Well, folks, we’re a week into Round 3 of ROW80! Given that the week was punctuated by an oddly placed holiday, hopefully you all got to enjoy a little extra relaxation and fun in addition to the day-to-day demands of life. And yes, you read that title right: there are random photos of ostriches in this post, though you’ll have to wade through my check-in to get to them. Enticing, eh?
My week started with a bit of a family health scare: my grandma was rushed to the hospital on Monday and ended up having to get a pacemaker. She is recovering well, thank goodness, but everyone was really worried for a few days. Beyond that, I am happy to report that almost all of my boxes are unpacked. Even better, almost all of my cherished belongings have a home. I’ll have to turn my room upside down again in a few days when I start my painting project, but once all is said and done I will post pictures of my new writing space. The walls will be transformed from the pale lavender that 11-year-old-me thought was the absolute height of sophistication, to a warm golden yellow that will hopefully brighten and warm my teeny tiny space.
Also awesome: the family cat, Napoleon, has decided to acknowledge my existence, unlike the time I came home 2 summers ago when he pretended that he didn’t know who I was. Once again, he curls up next to me in bed while I drink tea, write, and listen to classical music. My life is now complete. *squee*
Between unpacking and decorating I haven’t had a chance to really find my rhythm, but I’m working on it. Here’s a shakedown of Week 1:
Day Job: Today (Saturday) was the first chance to tackle what I have code-named PROJECT DISSERTATE OR DIE (yes, the caps are necessary, and yes, “dissertate” is totally a word). My focus for the next week or so is on the seminar paper that I owe my dissertation advisor by mid-month, so I’m doing lots of reading, note-taking, and brainstorming. This week’s goal: Finish (or almost finish) seminar paper by next Sunday’s check-in.
Writing: My other big endeavor for this round, PROJECT RECHARGE, is also coming along. I’ve taken time out for journaling sessions every day this week, and decided that a bit of soul work is in order. I have many thoughts and feelings on this matter, and perhaps once I distill them into something easily digestible and understandable, I’ll be able to write a blog post or two on the matter. This week’s goal: Add bits of free-writing (poetry, story snippets) into the journaling/brainstorming mix.
Social Media: 10 blogs visited, check! Twitter, Facebook, and queuing up blog posts is still on the to-do list. This week’s goal: Wade back into Triberr, get back into the ROW80 #teamsprinty madness, keep visiting blogs, maybe brainstorm potential blog posts?
Exercise: So… moving counts as exercise, right? ‘Cause I can’t count the number of boxes, odds and ends, and pieces of furniture that I helped my dad move. Aside from that, I got 1 “real” workout on the glider in. Now that I can’t roll out of bed and go for a walk (we live at the top of a really steep hill), I have to shift my workout plan a bit. This week’s goal: Aim for 4 days of exercise; get used to the idea of having to *drive* to a walking spot.
So, yay, progress! Be sure to stop by and wave to the other ROWers taking part in Round 3. And hey, just for fun, why don’t you have a few random pictures from my excursion to Ostrich Land? The world can always use more fuzzy animal pictures, even if ostriches are more odd-looking that squee-worthy and likely to snap off a hand if you’re not careful. Click on the photos to enlarge them.