Nose for News by Sarah Stultz

 

I still haven’t found the keys I lost a few weeks ago after one of our many snowstorms.

The more snow we get, the more my hope diminishes that I will find  the keys in working order — especially after the cold temperatures we’ve received. By now, I suspect, the keys probably remain lifeless at the bottom of 2 to 3 feet of snow on the side of my driveway, and that snow pile only gets bigger as the days go on.

Now, to top it off, I’ve lost something else important — this time some documents from when we sold our house on East Park Avenue last January.

Though my desk at work may not always look like it, I consider myself to be a semi-organized person. Everything has a place is what I’m always telling my husband and my son. To have lost — or should I say misplaced — two very important items, is driving me crazy.

I realized the documents were lost last night when I set out to attempt to file our taxes, and it asked about selling or buying a home. I needed the closing documents. I searched high and low for those documents — more than once — but did not have any luck.

I’m getting irritated as I write this, thinking about other places I can look that I might have missed. I think I’ll probably go home and search again tonight.

As situations like this happen, I can’t help but think of my grandfather, who was diagnosed with dementia and Parkinson’s disease and died when I was in seventh grade.

By the time he died, he did not know us, his family members, and was unable to eat by himself.

Watching something like that take place, it makes me paranoid  that I might follow in his footsteps when I’m losing things so much already, and I’m only 34.

Thinking about it a little more, I started thinking about everything else on my plate right now. We are completing one of the busiest stretches of the entire year here at the Tribune, as we just sent our March/April issue of Albert Lea Magazine to the printer on Friday, and we complete our final sections of Progress this week in preparation for publication later this month.

On top of that, there are all my regular duties and the ongoing stress of having a child with special needs. Even things like dealing with the weather can contribute to more time away from other things that you’d rather spend your time on. I think it’s time for a vacation!

In all seriousness, however, as I write this, I’m thinking of all my responsibilities, what my priorities are and whether I should take a few things off my plate. I like to stay busy, but if being a little less busy will help contribute to a little more mental clarity and a little more joy, maybe that’s what needs to be done.

In the meantime, fingers crossed I can find those missing documents.

Sarah Stultz is the managing editor of the Tribune. Her column appears every Tuesday.