Week 3/4 – Whirlwind of Accomplishment

I’ve accomplished a lot over the last two weeks when it comes to my 101 Things. And over all this has been a very productive month.

The Dailies:

#57 – Make my bed every day for 45 days. I’m still going strong with this goal. I even made my sister’s bed and the bed at the condo while I was out of town. That’s commitment!

#77 – Participate in and successfully complete Project 365. I took so many pictures while I was away that I can’t even count them. I definitely took at least one a day, even on my travel days.

#78 – Take a weekly self-portrait. I took last week’s self portrait at the Grand Canyon, so this week’s will probably be “blah” in comparison.

The Weeklies:

#44 – Turn off the TV at least one evening a week. I did so much sight-seeing while I was away that there were several nights that I skipped the TV. And on Tuesday I went to sleep at 7:30 which made skipping TV easy.

The Monthlies:

#62 – Save monthly in a long-term emergency fund (for back-up when I go freelance full-time). I have my account set up to automatically transfer money to my savings every month, so this should be the easy part. It’s not spending it once it’s in the savings that I’m probably going to have to work on the most now that I think about it. Or increasing the amount I save each month.

#80 – Send 33 cards or letters. I’m sending out a card to my Grampy for his birthday. It’ll be late, but at least I remembered to send one this year.

#90 – Compliment a stranger 33 times. I complimented my first stranger while I was in Arizona. One of my sister’s co-workers had great glasses and I told her so (through my sister during a phone conversation, but it still counts as far as I’m concerned).

#100 – Track my 101 in 1001 progress monthly. I’ve updated several times this month.

Other Things:

#30 – Finish and submit C8ANY book proposal. Now that holidays and vacations are over for a while, working on some of my writing projects is a priority again. This project is first on the list of “big” projects, in addition to many “small” projects that are ongoing (i.e., blogging at various venues).

#68 and 69 – “Travel to Arizona to see my sister” and “See the Grand Canyon.” I completed both this month, as you’ve already read.

#80 – Send 33 cards or letters.

This month it was a birthday card to my Grampy. It will arrive late, but at least I got around to sending it. Next year I’ll work on getting it there on time.

#69 – See the Grand Canyon.

I think this picture says it all:

#86 – Get a tatoo.

After about a decade of considering and chickening out, I finally went for it. I got a tattoo. My sister’s friend did the job here in Arizona and I walked away with this:

This photo was taken immediately after it was finished, so the ink is running a bit in a couple of spots but you get the idea. It means faith, hope and love–the three qualities I try to nurture in myself on a daily basis. You can’t tell from the picture, but it’s on my back along my spine between my shoulder blades. I’m very happy with how it turned out, but I’ll tell you that I’ll never get another one.

It didn’t hurt as much as I expected it to, but it definitely hurt. And it took about 40 minutes to do. I know that doesn’t sound like a long time (my sister has one that took an hour and a half), but it was long enough. I almost passed out at one point, although I’m not sure why. It may have been that he hit a nerve or that I was holding my breath or that I’m just a wuss. Whatever caused it, it was a bit embarrassing. At least I managed to ask for a break before I actually passed out and fell out of the chair and onto the floor.

#34 – Read 30 books.

Thanks to 7 hours on a plane and a few more in airports, I finished my second book for this goal. It was Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult. As I’ve probably said several times before, Jodi Picoult is one of my favorite authors and I have yet to read a book of hers I don’t enjoy.

Change of Heart reminded me in many ways of The Green Mile. It was the story of Shay Bourne, a man on death row for the murder of a young girl and her step-father. Shay has decided he wants to donate his heart after his execution and insists that it go to the sister of the young girl he murdered. The story is told from the perspectives of several characters: Maggie, the ACLU lawyer who will fight for Shay’s right to die as he chooses; Michael, a priest who was once on the jury that convicted Shay and sentenced him to death; Lucious, a prisoner at the jail that houses Shay while he’s on death row; and June, the woman whose husband and child Shay killed, and whose daughter Shay now wants to save.

The story touched on issues of faith and religion, the death penalty, revenge and redemption. It was wonderfully told and had me asking myself questions as I read. That, to me, is the mark of an effective and powerful story–a mark that Picoult’s books always seem to have for me. I’d highly recommend this book to anyone who has ever wondered if God exists, the death penalty is humane, redemption is possible, or miracles are real.

