[originally composed on November 14, 2014]

Time.

Why do we always think we need more?

Because we are a society built on doing things that have clear beginnings and, in most cases, indeterminate ends.

We start things that we assume have end points. Much of what we choose to do, in a given day, we think we can complete before the sun sets. We go to work, in most cases when we are required to arrive, and leave when we are permitted.

For most people, a simple task is done when we have imposed our standard upon it; the laundry, the dishes….we stop when we can accept that the dishes and laundry are clean. For some, that standard drives repeated scrubbing; for others, leaving the flatware in the sink means we can now watch TV.

Other time-based activities are even more subjective, like preparing meals or love-making or weeding a garden. We start when the motivation to do so exceeds our inertia, and we stop when we have satisfied either ourselves or the quality of our efforts.

So, why, when some tasks are not particularly strenuous or insurmountable, do we put off spending time doing them? And, how do some people seem immune to procrastination, able to use time in a highly-productive manner?

And, why do we bemoan the limits of time?

Perhaps we blame time for the way we spend it. We munch on food instead of cleaning the yard; we watch Tv instead of listening to music; we clean the kitchen when we have homework to finish.

Kris, I have been appointed pianist in your absence for Mahler 4. The 3d mvt, rehearsal number 12, has 32nds in contrapuntal motion for two bars and then ascending scales in contrapuntal motion in four distinct keys on each beat.

Matt has declared that the tempo is “not too fast, about 100 to the quarter.”

What is the secret to playing that fast and still getting the notes clean? I am clueless. My brain does not seem to have the synaptic capacity, and I don’t know if there is a secret that I never knew.

Is it possible that he means eighths at 100, and do I dare challenge this?!

The body doesn’t react to all fats in the same way. Research correlates high intake of saturated fat (the kind in meat and dairy) to increased visceral fat, says Patton. On the other hand, monounsaturated fats (the kind in olive oil and avocados) and specific types of polyunsaturated fats (mainly omega-3s, found in walnuts, sunflower seeds, and fatty fish like salmon) have anti-inflammatory effects in the body, and if eaten in proper portions may do your body good. But Patton warns that eating too much fat of any kind increases your calorie intake and could lead to weight gain, so enjoy healthy fats in moderation.

See? Even I, in the midst of composing this Treatise On Time, could not manage to stay with it to completion. No; I had to Save in Documents, and then use the empty space on the page for Storage and Retrieval of work-related communications and nutritional research data.

Ye Gods. Sometimes the masterpiece just writes itself. All we need is enough time.

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© Ruth Ann Scanzillo

11/13/14 – except for the quote from Patton.

all rights. thanks. now, get busy.