Put Together

I marvel at some of the women I observe while running errands and living life. These are not the scary "People of Wal-Mart" we see on those random emails or Facebook posts. No. These are the opposite. These are the people Husband and I refer to as "Put Together."

At 9 AM I take Little Man to school. I'm lucky if I can get dressed in clean clothes. I'm happy if I get a shower before taking him. I'm really happy if I can get a shower AND get dressed. And the best morning of all is if he's dressed, I'm showered and dressed and he's had breakfast. I don't know why, but even though I'm up in the wee hours of the morning to get Husband off to work, I just cannot seem to get "Put Together" by 9. Actually, I can't even get "Put Together" by the time I need to pick him up in the afternoon. Yet there they are, pulling into the parking lot in the morning all "Put Together" and so are their children. I bet they've even fed their children.

These women manage, somehow, to not only be showered and dressed in clean clothes, but their clothes match. Their jewelry is coordinated. They have on make-up that compliments their clothes and jewelry. Their hair is done - meaning brushed and styled in some manner. Sometimes it is curled and coifed and other times, for that "casual" day, pulled back into a ponytail (with outfit-matching clip or scunci). Their nails have been painted to coordinate with their outfit, and toe nails too. Equally coordinated are the children that spill from their washed and detailed cars.

How these women manage to do this AND get to school on time by 9 AM I don't know. I have a very full day, and I make my daily list of things to do - I get my work done, my crafts done, the bills paid, the dogs fed, and most of my scheduled housework done. I'm up at 5:30 AM and collapse from exhaustion after running non-stop at 11 PM. I don't know where I'd squeeze in the time to get "Put Together."

I could paint my toe nails and do my work while they dry but that would mean I'd have to sweep first so the dog fur wouldn't stick to the wet polish. I could paint my nails but I'd have to finish my work first so the polish wouldn't smear all over the keyboard. And while my nails are drying, who's cooking dinner, putting laundry away, or washing dishes? If I take the time in the morning to do my hair and iron my clothes and coordinate my jewelry and make-up, who's making breakfast for Husband and Little Man? Who's packing their lunches?

Is being "Put Together" an item to put on my list? Is it priority enough to shuffle things already on my list of things to do? Will my family and friends love me more if I am coordinated? Perhaps I'm missing the "Put Together" gene. After all, I missed the musical gene and the athletic gene. Or perhaps I'm missing an important accessory like a housekeeper or nanny. Even then, would I use that freed up time to get "Put Together?" Or would I use it to do more writing, spend more time on Pilcrow & Dagger, spend more time with my men, or doing crafts?

Actually, I think I'm pretty put together. Husband and Little Man are happy and well fed. The house is, well, not sterile but disease free anyway. My writing is going well - I'm finishing up the ghost writing project, scored two editing jobs, learned to do my own formatting, worked some on my rewrite, and started Pilcrow & Dagger. So what if I'm not coordinated?


photo credit: fervent-adepte-de-la-mode via photopin cc