Journal Entry #7: Do the Washing Up

Brian Eno, a musician and artist, has published several editions of Oblique Strategies, a set of cards designed to help break unproductive thought patterns. I've handwritten a set for myself and have been using it as a constant inspiration in life—there are so many things that I get bogged down with—and while the strategies were written for artists and musicians they are broad enough to apply to almost any endeavor.

One of these cards says "Do the washing up".

Mess discourages, distracts, and hinders progress on any project. If I can't get motivated, or if I feel overwhelmed in the shop, it almost always helps to take a break and clean everything up. Throw out the thin scrap strips from ripping down boards in the last project (why am I keeping them?), put all the tools back where they belong, file the hardware in the hardware box, and vacuum. Figure out where the pile of lumber should be (what, not the middle of the floor?), and paint the walls white to brighten things up.

And that's what I've been doing this weekend. I completed the woodrack, which will soon house the pile of project wood and open a bunch of basement floor space. The wall next to it is washed and ready for paint. And the workbench has been cleared completely: I'm ready for the next project.