Tag Archive | achievements

drifty

Jan13

Apparently, the fact that I met my 2012 blogging goal, has given me license to drift off for awhile. I keep thinking “what could I write about?” but absolutely nothing has stuck in my head. I’ve taken no pictures, haven’t seen any movies; nothing has struck me with a “I could write about this.” My thoughts have been more on the drifty side.

I did read a book (the first of 2013–24 more to meet my goal). Chocolate Wars, by Deborah Cadbury. It was a history of the Cadbury family, chocolate factory, and chocolate manufacturing and companies in general. It was actually pretty interesting (well, I found the parts about figuring out how to process chocolate; how the Cadburys Quaker values formed their pursuits and decision;  and other chocolate companies companies interesting–the end parts about corporate takeovers were above my “I understand nothing about business” head.) And I have to admit, I put down the book more than once to get a piece of chocolate! I’ve now picked up a thriller that was really popular a year or so ago called Before I Go to Sleep, by S. J. Watson.

My car search has intensified. It’s looking more likely now that I may be giving my car to a relative, so it’s become a little more urgent (I also still ended up putting almost 500 in necessary repairs into the car…). I’ve probably narrowed it down to a Nissan Rogue. Of course, I had paid off my previous car, so taking on a car payment (this will probably be the largest purchase I’ve ever made…) doesn’t thrill me. But the thought of having a new car does. And cars have changed a bit since 2001, so it’ll be like a time warp!

Although it’s early days yet, I think am not doing too badly on working towards my goals. Aside from reading, I’ve been running, still adding in new behaviors, meditating most days…

And that’s about it. It’s definitely getting into January doldrums time, so I’ll have to think of how to shake it off a bit. Perhaps I should make use of the cake pops kit I got for Christmas?

Hope January and the New Year are treating you well.

as 2012 comes to a close

Dec31

I cannot believe we’re at the end of 2012…

and with that bit of pithiness, let’s have a look back at how things went for me with my goals…

I would say, I got more done than not done. 3 out of 5 were met (although one of those got revised a bit).

Running 10 miles was a success! I ran my first 10 miles in August. I hit a snag in October when I didn’t get to the gym on Saturday mornings between hurricane Sandy, travel, and colds. I was working on getting the ten done more quickly, but thanks to the snag, I’m working my way back up on speed (but have managed to run 10 the last few times out).

Write 200 posts. By the end of January, I changed this to 175-200. I realized pretty quickly that four a week was too demanding for me…even when I downshifted to three it sometimes felt like a chore. I hit 175 with my last post, so I can cross this off the list. And, no more absolute blogging goals unless I participate in some sort of challenge. I envision moving forward with 2-3 times a week…but who knows…if it’s 1-2 then it’s 1-2.

I said I was going to go through 3 chapters of the book Organize Now and get my life together. This so did not happen. Even as I kept revising the goal, it didn’t happen. I’m interested in being organized, but apparently just want it to happen by magic. So, this wasn’t a success, but I’ve been thinking a lot about how I spend my time and energy, and made some strides (my bedroom dresser is still clear [okay, there are some temporary items on it while I figure out where some Christmas gifts go, but it's pretty clear]…so maybe one day….

I wanted to read 25 books in 2012. Totally
exceeded this one, having read 32. So, I’m glad I had this goal as reading is important to me and sometimes knowing that I had a number spurred me on (interesting how this differed with my blogging goal).

And my total crash and burn, taking better care of my hands (as I type this, I can feel the dryness between my fingers). I don’t know why using hand cream is so difficult (my guess is that it’s inconvenient, if I use cream after I wash my hands, my hands are all slippery…I bought lots of hand products, but never consistently used any).

