Goals Update/Keeping Busy

(Here's the post of the original goals)

My health goals have slipped. I've been better this week, but it's still a bit of an uphill climb to get back on track. I seem to do well during the morning/afternoon, but when I get home I lose all sense of restraint and I'm like "EAT ALL THE CARBS". Urf. On the plus side, we have tried to eat out less this week, and next week our schedule is a little more predictable and stable so we should be able to cook at home more.

No pumpkin-carving party this year, so I'm going to start thinking about an optimal time for a gingerbread bash! I haven't made a gingerbread house since I was a little kid, and Xmas is my favorite holiday of the Holiday Trinity, so I'm pretty psyched. Of course, I need some of that pesky thing called spare time before I can plan anything. *sigh*

Volleyball is moving forward in that I've found a local open-gym night on Thursdays (that of course was closed the first week I'm free) and joined a Meet-up group (that of course has no current scheduled games). I think XOSO's next season starts in November, so come hell or highwater I WILL PLAY VOLLEYBALL SOON.

Finally, my crafting by hand has been on semi-technicalities, but I'll  count it because at least it's making me be creative and take a moment to work with my hands. I technically missed the second week (although I did create some very cute bulletin boards for my classroom, even if my T.A.s technically put half of them together), but last weekend I drew my RPG character for the new campaign my friends and I are playing. (Yes, I'm one of those nerds!)

Guevana, a gnome Rogue. If you don't know what that means, you were probably popular in high school

Tonight I prepped my possible costume for Wednesday - IF it's cool to wear costumes at work. I would think it is, and my costume is perfectly acceptable for teaching (I'm dressing as a "citizen of the Capitol" a la The Hunger Games - I couldn't find an Effie Trinket-style wig, so I settled for a platinum bob wig), but I want to double-check first. I didn't really have to make anything specifically for the costume - heck, the only money I spent was for the wig, because the rest is from my closet. I had a feathery-thingie that's been in my crafts cupboards for years, so I attached it to a bow headband I had from my New Year's Eve dinner party costume (I'm also using the same dress, belt, and earrings). Et voila:

It's gonna look AWESOME with my wig. Very Effie, I think.

I wish I had more to do for Halloween - this year our usual crew was busy helping our friends move into their new house today! Whooo! Unfortunately, though, that means we don't have any plans. Might see if my cousin and her partner will let me come over and pass out candy - that way I can still wear my awesome costume if I can't wear it to work, haha.

Other than that, my schedule is still crazy but I think it might be slowing down and I can catch up (famous last words!). This is in reference to work schedule, of course - the next three weekends are booked solid as well. Oy. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to be so busy, being unemployed drove me NUTS; I think I just like having the right to complain about it. ;D

4 simple goals: Week 1

A reminder of what those goals are (Full post here):

• Meds and healthy eating regularly
• host a pumpkin-carving/gingerbread-house-making party
• join a volleyball team or league of some sort
• craft something once a week

Progress:
I had a rough week, so rough that my body finally went, "Ya know what? EFF THIS, you're taking a day off" - and I ended my week with a head cold and took Friday off so I could rest, ugh. When I get stressed, I resort to old habits out of comfort. So my eating was not very healthy. The ironic part of this is that I should be eating healthier when I'm stressed, because it makes me feel physically worse. Fortunately, after a few days of eating like this, it loses its novelty and I crave the good stuff, so I usually find my way back, which is nice. It's a small step back as opposed to several steps. Meds are on the reg, though, which is good.

The party will happen; of course, the next party I'm having will not have pumpkin carving or gingerbread house construction, it's for my birthday! We're keeping it simple this year, because last year was just a clustereff in that it left me emotionally destroyed and set me back in my insecurities for really STUPID reasons. Ugh. Don't get me wrong, my birthday ended up being awesome, but fretting over the guest list and how many people weren't coming or were only coming to the dinner kind of ruined it for me. Still ended up having a good bday weekend, though. This year is simple: Game night at our apartment with food and adult beverages and friends, and the actual day of the birthday has my parents coming here for lunch, which is nice.

