advent calendar day 16 & etc.
Happy birthday to sunfire1216! I know you celebrated yesterday, but I hope today is nice too, in spite of having to work.
The artist of the day is El Vez, aka The Mexican Elvis, with a pretty fun version of Feliz Navidad:
El Vez -- Feliz Navi-Nada
Day 27 → This month, in great detail
This month. Okay. Taking it literally, we could just discuss the first half of December. However, I have a feeling the meme is referring to the past 30 days, which would put us just before Thanksgiving. Either way, not that much has happened.
Let's see: In the past 30 days I have had a plumbing emergency, gotten a new kitchen light and faucet, courtesy of my father, visited with my parents and my oldest nephew, been blown off by two different guys, both of whom I met at work, and started a fitness program that is more or less insane.
I've also done a lot of thinking about myself and my self-esteem issues, which are not nearly as worked out as I thought they were. I still have a lot of trouble allowing myself to be less than perfect, and I am still rocking the body dysmorphic disorder. By that I mean that when I look in the mirror, I still see a really, really fat girl, despite the fact that I am a size 10, which is below the average size, even. (Though I am shorter than most and still 40 pounds overweight, so it's not like I don't still have plenty of work to do.)
To that end, I dove head-first into Buddhist philosophy, mainly in an attempt to quiet my 'monkey mind', as the author of The Accidental Buddhist puts it. I'm working on meditation*, which is historically very difficult for me (see above re: monkey mind), as well as being mindful of the moment instead of always looking ahead or behind. Living in the moment remains my biggest challenge in life. Some people live a little too much in the moment, however, so I am trying to find a balance.
Also in the past thirty days I started running with the local running club, then sort of bailed when I started this other workout program. Just this morning I promised my coworker that I'd show up at the ten mile run this coming Saturday, though. I also agreed to run a 5K with her on New Year's Day. It'll be good for me. The whole point of running club was to meet new people, so I should really continue to put myself out there even though my sister has bailed on the running**.
What else? I started taking melatonin, doubling my dose thanks to the kind suggestion of a member of my friends list, and it's been working pretty well for me. My moods are better and more even, and I'm getting a decent amount of rest when I sleep. I am pretty worn out this week, but I have a feeling that's the amount of stress I'm currently feeling coupled with the workout program. This is the rest week, as I mentioned yesterday, and I think my body is just kind of coming down from the insane levels of adrenaline I've been producing just to keep up with the workouts.
To that end, I have discovered all kinds of new muscles. It's pretty exciting. And my shoulders...you guys, my shoulders are looking fantastic. I have bones in there I've never met before! Crazy.
The only writing I've really done this month is my Yuletide fic, which still needs work. I have a couple novels in the works that I really like, though, so I am committed to finishing them. Eventually. No deadlines, as that is the fastest way to get me to stop working on something. But I need to get cracking here because this is ridiculous***.
So that's it, I think. I could go on (and on) about the tragedy that is the local singles scene, or my attempts to rebuild my self-confidence after years of hiding from the world, or the fact that I work with some of the weirdest people I have ever met. But I have to recap the entire fucking year tomorrow, so I'll save it.
__________________________________________
* The Dalai Lama would not approve of the way I cherry-pick from different religions to cobble together the faith that works for me. I'm mostly okay with that.
** I actually think it's better if my sister doesn't join me, because then I'm forced to talk to people I don't know.
*** Publication by the time I'm 40? Could happen, if I get serious.
Day 01 → Your favourite song
Day 02 → Your favourite movie
Day 03 → Your favourite television program
Day 04 → Your favourite book
Day 05 → Your favourite quote
Day 06 → Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 07 → A photo that makes you happy
Day 08 → A photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 09 → A photo you took
Day 10 → A photo of you taken over ten years ago
Day 11 → A photo of you taken recently
Day 12 → Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 13 → A fictional book
Day 14 → A non-fiction book
Day 15 → A fanfic
Day 16 → A song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Day 17 → An art piece (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.)
