February's Flying Leap (year) [group chat] http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776 Bill Moonroe Didn't see a group chat started yet, so, here it goes. If I just missed it...whoops... but the February Month of Letters sounds like a specific challenge, rather than a general goals and hopes thread. I guess it might be good to check in with how we did with our January goals, and use that to focus on February. One thing that's suddenly occurred to me is that I really ought to find a way to procure a functional laptop computer, so that's a goal for this month. I'd like to actually go to a NaNo Write-In this year. The past two years, the closest ones have been at my workplace, so it's not like getting there is a problem. More goals to follow. "A goal is a dream with a deadline"-- Napoleon Hill Wed, 01 Feb 2012 07:15:09 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107378 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107378 Bill Moonroe Okay... recapping my January goals My goals for January: 1. Complete the 30 day challenge at the Bikram yoga studio Completed it... I've done 5 or 6 previous challenges, and this was the strongest, most challenging one yet. Primarily because I made the somewhat insane change from doing the classes at 6:30 pm to doing them at (gulp) 5:30 am. Great way to start the day. 2. Write and submit two short stories Wrote two stories, one first draft, one third draft. The third draft is on its way to a slush pile rendezvous as I write. 3. Learn one new banjo tune... my next lesson is on the 8th of January, so I think that'll be my next tune Actually, have learned a pretty nice version of "Home Sweet Home". 4. Learn one new slack key guitar tune Have one newly-memorized, and one that I'm still trying to get to sound like music... 5. Complete the first four lessons in Samoan This sort of fell by the wayside with the schedule change. A laptop computer has the potential to let me get writing done between yoga and work, and thus get evenings to work on Samoan. 6. Walk 20 minutes a day, five days a week It's been more like 3 days a week, but it's been a consistent 3 days a week. 7. Go for at least two donkey walks Did three donkey walks. That little burro is the best hiking buddy ever. Wed, 01 Feb 2012 07:23:03 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107397 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107397 Tobaeus Loving the thread title. :) For this slightly shortened month, I want to: 1) Get rid of the bugs. 2) Exercise more. Once a day or more if I can help it. 3) Rewrite this short story and submit it. Seriously, what am I so afraid of? 4) Work on my super secret project and get it going before Leap Day. 5) Clear out all the recycling paper. Must enlist hubby's help, as he has the driver's license. 6) Keep the house clean. (You're all probably tired of seeing that goal, but I need it there as a stern reminder.) 7) Order my gardening supplies. 8) Make the hubby's Valentine's Day gift. 9) Write, write, write. 10) Read, read, read. 11) Start a new goodwill bag/box. 12) Get the ps3 fixed. 13) Fix mp3 playlist and back up computer 14) Get driver's guide and at least study for my permit. That should be good for right now. I'll post more if anything comes up. Wed, 01 Feb 2012 07:24:01 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107399 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107399 Bill Moonroe February goals: 1. Keep the progress with the yoga going, though at 5 days a week, rather than 7. 2. Write and submit two short stories. 3. Learn one new banjo tune 4. Learn one new slack key guitar tune 5. Complete the Superbowl Sunday 5k walk race 6. Walk 20 minutes a day, 3 days a week 7. Go for at least two donkey walks 8. Send in the entry form for the Topanga Banjo-Fiddle Contest (This one's easy, since the form is already filled out and entry acceptance starts today) 9. Laptop computer acquisition Wed, 01 Feb 2012 07:28:23 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107406 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107406 Bill Moonroe Seeing Tobaeus' list reminded me... 10. Read "A Feast for Crows" 11. Read "Think, and Grow Rich" Wed, 01 Feb 2012 07:30:32 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107410 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107410 DanieXJ Whew. I have to say, I don't even remember what my Jan. goals, or if I had any, (yep, I could go back and look at them, but... not gonna, so... :)) But... I'm starting off Feb. with a ginormous awesome. Yesterday (still Jan.) I submitted my taxes. I had all the paperwork finally, and was like, well, I could wait, or, I could just do it. Earliest I've ever gotten them in by like, a mile and a half. There have been some years when I was getting them in the day before practically. So, definitely starting off Feb. positively. Plus, it's my favorite month as well (despite the wicked cold... :)) Mm... and for Feb I need to keep reading too, 'cause I'm about to fall behind in my 150 books in a year thing. I've been ahead so far, but I have to get finished the Grimms Fairy Tales and start in on Blood of the Fold or whatever the title is by Goodkind... Wed, 01 Feb 2012 07:49:27 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107436 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107436 BuddhistOnABus These were January's goals: - Finish the first draft of this year's NaNo - done - Begin edit of previous novel - done - Write a specfic short story - nope - Write 3 blog posts - done - Read one Buddhist book - done - Continue keeping a meditation diary - partly done, but not totally up to date - Meditate at home once a week - nope, didn't manage that - Fill a charity shop bag - technically done, just not taken to the shop yet! - Finish clearing out/tidying - nope - Submit an article to the BATOD magazine - done Not too bad. So, goals for February: - Continue editing novel - Write a short story, any genre - Do Zumba for the Wii at least 3 times a week - Take a day just for me - go to the beach, walking, etc - Finally get rid of this wrist splint (not really under my control but I want it gone soon!) - Make some more cards to sell - Lose 7lbs - Write 3 blog posts - Read one Buddhist book - Meditate at home once a week - Fill a charity shop bag - Continue clearing out/tidying Some are carried over, some are going to be goals every month and some are new. I've realised that the clearout will be an ongoing thing, as will the editing. This month was also going to be a month off alcohol, but right now there's too much going on for me to put it into practice - to clarify, I only drink once or twice a week at the moment so I'm not exactly reliant on it, but I just don't want to impose that on myself right now. Wed, 01 Feb 2012 08:10:46 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107462 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107462 golfgal08 Well, I nailed my daily goals for January, but missed most of my weekly goals and my monthly goal. Here's to hoping I'm more on track in February. These are my generic, year long-goals: 1. Write at least 750 words of fiction every day. 2. Stretch every day. 3. Read at least one chapter of an un-read book every week. 4. Exercise for 2 hours every week, in addition to 30 minute lunchtime walks when the weather is nice. 5. Finish a knitting project every month. Some February-specific goals: 1. Get my apartment in some sort of acceptable state for my birthday party on the 25th. 2. File my taxes. 3. Plan a vacation with college friends. 4. Start planning for Script Frenzy. 5. Continue assembling my Lego Millennium Falcon. I've been good with the reading, the writing, and the stretching. I've even usually ended up reading more than just one chapter of a book, because once I get started, I'll keep going. I've just been struggling for the last few years with staying interested, and my reading list is about 50 books long at this point. I'm trying to get that number down. As for exercising, I've managed at least an hour a week, plus generally walking three or four days a week, so it's not that I'm sitting around being a fat, lazy lump. I'm just trying to take everything in small steps and find some balance in my life. Wed, 01 Feb 2012 08:18:33 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107471 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1107471 Zookeeper I like the title, although with a little bit more alliteration...(cough!)...well, no, maybe not. February goals: 1. Fix bathroom faucet 2. Finish first draft of Nano 2011 3. Finish next revision of Nano 2005 4. Clean kitchen 5. Get work 6. Read another 9 books 7. Clean bathrooms 8. Do feng shui space clearing 9. Bake bread 10. Do visualizations 11. Start some seeds 12. Vacuum bedroom and office 13. Donate or freecycle something Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:18:12 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1108135 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1108135 kittymammas Oh I like this. Okay Feb goals! 1. Finish my nano2011 first draft, almost there. 2. If I finish I'd like to have at least the plot and structure edited, basically it all pans out in the end. 3. Keep up on my exercise routine. 40 mins of kinect dancing 4 times a week and 30 mins of strength exercise 4 times a week. 4. Keep up with Thursday family night, kids love it. 5. Re do my wardrobe, yuck 6. Send out a nice "just because card" to all my friends and family in my phone book. I live 2100 miles away from them all =( 7. Keep using my mycheele face products religiously until my skin is clear 8. get that dang root canal...cringe Okay, lets see how I do! Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:32:05 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1108167 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1108167 J.Kievsky Ambitious month, this. Continuing projects: Job search - Reading - Exercise - Hobby Writing (at least) - Walk every day, 5 miles/day averaged over each week - Meet 5 new people - Network with the local beekeepers and see if anyone will take me on as an apprentice at their hive - Practice piano once a week and try to relearn the ricercare and 23/5 - Attend 2 area social meet-ups - Host people for evening tea 3 times - Progress on text version of DP book project - Search for giveaway patio furniture and garden supplies - Attend the free student classical concerts whenever I can - Attend 2 bird seminars and arrive at least 10m early to chat - Bird weekly and do at least 2 half-hour birding sessions solely by ear to practice - Assemble master list of things we need when we can afford them - Put the house in good enough condition for guests to visit - Find an optometrist Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:18:01 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1108288 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1108288 dutchbando My February is not getting off to a wonderful start. Woke up in the middle of the night with a very sore throat. Delightful. The Goals: 1. Read 10 books (7 on the TBR pile and finish the 3 currently in progress) 2. Walk as many days as possible 3. Buy my nephew's birthday present 4. Go to church 5. Do my taxes 6. Get a job 7. Do something nice for myself (to be determined - possibly a massage/spa day). This was a major month in my former relationship, I want to get through the month without being completely miserable. Pampering is in order. 8. Keep using chapstick Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:56:11 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1108367 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1108367 sprites I haven’t been active in this forum but I’m just going to…flying leap right in. Hi everyone. January was ok but I feel I didn't get much done. Well - it's partially because I had to move, and in between places I had to stay with a friend for a week, and then I got a cold, which made me a slacker. February Goals: 1. work really hard on my rewrite of my nano novel (get to 40,000 words) 2. finish online course 3. take a yoga class at least 4 times 4. be biking to work at least 3 days a week by the end of the month 5. read 5+ books 6. find part time nanny position to supplement my part-time job 7. draw in sketchbook especially to unwind 8. Be social - have fun. hmm, I feel that there’s more, but that’s a good start. Wed, 01 Feb 2012 19:16:46 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1108738 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1108738 rovingjack my hips are super sensative now. Going from sitting down work as a commision based artist to 32 hour weeks tromping around concrete floors... oy. But this will effectively double my income and give me full medical coverage too. so that's a plus, add in a 20% discount (today I bought a sketch pad and 7 11x14 canvases for about $14, and they have glazed ceramoc pots of about gallon size or a bit bigger for around a dollar, potting soil and heirloom seeds). My pay comes out to about $40 under my monthly university kitchen monthly income... per week. In two months I'll likely make half my former yearly income. I hate dealing with money, but goodness when you've had to do without for so long it's amazing what can change when you get paid. still I'm looking forward to settling into the new activity level and schedule, so that I can start working on things when I get home. Wed, 01 Feb 2012 22:36:52 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1109151 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1109151 Hepatica Where did January go? Can't believe it's Feb already! Did I achieve my Jan goals? 1. Exercise every day - NO 2. Try to each a piece of fruit every day, as long as finances allow - SORT OF 3. Increase my water intake - GETTING THERE 4. Wash up every day - MOSTLY, NOT ALWAYS 5. Writing every day - whatever type it is - NO 6. Sort out my gardens - dig over the front one for veggie growing &amp; perform some hair cuts in the back! - NO 7. Apply for teacher training - YES FOR ONE, NO FOR THE OTHER TWO 8. Finish tidying up around the house - SOME, NOT ALL So I haven't really achieved that much then! So, for Feb, I think my goals ought to stay the same. But also include: 9. Plant up my seeds when the weather allows 10. De-flea my bedroom again (wonderful cat I have!) 11. Revise English, Maths &amp; Science in preparation for teacher training interviews 12. Complete my mortgage insurance &amp; DSS mortgage forms!!!!! 13. Save £300 if possible to pay for the interest on Feb's mortgage 14. Buy another 6 months of car tax 15. Find some sort of "club" to attend to get some friendships going Thu, 02 Feb 2012 01:16:54 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1109242 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1109242 Hepatica Life sucks! Had the most wonderful (not!) conversation with my mortgage bank last night - due to life getting in the way, I haven't yet applied for my mortgage insurance &amp;, whilst Sep was covered by my month of lieu of notice &amp; Oct - Dec were covered by credit that had built up (I wonder how!), Jan was not. Well, Jan didn't get paid. I kept expecting them to contact me to ask why not, but they didn't. So I phoned them yesterday, having tried to phone them on Tues &amp; getting nowhere fast! They reckon - of course! - that the £600 I have saved (after a lot of scrimping &amp; saving &amp; tearing hair out!) for other payments that need to go out this year, mostly car related, can be neatly diverted to paying two months of interest on the mortgage. They don't understand that, if I don't pay for car tax or car insurance, I'm not going to be able to get a job - they're just looking greedily at that pot of money that, at the moment, is not doing anything apart from accruing me about 10p of interest! So the upshot is that, after a lot of pressure, I agreed to pay half of it out at the end of this month to cover Feb's interest on the mortgage, but no more. Which means I have to find another £300 from somewhere to cover the savings that will have to be withdrawn! Then, this morning, having prepared to go into school for a couple of extra hours to make a frieze for one of the teachers who asked yesterday, I discovered the power steering on my car has gone! Phoned the garage, who said they'd never known electronic power steering to go on a Micra before &amp; didn't know how much it would cost to fix! They can't even look at it till Mon, so I booked it in for Mon &amp; then phoned RAC to come look at it &amp; take it over to the garage if they can't help - fortunately, the RAC bit is covered by my monthly subs! So now I'm potentially looking at using my savings to fix my car &amp; then I'll have to find the £300 to cover my mortgage insurance &amp; then another £600 to cover my savings for the other things! Aaaagggghhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Life so sucks! Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:03:44 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1109391 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1109391 MarthaBechtel January's goals were, hmm, well more or less met since I didn't really set any. I did manage to stop drinking soda and to start cooking more at home (yay), which was a nice start. I cleaned a bit and painted some horses—all small things, but nice first steps on the path to where I'd like to be in 2013. For February, I'm a little loath to set actual goals since I'm not sure what the month will be like. I joined in the 60k in 60 Days challenge over on the Life After NaNoWriMo forum, so I've got that in place already. I dunno, I think I'd like to work on my 'walking more' and 'eating better' habits, but I do want to keep trying on the 'wake up earlier' one as well. Although I have a feeling it might be a lost cause. *sighs* In terms of the micro-business I'm running on the side, I'd like to get some more horses painted and maybe an ebook in the store (Saturday Story Prompts collection). But for the moment I'll settle for more traffic to the store and the website—even if it doesn't result in sales at least they'll know I'm out there! :) I'm also tempted to see how little I can spend on food and still be healthy and not hungry. I had no idea there was such a price difference between bone-in and bone-out chicken, so now I'm wondering how much other stuff (make vs. bake) I'm spending that I don’t have to. *pokes food budget* Ah well, tis a gloriously gloomy gray overcast Thursday here in Virginia… here's hoping it's a bit sunnier where y'all are! :) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- <a href="http://www.Martha.net" rel="nofollow">Martha.net</a> -- <a href="http://www.martha.net/category/unquiet-bones/" rel="nofollow">Unquiet Bones</a> (Writing) -- <a href="http://www.martha.net/category/custom-models-com/" rel="nofollow">Custom-Models.com</a> (Model Horses) -- <a href="http://www.martha.net/category/perish-twice/" rel="nofollow">Perish Twice</a> (Warcraft) ... because you can never have enough hobbies. Thu, 02 Feb 2012 06:18:01 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1109570 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1109570 Hopeful lily January seems to go on forever (and not in a good way), which is why it never even occurred to me yesterday that we were starting a new monthly thread. My brain is addled in winter. I am really happy for you, Jack, and sorry life is so tough for you, Hepatica. Zoo is already on the list of people whose lives we hope will turn around, and there are more of you struggling to find a way past current difficulties. It's all mixed with hope, though, that tomorrow will bring a better day, and manuscripts will get written or revised, or sent out, or even sold. We've all got that ace in the hole. We need it in February. Thu, 02 Feb 2012 06:33:06 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1109593 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1109593 DanieXJ Rovingjack. Concrete, I'd love to be walking around on concrete. Instead we have carpet most places, which is nice, but.... then, behind the desk we have this long rubber pad or something, and to have to stand and walk back and forth on that all day, crap it screws up my knees. Don't know if concrete would be better, but I'd rather have the carpet than the rubber thing to walk on. The discount sounds nice. (I get all my books where I work free....... of course, so do all the patrons of the library, so..... ;D) Thu, 02 Feb 2012 07:44:21 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1109711 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1109711 Hepatica Good news re the car. :-) By the time the RAC man came out mid-afternoon, the sun had warmed up the car &amp; it was quite ready to play. Nice RAC man started it up &amp; no PS light stayed on. Nice RAC man then tested the battery, fiddled around a bit with the engine &amp; restarted the car a few times. All good. He reckoned it was down to the poor little ickle car being cold this morning! Cue 'dying of embarressment' &amp; many apologies for wasting his time! It *was* -3C this morning, but still ....!!! He did say, too, that if it happens again when the weather gets warm, it could be connections in the battery, the alternator or the motor &amp; could cost upto £1000 to fix! Trying not to think of that one, but I think I'll leave 10 mins early tomorrow &amp; sit in the car, letting it warm up before I expect it to move! lol! I've also started one of my Feb goals - got the anti-flea spray out after I'd stripped the beds &amp; sprayed it round liberally. I'll get some drops for the cat from the vet after school tomorrow &amp;, hopefully, that'll knock it on the head. If not, I'll have to get the hoover out, but hoovering a duvet is not my most favourite of occupations! :-( Also remembered another Feb goal - to clean up the bird station &amp; trim back the hedge behind it. The whole area's a mess! I want to see if I can get a cheap squirrel defender for the pole, too - one of those that looks like a clear, up-turned bowl - to catch all the seeds they drop &amp; filter them down to one small area for the ground feeders. At the moment, they scatter all over the path &amp; make it muddy when they sprout &amp; then I walk on them! Not good! :-( Thu, 02 Feb 2012 11:58:24 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1110033 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1110033 dutchbando Ok, so maybe going for a short walk on a day I stayed home sick wasn't such a brilliant idea; but I didn't go yesterday when I was too sick to even contemplate it and was getting restless from sitting around so much. I've now gone and worn myself out. Oh well. Swilling tea, taking a hot shower and drinking lots of orange juice to compensate. I guess it was a somewhat productive day. I finished one of my books in progress, read a lot from a second, did some editing of my facebook account since their new timeline and the ramifications of their IPO are weirding me out, and contemplated what sort of jobs I should apply for. I need to get going and start applying for more since I haven't applied for a single job since November; but that requires knowing what sort of job and where I should apply to. Thu, 02 Feb 2012 15:04:12 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1110512 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1110512 Hepatica Just found out that I haven't got a place with my preferred teacher training provider. Although I probably shouldn't be, I'm a bit stunned. Somehow I thought I had a good chance. They said it was due to the quantity of applications they had this year, but that's really a cop-out. I'll just have to get my skates on to apply to the other two providers now &amp; hope that one of them can give me a place. Car was ok this morning, though, even though it was actually colder this morning (-4C) than it was yesterday. The steering was even a bit looser than before, I thought. Fri, 03 Feb 2012 09:11:07 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1112388 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1112388 alicerabbits Good luck with February's goals everyone. My February goals: 1. Keep up with School work 2. Procure corset making supplies 3. Look at houses 4. Save for wedding 5. Send off 2 short stories 6. Start new story 7. Lose 5 pounds 8. Keep up with Recycles 9. Keep up with Blog 10. Walk (an average) 1.4 miles/day 11. 3 strength workouts/week Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:42:39 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1112584 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1112584 DanieXJ That sucks. I hope you get in your second choice. Good news about the car though! Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:15:56 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1112784 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1112784 Magpie Ilya I finally cleaned out my wallet and sat down with the pile of receipts and bank statements I found - and guess what, I even had money left over at the end of January! Granted, it was only € 4 or so, but considering that I was unemployed for much of the last two months, it's a little astonishing. Well, the employment agency changed its mind on how much money I should get halfway through January, and sent me a little more, which was a big help. Well. February goals. 1. Write every day (and stick to "Goblins") 2. Continue sorting through/putting away story-stuff 3. Read, read, read! 4. update book list 5. update plant list on my blog 6. plan balcony garden 7. sow tomato seeds and whatever else can/must be sowed this early 8. go to medieval dance 9. finish knitting sweater 10. 4 days without internet 11. buy new work trousers I feel like I should do something fun for my 25th birthday, but I don't can't think of anything. And honestly, I don't care much about birthdays any more. They were more fun as a kid. Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:24:48 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1112813 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1112813 alicerabbits feel better! Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:05:02 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1112942 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1112942 Oxford-Dreamer My February hasn't gotten off to a good start. My dad owns a software company and apparently his software has gotten a virus that has been logging credit card information. A bunch of people who have been shopping at places that use my dad's software have been getting fraudulent credit card charges because of that. So now the Secret Service has stepped in, and they're investigating my dad's company. Now his company could be facing fines of up to millions of dollars for getting hacked. And there's sure to be negative publicity after this, so there's a good chance, my dad's business could go out =-( As far as my goals go, though, I guess: 1. Read 5 books (at least one nonfiction and one published within the last five years) 2. Cut down on the caffeine 3. Continue drinking more water 4. Start a new novel 5. Go to the gym at least twice a week Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:16:06 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1113078 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1113078 dutchbando Oh no Oxford! That's horrible! I hope that your dad is able to clear everything up without losing the company. Sending good thoughts your way. Same to you Hepatica, I hope you're able to get your practice teaching site of (second) choice. My battling a cold that knocked me off my feet is small potatoes compared to that. Thank goodness I made it though work and now have a couple days to recover. Making it through work and sending my nephew's birthday card/present were my main accomplishments of the day. Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:26:35 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1113096 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1113096 Magpie Ilya Ah, and I've already remembered two more things I meant to put on the list: 12. get a newspaper subscription again (or rather, one of those free trial subscriptions) 13. make a list of all the books I want to buy, and publication dates if they're not published yet - I keep reading about books and thinking, "Oh, I'll have to buy that!" Fri, 03 Feb 2012 16:29:14 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1113241 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1113241 Tobaeus Oxford, that's terrible. I really hope that things can be sorted out without any (more) extreme things happening. In the meantime, I need to add the goal of breaking my addiction to sweet drinks. One in the morning, then unsweet tea for the rest of the day. Unless it's a game night, then I can have coffee for staying awake. And I finally got most of the recycling paper out. Seriously. It totaled up to more than one car load. But it's also been sitting there for months. There's still three boxes waiting on the back porch that will go next Friday, and then it'll be put into more manageable boxes for carrying when I have to walk somewhere, since there are bins all over the city. The money they get for recycling the paper is supposed to go into making this a better place to live. Would be real nice if they could fix up those boarded up old houses downtown. Some of them are gorgeous, because they were built before they started making houses out of box kits or something. Fri, 03 Feb 2012 16:38:39 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1113267 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1113267 iamborg1of1 Well, I did better than expected in terms of writing. Wrote one short story, a few entries to my blog, and a few poems to exorcise my demons. In terms of exercising, not so good, only about twice a week and I haven´t smoked although I want one every day. Since Thanksgiving, not bad. February I expect to write one more short story and start practicing the sonnet for March. I also want to write en entry a week on my blog. Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:59:38 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1113504 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1113504 Hepatica Thanks Danie. :-) Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:20:12 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1114611 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1114611 Hepatica Oxford, that's awful! I hope the Secret Service - since they're so clever! not! - manage to trace the hackers &amp; charge them, instead of your Dad! Let us know what happens. Thanks Dutch. :-) Feeling a bit fragile this morning. Slept till I woke (9 a.m.) instead of using the alarm, seeing as it's Sat, &amp; then stayed in bed for another hour thinking things through. Still feel a bit knocked out by the rejection - it was the one I really wanted! - but I'll bounce back - I always do - it's the one thing I'm really good at, surviving! Going to apply for the other provider who's closing date is in Feb &amp; then wait to apply to the third because it accepts applications year round &amp; I want to go to the teacher-training convention in March to get some tips before I apply to any others. I'm going to find another school to volunteer at, too, one that might be good enough to use as a training school because one of the two remaining providers (can't remember which one) requires me to find my own training school. I'm not really learning anything from the class I volunteer in on a Weds - he's just using me to make friezes for his walls, but without being in the classroom, so I can't even observe / listen - so I'll use a Weds to volunteer elsewhere &amp; broaden my experience. Also going to email the provider who rejected on Mon to ask for feedback &amp; use that in my other two applications. Hopefully that'll make the difference. It's incredibly cold here this morning. Don't know what temp because I haven't been out in the car (where the guage is) &amp; don't have a guage indoors - it's one of the things I need to get - but I reckon, just from the feel of it, that it must be at least twice as cold as yesterday. Been sneezing ever since I got up &amp; have just given up &amp; put the heating on for half an hour to warm the house up because it's freezing everywhere &amp; I'm dressed in winter camping gear with my dressing gown on top &amp; a scarf wrapped round my head! Might get on with some writing this afternoon - I feel in the mood. Was teaching writing to a group in the class yesterday, which I really enjoyed. They were not the best group &amp; it took all my powers of persuasion to get some of them to write anything! They were only doing it for an hour. One little boy spent almost the entire hour bemoaning his lot &amp;, at the end of the hour, bemoaned the fact that he'd only written 34 words! And them with a mega amount of help from me! lol! Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:34:54 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1114633 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1114633 Bill Moonroe It's shaping up to be a good weekend for me. I'm taking two days of work release, er, furlough time to make it a four day weekend. After a lot of searching, I've found what I think was a pretty good deal on a laptop computer. NaNo write-in for me next year. I've had my current computer for about 4-5 years. It's still going to be my main writing workhorse, but now I'm a true writing menace since I'll be mobile. No more passing Starbucks and seeing other people typing away, and thinking, that looks like fun. I just want to know, though, when did computer companies start charging extra for the "full", advertising-free version of Word? Got in some good time on the guitar, which is going to be pretty useful if I'm able to compete in both banjo and guitar categories at the Topanga Banjo-Fiddle Contests. Anyone here who's in the L.A. area in May, I highly recommend the contest as one of L.A.'s top acoustic music events. It's really a two-day festival packed into one day. Tomorrow is the Superbowl. I'm not sure whether that's a sporting event, or some sort of strange cultish ceremony. Either way, I plan to avoid it, but not entirely. No, I'm not volunteering as a sacrifice at the halftime show. We're having a 10k race, and a 5k walking race and I'm representing work in the walking portion. I've been dissuaded from bringing a bolo or javelin with which to disable the opposition. I had a very good writing session yesterday, with an easy 1000 words. Sat, 04 Feb 2012 05:58:56 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1114740 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1114740 crzsabas I put my main goal list (there are only two) on another thread but here they are: 1) Spend less time in forums (done); and, 2) Write several editable drafts a year and get the best ones onto smashwords, so I can learn that process. Ironically, although I did do some writing recently (in a radical departure from recent trends) I have progress to report on some of last year's goals that I'm not actually focusing on as intently this year: I broke through the 175 lb. plateau and am now in the 160's. Which is odd, because I blew off racing and working out so some of it must be muscle loss. On the other hand, I'm losing INCHES for the first time in years. I figure it's because after many, many tries, I'm finally succeeding in getting weaned off wheat and ALL GRAIN, and most dairy. Yes, folks, I now eat from the NEW four food groups: fatty, salty, drippy delicious meat and other protein of any kind; fruit and vegetables; water; and nutritional supplements in the form of various pills. My regimen is so extreme and unhealthy for a normal person that I can't recommend it. I get so much saturated fat, my doctor would be horrified if she knew. I actually spoon unrefined coconut oil right out of the jar into my mouth and swallow it by the tablespoon. Emerging science indicates that despite the warnings of the American Soy Association, not all saturated fat is created equal and this is a perfectly good idea. Traditional science would have me declared a danger to myself and others. All I can say is, it works for me. The inches are coming off that most intractable area, the belly. Or as I like to call it when I'm feeling elegant: the Bell-ois'. In other news, I have been invited to schedule a job interview with the U of I civil service system. We all know how many months it could take before such a job could become a reality in the state of Illinois. But it's a ray of hope. In the meantime, staff changes at my job at the Y have made it feel more like an episode of Survivor than a workplace. But I AM getting a lot of hours amid the confusion. According to our tax return, we made more money last year, which is a direct answer to prayer. Last year we raised our glasses in a toast over that prayer. This year we know enough to add that we would also like our expenses to go down, or at least not increase faster than our income. So we are still not paying our bills. But despite paying hundreds of dollars more per month in increased costs, we still eat and live indoors. Two years ago the insomnia and mood swings made me very difficult to be around--made me difficult to BE. Audiobooks in my ear all night have helped me sleep. This has made life way more bearable, and I still have personality changes from one day to the next but at farther intervals and to less of an extreme. So far 2013 has been "conniption-free." Life stress, peri-menopause...this too shall pass. Having fifteen or twenty years of good faith built up between me and my husband makes it easier to get through this period with an intact marriage. We're both looking forward to better days, when I'm restored to myself. I will post again when I get more writing done. I wish you all the best. When I check in every several days I do read about your triumphs and tribulations, even I don't post. God bless, Cheryl Sat, 04 Feb 2012 06:54:02 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1114800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1114800 Hepatica Hi Cheryl, As you say, you know your new diet is not healthy, so I'm not going to preach to the converted! lol! What I would say is, be careful. I say this from experience. I've been a vegetarian for 25 years; of those, about 10 years were vegan &amp; about six years now have been wheat free &amp; dieting. Directly due to my restricted diet, I nearly went blind 3 years ago due to vit A deficiency &amp; have recently been diagnosed with serious vit D deficiency &amp; liver damage/disease (we're not sure which yet). So, just a gentle warning. Your diet might be working for you, in that you're losing weight, but consider *why* you're losing weight - it might actually be your body's reaction to something else going on inside you that's resulting from your restricted diet. I'm not trying to put you off or anything, but just saying, as you know your diet is unhealthy, please consider what you're doing to your body. :-) Sat, 04 Feb 2012 07:25:45 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1114874 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1114874 Zookeeper I am officially snowed in today. It snowed for almost two days straight, but it's finally stopped. The clouds are breaking up, and I can see blue sky. It's going to take a major Antarctic expedition just to get down to the mailbox at the end of my drive, though. I got some more decluttering done, but mainly I just shivered and watched movies on Netflix. Not very productive. Sat, 04 Feb 2012 11:02:41 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1115371 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1115371 dutchbando I heard about the massive snowstorm hitting your area and wondered how you were doing. Glad to hear it stopped snowing. Sat, 04 Feb 2012 11:43:11 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1115429 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1115429 Magpie Ilya It's cold, cold, cold. I already damaged some of my houseplants - just had the window open for five minutes or so, and already they were frozen.Plants I wanted to sell, too. Bah. And not a flake of snow. This is not going to be good for the gardens - or for the fields and wild plants, either. I should probably have put my herbs into the cellar, but it's too late now. I'll see what survives... The cold did have one upside, though - I could finally defrost my freezer (because I could put the contents outside in the meantime). That was sorely necessary. Now I've also put the shoes outside, maybe the cold will kill the athlete's foot spores. I wish I wasn't always too lazy to get out of bed before noon. I kind of wanted to go to a lake today, to ice skate, but when I was finally up, and dressed, and had eaten, and gone grocery shopping, it was already so late that it'd have been dark by the time I got there. At least I did a few other useful things. Defrosted the freezer, laundry, vacuuming, finished watering the houseplants and updated the list - 160 plants right now, and that's not including a couple of bulbs and tubers that are still dormant, and the herbs on the balcony which might or might not survive the winter), uploaded the new list to my blog, did my daily bit of writing... now, I guess it's backt to reading and knitting for a bit before bed. I've finally picked up one of the books that's been on my TBR pile since last spring... I stil don't feel like reading it, but I want to put it away, and I won't do that until I've (re)read it. Sat, 04 Feb 2012 14:33:03 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1115743 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1115743 J.Kievsky Good luck with your civil service interview, Cheryl. Are you coming off examination lists? I don't know if you've applied to civil service work before, but my experience has been that even though the process drags on and on for months, once you've passed a certain point you're -in- so long as funding is there and the background check doesn't turn up anything unexpectedly awful. Sat, 04 Feb 2012 14:48:18 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1115765 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1115765 J.Kievsky Build an igloo! It will probably retain heat better than your house will. Sat, 04 Feb 2012 14:50:26 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1115770 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1115770 J.Kievsky We've escaped most of the bad weather so far, and have been settling into a week of just-freezing temperatures. Annoyed at a lazy January, I've made an effort to go out walking again, averaging 7.1 miles/day over this past week, which is above the 5/day February goal, so at least that one is off to a good start. At this rate though my shoes are going to wear out in under a year. This is making eating healthy harder, because all I want to do when I come home is consume calories--and usually reach for my absolute favorite food, cheese. I'm trying to switch over to blue cheese now so I can't just sit down and eat it. Speaking of cheese, all my open job applications at the moment are in the dairy industry. Never thought they'd be the ones doing a lot of hiring. Not much besides that on the job front. Went to an organ concert this week and also emailed some beekeepers doing outreach work, so I think this week I accomplished more goals than I did in January. I've been feeling unusually optimistic this week, feeling like things are looking up. The important needs are still missing, but hopefully things will fall into place by spring. Sat, 04 Feb 2012 15:05:37 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1115799 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1115799 Zookeeper I was wondering about that. Not the building the igloo part, but since my house is pretty much covered with a couple feet of snow, I wondered if that would provide some additional insulation. I've heard that if you're lost in winter, to build a snow cave. The temperature inside will stay at 32 degrees F, and if you're dressed for winter you should be able to keep warm enough, at least until you're rescued. I got my winter gear on and went out to shovel the walk. My neighbor's grandson offered to come over with their snowblower, and he cleared the driveway while I cleared the stairs. I've decided I need new gloves, winter gloves that grip, and a different snow shovel. I'm just not happy with the one I've got. For one thing, I stepped outside the house, and the shovel part immediately fell off the handle part. Other than that and some reading, I didn't accomplish much else today. Sat, 04 Feb 2012 16:44:37 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1116085 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1116085 Bill Moonroe It's been in the 70's here, with great views across the Santa Monica Bay. On the other hand, this is exactly the sort of weather in which a cigarette butt flicked out a window can result in hundreds of acres of charcoal. Sat, 04 Feb 2012 19:35:24 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1116444 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1116444 dutchbando Wow JK, that is an impressive amount of walking per day. How long does it take you? I think my average is right around 2 miles. I had a very lazy Saturday. I slept in a little but then was so worn out from my cold that I stayed in bed and could hardly summon the energy to do more than internet surfage for most of the day. I found a few new sites with simplicity and minimalism advice so it wasn't a complete waste of time. I read some more of one of my books in progress and drank roughly a gallon of tea. I'm feeling a bit better tonight so hopefully this stupid cold is on its way out. Sat, 04 Feb 2012 20:18:06 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1116569 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1116569 J.Kievsky Around 2 hours give or take 10 minutes, depending on the hills. A lot of the jobs I've applied for require the ability to walk 10 miles per day, which is why the treks are a bit ... extreme. Like you, I don't feel healthy or productive without a daily walk. Glad to hear you are feeling better and even putting Internet surfing to good use! Sat, 04 Feb 2012 21:05:52 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1116701 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1116701 Hepatica Well, I didn't get to writing yesterday! What a surprise! Played a few internet games instead. Found an online version of Rummikub, which is a game I love. :-) When I first started playing it online, it was free &amp; advertised as free. I played for an hour or so before I got bored - wasn't very good at it online - it was very fast! - whilst I normally beat Mum using an ordinary board! lol! Went back to the online version in the evening &amp; had to pay! So I didn't &amp; deleted the link. What a swizz! Made me cross! Apart from that, I made huge strides on my dressing room. The floor is now clear &amp; most of my clothes are either hung or put away, not necessarily in order but in places where I can find them. There's only one pile left to do, which is mainly towels &amp; bedlinen, in the dressing room &amp; another pile in my bedroom. Could only work so long in there with the little bar heater on sporadically before my toes froze, though! lol! Had fun this morning. Got up &amp; couldn't find my house keys! They weren't in my bedroom &amp; they weren't in the kitchen. Checked my coat pockets - no. The only thing I could think of was that they were in the living-room, which has an interconnecting door that locks itself &amp; needs a key to re-open! Had to climb out of my kitchen window, frightening one of my stray cats who had come for his breakfast! lol!, &amp; go round to my neighbour for my spares. BUT ... her safe, where she keeps my spare keys, had locked itself &amp; they couldn't get it open &amp; her son had taken it to the locksmith yesterday!!!! So I was considering trying to prize off the handle for the living-room door when I realised I'd not looked in my dressing-gown pocket! Paddled back home through the snow (we have about 5 inches here this morning, but the gritters haven't been out &amp; England doesn't cope with snow - it just shuts down!), climbed back in through the kitchen window and ... yes, there were my keys, warmly snuggled in my dressing-gown pocket! Oh the joy! lol! You couldn't make it up! :-D Sun, 05 Feb 2012 05:03:05 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1117191 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1117191 DanieXJ Did your Dad write the software himself? Or was he using software that someone else wrote and slipped some malicious code in there? Hope it gets worked out. Sun, 05 Feb 2012 12:00:20 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1117638 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1117638 DanieXJ Well, I will be watching the Super Bowl tonight (and probably yelling at the refs and such) and probably getting fat... comfort food you know. Unless it's celebration food. We'll see which.... Good that you did find the keys Hepatica... Go Pats!! :-D Sun, 05 Feb 2012 14:50:22 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1118085 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1118085 rovingjack made beef stroganov over egg noodles for my housemate. There is just something nice about being able to cook real food from time to time. I've got a shorter work week this week, so should be able to set some appointments and take care of some things. Then work and try to get myself in the habit of work and then come home and 'work' on the projects that make this my life and not a formula cookie cutter existance. somewhere soon with some money from work I've got to start planning for the summer convention. Which means connecticut IRS Use and sales ID number (grumble), hotel, table and connvention arrangments, and Inventory needs to be made for the table. Some of which I hope to make button/badge designs and get them made via cafe press or something and delivered to me so I can sell them at my table. Sun, 05 Feb 2012 17:58:17 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1118547 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1118547 Magpie Ilya Alumni society meeting at the horticulture school tonight, and I really don't want to go. Even if it's only one evening a year... I can't stand the headmaster's stupid grin, and I feel insecure and out of place among all these much older people. Not to mention that I have to drive there, and I haven't driven a car for several months (and I never was a good driver to start with), so I'm stressing out about that, too. I'd so much rather stay at home and read and knit some more. I used to knit during lessons, but I think knitting at the alumni society meeting would seem a little rude... Mon, 06 Feb 2012 02:57:15 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1119559 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1119559 Hepatica Hope you were ok getting to the alumni meeting, Magpie, &amp; that it wasn't as bad as you feared! Had a long bath this morning &amp; have turned a corner, I think, in getting over the rejection from the teacher training provider. Feel a bit more determined &amp; on the ball, anyway. :-) Have a long list of things I want to do this afternoon: 1. Wash up 2. Complete &amp; send mortgage forms 3. Internet bank 4. Internet shop - cat food, mainly 5. Check closing date for 2nd provider (some time this month) 6. Apply to 2nd provider 7. Get money out for bus journey to hospital tomorrow 8. Make some flatbread 9. Return H&amp;B supplements 10. Buy tax disc 11. Phone bank to sort out a standing order 12. Email first provider for feedback Some of them can be done tomorrow, whilst I'm waiting to start my journey to hospital (liver scan), but I'd better get on. :-) Snow is beginning to melt already - good! - though I couldn't go into school this morning because the car was still covered, so I might wait till tomorrow morning for the walk into town to get my money out for the bus. :-) Mon, 06 Feb 2012 06:06:34 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1119656 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1119656 BleachingLiliesBlack Haa. GOals. I try to keep them but it never seems to work... 1. WRITE, WRITE, WRITE 2. keep up on school work (aghhh!!!) a. science &amp; math!!! 3. keep up with after school activities (4 instruments!! and riding!!) 