November Challenge

October’s gone? *fretfretfret* Well, my October challenge went well: do something every day to get towards your goal. Yay. Luckily, I spent most of October setting things in motion. I’ve got my career search on the way with the help of the career services department. I’ve got several projects and tests with built in study groups ready to go. Now the biggest thing holding me back is the apartment (and the not having a job). My lease is up in two months and it looks like I’m running a warehouse for a small country.

Therefore, November’s challenge is to do NaBloPoMo!

You’re probably wondering what the hell that has to do with my apartment. Really? Nothing. But being forced to post or at least feeling forced is a good motivator for me. Plus, I can bore you with pictures of my real November Challenge: get rid of one thing every day. Give it away, sell it, trash it, re-gift it, I don’t care. I can even set it aside for the weekend to do away with at one time, but it’s got to go.

I’ve already started actually. In October, I freecycled like a bitch. I also have a huge bin ready to donate, several boxes to recycle, trash bags full of junk, and more ready to get me some money. Yay for no stuff!

But if you know of any entry level management analysis positions around… that might help more.

October Challenge and Freak Out

As you can probably guess from the last post, my September challenge was a smashing success. Princess Fifi has decided to move into my spare room and badger me at will. We’re very happy together. However, I’m still freaking out with the end of the semester drawing to a close. Especially now that I’m having so many problems with a particular class that I’m worried about actually being able to graduate now.

So in honor of this, my monthly challenge is to do something to move myself forward every day. Vague? Hell yes. I have so many areas that need work that I’m hoping this will help instead of just confuse and annoy me. Right now, it’s going pretty well and I’m hoping it will improve.

Another thing I’m freaking out about is Chrismas. I’ve started rewriting my gift list. Again. Yeah. I have two “large” projects and a handful of smaller ones. The large ones are knit as well. Of course, one is that secret big project that I’ve been working on for nearly two years now. This year is the year. Stop laughing.

Now go watch this video.

Operation: Fifi

Yeah, yeah. I know. My August challenge didn’t exactly turn out like I wanted it to, but oh well. I did really well the first half, then I shifted gears and started school. I gave it a full 50%.

September’s challenge needs to be something lighter, more fun and less productive. This is perfect because Princess Fifi (remember my newly discovered alter ego) is taking over whether I like it or not. She couldn’t have come at a better time either because I’m so close to graduation and job interviews (hopefully) that I really need to learn how to make myself presentable.

She’s also stupid-productive. She’s like making me exercise and do my homework because she’s worried about my “stress levels” and she’s all “you’re not seriously going to wear those shoes again are you?” She even convinced me to cut my food budget so I can start replacing my makeup and skincare regimine. Yeah. I know. So I’ll let you know what she’s forced me to do at the end of the month.

Until then, let me tell you about Tom Waits. Me and Tom are old friends. It seems like sometimes we’re the only people that understand each other. I get you, man. Really though, it seems like most people don’t know who he is and that’s a damn shame. Weirdly enough, I was sitting in class, watching a video on the Enron scandal when lo and behold, they played 2 — count em — 2 Tom Waits songs. One of which I was listening to not 15 minutes before I showed up in class. More specifically, this one.

If I knew how easy it was to put videos in my posts, I would have started forever ago. Be warned, I may force more music at you than you will ever want to tolerate.

Also, please direct your attention to my new favorite jewelry designer, John Hardy. Pay particular attention to his Dot and Kali Classic collections.

The bracelet that started it all (for me).

That’s all for now, folks. Fifi’s getting me ready for class.

August Post-a-rama

Edit: I’ve just realized that August isn’t NaBloPoMo. However, I’ve committed to it so I’m still going to try and post every day of August. November is stupid anyway.

I’ve decided to try and do NaBloPoMo again. Why? Because I can! I just finished my two finals today and I have roughly two weeks of (kinda) full time work before I jump right back into school. This sucks balls. However, I’m going to distract myself from this misery by blogging. Besides, I haven’t done it since 2007, and we all know I’m not exactly the most ambitious crafter out there. Hopefully, this will kick me off my butt so that I can get around to all those projects I’ve been wanting to finish/start/try/talk about. Which leads me to…

August Challenge: Blog every day. This goes for my food blog too.

