I haven’t been visiting my goals at 43things very much due to lack of home service and starting my new job. Now things should be more consistent, and now the season has changed to Spring. All I can say is that I accomplished everything on my last entry for this goal.:) 5 years ago

Well, I pretty much know what to put in my essay.

Haven’t read a single book since last update. But that doesn’t mean I haven’t been reading.

Have been faithfully driving.

Overall, I think I did pretty well. 5 years ago

It feels like winter is over and spring has arrived. Time for a final check on this goal. I am thoroughly pleased with the progress I’ve made with my speaking, storytelling and kids’ activities. A very good winter indeed!

This winter I finished:
1. become a toastmasters CC!
2. enter the TM area contest (and win!)
3. coordinate a TM youth leadership program
4. joyfully and easily coach an envirothon team for my son
and 4 other homeschoolers (calling it done, even though
the contest is in 4 days, but we’ve had our practices
and are ready to go to the contest)
5. attend storytelling bootcamp
7.hold a science class for my son and 2 other homeschooling families using “Great Moments in Science
8. help my youngest son earn his Tiger Badge in cub scouts
9. find and log 100 geocaches
12. watch all 4 seasons of Walker, Texas Ranger that I have

I made some progress on:
10. joyfully clear out the clutter from our home
6. polish at least 5 stories to tell

I didn’t finish:
11.workout 30 times at the local gym
13. start a RR story writing group with 3 other friends 5 years ago

I just had a lot going on this winter and many of my ongoing goals are dependent on other people, like the bank… We’ve found a place we want to live and have an accepted bid. I’ve been decluttering and packing up like mad. I’ve knit bunches of hats and an afghan for charity and reduced my stash considerably. I funded 43 Kiva loans, which is something I never thought I would do and totally snuck up on me. I got my taxes out early.

There are still multiple goals on my list that kinda give me angina, like “get a loan”. I just have to be patient… It’ll all be over by the summer. 5 years ago

To be honest? I was a lazy a$$. Shame on me! No more comments. 5 years ago

Although in number, I completed less actual goals this winter, I’ve managed to finish some very important ones and keep on an even keel with a hearty balance of continuing things: happiness, seeing friends & family, being a good mom, Friday haiku, Kiva loans, free rice, reading, knitting, date nights, potty training, various fun, creative, emotional, and health related goals etc.

The main thing I wanted to focus on over the winter was decluttering our home, and for 80 days straight I did just that. It’s made a huge, huge difference on a number of levels.

Since my last post I nailed a few more things: Bookcrossing (found, read, released), Hair (colour for me, a cut for Isak), a great clothing swap...

Some of my new goals are wrapping themselves around the old ones and pulling them towards the finish line, and I feel good about my current pace.

Now I’ll be coming full circle back to the Spring Goal Challenge. See you there? 5 years ago

didn’t really do anything on my list this winter, i’ll have to review and start the spring list.

i did #4

and almost #3 (saw 47 movies instead of 50)

for the record…

Les carabiniers
The devil’s backbone
Live free or die hard
Legally blonde 2
Pirate’s of the Caribbean 3
I am legend
Bourne supremacy
Bourne ultimatum
The bad sleep well
Stealth
Underworld
Fifth element
Northanger abbey
Lucky number slevin
Stardust
The good german
The replacements
Failure to launch
Election
3:10 to yuma
The simpsons movie
Thx 1138
Deathproof
Palindromes
Dear wendy
The queen
Juno
Eastern promises
The assassination of jesse james by the coward robert ford
Shakes the clown
Fear of fear
Pride and prejudice
Michael clayton
Wondrous oblivion
Old school
Gattaca
Focus
Strangers on a train
Five easy pieces
Broken flowers
Dirty harry
Happenstance
The steel helmet
District B13
Bullitt
The center of the world
The gift 5 years ago

I got most of the things I wanted to do done this weekend, namely…

1. Move in with my boyfriend. I spent a good chunk of Saturday and a few hours on Sunday packing up his books and cleaning out his kitchen.

