Procrastinating Just a Little

A couple nights ago, the last reading for one of my classes was taunting me; it was only 30 pages, but boring beyond belief. For four hours, I had successfully avoided even opening the book – my desk was nice and tidy, my laundry done and folded, and I was slowly running out of things to do to procrastinate. One last desperate sweep through every social site I could think of revealed nothing. Resigned, I started closing out some of my open tabs and accidentally opened my bookmarks.  I had quite possibly fallen into the most delightfully time-consuming task of all: organizing my bookmarks. It is surprising how fascinating certain tasks can become when need be.

Three hours later, most of my bookmarks were properly named and nestled in their respective folders. The largest, by far, being the recipe folder with roughly 300 working links. It is a colorful jumble of general cooking and baking sites, specific recipes for cupcakes, dishes, and drinks, DIY party favors, and a PDF claiming to be the ultimate Starbucks cookbook.

Rediscovering the recipes I had saved months ago was downright magical. Not only did I remember why I had saved them, but also when, and for what purpose. Those Beer & Pretzel Cupcakes were intended for my older sister and her husband’s anniversary this year. The recipe for chai concentrate was the one I had used for my cousin’s Christmas present.  A beautiful beet and citrus salad made me yearn for the summer night that would inevitably happen later on this year.

In going through my saved recipes, I invariably added several more, as reading one recipe lead to reading another. Most of these recipes will remain ideas and passing fancies. Out of the entire bulk of my saved recipes, I can count the one’s I’ve made on two hands. Does it matter? No – they are not solely there for me to recreate and turn into reality. They are aspirations, dreams, and hopes. They offer a middle ground between improbable endeavor and feasible meal, with me deciding between the two.