when to nail down the rug

I realize that is an unconventional post title, but I actually did nail down a rug in my house. Here’s the backstory: Our front door is unreasonably snug against the floor. As in every time you opened the door, the rug would move with door. It literally drove me batty.

This went on for several months. I bought the thinnest mat I could find, but the madness continued. How was anyone supposed to wipe their feet! My floors were doomed to be dirty forever. I had been noodling on the idea of fixing it in place somehow, but just never got around to it. Eventually, I was thinking about that rug several times a day and then one day, I finally went and grabbed the hammer and some finishing nails. I nailed the mat right into the floor by the door.

And you know what, after I did it, I felt so much better and I realized how much space in my brain that stupid rug had been occupying. I was having the same thought/frustration over and over -every single time I went in or out of the house. That’s way too much time wasted on a single thought!

This same thing repeated itself a few weeks ago when I finally oiled my coffee table after weeks of thinking I’d get around to it later. It’s a family heirloom and the years have shown their wear. I wanted to see if I could get some of the drink rings and marks off the top with an oil + white vinegar mixture. As soon as I started, I felt better - just like the dang rug.

Your mental space is precious. Did you know that we think between 12,000 and 60,000 thoughts a day and 95% of them are the same thoughts we had yesterday? That’s honestly a little terrifying to me. I don’t want to be stuck on the same thoughts every day unless they are happy, healthy and productive. Cleaning up the nuisance thoughts like “what should I do with that rug” or “I really need to touch up that trim” is an easy and relieving way to make room for new, more productive thoughts.

I’ve included a few progress shots here so you can see the exact difference it made, but I’m hoping this will serve as a reminder to myself and to y’all. Whatever it is that’s on your mind, just do it already. Whether it’s something silly like nailing down a rug or something bigger like starting a side hustle, nothing is worth spending that much time worrying over. Best case scenario, you feel better and you’ve gotten it out of your head and into reality. Worst case scenario, it doesn’t work and at least you can stop thinking about it already.