The Hectic Month of November

Why hectic, you might ask?  Sure, there is Thanksgiving (in the US) at the end of the month ... but that's about all, isn't it?

Well...that's true; at least it used to be true.  But that was before the advent of NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) and NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month).  To add to the fun this year, I found   another gem to add to my collection:  The 21-day Self-Discipline Challenge, hosted by Serving Joyfully and Super Sweet Life.

You see, I haven't been disciplined enough in previous years to complete either NaNoWriMo, nor NaBloPoMo.  This year I am hoping to change that.  This year I am planning on changing that.  This year I am going to change that.

So, settling down to the Self-Discipline Challenge, for the first day we are to pick a small project that has been left undone.  I am rather spoiled for choice here, as there are so-o-o-o many around our apartment.  I chose my craft/computer table, over and under, which is placed in a corner of our living room by a window.  And, our dog Sneakers just had puppies (9 of them) starting shortly after midnight on Halloween, and we are going to move the little "puppy pen" out of the bedroom and under that table.

Shoot.  I was going to post a "before" picture, but am having trouble getting the picture from my phone to the computer.  I'll ask hubby when he gets up, as he is the computer whiz in the family.  And, as I've already started working on the mini-project, I will post before/after pics tomorrow.  It'll be the first time I've ever done that, because, let's face it, I am domestically challenged.

Picking a mega-project was hard for me.  There seems to be so many things in my life that need change:  making the choice to (and actually) stop smoking; completing NaNoWriMo; complete a full month of NaBloPoMo; organize our apartment sufficiently that we can actually have people in, set up an Etsy shop for my polymer clay beads and doodads, to name but a very few.

I'm going to stretch the concept a little.  What I mean is that cutting back on my smoking will be my main mega-project and if the self-discipline I develop during the course of the challenge happens to spill over into other projects, so much the better.  If that's the only project that gets completed in the 21 days, I'll be better off than I am now.

For today, I am just keeping track of how many cigarettes I smoke.  Since midnight, I have smoked 10 cigarettes.  As it is but 6:16 pm where I live, I know that total will increase.  My plan is to cut back by one cigarette per day until I no longer smoke.  Tomorrow I will come up with a list of other activities I can do instead of smoking.

One thing I have noticed today, is that a lot of time, my desire to smoke will increase when I am bored or stressed, with a heavy emphasis on the latter.  If anyone has any good stress-reduction tips, I could sure use them; feel free to comment below with something that works to reduce your stress.

Happy trails!

WW - Papaw's Backwoods House

Looking Within

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Wednesday, September 5, 2012 Bob Marley asked: "Open your eyes, look within. Are you satisfied with the life you're living?"  How would you answer him?

In a word, "No."

I struggle every day to be positive.  After all, I've had about 40 years of practice waiting for the other shoe to drop. I didn't used to be that way.  Three incidents from my childhood right now come to mind.  

First, I asked my mother for an entrance fee for a contest.  She said no, because "only one person can win".  Looking back, it is entirely possible that she was trying to protect my self-esteem in case I entered and lost; alternatively, we may not have had enough 'disposable income'.  But she did not reveal her true reason.  My young self took it to mean that I was not good enough.

Second, my first "life calling" love was acting on the stage.  Neither of my parents approved.  This could have been because of their backgrounds.  My mother's father was an alcoholic - something I never knew until late in her life (he died before I was born).  So her early life was not easy.  Besides that, she was a young adult in Switzerland during WWII.  My father grew up oldest son of a turkey farmer turned railroad man from West Virginia.  He was the first of his family to gradulate from college.  So, I had to: a) go to college; b) get a degree that was not only marketable, but highly profitable.  My young self too that to mean that my heart's desires were irrelevant.

Lastly, I had been struggling in a trigonometry class all term long.  On one of the last tests, I got a 97, which was one of the highest grades in the class.  I was so proud and couldn't wait to show my father, who had a PhD in Chemical Engineering.  I showed it to him in his home office, and his comment was, "What happened to the other three points?"  The wind got punched out of my young sails there.

So, have I depressed anyone yet?

THE GOOD THING about the past is that it is OVER!  I can change my thoughts and actions, and thereby, my future.

I may never be an Olympic Gold Medalist in gymnastics.  And that's OK.  I can eat well, exercise and feel good about myself.  I may never win a Tony for acting on Broadway.  And that's OK.  I can still experience the thrill of performing and pass along my love of the art to others.  I may never own a Jaguar XJ-S.  And that's...well, I'm still holding out a little hope.  I may get to drive one one day...and that is definitely OK!

So, is there anything about my life that I'd like to change.  Oh, the choices boggle my mind.  So, I'll take it easier on myself.  What is one thing I would like to change about my (outlook on) life?  Hmmm...

I tend to start a lot of projects and ... not finish them.  For instance, I started a "French twist" rainbow friendship bracelet a couple of weeks ago.  It is currently coiled up in a zip-lock baggie to keep it as tangle-free as possible.  I want to finish that bracelet by next week.  Any volunteers to hold me accountable? :O)

What about you?  Care to share something you would like to change about yourself?  (It's ok if you are happy the way you are, too.)