So, in looking for why I was able to meet three, but not the other two, I’m not sure what the pattern is. Maybe it’s the easily seen increments…always easy to see how I was making progress, whereas the other two, I had no real way of measuring beyond a more “organized” life (whatever) that means or softer hands. Maybe I was just more interested in doing those three, maybe it was because those were three habits I already had in place (I was already running, reading, and blogging). This has been something for me to ponder as I consider what I’d like to achieve in 2013.

And on that note, have a safe and happy New Year’s!

hanging out post

Dec28

I’ve been enjoying a little post-Christmas (pre New Year’s) time off! I got some lovely clothes, some books (one more gift exchange to go this weekend, so I’ll hold off on the books until all presents are received), a cake pop maker (!!!!!!!!) and a smaller keurig coffee machine for my office (won’t I be popular at work!). It really feels like forever since black friday/the start of shopping season.

The day after Christmas, I gave myself another gift, my much longed for “day of doing nothing!” I just wanted one day where I felt no obligations…just hung out on the couch doing whatever I wanted. And it turned out that what I wanted to do was read the first book of Harry Potter! And I did! I really enjoyed it and think I will intersperse them into my reading this year.

If I’ve done my calculations correctly, this is my 175th post this year…meaning I’ve met my (revised) goal of doing 175 posts this year. I learned some interesting lessons with this goal (mainly how I shouldn’t lock myself into a schedule with something that’s meant to be a hobby for fun..), but I’ll save the goal review talk till new years (I’m planning to post even though the idea of saying “Yes! 175! Time for a break!” is alluring).

Otherwise, strivingcynic cat is thrilled to have company and has made a point of being very cute and climbing on us for long naps. We’re all enjoying some laziness.

the three-quarter mark

Oct8

Okay…my timing is slightly messed up…we’re a little bit past the three-quarter mark where 2012 is concerned, but not by much. All the same, I’m shocked to be giving my next-to-last progress report for the year. Where has the time gone (well, I can always check the blog if I really want to know…a lot of it’s gone to counting shirts though…).

So, how am I doing? Original goal first (written in my countdown style..)

I’d like to be able to run 10 miles (or 2 times 5 miles). Thanks to some great advice from Cathy about slowing down, I managed to do this for the first time back in August…and I’ve now done it almost every Saturday morning since then. Every once in a while I can’t manage it, but I always bounce back the next week. Since I met that goal, I decided to work on getting the time down as it takes me almost two hours. My first 10 mile run was at a 5.2 mph pace…I’m now up to 5.5 mph. I can run the first hour straight through but need a break or two in the second. I’m very happy with where I am on this. 

I’d like to write 200 posts (which would average out to almost 4 a week–giving myself a little break with travel or things that happen that might pull me away). This got amended to 3-4 a week  (175-200  a  year) before the first quarter was over as I found it was not easy to always have 4 and it was making my blog feel like a chore. If I produce 3 a week, I’ll definitely hit 175 by the end of the year… so if some weeks have 4, it’ll be even higher (most weeks it’s three though..)

Go through 3 chapters a month of my Organize Now! book in the hopes of getting organized. Oh boy. This didn’t last a month and no matter what I did to revise the goal, it still didn’t work. But. I have definitely gotten some things more organized (my dressers, my clothes), so I consider this an improvement at least.

In 2012 I’d like to read at least 25 books again (so mostly 2 books a month). I am currently reading book 24: The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. I feel pretty confident that this book will be done in the next week (even though I saw the movie, the book is really compelling..) so I certainly hope I can manage more than one other book this year…although maybe I’ll pick a doorstopper book (although The Little Friend [book 22] was 500+ pages).

I want to use hand cream on them at least 1 time each day and will do “higher” maintenance (nail clipping/filing/buffing…maybe even a manicure one of these days) twice a month (so 1 time every other week). This should have been the easiest one to do, but I haven’t quite managed it. I think I take care of my hands better than before (it’s hard to use hand cream at certain times..like before opening a door), it’s not great…I did catch on to the idea of using the pumice scrub I keep in the shower for my feet on my hands while I’m showering so that it’s part of another routine.

