So far this month when the weather has been fairly decent I've soothed myself with the thought that there's no point getting ahead of myself, it was still early days. Now, the early days have fled, and we've been 'enjoying' cooler temperatures, high winds and overcast skies, alternating with cooler temperatures, high wind and clear skies. Today is one of the latter, and it's already a nearly gone-month.

I have been indulging myself in the usual procrastination. There are so many things to do, why bother? Well, poor attitude. The month is nearly spent and I haven't yet gone out even once with that Cancer Society canvass kit. But then, that's the way it usually tends to work out. Coming down to the wire I begin to panic and plan and eventually shove myself out the door. I have yet to do that. But I will. And then relief will flood over me, and the job will be done for another year. The last year actually, that I will pledge myself to yet another door-to-door canvass. I managed to turn down all the other pleading charities this year, and I'll do it with the last as well, next year.

I haven't even gotten my spring cleaning in hand, for heaven's sake. I did, finally, spur myself to some limited action this week, though. I've started on cleaning out and tidying up the kitchen cupboards. The thing of it is, this yearly exercise satisfies some level of self-flagellating guilt that I haven't been as meticulous as I might be, becoming a spring-cleaning-dervish, but on the other hand I know there isn't really much to clean up. Clearing out the cupboards and sponging them down, then replacing everything neatly does have a certain element of satisfaction but it's hardly necessary. There's nothing to clean, in actual fact, though it's true that the exercise represents an opportunity to clear some clutter.

In any event, this coming week will represent for me a flurry of activity. Out I go with that canvass kit, to face my neighbours, a surprising number of whom are new, since quite a few houses have exchanged hands in the past year.

As for the house-cleaning, the spring scrub, it'll get done, too.

Why do we burden ourselves with so many possessions that require care?

Right!