4. try to find some ME time... the hardest thing of all. Well I guess that's it. CAN'T WAIT FOR NANO!!!! BleachingLiliesBlack Mon, 06 Feb 2012 07:52:49 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1119758 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1119758 MarthaBechtel My whole office is sick at this point—I'm not sure if we're just recycling the same cold/flu among us or if there is something blooming that's keelhauled everyone with allergies. I feel like a have a small kangaroo sitting on my sternum and occasionally doing backflips. *cough* Ah well, as soon as Virginia makes up its mind to have a proper spring things might settle down somewhat. We'll ignore the fact that spring started about four months too early this year. :p I got some writing done this weekend plus a boatload of cleaning and model horse painting, but not as much walking as I would have liked (or blog posts, come to think of it). I knew this month wasn't going to be horribly productive, due to planned chaos starting later this week, but I had hoped I'd be a bit better prepared. Ah well, live and learn I suppose. I hope everyone is having a good Monday! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- <a href="http://www.Martha.net" rel="nofollow">Martha.net</a> -- <a href="http://www.martha.net/category/unquiet-bones/" rel="nofollow">Unquiet Bones</a> (Writing) -- <a href="http://www.martha.net/category/custom-models-com/" rel="nofollow">Custom-Models.com</a> (Model Horses) -- <a href="http://www.martha.net/category/perish-twice/" rel="nofollow">Perish Twice</a> (Warcraft) ... because you can never have enough hobbies. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 11:25:12 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1119993 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1119993 Oxford-Dreamer My dad wrote the software by himself. My mom told me that it looks like some Russian professional hacker group got into the software somehow and put a keylogger on there. I'm not sure how much of that was my mother's speculations and how much was actually what the Secret Service thinks, though. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 11:52:40 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1120020 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=2#forum_thread_comment_1120020 Oxford-Dreamer I talked to my mom and she said that my dad held a meeting with his customers. She said that they all took the news amazingly well. So that's great news! The Secret Service hasn't had any new developments yet though. This weekend, I was a leader on a church retreat for junior high students, so my goal to cut down on caffeine hasn't been going so well. I had to drink several cups of coffee a day so I could be awake after they kept me up all night! But overall it was a fun weekend. I skipped the Super Bowl last night and went to the movies instead with one of my friends. There was hardly anyone else in the theatre! It was pretty nice. We saw <em>Extremely Loud &amp; Incredibly Close</em> which was very sad! I may have cried a few times during the movie. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 12:08:43 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120032 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120032 dutchbando I'm glad to hear it Oxford. Is 'Extremely Loud' worth seeing? I've had a perfectly horrendous Monday so far. I couldn't sleep, then kept on getting woken up by subfinder calling me with jobs I wouldn't take, before it finally called with what seemed to be a decent one (full teacher instead of an aide). The schedule got all messed up by the secretary so I was suddenly three different teachers instead of one - and never got to be the teacher I'd signed up to be due to a double booking. I've had lots of free time today interspersed with classes with no clear sub plans. The one bright spot - if you want to call it that - is that one of the other subs who I encounter on a regular basis is just as fed up with subbing as I am. She confessed at lunch that she is on the verge of quitting substitute teaching to do something else. It was a relief to hear her say that since it is precisely how I've been feeling. Its nice to know I'm not the only one. Definitely gave me motivation to go home and do some job related stuff I've been putting off. The sooner I get a different job, the better. I feel like my cold is getting better. I want to take a walk when I get home but it'll be a short one so I don't inadvertently bring my cold back. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 13:11:07 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120145 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120145 DanieXJ My Sunday sucked, my Monday hasn't been so bad so far. Beautiful outside for sure. Wish that it would stay this way, but, it is Feb. and still winter, so... back to the cold soon. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 13:27:52 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120166 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120166 J.Kievsky Are you thinking of staying in the educational system, Dutch, or are you also planning on leaving? The administrative red-tape &amp; policies of k-12 work seem to do all they can to drive away good people, sub and permanent teachers. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 13:37:58 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120178 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120178 Magpie Ilya Phew, I'm glad these alumni society meetings are only once a year. Nearly three hours of deadly boring blah-blah-blah. OK, the movie we watched at the beginning was fun (a time-lapse movie of the new wing of the school being built), and I saw the new wing from the inside for the first time. Looks quite nice, but the old wing is still as dingy as ever (at least, the underground passage connecting the different buildings is, and I doubt the above-ground parts are any better). But after that, hour after hour of boring formalities, half-hearted discussions that nobody seemed interested in at all, and constantly having to look at the headmaster's stupid egg-shaped head (because he sat right across from me). And as if that wasn't boring enough, then the talk degraded into village gossip which interests me even less. And as I expected: out of the nine board members who were there (a few couldn't come), I am a.) the youngest, b.) the only one (I think) who isn't boss of a plant nursery or owner of a farm and c.) the only woman. The last one doesn't bother me so much, but the first two make me feel a little insecure in a "what the heck am I even doing here" sort of way. And also: I hadn't driven a car in months. And tonight, guess what we got? Snow. How lovely. Driving for the first time since October, in the dark, on an unfamiliar route (I took a wrong turn twice), and in snow for the first time. It didn't go too badly, though - I guess it helps that I'm a (maybe over-)cautious driver anyway, due to lack of practise, and thankfully there wasn't a lot of traffic. I did start to skid a little when I came out of the last roundabout, but that was the only time. And I did see several skidding cars on the way home, so I don't feel embarrassed about it. I'm glad I did my daily bit of writing before I left, because the meeting dragged on so long that it was nearly midnight when I got home. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:04:19 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120389 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120389 artofcheatery This month: -mine for gold -write something -rob a bank -draw something -learn how to counterfeit -hang out with friends -abscond with priceless artifacts -lose weight If you can't tell, I need money. There is also a possibility that I should watch less Leverage and White Collar. -X Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:20:07 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120422 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120422 dutchbando I haven't decided yet. It seems a shame to walk away from something I worked my tail off to survive student teaching and earn an advanced degree and my certification in but at this point I'm not sure I love teaching enough to keep doing it even if I did land a full-time job. I have til the end of the month to submit some of the applications for next school year and I'm really torn as to whether or not I'm going to apply for them. If I do decide to apply this will be the third hiring cycle I'll have gone through since finishing student teaching. I like kids, I like my certification area, but I cannot afford to be a sub for another year. Subbing is what gives me experience to make up for the over-educatedness wall that I kept running into the last few years of trying to land a job - but it doesn't pay enough to cover all my bills. Recently I've been applying for corporate jobs that involve employee training. At least with those positions I could still put my skills to good use. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:49:57 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120487 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120487 dutchbando Unfortunately I think the 'I need money' statement could probably apply to just about everyone on this thread. Good Luck! Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:38:20 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120634 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1120634 Oxford-Dreamer I really liked the movie! As I said, it was really sad, but I like sad movies. It was pretty cute too at parts. Overall, I thought it was pretty good! Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:04:55 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1121635 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1121635 Bill Moonroe Hmmm... I wonder if there's a way to turn the weight loss goal into another money making opportunity. How much does a kidney weigh, and how much are they going for on eBay/Craigslist these days, anyway? ;) Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:53:39 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1122073 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1122073 Bill Moonroe Hooray! I've gotten my first rejection slip of 2012! It was tempting to engage in rejectomancy, but instead, I just took a deep breath and asked myself, WWRHD? (What Would Robert Heinlein Do?) and have sent the story right back out. I should probably look at some of my older stories and get them out there, too. Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:57:01 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1122077 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1122077 BuddhistOnABus Sorry about the rejection Bill, I'm just at that turnaround stage - editing again, polishing those first chapters to within an inch of their lives, then steeling myself to get the novel out there again. Also writing a short story and editing an old one - the old one was a flash fiction I wrote for a contest, fantasy, 750 words, so I'm expanding it and submitting it to Luna Station Quarterly - they don't pay but if they took it I would still be chuffed. I've had a rough couple of weeks, as most of you know, my Grandad died last Tuesday and I have also separated from my partner in the last week. The latter I'm less bothered about than people would expect, because the family stuff has just thrown everything else into perspective. I've been feeling really miserable, but just found out the Writers' Workshop Festival of Writing in York will be on a holiday weekend for me in September, right after my birthday, so I really hope I can afford tickets. The networking opportunities look brilliant, and right not I really need to throw myself into something I love. Don't think I have any real-life friends who will go, which makes it daunting as I find it tricky to meet new people in large groups, but even so I am determined to squeeze every last penny from my bank account/credit card and go. So, before then I need to make a lot more headway on my writing, getting stories and novels written, edited, sent out and seventy times over! Every time I think I have a spare £10 I'm going to remind myself that I need it to spend on going to York and networking with agents and editors! I'm really excited about this, ha. As for other goals, I've not managed to do much more clearing out, but it will get done at some point. I've been reading lots, which is nice because I don't tend to make as much time for reading as I would like. My health goals have really been swings and roundabouts - I'm having some really good days and some where I can't keep my hands off the junk/comfort food. Hoping that will pass as the grieving process progresses, though. Tue, 07 Feb 2012 11:38:34 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1122321 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1122321 Tobaeus I know that feeling. Junk food attacks usually happen on days when I'm feeling down or when I don't get much exercise. Turns out I'll have to wait a few more weeks to start exercising properly, since my wii isn't reading anything right now. Both systems will have to be sent in to be repaired. In the meantime, I'll just have to take every opportunity to walk and move around. And I can work on replacing most of my junk food with healthy stuff. Or gum. I have several different packs right now for when I get a sweet tooth but don't need to eat. Today was great for exercise. I made three trips to two different stores for groceries (forgot the chicken from the first store and had to go back.) and I cleaned the upstairs bathroom and entire downstairs. Once the kids are off the bus and settled in, I plan to do some important relaxing. On the publishing front, I've got six rejection letters on my wall for two different stories. One of them has been rewritten two and a half times, and once this round is finished and I get some opinions from a friend, it'll be sent back out again. Crossing my fingers that these revisions have made that story that much better. Now, to resist the urge to get that candy bar out of the freezer, lol. Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:12:43 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1122468 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1122468 dutchbando I was hoping for a productive day since I didn't get called to sub. My brilliant plan was to go to the library to swap books, pick up my tax forms and drop off a few bills in the post box I could have sworn was there. I was going to come home and do my taxes in one fell swoop and be done with it. Alas, my library is no longer carrying tax forms because apparently everything is online and we print them out? I'll check with the library in the town where I sub - they usually have the forms. I'm all for trying to save the environment, but I think its ridiculous that everything is going digital. Woe unto those who don't have a computer, printer, or ready internet access I guess. There was also no post box anywhere around. Oh well, I guess those will go out in the mail tomorrow. Sigh. I'm going for my walk and hoping I can work up the courage to send an email requesting an update from the woman who interviewed me for a job a couple months ago. I wrote the email last night and my roommate proofed it, I just need to be brave enough to send it. I should also apply for a few jobs, but can't seem to get started. Its a really gray and gloomy day here which is probably sapping my energy. I did at least do some dishes and read a bunch from a book. Pity that its late afternoon now and I feel like I've done nothing all day. Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:23:30 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1122486 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1122486 Zookeeper I've not been accomplishing anything lately except for decluttering. I've been cold and shivering for several days. I just can't get the house up to anything resembling room temperature. It's going to go down to the single digits tonight, and it'll be cold for several more days. I mean, 20 degrees below average for this time of year. And I'm running out of food. Once I run out of cat food I'll have to force myself to go out, no matter how frigid the temps are. Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:32:41 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1122499 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1122499 dutchbando I just sent the email to the interviewer. Eek! Scary, but hey, it shows I'm still interested in the job and hey, human over here who'd like to know what's going on, even if it means they tell me a) its been filled, sorry or b) they haven't made a decision. Praying for answer B, or better yet, c) we hired you but hadn't had a chance to call! I also applied for four more jobs tonight, which is more than I've applied to in months, so go me. I have a list of other jobs to apply for when I get a chance - which looks like tomorrow in all likelihood seeing as there's been nothing posted on the subbing boards. I'd like to work, but at the same point, I finally have some motivation again so it'd be nice to get all caught up on the job applications too... Tue, 07 Feb 2012 20:58:09 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1123617 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1123617 Zookeeper I confess I've been sagging in the motivation department. It's hard to keep your chin up and a smile on your face and all those other cliches when it's been going on five years since I had steady work. I did apply for a job today. It would be great if I got it. It's very similar to what I've been doing before. I'd be hired directly, so no middleman. It's permanent, which means bennies, and it's only a half hour away. I'm obviously qualified for it. I just hope they think so. They're not even going to start interviewing until March, though, and I don't know what I'm going to do in the meantime. I'm so sick of worrying about finances! I have some books on order from Amazon on freelancing and work-from-home situations. One is specifically on freelance editing, which is what I've been looking for. But that particular one won't get here until sometime in March, and so again, I don't know what I'm going to do until then. My place is definitely beginning to look better, although I despair that decluttering and feng shuing will turn the energy of my life around. I've been digging around in the back of my freezer for food. Last night I had a bratwurst and some ancient tater tots that I think may have survived the K-T extinction. Or at least the last Ice Age. They tasted fine, though. It's been super cold for a week. My electric bill will probably give me a heart attack. And even getting the temps up to 60 degrees, which is the best I can do, is still too cold for comfort. Tue, 07 Feb 2012 23:00:01 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1123761 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1123761 Magpie Ilya I didn't do much yesterday. An offline day, so two down for this month, and two to go, and I did go for a walk, but the rest of the day was spent reading and knitting. And then I realized that the sweater I was working on was much too big (that'll teach me to be lazy about measuring!) and I had to rip out most of it - the work of several days. So I was in a rather foul mood! But right now, it's sunny, and there is snow, and I'm not working, so I think I'll grab my ice skates and head off to the lake - hopefully, someone has cleared the snow from a part of the ice. Wed, 08 Feb 2012 02:59:33 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1123876 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1123876 Magpie Ilya I think I'll be a little sore tomorrow - skated around the entire little lake twice today. The snow turned out to be so thin and powdery that skating right through it was no problem, but people were already at work with snow shovels, too. I was horribly wobbly - I haven't been ice skating in years, and I was never good at it - but I only fell twice. So I'm going to keep my skates after all... I had a deal with myself that I'd either go ice skating this winter or I'd give away the skates - what's the point of keeping them if I never use them? But today I decided that it'd be a shame to get rid of them even if I don't use them often - new ones are horribly expensive, and the ones I have actually fit well (I still remember the painful borrowed shoes when we went to the skating rink when I was a kid.) I really need to get the blades sharpened, though. Wed, 08 Feb 2012 11:45:48 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1124327 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1124327 J.Kievsky Oh, ice skating. Usually the end of the lake freezes over enough for ice skating, ice sailing, and ice fishing, but this year it never froze more than a fraction of an inch thick--so the warm winter has cheated me out of both fun and food :( Been feeling frustrated and upset since Monday but pulled out of the funk today as I took today as a housework catch-up day. Did some cooking, paid bills, and got the house looking nice again. I reorganized (not even going to lie and call it 'decluttered') the miscellaneous closet, though I can't throw anything away until The Other goes on a trip later this month. He even argued with me about the one thing I threw away, a moldy pillow--"that can be the guest pillow!"--so I told him I'd put it down in storage and chucked it in the dumpster instead. Luckily he doesn't buy hardly anything, he just clings to the stuff that's already been accumulated. Read 2 magazines, triumphantly bringing my to-read pile to 1. Sent out another couple of job applications. One is with catering, so even though it won't pay enough to live on, it has the benefit (over that other job I mentioned in the other thread) that the hours are "late nights when there are events" so it wouldn't interfere with finding &amp; holding another full-time job. Wed, 08 Feb 2012 15:39:40 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1124868 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1124868 Zookeeper Okay, I'm going to take a break from Nano until all of the sex ads get removed. Bye. Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:39:47 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1125834 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1125834 Magpie Ilya I knew I'd be sore today - but I didn't expect to be sore from my toes all the way to my arms! I don't think I'll be doing much today! Thu, 09 Feb 2012 04:18:09 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1125925 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1125925 Hopeful lily Sex ads? Really? I didn't know there were any ads at all. Adblock Plus shows me websites with lots of white space. On NaNo, I see blank pastel blue space. Just returned from a short visit to a part of Florida we'd never been to before, the Tampa--St. Petersburg area. Our kind of vacation is a marathon of touring museums and hiking around city streets to see the sights, which keeps us close to even with all the extra food we scarf down from bakeries and restaurants. We came home exhausted, to snow on the ground but luckily not on the roads. The temperature here is half what it was there. Now that I have seen the Salvador Dali museum in Florida, I am ready to see the one in Spain. I was quite taken with his late period large paintings, so different in style from the stark surreal landscapes of his earlier years. I'm hoping all the balmy weather and sunshine just encountered will boost my mood this month and allow me to get some substantial writing work accomplished. Thu, 09 Feb 2012 04:40:01 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1125944 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1125944 Magpie Ilya I only saw the one in the gardening thread, but there might have been more spam posts. Still hurting all over. I don't even want to write or knit! And I plan to go to medieval dance tonight as well - that's going to be fun! Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:24:15 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1125985 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1125985 alicerabbits That's all I see as well. Just pastel blue space. Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:28:56 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1125993 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1125993 alicerabbits Things are going very well. Got my first paycheck, YAY! I also got inspired to write a new story, and am almost finished editing another to send out. Further, I'm loving my job in the archives at the library, and I'm totally meeting my fitness goals, at least the exercising and walking part...averaging (so far) 1.7 miles a day. Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:42:35 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1126018 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1126018 Magpie Ilya I'm beginning to think I won't go to medieval dance tonight. Those parts of me that don't hurt from ice skating hurt because it's that time of the month, which also means I can hardly make myself eat or drink anything, which means there's a good chance I'd pass out. Bah. I really do not like this (and I suspected this would happen as soon as I saw the date for the February dance evening.) Besides, it's snowing again, and I don't really want to drive there anyway. No matter which route I take, there'll be a lot of traffic, and I don't feel like I can handle that <em>and </em> snow. And I was really looking forward to dancing again. Bah. :( Thu, 09 Feb 2012 07:44:38 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1126130 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=3#forum_thread_comment_1126130 DanieXJ Aww man, I miss all the spammy fun.... ;) (To the Mods, I am soooo just kidding.... :D) I don't know, does the fact that I'm chuckling at it instead of being insulted by it mean that I have now been seriously screwed up by the internet?? Ah well... I could install adblock I guess, but some of my sites/other add ons don't really like it. Guess I could try it or whatever... we'll see.... Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:02:59 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1126734 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1126734 dutchbando I seem to have missed all the spamaliciousness. Rats. I fear I'm in permanent grouch mode. I feel like I had a terrible day at work, but couldn't really tell you why it was so bad. Possible culprits: I was tired, my cold wants to linger and I was teaching with unclear lesson plans and kids that wanted to question what I was doing constantly and that made for a very grouchy sub. I was so glad when the day was over. At least I got my tax forms at the library on the way home. Then I took a very long walk when I got home. It was my usual four laps around our cul de sac but I haven't walked the whole thing in over a week due to my stupid cold. I needed to pound out my frustrations on the pavement. Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:34:42 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1127354 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1127354 thomlina Alright here's my list let's cross our fingers that I actually get more than two done this month! 1. Write every single day 2. Finish all my fan fictions and start on new ones 3. Get through Valentine's day without to many tears [Maybe I can make them happy tears this year! Give me good luck?] 4. Exercise more 5. Buy new bedroom furniture 6. Eat better and stick to that! 7. Clean stuff 8. Do something, anything with my hair... 9. Enter that contest I heard about the other day 10. Wait for results from other writing contest and hope for the best [I entered a Writer's digest one and am very nervous...First time I've entered anything that big...] Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:07:41 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1127840 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1127840 Hopeful lily Just wasted the entire morning writing comments about apparent bias in the romance writing world. Didn't post most of them because everybody is so vituperative. (The last time I posted on one of those forums, I got called all kinds of names.) Bottom line, some people want to be in their own categories, and some people call categories discriminatory, and some people call the elimination of categories discriminatory, too. Basically, you can't win. I think I'll go back to working on my hard-to-categorize manuscripts. Fri, 10 Feb 2012 07:48:30 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1128864 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1128864 Hopeful lily thomlina, happy Valentine's Day in advance. If you lower your expectations for the day, you'd be surprised at how pleasant it can be. Think of something nice and non-romance related to do. Maybe that's the day for the home coloring kit (the washable kind). Orange hair? Green? Streaks and glitter? Fri, 10 Feb 2012 07:53:09 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1128873 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1128873 thomlina Thanks...Maybe I'll follow up on that orange hair thing, I need a change and happy early Valentine's day to you to! Fri, 10 Feb 2012 17:19:48 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1129826 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1129826 Zookeeper I am so glad to see that the spam is gone. It really irritates me. My parents lived in Tampa - St. Pete for 15 years, so I've been down there several times. I'm not much of a one for beach vacations. I look hideous in a bathing suit. (I'm afraid people'll start calling me Shamu.) And I can't swim. (Probably related to the fact that I won't appear in public in a bathing suit.) But I really liked wriggling my toes in warm sand and looking for shells. I thought about moving to Florida, but they have gaters, snakes, spiders, hurricanes, and rising sea levels. If I bought a house down there, I might end up owning a piece of sea by the time I jettison my mortal coil. Some good news, maybe. I applied for a job as a web writer/editor, which is similar to what I was doing before, so I think I may have a reasonable shot at it. It would be a permanent gig and not too far away. And today I got a call about another job, as an editor, also close by. This would be only six months, but the pay would be good. I was supposed to have faxed a consent form to the recruiter this afternoon, but the local Safeway doesn't have a working fax anymore, which means I have to walk a mile or so down the road tomorrow to use King Soopers' fax, and it's not even going to break freezing tomorrow. I am so tired of the cold! Wish me luck. I've also been doing more decluttering and have popped some more things into my charity bag. Some years back, I donated a couple of old coats to the Denver Rescue Mission. One was a bright mustard yellow, and as I was riding through LoDo on the bus once I saw some vagrant wearing a bright mustard yellow coat. There can't possibly be two like that, so obviously my old coat went to some use. Fri, 10 Feb 2012 17:49:52 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1129922 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1129922 Magpie Ilya Nothing much happening here. Still bummed about missing the dance evening, but at least I'm feeling better physically (even though my muscles are still sore). Made it through a day of work, and next week I'm going back full time. I have finally almost finished a book review post for my blog, which is turning out monstrously long. But I won't finish it tonight. Partly because it's nearly 3 AM, and partly because I'm working myself into such a rage about the sucky translation that I'm afraid I'll just rant on forever (it's probably silly, but I can get so mad about bad translations. I think I can go on for hours about Harry Potter in German!) Fri, 10 Feb 2012 17:59:13 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1129940 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1129940 dutchbando Magpie, the Dutch translations of Harry Potter aren't much better. They enjoy translating things too literally which mean that lots of characters and subject names get translated too. For all of their respect for the original language I wish they would have kept the original names. It took me forever to figure out who some of the more minor characters were, let alone what they were studying. Oh, and did I mention that I was just learning Dutch when I was trying to read them? In some ways having read the first few books so many times made it easier to read and translate as a beginner. Fri, 10 Feb 2012 18:10:22 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1129959 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1129959 Magpie Ilya Yeah, I've heard about that from some of my Dutch friends. I think where the names are concerned, the Dutch books are worse than German, but the German translator sometimes completely misses the point. I mean, how do you turn, "you might" into, "me too"? Or, "no, I wouldn't mind" into "no, I wouldn't like that"? See? I'm starting already. I'll really go to bed now, because if I start about the OWLs and NEWTs, I might just get so mad that I throw the laptop across the room, and that would be an expensive tantrum. (The funny thing is, it was the translations of names that got me into such a rage now. *mumbles and grumbles* No, I won't rant again now. Bed. Bed!) Fri, 10 Feb 2012 18:22:02 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1129991 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1129991 J.Kievsky Will be keeping my fingers crossed for you. Fri, 10 Feb 2012 18:46:38 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1130079 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1130079 dutchbando Good luck Zoo! Fri, 10 Feb 2012 19:35:53 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1130264 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1130264 BuddhistOnABus Good luck for the jobs Zoo. Sat, 11 Feb 2012 13:46:51 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1131863 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1131863 Magpie Ilya I had such a headache today that I could hardly do anything. Only wrote a few sentences for "Goblins" (but at least I did write). Still haven't finished the book review for the English blog, or written anything for the German one (I try to post each Friday, but this week I simply didn't know what to write about.) I could hardly persuade myself to go grocery shopping - I only went because if I want to eat, I have to go shopping (and stores are closed on Sundays, here). I probably wouldn't have gone at all, and made do with what I had at home, if I hadn't been out of bread. At least I made some headway with my knitting. That was about all I could do. I hope I can get that sweater finished by my birthday (which is next Saturday). Sat, 11 Feb 2012 14:00:53 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1131907 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1131907 BuddhistOnABus I joined the Word Cloud on Writers' Workshop a couple of days ago, posted a story on there today and had some really positive feedback already :-) I've been having so much self doubt about my writing that it's great to have something that boosts my confidence. After a bit more tweaking, I'm going to enter that one into a competition. I'm also considering taking an online novel editing course. I really feel like I need help from someone who knows what they're doing, that I've done all I can do without someone else taking a more objective look at my work. The cost is a big barrier, but I reckon that I could afford it provided I'm very careful and give up on a couple of things over the next few months. Today I did some more tidying and decluttering in the bedroom, plus sorted a couple of things out in the spare room. My ex still hasn't picked up the rest of his stuff, so I'm making sure everything is together in the spare room. Other than that I've been reading and writing, or rather editing and thinking about writing! It's going to be a strange week at work - only 2 teaching days, so the kids will be off the wall as if it's already their holiday, then 2 inservice days, followed by a long weekend. I'm going down to stay with my parents on Thursday, the funeral is on the Monday then I'll be be home on the Tuesday. After that I'm hoping to just get into a routine and make it through March without too many crazy things happening. Unlikely, but a girl can hope. Sat, 11 Feb 2012 14:02:41 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1131914 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1131914 Tobaeus Sending a boatload of good karma your way! Sat, 11 Feb 2012 20:53:35 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1133029 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1133029 Hopeful lily Zoo, good luck with the job prospects. A couple thoughts about faxing. Have you considered asking if they'll accept an e-mail attachment with a scan instead? I think faxing is rather old-fashioned when scanning is so readily available with any new printer. We used to have a fax machine but half of the time it screwed up. And then it just died. A friend showed me how to send a fax using my cheap 3-in-1 printer. Basically you just attach a phone cord and do a few things. No need to leave home. I send scans instead, so I've forgotten the details of how to fax, but I'm sure instructions are available on the net. We are not beach people at all. We never even swam in the hotel pool in St. Pete. We did enjoy seeing all the pelicans and egrets and other shore birds. Sat, 11 Feb 2012 21:37:26 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1133162 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1133162 J.Kievsky Winter decided to make an appearance this weekend, so I've been going a little stir-crazy. It didn't help that waking up early yesterday and not being able to go out for any length of time added ~5 hours to my day, so I ran out of things to do around 5 pm and just sat around being bored until bedtime. I've gone out at least once a day, though with the wind and cold the weekly average is down below target, ~4.4 miles/day. I've been keeping up with the strength exercise and started doing 5 push-ups and 15 sit-ups with every 5% of book I read, (since reading was getting to be an excuse not to exercise) in addition to a short weight routine every other day. The Other has a couple of potential clients to talk to on Monday after a long stretch of no business. Clients are few and far between but when he does get one he can earn a month's worth of my level wages in a few days' work. If nothing else it means we'll actually be able to go out for Valentine's Day, which is our anniversary. Sun, 12 Feb 2012 13:51:31 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1134261 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1134261 Zookeeper My printer is supposed to be an all-in-one with scan capability, but it's never worked. I tried contacting HP about it, thinking maybe I'm just missing a driver or something, but they were not only unhelpful, they were rude. So I have to brave snow and subfreezing temperatures tomorrow morning to get to a place a mile away that has a fax machine. Pelicans are great to watch. When they dive after prey, they drop like stones. Looks like someone shot them. It's been a very cold several days. Yesterday, no matter how many heat sources I had going I couldn't get the house temperature above 58. That just can't be healthy! I woke up today to five cats nestled on the bed and one sleeping nearby. I was kind of pinned in, but they made great heat sources. I've seen several jobs that I could apply for, so maybe the job market's looking up somewhat. Sun, 12 Feb 2012 17:48:12 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1134827 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1134827 Bill Moonroe Winter keeps hinting that it's on it's way here, in the form of light rains and maybe a weekend or two of short, intense rain, but so far, we really haven't had a winter in L.A. Which, after last year's heavier rain, we could probably use more rain this year to keep things from burning. Not that I'm looking forward to rainy day traffic. I'd kind of taken last week off of walking, but had a nice 20 minute walk last night. I'm an L.A. native, been here most of my life, and I still think it's funny how when the temperatures drop below 59*, all the fireplaces start up. I've gotten my laptop, so as soon as I get it set up, write-ins are going to be a possibility. I was hoping to stay blissfully ignorant about wireless connectivity in order to have mobile writing time be more productive with less Internet access. However, laptops these days appear to be shipped with minimal extra stuff, and the software that is really useful has to be downloaded via the aether, which means I have to learn about wi-fi. It's not complicated, dangit. Still, the times when I'm going to be using the laptop are mostly going to be with time limits, like an hour before work, so hopefully, I'll be able to stay off of Wikipedia during that time. Got a pretty good chunk of my second short story of the year re-written. Think I'll finish this draft, aim to do a third draft, then out it goes. Sending out warm thoughts for Zookeeper, and everyone else dealing with winter's grip. Wish I could send a bit of this California sunshine through the forum. Mon, 13 Feb 2012 05:41:08 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136272 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136272 golfgal08 I completely missed my weekly goals last week; well, I managed 80 minutes out of 120 at the gym (it was a really bad gym week for me last week), but I didn't even read part of a chapter of anything new. So that block will have to be red when I fill it in on my spreadsheet. I've managed to stretch and write every day, though. Some days, the writing is complete crap, and is like pulling teeth every step of the way. But I'm writing, dang it. The scale is also finally starting to climb back down again, which is a relief. I was getting really frustrated with all the time I've been spending at the gym to see the scale not moving at all. I've sort of managed to clean some stuff in my apartment; one load of empty cardboard boxes made it into the recycling bin last week. I've got another load that will probably take care of the lot of them that have been accumulating in the three years I've lived in my apartment (I know, I'm horrible). And some day, when I'm really motivated, I'll actually go through the random boxes of stuff and get rid of the garbage, instead of just reshuffling things from one box to another. I don't <em>really</em> need my class notes from ninth grade English that are well over 10 years old now. Oh, and taxes. I need to do my taxes. But I'm kind of dreading that, because I barely got a return last year, and this year the only tax credit I was eligible for is gone, and the state taxes got hiked up at the beginning of the fall, so now I'm worried that I may owe money, which is just <em>annoying</em>. Some days I really hate being a grown up. Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:05:48 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136289 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136289 Hopeful lily Whereas I am looking forward to doing people's taxes later today, and finishing up the family taxes. It does get exhausting, but I find taxes a puzzle worth solving. The easiest way to make money is to save it. This morning I wrote about 1,000 words on my newly begun novel. I ascribe it to finally getting back to the treadmill last night. The Biggest Loser episode I watched to keep me company then was intensely annoying, though. Backbiting and holier-than-thou groupthink shutting out a newcomer. The producers keep trying to turn it into a typical reality show drama about mean, stupid people who can't get along, ignoring the truth that most people watch to be uplifted and encouraged. Specifically, to find solutions to the emotional issues that cause constant overeating. No solutions evident this season, for sure. Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:24:12 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136306 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136306 Tobaeus Thanks for the warm wishes, Bill, but I think I'll keep my snow. It's only the second one this season, so I'm loving the view from my window. I picked up a "magic circle" yesterday, so I can use it like a thigh-master while I'm at the computer. Dovetailing, and all that. The ankle/wrist weights will come when I start having more walking to do. Make myself work harder at the things I'm already doing. Also, I need to call in repairs for both game systems. When they come back, I'll be able to schedule a real workout into my days. I think that the call centers will open up in about an hour. Today is housekeeping and some story editing. Not professionally, mind you. Just keeping in practice so I can get better for the professional stuff. My professional story is almost ready to go out. I can feel it. Will be exciting if I can get a positive response when I submit. Lily, there's supposed to be a show coming up on Food Network called Fat Chef. As far as I can tell, the only drama is that of keeping these people from killing themselves with bad habits. Maybe you could switch to that if Loser becomes another drama and you get Food Network? Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:54:34 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136410 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136410 Magpie Ilya [quote=golfgal08] I've managed to stretch and write every day, though. Some days, the writing is complete crap, and is like pulling teeth every step of the way. But I'm writing, dang it.[/quote] Sounds like me. I'm at a scene that is sort of the whole point of the story (or one of the main points, anyway), and I just do not want to write it. Which leads to random word padding so I can put the confrontation between MMC and his grandfather off another day, and writing just a few hundred words a day, but like you, I'm writing every day. [quote]I don't <em>really</em> need my class notes from ninth grade English that are well over 10 years old now.[/quote] Have you been in my cellar? ;-) Mon, 13 Feb 2012 11:49:58 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136638 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136638 golfgal08 I think part of my problem is that I'm just writing random stuff, and not writing for an actual story. So I don't have plot points that I need to write or things leading up to plot points that need to be written. But I just finished co-writing a plot-intensive story with one friend, and have an ongoing project with another friend, so I'm wary to start an actual story right now, because I'm already feeling burnt out. I think I may just have to suck it up one of these days and pick a plot to run with it. There's one that I actually had considered writing last year for Camp, but I don't know where my notes went off to for it (which is to say, I wrote a bunch of stuff down in a notebook, and now I can't remember <em>which</em> notebook it's in, because it wasn't in the one I thought it was in. Alas.) As for your cellar... if it looks anything like my spare bedroom... yeah... I was convinced I needed to save my high school notes for my younger sister; she never used them. And I saved my college notes because some of my classes built off of each other, and then because I figured I'd get my master's (which I'm only sort of working on), and because the Professional Engineering exam that I'll be eligible to take next spring tests you on <em>everything</em>, and not just the type of engineering I've been doing for the last three and a half years, so I'll definitely need a refresher on certain subjects. Except, you know, I'll probably take a review class, which means I really don't need those notes. But I just can't convince myself to throw them out (not to mention there's random bits of writing mixed in with class notes, and I don't want to throw <em>that</em> stuff out, but I'm also unmotivated to sort through it all to find those bits and pieces, which are probably all crap anyway....) Yeah.... I'm sort of a pack rat.... this is not a good thing. Mon, 13 Feb 2012 12:36:42 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136706 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136706 Magpie Ilya The notebook thing sounds so like me, too! Too many notebooks.... I recently moved some stuff around, and got all my notebooks in one place (or so I thought... I still keep finding more) - and I can hardly close that drawer any more. You had at least sort-of rational reasons for saving the school stuff - me, I have none except that I'm a pack rat. The only stuff I might ever need again is from vocational school. But English? Heck, I probably know more than my teachers. Maths? Don't need any beyond basic arithmethics any more. Geography, History? That's what the internet is for. Psychology, Philosophy, Religious Education - why am I even keeping this crap? I will have to sort through it before I move again (no plans right now, but you never know), because I'm not dragging that through another move! Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:38:08 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136821 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136821 Magpie Ilya I finally finished the book review for my blog that has taken me about a week to write. I probably should not have stayed up late for that, but I'm glad it's finally done. And tomorrow, that pesky post for the German blog. I finally came up with a title late last night. Before that, I felt like I couldn't write the post (which is kind of boring me), because in my mind it was always titled "Nothing New" or "Blah, Blah, Blah". Kind of scary: I gave my bosses the address of my German blog. They don't even know the English one exists, and I hope it stays that way (not because I have anything to hide, but somehow, strangers reading my writing and thoughts is less scary than people I know reading it), but the German one is about balcony gardening, something we all want to get more involved in. Valentine's day tomorrow. I'm still single, but that is not half as depressing as the fact that I'll have to help with the floristry stuff at work. Which I seriously dislike. Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:42:51 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136836 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1136836 dutchbando Ugh, Valentine's Day. As I'm single, I'll be ignoring it as much as possible. Never liked it much while I was in a relationship anyway. No wonder it's called 'Singles Awareness Day,' I can thank the advertisers for reminding me that I'm thoroughly single. I got my taxes done this weekend. I need to turn in a form to my landlords to fill out so I can get a certain tax credit, but minus that minor detail they're done. But yikes, nothing like doing the math and being reminded of precisely how little money I made last year. Mon, 13 Feb 2012 15:47:35 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1137134 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1137134 golfgal08 I was thinking about this today; we should reclaim it and call it Singles' Appreciation Day. Think about how much money you can save on not having to buy cheap, chintzy gifts for people! Or expensive, chintzy gifts! I, alas, had to buy gifts regardless, though that was more because tomorrow is also my mother's birthday. So I got her some flowers and a Cinderella card (she was very excited; it was all glittery, and she put it next to the glass slipper we got her in DisneyWorld last year for Mother's Day; younger sister was not nearly as excited about the Belle card I got for her birthday, which is today, though Belle is her favorite princess). I need to get her an actual gift, though. I most appreciate being single when I hear my friends complaining about having to share their living space with another person, though. I only have to deal with my own messes, and no one complains about my bad habits! Mon, 13 Feb 2012 18:37:46 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1137684 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1137684 Hopeful lily It's a shame Valentine's Day has migrated from a harmless way of perking up a winter month to this Big Deal day on which people in relationships expect all kinds of elaborate and expensive presents, and people not in relationships feel left out. At one time or another all of us will experience both being alone and being part of a couple. Let's try to enjoy wherever we are right now. Mon, 13 Feb 2012 20:13:54 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1138046 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1138046 Magpie Ilya I generally feel pretty indifferent about it. I just don't like making posies. The funny thing is, being single sometimes bothers me - but not today! Today I'm just glad nobody expects me to come up with a present! I don't know if I'd even like being in a relationship. But it would be kind of nice to know what it's like - how can I even decide if I like it if I've never experienced it? Mon, 13 Feb 2012 22:12:50 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1138470 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=4#forum_thread_comment_1138470 rovingjack I find I don't even really notice VD... um Vaetines Day :) because I don't expose myself to it. :D Honestly I miss most holidays accept x-mas, july 4th, and new years. I just don't pay attention. oh and I guess thanksgiving and easter but those used to sneak up on me and catch me unaware a few days before. But Now one is the ill timed interruption in nano for mandatory family gatherings so we can all feel like we still know each other. The other is the same thing only during script frenzy. lol. I don't feel bad about not being in a relationship, because I really don't need to have another person to feel complete. I'm a complete person on my own winding and confuseled journey. Occassionally people will have the path of their journey traveling alongside mine. but it's not a requirement for me or them. If valentines day requires some sort of attention from me, I think it would be grand to buy a pack of those cards for kids to hand out at school and just give them to strangers as I run errands or leave them in mail boxes of houses I've never met. But then I'm odd like that. I forgot to mention that I've been working on my penmanship goal a bit... and as usual I over thought it a bit. I struggled and worked to find a style that worked for me with an artsy flare, and I did come up with something that's sort of halfway between hippy and nouvue/deco. It's not bad but not really everyday use sorta stuff, and in the end I started to realise that what I used for my signature is unique enough and stylistically me, I just have to be smoother and use even more relaxed strokes of the pen. So I'm starting a daily practice session of evening out my penmanship. I might throw some other studies into my daily routine too. Mon, 13 Feb 2012 22:12:52 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1138471 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1138471 dutchbando I had an interesting experience this morning. I happened to step on the scale for the first time in ages and was shocked by the number: 140! A year ago I was at 165. I have done absolutely nothing in the way of dieting and my exercise routine hasn't changed much at all. I think I can attribute this to stress. My life has been incredibly stressful in the last year and I think that as much as anything contributed to the weight loss. Still, 140, I can't even remember when I last weighed so little. At the end of high school, at the height of my swimming career, I was at 145 and my doctor told me I was underweight. No wonder my pants have been fitting so loosely lately. Anyway, today was an early release day for the school district so I stayed home. My goal for the day is to spiff up the resume and send out at least ten job applications. I have about 30 on my current list of possibilities - not all of them are likely to make the cut and actually be applied to. I finally made the decision yesterday that I do not want to be a teacher. Corporate education/training or instructional design would be fine, but I wouldn't be happy teaching. Its something I've been mulling for quite awhile but yesterday was the day I made peace with it. So onward to bigger and better things, and enough procrastinating on the forums for me, there are job applications to be filled out! Tue, 14 Feb 2012 08:01:59 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1139082 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1139082 BuddhistOnABus I took the plunge and booked the novel editing course. I'm looking forward to getting my teeth into this novel with someone else's guidance. Also, I started plotting the next novel that I want to write, so that's starting to take shape. The story that I've been polishing has had some more positive feedback, so I'm going to stop tinkering with it and enter it into a competition. Fingers crossed - I'm also going to pay a little extra for a critique from them, so if I don't get anywhere at least I'll know what they're looking for. What with everything that's been happening, I've been feeling pretty tired and low in the last few weeks. The Valentine's stuff has been bothering me, not because I'm newly single but because it's there in your face allll the time. However, I arrived home to find £20 in Amazon vouchers waiting for me - a belated Christmas present from my brother! No better present than books! We've got a long weekend, so I'll be going to my parents' on Thursday night, back home on Tuesday. In amongst that is my Grandad's funeral, but that aside I'm looking forward to spending time with my family, I need it at the moment. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 09:23:57 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1139156 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1139156 Magpie Ilya [quote=rovingjack] I don't feel bad about not being in a relationship, because I really don't need to have another person to feel complete [/quote] That, too. I sometimes find myself thinking of a friend I used to have, and I'm so glad I'm not like her, always from one sucky relationship right into the next, because she could not stand being single, always either oh-so-in-love or heartbroken when Prince Charming turned out to be a jerk. (Being friends with her was a little exhausting.) So, I'm pretty happy that I've had 25 years to figure out who I am, and that I've never - as some people do - felt I had to change to please someone. (The one time I was sort-of dating someone, about eight years ago, he (a childhood friend I hadn't seen for years) once said, in response to my many peculiarities, "That's not really you." Excuse me? Nobody gets to decide who I am, except for me! Just one of many reasons why we only met a couple of times, but what a fantastically stupid thing to say!) ... although, it's not like I've got a clearer idea of who I am now than I did when I was fifteen. I guess I've changed, but I don't know how much. Except that I've become much surer of myself - at 15, I constantly felt threatened by other people, like I always had to defend what I liked and who I was - now, I know it's my right to be who I am, and if someone doesn't like it, well, they can kiss a certain body part. Work wasn't too bad. Even got to spend most of the day at the potting machine, where it is cold, but blessedly customer-free. And I realized I really, really do not like red roses. Another reason to be glad there's noone who could make the mistake of giving me any. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 10:58:38 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1139266 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1139266 artofcheatery My friends officially proclaimed that Feb 13th is now Desperation Day. Think it fits. That said, I don't think I know anyone that is doing anything for Valentine's Day. Fact: I like the name Valentine, but the only way I would be able to name a kid that would be have them born on Valentine's Day. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 12:38:56 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1139432 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1139432 Zookeeper The only reason I remembered that today was Valentine's Day was because I had to go out and do errands yesterday, and the stores were filled with balloons and flowers. I had put on a pair of heart shaped earrings to go out simply because they were the first ones available to my fingers. Later I realized that people might think that I wore them for Valentine's Day. Not so! I'm perfectly happy to be a cliche of the single writer who lives with her cats. I don't want to get married again. I wasted my 20s being married, and it was pretty much hell. I hate having to compromise, having to worry about pleasing a man, having to share everything. And if I get married that means I automatically lose half my house. Huh-uh. My mortgage is paid, but I don't know how I'm going to pay my utility bills this month. I have to go online and apply for some jobs I saw. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 13:13:30 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1139499 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1139499 Hopeful lily Does the Denver area have a utility bill agency that helps people who can't pay? Wherever I have lived, I have been asked on my utility bills to donate to a fund that supposedly pays for the utilities, especially the heat, of people who can't otherwise pay. So, where is this agency to help you, Zoo? I got lucky and married the right guy. I have not had to spend my adult life arguing, fighting, and carrying on. Shared interests and respect have made for peaceful times. No one has a perfect life, of course, but we've weathered the ups and downs well together. Since his ambition is for us to be one of those cute elderly couples who celebrate 75 years of marriage, I think he probably wants to stay married to me. It's too late to start the clock again. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 15:35:06 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1139915 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1139915 J.Kievsky I counted today as a holiday, which meant allowing the luxury of getting up without the alarm clock, not doing dishes, and dinner out--our only real indulgence in the last seven months. The place was far away, too, so I got my walk in--an even longer one than usual--and can go to sleep happy I burned off half the calories. Tomorrow I have to study for Trivia Night. It sounds silly but it's a Darwin/Evolution themed one that will bring out lots of other biologists and since my old department and at least one potential employer are also fielding teams, I can't afford to look stupid and have my team drop out after round one! I found one more job, a federal one that has such vague requirements I might actually qualify. They're also recruiting for one position but GS 5-7, so ... a BS with no experience or a Master's with 2 years are both qualified, one for 5 and one for 7. Kind of weird, not sure how that works. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 17:59:11 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1140379 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1140379 Oxford-Dreamer Happy Valentine's Day everyone! I had a pretty good Valentine's Day. My sister, my cousin, and I stayed up until three in the morning baking all kinds of delicious things: pink cake, tie-dye cake, lemon cupcakes, cake balls, peanut butter cookies, and brownies! Unfortunately none of us are in relationships so we had no one to give them to... I think my sister and my cousin are going to give it to some of their guy friends though. Then after I got home from school, I made a four course meal for my parents so they wouldn't have to deal with all the stress of getting reservations or anything. I think it turned out well and it definitely kept my mind off of my singletude. I don't usually mind being single, especially since I'm only seventeen, but on days like Valentine's Day, it's hard not to feel lonely when all your friends are getting/giving gifts but you. Oh well, it's not like it's the end of the world, and it only lasts for 24 hours. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 20:45:44 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1140969 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1140969 Magpie Ilya I slept pretty badly today, constantly waking up. And of course, I'd gone to bed late, too. And I had some weird dreams. The weirdest one was the one where I was dating my "enemy" from primary school. Didn't I say I don't mind being single?! I mean, OK, if my subconscious wants to disagree with me, fine, but R.? Seriously? Sure, I did feel quite passionate about him, but it was in a jump-across-the-room-and-beat-him-up sort of way (he started it, though, always teasing me and pulling my hair, and I even had the teacher's permission to pull his hair back.) And I think in the dream he was also Captain Kennit from the Liveship Traders trilogy. Huh? It would be a boring life without dreams... Today is going to be a long day... leaving early because it's snowing, and then to my mother's after work to look after my brother... at least I did not agree to do that until she'd promised to pick me up from work tomorrow so I can buy some potting mix (which I can hardly transport by bike and train.) Tue, 14 Feb 2012 22:10:10 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1141158 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1141158 rovingjack I did what I said. I bought a pack of valentine cards (mad scientist valentines to be exact) like those that kids trade at school. I put them in my pocket and after I left work I gave several out to people whose names I don't know. One was the lady who rung up my groceries. One was the bagger, and one was the woman behind me in line. I think I'll see if there is a sale on valentines cards tomorrow and buy some more (I still have plenty left but more and diverse ones couldn't hurt) and carry them around with me. Maybe I can have enough so that I can hand out a valentine or two still in june to random strangers. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 23:51:04 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1141204 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1141204 Hopeful lily I like the way you think, Jack. Wed, 15 Feb 2012 10:01:21 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1141683 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1141683 J.Kievsky Today was a gray day, so I spent all of it inside cleaning up and cooking. Trivia and the other social stuff went pretty well; I should really get out more. Ran into someone I remembered from my undergrad years who's apparently still kicking around. I also submitted the federal application. It's a very good job for a term position, and nothing to lose from not applying. It's up to them whether they want to take lowest bidder (GS5) or the most qualified (GS7) but should it be the former I'm there. Also, the sheer obnoxiousness of the online application process should scare some people away. Thu, 16 Feb 2012 19:38:26 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1145627 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1145627 Zookeeper Some online applications remind me of college entrance exams, complete with essay questions. I usually kind of figure that they're a way to reject people rather than qualify them. The more questions, the more chances of a "wrong" answer. One job ap is still pending, the one where I was submitted through a recruiter. The one where I applied directly -- I don't know. I haven't heard anything in a week. That doesn't sound promising, but they may just be slow to make a decision. Who knows? I've found that job openings aren't open for very long. I could get a job alert in the morning, apply for it at 2:30 that same afternoon, and find that the job's already been marked as filled. You blink, you lose. As you can probably tell, I've been feeling depressed and discouraged lately. I'm worried about my swiftly vanishing bank account. I'm constantly cold. I've been having disturbing dreams. And my digestion has been bothering me. I just feel crappy all the way around. I have gotten some more decluttering and cleaning done. And my tulips in front are coming up. Thu, 16 Feb 2012 23:28:53 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1146262 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1146262 Hopeful lily Out of the blue, not one but two offers of freelance editorial work. The IRS will appreciate me not taking a loss again this year. Fingers crossed that we can work out the schedules and the details. Especially in winter, when I can't stay motivated to write fiction or even edit my complete mss., a paying gig is welcome. Two paying gigs = awesome. Fri, 17 Feb 2012 17:39:01 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1148288 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1148288 Zookeeper I was going to get off my duff and knock a couple things off my list today. I replaced the washer in my bathroom faucet and screwed that back in, then tried to put on the new handle. It's supposed to be a universal faucet handle, but not our universe apparently. The instructions would have been very simple if they had had any relation to what was in the package. But there's no top tab to pull off or top screw to unscrew and no set screw on the side to tighten. I suppose I could try to put the old handle back on, but it's cracked, chipped, and caked with green stuff. I can't afford to buy another set of handles. So I guess that even though I spent the day doing stuff, I actually did nothing. Congrats on the freelance work, Lily. I ordered a book from Amazon on becoming a freelance editor. A lot of the other books I've read on freelancing either don't mention editing at all or give it a brief paragraph without saying anything about how to get the gigs. I also got an e-mail about another job today, so I sent the recruiter my resume. And my kitchen counters are working toward clean. Fri, 17 Feb 2012 19:25:35 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1148704 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1148704 Tobaeus This week has brought in some sort of nasty reaction to the weather, so I'm caught in the weird position of feeling like I either need to swallow my own uvula, or cough it up. In spite of that, I did manage to get the systems out for repair. There are apparently several convenient drop off locations in my area, but the actual Fed Ex store I needed was out of the way and hard to get to if you hadn't been there before. All we had to go on was a vague map, but once we saw where it was, we both groaned out loud. It's right near a friend's house. So now we know a different way to get to his house. And since the systems are out for repair, I'm going to make as much use of this mini-stepper as I can. It fits right under the desk, so I can work when I'm just sitting around. Funds ran out before I could order the garden supplies, so that will have to happen in batches I'll probably only have a few this month, but that will be more than I had last year. Sat, 18 Feb 2012 08:18:27 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1149743 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1149743 Hopeful lily I thought it was hilarious that in the same hour I was offered freelance, I got an e-mail about the next Ring Cycle, entitled "A Message from Wotan." He wants me to donate big time in order to get priority ticketing and Ring social events. Also, to be allowed into the Valhalla Lounge. How did he know? Sat, 18 Feb 2012 09:13:46 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1149827 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1149827 Magpie Ilya Isn't that silly? You turn just one day older, and suddenly you have to say you're a year older. I can't really find birthdays exciting any more. Today wasn't much different than a regular Saturday - laundry, shopping and a visit from my best friend, with our usual story-chatter and cooking together (the most delicious pizza). But my best friend did bring a cake, and a new book and the Ronia the Robber's Daughter movie (yay! One of the few movies I actually like!), and I've got flowers from my mother and my boss... In other news, I still haven't written a post for my German blog, and I skipped last week as well. But right now, I want to finish the sweater I'm knitting. But before I do that, I have to do my daily bit of writing. Even if I don't like the scene I'm working on. I will not skip scenes this time. Sat, 18 Feb 2012 12:44:03 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1150274 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1150274 crzsabas Not writing (sigh)... .... just pulling near-fulltime hours on one job while continuing to search for another. The first interview went well (I realize I'm not objective) and I'm setting up another interview with another department for a similar job. I think at this point, as observed earlier, I must be "in" and it's only a matter of time. My skin is doing GREAT on coconut oil and I'm continuing to lose weight, but slowly. It could be muscle loss because I'm not working out AT ALL. I think the biggest thing is just cutting out most grains. I eat a little bit of rice or crackers at bedtime, but all day until then it's pure protein, fat, and fiber. I'm getting enough fruit and root veg that I'm not actually in ketosis. Don't have the self-discipline for that. So my organs are sitting pretty...no irregular heartbeat or kidney damage. I take extra potassium just in case. I've been scrolling through and I'm really hoping that next time I check in, everyone's health and finances will have improved! One thing about this group: we seem to be an unusually persistent bunch, and willing to look outside the box to solve problems. It's such a drag to face the same problems in different form, e.g. cutting down on sweet drinks or applying for freelance jobs on line. But we always hope this time will be our time. I love that about reading our posts. Maybe it'll be like that one scene in African Queen: days of boredom and suffering and progress at a snail's pace and the constant threat of giving up in despair...and then just when you think you can't do any more, when you KNOW you can't do any more, it rains upstream and you wake up in the morning in the middle of a deep, broad, fast-flowing current and you are on your way effortlessly to where you gave up believing you could ever get. I HOPE it'll be like that. But whatever boat I'm pulling through a weedy swamp, it hasn't been the writing boat. Not for several weeks. Oxford, your family's ordeal is frightening! I hope you are getting all the help you need. And I'm glad I missed all the spam. Cheryl Sat, 18 Feb 2012 14:02:46 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1150522 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1150522 Hopeful lily Hey, girl. Nice to hear an update. Sat, 18 Feb 2012 18:13:07 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1151365 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=5#forum_thread_comment_1151365 dutchbando The African Queen scene sounds fantastic. I'd like for that to happen in my life, and soon! Sat, 18 Feb 2012 18:49:05 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1151482 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1151482 rovingjack carzsabas long time no see. welcome back. and I hear you about feelings tired from getting back to work. In local news I had a panic the other day (the 16th) when I checked my mail and it said I had an appoitment on the 14th to discuss my benefits, failure to show means termination of those benefits. Looking on line saw my accounts as closing. Paniced phone calls and gobbldey gook about blue forms and only at their offices ect I drove down and waited ten mins in line. Aaaaand... the appointment is for MARCH 14th. and my accounts are being closed due to my getting work. They are being closed from the plan which has me paying the first $420 of any thing medical I need before they kick in, to a plan that has me completely covered healthcare wise. Monday I revisit the dentist and see if they can schedual my for a few important extractions before the complete pulling happens. I'm also trying to decide if maybe I can find a way to have the upper be done as only a partcial which makes it easier to retain the denture without adhesives or creams which I most likely couldn't do. And while my activism activities are more limited by work schedual now, I find myself very seriously concidering the plans we are working on towards the upcoming constitutional convention for the state. It has me entertaining for the first time in my life the idea of running for a representative position. There is much research to do on the demands that it may put on my health and requirements and what I'm doing for income ect. Oh and I saw a mouse run through my room. Not very excited by that. but I'm looking at have a heart traps and the old roommates hampster cage with some ideas. I can always just take them to a long stretch of woods on the highway and let them go if it's too much trouble. oh and the convention I've been an artist table holder at for the past several years... tripled it's table costs and I'd have to refile with their state IRS for permits to have a table (for $100) so yeah, not doin that anymore, still debating if I'm attending or running panels. much going on I guess. Sat, 18 Feb 2012 20:24:50 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1151869 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1151869 dutchbando I've sent out 23 job applications so far this month - and most of those were done this week. I did seven today. I have about that many that I'd like to do tomorrow and then I'll be done with all the ones I've bookmarked. I hope that one of these will turn out to be THE ONE. That'd be nice. I added a few skills to my resume that lots of these jobs are calling for. In reality I don't know how to use these computer programs very well yet, but I've requested books on them from the library, so I have some confidence that by the time I'm questioned about my skills I'll have more than a passing familiarity with the program. With all of that I still feel like I'm somehow being lax in my job hunt. I know its not the case, but I'm getting impatient and would really like to be hired sooner than later. After some of the kids I dealt with subbing this week I'd like to find another vocation as soon as possible. I finished a few books this week, but none have been very good. My barometer is if I'd be willing to shell out my hard earned money for the book so I could read it again and its the rare book that passes that test. I'm about halfway through my reading goals for the month. Hmm, what else did I set as my goals for the month - is it bad I don't even remember all of them? I guess they're not that important. Sat, 18 Feb 2012 21:21:12 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1152137 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1152137 Zookeeper Over halfway through February, and I haven't done too well as far as my goals are concerned. 