2. Buy an apartment. Still waiting, but they accepted our bid! Now we’re just waiting on money and contracts…

3. Renovate my bathroom. I talked to my super and went to ask about sinks. My super also knew a good contractor for my bathroom and I asked a neighbor who used him and she gave him a glowing review. I still need to get my groundplan and other things laid out, but I still have time. We’ll still be here for another month at least, although I do want to have everything lined up…

4. Declutter. I went through my old files and spent some quality time with my shredder. [Sing with me: “It’s a nice day to… clean this out! It’s a… nice day for a… pile of shredding!” I don’t know how Billy Idol would feel about me mangling that…] I also went through my kitchen and cleaned out my dishes and glasses that I’m not taking with me. I also de-decorated and put together a box of tchochkes and craft supplies to go out. I also sent out an invite to all my friends. My boyfriend is going to have a party where people take his things away…

I’m starting to get totally overwhelmed with the pile of stuff that needs to leave the house. I was thinking I would be able to drop things off at his house, but his house is a big mess right now. I’m crossing my fingers that I can get it out of my house this weekend…

5. Taxes. Done! I’m ready to mail them off, in envelopes and everything… I think I’ll go ahead and mail them tomorrow morning. I should just get it over with. 5 years ago

Goals I want to make habits

1. Drink a full glass of water when I get up in the morning
2. Drink water with every meal
3. Eat at home more often
4. Go to bed after music night
5. Walk in the evening

Now that the sun is out later, it’s easier to walk in the evening after work. Going to bed after music night is a joke. I might just learn to embrace not going to bed after music night.

Goals I want to achieve

1. Inventory my purse
2. Make avocado fudge
3. Spend money only on food and necessities from Feb. 22 through Mar. 21

I checked my credit card statement yesterday, and I’m well below my spending this time last month. I did break down and buy a couple things, but I’ll talk about that elsewhere. I still have a couple weeks to inventory my purse.

Goals I want to make progress on

1. Make my NaSoAlMo album bigger and better – For the winter, I’d like to work on one song per month.
2. Surf the Web or read a book at five different coffeehouses – I’ll commit myself to two coffeehouse trips in the next three months
3. Make MP3s from my LPs

I wrote and recorded a song this month. I’m saving it for the CD. I made some Mp3s. I think I’m going to give up on the surfing/reading at a coffeehouse goal. It’s not as appealing as it was when I posted it.

Overall, I’m doing very well.5 years ago

Have read four books since last update.

Just now realized I considered today the last day of winter. I’m actually going to extend this until 20 March, the true first day of spring.

Anyway, saw Sweeney. Finished my free rice donations.

I’ve decided to postpone pursuing the cello, as bassoon is a handful as is.

Have been driving faithfully and then some.

I’m not sure of the exact format of a “This I Believe” essay, but I figure I’ll mention vegetarianism, personal freedom of beliefs, the inherit uselessness of life but the importance of enjoying the small bits of it, and the importance of cooking. Also of creativity. So yeah. I’ll look into that this week.

Finally reread Lolita! And it was awesome.

I’m not going to read 8 books this week, but whatever.

Not continuations
1. Read at least 8 books.
2. Consider what to include in my “This I Believe Essay.”
3. Practice driving an average of 50 minutes a week (not difficult). 5 years ago

3. coordinate a TM youth leadership program

What a great program! I can’t believe I coordinated this whole thing myself. It was a big job! 5 years ago

Here are the things I want/need to get done this weekend…

1. Move in with my boyfriend. He’s packing, I’m helping.

2. Buy an apartment. Waiting, waiting…

3. Renovate my bathroom. I need to track down my super, ask at the store about sinks I found online and update my groundplan.

4. Declutter. More, more, more! I definitely need to go through all of my paperwork and files and, um, file things.

5. Taxes. I finally have the final info, so I want to bind it all up and prepare it for send off. I may hang onto it until April 15th, just because I forsee a potential cash crunch coming up with the house and renovation and everything… Not that postponing my taxes a month will really help with that, but I’ll feel better, I guess.

Yeah, so, fun weekend ahead! [sigh.] 5 years ago

It’s almost spring! I have a lot to get done between now and April 1st, which is the date my boyfriend moves out of his current place and his birthday. I can feel the weather warming up already! Time to get moving…

1. Move in with my boyfriend. I don’t know where he’s moving to—there’s a chance we could be moving into our new place, but there’s also a chance that we’ll both be stuck here! I have enough space to take him in, but I do live in a studio apartment with a 4×5 bathroom.

