The day after the inauguration, Missy Sanders received a checklist in the mail. The envelope containing the checklist was odd- vertical, with a circular stamp marked at half the price of a regular stamp. In a pink robe and pinned up chestnut hair, Missy Sanders sat at her kitchen table in a quiet kitchen and replaced the day's crossword with the checklist- a task that proved to be equally as puzzling.
On manila cardstock, the checklist contained fifteen items "ESSENTIAL FOR THE SPRINGTIME RENEWAL OF OUR COMMUNITY," typed in a thin, black Times with a small box next to each item where each check should be marked. The list contained simple tasks that are usually performed without the need for reminder or request-- grass-cutting, weeding, awning-hanging-- but the obligatory nature of those tasks gave them new meaning for Missy Sanders, who felt slightly annoyed by the suggestion that she would not have done those tasks on her own- or at least without her husband, who usually took care of most yard-work projects. Missy knew her husband-- a pragmatic man that worked in an office during the day (and often into the night), and took pride in his willingness and ability to keep their property so well-groomed-- would be even more annoyed than she, and decided it best to treat the checklist as a joke, hoping he would brush it off as an extension of a joke he considered a waste of time from the start.
However, the envelope did not contain the checklist alone. A small note, handwritten on a sheet of neat, light-green paper fell out of the strange envelope as Missy went to throw it away. The note, addressed to Missy and her husband, read:
"Mr. and Mrs. Sanders,
Thank you for your support in my attempt to lead steer our community in the right direction. Please pay attention to item number seven on the checklist.
-Mayor Jefferies"
And so Missy turned her attention to the seventh item on the checklist, which asked that (neighborhood) members not put out their garbage until after sundown the night before collection. Mr. Sanders-- Jim-- had always taken the garbage out in the morning before garbage collection, so as not to forget after getting home from work.
On manila cardstock, the checklist contained fifteen items "ESSENTIAL FOR THE SPRINGTIME RENEWAL OF OUR COMMUNITY," typed in a thin, black Times with a small box next to each item where each check should be marked. The list contained simple tasks that are usually performed without the need for reminder or request-- grass-cutting, weeding, awning-hanging-- but the obligatory nature of those tasks gave them new meaning for Missy Sanders, who felt slightly annoyed by the suggestion that she would not have done those tasks on her own- or at least without her husband, who usually took care of most yard-work projects. Missy knew her husband-- a pragmatic man that worked in an office during the day (and often into the night), and took pride in his willingness and ability to keep their property so well-groomed-- would be even more annoyed than she, and decided it best to treat the checklist as a joke, hoping he would brush it off as an extension of a joke he considered a waste of time from the start.
However, the envelope did not contain the checklist alone. A small note, handwritten on a sheet of neat, light-green paper fell out of the strange envelope as Missy went to throw it away. The note, addressed to Missy and her husband, read:
"Mr. and Mrs. Sanders,
Thank you for your support in my attempt to lead steer our community in the right direction. Please pay attention to item number seven on the checklist.
-Mayor Jefferies"
And so Missy turned her attention to the seventh item on the checklist, which asked that (neighborhood) members not put out their garbage until after sundown the night before collection. Mr. Sanders-- Jim-- had always taken the garbage out in the morning before garbage collection, so as not to forget after getting home from work.
