“Nights are warm, and stars shimmer in the sky like a blacktop road in the noonday sun. Roses spill over garden gates, heavy with bees and perfume; field and forest are lush and teeming with life.”
– Michele Morgan
June was stressful. Very much like when I was in school, returning to University this year as a Mature student led to the not-so-fun aspect of deadlines and my course’s end in July. June was full of deadlines, and I don’t even have 6 weeks off to look forward to afterwards!
Reflections on the Journey
i. Read 12 books: 1/12 – I didn’t read much this month, but I’m okay with that.
ii. Edit second novel for submission: 1/1 – Again, things are on hold, but I still made some progress.
iii. Track my wordcount and aim for 100,000 words: 23,013/100,000 words – July will mark the end of my University course so this can be prioritised once more. I wrote 1,231 words across the month, writing every single day (sometimes as few as one word, but it’s all progress.)
iv. Build upon my wellness routine: I don’t really know where June went. I had some plans that just didn’t happen, and a lot of changes in day-job left me feeling exhausted. Then a heat-wave pretty much stopped the country. I barely slept for the week, because it was so hot!
This month, I walked an extra 17.5km above my usual routine. I had a week without caffeine, just to reset my system, and focused a little more on ‘not stressing’ so much. With mixed results! I really re-focused on meditation and mindfulness too, and building those routines back into my schedule.
v. Take Photographs: Didn’t even enter my thoughts this month!!
May’s Experience Collected
- 50/200XP
- 350/350XP
- 150/300XP
- 400/400XP
Total XP for June: 950/1,250
Total XP towards Level Up: 4,550/7,500
Smoke and Embers
Smoke can officially use the microchip cat flap (huzzah!) and ignoring the joy of fleas, which they appear to have brought into our home (thanks cats!), things are going well.
We got a bit friendly with the neighbour’s cat; putting out water in the heatwave for him to drink, and he even sniffed my hand this week!
Jumping the Wall…
- I’m still working on that secret project.
- Gardening continued: we had a great crop of raspberries this month!
- I gave in my final essay for University. Just the portfolio in July to go!
- We once again have a broken freezer. They’re coming to fix it next week so fingers crossed this will be the last issue as it’s under 2 years old!
- My laptop broke and was repaired. That didn’t help with my novel progress, that’s for sure!
The Path Ahead…
- Gardening, as always!
- I’d still like to finish reading book next month! But then, it may not be realistic…
- I’ll complete my university course officially!