So, that’s how it’s gone so far…I think I’ve had more success (w-hoo 10 miles!!!!) than setbacks.

If you had new year’s resolutions, how are you doing at the three-quarter mark?

rock my world, or just my kitchen

Sep6

Our kitchen redecoration has moved forward in leaps and bounds in the last few weeks. The pink formica counter tops are no more (well, we still have them in our bathroom and still have it in the pass through between the kitchen and living room).

Here’s a shot of the “old” kitchen.

behold! pink formica…

also not thrilling, the hardware on our cabinets and drawers

the sink was also scheduled for exchange with the new counters

We actually got a deal where we got a sink for free…

So, what’s new?

and bring in the new…

So you can see the total picture…new granite countertops, new hardware, new sink.

We realized when we were looking around that we were gravitating towards “oil rubbed bronze” for some of the fixtures…I like the black/copper look with the countertops and think it mixes well with the silver.

shiny!

priorities…our phone charging station is set up!

The countertops had to “set” for a while…so for the first 24 hours the drawers were out and we had very little set on the countertops. Once we were able to, we were always (and still are) noticing the sounds when we set something down….although at least now we are willing to set something down…I was a little fearful of using the counters at all at first!

We’re really happy with the results. The counters work with our orange paint and the cabinets, while not great, look better too, with the new hardware. The next big step will be putting in a back splash. I imagine it will take us a little while, based on our counter top experience (we kept going to the store and looking at granite, bringing samples home, being indecisive…one day mr. strivingcynic just suggested we go to the store and pick something…and that’s what we did).

What have your big decorative decisions been? Do you feel confident about your design skills?

Things ThaT sTarT wiTh The leTTer T

Jul30

Two Things, to be precise.

1. Ten. As in, “Yes! I ran ten miles this past Saturday!”

This was one of my goals for 2012. And here’s what I stated in my initial January post: “In 2012, I’d like to be able to run 10 miles (or 2 times 5 miles). I started 2011 at 2.5 to 3 miles and am now up to 7.5, so I think this is doable if I’m able to keep my schedule.” So basically, I was looking to add another 2.5 miles. I decided to try to just increase by .25 a month….meaning I’d probably meet my goal by October if I was consistent.

Now, the way I remember it, the 7.5 to 9 parts weren’t too bad, which is one reason why I’m ahead of schedule….but after 9-9.25, things got tough, and 9.5 was particularly difficult. I kept taking breaks and got discouraged by how often I was taking breaks and how long it was taking me to get it done. An exchange with Cathy set me on the right path…I was trying to run too fast for the distance I wanted to achieve. Her advice, slow down. Once I tried that, I was able to move to 9.75 and after 3 weeks running that distance, this weekend I went for 10. Again, it was a bit of a challenge at the end (I know it’s only a quarter mile…but it’s not always easy to tack that distance on!), and I had to take an extra break, but I got there!

I’m amazed at myself. For now, I’m not going to try to go beyond 10 and would like to work on increasing my speed/decreasing my time. To give you an idea, the run itself takes about 115 minutes…add a 2 minute warm-up, a five minute cool down, and 3 2-3 minute breaks…I’m at the gym for more than 2 hours. I leave my house a little before 7 and don’t get home till 9:15/20…so with shower and breakfast, it’s 10 before I’m “ready” to face the day. So, we’ll see how I’m able to do with this and evaluate from there!

2.

I just joined twitter (and on a side-note, just learned how to embed a tweet into a post). I’ve been curious about twitter for a while and finally took the plunge this weekend (maybe my Ten gave me confidence). So, I’m now following a lot of the bloggers I read who have twitter feeds, not to mention all the celebrities, magazines, news organizations, etc. that I’d like to follow. I’ve found that the process really isn’t too difficult. Who knew? This has definitely been a year of new Technology (another T) for me…the iPad, my new computer, learning how to use my iPhone more, venturing out into social media….not too shabby, I think.