1. Fix bathroom faucet I tried. I really, really tried. But this is going to require yet another visit to Home Depot, and I'm not sure I have the money to buy new faucet handles right now. 2. Finish first draft of Nano 2011 3. Finish next revision of Nano 2005 I found my notes but haven't been writing much at all, except for job aps. 4. Clean kitchen I am making noticeable progress. 5. Get work Really, really trying. I have three aps in for jobs that I'm well qualified for. Crossing fingers. 6. Read another 9 books Only 2 more so far this month. 7. Clean bathrooms No. 8. Do feng shui space clearing Not yet. 9. Bake bread Am very close to having the space to do it. 10. Do visualizations No. 11. Start some seeds No. 12. Vacuum bedroom and office No. 13. Donate or freecycle something No. I'm filling up another charity bag for the VVA, but it's far from ready to go out the door. Sat, 18 Feb 2012 22:24:19 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1152332 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1152332 Hopeful lily February is not a month in which I get much done. Every year I hope it will be different, but it isn't. At least I do other people's taxes and pay it forward in the universe a little bit during February. By April, I have more energy and I am heartily sick of other people's financial issues, which is perfect timing for relaunching my own projects. Sun, 19 Feb 2012 07:53:15 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1152834 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1152834 Magpie Ilya I've finally finished knitting my new sweater. Now I have four non-work sweaters, and three of them made myself. In a way, this was as much a decluttering project as it was a needlework project - a couple of years ago, I bought nine skeins of white wool at half price when a nearby yarn store closed, and always planned to knit a sweater out of it, but never did. Now I've still got almost four skeins left - only just not enough for a second sweater. Ah well. I'll think about that next winter, now I won't really have much time for knitting any more anyway. I added some multi-coloured sock yarn to this sweater so it wouldn't be quite so white and boring, but bought too much of that. I'll have to remember to go to that store tomorrow and see if they'll take the unused skeins back. Sun, 19 Feb 2012 09:18:55 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1152894 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1152894 Zookeeper I did manage to get one fix accomplished. Turned out that tightening the screw on the float ball in the toilet tank keeps the water from constantly flowing. Now the float ball pops up and turns off the water by itself without my having to take the tank lid off and fiddle with things. Online, there used to be a video instructing on how to replace the lid lock switch assembly on my washing machine, but I looked and now I can't find it. That's the next big, major fix. I can wash out small things in the sink, but I have blankets and towels that need washing. It's still very cold. Our normal average high is 47, but it's a rare day that it creeps up to 40. Where is spring? I'm so tired of the cold. Sun, 19 Feb 2012 17:15:24 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1154082 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1154082 Magpie Ilya Starting the second week of back-to-full-time-work. Last week, I got to feel tired and exhausted and sorry for myself and my sore feet after work. This week, I have to get back into the routine of doing useful stuff for an hour after I come home. Today, that was watering plants and cooking, but now I'm feeling a little frustrated, because after all the time I spent cooking, and the giant mess I made, the bread dumplings turned out much too soft, and the mushroom sauce was barely edible. Ah well. At least I have more cake for breakfast tomorrow, and more cold pizza for lunch (I was tempted not to cook at all and eat cold pizza for dinner as well, but the sooner I finish the pizza, the sooner I have to bring sandwiches for lunch again, and I'm so fed up with sandwiches right now, I can barely eat them.) Mon, 20 Feb 2012 12:08:38 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1156460 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1156460 J.Kievsky I got a few more books read, and have been keeping up with exercise mostly. Last night I went out with a couple of people ice skating; I'd've gone more often this season except that the rink costs money and the lake hasn't frozen this year to provide free skating. Now my ankles feel like they're bruised in a thousand places. Unfortunately there are going to be a lot fewer opportunities to go out for nighttime events now that our one friend with a car has found out he needs repairs that will cost more than the value of the car, so there goes that means of transportation. I've had lots of trouble sleeping this month, which is making it hard to get anything done. All of the same anxieties keep swirling around in my head at night as if thinking about them another five or six hours will solve anything. The insomnia is nothing new, it comes for a few weeks and then goes again for a month or two, so while I know it'll ease up at some point I still wish I could successfully meditate or compartmentalize in the meantime. Mon, 20 Feb 2012 15:57:55 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1157056 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1157056 dutchbando If you have iTunes there are some fantastic guided meditation podcasts available for free. I use the meditation oasis one and it does wonders in helping me sleep. They have a website and you can get the podcasts there too. Mon, 20 Feb 2012 16:13:52 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1157088 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1157088 Tobaeus Goals one and six went hand in hand today. With a little help, we got the house cleaned and then after the kids were out of the kitchen for the night, I launched the first salvo in what might be called the Great Bug War. Or not. So long as they're gone from my home, I don't care where they go. Also got a small pile of goodwill things going today. Extra coats that nobody will wear. More things will follow as I go through things. Mon, 20 Feb 2012 20:35:40 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1157982 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1157982 dutchbando Much as I like being able to work there are some lines I won't cross. I don't care how desperate the district is but my teaching early childhood or kindergarten would be a bad idea for everyone involved. Since those are the only two jobs offered today I had to pass. Tue, 21 Feb 2012 05:27:59 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1158769 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1158769 dutchbando Gah, that wasn't supposed to post! Shoot, would have posted it anyway, but I had more to write. I have laundry to do, bills to pay, jobs to find and apply for, and I think I'm going to go and hunt for some paczki later today. Tue, 21 Feb 2012 05:30:40 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1158772 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1158772 Oxford-Dreamer Zoo, you could move here to Texas; winter seems to have skipped us entirely! Right now it's 6 PM and the temperature is 63! Later this week we'll get into the 80s. I'm actually a bit disappointed by our lack of winter even though I normally hate the cold. This summer we had 40 consecutive days of 100+ weather! It was so ridiculously hot I wished we might get another ice storm like we did last year. But alas, we seemed to be heading straight toward more unbearable heat this year... Nothing that I'm aware of has really progressed with my dad's company. He still has phone meetings with the Secret Service and banks and such, but I'm not sure what they've accomplished. There's been one irate customer e-mail so far, but there have also been several customers calling in to day that they would support my dad no matter what! So that's definitely good news. But because my dad just doesn't have enough to deal with, he just got called up for jury duty! Tue, 21 Feb 2012 06:25:14 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1158799 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1158799 Zookeeper Well, I'm depressed now. I've spent the morning job searching. I heard from the recruiter who I sent my resume to last week. I had all the qualifications for the job, but he decided that it wouldn't work because I don't have a car, and that would "raise red flags" with the client. Then he decided that my references from AT&amp;T were simply too old, and I'd have to get newer ones. But I can't get newer references until I get a job that lasts longer than two months, and if I can't get a job until I get references from a recent job, then it looks like I'll never work again. And the job had health, dental, and vision, too! I feel just plain miserable. :-( And the job ads seem to have dried up. Nothing's coming up in any of my searches, and my job alerts are sending me things like "hydraulic crane operator." Now where the hell are they getting that from a technical writing resume? Tue, 21 Feb 2012 09:50:14 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1159141 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1159141 dutchbando I'm applying for more jobs today and got a rejection ten minutes after I filed the application. Swell. They didn't tell me why but my greatest fear is that my level of education is just too high and I'm getting rejected on that basis but the applications all emphasize honesty and I'm afraid not to list my degrees. It feels like a Catch-22. One of these days I am going to find a job, I know it, but the process is still very frustrating. I'm going to have dinner with my dad and step-mom this weekend and I'm already dreading the questions about my job hunt. Tue, 21 Feb 2012 10:04:07 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1159158 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1159158 dutchbando The sun is out now which is definitely helping my mood. I just went and tallied up how many jobs I've applied to and how many rejections I've gotten. I'm not counting the number of applications I sent out last fall to jobs in general. Those were practice and don't count. I've gotten rejected or no response from the 30 jobs in my targeted field. I've sent out that many applications this month alone with more in the pipeline. Somehow, knowing that I've gotten passed over for only half cheers me up; with at least half still pending. I had an interview in my chosen field a couple months ago and they never told me one way or the other. I'm counting them in the rejection pile while still holding out hope. Tue, 21 Feb 2012 12:17:23 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1159336 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1159336 Magpie Ilya Lots of little useful things today - changed bedsheets - folded laundry - washed more laundry (waiting for the second load right now so I can hang it) - watered the rest of my houseplants - sorted through a pile of notes and receipts, put expenses into my excel table (how come I spent more money this month than in January?) - wrote a blog post - worked on my story a bit And also I got honked at today because I was walking along the street with an open book in my hand. (I wasn't actually <em> reading</em>. Just memorizing the dwarf songs in The Hobbit. (I need something to sing to myself when I'm bored at work. I went through all the songs I know today, and it only took about an hour.)) I'm planning to make tomorrow an offline day, cook enough goulash to last several days (hm. I could memorize more of those songs while I chop onions), and maybe start with my balcony garden. And write, of course. Tue, 21 Feb 2012 12:34:45 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1159375 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1159375 DanieXJ Yep. I had that happen way back when. I don't apply for Technician jobs anymore. I have a MLIS, that means that the people in charge don't seem to want me working at the Bachelor's (or High School) level. Urgh.... Tue, 21 Feb 2012 14:44:33 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1159667 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1159667 Hopeful lily Proof that doing good has karmic rewards: A taxpayer told me about the free Mango language lessons available online remotely through my public library. I'd been searching for a practical way to brush up my German, and here it is. Mango is much better than the free sample of Rosetta Stone I tried months ago, although it is a conversational method, too. Having been tortured by the conversational method in school for years, with NO textbooks and NO printed material, I prefer to get a grasp of grammar. And lots of rote memorization, please. That's how to learn vocabulary and especially conjugations and declensions. I can work with this, though. I've already done several sessions and hope to keep it up until the opera ball in Vienna come New Years. Tue, 21 Feb 2012 16:59:50 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1160127 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1160127 golfgal08 My daily goals are still going well, though my weekly goals are still... well, a struggle. I managed last week to hit my exercise goal, despite having two really horrible gym days. But I went and spent an exorbitant amount of money on sneakers and insoles, and that seems to have helped in regards to my chronic knee pains. Haven't done my taxes yet, and my apartment is still pretty much a disaster area. I need to go shopping for food for Saturday as well. Why did I think it would be a good idea to invite people over for my birthday? Oh, I also went to the dentist's. It was just x-rays and a consultation, I go back in two weeks for an actual cleaning. I haven't gone to the dentist in over 5 years. But I only have three small cavities that will require fillings. So now my mother will stop nagging me about that. But now she's started nagging about going back to the regular doctor's (which I have done much more recently). Alas, though, I had been trying to plan a vacation with two friends from college, but one of them can't get time off from work. She might be able to swing a long weekend at some point, but she won't get very much notice, so we might just meet up in NYC, which would be easy enough for me, as I could take the train in. Things at work have also been... interesting... my to-do list keeps getting longer, and unfortunately, everyone wants their stuff done first. But it all needs to be done by the end of this week, too (more or less), so it's been a juggling act last week and this week. Plus, I'm on the Activities Committee, and we've got stuff going on this week and next week (National Engineer's Week this week, and we're doing something for Leap Day next week). And since everyone is crazy busy, we're short-handed. Oh, but hey, I got free tickets to a Blake Shelton concert this weekend. I thought my older sister had to work, so I invited my younger sister. Turns out my older sister <em>bought</em> tickets to the concert. Hers will be much better seats, but mine are free, so hey. Wed, 22 Feb 2012 06:33:01 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1161951 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1161951 crzsabas I wrote 5,600 words! I actually liked these words. I don't know what will become of them. Wed, 22 Feb 2012 14:59:03 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1162695 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1162695 Zookeeper Today has been a horrible day. I am literally sick with worry and depression. First, my brother is sending me snarky e-mails again, bitching me out for being a retard. I got another virus that hit my hotmail account, so I had to do virus screenings, etc. Steve screamed at me because he says the virus that hit my hotmail account supposedly leaped over to my Comcast account, made a list of potential employers and recruiters from my Comcast account, then leaped over to my Word files and took my latest resume, and sent a second copy of my resume to all of these employers with a virus attached to it. And I'm a dumb retard for doing that. Can a virus even do that? This is news to me. Of course, Steve's a computer genius, so he'd know. He's flunked out of college three times, has had a computer for three years, and has never taken a computer course, so that makes him an expert. My bachelor's degree, computer languages, and 27 years of computer ownership only allows me to be a drooling idiot. So obviously I know nothing. And that's only a thorn in my paw. The really bad news is that I've run out of money. The extended and emergency UI benefits that were passed? They don't apply to me for some reason. I have nothing. And Monday they're going to turn off my heat. I won't survive when the house temperature falls below 20. So that's it for me. And there's nothing I can do. Nothing. I uploaded new resumes to the job boards. Today I got a lot of e-mails about jobs -- short-term, minimum wage, telemarketing insurance jobs in Kansas and Missouri. Except for one e-mail from a job coaching firm that wanted me to give them money. And the two jobs I had been hopeful about have dried up. I never got contacted about the one. And the recruiter for the other one has left me twisting in the wind. The job starts Monday, so I'm sure the company has hired someone by now. And there are no jobs on the boards or in my e-mail alerts that I even remotely qualify for. Hydraulic crane operator??? And since I've been decluttering, feng shui-ing, and space clearing, things have gotten worse. I am scared, sick, and depressed. I don't know what to do. Wed, 22 Feb 2012 17:59:51 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1163005 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=6#forum_thread_comment_1163005 Hopeful lily Zoo, you need a plan. Your stepfather might help you again, but isn't there state or federal aid you can access? Colorado Peak and Energy Outreach Colorado? Local charities that might be good for one electric bill payment? Anybody? As for brothers with mystical insight into how a virus could sabotage your e-mail contacts list, well, his claim is an excuse to call employers who have already rejected you and ask if they have received any random e-mails from you. Turn it into an opportunity to look for more work. You're coming up against this frantic fear over and over. There has to be a plan to get you out of this situation permanently, and since employment hasn't so far been the answer, perhaps it's time to consider other options. Meanwhile, remember it's warm at the Department of Human Services offices, so it's a good place to sit for a few hours, even if you're fairly sure they won't help you in the end. Wed, 22 Feb 2012 18:48:56 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1163067 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1163067 Bill Moonroe Zoo, I'm hoping things turn out for you. Really wish I could send some of the SoCal warmth your way through the internet. Thu, 23 Feb 2012 05:48:30 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1164125 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1164125 BuddhistOnABus Hey folks, I've not been around for a little bit, was down south for my Grandad's funeral, seeing family etc. I feel like this month has totally steamrollered me, what with his death and breaking up with my boyfriend. I'm doing my best to stick to a normal routine, but eating in particular has become pretty bad and I've put on a chunk of weight in the last three weeks. Hoping that next week, once I start this editing course, I will be able to pull myself together and sort it out. Thing is, I know that if I exercise and eat properly it will help me improve my emotional state, but the emotional state is holding me back from doing those things. Urgh. Maybe this weekend can see a turnaround. I've been trying to throw myself into writing and writing-related things, which is helping. Zoo, I really wish there was something I could do, but the best I can offer you is my positive thoughts. I really hope that something comes up for you asap. Thu, 23 Feb 2012 09:34:52 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1164463 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1164463 artofcheatery So I just realized how close it is til Script Frenzy and I'm getting into the panicky, "I'm not ready" mode. Compounded by being an ML. March is going to be a busy month and April will be worse. And speaking of busy, I have to go. -X Thu, 23 Feb 2012 12:04:17 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1164650 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1164650 Hopeful lily Sorry, Zoo, I take it all back. I reacted with my male brain instead of my female brain, trying to offer solutions instead of sympathy. The situation stinks. Sorry to hear it. In other news, my sister has heard from SSI that that she has been rejected because she never sent any medical paperwork. Pause a moment to recall SIX MONTHS of sending medical paperwork. *Hit head against wall.* In still other news, despite the talk of freelance last Friday, no one has sent me any projects yet. I am not running out to buy a better computer on the strength of "maybe." Thu, 23 Feb 2012 12:59:07 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1164825 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1164825 dutchbando I'm at my brother's house pet-sitting for the weekend. Is it bad that I've only been here for an hour and am bored already? Luckily I brought a huge pile of books to see me through, but they don't even have a really comfy chair for me to curl up in. *pouts* Anyway, at least there is wifi and so I should probably spend a goodly chunk of time on job applications. I've started to get some responses from the applications I've sent out. One wanted more specific salary requirements than 'negotiable' and one wanted me to fill out an incredibly detailed questionnaire to find out more about me. I responded to the salary inquiry after much debating with my roommate about wording and what a reasonable request would be, but haven't decided what to do about the questionnaire. The line of questioning leads me to believe I have snowball's chance in Hades of even advancing to the interview stage, but the organization itself is fascinating and would be cool to work for. I also got a call from a guy whose unnamed company is expanding into my area and would I be interested in an unspecified job. I don't think I'll dignify that one with a response. Thu, 23 Feb 2012 18:05:01 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1165558 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1165558 Zookeeper I called my stepfather up and cadged another month's worth of funds from him. But I don't know what I'll do when that runs out. In these last 48 hours I've had every stress symptom possible blindside me: depression, migraines, nausea, insomnia, oversleeping, and nightmares. I dreamt I was in a school and a T Rex was chasing me down the hall, over and over and over. When I woke up, 16 hours later, all of my blankets were strewn everywhere and I was shivering with cold. So I must have been battling something. And the 60-degree weather that we were supposed to have didn't happen, and it fell down to the teens last night. Our normal high is supposed to be 48. It rarely gets out of the 30s. I am so tired of shivering. And I still have no bloody clue what to do. Usually when you're out of work, the answer is to look for work until someone hires you. But I'm beginning to believe that that's never going to happen. No one wants to hire me. So what am I going to do for income? How am I going to keep the lights on and feed the cats? The only thing occupying my head right now is this headache that I've had for days. Fri, 24 Feb 2012 06:39:38 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1166769 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1166769 J.Kievsky Ugh Zoo. The month's respite gives you a little time to breathe but you will have to use it to work out at least a tentative Plan B and Plan C as to what to do next. As hopeful lily put it, I am one for "solutions over sympathy" so if you don't want to hear it and don't believe anything will help, feel free to stop reading here, that's fine and I understand that any suggestions will look hopeless and out-of-touch. For the utilities, have you contacted NEAR (National Energy Assistance Referral Project) at energy@ncat.org (or phone)? They might be able to point you towards who to apply to in CO for bill pay help, since Google says Colorado, stupidly, has no seasonal prohibition on disconnect. Have you contacted the utility provider? Most providers have hardship programs or allow you to set up a payment plan to take the edge off winter bills--the payment plan will set you back less than paying the disconnect and/or reconnect fees which are over $100 plus non-payment fee. Also for utilities, spend as much time outside of the house as possible. I realize this may not be an option for you because of the cats; the strays here manage to survive well but they have hiding places. If you can, be gone all day. Turn down the heat (in winter) as far as you can, or off, and spend all day someplace warm--libraries, malls, bookstores--as late as