January Mid-Month Update

I meant to post this on Monday, but I had a rough couple days, followed by days catching up, and so on.  I've been busy whittling away at old stuff more than I've been starting new stuff.  There's something about embarking on new projects and directions that seems unnatural when there's old stuff waiting for closure.


The yard sale was a big part of that push towards tying up loose ends.  But I didn't stop there.  Nearly every day I evaluate the objects I interact with, especially if the interaction only means moving unused stuff out of the way to get to well used stuff.  I wish I had before and after shots of just my medicine cabinet.  I cleared out about half of the crap in there one morning getting ready for work (Jeff had ONE personal item in the whole cabinet) and now it's all spacious and pretty.  Jeff now has TWO personal items in the cabinet!  Hey, that's a 100% increase!  LOL


So I'm still in purging mode, but I'm trying to decide how to use all the space I'm creating.  I want to move things from one room to another, but I'm having trouble finding an arrangement I think will work.  Part of me hates to leave a space completely unused, but that's the downside to having too much house, I suppose.  I'm mostly thinking with my fingers now, so I'll stop babbling and get on with my check-in!


The goals I set for this month are covered here.


Category: Physical
(1) Lose weight, be slimmer, get stronger.
Successes: I'm down 3 pounds (half way to my 5 pound goal); we went on a brief family hike in Wonder Valley
Needs Improvement: Struggling to get into a consistent habit tracking activity and food through myfitnesspal.com.  I try to go back in time and back fill, but it's daunting and time consuming.  Now I just try to update when I remember.  Also, getting started on exercise is mostly non-existent, aside from yoga.  I need to remember that even if I just go for a five minute jog once per week, that five minutes more than I was last week.  Changing the diet is going well, but I'm just not satisfied with where I'm at yet.

(2) More yoga, more consistently
Successes: 3 sun salutations every morning! Boo yah!  I've also decided to focus on one specific pose per month.  Camel pose!
Needs Improvement: I haven't been able to resume classes due to my personal schedule.  Giving this a lot of thought.  Also, can't afford studio sessions, just a situational hazard, it will improve with time.January mini actions:

Category: Lifestyle
(1) Garden more
Successes: Getting Jeff to do garden work!
Needs Improvement: I need to start seeds and dig my hole, probably will do tomorrow as well as some generally maintenance.

(2) Be more active
Successes: making opportunities to get up and get moving rather than making lunch/dinner dates or sitting around watching television.

(3) 2012 Goal: Explore Artistic Endeavors
Successes: Doing well on the writing, although some days are better than others, I'm maintaining consistency.  I've been hammering away at a large commissioned project and I'm getting closer to finishing; changing to shorter needles helped A LOT.
Needs Improvement: Dance drills.  What dance drills?  I'm finding I'm missing bellydance quite a bit so I need to make time for it (and I have plenty of time, I'm just not using it).

(4) 2012 Goal: Reduce clutter
Successes: I'm so obsessed with this right now.  I think once reduction becomes more of a maintenance activity than a major purge, other goals and activities will fall into place.
Needs Improvement: nothing, I think this is going swimmingly.

Category: Romance
(1) Spend more time with my sweetheart
Successes: So far this is going really well.  Making an effort to spend more quality time with Jeff makes everything in our relationship run more smoothly.  This weekend is our date weekend, but he's letting me have some alone time to focus on some creative projects, but I won't let that consume my entire date weekend with him.
Needs Improvement: I'm harboring some resentment because I want to stay home all day and work on my home, my projects, and myself, but instead I have to go to a day job and earn a paycheck to keep a roof over our heads and bill collectors at bay.  I can't help our situation, I'm doing all I can to earn extra money on the side (plus overtime as needed) and take care of myself so I don't miss too much work from flare-ups, etc.  I need to find better outlets for my frustration and stop misdirecting my emotions.

Category: Spirituality
(1) Meditate more
Successes: So far so good, at least 10 minutes a day, usually in the morning.
Needs Improvement: I have had a lot of anxiety all month.  I'm having trouble breathing properly all the time and staying focused on one thing at a time.  I'm too excited (in the good and bad sense of the word) to sit still most days.  I'm hoping regular meditation practice THROUGHOUT the day helps with this.  Also, sometimes I find myself jumping around, I have to drop everything and go back and finish the first thing.  

(2) Do more spiritual stuff
Successes: Decluttered the fireplace and mantle and setup a devotional area.  I usually do morning prayers after my meditation.
Needs Improvement: I feel like I should have more to say, but it's kind of a personal category.  

Category: Career/Education
(5) Break out with some fiction.
Successes: Finished 3 of my 4 short stories.  Two of which are edited.  I expect to do at least two more stories and create two new outlines (each outline is 4 stories) over the weekend.  Yes, I am in fact insane.
Needs Improvement: I don't have my formula down pat yet.  I'm still struggling to meet my minimum word count, but with practice this will improve.

I'm actually really pleased with my progress so far.  I wish I would have been better about adding more exercise to the day, but getting in the habit is a muscle-building routine in its own right.