2. Get a loan. The appraisal happened today, so I should be moving forward and potentially done with this one pretty soon.

3. Buy an apartment in New York. We bid on a place we like. They asked for a set of bios and net worth statements for both of us. I put mine together, although I want him to take a look at mine before we send them off.

4. Declutter. Doing well. I’ve been through most of my apartment at least once. I know there’s more here to find, but short expeditions have been going well for me. I do have to go through my papers, correspondence, files and journals, but everything else is under control.

5. Knit for charity/knit through my stash. I’m on hat #12 for Seaman’s Church. I keep thinking that I’ll run out of yarn for this project, but it hasn’t happened yet. Still, I’m getting close. Number 13 may be the last hat I make, or it may end up being half-a-hat…

6. Read some of the books I own. I’ve been reading at least a little each night. I used to be a big reader, but I trailed off somewhere in grad school. It’s nice to get back to it, although I have a big pile going…

7. Rewire a lamp. I bought the parts at the hardware store the other day, but this isn’t something I want to do when there’s anything else going on.

8. Renovate my bathroom. I’ve been looking around at sinks, faucets and tile. I keep hoping I’ll run into my super so we can talk about the leak, but I haven’t seen him yet. He helped me find the contractor and plumber for my kitchen, so I’m hoping he’ll know good guys for this project too…

9. Recycle some of the plastic my city won’t take. I have a bunch of shoes sitting in there that I need to recycle. First, I have to cut out the metal grommets, but they’re all gathered up otherwise. 5 years ago

So I got most of my chores done this weekend… I haven’t patched the ceiling in my storage loft yet, but I made progress on everything else and finished a few things off. I even got laundry done! 5 years ago

My boyfriend is going to be out of town for the next few days, so I want to get a lot of my chores outta the way, namely:

1. Give away cat carrier. These guys are so nice!
2. Recycle extra plastic and close out that goal. Ugh.
3. Buy only one skein of yarn so I can finish that half-a-hat I made. Only one!
4. Declutter more!
5. Start working on the layout to my bathroom.
6. Patch the ceiling in my loft storage space.
7. Take a bag of clothes to Housing Works.
8. Pick a health plan for the new year.
9. Go by the tile store.
10. Take things to the post office.

...and I’ll add more as I accomplish things. I know that I will also be spending time making at least one more hat, but I’m not going to add it to the list so I don’t prioritize it over the other things here. This is totally a world tour for me—I have to get to Williamsburg, Park Slope and Woodside to get these done.

Today’s mini to-do list is:

1. Go buy spackle and find my spackle knife.
2. Check and see if my friend who wanted fabric can still come by. Sunday night!
3. Draw out the groundplan to my current bathroom so I don’t walk into places with a crappy sketch.5 years ago

Goals I want to make habits

1. Drink a full glass of water when I get up in the morning
2. Drink water with every meal
3. Eat at home more often
4. Go to bed after music night
5. Walk in the evening

I’ve been eating dinner at home all week. I picked up a bunch of prepared foods from Whole Foods earlier in the week, and I’ve been eating those every night. Going to bed after music night is still difficult, but I’m not staying up as late. Walking in the evening is going well, too. Well… I don’t always walk in the evening; sometimes I walk in the afternoon.

Goals I want to achieve

1. Inventory my purse
2. Make avocado fudge
3. Spend money only on food and necessities from Feb. 22 through Mar. 21

The penny pinching goal is going VERY well. I thought I was going to have to blow a lot of money getting my car fixed last week, but it turned out to only be a dead battery. Still haven’t inventoried my purse despite Des giving me some good advice on how to do it.

Goals I want to make progress on

1. Make my NaSoAlMo album bigger and better – For the winter, I’d like to work on one song per month.
2. Surf the Web or read a book at five different coffeehouses – I’ll commit myself to two coffeehouse trips in the next three months
3. Make MP3s from my LPs

I didn’t record a song in February as planned. I wrote music to a song, but no lyrics. Now I’m working on some lyrics to a different song because they don’t fit the music I wrote earlier. I haven’t gone to any coffeehouses. I might let that one go. No sense forcing myself to do something if I don’t feel like doing it. I’ve been making MP3s from LPs. I’m halfway through with Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA.”

