Three Days Until Camp NaNo Comes To A Close...

And I'm trying to take deep, calming breaths, because I can finish this. Right? I should, by Tuesday, have hit my word count goal of 30K for the month of April. (This was 30K words in addition to the 38K the WiP already had when I started )  Right now I think I am about 6500 words shy of this goal. I bet you can guess what I will be doing the next couple days.

Because of my need to get lots of words down (and preferably words that don't completely suck) I will do a fairly short (at least for me) week in review.  On the blog this week I reviewed the following:

Conviction by Nicole Edwards (Club Destiny, #1): I rated this 3 stars. It was good, but I did have some issues with it that I go through in my review. I will be reading other books by this author though in hopes that the issues I had with the narrative improve.

Star Crossed by Kele Moon (Battered Hearts, #2): 5 stars for this one. This was such a great mix of romance and the suspense plot was great. It had be on the edge of my seat towards the end. The main characters were so adorable but they could certainly burn up the sheets.

As for my ROW80 goals, here's how I did:

• Write every day: I did write every day however much of my writing was in the realm of revising. As I am getting close to the end of Camp NaNoWriMo I have been going through my WiP and seeing where I need to add missing scenes. This is exciting and terrifying since it basically means that, yep, I have my third book done. This will also mean that for the rest of this ROW80 Round, I will be focused on revisions and edits of this WiP and Wanted. (The latter is close to being done though, thank goodness!) But still, after years of not ever finishing the books I've begun to write, now to have one submitted to publishers and two drafts complete and moving to the revise/edit phase, well, it's a bit overwhelming. 
• Review minimum of 3 books per week via the blog or GR: I was able to hit two of these this week. I also finished reading two other books that I am in the process of writing reviews for. So I guess two out of three ain't bad.
• Post my Sunday ROW80 update: Done!
• Complete all outstanding grading: Um, erm...just ignore the stack of papers on my desk.  
• Prepare final exam: In progress. 
• Work out twice per week: I am super excited to say that I got in two workouts. I am still taking it slow, doing yoga and stretching routines as opposed to heavy cardio, but still, working out is working out! In addition to that I worked in the garden for an hour this morning before it got too hot out: pulling weeds, transferring plants from area to another, shoveling, watering, and well, other garden-type things. I don't know if that counts as a workout but ya know, I was wiped out after and muscles I didn't even know I had were aching (in a good way). 

My goals for next week are the same. Classes are winding down so this week and next I will be hip deep in grading students' research papers, final exams and calculating grades but I will do my best to get my daily writing in! I hope everyone is having a great round and see you around the ROW!

I Didn't Win the Lottery, But I Did Something Better...

I did something that was way more personally fulfilling. And it was something I had better odds of finishing than winning any 500 million dollar jackpot.  

I FINISHED NANOWRIMO!    

*flails*

Every time I think about this, I freak out. This draft will need some (major) revisions (of course) and I need to finish about eight to ten more scenes to be totally done with the novel, but it proves (to myself) that I can write an insane amount of words that don't totally suck in a short period of time  Finding Home took me so long to write, so long to revise, and still is taking forever to edit (almost a year when all is said and done).  I'd been thinking that I'd never write anything again, or at least never get close to the length of Finding Home. I thought it might just end up being a one-off for me; something I could never replicate. Or that I'd take another year to finish this one. But it didn't take me a year. It took me preparing an outline and engaging in some serious word crushing as I smashed through said outline and now, I have a 'mostly done' draft of Wanted.  

I'm damn proud of myself. And I've had this song in my head: Matthew Wilder's Break My Stride  Seriously, check it out. There is so much 80s hair and fashion goodness in it.  I was only about 6 around the time of this video, but I remember trying to mirror my older sister's fashion sense, which mirrored this video (and many others).  Oh how I loved the 80s.  Anyways, click it. You know you want to. *nudge nudge*  I double dog dare you.  