To come up with enough crap to talk about I will be forced to actually craft and talk about the things I’ve been wanting to and/or doing but have been too lazy to type up. In addition, maybe I’ll take a few photo days and see if my camera skillz improve.

Who thinks I’m up for it?!

Anyone? Show of hands? You guys suck.

May Challenge Wrap-Up

I almost hit an alligator on the road. No shit. It was only about 4 feet long, but he was halfway in my lane before he finally went, “Shit, that big thing’s gonna run over my head” and skedaddled. I live in the South, ya’ll. For realz.

But down to business. The May challenge was to work like I meant it, and boy I meant a lot. I figured working 30 hours a week was good, but I usually worked at least a few over, did physical labor I swore to my boss I wouldn’t do, knit like a maniac, and still had some time to cook. I was crazy busy.  Remember that I missed a ton of class because I couldn’t get up for my 10:30 class that was 5 minutes away last semester? 5:30 am anyone? Ha! I did it, and with a one hour commute no less! I’m turning into a grown-up-shaped little girl.

May Challenge: Success! And I even got paid to do it!

June Challenge: Clean the apartment in 4 phases.

This one is really going to be a challenge. I’m starting off easy with week one consisting of the bathroom, kitchen, and foyer. As of now, the bathroom is scrubbed and the kitchen is in progress. I figured they’re easier and maybe they’ll inspire me.

I’ll need all the inspiration I can get because week 2 is the computer room, week three is the living room/bedroom, and week 4 is the craft room otherwise known as the room I forget I have because I keep the door closed and don’t go in there. If you’ve been following this blog for any length of time, you may have noticed all the desperate cleaning attempts. For some of us it’s harder than normal.

Plus, I’ll be graduating in December without the slightest clue as to where I’ll be or what I’ll be doing. I’ve been trying to chuck all unneccessary stuff in my life so it’ll be easier to pack and move, but haven’t had the results I’ve wanted. Hopefully this month will point me in the right direction.

I’ve got some weekend adventure pictures still waiting to be posted and, if all goes well, I may have a FO by the end of the summer. Let’s see shall we?

Challenge Recap

Hey everyone. I always feel bashful after such a long hiatus. I do have good excuses this time. No lie. Since spring break back in March, I’ve traveled at least once a month, started a new job, taken on new projects, and broken up with my fiance. Through all of this, my poor apartment has suffered the most. I’ve been desperately trying to catch up with my own life and not always succeeding.

Spring break was spent in Colorado with the now ex-fiance. Then I was off to Dayton, Ohio for the R.I.S.E. Symposium. I was one of eight business students chosen to go, and because we went, we also got wrangled into starting the first portfolio for the stock trading competition done at R.I.S.E. as well as help make plans for our school’s first trading room. It was great to be chosen and get to be involved in all this, but it was during the last month of school, so it was busy and we didn’t get half of what we wanted accomplished yet. Soon. Plus, Dayton was super ghetto. There was nothing there except two notable restaurants: The Dublin Pub and some pizza joint next to an ice cream place that I can’t even remember the name of now. Yeah, it was like that.

Now that we’re caught up, let’s look at March’s challenge: read the paper everyday.

Verdict: Fail. Utterly, miserably, totally fail. I tried for the first few days then caput.

April Challenge: Weekend voyages. My best friend came up with this one inspired by my challenge idea. So for every weekend, we went somewhere new and exciting. For me at least. We tried to do as much outdoor stuff as possible.

Weekend 1: Providence Canyon

It was really pretty. None of us, and there were 7 of us with a dog, had ever really camped before. Sure, I’ve done more car camping than most people can boast, but to hike in with all your gear and water was something else. Over the coarse of two days, we hiked probably 10 miles. Well, they hiked more than that but I shit out because I hurt my leg and am generally a wimp. Still, I had a full experience.

Weekend 2: Renaissance Festival and La Buzz

This is the third year in a row that we’ve gone to the Ren Fair together. Fun as always. Then she took me to her favorite club in Marietta called La Buzz. It’s a club that has a drag show for the first half followed by intense dancing. I got to kiss a drag queen and dance for hours, both things I don’t normally get to do. Had an AWESOME time.

