Saturday, October 9, 2010

Workable Daily Schedule (Tentative)

Weekday
6:00 AM~6:30 AM
---Take dogs out, make coffee, turn on computer, start load of laundry
6:30~7:00
---Clear reader & emails
7:00~7:30
---dry clothes, start first post, another load of laundry (if necessary)
7:30~8:00
---Make breakfast, finish first post, fold & put away clothes
8:00~9:00
---Post #2, put dishes away, take dogs out
9:00~10:00
---Post #3 & #4, make any phone calls needed
10:00~11:00
---Fold & put away laundry, do tweets, set up ending soon post
11:00~12:00 PM
---Make lunch, do housework
12:00~1:00
---Kitten's time
1:00~2:00
---Enter giveaways & do housework, quiet time for Kitten (1:30)
2:00~3:00
---Still quiet time, enter giveaways
3:00-4:00
---Pick up toys, get ready to go outside/to friends'
4:00~6:00
---Outside time
6:00~7:00
---Make dinner, pick up toys, give Kitten bath
7:00~8:00
---Vacuum, bedtime stories, do dishes
8:00~9:00
---Bedtime, spend some time with The Husband
9:00~10:00
---Personal hygiene & set stuff up for tomorrow
10:00~12:00
---Clear reader, email. Enter giveaways

Things that can be "put off"
~~~laundry
~~~vacuuming
~~~entering giveaways

Things that can NOT be put off
~~~Kitten's time
~~~Time with The Husband

Weekends will be used for catching up whatever I missed during the week. I'm missing a few things in here & will need to adjust & work them in eventually.

Goals For October

1. Lose at least 13 pounds
2. Get a baseline on how much I smoke & cut down by at least 1/4
3. Call the dentist & get teeth cleaned & appointment for filling(s)
4. Remove at least 3 garbage bags worth of stuff from home. Donate it, recycle it, or throw it out.
5. Call Dr & set up appointment for physical.
6. Get Learner's Permit (again)
7. Finish pink crocheted blanket
8. Finish Scrap ripple
9. Do at least 3 rows on Irish Chain Quilt
10. Set up a workable daily schedule that allows for extras & surprises

Setting Up Initial Goals

I am the type of person who likes lists. I like charts & graphs & schedules. My life runs much better when I have a written plan of action.
My life is out of control. Now, I don't mean I'm partying like a rock star or snorting horse tranquilizers; I just mean, well, things aren't anywhere near the way I want them to be. A (huge) part of the reason behind this is I live with people who fly through life by the seat of their pants. This doesn't work for me. Nope, not at all. I need logic, I need order, I need schedules. While it may seem to some this is a rigid way to live life, for me, it works. When I am in control of the day to day details, when I know when things will get done, I'm more capable of dealing with the surprises when they come along.
So, it's time to put my life together. And, gee, wouldn't you know it? Here I have this long neglected blog, just sitting there. Hmm. Maybe I could use this to my advantage?

Goals
~~~~~~
1.Physical/Health
~~~a. I need to lose 48 to 53 pounds. Being overweight makes me tired & cranky. I know how to lose weight, I even know the things I need to do to keep it off. With 22 days left in October, I think I can lose 13 pounds safely this month. Thanksgiving is the 25th of November & I should be able to lose 10-12 additional pounds before then. 10 pounds between Thanksgiving & Christmas, and then 5-7 pounds a month after that. This would take me to either the Beginning of March or April. I think this is reasonable & I can live with this.
~~~b. I need to quit smoking. Yeah, I know. It's so bad for you. I've actually written down every cigarette I've smoked today, because I have no clue how much I actually do smoke. So tomorrow I'll have a baseline to start at, and can work it out from there. Besides the obvious health benefits to quitting, there are two more that need to be taken into consideration: No more wasted time getting up & going out to smoke a cigarette, and the money saved could be better spent on other things. I'd like to be a nonsmoker.
~~~c. My teeth,. I hate going to the dentist, I really do. Unfortunately, my teeth need cleaned AND one of my fillings fell out last night, so it's time to make an appointment. And of course the dentist will undoubtedly find other problems that need fixed. Yeah. Still, it needs done.

2.My House
~~~First & most important thing: Get rid of the excess crap. Honestly, it looks like a WalMart exploded in my house. I live with packrats. Honestly, do you really need a magazine from the early 90's? Why? Seriously. And the thing about this is, it's a bigger battle then most people will realize. And there's no point in trying to get things cleaned, organized & put away until we GET RID OF some of it.

3.Driver's License
~~~Nope, I don't have one. I've had several learner's permits. I am TERRIFIED of driving. I am. There are steps to this, and each of them is a horror to me.
~~~~~a. Physical. Have to make a dr's appointment & go get a physical. Yup, hate this.
~~~~~b. Take the learner's permit test. This wouldn't be so bad; iyt's not as if it's all that difficult. But I have to actually make an appointment & get a ride & pay the fee. Fun.
~~~~~c. Um, learn to parallel park. Yup, failed the test more than once because of this. Like I'm ever going to go anywhere ever where I'm required to parallel park. Uh-huh.
I could make all sorts of excuses here, but the truth is, I'm just terrified. But I'll call the dr on Monday, after I call the dentist, & set up my physical.