I found a volleyball group on MeetUp.com, but it's only bi-weekly. I plan to join the soonest one after my volleyball coaching ends, and I'm on the email list for the XOSO social league so when the next "season" starts I'll hopefully sign up in time.

And crafting! I actually hadn't gotten around to making anything (as Friday and Saturday was mostly resting, although Saturday I did catch up on work and go see "Looper" - really good movie, btw), so this morning I decided to do some art journaling.

"The older I get, the more I like myself "

Granted, I'd previously stamped the background and apparently never did anything with it, so this wasn't terribly difficult. Took about half an hour, but it was nice to just sit there and decorate something to (hopefully) make it pretty. It's not my best work, but it looks nice and gave me some tranquility while I made it. Next weekend I want to make a button monogram in a shadowbox!

One bonus about these simple goals: They're not overwhelming, and it gives me a reason to update. Whooo!

Life inspiration (Blogs That Are Awesome)

So I'm a bit of an addict on the internet. Pinterest is one of my new favorites - all that awesome inspiration for life. DIYs, tasty-looking recipes, fashion... All in one place and lots of it!

Only problem is that I spend a ton of time being inspired, and very little time actually DOING stuff.

Also, in my self-protective-denial-of-reality-blame-throwing-reflexive-defense, where do people have the time to do stuff like the projects listed here at tatertots and jello? Don't get me wrong, the work featured is INCREDIBLE and I'm 100% jealous of the creativity on display. I'm also defensive because I could probably do that, too, but who the freak has the time?

You know who has the time?

People that MAKE the time.

Yeah, that's aimed at me more than you.

I seem to prefer to live vicariously through the internet's pursuits than live my own life. This feels like deja vu to even write this, so I'm pretty sure I've waxed rhapsodic about this before. As such, I'll assume you're tired of hearing about it and move on to the main point: 4 Simple Goals by 2013, as inspired by A Beautiful Mess.

image c/o A Beautiful Mess

So their suggested rules are fairly simple - simple goals that will make you feel richer and happier, focused on a practice NOT an end goal, and when you meet the goals before 2013 you should reward yourself. (More specifics at the link provided!)

So here's mine, along with the reward that should come with it, and elaboration if needed:

• Keep up my healthy eating changes and taking my medicines - the reward here will be seeing results at my 3-month check-up. IF I get the results I want (I know, I know, it's not supposed to be an end-goal goal, but I'm cheating on this one), I think I'll allow myself to buy some new clothes - but not for me. (Being vague on purpose, sorry.)
• Host either a pumpkin-carving party or gingerbread-house-making party. I've been wanting to do one of these for a while, darn it. Throwing the party itself will be its own reward, I think.
• Join the next xoso social league for volleyball, or a volleyball MeetUp.com group - I've been playing again a little bit as part of coaching the middle school girls team, and I didn't realize how much I missed it until I started practicing with them. The season ends in 3 weeks, and while part of me will be relieved (due to it taking up a LOT of time 4 days a week), I want to keep it up; the local social league might be the way to do that, or if I can find a volleyball group locally. 
• make something with my hands at least once a week. Unfortunately, with my schedule I haven't been crafting as much as I would like - and frankly, I don't know when I'll have the time again until after my coaching stops. BUT that doesn't mean I can't whip up a little craftiness one night a week. I like art journalling, and that will be my goal to make it more of a habit than a passing fancy, so I figure if I commit to making a new page per day, that's a reasonable goal. As for a reward... if I craft once a week starting today, only missing one week (like my birthday week, which is freakin' PACKED), I'm going to let myself buy new craft supplies, up to $50 worth!

A nice side effect of this little goal thingie - gives me something to blog about! LUCKY YOU. ;p

Side note about A Beautiful Mess - it's such a pretty blog to read, and the content is substantial without being blustery (unlike my own). I must confess that occasionally it comes off a leetle hipster-precious (which makes me role my eyes SO HARD - I'm just a hater), but even those hipster-precious posts are still worth viewing; just 'cuz it's not my taste doesn't mean it's not good stuff. Check them out! Drool-worthy and totally-doable recipes, great life inspiration, and a fun attitude towards life in general.