Monday, March 2, 2009

oh happy day - my goals for the week




i woke up this morning to eight inches of soft powder. more is falling quickly - the world outside my window is a range of grays from almost white to nearly black, with a touch of pale green on the birch trees. the puppies are already back to sleeping soundly, bellies full of warm breakfast. buddy's ears cover his eyes, and he's twitching as i write this. i bet he's chasing bunnies in his dreams.

i'm glad for the week's slower start. i noticed this is my 650th post.

all this week, i'm going to be partipating in the march madness memes sponsored by Sited And Blogged and monday is Goals For the Week.

i love goals. our writers' circle at the purple rose this past saturday discussed goals and intentions for the upcoming month. this week i only have two ... to create a loving sancutary of warmth and comfort for all my loved ones, and to write.

so to those ends, some of my goals for this week include cutting out my new shower curtain, sink skirt and window ruffle from the curtains i got on clearance at tarzhay. the shower curtain will be the easiest to make, the sink skirt the most difficult because i think i should probably line it to give it more body. i think i'll start with the easiest project first. today i'm planning to take all the curtains out of their packages, iron them, and measure and cut out the shower curtain. i finished painting the woodwork, the walls and the counter this weekend and i'm really happy with how it's turning out. Beloved has approved a new faucet and new curtain rod so i hope to get back to tar-zhay sometime later this week. i'll post photos when im done :).

i need to get up to the attic today - not just for the lining material that's up there, but also for a few copies of my books i need to send out.

i've begun to mentally plan my next space for spring clearing and cleaning. this one involves sorting through all my clothes for another round of tossing and sorting now that we've reached the end of another season.

today i focus on zone two, according to the flylady system. that's my kitchen, for those of you who don't know and love flylady yet. she has wisdom for everyone. i love flylady. on the laundry schedule is towels, rugs and sheets. the whole house could use a good vaccuming and today i have libby (my born-organized, germophobic, slightly obsessive-compulsive neatfreak) home to help. hooray!

dinner will most likely involve turkey tenderloins. i made the mistake of watching peta's video on mcdonald's chicken slaughtering practices and i may never be able to eat meat again once i get through all the stuff in my freezer. i know im never eating another nugget.

this evening im planning to go to my how-to-write-a-book-in-90-days seminar. this afternoon, since im fairly sure baby jake's not coming, i'm planning to devote to the first four chapters of my WIP. i've been thinking about how to weave the thread my friend suggested into it, and i have some ideas how to do it.

i think i'm finally coming to the place where i've realized that in as much as i wish there were some linear prescription for how to do this work, there is an element of chaos that simply has to be accomodated and accepted as part of the process. at times i find this endless going forward three steps then going backwards what feels like four frustrating.

this tends to have a paralyzing effect - if i don't feel like i'm "getting anywhere" in the story, i start to feel blocked and bored. the only antidote i have found to this in practical terms is to simply go back to the beginning and do the work. in five minute increments if that's all i can stand, but five minutes is more than no minutes.

the antidote in creative terms is to go toward the source of the character's pain, to allow myself to wallow in a bubbling cauldron of real and imaginary wounds. a calm snowy morning like this one affords the perfect opportunity.

sometimes when im thinking about all i'd like to accomplish, whether in a day or a week or an hour, it helps to believe i have a choice. but then i hear the whispers of the characters in my head, and i know i really don't.

so that's what i intend to do today, in furtherance of my weekly goals... how about you, gentle reader? what're your goals for this coming week? and how do you intend to accomplish them?

and furthermore, the war will end. blessed be.

29 comments:

Midlife, menopause, mistakes and random stuff... said...

I somehow think that if anyone can accomplish their goals, it will be you Annie :) I doubt much stops or gets into your way!!
Thanks for your sweet comments this weekend. I really appreciate you. (and I did try the aol link and I think the other's are right....it must have a little glitch?). Still want to have a word with you privately.... let's be thinking on how we can accomplish that, okay?

Steady On
Reggie Girl

April said...

Good luck, Annie, on getting everything accomplished today...and with reaching all your goals. As for me...today is a SNOW DAY for my girls, so I'm sure that I'll be spending most of my time with them. Goal-chasing will come tomorrow!

Dina said...

snow day? what is that? it will be in the 70's here! did i mention i live in denver not the south (LOL) i love the nice weather but it is as dry and brittle as the sahara here. i might start gardening this week and at least getting cold crops in. i wonder what this dryness will bring for the garden.

Amy said...

I saw that different areas around us got some snow. I was lucky and got a miss. But I am happy for that. Stay warm. It is a good day to get the attic because it will not be hot up there. One goal is to put my new storage bins to good use. Have a great day.

Allison said...

Happy Snow Day. Congrats on your 650th post. And also on your Goals for the Week. I love your "create a loving sanctuary of warmth and comfort for all my loved ones". And I love your gentle Fly Lady reminders. I always have such great intentions with Flylady....obviously I need to make Flying a goal. Got any Domestic Goddess spells?

Laura Rose said...

Your goals always exhaust me...mine, to stay positive and the rest will follow...

Aunt Julie said...

I'm a goal-oriented person, but always tend to accomplish more than one person is capable of doing. I've learned over the years to take life one step at a time, and I get more done!

Sig said...