A Simple Saturday

    

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...same old street.  Unfortunately my desk is in a corner of the room farthest away from the window, so it is rather hard to look out the window w/o getting up and walking to it.

I am thinking...I'm hoping my substitute-substitute gig as church pianist goes well tomorrow.  It's been a long time since I played in front of that many people.

I am thankful...that a friend has loaned me her unused keyboard so that I can practice!

In the kitchen...the cat is knocking something else off the counter.

I am wearing...black jeans and a purple knit shirt w/a design around the collar and some glittery accents.

I am creating...some cards and a "French knot" rainbow friendship bracelet.

I am going...to wrap the sharp exposed edge of the metal chair arm in duct tape so I stop getting poked in the stomach through the new little holes in my shirt.

I am wondering...will that deposit ever make it into the bank? *sigh*

I am reading...the Bible in 90 days (end of the 2nd week).

I am hoping...my upcoming dental marathons don't take too much out of me.

I am looking forward to...my mother's house selling so my family and I can finally get a house of our own.

I am learning...that my son gets bored with downloaded games really, REALLY fast.

Around the house...we have too much crap stuff and not enough shelves, boxes and closets.

I am pondering...why some days I feel half my age and others I feel twice as old.

A favorite quote for today..."To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under Heaven."  (Thanks to Karen Dawkins for reminding me of this.)

One of my favorite things...peanut butter fudge.  Go figure!

A few plans for the rest of the week:  getting back on track with my B90 reading, write a couple of blog posts and reading as many other blogs as I can.

A peek into my day...waking up to "Mommy, I'm hungry!"  Sitting down to read, when I hear, "Mom, which is worse....?"  Sitting down to write and hearing, "Mom can you help me with?"  Coming back in from taking the dog outside and just as my back comes in contact w/the back of my chair, hearing, "H-o-n-e-y, before you sit down, can I ask a favor?" *lol*.  Lying down at the end of the day and realizing that I'd much rather be hearing that all day long than not, know what I mean?

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Friendship Friday - Labor Day Lack of Plans

      

Today's Friendship Friday question was about what people's Labor Day plans were.  Well, we really don't have any special plans for the holiday weekend.  Remnants of Isaac are supposed to bring us rain all weekend.  Schools have been in session here in Kentucky for nearly a month.

I guess there is one thing a little different about this weekend, though.  I got a call yesterday from the President of the branch of my church, asking me to play the hymns on Sunday, as both of the regular pianists would be out of town.  This is not a huge deal, I suppose, as I have played for years and in the Primary (children's Sunday  School) for several months now.  I just want to do a good job.

OK, this is a little "off-topic" but I got a great surprise in the mail last Wednesday.  When I went to get the mail, there was a letter, addressed to me in my "big-girl" name, with no return address.  Inside was a Shell $100 gas card!  It could not have come at a better time, as the last couple of months have been somewhat of a struggle for us.  Hubby even made the comment that my exclamation of surprise was a lot more "family-friendly" than it has been in the past!

Have a great holiday weekend, y'all!

Wordless Wednesday - Favorite Picture

Friendship Friday - My Hometown

When I think of "hometown", I think of the town in which I was born.  More accurately, the wide spot in the road where I was born.  Unfortunately, for the purposes of this post, I remember little about the place, except for that we went through one time when I was a small child and I got to see the house in which I was born.  Maybe I can be forgiven for my lack of memory given the fact that this happened close to 51 years ago.

Today, my home town (or the town in which I find my home) is in a small town in Kentucky.  Although I've spent the majority my life in two "big cities" (one in Utah, the other in Texas), I am truly "at home" here.  So what makes this place unique?

Well, it has one of the few "town squares" left in the US.  There has been talk from the politicos about razing the square to improve traffic patterns, but that would destroy some of the town's character.  And where would they put the town Christmas tree?  On the plaza in front of the brand spanking new "Justice Center"...where driversby cannot even see it??  I think NOT!

Long ago, they co-opted part of a nearby "multi-state highway" for the town's business district.  Within the town limits, they number the traffic lights along this road.  So on the radio, businesses providing their customers directions say, not "between X Street and Highway Y"...but "at light 5" etc.  I had never seen that before living in this area.

Also, the townspeople just recently voted to take the town "wet".  Before that, someone wanting to purchase  liquor had to drive approximately an hour in any direction to get to a liquor store or winery.  There were many, many more "vote no" signs in people's yards.  I only recall seeing two "vote yes" signs, one with just words and one with graphics.  But when the vote came, the "yes" votes outstripped the "no" votes approximately 3 to 1.

When we moved to this town, we checked to see where we would need to inform school districts about homeschooling our children.  The neighbors beside us and across the street both were in the county district, so we dropped off our notification at the county BOE.  We found out within two weeks (via nasty note on our door) that we were the last house in the city district, while everyone around us was county.  Go figure.

Happy creating, y'all!