[On another note, I may use a new picture for the twitter...I like the picture I use for the blog, but have to admit, the "look at my back" aspect just seems wrong on twitter...].

Those are my T’s. Do you have any T’s or other letters of the alphabet you’d like to discuss?

a long post on my long running

Jul9

All right. Last week, I mentioned how I had been struggling a bit in my running. I’d set a goal for 10 miles in 2012…and found that moving beyond 9.5 was difficult (I know…so close, but yet so far). I wanted to talk about this a little more.

Here’s what I wrote last week

“I hit the 9 mile mark on March 31, 2012 (I goofed in the April post and said 2011, but it was 2012). As of June 30th, I slowed down my quarter a month pace slightly but am at 9.5 miles and planning to attempt 9.75 on the next long run. I was having some issues with trying to do too much at once (too fast a speed, too steep an incline, AND increased distance) and was getting discouraged by how long it was taking me because I stopped a lot. Cathy offered me some very good advice…essentially that to achieve new distances, I needed to slow down. Her advice helped a lot. Anyway, I’m confident I’ll hit the ten by the end of the year if not before.”

Here was the exchange with Cathy, from her “Classic” post on June 18. For context, she ran a 10k in about 46 minutes.

My comment:

Congratulations! Wow, I’m envious of your time…I’m really struggling with my long runs because if I run faster (not nearly as fast as you!) I need to take more frequent breaks…if I run slower…it takes a long time…so the overall time is always looooooooonng!
Enough about me…what a fantastic day for you! Love the shoes.

Cathy:  thanks, zo! it seems all of the shoe companies have embraced colour and innovative design this spring/summer season – i love it! re long runs…can i give my opinion?! i’d go slower and just embrace that you GET to run for more time! your long run is meant to build endurance, and then on shorter runs, you can work on pace and tempo. find a captivating tv show or movie (if you are still using the tm) to help during the long runs

Me: Thanks for the tip. I’ve wondered what was the better way of approaching it..I’ll give the slow long run a try….just my slow run is practically a walk.

Cathy: since you use the treadmill, and you can access your pace quite easily, here is another suggestion: for your long run, your pace should be 60-90 seconds per mile SLOWER than what you usually run, or run for shorter distance.

Me: hmm…there’s no reply option by your reply…thanks for the tip..I guess I was thinking I should be able to do it at a “comfortable” pace…but comfortable for 20 and almost an hour and 20 are different! I’ll definitely let you know how it goes.

Anyway, thanks to this advice (and suggested attitude adjustment), I’ve actually been able to run an hour (the treadmill won’t let you set a time higher than that, so I have to stop and restart) without stopping, where before, I ended up taking several breaks in the first hour, even more in the second. I’ve slowed down, quite a lot, because I realized I was trying to do too much at once…run a longer distance at a “shorter distance speed,” setting it at an incline. I had to take so many breaks it was adding 20 minutes to the time I spent at the gym. I got what Cathy was saying, just focus on distance. And I did. So, even though I’m not really getting out much earlier, at least I’m running more and breaking less. And on Saturday’s run, I was finally able to push past the 9.5 to 9.75.

So, thanks again, Cathy (I hope the store’s customers appreciate you!) 10 here I come!

What good advice have you gotten that helped you overcome an obstacle?

how the half am I?

Jul2

Somehow, we’re halfway through the year? Crazy. So, it’s time to see what sort of progress is being made with the 2012 goals.

The initial goal post.

The “Hey, it’s now April iterim report.”

And on to now. Green indicates the initial goal.

1. “In 2012, I’d like to be able to run 10 miles (or 2 times 5 miles). I started 2011 at 2.5 to 3 miles and am now up to 7.5, so I think this is doable if I’m able to keep my schedule.”

