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Did you know that you should never paint a wooden ladder? And that you should never misuse or abuse it? I’m not sure how you can abuse a ladder, but I’m pretty sure I never would.

I know all these interesting facts about ladders because there has been a wooden ladder in my downstairs bathroom for longer than I can remember. And since it sits in prime viewing area if you’re seated in exactly the right spot, you always have something to read while you’re there.

Have I mentioned that my husband Mark has ADHD?

Now don’t misunderstand – I’m not trying to husband bash him or anything. I love him with all my heart but sometimes that ADD thing can be a bit hard to bear.

Like most ADDers, Mark is good about starting a new project, especially if it’s one he’s excited about. (In the months since the ladder joined my bathroom decor, the garage has been drywalled, painted – with a black racing stripe too – a workbench has been built, a pegboard added and more. Oh, and it’s done.)

The ladder exists in our bathroom because we had a ceiling leak from the upstairs bathroom. Mark got right on that and worked hard for days until the leak was fixed and the wet drywall was removed and cleaned up.

But there’s nothing exciting about patching and painting a ceiling and no urgency attached, so it sits. And sits. Ladder and all.

I can’t say that I am any better. After all, I have ADHD too. I’m sure you could easily find several projects that I’ve started and never finished. I think somewhere I’ve got a cross stitch that someone gave me when my daughter Sarah was born. It was all done except for the details about weight, birth date, etc. I was supposed to finish that. Sarah’s 26 now. It’s still not done.

I’ve found that there are a couple of things that get you motivated to finish those long overdue projects.

One is to find some help. My father in law told me this years ago – the best cure for a Nicholson who’s slacking on the job is another Nicholson. Call one of the brother-in-laws over and things are more likely to get done.

The other is to build in a sense of urgency. When we moved from Michigan to Indiana several years ago, all of the unfinished projects that had been neglected suddenly got done because they had to be done.

Hmmm…. all of my brother-in-laws are in Michigan, but maybe if I had a party….

Lacy Estelle

Lacy Estelle

Lacy Estelle is the writer of Lacyestelle.com and the Podcast host for An ADD Woman.

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