Day 18 → Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 19 → A talent of yours
Day 20 → A hobby of yours
Day 21 → A recipe
Day 22 → A website
Day 23 → A YouTube video
Day 24 → Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 25 → Your day, in great detail
Day 26 → Your week, in great detail
Day 27 → This month, in great detail
Day 28 → This year, in great detail
Day 29 → Hopes, dreams and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 → Whatever tickles your fancy
The artist of the day is El Vez, aka The Mexican Elvis, with a pretty fun version of Feliz Navidad:
El Vez -- Feliz Navi-Nada
Day 27 → This month, in great detail
This month. Okay. Taking it literally, we could just discuss the first half of December. However, I have a feeling the meme is referring to the past 30 days, which would put us just before Thanksgiving. Either way, not that much has happened.
Let's see: In the past 30 days I have had a plumbing emergency, gotten a new kitchen light and faucet, courtesy of my father, visited with my parents and my oldest nephew, been blown off by two different guys, both of whom I met at work, and started a fitness program that is more or less insane.
I've also done a lot of thinking about myself and my self-esteem issues, which are not nearly as worked out as I thought they were. I still have a lot of trouble allowing myself to be less than perfect, and I am still rocking the body dysmorphic disorder. By that I mean that when I look in the mirror, I still see a really, really fat girl, despite the fact that I am a size 10, which is below the average size, even. (Though I am shorter than most and still 40 pounds overweight, so it's not like I don't still have plenty of work to do.)
To that end, I dove head-first into Buddhist philosophy, mainly in an attempt to quiet my 'monkey mind', as the author of The Accidental Buddhist puts it. I'm working on meditation*, which is historically very difficult for me (see above re: monkey mind), as well as being mindful of the moment instead of always looking ahead or behind. Living in the moment remains my biggest challenge in life. Some people live a little too much in the moment, however, so I am trying to find a balance.
Also in the past thirty days I started running with the local running club, then sort of bailed when I started this other workout program. Just this morning I promised my coworker that I'd show up at the ten mile run this coming Saturday, though. I also agreed to run a 5K with her on New Year's Day. It'll be good for me. The whole point of running club was to meet new people, so I should really continue to put myself out there even though my sister has bailed on the running**.
What else? I started taking melatonin, doubling my dose thanks to the kind suggestion of a member of my friends list, and it's been working pretty well for me. My moods are better and more even, and I'm getting a decent amount of rest when I sleep. I am pretty worn out this week, but I have a feeling that's the amount of stress I'm currently feeling coupled with the workout program. This is the rest week, as I mentioned yesterday, and I think my body is just kind of coming down from the insane levels of adrenaline I've been producing just to keep up with the workouts.
To that end, I have discovered all kinds of new muscles. It's pretty exciting. And my shoulders...you guys, my shoulders are looking fantastic. I have bones in there I've never met before! Crazy.
The only writing I've really done this month is my Yuletide fic, which still needs work. I have a couple novels in the works that I really like, though, so I am committed to finishing them. Eventually. No deadlines, as that is the fastest way to get me to stop working on something. But I need to get cracking here because this is ridiculous***.
So that's it, I think. I could go on (and on) about the tragedy that is the local singles scene, or my attempts to rebuild my self-confidence after years of hiding from the world, or the fact that I work with some of the weirdest people I have ever met. But I have to recap the entire fucking year tomorrow, so I'll save it.
__________________________________________
* The Dalai Lama would not approve of the way I cherry-pick from different religions to cobble together the faith that works for me. I'm mostly okay with that.
** I actually think it's better if my sister doesn't join me, because then I'm forced to talk to people I don't know.
*** Publication by the time I'm 40? Could happen, if I get serious.
Day 01 → Your favourite song
Day 02 → Your favourite movie
Day 03 → Your favourite television program
Day 04 → Your favourite book
Day 05 → Your favourite quote
Day 06 → Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 07 → A photo that makes you happy
Day 08 → A photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 09 → A photo you took
Day 10 → A photo of you taken over ten years ago
Day 11 → A photo of you taken recently
Day 12 → Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 13 → A fictional book
Day 14 → A non-fiction book
Day 15 → A fanfic
Day 16 → A song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Day 17 → An art piece (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.)
Day 18 → Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 19 → A talent of yours
Day 20 → A hobby of yours
Day 21 → A recipe
Day 22 → A website
Day 23 → A YouTube video
Day 24 → Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 25 → Your day, in great detail
Day 26 → Your week, in great detail
Day 27 → This month, in great detail
Day 28 → This year, in great detail
Day 29 → Hopes, dreams and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 → Whatever tickles your fancy