Overall, I’m still still happy with my progress.5 years ago

1. become a toastmasters CC (Make progress)
I totally finished this! feels great! 5 years ago

I really haven’t kept up with this goal lately, but a lot of my goals are intertwined right now, so…

1. Knit for my friend’s baby: The baby shower was this weekend and my gifts were a success! They got a few handmade items, so I felt like I was in good company. I was happy with everything I made too…

2. Move in with my boyfriend/buy an apartment/get a loan: These have really been stressing me out lately. The general requirements to live in a co-op [25-30% debt to income ratio based on your 1040s for the last three years, two years of debt servicing payments in liquid assets] are worlds apart from what banks look at when they give you a loan. I’ve been waking up early and having these numbers circle battily around my head for the last few days, but it looks like we can neatly step around all of those…

3. declutter/read books/destash/knit for charity: Doing well… I still have a lot of stuff to get rid of, but my charity knitting is going well… I’ve also found a few people who are doing similar charity projects and sent them yarn, including a woman in Vermont who does charity knitting with a knitting machine and needs all of that tiny yarn that I bought on impulse. I sent her a few cones.

4. taxes: almost there! I have a few more numbers to crunch once my mom gets some of her math done.

5: reprend: J’ai fait rien! C’est dommage, mais il faut que je fais tout les autres choses, et j’ai tout de ma vie pour reprendre et parler plus bien. 5 years ago

2. enter the TM area contest (and win!) And I did win it!

Now I get to go to San Diego in April for the division contest. I’d love to win that one. That’d be enough for me right now. Just perfect! 5 years ago

5. attend storytelling bootcamp … well worth the time and money! 5 years ago

Alright, I haven’t finished a single book. However, I am reading three rather thick volumes at once (String of Pearls, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and Lolita) and making progress. All of these books are also on my to read list, so I won’t beat myself up too much.

Signed up for driver’s ed (wasn’t on this list, but it’s accomplished nonetheless).

Seeing Sweeney next week (!).

I’ll count the meditation item as complete since I appear to have fallen into a pattern.

Not continuations
1. Read at least 12 books, including Lolita (for God’s sake).
2. Donate 2500 grains of rice to freerice.com
3. Consider what to include in my “This I Believe Essay.”
4. See Sweeney Todd live (3/1/08 =])
5. Practice driving an average of 50 minutes a week (not difficult).
6. Look into the price of renting a cello. 5 years ago

I haven’t kept up with my winter challenge entries very well, but I’ve been intensely focused on my decluttering goal (using the daily flylady missions as a kick start). This is the main goal I want to nail by spring. Today is my 54th consecutive day and clutter’s proverbial ass is being kicked hard. I feel very good about how much I’ve done, and can feel myself unwinding the more the house is freed from layers of mess and useless crap.

I’ve continued to keep up with (or make progress on) multiple goals: Happiness, Friday haiku, Kiva, free rice, contact w/friends & family, being a good mom (and potty training), reading, date nights, various emotional/health goals etc. I’m trying to keep a good balance going.

Although I haven’t managed to check off as many goals as I’d like, there were some important ones: I was finally able to give blood again and I voted for the first time.

Goals I’ve completed (since my last entry):

• Have 100 subscribers

• Set up new toddler bed

• Dr. Seuss avatar week

• Take vitamins daily

• Increase my iron levels

• Donate blood

• Fix the X

• Hang art on the walls

• Vote

• Clean out my fridge

• Attend a Chinese New Year celebration

• Give myself a pedicure

• Feed the ducks

• Play “Two Truths and a Lie”

I’ll continue to push all the cluttery bits away from my life and keep on top of the rest as best as I can. Winter tends to drag around the edges. I look forward to Spring. 5 years ago

7.hold a science class for my son and 2 other homeschooling families using “Great Moments in Science” by Kendall Haven

A great educational experience! Loved it! 5 years ago

Goals I want to make habits

1. Drink a full glass of water when I get up in the morning
2. Drink water with every meal
3. Eat at home more often
4. Go to bed after music night
5. Walk in the evening

The weather has been better, so I’ve been walking more. Tonight, I took Lily with me. The last time I went to music night, I didn’t go to bed right after, but I didn’t stay up as late, either. I count that as progress. I’ve been eating at home more often, but that’s probably because I’ve been sick.