Weekend 3: Okeefenokee Swamp

This one is definitely one to brag about. I’ve never really been on the water before. So for my first canoe trip, we paddled 12 miles into the swamp, camped overnight on a raised platform with alligators next to us, then paddled 12 miles out. I also discovered that I am really NOT good in a kayak. Seriously. I did 3 miles in one and probably covered more ground than anyone since I couldn’t steer to save my life and zig-zagged the entire way. Still, 24 miles on the water and only 1 blister. Beat that on your first time out!

Weekend 4: Love Affair

Okay, this one was just on me since we didn’t have anything planned for that last weekend that was technically in May. Still, I’ve always wanted to go to Love Affair. It’s an outdoor arts festival in Tifton. For Friday night, we met up with our outdoorsy group and had dinner while listening to the jazz band hosted by the festival. Then Saturday, we went to the park for the actual event. I’m amazed at how much talent there is even in such a small place as South Georgia. Showed me, right? I walked away with a beautiful earring tree and almost ALMOST bought a 2 foot tall mushroom to use as an end table from the chainsaw sculpting table. Of all the years I’ve lived in and around Tifton, I’m glad I finally went since this might be the last opportunity I have.

April Verdict: SUCCESS! Wild success.

I’ll be posting some of the (very) few pictures I took during these excursions soon. In the meantime, this month’s challenge.

May Challenge: Work like you mean it.

March Challenge

So let’s recap a bit. February’s challenge consisted of going to class no matter what. Because of the mid-challenge check-ups I posted, we all know that I wasn’t perfect. There were days I skipped because of the fiance coming into town. There were days that I couldn’t drag myself out of bed. In essence, I was still me. However, I can guarantee that I made it to class a lot more than I would have had I not issued myself the challenge. I am in a much better place as far as making myself go when I don’t want to. So was the challenge perfect? Not by a long shot. Was the challenge successful? I would give it a resounding yes. The intent was to make myself more accountable and try to scrounge up that “get-up-and-go” that I used to have so much of. It’s starting to come back now.

February: Challenge Complete

With February over before I knew it, I found myself unprepared for March. There were several challenges I was interested in doing. But you know what? I started exploring some before I even issued a challenge! I’m discovering an alter ego named Princess Fifi that I wasn’t aware I had. I’m getting down to cooking more and trying to stick to a very bare bones budget to save for my move after graduation. I’ve even broken out a few projects I’ve been meaning to try. So what to do?

March’s challenge is to read the paper every day. I know, not really that big for some of you. However, I had to subscribe to the Wall Street Journal for a class and this is the first time in my life that I can read news in print. This challenge makes sense now because I’m desperately trying to figure out my future, make myself more marketable, and I’m not renewing this subscription. The rules: I don’t have to read it cover to cover. I do have to sit down with it and make an honest go of it every day that it’s released (Monday-Saturday). This was the first day and I can say that this might actually make me a much angrier person, but at the very least I will also be more informed. Despite the fact that the WSJ was bought out and now you have to filter your information, as a finance major you can’t find a better resource to stay up to date in this crazy market.

March: Challenge Issued

Also, as a note, I did not make the clock featured in my last post. I wish. I hope to one day be anywhere near that talented. It’s done in crochet and the picture is a link to the site I found it on. Go there for more information. Over and out.

A Shawl, a Surrender, and Some Hope

Alright, I’ll admit it. I missed a class Monday morning. I just kinda… slept instead. However, I jumped right back on the horse and haven’t missed anything since. There. That’s off my chest.

So let’s talk about another one of my horses. In my last post, I asked for free help from the accountants of the world. Well, I won’t be needing that anymore. I bombed my first test in income tax. Bombed as in Hiroshima. Or so I think at least, because I dropped before I bothered to find out what I made. Effort-wise, I spent more time slogging through tax law and writing papers about tax court than focusing on my major-specific classes. That’s a waste of time and energy in my book. So, I’ll take a lower-level accounting elective over the summer. Summer classes… ugh.

