Inheritance?

I'm having a bloggy afternoon and stumbled upon this post which poses an interesting question:

What trait do you think you have inherited that you really would rather not have inherited? And what do you wish you had inherited too?

My unwanted inheritance comes from my paternal grandmother. My Gran had an amazing ability not to notice dirt, clutter, chaos and a really quite unpleasant home. Every six months or so my grandfather would lock her out of the kitchen while he cleaned it up. When I was a baby, my mother used to take her own teaspoon with which to feed me tinned babyfood if we were eating at Gran's. That's how bad it was. In fact, it was so bad that even I who have inherited my Gran's 'gift' noticed that her house was just not a nice place to be.

The gift has been diluted in me by my mother's perfectionism when it comes to housekeeping. So my place isn't actually squalid, it just leaves a lot to be desired. But I genuinely rarely notice the chaos. And dust? Ha! We happily co-exist while my feather-duster languishes in a cupboard. So the trait I wish I'd inherited more of is my mother's skill as a homemaker. I don't envy her her total perfectionism - I've seen my mother finally disintegrate into tears at midnight because she's been cleaning all day and things still aren't as she'd like them - but surely there must be a position of balance?

Things I Put Off ...

Katrina over at Callapidder Days has been thinking about the things she puts off. Fortunately she didn't put off updating her lovely blog!

So - what do I put off? And why?

Dentist - I have a dentist phobia. Basically, when I was a kid, a butcher of a dentist did a whole lot of work on my mouth without any anaesthetic. I refused to go back (and was taken, quite literally, kicking and screaming). But, once I was too big to be dragged, I stopped going and my mouth ended up in a horrible state. Years on, I did go to the 'Nervous Patients' clinic at Glasgow's Dental Hospital and I am now able to go without crying. But woe betide the dentist who hurts me - I have sharp teeth and your hands are in my mouth ... (Just kidding.) I've been putting off going for my checkup for about a year because I know I need a filling replaced and just don't wanna. But I have a note in my diary to phone this week and I honestly will try and do it.

Doctor - I don't have any real reason for not visiting the Dr. I've just been too busy and haven't wanted to make time as I'm slightly uncomfortable rather than at death's door. My mother assures me that, if I don't take action now, I'll end up in a state so that's another To-Do in the diary.

Paperwork - I have stacks and piles and bundles. And I'm an expert procrastinator. That can be next week's job!

Washing the car - I bought my car about two years ago and have never washed it. My sister's bf pressure hosed it a few months ago. And the car lives outside so the rain cleans it. Or, at least, that's what I tell myself ...

I am, yours, The Procrastinator.