Is This You? Rip Off The Band-Aid

I don’t mean like a literal band-aid. I am talking about what I feel as the year comes to a close and a fresh new year is in sight. It really is, though, like as the old year ends and a new one barrels down the pike at me—like a band-aid is being ripped off, and the new, clean, fresh skin underneath is ready to hit the ground running.

Well, not actually hitting the ground. That’s how you end up with a band-aid in the first place.

As 2025 tick-tocks its way to life, there are things that I still have to do to let the old year go. This is in no way a list of New Year’s resolutions, but more about resolving things that have to be dealt with in a grown-up manner.

But. Yes, a shiny new year “but.” I have said this more than once: I will never grow up all the way. Where would be the fun in that?!

I need to forgive myself for not cleaning my flower beds for the past year. Not in the spring, and again not in the fall. I just let them grow and sprout and die.

Oh, I watered. I’m not that heartless.

In the spring, time got away, and by the time I was ready to cut old stuff, new stuff was there. And well, you can’t cut old without cutting new. Isn’t that the way of everything? It seems when something new is added to my life, the old stuff gets disturbed, and the new stuff makes all sorts of demands and causes a kerfuffle. So, I usually just let it all intermingle until one or the other comes out on top.

I also need to go out and clean my garage. Even if I don’t throw away stuff but rather just rearrange things, it would be like a cleaning out. At the very least, I should sweep out the dead flies.

I never had to worry about things like this before I was a widow. Somehow, in his own way, my other half saw to it that the garage was cleaned and all the stuff we had was always put in its assigned places. Me? I just keep piling this onto that. Then that is covered by more this!

When I think about it now, I realize I did clean the garage in the past. It seems he would be looking for something, and as I retrieved it from the garage—or wherever—I found that while I was retrieving, I might as well do a little cleaning too.

Now that my world doesn’t need anything from the garage, I just keep adding and not taking away. It’s starting to get pretty crowded in there.

So, yes, I have to clean the garage before the new year.

Well, maybe in the spring when it’s warmer. Probably the same day I go out to clean the flower beds.

Which leaves the one big project—deep cleaning the house to ring in the new year. I really need to do this one.

I pulled a glass out of the cupboard the other day. The dust had gotten so thick on it that I had to wash it before I could use it. Then I needed to reach under my bed to get my marble that fell out of my pants, and under there—well, let’s just say someone needs to put up a dust ruffle!

Oh, and yes, I do carry one marble in my pants at all times. You know, in case I lose my last one in my brain!

I think deep cleaning is a bit much. I think that maybe just a swipe-n-go will suffice.

So—three things. Three small needs that should be taken care of before that end-of-the-year band-aid gets ripped off.

Of course, two of the three are outside things that will need to be scheduled after winter. Closer to summer. Maybe even into mid-summer.

Don’t want to rush into things.

Even the cleaning could wait a titch.

Ah, dang it, Trina. Just rip the band-aid off and move on to the new year.

Sing the song, dance the night and the year away, kiss goodbye to 2024, and holler out the back door at midnight,

“Howdy Doody, Tutti Frutti!”

To 2025!

Trina lives in Diamond Valley, North of Eureka, Nevada. She loves to hear from readers. Email her at [email protected]

Really!