March was the month of tying up lose ends. I managed to edit some of TFG, and my team spoke up about the increased workload at my day-job. The cats settled in; finally free to explore the whole of the house, and I picked up my new car.
And yet, that pace of progress and free time has been taken up by unexpected events, leaving me feeling like I am constantly trying to catch up with something.
Reflections on the Journey
i. Read 12 books: 2 / 3 – I’m close to the end of two books; likely to finish both within April, which will bring me back up to speed. I also decided that I’ll post my reviews of the first 6 books as soon as I finish them, although this will likely be in the middle of the year.
ii. Edit novel draft ready for submission: 0/1 submission – I’ve made very slow progress on my read-through, and am now into the second ‘part’ of the story. It’s taking longer than I expected, but I am making progress, and most importantly, am enjoying the process.
iii. Track my wordcount and aim for 100,000 words: 7,568/25,002 words – I’m still alpha-reading TFG, so again, reading does not equal new words on the page. I wrote 1,192 words this month, and I’m fine with that progress.
iv. Re-create a wellness routine: Work are still focusing on wellness, because things are getting a lot more stressful, with a lot more pressure. However, the reminders are useful. My husband and I also booked off one day a month to spend on a mini-adventure — to keep us learning, get out of the house and experiencing new things. That routine will start in April.
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- This month I mostly focused on unhelpful thinking patterns, and forcing myself to switch off. I also picked up mindfulness meditation again; I did less than I had hoped to, but I’ve made a start.
- Result: In the last week of March, I really noticed a difference. I was in a better space, reacting less and able to think about things more clearly.
Experience Collected
- 50/200XP
- 200/350XP
- 150/300XP
- 400/400XP
Total XP for March: 800/1,250
Total XP towards Level Up: 2,475/7,500
Jumping the Wall…
- I caught up with two friends after a long time of life-stealing-our-time. We had ice cream over skype!
- Our cats truly discovered the cat toy full of catnip named Drug-Rat. We videoed them a lot.
- My husband’s job moved his workplace; requiring him to learn some new systems and change his shift pattern.
- I updated the blog banner to include our cats: Smoke and Ember.
- We wrote thank-you letters to wedding attendees and RSVPed to 2 friends’ weddings.
- My day-job underwent more role changes, became very stressful and we were required to speak up about it. My colleagues were wonderfully supportive.
- I had my first day-job appraisal, which went better than expected.
- We saw family, and although it was under some sad circumstances, it was nice to catch up and spend time together.
- I picked up my new car — and have been thrilled to find it doesn’t feel like a death-trap.
The Path Ahead…
- Due to husband’s new shift patterns, we’ve booked a day off a month until August with the idea of going on a mini-adventure:
- In April, we plan to visit a wildlife park which my husband and I went to on a ‘date’ 9 years ago — We’ve heard they have Bison there now, and do an educational talk about the wolves.
- I’m hoping to finish the proof-read of TFG.
- I’m specifically adding ‘skype time with friends’ and ‘read a book in the evenings’ to my well-being routine to see how that impacts my mood.
