31 Days

I have always wanted to pursue a project as a challenge.  I've read Gretchen Rubin's blog and loved Julie Powell's book and her blog as well.  I admired their ability to stick to something for a year.  A WHOLE year.  365 days...
Not this chick.  The only thing I am consistent in is being inconsistent.  SO  here I am.  Swing still in the basement (see previous post).  A month and a bit more stretch out in front of me and I am fortunate enough to do pretty much what I choose.  I decided to try to accomplish some things that I always say I want to do.  For a month.  31 days to be exact. 

What will I be doing?

• Cooking.  As in a full meal.  At least one a day.  Lunch and breakfast will be bonus.  I know, this isn't a challenge.  Not for you,reader.  I plan on actually cooking recipes I have clipped, bookmarked, drooled over, pondered.  That I normally don't have the time for with all of our running around.   
• Creating.  Something...I have a basement full of things partly started, things waiting to be opened and played with, things I've talked about doing. 
• Exercising.  Note~ not focusing on a number.  Just getting some exercise.  Having just finished Younger Next Year for Women (which I highly recommend to EVERYONE), I realize I have the opportunity to prevent a future of frailty and dependence if I begin now.

And here I am at day one.
Did I cook? 
Well, I orchestrated.  Got my daughter to fix the main dish whilst I worked on our late evening dessert.

Tacos

 

 

 

 

 

Crumbled pound cake for fried ice cream.

 

 

 

 

Did I create?
I have been wanting to play with watercolor, so I decided to dive in.  My husband sent me a picture of our first sunflower blooming and that was the subject for day one.  I tried sgrafitto texture and added some detail with oil pastels and Sakura glaze pens.  It was a great feeling to spread out my supplies, add some ocean wave music and sit by a sunny window to have at it.

Exercise?
Done.  Even after coming home late.  Went directly down to the dungeon basement and worked my legs. Writing the workout down makes it so much easier.  I don't have to think, just get it done.  While I was pushing out reps, I realized how great it felt to be doing something!  Even though I was tired and wanted to get in my pj's and call it a night, I was content to be where I was. 

Day 1 done.  Looking forward to what tomorrow brings.

The Swing or The Plan and Cans

The dice were thrown and The Swing was decided.  The poor, neglected swing that has sat in the crowded garage patiently waiting for me to take it out of its misery.  It has made it to the basement and is sitting with the plan and the cans of paint that will transform it into the beautiful seat in our backyard. 

Fast Forward 2 hours...I plug in the earbuds, have the tunes up and am ready to go.  I start painting and lo, I find that I did a miserable job sanding the slats.  I will pull it out this weekend.  YES this weekend and sand it til it is smooth and splinterless.  Then back to the brush. 

I had that zen moment all alone with the music and the job at hand.  Why do I keep myself from this?  I start a myriad of projects only to leave them abandoned and alone.  I used to consider them black clouds hanging over my head, mocking me.  But now~perhaps they are just lonely, forelorn and forgotten.  Poor things.  Waiting to be plucked out of their abyss and brought to life. 

Roll 'Em

Here I am many many moons later, finding myself in the same exact spot I was when I started this blog.   The day is new, the blog has a new name, but dear reader, the blogger is still the same.  Still lost in the same labyrinth of confusion from trying to decide what to do.  My mind has become a tangled mass of brightly colored ribbons and threads balled up in an extremely frustrating knot.  I cannot make up my mind which thread to follow to get to an end!  Frustration!!!!
Thank goodness I read!  Where else would I have gotten the idea to finally untangle the massive swirl of wonderful zany thoughts and ideas out of my pink matter and into my world???? I first read about The Dice Man by Luke Rhinehart from a UK library website (no longer up).  What is it about?  A psychiatrist who  makes all of his decisions based on a roll of the die.  He eventually loses his family, his job, his life, to the cube.  I will not be so dramatic or drastic.  I will just be using the dice to make a decision about WHAT I will do first then next then after that.  I wrote down 6 categories~cooking, creating, projects, traveling, socializing, and cleaning out.   Stimulating, I know.  But THAT is what is swimming around in my head.  I listed 6 things under each category.  Now I don't have to think about it, fret about it, wonder what about it, I will just go with the roll of the die.  Let's see how much I get done before I lose the cube!!