Time passes anyway.
It's been long since I journaled online, easy to get out of the habit with Facebook's soundbites. Let's see.
A year from launch on my current project, so the professional world is really ramping up.
A year of ennui with the SCA, busy having a real life, busy avoiding a medieval hobby where we spend much of our time in garb talking about social media and trying to be the first to post news on Facebook. Blargh. Save me. I needed a break to let go of that negativity and disillusionment, and, honestly, was quite preoccupied having a real life. This weekend, I went to my first event in nearly a year this weekend and had a lovely time, but once court ended, it wasn't an intensely medieval experience. I was busy catching up with friends about their real life rather than participating in medieval activities. Perfect and exactly what I wanted to do that day.
A year of health. I've lost about 100 pounds. I had to borrow garb from Kyneburh - who edited my underwear, but that's a different story - to attend an event at all. I've had am amazing year and, before everyone asks what I did, because they do - I changed my mind.
The steps - exercise and nutrition - were very hard work but much simpler than changing my attitude and patterns about so many things. Giving up the "I don't have time," and "I deserve food as a treat" reflexes built for decades and changing it to "make the time" and "I deserve to be healthy." Finding victory in honoring my responsibility and taking control rather than staring at the scale and willing it to move. Learning how community support doesn't mean a gym buddy so much as a group of like minded people to share progress with, to brainstorm through problems and to hold each other accountable. What an illuminating year it's been. All because I changed my mind.
A year of change indeed - the kitchen was remodeled, so we spent the months cooking in the sun room with the Pennsic camp kitchen gear and made ourselves feel sophisticated about it by calling it 'the summer kitchen.' Maybe that was just me and Roland was simply indulgent. That's much of our lives. The remodeling process turned into an insane story of errors. Our previously beloved contractor has changed project management drastically - which they didn't tell us until construction started - let's sum it up as that they had to install kitchen undercounter lights seven times, and each time wasn't their fault. It was like talking to the worst sort of child: "It's-somebody-else's-fault, I'm-the-hero-fixing-this-mess!" protests were endless. I believe their company will be going under soon, and they'll be puzzled what happened because they lack the capacity to hold themselves accountable. We survived a horrid process but got a great product in the end.
A year of new things - time in the Caribbean with dear friends, time becoming healthier, adventures with the nephews over the summer. I made new friends, refound old ones, sailed, snorkeled, mourned a friend, wrote an epitaph, taught colleagues to surpass me, learned new skills in return. We tried skiing for the first time and Roland saved his marriage by finally falling down once on day three of our lessons. I fell plenty and had quite mastered the getting up skill, allowing me to lord it over Roland the once he needed it.
Success: Fall down 100 times; get up 101.
A year from launch on my current project, so the professional world is really ramping up.
A year of ennui with the SCA, busy having a real life, busy avoiding a medieval hobby where we spend much of our time in garb talking about social media and trying to be the first to post news on Facebook. Blargh. Save me. I needed a break to let go of that negativity and disillusionment, and, honestly, was quite preoccupied having a real life. This weekend, I went to my first event in nearly a year this weekend and had a lovely time, but once court ended, it wasn't an intensely medieval experience. I was busy catching up with friends about their real life rather than participating in medieval activities. Perfect and exactly what I wanted to do that day.
A year of health. I've lost about 100 pounds. I had to borrow garb from Kyneburh - who edited my underwear, but that's a different story - to attend an event at all. I've had am amazing year and, before everyone asks what I did, because they do - I changed my mind.
The steps - exercise and nutrition - were very hard work but much simpler than changing my attitude and patterns about so many things. Giving up the "I don't have time," and "I deserve food as a treat" reflexes built for decades and changing it to "make the time" and "I deserve to be healthy." Finding victory in honoring my responsibility and taking control rather than staring at the scale and willing it to move. Learning how community support doesn't mean a gym buddy so much as a group of like minded people to share progress with, to brainstorm through problems and to hold each other accountable. What an illuminating year it's been. All because I changed my mind.
A year of change indeed - the kitchen was remodeled, so we spent the months cooking in the sun room with the Pennsic camp kitchen gear and made ourselves feel sophisticated about it by calling it 'the summer kitchen.' Maybe that was just me and Roland was simply indulgent. That's much of our lives. The remodeling process turned into an insane story of errors. Our previously beloved contractor has changed project management drastically - which they didn't tell us until construction started - let's sum it up as that they had to install kitchen undercounter lights seven times, and each time wasn't their fault. It was like talking to the worst sort of child: "It's-somebody-else's-fault, I'm-the-hero-fixing-this-mess!" protests were endless. I believe their company will be going under soon, and they'll be puzzled what happened because they lack the capacity to hold themselves accountable. We survived a horrid process but got a great product in the end.
A year of new things - time in the Caribbean with dear friends, time becoming healthier, adventures with the nephews over the summer. I made new friends, refound old ones, sailed, snorkeled, mourned a friend, wrote an epitaph, taught colleagues to surpass me, learned new skills in return. We tried skiing for the first time and Roland saved his marriage by finally falling down once on day three of our lessons. I fell plenty and had quite mastered the getting up skill, allowing me to lord it over Roland the once he needed it.
Success: Fall down 100 times; get up 101.