Charles Darwin wrote volumes on coral reefs and volcanic islands, and obsessively engaged in dissecting and describing barnacles during the twenty years between developing his theory of natural selection and publishing it.

Leonardo da Vinci was commissioned to produce a painting for an altarpiece in the chapel of Milan’s Confraternity of the Immaculate Conception. Leonardo agreed to finish the project in seven months. He finished and installed the painting twenty-five years later.

Frank Lloyd Wright was commissioned to design a weekend home, Fallingwater, in the wilds south of Pittsburgh. Nine months later and with no visible work on the design, Wright had a surprise visit at his studio from the owner. Wright then drew up the design in about two hours.

Johnny Cash’s “THINGS TO DO TODAY!”

1. Not Smoke  
2. Kiss June
3. Not Kiss Anyone Else
4. Cough
5. Pee
6. Eat
7. Not Eat Too Much
8. Worry
9. Go See Mama
10. Practice Piano