*dances around while you click away and give in to the temptation to dance along too (or at least sing!)*

Alright, now that the dancing interlude is over, on to my ROW80 update.  My goals last week were:

Finish NaNo! Done!!

Continue slogging though the edits for Finding Home: NaNo sidetracked me, but finishing these edits is my goal this week

Post at least one ROW80 update (either Wed. or Sun): Done

Post a non-ROW80 post for the week: Um, oops.  Forgot about this. But I have found some awesome music the last couple weeks that I hope to share in the next couple weeks.

Get through the pile of files on my desk by Wednesday: I worked through some of this pile. This week, I will get it all done so that I can focus next week on getting the house (and myself) together for the annual holiday guests that descend on my house the week between Christmas and New Years.

Next week my goals remain pretty much exactly the same. Well, they are the same, except for NaNo.  In terms of writing, instead of a word count or time goal, I will be focusing on the editing of Finding Home with the hope (and determination) that these can be finished by next Sunday.  I have other WIPs I could work on, but after the marathon that was NaNo, my brain needs a break and I want to get Finding Home out (whether queried or self-published, I haven't decided yet) before I turn my attention to another WIP. 

Congratulations to everyone who did NaNoWriMo, it was so much fun sprinting with you guys and cheering everyone on as we went through this process. I feel like we climbed Mount Everest, which I guess we did. We climbed the writers version of Mt. Everest! 

I hope everyone is doing well with their goals and good luck this week!

Writing, Working and A Wedding: Sunday's ROW80 Update

I've been MIA from my blog lately. At least, for the last two weeks I have been. Work and the holidays have had me running around like crazy, and add to that my best friend's wedding (which was this past Friday) that I was helping to plan (somehow I was picked to do centerpieces along with a billion other things I didn't know how to do. I am not crafty at all but I gotta say, they came out pretty damn good!)...well let's just say I've been distracted.

[On a side note, my friend's wedding was amazing. She looked beautiful and I've never seen her so happy. She's been through a lot of crap in her life but has finally gotten her happily ever after. It's so totally deserved. Even I, a girl who is not that keen on the concept of marriage or HEAs outside of the fiction world, cried happy tears for her.]

Despite this hectic schedule though,I have found time to write. This does not mean I am caught up with my NaNo word count though. I am still behind, though I hope to catch up and hit the 50K mark by the end of November. I will have to write about 2500 words per day to make it, though I will try to lesson this daily amount by writing a substantial chunk of words today. I hope!.

So, since my last post on the 7th, this is how I've been doing with my ROW80 goals:

Write the required amount of words for NaNo: As I mentioned, this hasn't been happening every day, but it is happening. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel and I really, REALLY, want to make it to 50K by the 30th.  But even if I don't, one thing NaNo has taught me is that, even when I have a crazy schedule, if I put my mind to it I can write a lot of words in a month. NaNo has also taught me the importance of an outline. If I didn't have one set up before I started, I'd be nowhere close to my word count so far!

Continue edits on Finding Home: In Progress.  These are coming along quite nicely but I have slowed a bit. I don't want to rush through these (especially with doing NaNo at the same time) so, slow and steady it is.

Post at least one ROW80 Update (either Wed. or Sun): Yeah, okay. I haven't posted an update since the 7th. 'Nuff said.

Post one non-ROW80 post for the week: Fail. I have posted some reviews on Goodreads though of books I've been reading so, I'm getting things out there, just not on my blog. I need to work on this.

For this week, my goals are:

Finish NaNo!

Continue slogging though the edits for Finding Home

Post at least one ROW80 update (either Wed. or Sun)

Post a non-ROW80 post for the week

Get through the pile of files on my desk by Wednesday

If I can stay focused I think I have a good shot at accomplishing these goals. *fingers crossed* How is everyone else doing? For those doing NaNo, are you ready for the end or did it come up too fast?

