How I did it: My last entry says it all. I tried to keep my temper and my language under control (I am an adult after all) but I found that swearing at another driver is a good way to let off steam. I think it's probably heathier to let off a stream of oaths than to let anger build and end up doing something worse. Read how I did it…
How I did it: I'd always been a reader but in the last few years felt that I was devoting too much time to television and the internet and decided I should make sure I read more. I own lots of books and am trying to read those so I can donate them to my library when I'm done and get some room on my overcrowded shelves, but I also like to go to the library to get the most recent books by my favorite authors. Read how I did it…
How I did it: I started by reading sonnets and got that part of the goal out of the way. But then a lot of time passed before I started on the plays. I thought they'd be enjoyable if not enlightening, but I didn't like them at all. I read two tragedies and two comedies and they were all very soap-opera-ish, with poor characterizations and far-fetched, unbelievable plots. The only thing I can say is that reading the plays in fairly qui… Read how I did it…
How I did it: I began this goal on February 25, 2010 and finished November 29, 2010. My ending total was 100,720 grains. The problems began about June and lasted through September. During this time they kept wiping out your total earnings each time you played. Fortunately I'd been keeping my own log. Once the transition was finished, there were new problems to contend with. Freerice.com went from using … Read how I did it…
How I did it: I waited until after we had some rain so the ground would be softer and easier to dig. Daylillies and hostas are very hardy plants (the only reason I can grow them!). I dug around their perimeters as a starting point, and then downward, beneath their roots. Once I had them out of the ground, I used an old steak knife to cut up their tuber, then replanted them in other parts of the yard. Some plants were so big I go… Read how I did it…
How I did it: As I said in my last entry, this goal became moot as I cut my hair short for an entirely different reason. However, setting this goal made me realize that cutting my hair wasn't a very effective way to deal with stress. Read how I did it…
How I did it: I started by using a DVD facial exercise program. After a couple weeks I developed an odd crease across my chin so stopped that program. (BTW, the crease is still there!). I then starting using this facial toning appliance, morning and evening, doing the upper part of my face in the morning, the lower part at night. I thought I saw some toning and lifting in my face but perhaps it was my imagination and/or wishful thinki… Read how I did it…
How I did it: I was always buying supplements hoping to reap great benefits, but I'd only take them for a few days and then stop as I hate swallowing pills. I had so many bottles of them, they filled a basket as well as a bread box. So I made a concerted effort to take them and when I did, I didn't notice any benefits at all. I gave away a lot of them, threw away others, and now know better than to buy any more. Read how I did it…
How I did it: Mostly I would knit in the evenings and combined knitting with watching (actually listening) to TV shows or movies (when I tried to combine watching with knitting, I made too many mistakes). Sometimes it seemed an endless task, at other times it just zipped along. I checked my work every few rows for mistakes and fixed them as soon as I found them, also counted stitches regularly to make sure I didn't go wrong somewhere withou… Read how I did it…
How I did it: I started on New Year's Day working on the pantry which took just about the entire day, then moved on to each cabinet, taking everything out, washing out the cabinet, and putting in new liner paper. I got rid of stuff I hadn't used for years, stuff I didn't even remember I owned, and duplicate things. I ended up bringing 2 copier paper boxes and 8 brown paper bags' worth of still good but unwanted kitchen stuff to a charity sh… Read how I did it…
How I did it: I had always loved to read, but it seemed that lately I was reading less and less. I decided a book a week was a workable goal (and I ended up reading 60 in 2009). I devoted some of the time I would have been surfing the web or playing computer games to reading instead. I read whatever caught my fancy, fiction or non-fiction. Read how I did it…
How I did it: I went cold turkey, just stopped buying books and magazines. I didn't have room for any more, and I had too many still-unread books on my shelves. (In another goal, I wanted to read 52 books this year; of the books I owned and read, I was able to donate 35 to the library, so freed up some shelf space that way.)UPDATE 1.9.10 - I thought once the restriction against buying books and magazines was off, I'd go hog-wild. But so far… Read how I did it…
How I did it: It took me a long time to actually send out some query letters, which it shouldn't have. It's a simple matter of writing something and finding a place to send it. I finally did that (with no results, sad to say). Read how I did it…
How I did it: I started by moving my kitchen timer into my bathroom and determining how long my showers were in general (about 15 minutes). Then I began cutting back on shower time a minute each day until I was down to 5 minutes. That only took about a week or so, but I decided not to consider this goal completed until I had kept it up for six months to make sure a shorter shower became an ingrained habit. Read how I did it…
How I did it: I played Freerice during downtime at work, a big improvement over the Freecell and Spider I'd usually fill my time with. I had made my original goal of 100,000 grains in September and decided to try to increase it by 50 percent by the year's end. I've now reached that goal, actually ended today with 150,510 grains, and still have another 30 days left in this year. Read how I did it…
How I did it: Once I made this goal, it made me aware of just how often I was negative and prefacing things with 'I hate....' It made me stop and think of some other way to phrase things when the urge to say 'I hate' would pop in my mind. Read how I did it…
How I did it: Once I made this a goal, I just took the time each morning to see what jewelry I had that would go with my outfit. I'd forgotten I'd had a lot of it (and also realized I'd donated some jewelry to a local charity which I now wished I had, but it went to a good cause so that's okay...). I had a number of bracelets I'd received as gifts and rarely wore; I am right handed, would put them on my right wrist and found they got in the… Read how I did it…
How I did it: I played on a daily basis. At first I tried to play three games each time I played, but as I got better at it, I could play fewer games and win more water. Whenever I missed something, by a little or by a lot (and at the start it was almost always by a lot), I tried to make a mental note of where that location was so I would get it the next time. Read how I did it…
How I did it: I played at work (family business so the boss is my husband and he'd better not object!). I just kept at it every work day (I also play at home but have not considered the rice I've won there in my tally). I tried to win 1,000 grains each time I played. This is a good game to play at work (provided doing so won't get you in hot water) because it is not timed; if I had to stop to deal with a phone call or a walk-in, there … Read how I did it…
How I did it: I've always wanted to paint a mural, although in all honesty I am not that artistic. I was finally inspired to do it by some stencils I found at a thrift shop. I bought them and just jumped in and started working on it. I had just painted my basement so I had a fresh surface to work on, and I worked on it on weekends. It came together pretty quickly, and would have been quicker if I had been happier… Read how I did it…