possible. I did this for a summer to avoid air conditioning bills, it is boring as heck but works. If you don't look or smell homeless no one will bother you. If you wander around all day you also find loose change. It doesn't add up to much but a dollar might buy you a pound of pasta at the grocery store. There are plenty of undeserving people who manage to get aid, and the reason is that they ask without shame. They ask everywhere until they find someone who acquiesces; what stops most people who do need it is that they won't ask, or are quickly discouraged. It is really, really difficult not to get discouraged. Still, people won't help if they don't know you're in trouble. Contact _everyone_. Human services, housing authority, church (if you do that scene), food banks, SPCA for the animals (ours provides subsidized cat/dog food to owners in need so the owners don't forfeit their animals, yours may have a similar program). Grit your teeth and try to turn the sadness into something that motivates you. Anger? Spite? They may not help you, but don't go down without a fight! No one out there cares about you more than you, so you have to do your damndest to help yourself. Unfortunately if it's as bad as you say--a survival issue--you have to reappraise your limits. Two $10/hr jobs are nearly $40,000/yr which is not far from the national average. It may not pay everything but it will keep you alive. The same thing applies to the house and possessions. Is a half-empty house better than no house? Sentimental value is real, but if it's down to two weeks' groceries or a 50 year old silver necklace--you don't have anywhere to wear it anyway. Take an inventory and rank everything in order of being pawned or sold _if it comes to that_. As a (very extreme) example I have only 6 items on the never-to-sell list: a hanging tent to sleep in trees, a backpack, a winter sleeping bag, a cast-iron skillet, a hunting knife, and waterproof matches. That's Plan Z of course, but with those I can survive anywhere even if the house is gone. Do you really need a couch, or just a bed? 4 chairs of a dining set when only 1 gets used? Then if you are totally strapped for cash there is no wringing your hands about what to do, you go to Tier 1 stuff and liquidate it, and so on. If utilities is a constant issue, invest in a winter sleeping bag. In all seriousness. A good 9 lb. goose down like mine runs around $350 (same as a winter heating bill here) and is rated to -40 or -30 deg. F. Even if they disconnect you you will live through the Colorado winter. Good luck. I hope you find something, and can find a way through the illness and anxiety. There's no good answer as to how to fix things. The only thing you can do is ensure that you've made an honest effort to try absolutely everything before you convince yourself there's nothing left to try. Fri, 24 Feb 2012 08:49:47 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167048 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167048 Zookeeper A couple of these things I have thought about, like going someplace warm. But the only places where I could just sit and be warm for a while requires a several mile walk in the cold or bus fare that I can't afford. I can't afford or use a goose down sleeping bag. I'm allergic to down. It would give me a severe asthma attack, which would mean an emergency room visit. I did, however, buy a space blanket, which does help me keep warm. The six cats who snuggle under it make for good heat sources, too. That's another reason against the sleeping bag, too. Even if I kept warm, I couldn't lie there and watch my cats die of the cold. And there's nothing to sell. I've always lived frugally and never had any expensive items. And any electronics I might sell have long since broken down and stopped working. And I've no furniture other than a couple of necessary things, like my bed and desk. No couch. Only one dining room chair. No dressers or coffee tables. No crystal or silverware. I'm using cast offs that don't match. I've decided what I need. Doesn't help because I can't afford it. But what I need is a vacation. That may sound dumb considering that I've spent most of the last four years sitting on my duff doing nothing, which is usually the definition of vacation, but it would be nice if I could just leave my problems for a while and go somewhere where I could look at trees or wiggle my toes in warm sand. Oh, for a holodeck right now! Fri, 24 Feb 2012 09:30:52 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167126 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167126 dutchbando I'm sending you prayers and happy thoughts Zoo. If I could I would send you much more than that, but please know that I'm thinking about you. You could try a synthetic down sleeping bag. They'd probably be cheaper than the real down variety. I have a synthetic down comforter and man is that thing warm. It'd probably keep the kitties warm too. I hear you on the vacation. I could use one too. My best friend moved out to Oregon for work and has been bugging me to come and visit her; but I can't justify the expense to go and visit even though it would probably do me a world of good. I keep saying that I'll book my flight as soon as I get a job, but even as I write this I wonder if I should just throw caution to the wind and do it anyway. Not that I am advocating for you to do the same, only that I completely understand the sentiment. Fri, 24 Feb 2012 09:51:51 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167161 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167161 Magpie Ilya Oh, Zoo... I wish there was something I could do besides sending more good thoughts. If it were me, I'd probably wish I could get out of that house and move somewhere with closer to potenial jobs (much as I'd hate to leave my house)... but of course, moving costs money, too, and it'd be hard to find a new place with your cats. I hate having nothing at all to offer... But, J.Kievsky, I love your list! I wish I had a tent like that, or in fact any tent light and small enough to carry. OK, gotta stop thinking abou that - spring is in the air here, and I already spent a whole day this week fantasizing about simply walking away from my job and just travel. Happens every year, and it gets worse every year - of course, I'd never be brave enough to simply hike away over the hills and sleep in the woods, and I'm much to reasonable to quit my job (and can't get time off in spring), but oh, how I wish! Fri, 24 Feb 2012 10:26:39 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167242 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167242 DanieXJ Mmmm... dutch, that one sounds a bit like there's the chance you may wind up in the trunk of a car trussed up like a turkey..... :) Fri, 24 Feb 2012 12:48:50 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167596 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167596 dutchbando Thanks for that morbid thought. Yet another reason why I'm not responding to the call. I put my resume on a lot of job boards in the hopes of being 'discovered' - what did I have to lose? Well, it seems the only thing that's gotten me is calls from insurance companies wanting me to come and be an agent working on commission. Fri, 24 Feb 2012 13:37:35 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167757 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167757 J.Kievsky There's a position I get notified about once a year or so through a field biology/backcountry organization where an environmental nonprofit offers free food &amp; board in a backcountry, off-the-grid (but w/solar power &amp; therefore, hot showers) station in exchange for the volunteer maintaining overnight lodgings for cross-country skiers and hikers traveling through the 200-mile trail corridor. They call them 'huts' but the accommodations are ridiculously luxurious, and it's out in beautiful western Maine, all woods and mountains... Someday when I have a month to spare and no pressing need for money I'm going to do it. There's got to be somewhere where you can take just a little 'daycation' without having to quit your job to do it! Fri, 24 Feb 2012 14:47:21 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167946 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1167946 DanieXJ Sorry, too many mysteries and mystery TV... no more CSI or Bones for Danie.... :) Fri, 24 Feb 2012 17:59:30 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1168274 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1168274 Hopeful lily Assuming there is no zombie apocalypse, and It's merely time to seriously downsize, what would I keep? Less of everything. Then even less. Finally, some categories would go entirely. I've actually done this before, when we moved from New England and got rid of nearly everything except what fit in a modest storage unit. A surprising amount of stuff does fit in one, by the way, if properly packed. But then, a car can hold a rather large number of possessions, too, if push comes to shove. Today, with good quality furniture cheap on Craigslist, abandoning the bulky stuff is less of a dilemma than ever. Fri, 24 Feb 2012 21:57:49 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1168765 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1168765 Magpie Ilya An exhausting, but quite successful day. The morning was spent trudging through a million clothes stores - which I hate, hate, hate, and fashion and I never agree with each other, but my cousin is getting married in a month, and I needed something to wear. I found a cute jacket early on, which I didn't exactly need, but I love it. But then - nothing, nothing, and more nothing. Finally, when we were ready to give up, we found another quirky little store, and they had a dress I liked. It's a little too big, but my mother says she knows someone who can fix that, so I bought it anyway - and then realized I can wear the necklace my father bought me in Morocco with it. I've never worn that necklace, because I had nothing to wear it with. And then I helped a friend of my mother's to design her garden, and earned back the money for either the dress or the jacket. (And it was fun, too.) Sat, 25 Feb 2012 09:29:05 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1169374 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1169374 rovingjack Crud monkies! I've now got the coverage to take care of some of my tooth problems, and enough pain to want to do it today... but in order to have that coverage I've got to work hours that mean I don't have the time to get an appointment to pull the bad teeth and have time off to recover. Doing it one at a time doesn't seem like the best approach and I'm not sure heavy physical activity within 24 hours is good for the healing process or the throbbing pain that is likely to result. And I can't take anything to help with the latter problem when it does happen. So If I get my whole mouth done in one fell swoop It'd take two weeks at least to recover. And that would be a horrible two weeks. Sat, 25 Feb 2012 12:05:17 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1169567 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1169567 Tobaeus Jack, I had to have teeth pulled some time ago. (Still need to have one pulled, ack.) My dentist was only comfortable doing two at a time, and spacing the visits out by more than two weeks for that side of my mouth could heal before the other was gone at. I don't know if that's how it works with every dentist, though. Zoo, I'm jumping the good karma bandwagon and praying that something good comes your way soon. We've had to downsize before and make everything fit into a storage unit. now I'm working on consolidating what we have here in our house. Mostly that involves giving things that we don't need to our friend whose Christmas was robbed out from under his family. By someone they trusted and allowed into their home, no less. Sigh. People. On the progress front, I got some of my seeds ordered and on their way. The hubby can balk all he likes at oddly colored veggies, but I think that it will give the meals personality. The wii should be back by Tuesday, so I can start adding exercise to my routine. And I have court Wednesday over a credit card I never paid off. My highest hope for this is that they'll let me work out a payment system that doesn't hurt us and doesn't let these people into my bank account. Every time I've let debt collectors pull the money they do it when there's nothing in the account. Definitely going to eliminate all the debt next tax time. Sick of these things popping up and getting calls from different debt collectors. Sat, 25 Feb 2012 13:52:15 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1169869 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1169869 Zookeeper If hitting bottom financially and emotionally wasn't enough, the cold water faucet opposite my almost-fixed faucet is beginning to leak, so that'll have to be taken care of, too. Then my heater conked out. Then my monthly episode of CVS hit around noon yesterday. Purge time! Ick. I still don't know what's causing it. And last night I had nightmares again. It was cold last night, and I woke up with 5-6 cats tucked around me, pinning me beneath my blankets. Some day I'll get a bed big enough for the seven of us. But at least the temps got warm enough today for me to be able to comfortably take a shower. And yesterday two recruiters called. With one, I immediately priced myself out of the market by telling him how much I got for my last gig. He was offering a maximum of $20 LESS per hour. The other one is still pending. Until I started gardening, I didn't realize that there were so many different kinds of vegetables: blue potatoes, orange cauliflower, red broccoli, magenta Brussels sprouts, round zucchini, tiny watermelon, white eggplant, and deep purple tomatoes. What you get at the grocery store is so limited compared to what's actually out there. Sat, 25 Feb 2012 17:45:11 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1170561 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1170561 J.Kievsky $20 less per hour... wow. Ouch. That'd put me into negative numbers! Keeping fingers crossed for you. Jack, I wag my finger at you and tell you not to postpone dental work if you can help it, especially if you already have pain. The Other put off a $200 procedure a couple of years ago and by the time it got taken care of it was a $5000 procedure which required a cow bone graft into his jaw to repair necrosis caused by the infection. Get a consultation with the dentist to see what they recommend--either way you're going be miserable, all at once or in stages. Do you know the workplace policy for being unable to work (because I'm assuming you'd be seriously drugged up for 1-2 weeks after the procedure) for medical reasons? Do they put you on disability? Simply not pay you for the time you can't work? The last couple days were kind of a wash, since I was mentally foggy and catching up on sleep once the insomnia passed (I did download a couple of the podcasts, dutch, and will be trying them soon). There was a little burst of writing today, since I like to take at least one idea/concept from every book I read and base a scene in the megaproject on it and I've been blasting through books. No walk, though--I tried to go out, but today was awful; wet snow and 50 mph gusts. I passed by someone else walking the other way, then 5 minutes later, decided to turn around, and passed by the same guy who had also turned back. We laughed. "Wasn't worth it, was it!" "F* no, I'm going home!" Found out one of my friends is due out of the Army at the end of March. He's the last one left of the military friends; all the rest have served out their time and come home relatively unscathed, so I'm hoping he's able to follow their example. After that he has to find a new job, and I didn't have much good advice to give on that point. I did find a temp job to apply to. I'm probably too overqualified to be considered but the job looks so fun, I just have to try. Sat, 25 Feb 2012 18:58:45 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1170777 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1170777 J.Kievsky Haha, fashion. I have to walk past the sorority houses on my way to campus, where I feel all self-conscious and hideous, but then I get to the horticulture or dairy buildings and it's my kind of people--where the odd one out is the anyone NOT wearing a flannel shirt, a down vest, or jeans tucked into mud- or manure-crusted barn boots. Sat, 25 Feb 2012 19:07:10 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1170820 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1170820 dutchbando I'm not sure what to think of today in all honesty. I went and had dinner at my dad's. Thankfully my stepmom was civil and didn't ask any hideous questions. After my stepmom went upstairs my dad asked me a health related question and somehow that led to my bawling my eyes out and spilling the beans about everything that's been bothering me and stressing me out. And you know what? My dad gave me a shoulder to cry on and have it all out, and it was great. I even had the guts to tell him how mortified I was about my stepmom's line of questioning on my birthday and it was a relief to hear my dad say he wasn't pleased with it either. I'm kind of embarrassed by some of it, but at the same point its so nice that someone in my family knows whats going on. Out of all my family members my dad is the least judgmental. Its nice to be reminded of that sometimes and that I shouldn't feel so inhibited in telling him what's going on. The night ended with my stepmom helping me create a LinkedIn profile and showing me how to use it. I've been meaning to join for awhile, but now its done. The cats have been super nice to me, but the dog is a giant pain. I'll be so glad when I'm done pet-sitting tomorrow and can go home. Sat, 25 Feb 2012 20:35:31 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1171162 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1171162 Zookeeper It's odd. When my mom was alive, she was always tight-fisted with the money, and she blamed it on our stepdad. ("You're not his kid. He doesn't owe you a damn thing.") But now that she's passed, my stepfather has been really generous in helping us out, both my brother and me. This makes me suspect that my mother was the one who didn't care about helping her kids. And from what I understand from some of the things my brother has said, when our parents split, mom didn't want kids weighing her down and wanted to put us in an orphanage, except that apparently Grandma (my mom's mom) raised holy hell about it, so mom grudgingly kept us. Mom always used the orphanage threat on me. When I started reading Dickens when I was a kid, the books would make me cry because I was terrified of being put into a workhouse. Soap opera drivel over. Now that I know I'll have some money coming in, I went to the store and got milk, bread, peanut butter, chocolate, and cat food, all the necessities of life. Sat, 25 Feb 2012 21:11:02 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1171267 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1171267 rovingjack I consulted with this dentist in late august, to see what the damage was. I know well enough the risks posed by my health problems and nutritional issues to ask about bone health. I also could clearly see that the enamel was gone along my gums on pretty much every tooth. Since then there has been some serious undercutting, to the extent that to stop the progression of tooth structure loss from reaching the living part of the tooth and root I have ... brace yourselves... scrubed out all cavities with salt/alchohol mix and filled them with temporary filling. My biggest problem is a tooth that cracked well over a decade ago while I was in the care of the family dentist I'd grown up with, and he said he didn't see any problems. But between this much hated tooth and the one behind it there were many problems. The hated tooth actually gave me tooth aches for a while and then just stopped for years. In the last year and maybe a bit of change, it's become a problem though. Mainly in that food seems to constantly find a way under the gum between the two and cause swelling and pain until it works out. the other problems have been the filling in the hated tooth breaking, and the fact that the two teeth are actually miswired. They are pretty much the only teeth in my mouth I can't tell you which one you poking because they both seem to send signals when only one is poked. During the consultation I asked about bone integrity and signs of current or past infection... nothing showed up. But given the situation with the enamel being gone and the first sign of undercutting, and the fact that a few of my teeth were actually flaking enamel like lead paint chips, they felt that the best option was to remove them all. Any attempt to drill, fill and crown was likely to meet a high rate of tooth breakage along the gum. Any successful filling had a high risk of continued deterioration ect. The problem is getting dental coverage here is next to impossible and the pulling of them all was the cheapest option at around $7000. I've spent the intervening time getting some coverage that should pay for it all. At least the extraction. When discussing this with them, I tried to really get a plan of action laid out but Without being able to commit to what sort of coverage I would be under they could really do details. But they did say that with my expressed concerns for physical health reactions and limits on medications and the fragile nature of some of my teeth, that it might make more sense to go in and do surgical removal of them all under general anesthesia in one shot. The recovery from that is going to be absolute nightmarish. But going the one shot surgical option lends itself to medicating and recovery options that are otherwise out, and also means only one recovery period. When that type of physical stress can make me violently ill for days and take even longer for my body to return to functional, I'd rather only do it once. So monday I go back in for discussion of options and set up the plan. truth is there is not going to be an easy solution. But hopefully I can get the plan in place for this to happen, and then discuss with my new bosses about getting time in march off. Early march looks like it will be the grand opening of the store I'm working. and that's going to be needing full staffing at full time hours. But even without the dental time off I'm looking at a suddenly huge income for a short time and it endangers my benefits. So I'm going to have to ask for time off anyway. With those things worked out I have to talk to pharmacists who do compounding, so that meds could be made up that won't actually make me sicker. Ideally I should get about 8 days minimum off, which just means missing 6 days of work. If I can split them over two weeks and possibly the end of the month of march and start of april it is less of a struggle for me to get it. I'll need plenty of food preped, meds made and bed rest. When I do go back to work I'm likely to look like I got in a fight with three gorillas and heavy work will be off limits for a bit. but I should be able to work it all out. It's just going to be a lot of work to do so. Sun, 26 Feb 2012 00:52:32 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1171475 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1171475 Smartiez101 I failed last month. Wow. That and I haven't been on in a loooong time. How is everyone here doing? (Since, I'm seeing that people tell about their lives but aren't really chatting with each other, just comparing lives. :/) Sun, 26 Feb 2012 08:13:24 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1171752 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1171752 J.Kievsky Even if you say they didn't find signs of infection, that line about not being able to tell which of the two teeth was being poked is saying to me 'potential abscess down to trigeminal nerve' but usual disclaimer, not a dentist, yadda yadda. The food prep is a good observation; make a soup every day and freeze it to have the freezer well-stocked by the time you need it. I hope you're able to get it done ASAP, those are big problems. It seems like you've been doing everything you can to stem the damage while not being able to pay for surgery, so I hope all the work pays off and makes the procedure go as well as it can. Sun, 26 Feb 2012 08:28:35 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1171764 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1171764 dutchbando Well, it seems that this weekend I've made an enemy of my brother's dog. Oops. He likes sitting in the snow for hours and I keep making him come inside. Its too cold for me to stand outside with him for hours on end while he lounges in the snow and I can't leave him outside unattended. He has taken to playing cement statue when called in. After bribing him with all the treats I can find to no avail I've had to resort to putting him on the leash and dragging him inside. So now he's sitting in the garage and refusing to budge. There is no love lost between us but at least he's inside. Can I go home now? Sun, 26 Feb 2012 12:25:18 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1172023 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1172023 Zookeeper Reminds me of a big orange tabby cat I used to have. He kept mewing pitifully to go out, but it was winter and there was over a foot of snow on the ground. Finally I got tired of his whining, put a leash on him, and took him out. I expected him to put one paw into the snow, shake it off delicately, and cry to get back in. Huh-uh. He <em>loved</em> it. He went bounding through the snow drifts, dragging poor cold mommy after him. Since the snow was higher than he was, he'd leap above the snow and crash into it a couple feet away. Finally, after 20-30 minutes, mommy called a halt and took him back inside. At least with a cat, even one weighing 16 pounds, I can just pick him up and carry him inside. Sun, 26 Feb 2012 21:43:39 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1173602 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1173602 golfgal08 Last week was a complete wash on my weekly goals--didn't make it to the