Oh, and as you can see, I changed up the design a bit on the blog. What do you think? I tend to change it as the seasons change, so I went for a toned done Fall theme. I also changed my profile to a Google+ one though I honestly have no idea what the hell Google+ does. I will have to play around with it and see what the heck to do there, if anything. (Since I don't use FB, I doubt I will use Google+ but I do like the profile better on there than the old blogger profile. It looks way nicer). Is anyone else on Google+? What do you think about it? Useful, or no? Anyways, have a great week and good luck on your goals!

The End of a Mediocre Week: A ROW80 Update

I love the Fall. It's my favorite season. But the swing in temperateness we've been having has been wreaking havoc on my sinuses. I woke up Thursday feeling like my head weighed about 1000 pounds. Even today I feel like I've been kicked in the face by a very angry and burly biker dude wearing steel toed boots. This means I haven't had a great week in terms of my goals but, I did what I could.

• Write 5K words for the week: I've been slow on this front. Very slow. Wednesday I decided to strive for 5K quality words a week and I only ended up (for the week), getting just over 2400 down. This is of course better than nothing and I'm happy with what I've gotten done (better than nothing right!?), but I need to do better. 
• As an aside, someone asked me how I would measure 'quality' and I thought about that a lot the last few days. It's subjective of course, but for me it has a lot to do with thinking about what I want to write before I write it. I want to take more time with the words I'm getting down now that I've gotten in the habit of writing every day. As I noted in Wednesday's check-in, I'm becoming more of a plotter and this, I think, has helped me in working towards this. Having a plan means I now have an idea where I am going with my story so I can take the time to choose the words instead of just tossing words on the page and going back later to see what sticks and what has to be changed. The idea is to spend less time on revisions later because I've put more thought into the words the first time around. (I hope that made sense, cold meds are making me fuzzy! Gah!)
• Continue edits on Finding Home as they come in: I received revisions/notes back on Friday but haven't had a chance to go through them yet. I am seeing a week's worth of editing sprints on the horizon and I can't wait! :) 
• Post at least one ROW80 Update (either Wed. or Sun.): Done.
• Post one non-ROW80 post: Fail. My brain had only so much space this week and between work, writing and this cold, I didn't get a post in. 
• Complete research for major, serious, HUGE, scary work project by end of the week: In progress. I have a lot of ground to make up in the next few days.

Though I've had a mediocre week in terms of my weekly goals, I can say that I have completed one of my longer term goals 10 days before the deadline. My goal was: Finish prep on Wanted by October 31st for NaNoWriMo. I can happily report that this is done! *happy dances*

Next week, my weekly goals will remain the same though my writing may have to take a backseat so I can finish my work project. Tuesday and Wednesday I am in my office all day and I have already warned people my phone will be turned off to get it done. I may also barricade the door. And put up some razor wire to stop would be interrupters from barging in.

I'm off to get some more tea, curl up on the couch for awhile and listen to Mumford and Sons. I hope everyone had a great week and good luck with your goals!

Tweaking My Goals: A ROW80 Check In

This week I've decided to start delineating my weekly goals from ones which are longer term. I should have done this when I first posted my goals but better late than never I guess! I won't be addressing the longer term/date specific goals every week in terms of progress (unless I finish early or have to modify them) but I wanted to list them here so I can keep myself accountable. So my goals for the end of the round, or those that have specific dates attached them, are as follows:

• Finish major, serious, HUGE, scary work project by Oct. 29th
• Continue outlining/prepping Wanted for NaNo and have this done by Oct. 31st
• Finish final edits of Finding Home and publish by Nov. 1st (and pick cover at book club! Gah!)
• Complete draft of Wanted by the end of Round 4

Now, on to this past week and how I did:

