Goals Summary 2023 – Wk #7
The morning started out bright and clear, but by now it’s clouding over in an unassuming, pale gray. No threat of snow or rain lurks in the bellies of these clouds, just a little barrier between us and the sun. I’d be mad at it if it weren’t still February. I can hardly ask for better at this time of year. And yet I find myself counting down the days ’til spring, my heart clamoring for sunshine and warmth. This is the hardest part of the year, y’all. When so much of the country starts to awaken from its winter slumber and spring unfurls, we get last minute snowfall and freezes, spring delayed until mid-May. We’re entering the homestretch, though. I can feel it. Which means I’m running out of time… Last Week Write <3x this week Organize/Tidy up the office Keep reading How’d I Do? Write <3x this week…
Outings! – A Public Service Announcement
Welcome! Welcome to Outings! – a weekly blog series where I (and various companions) venture out into the Pacific Northwest winter to explore local parks and trails. If you aren’t caught up with the series thus far, I really recommend starting here, because today’s installment is going to be different. A whole lot different. Clark Creek Pa– Nope. We tried to visit this neighborhood park that had been on a radar for a long time. We pulled into the tiny, five-spot lot, the only car and people in sight. It was Superbowl Sunday, and pretty chilly out, so I’d hoped that our later start time – we’d slept in some – wouldn’t negatively affect us. But, within fifty feet of our car we spotted another walker and their dog coming from the north end of the park. No big deal, I thought. We’ll just turn around and take the park…
Goals Summary 2023 – Wk #6
As the Steve Miller Band said, “time keeps on slipping (slipping, slipping) into the future.” We are nearly halfway through February, another week bites the dust, and “the years start coming and they don’t stop coming (Smash Mouth, 1999).” Point is, there’s another week gone and goals to discuss. Last Week Write at least 3x Finish reading at least 1 book How’d I Do? Write at least 3x Nope. I wrote twice, though! Finish reading at least 1 book Yep! There was a LOT of reading this week! Weekly Word Count: 2,142 I’ll admit that it’s a little disappointing to only have two goals and not be able to say I accomplished them both. Did I have a good reason? Sure, I had a migraine on Tuesday, one of my scheduled writing days. I’m also grappling with the realization that I’ve taken on a bit too much at work, and…
Outings! – Bonesteele County Park
Welcome! Welcome back to Outings! a blog series of off-season outdoors adventures. If this is your first foray into this series, I suggest you start here. If you’re an old hand at this, then let’s get on with it! Bonesteele County Park I drove by this park for the first time late last summer. It was all dry grass, crispy and uninviting, but I took note because of its promising location. It’s not actually in our city, but just outside the city limits. Removed enough to seem promising for a mid-winter hike alternative. Calling this a park seems like a stretch. It’s a field with a copse of conifers at one side. Now, it’s a very big field, and a pretty substantial copse. But there are basically no amenities – just a single bathroom and two picnic tables. Even the trails themselves were less maintained than they were use-hewn into…
Goals Summary 2023 – Wk #5
How are we already five weeks into 2023? That doesn’t feel real! I’m already seeing daffodil and tulip shoots peeking their heads out for some sunshine. It’s going to be spring before we know it, which means I need to get serious about some goal setting! Last Week Write at least 3x this week (~3,500 words) Read a book Keep up on blog posts How’d I Do? Write at least 3x this week (~3,500 words) Nope. Only two writing sessions this week. Read a book No? I have three books I’m actively reading at the time of this writing, all of them very close to being done. I’ll probably have three books done this coming week. Keep up on blog posts Yep! There was a lot happening on the blog this week, as usual for the first week of the month, but they all posted and were shared in a…
Top Shelf Librarians January Episode – OUT NOW!
Welcome to Season 3, Dear Listener, where things are as unhinged and unplanned as ever! Heather has her bi-monthly existential crisis, this time over some required reading. Brittany acknowledges that she has a superpower, Heather struggles with the British accent, and we give thanks to Scientists. We explore the Four Corners of Fiction, Heather takes medical advice from TikTok, and Brittany desperately wants to be BFFs with Erin Morgenstern. Just a typical evening with the Library Pros™. LISTEN HERE
The Recap – January 2023
Well, a little late is better than never. Let’s get right to it, folks! Last Month Write 2x/week Social Media Routine Return of Outings! post series Get submissions/queries back on track How’d I Do? Write 2x/week Yes! Sometimes even more! Social Media Routine Yes? I’ll admit that this goal wasn’t super clear to me when I set it. Did I mean a posting schedule? Automated sharing? I’m not certain what I meant, but I know that I’ve built a little routine that seems to be working? So, a win! Return of Outings! post series Oh, yeah, babeyyyy! You can find them all here. Get submissions/queries back on track Yes! It took a pretty healthy chunk of time at the start of the month, but things are rocking steady now. Monthly Word Count: 12,043 Y’all… I’m good with this. Just like so many of the weeks, January felt good. Consistent. Like I was just chugging…
Outings! – Bryan Johnston Park
Welcome! Welcome back to another issue(?) of Outings! This week we’re visiting a previously unknown (to us) park despite the less than ideal weather conditions. Bryan Johnston Park In a sprawling, upper-middle class neighborhood, where all the houses are just various shades of “neutral,” sits Bryan Johnston Park. The view from the on-street parking is of shining playground equipment, concrete picnic tables, and massive, looming conifer trees. It isn’t until you’re on foot, walking down that east-most paved path, that you start to get a sense of the sheer size of the park. The path turns to bark dust and flows down the hill as the field slopes south into a stand of Western Red Cedars. Then it hooks back west until you climb back up the hill to loop back to the street. Just a little exertion to keep you warm on a day like today. Back at the…
Goals Summary 2023 – Wk #4
It is a frigid 37º outside right now, and with the wind it feels like 29º. But the sun is shining and the skies are a crisp, bright blue. Not a cloud in sight. On our drive home from our walk this morning we saw Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens, which always feels like a special treat. What a lovely way to start the week! But before we can start looking forward, we gotta take a minute and look back on where we started… Last Week Write 3x this week Prep Newsletter Record Podcast Read a book How’d I Do? Write 3x this week Yes! I sat down to work on the novel exactly three times this week! Prep Newsletter Yep! There’s just a couple of finishing touches, but it will be out by Sunday afternoon, yesterday as of this reading – check your inbox! Record Podcast Yep! It’s…
Treatment – The Lost Months
This post is the third installment of the unofficial “Treatment” series, in which I discuss my experiences getting diagnosed with and then treating my Adult ADHD. You can read the first post – about getting diagnosed and starting meds – here. The second post was a very enthusiastic six month update, which you can find here. So what kind of post is this? It’s a continuation of sorts, of the post My Brain on Back Order, in which I was not coping well with being off my meds for six whole days. I went another seven days without any medication before I received my pharmacy’s alternative offering. I was prescribed a generic of Ritalin LA, which is usually only prescribed to children under the age of 12. Because of that, its dosages are lower – 10mg capsules as opposed to Concerta’s 18mg capsules. I was given no other directions than…