Keeping Track Of Time 

 

 It has just occurred to me that no matter what business or profession or stage of life we are in, we track time in increments that fit our lives. Are you a 9-to-5 worker bee? I bet you have that 7am to 6 pm blocked. Shift workers are a hardy bunch of souls. Especially those who rotate the shifts. I am in awe, especially of the wives of shift workers who can rattle off the days and hours of an entire month or longer of the days their other halves work. 6 a.m. to 3 p.m., working three on and four off. Then 10 pm to 2 am working four on three off… Keeping track of what to put in their lunch cooler straight must be an ongoing nightmare!!

Then there are kids with school. The bus kids have a designated bus pick up and drop off time. The further out they live from the school the earlier their covers are yanked off of them to get up and get ready. Then the after-school activities. Good Gravy Marie. Just sit back and imagine a full bus load of all different aged kids saying to the driver, “Are we there yet?” when going on the activity busses. But! Yes, a timed out “but.” When the schedules change for any reason, it’s worse than that stinking Daylight-Savings Time. Which buy the way will come a bit earlier this fall, like November 2 earlier! Mark your calendars, and re-set your interior clocks. Schedule changes.

When a schedule changes so much happens. The biggest may be the sleep patterns. Now that it’s getting closer to winter, I for one am all for an earlier bedtime. Until it’s time to do inside stuff getting ready for winter. Some folks need to get up earlier to get vehicles warmed up before getting that extra cup of java to give their internal furnaces a bit of a jump start. Schedules changed.

Farmers may not need to get up at 3 am to bale or check the dew situation, but you can rest assured the selling of the crop will definitely change schedules. In our farming area the hay is starting to move. This will certainly involve messing with schedules to meet hay trucks and hay squeezes and drivers of both. Believe me when I tell you that just because the crop is out of the field, there is still work to be done throughout the winter for farmers and ranchers. Schedules change.

Schools are often a great time changing mystery. Did it snow last night? How much did it snow? Is school closed because of the snow? Or teacher’s meetings? When is the next four-day break, or Thanksgiving or Christmas. When is Spring Break, is that the same time as Easter this year? Is school closed for Columbus Day? Halloween? What is the schedule for the games, Homecoming, anybody need a physical. Oh Brother! More schedule changes.

Of course the Mother of things that messes with a schedule is when someone gets a cold or some other sickness sneaks into hour homes. Oh here comes the extra trip to the store to pick up some 7-Up, crackers and soup for sure. Then if it’s a child, who will stay home with the little tyke? For how long? Who’s going to the clinic? Have you seen the Vicks? AARRGGHH!

Second big schedule changer is company visiting. Don’t get me wrong; most of us like company. For a morning cup of coffee, afternoon tea. Even overnight or two or three. Yes, please remember the ole saying, “after three days, fish and company start to smell and need to be taken out.”  Even though company is fun and having guests is really a house warming thing, every schedule from meals to when you feel comfortable enough to use your own bathroom without having to excuse the outcomes of normal bodily functions, going to the store or a football or other games your kids play in---your schedules flit out the window.

One thing about schedules is that they are NEVER set in stone.
Even when they were written in stone.  Imagine in cave man days trying to keep up with a schedule written in stone? The lady of the cave, chipping out a camping trip. The man of the cave comes in and changes the date because he has to work an extra shift at the quarry. Sharpening her chipping tool she re-etches the dates changing the menu to add one more meal. They will need 4 pair of loin cloths instead of three. Oh a woman’s work to keep up all the schedules of the family and house---or cave—is unending.

Schedule me into your reading time next week. Thanks!

Trina lives in Diamond Valley, north of Eureka Nevada. Contact her at itybytrina@yahoo.com or Trina Machacek HC 62 Box 62101 Eureka, Nevada 89316