• Write 5000 words a week: Although I wrote every day my word count was lower than expected. I hit 3043. Even though I didn't hit my goal I'm okay with this because I found the quality of my words this week a lot higher than usual. So maybe less is more? I think I need another week or two to ponder whether to stay at 5K or lower it. I like having a high number to strive for, but I want quality words too.
• Finding Home (Ashten Falls #1): Yes, I am no longer calling it 'book 1'. I was going to wait until I revealed the cover to reveal the title, but it was annoying to call it book 1. As for progress, one of my favorite people in the entire world is pouring through this as we speak and I have been editing as her comments come in. 
• Wanted (Ashten Falls #2):  I've given book 2 a tentative title as well so YAY for more progress!! This past week I continued to focus on my outline and scene list. I need to be ready for NaNoWriMo!
• Minimum One ROW80 Check: I missed the check in on Wednesday but I hit today.
• One Non-ROW80 post per week: I posted something on Friday (not writing related at all; actually more serious than my usual chatter about TV, books, music, and zombies!).  The post can be found HERE.  

Next week my goals are as follows:

• Write 5K words for the week
• Continue edits on Finding Home as they come in
• Post at least one ROW80 Update (either Wed. or Sun.)
• Post one non-ROW80 post 
• Complete research for major, serious, HUGE, scary work project by end of the week

And in case anyone wasn't aware, THE ZOMBIES ARE BACK TONIGHT! *squeals* Yes people, The Walking Dead is back with its season premiere. Although the gore freaks me out (it looks way to real *shivers*) and I will likely dream of zombies chasing me, I am sure the show's writers will make it all worth it. I hope! Anyways, I hope everyone is doing well with their goals and see you around the ROW!

ROW80 Sunday Check-In

So today is going to be a somewhat short post on my progress so far as I am absolutely swamped with class work, grading essays and house work that has to get done today.  This week I know is going to be insane given my schedule so I am trying to stay ahead of everything.

On my WIP for NaNo I am at 14,589 words, which is above where I should be.  I am loving the sprints during the afternoon with fellow ROW80-ers.  Unfortunately this week I probably won't be around to participate in them until Thursday.   The stats counter on the NaNo site says I need to write just over 1300 words a day to get to my goal by the end of the month, which I think I can do.  I am really liking where this WIP is going and the rough outline I had prepared before NaNo started is really helpful in keeping me on track and organized.

My commenting goal has been surpassed for the week and then some, though this week I expect to be around a lot less given my work load.  However, working out has been sporadic and life keeps interrupting whenever I try to make this goal. It was 4 out of 7 days last week.  This week I really want to try and hit the 5 day goal I set for myself.

I finished the first in Karen Moning's Dark Fever series yesterday and already bought the second one on my Nook. That was a really good book, and in parts I was totally laughing out loud, so I am anxious to read the second one. But today I have to read "As I Lay Dying" by Faulkner for an essay.  Blah....But on the plus side, my goal of reading one book a month is done.  I may have to think of upping this in the future but for now, one is good.

On an unrelated note, and after reading many a blog this past about social media and the blahs about blogging, tweeting etc that can creep in (if you haven't already, check out these fantastic posts by Susan Bischoff, Jami Gold, Roni Loren and Kait Nolan, among others), I have decided to go back to having my blog be an all purpose place for me to talk, converse, rant, vent, and share what I find interesting, or funny or noteworthy etc.  I have gotten away from just blogging for fun, which is one of the reasons why I started. So when I can, my posts will be about whatever I want to write about at the time, whether its a movie, music, a TV show, an issue that has me all riled up, or something in a WIP that has be stuck (or given me an epiphany!).  Hopefully people will want to read it or comment, but that is okay if no one does.  My focus now is going to be on the act of writing and putting myself out there.  After all, all writing, in the end, is at the very least practice towards my ultimate goal of becoming a better writer. So no more worrying about stats or things like that at this point.   I just want to cheer my fellow writers on, have fun, and focus on my WIP(s)!

I hope everyone had a great week and has kicked butt with their goals!  Good luck this week and see you at the next check-in, or on twitter!!

