Sunday, December 1, 2013

For the Win! : ROW 80 Round 4 Update #8

So I wrote an update on Wednesday - and somehow it never got posted.  My computer has been doing this bizarre selective thing where in some places it will tell me it's connected to a wireless network, but I don't have internet access.  And work, where I write on my lunch hour, is one of those places.  It's kind of driving me nuts.  So I've been writing my update in Word and saving it to a flash drive to upload when I get back to my work computer.  This Wednesday, I got back to work and got busy, and then I had a migraine, so it didn't get uploaded Thursday morning either.

Anyway, the point of telling you all that was, that even though Thanksgiving is over, and all the turkeys have been stuffed and all that, I still wanted to say Thank You.  I'm so grateful to have found the ROW80 writing challenge.  You all have inspired me to go after my writing goals, to keep challenging myself to be better, and you've encouraged me when I'm having a tough time.  Thank you.

And now, goal updates!

1) NaNoWriMo - 50,000 words 
Just in case you couldn't tell from the graphic at the beginning, this goal is complete!  I crossed 50,000 words yesterday around 5:30 pm and validated shortly thereafter.  I'm closing in on the completion of the storyline I was working on.  I learned a ton (I'm working on a blog post for what I learned this year) and it was just a really wonderful experience.  I'm practically giddy with my first NaNo win!

2) Post Writing-Post Round Up monthly
I've got a bunch of great posts collected.  Hopefully I'll get that list up tomorrow.


3) Visit and comment on at least 5 other ROWer's blogs per week
This was done for last week.  Now I just have to go see what you all are up to this week!


New Goals for December
4) Revamp Blog
While I do kind of like the basic look of my blog, I used an older template, and so far I haven't been able to figure out how to tweak it at all.  It won't let me add any widgets to the sidebar, and I can't rearrange blocks at all.  So I'm going to figure out how to do that, even if it means finding a new theme that's new enough to modify, or building one for myself from the ground up.  I also need to update my profile / bio section.

When I originally came up with this goal, I had also planned to evaluate what I want to use my blog for, and come up with some kind of regular posting schedule.  However, with my new-found insights from NaNoWriMo, I think I just want to focus on getting the writing flowing again, so for now, I'm just going to the keep the blog for ROW Updates and monthly Writing Post Round-Ups (and maybe a random post here and there if the spirit moves me).

5) Prioritize
I shoved a lot of things to the side to meet my NaNoWriMo writing goals, and the momentum was great for my writing.  It wasn't so great for a lot of other parts of my life.  And I realized I'm spending time some things (like Facebook games) that may be fun, but which are taking away time from stuff I really want to do.  So I'm going to take some time this month to really think about my priorities, and see if I can figure out how to balance the really important stuff so it all gets done, and what things I can set aside.

6) Writing - 10,000 words
I definitely want to keep writing in December, and keep the momentum going, but I'm shooting for a significantly smaller word count this month.  Holiday preparation (which if I'm going to do NaNo, I should really start in October, because now Christmas has snuck up on me and I'm feeling kind of behind) will probably take up a fair amount of my time this month, as will research on how to fix my blog.  So we'll try for that whole balance thing. :)

Fitness
My fitness & health goals for December are pretty much the same - go to the gym at least 3 or 4 times a week, continue to eat mostly healthy.  I'm giving myself a bit more leeway with food over the holiday season, and just trying to maintain at the weight I'm at.  In January, I'll try to get rid of the last of the unwanted pounds.  But basically I've been doing pretty well.  I've been going to the gym about 3 times a week for the last few weeks.  For Thanksgiving, I ate enough to be satisfied, but not stuffed.  And although I've been having a few more treats lately, I'm still eating pretty healthily over all.

Okay, this post is really long now, so I'll stop.  Happy December!  And Happy Writing!

6 comments:

alberta ross said...

well done on nano and I agree with you over ROW80 it helped me a lot to get the writing flow and the encouragment is fantastic - I haven't been on my farm for months and have freed up a lot of time:) for playtime now I switch of machine and head for my hobbies in the craft room -it is too easy online:( all the best with your goals:)

Shan Jeniah Burton said...

What a wonderful, energized, conscious post!

I, too, want to overhaul some blogs, and return to some things set aside for November.

Holidays for us are very simple, so I'm planning some holiday posts and reflections this month, and setting some new intentions for 2014.

May you find even more delight in the weeks to come, and I'm eager to see your NaNo post! =D

Kathy said...

Good luck on getting the flow going! Also, I've heard that cinnamon can help with migraines. Something to do with it being an anti-inflammatory, if I remember right. My girlfriend gets migraines and we've found that even eating a cinnamon applesauce can help, if it's done in conjunction with medication.

gypsyharper said...

Alberta - Thanks! I need to play in my craft room (well, craft cupboard, at the moment) too. At least that would be a creative endeavor as opposed to the timesink of online games! :)

Shan - Thank you! If you run across any great blog overhaul ideas, I'd love to hear. Simple holidays sound wonderful!

Kathy - Thanks for the cinnamon tip. I'll have to try that!

Thank you all for stopping by. May your December be happy and productive!

Unknown said...

I actually like your current layout. I like the little pieces of paper with the tape. Nice effect.

Great job on your progress. I'm also forever grateful for the #ROW80 family.

Have a great December!

Tonette dela Luna

gypsyharper said...

Hi Tonette! I like the general look, but it won't let me move anything around or add any new widgets - I think it has something to do with the template being for an older version of Blogger. So hopefully I can find a way to edit it without making too many changes.

Thanks for stopping by! Happy December to you also!