Wasting time - with housework

When thinking about wasting time, we never think of something constructive or good as wasted, but my friend Ginny Hamlin does exactly that. Let's hear how
Ginny Hamlin:How do I waste time? Great Question. Hold on…I’ll be right back. I think I see dust on a table. (Hint-hint.) I would say the area I waste the most time is probably housecleaning. When it comes to cleaning I can dump endless hours into the bottomless pit known as “I’m-almost-done-I-just-need-one-more-minute.” My husband says those words should be on a bunch of Post-it-Notes throughout our home.
Forgettaboutit. I took a break to get a cup of decaf and noticed the windows in my living room needed to be cleaned. (No joking.) I enlisted my husband’s help and he removed the screens while I cleaned the glass (inside & out). I told him you’re not going to believe this but I’m writing an article for a friend’s blog on how I waste time… the topic is my (borderline) obsessive cleaning. He laughed.
I’m left with the question how can any of this, sweeping, mopping, dusting, and glass cleaning…to name but a few (BTW, I also like my bed made up with hospital corners, but I digress) be constructive? My rationale is--it could be worse. I could be at the other end of the spectrum and overlook Grape-nuts or OJ or coffee on the floor and pretend my bare feet aren’t sticking.
But I guess the bottom line is that more isn’t necessarily better, but… well, you know.

I can't say that I share Ginny's time waster, but I can see myself getting distracted and then doing a project that doesn't need to be done. I'll finish that project and it will be breathtaking, but... my original project, which was the necessary one, remains incomplete.
This makes my question/thought of the day easy. Are you like me and Ginny, getting distracted by things that aren't necessarily bad, but do waste time that was supposed to be spent on something else? If so, what can you do about it?
You're invited to visit Ginny Hamin's blog

Wasting time - a poem

How doest thou wasteth time? Let me count the ways.
Okay, my poetry is not good, but my friend Laurie Alice Eakes came up with a good one.
Laurie Alice Eakes:
Time, how I waste thee.
Let me count the ways.
With Facebook, blogs, and TV,
I squander all my days.
Well, the TV part, at least, isn’t true. That’s one vice I don’t have, except for a couple of news shows I like. Even those don’t catch me every day. But the other things—Facebook and blog posts, e-mail and books suck up more time than I realize. Where did the day go? I’ve been up since 5:00. I should have accomplished more. Why didn’t I get that laundry folded, more than a couple thousand words written, dinner on time? Hmm.
It reminds me of a cartoon that sticks in my head from childhood. The mom says to the dog, “Dog, why are you so fat? I only feed you once a day.” Then the father says, “Dog, why are you so fat? I only feed you once a day.” And so it goes through the whole family until the dog walks off shaking his head and saying, “Maybe it’s the snacks I get next door.”
Why do I get so far behind? I only check in twice a day? I only read that once a day. I only chattered about that for… Oh, maybe that dialogue took longer than I thought.
But it’s all good, right? I’m networking. I’m keeping up on the market, trends, readers, family, friends, the world.
All good and necessary, but maybe not in quite the quantity in which I indulge myself. It’s called priorities. Have my quiet time before I hit Facebook or e-mail. Feed the husband and animals before I indulge in news junky fixes. Write my word goals before answering e-mails. And, because I tend to volunteer for stuff, learn to, when necessary, just say no.

I love the cartoon story. I'd like to use that some day. But...
Anyway, I think Laurie Alice has hit on a key point - quantity and priorities. I think we can all do those things just fine, but let ourselves limits. Easier said than done, I know.
Here's my thought/question of the day. What do you do that you know wastes a significant amount of time, and how can you cut it down without cutting it out?
You're invited to visit Laurie Alice Eake's website at www.lauriealiceeakes.com