Is everyone ready for some hope? Okay, well my rabbit chewed through my phone and TV cables, so I can’t watch movies and have to be careful with the phone. That’s not the hope part. This is: I’m knitting again. I hadn’t realized how little I’ve knit since the beginning of school or how much that’s stressed me out. I mean, I still haven’t finished Christmas presents. I realize knitting cable covers isn’t exactly tackling my to-do list, but I’m doing something I love again that will protect the sanctity of my film watching, ensuring the goodness of mindless knitting in the future. So there’s that.

And then there’s this: Mom’s Shawl. Yes, the one I finished BEFORE my Christmas deadline. Sometimes I’m not totally slack. I used a simple feather and fan pattern and several colors of I Love This Yarn from Hobby Lobby. I Love This Yarn is much softer than Red Heart but just as cheap. And since I refuse to use Red Heart for anything that goes on or near the body, this is the best basic, cheap acrylic out there. It doesn’t block well though. I’m not sure if it was because I knit with two strands held together and it was too thick, or you just have to douse the hell out of it. Otherwise, I think it worked up pretty nicely and both me and my mom are very happy with it.

Challenge: Week 1

How have you all been? Anything exciting heppen? As for me, nothing exciting so much as debilitatingly boring and extremely stressful. Are any of you tax experts? If so, give me a call because I’m taking a class entirely dedicated to income tax law. I’m not even an accounting major! This is the last accounting elective I need to take and it’s killing me. Though, as you may have guessed, I have a new computer!  That’s been the highlight so far.

You may have noticed from my last post that I’m feeling overwhelmed. Most of my life, I’ve been very confident in myself and my abilities. However, the last few years I’ve taken a massive hit and don’t quite know how to recover. For the past several months in particular, I’ve felt lost. The only way I know how to fix it is to take back control of my life, in any way possible. Hence, the February challenge.

How have I done so far this month? Awesome. For one week, I’ve attended every class. Thanks to the school board, we even had class this Saturday. That sucked ass, but I’ve managed to go to all of them. I’ve been bored, tired, pissed, and sad, but in class no matter what. And for one week, I haven’t had to ask anyone what we did, what I needed to catch up on, or what the plan is. It’s a good feeling. Sometimes it’s the little things that can help make you feel better, even if you’re otherwise drowning.

So, for all of you out there in blogland, keep your heads up. I’ll try to do the same. We can take on next week together.

Riding Lessons

You know how sometimes you relate better to metaphorical phrases than to actual ideas. Yeah, well, I know people ride horses. Those metaphorical kind. And we ride a shit ton of them. Only when I say “ride” I might mean that you have your foot caught on the saddle and it’s dragging you across a rocky plain until your nothing but a bloody stump of an appeadage wearing a boot. Right now, that’s pretty much how I feel.

Lately, a few of my horses are getting out of control, and of course one of them is WAY ahead. That’s the one I’ve got my foot stuck on. My horse is named Academia. You knew one of my horses had a textbook strapped to it’s back, didn’t you? Don’t get me wrong, I’ve never gotten below a C in my life, and only one of those happened in college. Yet somehow, it always kills me. I’ve known for a few years now that maybe traditional college wasn’t the right choice for me. Which leads me to not really attending vigiliantly. I get all my work and reading done (I’m actually a week ahead on it). I just can’t seem to, you know, show up to class. 

Continuing the metaphor, they say it’s not that you fall off the horse, but that you climb back on. I’m not going to let some horse kick my ass. I’m the one with the riding crop, damn it. So, for the month of February, I’m going to attend every class. No matter how tired I am, no matter how sick I feel, no matter how much I’d rather stay at home and vigorously do nothing, I’m going to drag my lazy, unmotivated butt to class. Actually, to show I’m not completely hopeless, I started today.

I’m actually pretty excited about this. Not the going to class part, but the fact that I’ve finally started doing monthly challenges. I’ve wanted to do them for years, but haven’t found the… well, motivation. I like to think January’s challenge was surviving. I succeeded. I’ve got a small list of other challenges I’d like to try, not all about self-improvement really. I’m just curious about how they might affect my life. Not to upset the optimists out there, many are self-empowering and all that jazz too. Let’s see how next month goes, shall we?