4.Works in Progress & Things I Want to Make
~~~a. Pink Shell crocheted blanket. It's almost done. Really, I could have this done before Monday. This is first
~~~b. Scrap Ripple Crocheted blanket. Just need the ends worked in, it too is almost done.
~~~c. Green & crem Irish Chain Quilt. Sigh. I really want to finish this. After all, I only started it a year ago. It would be really helpful if the cats would quit knocking the piles over & mixing them all up. I have 3 rows done. This will take a while.
~~~d. Scrap knitted scarf. Eh, it's a third done.
~~~e. Teddy Quilt & Angel quilt. I need to make a decision on these two. Most likely, because I hate they way they are turning out, I won't finish them & will throw them out.
~~~f. Flannel Teddy. Not started yet, but the yellow flannel would work great. Want to enter this in the Fair next year.
~~~g. Pink Quilt. Not started. Bargello or maybe 6 inch mini patchwork squares. Want this for the fair.
~~~h. Crazy quilt. Not started yet, but they are so EASY to make & they use up the scraps very well. Plus, people like them.
~~~i. Knit baby sweater & cap. Not started yet. Want this for the fair.


That's it & all for now, I think. Mostly, this will just be me talking to myself. I'll set up a workable schedule, daily weekly & monthly goals & write up "progress reports" on myself. As I get rid of the excess, set up & organize my life, & accomplish individual goals I'll add more & start tackling the really difficult things.

Friday, March 19, 2010

Friday Follow #10

Friday Follow

Woo Hoo! Another Friday Follow!
Hosted by One 2 Try, Hearts Make Families and Midday Escapades!

You know the way to play. Grab the buttons, add your blog to the MckLinky, & follow back if you get a new follower.
It's a great way to find new blogs, meet really nice people, and maybe gain a few followers!

This week's wonderful sponsor is Bea’s Gift Baskets.com

Bea's Gift Baskets

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Bummer!

While doing some Googling, I found that my home town of Mufreesboro NC changed the library from here:


{Historic Roberts-Vaughan House}


To here:

{Elizabeth S. Parker Memorial Library}

While I acknowledge that The Elizabeth S. Parker Memorial Library looks larger, especially as the Roberts-Vaughan House was only half-used as a library, but still. Bummer. I checked out my first Stephen King book from that library. My mother signed a paper stating I could check out any book I wanted. I was 11. I must have checked out thousands of books from the Roberts-Vaughan House. It was literally the best organized library I've ever been in. They had the fiction organized by genre. Cool. Libraries I have been in up North do not do that. :(
It's just kind of a bummer.
(I type House slightly sarcastically, as that is another aspect of it that has changed. It used to be the Roberts-Vaughan Center. )

Friday, March 12, 2010

A Question of Ethics

Jennifer from J. Leigh Designz received this email:

"I really don't think its fair that you enter contests when you can easily blog things. you should step aside and let regular people win these contests. I would hope that other bloggers wouldn't chose you if you were to win."

You can read her post here.

Now, personally, I have no problem with review/giveaway bloggers entering contests. Seriously, the entries would go way down if they didn't.
In my comment I flat out stated that some bloggers (very, very few) cheat.
Her response was:
"Oh I wasn't implying they cheat. I've seen many of my readers win on the sites in mind. I just wondered if maybe they didn't pick fellow review bloggers."

Here's my opinion on that subject. If you state that you will choose a number at random, then that is exactly what you should do. Your first number stands & IS the winner. (Except in the case of the original winner not following the rules; that's a different thing entirely) You don't get pick again because you don't like that entrant or because that person has won on your site recently or because that person is a fellow review blogger. The ONLY reason to push that button (or draw another name out of the hat or count the number of licks to the center of a Tootsie Roll Tootsie Pop, however you randomly choose) is if the first winner didn't follow the rules. Otherwise, it isn't random. It's picking & choosing.
And if you're going to do it that way, be honest. Say, I'm just going to choose whomever I feel like letting win today.
What do you think? Is it cheating to choose again?

So Not Cool & Friday Follow

It was time to take the little rat, er, I mean dog out to do his nightly business when I see one of the feral cats that live in my neighborhood walking along the side of my house. I thought to myself, gee that's an ugly cat. Big, too.

This is what he looked like:

Yeah, I know. It's an opossum. I'm a genius sometimes. Luckily the wee dog was on his leash & we hadn't gone off the porch before I realized, not a cat.
So now I have an opossum under my house.
In case you're curious, opossums are not that afraid of people.
They do not have cuddly personalities.
Their diets are kinda gross.
He is going to have to go. Go back to whatever woodland Utopia he waddled away from to take up residence under my house. He can not stay.
Did I mention he was huge?
Yeah.
He has to go.

And now on to Friday Follow!

Friday Follow

Welcome to Friday Follow, hosted by One 2 Try, Hearts Make Families and Midday Escapades!
You know how this works. Grab the button, link your blog, and follow back when you get a new follower. This week there's a sponsor, so grab that button too & help keep Friday Follow rolling. It's a great way to meet new people, find interesting blogs to follow, & maybe even gain a few followers yourself!



Have fun!

Oh, and do not fear for the incredibly large marsupial that has taken up residence under my residence. I don't believe in slaughtering animals merely because of their uncomfortable proximity to human habitation. If he doesn't mosey on down the road on his own, he'll be live-trapped & relocated to a place where he is less likely to be damaged or do damage.