A day late. I know, but change doesn’t happen overnight, right?
I decided not to make goals for January because, well I really wasn’t thinking about it, and with a touch of the ADHD, making plans when I’m super motivated ends up in self-sabotage and disappointment.
But as I mentioned in my Oops, I’m back post, nothing serves as better motivation than public humiliation. So let’s break it down.
Word Counts/Projects:
On Mondays and Tuesdays, business runs pretty slow, so I’m dedicating those days to reaching my word and project goals. Within a three day timespan I managed to wrack up 15k words over two different projects. The more time spent with my stories, the more I realize that it really does come down to putting my phone down, (perhaps unhealthily) ignoring all distractions and hunger, and just writing.
There are three short stories that I want to finish this month and one needs to be submitted in a few days before the deadline. I also want to get at least 15k more words between the two projects I’m focused on right now, one is a cozy (if you can count San Francisco being a good setting for a genre that typically uses small towns) and the other is my supernatural thriller.
Reading:
I managed to read three books last month which was more than I could say for the entirety of 2022. Deciding to make time to read made me realize I’ve been wasting time being sad and feeling sorry for myself, I had lost my passion of reading. Sure, I had a lot of healing to do in 2022 and it was a huge focus, but I lost all that time that I could have discovered a new world.
The only rule I have in terms of reading, not just this month but this entire year, is to only consume fiction that A) I already own, or B) is indie/self-published. A friend on Twitter mentioned that she was doing a book club type of reading and February’s pick just so happened to be Dewi Hargreaves’s The Shield Road. I’ve had his ebook in my Kindle library most of last year with the intent to read it and yet, mental health and executive dysfunction cackled in my face. So this month I want to read it and post a review as soon as I’m done.
Sidenote: Dewi recently came out with a post-apocalyptic novel set in the East Coast, U.S. Check out Eyes on the Blue Star if that sounds like your vibe. I know it’s going to end up on this year’s TBR.
As for a second book, I’m not entirely sure I’ll have time between the rest of my responsibilities. But who knows what this month will bring?
Health and Wellness
Last year I managed to gain around 20 pounds after my break-up and, whether it sounds shallow or not, I physically don’t feel well. I love being active and keeping my body moving. I can’t describe how hyper-aware I am of different body parts when I’m being active, but it bothers me to feel certain parts.
I’m not interested in quick weight loss tricks, because everyone knows they don’t last. So this month, I want to just walk at least one mile a day, and three miles on my slow biz days. I’d consider myself relatively healthy, so I think if I stay away from excess salt and track my caloric intake, I can manage a slow two pound over all loss this month.
I’d love to hit a couple mountain trails this month, but I think that will depend on my kids willingness. It doesn’t take much more than a “we haven’t gone on a hike in awhile” to get them excited, so if the weather permits, we may get a hike or two in!
As for my mental health, I’ve found that staying clear-headed and taking time away from social media to focus has helped me, but journaling has been the most helpful. This month I want to try new prompts when I sit down and explore yoga and meditation techniques. There’s this phrase, “the body keeps score” and if that’s the case, there’s a ton of trauma stored up in these bones that I’m ready to release.
Home and Garden (not the garden)
My brain works in a strange way. I’ve started this habit of, once I sit down to write, I’m in the zone for hours. But that kinda becomes a problem when I have projects around the house I need to finish.
When I make a list, I can stick to it, but it has to be in front of my face. When I don’t do that, I end up starting chores and doing them halfway because another thing came to mind, so I stopped what I’m doing and started the other thing. Next thing you know, I’ve got a bunch of half done chores.
This month, my kitchen goal is to move all clutter from the tops, and find a designated area for paperwork that I get from the boys. I also want to load the dishwasher instead of letting the dishes in the sink pile up to put into the dishwasher altogether.
If you’ve read this far, you must be incredibly bored, or just mildly invested in my potential failure. Either way, I thank you.
Laundry ends up being run and then I pick clothes out to wear until the wash is ready to go again. Not this month. We’re folding laundry the moment it’s done (and cooled down). Not only that, but I need to go through and donate whatever doesn’t fit anymore.
Lately I’ve been doing some research in terms of gardening. If I can cut my grocery bill by planting things that I love to eat anyway, why wouldn’t I give it a go? There’s a few things that I’ve read can be regrown as well, so we’ll see how that plays out.
Looking at all of this now feels a teensy bit overwhelming and life could throw a wrench in these plans (as life tends to do) but it can’t hurt to give it a good attempt. I’ll be back in March with an update. Wish me all the luck you could muster!
Raine August 