I hit the 9 mile mark on March 31, 2012 (I goofed in the April post and said 2011, but it was 2012). As of June 30th, I slowed down my quarter a month pace slightly but am at 9.5 miles and planning to attempt 9.75 on the next long run. I was having some issues with trying to do too much at once (too fast a speed, too steep an incline, AND increased distance) and was getting discouraged by how long it was taking me because I stopped a lot. Cathy offered me some very good advice…essentially that to achieve new distances, I needed to slow down. Her advice helped a lot. Anyway, I’m confident I’ll hit the ten by the end of the year if not before!

2. In 2012, I’d like to write 200 posts (which would average out to almost 4 a week–giving myself a little break with travel or things that happen that might pull me away)…”

By the end of April, this was modified to 175-200 posts and 3-4 times a week. This will be my 98th post this year, so I’m well within my target range.

3. “I did indeed get…Organize Now! … The book is broken down into 56 chapters with the idea that you’ll do one a week. Not every chapter applies to me, so I’ve decided that in 2012 I’d like to get through 3 chapters a month in my quest to be more organized.”

I revised this in April to acting on 3 suggestions a month. I’d say I’ve had a measure of success with this, albeit not in a formal way. I’ve definitely started tackling organizing projects (my magazines, my dresser, my clothing drawers, my constant clutter piles). I’m happy with what I’ve gotten done, even if it wasn’t what I foresaw.

4. “..In 2012 I’d like to read at least 25 books again (so mostly 2 books a month).”

By April, I’d read 6 books. And, as of right now, I’ve read 14 (more about those in a future post). So, I feel pretty good about this one.

5. “One thing that I’ve put in monthly goals and failed on is taking better care of my hands (they get chapped/cracked in the winter and I wash/sanitize them to death) and they start to hurt/flake/peel. So in 2012, I want to use hand cream on them at least 1 time each day and will do “higher” maintenance (nail clipping/filing/buffing…maybe even a manicure one of these days) twice a month (so 1 time every other week)….”

This one has still proven tricky, but I think I’ve been better. Certainly the higher maintenance has happened. In fact, the other day I decided to go out and have this done.

hot pink manicure

I goofed and touched things before I should have…but it’s been nice to look at my nails!

So, even though I’m not exactly where I want to be with all my goals, I haven’t dropped them all completely…I’m not cringing too much looking at what I wrote I wanted to do in 2012!

How has your 2012 been so far, goal or otherwise?

a wrap-up

Jun28

Remember way way back in February, when I showed off my horrendous gift-wrapping skills (handy-dandy link)? Well…I managed to go several months without another present giving occasion where I had to wrap the present (I either had things shipped/wrapped and once I [and the recipient] got lucky and mr. strivingcynic did the wrapping). But last week…the time had come. It was mr. sc’s birthday…and there were two boxes and a book that needed wrapping.

I’m happy to say, this round of wrapping went a lot better than the last one (little to no puffiness/paper bunches, no hair under the tape…). So..thanks and on to the…okay, I guess you might want to see proof that my wrapping skills were better. Fine.

ready to be wrapped

So, something I learned from the last time that I put into play here. Most of the time, you will need to cut excess paper. Trying to accommodate the size of the box often means that more paper is going to be cut than is needed…but that excess paper makes things awkward when wrapping…so snip snip!

see, that’s me cutting away

And let me just say, extra points to me for photographing with one hand while cutting with the other!

and box one is done!

I’m willing to admit, the stripes on the wrapping paper helped when it came to cutting and lining up cut edges.

If you look at the upper right hand corner, you’ll see I had a [non]observer

he’s pretending to not pay attention, but we all know that cats love the sound of crinkly wrapping paper

box two, for your viewing pleasure

Okay…I can see this one wasn’t as nicely lined up as the first one, but it’s not bad.

The third one is where I got a little loopy. Since it was a book…and I had all the excess paper from before, I decided to challenge myself to wrapping the book using the excess paper. And of course, none of it totally covered the book…so this is what I (and mr. sc) got:

yep, I even made a “bow” with paper scraps

I knew I’d never get anything to line up, so I went for more of a pattern on this one.

