So…How Am I Doing?

I made some goals for this month, and we’re a little over halfway, so let’s see how I’m doing:

1. No meat this month.

This is going terribly. Between two weekends spending time with family, and celebrating Kyle’s birthday, it’s been rough. On top of that, I’m a little unhappy with my weight right now (about 10 pounds over what I like being), so to combat that, I’m on a cleanse diet. I’m also rededicating myself to vegan eating. One of the big problems I have with it is not being consistent, and being afraid to tell people how I want to eat. I need to start advocating for myself and sticking with an eating plan that works for me.

2. Wash my face every night before I go to bed.

I missed one night, but otherwise, this is going well. I’m noticing a difference in my skin in the morning too. And it’s always nice not to wake up with raccoon eyes from sleeping in mascara.

3. Get rid of 10 books, 10 articles of clothing, and 10 other things in my apartment.

This is also going really well. I got rid of the 10 books and articles of clothing easily. I also did a purge of jewelry and makeup (I think I got rid of 17 pairs of earrings). The “stuff” purge is going more slowly, but I have my eye toward a decluttered life.

4. Change my damn name.

Not done yet. My plan is to get up early next week and do the damn thing.

5. Seek out more freelance work.

I haven’t done anything on this. My actual workload got surprisingly heavy, so I think this one might have to go on hold for a while.

Overall, I’m giving myself a C+/B-. Room for improvement.

October Goals

Tags

fall, goals, list

I am a person who needs goals, because without them, I am a person who is LAZY.

So here are my goals for October:

1. No meat this month. I read a lot of vegan health books, because of where I work, and I really do believe that there are no real benefits to eating animal products. I also realize, having flirted with veganism on and off for a few years, that it’s a hard change for me to make (see: lazy). So I’m starting slow. Cutting out meat is easy. Cutting out grilled cheese sandwiches might be impossible.

2. Wash my face every night before I go to bed. I know that this is, hands down, the best thing you can do for your skin, and yet (see also: lazy) I usually manage to fall into bed with mascara still on. Fixing that! So I don’t age prematurely!

3. Get rid of 10 books, 10 articles of clothing, and 10 other things in my apartment. I accumulate stuff at an alarming rate, and the husband and I both have pack rat tendencies. No more, I say! Try to make this a net down of 10 in each category. So if I buy more books this month, I have to get rid of more books. And by if, I mean when. I’m crying a little.

4. Change my damn name. I have the paperwork filled out, I’m just dragging my feet. Because things that suck in normal world (like dealing with any government agency) suck about a thousand times more in NYC. Also, I work from home, so leaving my apartment at 6:00 am seems like an almost insurmountable hurdle (I know, right? I’m the worst).

5. Seek out more freelance work. I loved the recent RPG editing that I got to do, and I’d love to do more. I picked up a card from a guy in August, and I just need to follow up with him.

Five seems like a reasonable number of goals, and I’ll definitely revisit this is a few weeks to see how I’m doing.

Any goals for the fall?

Things I Love: My View

Tags

brooklyn, love, new york city

This is my view from my desk. It’s okay if you’re a little bit jealous.

Outside of my walk-in closet (a rare find in an NYC apartment!), this view is my favorite thing about where I live.

My last apartment, as much as I loved it…was not great. It was a second floor walk-up, in an neighborhood without a view. My room overlooked a crazy church that often spilled out into the streets when it was hot. My roommate overlooked an overgrown jungle of a backyard to which we had no access, thanks to our jackass landlord.

Whenever I imagined living in NYC, this sort of sweeping panoramic view of the city was always in my head. Even though we live in Brooklyn, we get something that you can’t get if you live in Manhattan…a kickass view of Manhattan!

(I swear I have a picture of Manhattan from the roof of my building somewhere.)

Regardless, I’m accepting that our future plans probably mean we have to leave this apartment someday, so I’m holding on to the fact that, for right now, I’m living in exactly the place I always wanted to live, in the way I imagined it.

A New Beginning

Tags

growing up, marriage, wedding

I won’t lie to you. I’ve tried to blog before and failed. Twice.

I’d like to say that I’ve learned my lesson, but what I have actually learned is that you can’t force yourself to write inside of a box you aren’t comfortable in. Which is a kind of a lesson, so let’s say I’ve learned a lesson, but maybe not my lesson. Not yet.

I’m working on it, I swear. The learning.

I have also learned that I need a place to chat. To ramble and work through my thoughts and get out the crazy in a place that isn’t always my husband’s ear. Or a whiskey bottle.

So that’s part of the new beginning I’m referencing up there.

But the other part is my relatively new life that I’m embracing and enjoying. I’m a newlywed (my mother-in-law says I can say that for a year after we get married) and while being married isn’t so different from just living together, there is still that thrilling moment with Kyle introduces me to someone we’ve never met and says, “This is my wife.”

Do those butterflies ever go away? I hope not.

In addition to butterflies, so far the biggest changes have been paperwork (I think it will never end, all the name-changes I have to do), the thank you notes (I am a terrible person, and still have about 10 to send…from my wedding…four months ago…), and the “holy god, we’re adults who have to plan the rest of our lives” kind of conversations.

How much money are we saving? What’s our budget this month? Do we want kids? If yes, when? If yes, how many? Do we want to move? If yes, where? If yes, when? Can I spend that much on a pair of shoes? What if I really love them? Do you want an old fashioned or a gin and tonic tonight? If yes, how many?

Maybe that last one isn’t adult and responsible. But I know that answer to that question, which is more than I can say for the rest of ’em.

So hang out with me. If all goes well, I’ll be able to answer those questions. Maybe you can help!