Fears

[chenoameg]

There are a bunch of things I'm not doing because I'm afraid of doing them, or of trying to do them and failing? I decided I would list them here and see if that makes some of them more manageable.

1. write up this list and share it with y'all
   
2. write down all of our expenses (aka make a budget again; we had one we followed closely until technology

Comments

[mathhobbit]

I was super impressed by your success in refinishing the first floor floors.

I'm afraid of stupid stuff like bicycle riding, making airline reservations and spontaneously spending the evening out.

[moominmolly]

I'm afraid of cleaning and organizing my house. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.

I have a buddy (spike) who has been helping me get over this in recent weekends, and I've suddenly been doing a lot of projects that I've been putting off since I was pregnant (building shelves here and there, moving stuff around, making an entire closet for fabric and crafts, etc). It feels pretty good. I guess I also have some cope and brainpower back all of a sudden, too?

[firstfrost]

The thing that I am currently most afraid of is going to the retirement party for my old grad school PI (who ended up becoming the Dean!). I refused to RSVP to it for months. (I thought she was a great teacher; I was a lousy student and dropped out of science, so I think of myself as one of her failures. :-\ )

I ended up getting mjperson to talk me into thinking that she'd be happy to see me and wouldn't guilt me, and then badgered myself to "suck up and deal" with the stupid RSVP.

Okay, this may not be in the same class as "decide whether or not to have a second kid." :}

[nuclearpolymer]

A few years after graduation, I sent a letter to my grad school advisor letting him know that I was never ever going to finish writing that paper, but that I very much appreciated having him as an advisor even though both me and the other grad student from that year left the field. He was super nice and wrote back about how much he'd enjoyed having us in the lab and absolutely didn't mind that we'd bailed out of the field. So I would encourage you to go to the party :)

[jaedian]

Wait, Naomi is retiring? Gosh.

I totally get that fear though - would have it myself as well. Although you should go though!

[dpolicar]

Doing my taxes.
Doing T@F's books.
Refinancing my mortgage.
Making financial/investment plans.
Thinking about career goals.
Directing Equus.

I'll stop there, but really I'm afraid of a lot of things. Most of them have to do with money management.

Mostly, I cope with them by avoiding their referents until deadlines come along and force me to deal with them, then getting them done minimally competently in a frantic flurry.

[narya]

I don't have the brain cells to answer your actual question but I will give you an unsolicited recommendation for superior roofing:
http://www.superiorroofingofmass.com/