The result? Mr. sc complimented my wrapping! Of course, he still tore it off….but it was nice to know my effort was noticed.

Interestingly, this was my first wrapping job on the new kitchen table, which is smaller than the previous one. It was manageable, but I will admit to missing the extra surface space from the previous table. Also, you’re getting some nice views of our new place mats! A total bonus!

Is there an “occasional” skill like wrapping presents that you’d like to improve on? Have you done any “creative” wrapping?

revisitation time

Apr2

How did this happen? We’re one quarter of the way through 2012! When I planned out my “countdown” goals for 2012, I wasn’t entirely sure how often I wanted to go back and examine how it’s going. I did check in at the beginning of February, but felt once a month was too often. At the moment, I feel like a check in every quarter could be a good thing to do!

So, how am I doing? Right on target with some things and not so much with others. I figure this check in gives me a chance to decide if I want to change or modify in some way.

My goals from the original post (in green), followed by my current status.

“In 2012, I’d like to be able to run 10 miles (or 2 times 5 miles). I started 2011 at 2.5 to 3 miles and am now up to 7.5, so I think this is doable if I’m able to keep my schedule.”

I hit the 9 mile mark on March 31, 2011. I’m still ahead of my schedule (I figured on bumping up a quarter a month, but I’ve gone up by a mile and a half)

“In 2012, I’d like to write 200 posts (which would average out to almost 4 a week–giving myself a little break with travel or things that happen that might pull me away)…”

I think I modified this one by the end of January to say 3 to 4 posts a week, aiming for 175 to 200 this year. I just felt too locked in…too pressured to just post any old thing to meet a number. I think there have only been two weeks so far that had 3 posts instead of 4, so I’d say I’m doing pretty well. I just needed some breathing room!

“I did indeed get…Organize Now! … The book is broken down into 56 chapters with the idea that you’ll do one a week. Not every chapter applies to me, so I’ve decided that in 2012 I’d like to get through 3 chapters a month in my quest to be more organized.”

Well…not so much. I haven’t really spent time with that book since January, when I did really well. But, I have managed to accomplish/implement some organization and tidying. I’m not where I want to be, but I’m better than I was. So, to revisit this goal, I’m going to modify it from 3 chapters a month to looking it over and acting on 3 suggestions/recommendations it makes a month. I think that will help me keep up what I’m doing and it won’t feel like a chore.

“..In 2012 I’d like to read at least 25 books again (so mostly 2 books a month).”

I’m pretty much on target with this one. I’ve read 6 books so far in 2012, which is 2 a month. I suspect a vacation will help with getting a three book month in. The last book I read was This Body of Death by Elizabeth George, which was more than 700 pages! (like reading two books, but I won’t “cheat” and say it was when it wasn’t).

“One thing that I’ve put in monthly goals and failed on is taking better care of my hands (they get chapped/cracked in the winter and I wash/sanitize them to death) and they start to hurt/flake/peel. So in 2012, I want to use hand cream on them at least 1 time each day and will do “higher” maintenance (nail clipping/filing/buffing…maybe even a manicure one of these days) twice a month (so 1 time every other week)….”

This is another instance where I haven’t been 100% perfect, but I’m doing better than I used to. For some reason, I am just bad about using my dishwashing gloves. And I’m not great about applying cream every day. I would say I do manage it more days than not…and although the nails have gotten too long/jagged a few times…I have been better about maintenance. So, I’m going to keep this goal and put more effort into it.

So, my verdict so far is that I’m doing pretty well. I’d like to be doing better, but I’m happy to see that I think I made good choices in my goal setting. I also think the quarterly check in will be useful for seeing what my thoughts are about my goals and progress.

What are your thoughts on where you are now that 2012 is one quarter over?