So heres the thing about stuff

Recently, Kelly was upset because she has been planning this camping trip for her birthday (which I HAVE to go to, but lets dont even get into THAT again) and a lot of people who had originally said they were going to go are flaking out on her. So, to remedy this, Erin and I put together a last minute BBQ in her honor at Laurelhurst park. We had this idea on Monday night and set the date for Wednesday night. I spent the 48 hours in between feverishly putting this thing together - texting, calling, emailing, facebooking, soliciting in bars, etc. So we had the thing last night and it was a fucking blast. I would say about 30 people showed up at one point or another, the food spread turned out phenomenally, everyone pitched in on the clean-up - making it lightning fast and super easy, and there was no drama or incidences with the law (30 young adults drinking in Portlands most popular park without a permit could be frowned upon by the rangers). It went better than I could have expected and all of the work I put into the thing (baking cupcakes in 100 degree weather - NOT fucking recommended, but it had to be done) was well worth it.
So Im thinking to myself - why is it more effective to spring things on people last minute than to plan out in advance? I mean, I guess the level of effort involved needs to be considered - while I was only asking people to show up to a neighborhood park with some salad or something for a few hours, Kelly was asking people to spend a whole weekend an hour and a half drive away. But, if planned out far enough, I think that should be do-able. The thing is, I think if you get an early commitment from someone, they tend to change their mind about the whole thing when it comes time to actually show up. Ive done that a million times. Ok, so, fair enough. But just because its common doesnt mean its ok.
Ive been trying to get better at this. If I say I will do something, and it comes time to do it, even if I dont want to, I really try to follow through on most occasions. I was getting a reputation as a flake (and I earned it) but I definitely want that to change. Being dependable may be an under-appreciated trait at times, but its better than letting everyone down all the time.

Have I told you lately how much I fucking LOVE Pepsi? Fuck, its delicious!

xo