Honey Do’s, to do lists, check lists, Standard Operating Procedures.  We’ve all got something, somewhere that tells us to do something that we haven’t done.  Some of them are bestowed on us by others, and some are self-imposed.  I’m here to confess my own self-imposed To Do list for my Jeep.  I sat down and just brain stormed a while back and here’s what I came up with.  It’s grown, it’s gotten smaller.  Ok, it’s mostly gotten longer.  I can’t help it.  I keep thinking up new things to do.  Every time I take my beat up old CJ-7 out for a trail ride, I realize there’s something else I either need, want, or have been asked (by my sweetheart) to fix or put on the darn thing.  Am I alone in this, or are there more people out there like me? 

                There have been things I’ve finished.  That’s right, I know the Jeep doesn’t look that spiffy, but it’s pretty functional for a 25 year old trail rig. I bought it in late 2000, but didn’t get it off road until early 2001.  My first run with the Dirt Devils was the Don-a-Vee/Snow Run in January of that year.  I had already had both axles rebuilt with Detroits and new gears, and spent way too much on tires.  Unfortunately I didn’t have heat or a closed top for that trip.  It snowed on us what was supposed to be an “easy” trip and I had to put my wife in a sleeping bag to keep her warm.  We were both cold enough to have the rain turn to ice on our coats/sleeping bag.  The good thing was that Renee was convinced that a bikini top isn’t warm in the snow.  Of course, I had to buy a brand new Super Top after that.  Mark that one off the list.  I also installed a spare tire mount in the bed of the Jeep and a storage box on top of that.  Then there’s the steering that had to be replaced.  Yes I’ve put some work into the Jeep, but still the darn To Do list keeps getting longer.  Even as I sit here writing this I’m thinking of new items to add like a fuel regulator.

                So I’ve got this never ending “it’s alive!” sort of list evolving on my computer.  I guess the next thing I need to do (should I mark this down?) is to find out how to make it shorter.  A shorter list would mean less stress, right?  I wouldn’t have to worry about working on the Jeep.  I could just play in it and have fun.  If I could be satisfied with the Jeep exactly the way it is now, I wouldn’t have to worry about a thing.  It would be done, at least as I would see it.  What’s my first step to being in Jeep Zen without the To Do List That Would Never Die...

                I could lower my expectations for my Jeep.  That’s right.  I could reason that it’s just a trail Jeep and can be towed to the trail.  It could be driven only in good weather.  I could keep it on the easy trails.  That would mean I wouldn’t need to buy a winch and a welder.  Geez, are they even on the list...?  I could just expect that I’ll either be hot or cold in the Jeep that way I wouldn’t need to think about fixing the heater.  Most folks want to have the toughest rig out there.  But those rigs are usually very expensive and take a lot of work to complete.  If I lowered my expectations, I wouldn’t have to worry about having a cool, capable Jeep.  But then how would I be different from all those Jeeps that just get driven to the mall.  Ok that won’t work.

                I could print the list out, and accidentally lose it somewhere.  That way I’ll have an excuse for not completing it.  How can I if I don’t have it, right?  Wait, this won’t work.  Every time I would go on a trail ride, I’d always be talking about how to make the Jeep better.  It’s what we do.  I’d just be coming up with the same things to do all over again - lost or not lost.

                I could decide I can’t afford to do any of it. Think about that one!  My wife would love me for it (especially with the baby coming).  Now let’s be fair.  She’s very understanding about needing to take care of the important stuff (like the new Super Top for winter).  She even helps find a juicy piece of the budget for my Jeep.  But, I know she’d sleep easier if that list were lost (see above paragraph), or if I just said we couldn’t afford it and gave up.  Hey, they say you’ve got to start a college savings plan right after the kid is born, right?  This all sounds nice an mature, but it ain’t gonna happen.  When you look at the list you’ll see some of the items just require a slab of plywood and some time in the garage - not much money.  Oh well, I guess I can afford to do at least some of them.

                I guess the only right answer is to get off my butt and complete a few of the tasks.  How am I ever going to get my CJ-7 looking as good as Bill Hammond’s (sorry, Bill) if I don’t get to it?  Maybe I should just put a picture of his nice, clean, FINISHED Jeep up in my garage so I get jealous from looking at it.  Maybe that will motivate me.  Oops, that would mean I’d have to go out to the garage for more than just getting something out of the freezer for dinner.

                Ok.  I give up.  Somebody tell me what the answer is?  I remember staying up late every night in the garage on that cold cement floor replacing the steering in order to get the Jeep ready for the annual Truckhaven Hills run.  I worked hard to knock that old knuckle off and get it down to Tri-County Gear for a steering arm install.  Maybe that’s the answer.  I just need to have a deadline.  Kind of like how I have to get the kid’s room redecorated with new drywall and laminate floor to boot and the Winnie the Pooh trim!  I’ll get that done because the kid’s due to be born on October 3^rd.  But wait, right after that is, you guessed it, another Truckhaven Hills run.  There’s another deadline.  Now, which projects should I do first...

 My Jeep To Do list 

Note: Priority ratings and order are subject to change based on how cold or hot my garage is, or how expensive it is, etc.

P.S.: I’d love to see some of your To Do Lists.  Or, if you have any suggestions for mine, please be nice, but get ‘em to me.  At least I won’t be the only one making that darn list grow...