Goals I want to achieve

1. Inventory my purse
2. Make avocado fudge
3. Spend money only on food and necessities from Feb. 22 through Mar. 21

Procrastinating the purse thing. :P The money not-spending goal starts in 5 days!

Goals I want to make progress on

1. Make my NaSoAlMo album bigger and better
2. Surf the Web or read a book at five different coffeehouses – I’ll commit myself to two coffeehouse trips in the next three months
3. Make MP3s from my LPs

I’ve made some progress on making MP3s from my LPs, and I wrote the chords to a song. I’m not sure I’m into the coffeehouse goal. It sounded like a good idea at the time, but I’m having fun surfing the Web and reading at home.5 years ago

I had lots of shiny excellent-sounding plans for this challenge, but winter has been hard & exhausting for me, even more than usual. Being so behind on several self-imposed winter deadlines regarding these goals has added further yucky feelings to the seasonal malaise.

I hereby declare that the rest of my winter will bow to the cycles of nature: I shall subside into a degree of hibernation, resting as much as possible while still keeping up with work & family & the church & Colombia projects that I don’t write about much on 43T. If I don’t get much exercise or art done, so be it. Spring is coming & things will be different then. 5 years ago

1. Is to talk to one person about potential work and to go on a job interview.
2. Turn the phase III and IV books in.
3. Call my bank. 5 years ago

Have read three books since last update.

Up to 37500 grains of rice.

Completed what was once number six again.

Am finally re-reading Lolita.

Distributed resumés/applied places this week, which is funny to think of, since I wasn’t actively intended to fulfill number eight, but I guess I have.

And guess what? I actually meditated today. I think Sunday would be the appropriate day for meditation if it’s only to be once a week. So I’ll try to do likewise next Sunday.

So, updated list:

Not continuations
1. Read at least 12 books, including Lolita (for God’s sake).
2. Donate 12500 grains of rice to freerice.com
3. Consider what to include in my “This I Believe Essay.”
4. See Sweeney Todd live (3/1/08 =])
5. Practice driving an average of 50 minutes a week (not difficult).
6. Make time to meditate at least once a week.
7. Look into the price of renting a cello. 5 years ago

Both 8 and 9 are done. No. 8 went quicker than I imagined. Almost too easy to really appreciate.

9. Finding our 100th geocache was so exciting! We even celebrated by buying pizza for the whole family. It meant alot that 2 couples helped us with our last few caches (with hints). Encouragement and determination… 5 years ago

Goals I want to make habits

1. Drink a full glass of water when I get up in the morning
2. Drink water with every meal
3. Eat at home more often
4. Go to bed after music night
5. Walk in the evening

The water drinking ones are habits now. The only one of these I’m having difficulty with is walking in the evening. It’s cold and dark in the evening. I’ll do better with that one in the spring.

Goals I want to achieve

1. Inventory my purse
2. Make avocado fudge
3. Spend money only on food and necessities from Feb. 22 through Mar. 21

Avocado fudge was good! The other two are pending.

Goals I want to make progress on

1. Make my NaSoAlMo album bigger and better – I’m having difficulty getting started with this. I had almost two weeks off over the holidays with the intention of working on this, and didn’t feel motivated. So I want to break it down into baby steps. For the winter, I’d like to work on one song per month.
2. Surf the Web or read a book at five different coffeehouses – I’ll commit myself to two coffeehouse trips in the next three months
3. Make MP3s from my LPs

I worked on one song, and plan to write and record a song in February. I still haven’t been to any coffeehouses, but I changed the goal to include reading a book if I don’t feel like surfing the Web. I’ve made some more progress with the LPs.

Overall, I’m still happy with my progress.5 years ago

Number 12 is done. Working hard on the other goals, especially the envirothon team and the youth leadership program. 5 years ago