#68 – Travel to Arizona to visit my sister.

I’m here! We’re visiting!

This is going to sound silly, but did you know there are cacti and palm trees in Arizona? Driving south from Phoenix, everything is so flat, but on the horizon there are mountains on every side of you. It’s beautiful in a brown, dust, desert-y way.

I’ll be posting pictures eventually, either at Me, In Pictures or Writing: My Life. And in a few days, I’ll be visiting Flagstaff, the Grand Canyon (#69) and Sedona among other places. I understand why people travel overseas and to beautiful islands in the Caribbean, but it really is amazing to realize how much beauty exists in our own country (in a single state, even).

Week 2 – Still Going

I managed to keep up the momentum this week.

The Dailies:

#57 – Make my bed every day for 45 days. I’m on a roll with this goal, and I’ve actually started doing it as soon as I get out of bed. My cat doesn’t like it, but it’s nice to start my day with and come home to a made bed.

#77 – Participate in and successfully complete Project 365. I’m doing pretty well with my Project 365, and I just got a new SLR and a new point-and-shoot. I’m hoping that will improve my creativity as far as this project goes.  The pictures haven’t been all that exciting so far.

#78 – Take a weekly self-portrait. I’ve been including this as part of Project 365, but it’s been fun trying to include pictures of myself (in various ways).

The Weeklies:

#44 – Turn off the TV at least one evening a week. I accidentally completed this task this week. I was out and about and didn’t get home in time for any TV watching. Thankfully, because the rest of the week was filled with TV, even if I was busy with other things and not really paying attention.

The Monthlies:

#12 – Do my monthly breast self-exams. Enough said.

Other Things:

#2 – Participate in a CSA each year. I sent in my check to the Cromwell Valley CSA yesterday. It’s the same CSA I joined last year and I’m looking forward to another year with them.

Week 1 – So far, so good.

Well, I’m on track so far for all my daily and weekly Things and I’ve even started or completed a couple of general Things with no specific time constraints.

The Dailies:

#57 – Make my bed every day for 45 days. I’ve managed to remember to make my bed every morning. I’m trying to get into the habit of doing it as soon as I get out of bed, but sometimes the call of my bladder wins out and I find myself rushing to do it once I’m dressed and my hair is dry.

#77 – Participate in and successfully complete Project 365. As I mentioned the other day, I scramble for them some nights, but I’m getting them in and that’s all that matters. They may not be the best quality or the most interesting to look at, but they’re pictures and I’m taking them. Check.

The Weeklies:

#44 – Turn off the TV at least one evening a week. This week I actually did this more than one night a week. And surprise, surprise! I managed to get quite a bit of work, blogging and reading done. It’s amazing what a few nights without the TV can do for my to-do lists.

#87 – Buy myself a gift/flowers on the 5th of every month. On Monday, I bought myself roses for my birthday. You can see a picture of them at my Project 365 blog. They were quite beautiful and made being at work on my birthday more bearable.

I also completed:

#35 – Buy a new digital camera. Can’t wait to start using it.

And started:

#34 – Read 30 books. I finished book number 1 and I’m working on book number 2.

#77 – Participate in and successfully complete Project 365.

I’ve successfully made it through seven straight days of taking a picture every day. It’s been hard to remember and most days I end up scrambling around my house looking for something quick I can photograph before I head to bed, but at least I’m doing it. And now that I’ll have a new camera, I’m guessing I’ll be chomping at the bit to take pictures every day. At least until that newness of it wears off.

You can see what I’ve been capturing at Me, In Pictures. I try to post them every day, but it’s more like every two or three days. It’s hard enough to TAKE the pictures, but I wanted somewhere to keep track of them.

#35 – Buy a new digital camera.

Well, I’ve done it. I ordered myself a new digital camera. In fact, I bought a digital SLR that I’ve had my eye on for a while. I’ve been saving and scraping so that I could get a Canon Rebel XSi, and that’s just what I did. I placed my order on Monday and should have it by the end of next week. I HOPE I have it by the end of next week because I bought it now in order to be able to take it with me to Arizona.

I’d certainly hate to try to capture the Grand Canyon with my tiny little 3.1 mega-pixel point-and-shoot? Speaking of which, I’m also in the market for a new one of those. I got some birthday money that will probably go toward an inexpensive one to replace the one I have now that’s held together by Scotch tape.