I love this idea. I should do my goals for the week...maybe I would get stuff DONE!

Country Mouse, City Mouse said...

Wow, what a busy day and week ahead. Good luck with getting everything accomplished.

I cannot watch those kind of shows like the one on the McD chicken:(

Grace said...

I think I'm one of those who just go with the flow... but hey, thanks for reminding me, I got thank you card to send out to my sponsor. :)

Kathy said...

I love hearing about your projects.

Divaeva said...

goals schmoals! *laughs* my main goal is to get the much needed sleep I need to heal this pain in the as---(well technically it would be side) rib! I hate being a grown up and having to go to work - today should have totally been a snow day!

Unknown said...

reggie girl - try me at jersey girl 331 (all run together) @ aol.com. and thanks for your kind words... i appreciate you too! those puppies make my heart melt!

april - i hope you enjoyed your snow day with your beautiful girls!!

dina - is it really 70 in denver?? wow... do i have a weird idea of what the weathers' like in colorado!

Unknown said...

amy - you ARE lucky!!! we have around ten inches here... at least!

allison - its not so much the domestic goddess as libby inspires me. she loves order so much... i figured there had to be something in it!

laura - alas, i've discovered that some things require more direct intervention than just hope :).

Unknown said...

veggie mom - i can tell that about you!! you're one of those people who can leap tall buildings if you have to, aren't you? ;)

sig - i've found having a list helps a lot!

pam - you are so sweet!!! im still gagging over those poor chickens...

Unknown said...

grace - im so glad i reminded you!!!

divaeva - feel better honey :)

kathy - thank you so much... how are YOU?? :)

Crazee Juls said...

You're always so productive...!! You go girl! Thanks for saying sweet things about my girl, Hannah. She has so much fun singing.

Patti Gibbons said...

My goals ... to stay happy, even when the kids and adults are off the wall. Finish off one of the three paintings, then this week I need to do more work on my taxes. And to visit my mom, and finish cleaning my bedroom. I had better check out this fly lady chic....I am sure my house would NOT pass inspection...more like fly shit land.

Oh and my laundry. After my friend/construction guys leaves tonight (problem with the white tiles that I purchased not being white at all...) I will do that.
And read some, and take a bath tonight.

Sheesh, putting them on paper might help getting them all done...help.... I need another life!

and my word is HYPERNAT! lololol

Martha@A Sense of Humor is Essential said...

Great post, thanks for the insight into the creative process.
My goals this week besides usual work, kid, house responsibilities is to clean up the garage!!!
Also, host an online baby shower this Saturday.

Anonymous said...

Annie: I'm glad you enjoyed the snow! It was a bit much, says I. Enough already!

You do always seem to accomplish extraordinary amounts. Are you sure you're not making it up? [That's a joke, folks -- she really does do all that!]

I wrote down some goals last weekend, and finished most of them by THIS weekend, so I figure that's good -- they were not hard things, but stuff that I tend to procrastinate about, so the fact that they got done at all was a victory.

Check out my blog today (I've figured out how to list it here, finally, although it's Wordpress) and get some links for writerly inspiration.

Lori Lavender Luz said...

OMG! You are an intuitive. You shop at Tarzhay. You've written 650 posts and you balance chaos and order.

Nice to meet you via Martha.

Stacy Uncorked said...

I am really looking forward to seeing pictures of your completed project, Annie! Sounds very cool! :) I hear ya on the 3 steps forward, 4 steps back - I've been experiencing that for several weeks now...I'm so behind on so many things, I really need to go back to my old routine of making lists and following them instead of flying by the seat of my pants! ;) Love Flylady, but I've been neglecting her lists lately...probably why I'm lagging behind on a lot of things! ;)

Debbie said...

I love that Flylady. I am not as consistent as I should be, but I'm trying:)

lynette355 said...

whoosh! More than I can accomplish.

My goals? Hummm?
Finish a through cleaning of the b&b. Currently working on cleaning all the baseboards in the place.
Get all my laundry done and PUT UP!
Fresh linens on my bed and make it pretty.
CLEAN OUT FRIDGE.

Oh and drink pots and pots of coffee!

Unknown said...

Uh, Goals,....they just don't work for me :)
I wish I could make my shower curtains shorter, but I'm useless with handicraft :D
Best of Luck to accomplish your Goals :)

Anonymous said...

So glad I found your blog! There's so much to read & you have some great goals!

Contact me as I'd like to know if you'd like to be a Contributing Writer to Timeless Bliss!

Debie Napoleon said...

As your decorator blogging friend, I cannot wait to see the bathroom makeover.

Keep yourself focused and you can make your goals a reality. Determined women are confident women.

KrisMrsBBradley said...

Just listening to all that makes me tired!

Mindy said...

Oh goals... sigh... I try to avoid these, especially written down. I suppose that means that I SHOULD right them down... Last week I got so much accomplished that I had hoped to take this week off. After not feeling well yesterday I think I will take it easy this week. But boy oh boy do I have A LOT to do!

I need to work on my book. I've put it aside for awhile now, to allow my creative juices to fill back up... I need to work on my website. It's been on hold for EVER and it needs to get finished! I need to clean the house (i really hate to do this...) I have laundry to do, blogging to do, I have some things that need to be sold. I should probably have a garage sale soon... sigh. There is sooo much to do!