gym even once, only walked a short route one day, and didn't read anything. But I stretched and wrote, and my birthday party was a huge success on Saturday night. We had ten people at the party! Usually we top out at six, no matter how many people get invited, so it was a big deal for my little group of friends. And then I went to a Blake Shelton concert last night with my younger sister. My older sister was there too, but whereas she paid $100 for her tickets, mine were two sections to the left and I got them for free. I think she was a little upset by that. I tend to get a lot of free tickets from the casino for shows and stuff. But I do make a habit of bringing my sisters to them. The goal this week is to get back on track at the gym. I've got way more food in my kitchen than I think I've ever had, and way more beer than I should be drinking. At least this means I shouldn't have to worry about cooking for at least a week, and <em>most</em> of the leftovers are of the veggie variety (there's that giant slice of chocolate-and-peanut-butter-cake hiding in the microwave, though). The weather is slowly getting nicer (except for the snow on Saturday, ugh; at least it didn't stick), and once it does, I am going to try and convince myself to run outside. It's both easier and harder for me to run outside versus on a treadmill; on the one hand, it's harder to regulate my pace, but on the other, I can plod along at a slow jog for a lot longer and vary my pace as necessary without needing to fiddle with settings. And it's almost March already... sheesh... Mon, 27 Feb 2012 06:41:33 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1174076 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1174076 Bill Moonroe Doing pretty well with my goals here. I managed to do one donkey walk this month. Might do one on Friday. The donkey was pretty glad to get out and have some fun on Saturday night. Nothing to get your heart beating fast to be on a dark, downhill trail and hear the sound of galloping hoofbeats and clinking beer bottles approaching at top speed. The trick is to not jump out of the way, because the donkey will swerve at the last minute. I've finished two stories this month, and submitted one to the Writers of the Future contest last night. I'm thinking I might take WOTF up on their invite to their award ceremony in April. I'm learning so many banjo tunes and am getting ready for the Topanga Banjo-Fiddle Contest in May. Any L.A. area NaNoWriMos, it's one of L.A.'s best live music events. Not only do they have some great contestants, but they also have a full schedule of professional performers. Supposedly, a certain "wild and crazy" picker has been known to show up, but now that he's got two very well recieved banjo albums, he'd be even more likely to get mobbed than during his movie career. This week, I'll be starting another story. It's all about feeding "the machine". "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit." Mon, 27 Feb 2012 07:09:15 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1174137 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1174137 Zookeeper Okay, you're referring to either Steve Martin or Billy Bob Thornton. And I like your quote at the end. It's very true. It's still early, but I sent all of the job stuff I needed to one recruiter and applied for another job online. I have two jobs definitely pending, although I haven't heard about one for a while, so it may be dead. The recruiter never got back to me with an update, although I've called a couple times since my resume was submitted. Job hunting is absolutely not one of my favorite things to do. I'd rather shovel the walk or clean the carpet. Mon, 27 Feb 2012 07:36:22 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1174200 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1174200 Tobaeus Lily, I was going through my twitter feed and one of the links I clicked was something I thought you'd like to have a look at: http://www.minioperas.org/ Not really much to update on right now. Our game systems should be back soon, and then I can start back on my exercise routine, but it won't be an official goal until March. Also, I have to mock up a monthly budget to take to court Wednesday so I can show the judge how much we can afford to pay the credit company each month to settle our debt. And cleaning. Always cleaning. Mon, 27 Feb 2012 12:18:08 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1174660 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1174660 rovingjack those two teeth have been like that for over twelve years. I should think an abscess would have killed me in that time. Sadly soup is a no go. Too much liquid, salt and startches. I'm going homemade baby food style, made from my usual safe foods. It's going to be like eating thin tooth paste for a while. Mon, 27 Feb 2012 12:39:29 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1174704 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=7#forum_thread_comment_1174704 rovingjack Alright I guess I should maybe have a feburary goal list to finish by month end. 1) Begin dental plan. (This should have been on the list to start with) 2)Train at job 3) Build savings. 4) balance budget. 5) get info about compounding meds for dental surgeris. 6) maybe set up appointment for a body mod of some kind. (I'm gonna be on pain meds anyway, and antibiotics, and have some time off to heal, and since my illness is likely to be grumpy already anyway body mods won't be setting it off) 7) look through aqll my links/favorites to refresh my memory of things I thought were neat and I might get around to trying eventually. Mon, 27 Feb 2012 12:45:55 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1174723 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1174723 BuddhistOnABus Started on the exercises for my novel editing course today, and it looks like it's going to be a really valuable six weeks. We're looking at plot and structure this week and the task has really made me think about my chapter divisions, story arc, etc. Hopefully I can have a well-edited novel ready to wave at people at the writing festival in September! As for my February goals, little has been achieved, but I've had so much personal crap going on that I'm not concerned about it. I'm continuing with my writing and weight loss aspirations, which are the most important things to me right now. I'm going to make sure I look after myself, both physically and emotionally, spend time with family and generally try to stay positive from now on. Roll on March, it HAS to be better than February! Tue, 28 Feb 2012 13:21:27 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1177157 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1177157 dutchbando Well, my stress is now going through the roof. How can I tell? It feels like there are steel cables going down the back of my neck. When I get stressed they get progressively tighter. I have some neck issues to begin with and as long as I keep my stress in check it doesn't effect my daily life too much. However, in times of stress it all centers in my neck and can get extremely painful. I think I might have to cave and go get that massage I had been promising myself as a reward for getting a job. I haven't really done anything to pamper myself which was one of my goals for the month, but still, massages like the one I would need are expensive, and I'm hesitant to spend that sort of cash. In the meantime I'm doing everything I can do destress. One more difficult thing. The house where I'm renting is in foreclosure. My landlords are fighting it but they've told one of my roommates that the bank will likely take over and make all of us leave by July 1. Finding a new place is infinitely easier for all of my other roommates who have steady salaried jobs. But me? I'm still trying to find a job while working minimum wage and so the panic is mounting. Hence the neck tension. Sigh. When is my job going to show up? I'm sick of living in limbo. I worked the last couple days although honestly today I think I would have rather stayed home and work on job applications. I broke down and have now done a nationwide search for jobs (within reason - even in my state of desperation there are still states I am unwilling to go to) and have a pile of applications to work on. All I need is the time to do them. I need prayers and happy thoughts. Tue, 28 Feb 2012 14:20:37 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1177287 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1177287 Faeiri Well, most of this month was a complete failure. I've written 6.5k this month, as opposed to my WriYe goal of 30k a month, and I didn't accomplish much of anything else either. Ahaha, WHOOPS. For the last week or so, though, I've been getting things back on track. I started a diary for the first time since I was in...maybe second grade, and along the side I'm keeping a list of things I have to accomplish for the day. Having it there in my handwriting, where I can see it as I write out the day, really does help motivate me. I think it's that I'm doing the diary so I can remember how things were in each section of my life when I'm older. It's like I'd have future me looking over my shoulder as I write, going, "Wow, young Faeiri sure was useless that February." Good luck in your goals again, everyone! It seems like the end of the month is always the biggest for me, so I hope things work out well with that. Tue, 28 Feb 2012 16:35:18 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1177559 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1177559 Hopeful lily Dear Dutch, here's hoping it all works out for you. We do manage to survive many crises as adults, things we never expected to face. Meanwhile, work on de-stressing. Tue, 28 Feb 2012 16:58:02 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1177624 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1177624 Hopeful lily Buddhist, I am sending you some good wishes, too, since you've been having such a rough time. I have to include Jack, whose dental woes make my own look like a walk in the park. And then there's everybody else. Most of you are having more trouble than fun. Since the flowers are daring to bloom, perhaps our collective luck will improve. Tue, 28 Feb 2012 20:09:45 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1178274 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1178274 Bill Moonroe Steve Martin, but the contest is held at the Paramount Ranch, within an hour's drive of Hollywood. Wouldn't surprise me if Billy Bob Tornton had also been there. Wed, 29 Feb 2012 05:56:38 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1178993 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1178993 dutchbando 1. Read 10 books - Read 8 (so not bad) 2. Walk as many days as possible - DONE 3. Buy my nephew's birthday present - DONE 4. Go to church - DONE 5. Do my taxes - Just need to be mailed 6. Get a job - NO but this month I've applied to 38 jobs, got 2 rejections and 2 statements of interest wanting to know more 7. Do something nice for myself - NO 8. Keep using chapstick - DONE Wed, 29 Feb 2012 06:37:42 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1179110 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=1#forum_thread_comment_1179110 MarthaBechtel I knew February was going to be a bit of a wild tangent for me, but I ended up getting a lot less done than I had hoped. They're all minor personal goals, so nothing important was lost, but I do feel like I'm letting my life get too easily derailed. The next few months are going to be only slightly less crazy, so I suppose I'd better tighten my thinking cap and see if I can't find a way to make things work. The phrase 'the new normal' tends to get on my nerves, but I guess it's more accurate than I like to think. I'm tired of the constant change-- I'd like some pleasant stability back again please. :P And on that note… time to start planning if I'm going to plan for Script Frenzy or just pants the thing. *ponders* ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- <a href="http://www.Martha.net" rel="nofollow">Martha.net</a> -- <a href="http://www.martha.net/category/unquiet-bones/" rel="nofollow">Writing</a>, <a href="http://www.martha.net/category/custom-models-com/" rel="nofollow">Model Horses</a> and <a href="http://www.martha.net/category/perish-twice/" rel="nofollow">Warcraft</a>... because you can never have enough hobbies! Wed, 29 Feb 2012 07:39:56 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1179276 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1179276 Zookeeper After a really, really frustrating morning, something happened that just made my day. I got a call from a recruiter about a contract position. I actually interviewed with this place a year or so ago and didn't get the job, but it was a nice place, and I was impressed with it. It's not an easy or close commute, but I could deal with it. So, fingers crossed. No news on the other jobs, though. Wed, 29 Feb 2012 09:53:21 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1179490 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1179490 Tobaeus Crossing my fingers, Zoo! i hope this one is good news! Wed, 29 Feb 2012 10:21:36 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1179525 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1179525 Tobaeus Okay, my month in review: 1) Get rid of the bugs.- In progress, and feeling good about it. 2) Exercise more. - If we count any day I had to walk somewhere, then I got a little. If we count using the mini-stepper under my desk or the magic circle I keep nearby, then I'm a roaring success. The wii just came back from repairs yesterday, so I haven't had an opportunity to do any of my dance related stuff. 3) Rewrite this short story and submit it.- Rewritten, put up for critique, and waiting another rewrite. 4) Work on my super secret project and get it going before Leap Day.- Not at all. But that's more about waiting on another person who's involved. 5) Clear out all the recycling paper. Must enlist hubby's help, as he has the driver's license.- Getting done this weekend. I'm sick of not being able to navigate the back porch. 6) Keep the house clean.- success. Maybe enough of one that I can stop posting it. 7) Order my gardening supplies.- Some done. I have a few new seeds and an indoor plant. Next time we have extra money, I plan on grabbing up more. 8) Make the hubby's Valentine's Day gift.- Finances stood in the way of that. Soon as we have the money for it, I'll get what I need to start. 9) Write, write, write. - yes yes yes 10) Read, read, read. - not so much 11) Start a new goodwill bag/box.- I know what's going into it when we get started 12) Get the ps3 fixed. - Done! Missed the delivery today, but it'll be here tomorrow, and I can start belly dancing again. 13) Fix mp3 playlist and back up computer- Need to find a jump drive big enough for a back up. But my mp3 player is playing things in the right order, so half victory! 14) Get driver's guide and at least study for my permit.- Not even close. Wed, 29 Feb 2012 14:47:53 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1180191 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1180191 Zookeeper The last day of February, and once again I failed in most of my goals. 1. Fix bathroom faucet I tried. I really, really did. But it's going to require another trip to Home Depot. 2. Finish first draft of Nano 2011 3. Finish next revision of Nano 2005 Didn't do any writing at all. 4. Clean kitchen In progress. Not done yet. 5. Get work :-( No. Although I have three jobs pending that recruiters have submitted me to, and another two jobs that I applied to that I think I have a shot at. 6. Read another 9 books Only read two more. 7. Clean bathrooms Worked a little on one. 8. Do feng shui space clearing I did this for the office. 9. Bake bread No. 10. Do visualizations No. 11. Start some seeds No. 12. Vacuum bedroom and office I vacuumed the office. 13. Donate or freecycle something I have a charity bag open that I drop things into now and then, so I'd say that's a partial success. Not on the list -- I fixed the toilet in the master bath. All it needed was a screw tightened, but at least it's done. And I did a little yardwork today. And I did a lot of decluttering of the den. It's odd what you find when you declutter. I found another almost new pair of sneakers, and a couple unopened bags of rice. And I was emptying out a box, and I found a little box that belonged to a heater. I opened it up, and sure enough there was a little heater in it. I put it on a closet shelf. Some days later, my bedroom space heater conked out, so I got the little heater down from the closet shelf and installed it in my bedroom. I think it works better than the other one. Seems to keep the bedroom a little warmer. Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:01:43 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1180233 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1180233 sprites Hello - I know I haven't been commenting during the month but at the beginning of the month I made some goals here so I wanted to review how I did. February Goals: 1. work really hard on my rewrite of my nano novel (get to 40,000 words) - um, definitely not. I did make a sincere effort..that fizzled out when I realized I had to restart it again. 2. finish online course - no 3. take a yoga class at least 4 times - I think I made it twice, but I was sick for a few weeks this month and that's why I didn't make it. 4. be biking to work at least 3 days a week by the end of the month - no, but my schedule changed and that became impossible. 5. read 5+ books - yes - read 6 6. find part time nanny position to supplement my part-time job - YES! Four days a week and this has partially explained why other goals have fallen by the wayside 7. draw in sketchbook especially to unwind - yeah, sometimes. 8. Be social - have fun. - yeah. i started dating someone and saw my one friend nearly every weekend - pretty good. Basically I didn't get the first four but made the last four. Hmm. Well I'll re-evaluate for March. Wed, 29 Feb 2012 17:09:43 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1180592 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1180592 dutchbando I am exhausted. I spent the day submitting job applications. My grand total was 16 different companies for something north of 20 jobs total since I applied for multiple positions/locations at several companies. My brain is fried so I hope that something comes of one of these. Of course I say that about all my applications, but seriously, one of these has to be the right fit. Wed, 29 Feb 2012 17:27:10 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1180646 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1180646 J.Kievsky Review: - Walk every day, 5 miles/day averaged over each week: Done, did 176.45 miles total for an average of ~6.08/day. - Meet 5 new people: Done. - Network with the local beekeepers and see if anyone will take me on as an apprentice at their hive: Part one is done and we are doing communal club hives rather than private so part two is in progress. - Practice piano once a week and try to relearn the ricercare and 23/5: No, couldn't find free pianos. - Attend 2 area social meet-ups: Done with 3, two dinners and one trivia night. - Host people for evening tea 3 times: Done. - Progress on text version of DP book project: Minimal progress because other things have come first. - Search for giveaway patio furniture and garden supplies: Looked, didn't find. - Attend the free student classical concerts whenever I can: Attended 3 organ concerts. - Attend 2 bird seminars and arrive at least 10m early to chat: Fail. Always decided it was too dark and cold to bicycle over there, since bird seminars are held in late evening. - Bird weekly and do at least 2 half-hour birding sessions solely by ear to practice: Did only one birding by ear session and only ID'd six species so this one is a fail. - Assemble master list of things we need when we can afford them: Done. - Put the house in good enough condition for guests to visit: Surprisingly, done and maintained well enough so far. - Find an optometrist: No. Ongoing: Books: Read 12 books for total of 22/102. Job hunt: Submitted 4 apps in February; got 1 interview, 2 rejections. Open applications: 3. No offers. Wed, 29 Feb 2012 18:04:32 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1180745 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1180745 Magpie Ilya Well. February goals. 1. Write every day (and stick to "Goblins") - Yes! Never a whole lot, but I didn't skip a single day this month, despite going back to work full time. 2. Continue sorting through/putting away story-stuff - Oops. Haven't even looked at that box for weeks. 3. Read, read, read! - 11 books 4. update book list - no 5. update plant list on my blog - yes. And got a trade request, yay! 6. plan balcony garden - I have a rough sketch 7. sow tomato seeds and whatever else can/must be sowed this early - peppers, two tomato varieties, and some spring crops that could go outside already 8. go to medieval dance - no, because I felt too icky that day. And it was snowing - apparently not even the dance master made it there because the roads were so bad. But I went ice-skating. Which doesn't force me to interact with people the way dancing does, but it did force me to do things I feel a little insecure about, and get out of my comfortable but boring routine 9. finish knitting sweater - Done! But the sleeves are a little too short, so I have to correct that. 10. 4 days without internet - only just. For some reason, working again makes it harder. 11. buy new work trousers - no, but not for lack of trying. I can't find anything that's cheap <em>and</em> sturdy <em>and</em> comfortable. I did, however, find a dress for my cousin's wedding, which is quite an accomplishment. And a jacket I actually love. Wed, 29 Feb 2012 22:17:19 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=9#forum_thread_comment_1181404 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=9#forum_thread_comment_1181404 BuddhistOnABus Thanks Lily, hoping that March will be a better month all round! Thu, 01 Mar 2012 08:25:37 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1182187 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=8#forum_thread_comment_1182187 rovingjack [quote=rovingjack] 1) Begin dental plan. (This should have been on the list to start with) 2)Train at job 3) Build savings. 4) balance budget. 5) get info about compounding meds for dental surgeris. 6) maybe set up appointment for a body mod of some kind. (I'm gonna be on pain meds anyway, and antibiotics, and have some time off to heal, and since my illness is likely to be grumpy already anyway body mods won't be setting it off) 7) look through aqll my links/favorites to refresh my memory of things I thought were neat and I might get around to trying eventually. [/quote] 1) majority done- making arrangments for that, just need to ask work when is best for a week off, preferrably in march because I'd need two days off anyway so I don't compromise the benefits that let me get it taken care of in the first place. 2) done- I spent much of feb, training on procedures at one store for multiple jobs, then went to the store I'll work at and spent 12 hours over two days running fake purchases through the scanners. Gaaah, seriously hust put me on the floor doing real work not busy work. 3) Done- even after spending the majority of it on #4 I still have some left in savings. That's not happened in over a year. 4) Done- aside from some medical debt that is still in the background I'm set. 5) Done- There are at least two places between here and my mums house that have somebody who can do compounding. I'll look at maybe a few others but now I've got to use the data on which meds I'll be using and find out which would work best with my illness and which they could compound. 6) Half done- I'm not sure what I'm doing but I know at least one thing, possiblt two that I'll do, and I've got to find somebody I trust to do it. 7) Half done- I forgot how much crap I accumulated in my favorites. Thu, 01 Mar 2012 10:26:47 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=9#forum_thread_comment_1182489 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=9#forum_thread_comment_1182489 Bill Moonroe Well, here's how I did in February: 1. Keep the progress with the yoga going, though at 5 days a week, rather than 7. Most weeks, yep. Great way to start the day. 2. Write and submit two short stories. Wrote two, submitted one; the other's in first draft form. 3. Learn one new banjo tune Didn't learn as in memorized, but can play it pretty well with the music: "Wild Horse at Stony Point". 4. Learn one new slack key guitar tune Not yet memorized, but 'Awiwi is sounding... closer to a single piece of music. 5. Complete the Superbowl Sunday 5k walk race Yep. Nice, easy walk. 6. Walk 20 minutes a day, 3 days a week Kind of let go of this during mid-February, this last week was a lot better. 7. Go for at least two donkey walks Went on one donkey walk. 8. Send in the entry form for the Topanga Banjo-Fiddle Contest (This one's easy, since the form is already filled out and entry acceptance starts today) Sent it in, got it back because I'd forgotten to indicate "solo" vs. "with backup musicians", sent it back in. 9. Laptop computer acquisition Oh, dear God, how did I get along without a laptop computer. The baristas at Starbucks already know what my "usual" is. 10. Read "A Feast for Crows" Yep. Great book, now I'm on the waiting list for "Dance with Dragons". 11. Read "Think, and Grow Rich" Read a few pages. Not really a book to rush through. On to March! Fri, 02 Mar 2012 08:29:24 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=9#forum_thread_comment_1184808 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=9#forum_thread_comment_1184808 Magpie Ilya Oh, and I only just remembered to get a free trial subscription for a newspaper. Now I just need to remember to actually read it, too. Fri, 02 Mar 2012 15:14:21 -0800 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=9#forum_thread_comment_1185332 http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/the-year-of-doing-big-fun-scary-things-together/threads/49776?page=9#forum_thread_comment_1185332