The best-laid plans, as they say, are subject to last-minute modification. (They say it somewhat differently in Scotland, but they say a lot of things more poetically there.) The idea was that I was going to get some paperwork done while watching the ballgame today. That would give me three hours (less liberal break time) to get caught up.

"Caught up" is probably overstating the achievable. "Caught up" is an absolute, like "perfect" or "unique." And while I believe everyone is unique, I've heard that nobody's perfect. And some people may get caught up; I suppose in theory it's possible. I, on the other hand, will never be caught up.

What I should have said was that I'd have three hours to inch my way toward the elusive goal of making progress toward getting closer to being caught up, rather than slipping even further back on that sliding scale, as happens nearly every day of my life.

However. The day dawned cool and gray. (Or so I assume. I haven't seen the actual dawn since forever, and it'll likely be forever before I see another one. But it was cool and gray when I did poke my head out of the hole this morning, so I've drawn a logical conclusion here.) It seemed like a good day to work in the yard.

When the game started, I watched a couple of innings and then took the portable radio outside while I pulled up a few dandelions and cut back some of the runaway blackberry brambles. By that time, of course, it was no longer cool and gray. It was warm and bright, and I didn't last long in the sunshine. I got the yard waste container about two-thirds full, with the hopeful thought that I might get back out later, after it cooled off a bit.

The plan crumbled further. I noodled around on the computer for a while, then decided I needed to get my rent check written. I laid out the upcoming personal bills and saw that there was no urgency is getting those checks in the mail right away.

Why, I'd very nearly wasted time doing something before the last minute! On a Sunday! I spent a few minutes shuffling some papers and suddenly the game ended and I didn't feel like working at all. Not one shred of company paper was pushed in this establishment today.

In fact, I spent the rest of the afternoon sitting on the back porch reading. When the wind came up and my eyes couldn't focus on the words any more, I watched the DVD of Giant that I've been putting off, only because it's three and a half hours long. I never did get back to the garden. It was a pretty lazy Sunday, which suits me just fine.

When I moved into this place, I expected to be spending a lot more time outside than I do. I didn't know there would be as many chilly evenings, even in the summertime. I didn't realize that the weeds would dominate the landscape this much, or that my allergies would be so susceptible to long periods in the yard. I get a lot of good out of living in the country, but I'm as much of an indoor person as I was in the city. I'd still like to try to find a way to change that.