesome. some of my excel favorites are:

   • F4 -- repeats any action you just took

   • F2 -- lets you edit the cell you have selected

   • Ctrl + Z -- undoes the last thing you did

   • Ctrl + Y -- re-does the last thing you undid

   • Ctrl + D -- copies the data in the cell directly above

   there are many, many things i love about excel, but these are just a few of my favorite keyboard shortcuts. (don't even get me started on pivot tables, h- and v-lookups, and filters. really.)

4. lost things: i find that the most common reason why i ever lose anything is because i put it down in a different place than i normally do. and the most frustrating aspect of this is that i specifically remember thinking, "oh, i'll put it here because it is a different place and i will remember that i put it here." nope. so i have resolved myself to just accept the fact that there is limited shelfspace in my brain and trying to squeeze one more thing in there means that something has got to go.

   so i put my stuff where i always put my stuff and everyone is happy. no more stopping to look for things. no more giving up because i can't find them. no more unnerving feeling that i not only don't remember where i put xyz, but i don't even remember what xyz is anymore. efficient, right?

now, as i ponder this list of life's efficiencies, i wonder if perhaps i am not so much efficiency-driven as i am lazy. i don't think any of these habits really saves me that much time in and of itself. maybe it does. maybe it doesn't. but either way, "lazy" isn't a nice word. so we'll use the portuguese: a preguiça. eu sou pregiçosa. mas toda a gente gosta de mim, embora disso.

:D