ROW80 Check In for Wed. Nov. 2

Welcome to November!  I really wonder where October went, because I don't remember much of it really.  It was here one day, and then gone the next it seems. But, I can't focus too much on that--I've got too much to do this month.  So for the mid-week update, here goes:

I've been able to keep up with writing 1 hour per day on my WIP.  I did this through a combination of the notes and scenes I've been jotting down in my notebook (and all my attempts at sketches and maps!), and the writing I started yesterday. First day of NaNo word count--3029.  Hopefully I can average about 2000-2500 daily throughout the challenge so I can have a day off on the weekend.  Oh and bonus--my outline for the NaNo WIP, which was a ROW80 goal, is done! One less goal this round; Woot!

As for my other goals, it's a mix as far as where I stand at mid-week.  I've blogged once a week per my goal, and also have been having a great time checking out other ROW80 and NaNo blogs and commenting.  Y'all are some awesomely talented and interesting people.  On the downside though and for completely unrelated reasons, I have only worked out twice this week.  Between fighting a cold, work and homework, I just haven't had the energy to fit this in.  Hopefully I can get back on track tomorrow and workout the next three days.

I've set out to read a new book as well, Kait Nolan's Red (Check out her blog here).  I love it and it has been hard to put down.  I stayed up later than usual to read a little more before I went to sleep last night,  hence why I am a little bleary eyed at the moment, but nothing a little cinnamon tea can't fix!  (And besides, reading the book is well worth the bleary eyes!)

Oh, and one more mini-goal has been crossed off my list--I now am on twitter!  Look for KatMorrisey on there if you'd like.  Though, be warned, I am pretty new at the twitter thing and am a little bit overwhelmed.  And I also feel awkward intruding on other people's conversations, so yeah, expect me to be a little bit timid for awhile, or just providing random tweets about things I see or that happen, find amusing articles or funnies, recipes I like, or things like that.    Be warned though--I sometimes have a dark, sarcastic and/or quite snarky sense of humor (check out Lord_Voldemort7 for an example of what makes me grin sometimes.  I adore him for his snarkiness!  His tweets almost always make me giggle...The Onion too is another fave of mine, among others)  My friends say it is just quirkiness, and due to my love of satire. I don't know where it came from--all I know is that it is part of who I am. (Hence the warning, so people know where I am coming from if I re-tweet something from one of those sites or another)

Anyways, that's all from me.  Hope everyone's week is going well and see you on twitter, at the Friday Fun Not Fear check-in and/or Sunday!!

Sunday ROW80 Update

NaNo starts in two days! I can't believe it is almost here.  Today is just a quick update as I have a lot of homework to get done this afternoon.  I want to get it all done by tomorrow so when Tuesday comes I can just focus on NaNo.  So, here goes:

• Writing 1 hour a day on my WIP(s); Outline for NaNo by Oct. 31—Over the week as a whole,I put 4 hours in, not 7.  And most of that was the end of the week.  Wednesday I had decided to work on notes and the outline for my NaNo book.  Well that kind of happened but not how I expected it to.  On Friday morning I was standing in my kitchen, drinking a chai and staring out the window, when I had an idea hit me.  And it hit me hard.  Suddenly, I had this character in my head, and then that character turned into an amazing idea for a setting, and well, since Friday I have been scribbling notes and ideas down in my notebook, and on my computer.  I had planned on doing NaNo on a totally different story idea but this one hit me out of the blue, and I just have to write it. I'm itching to start right now, that's how excited I am.  But I've held back, instead sticking to just jotting notes and scene information down. I even drew a map!  A MAP!  Now, this is pretty significant, because I have absolutely NO artistic talent but I needed to visualize the town and surrounding area where this is going to be taking place. It's definitely not something I would hang on the fridge, but it is good enough for my purposes. I can't wait til Tuesday when I can officially start! 
• Comment/respond to three blogs per week—done, done and done!  I actually exceeded the minimum.  I am really glad I put this as one of my goals this round.  I am learning so much from all of you! And, more importantly, it keeps me engaged. Reading everyone's check in(s) and blog posts, motivates me to keep chugging along.  So thanks everyone--you are all such an inspiration! 
• Blog once a week, minimum, whether ROW80 update and/or otherwise—Met this goal too!  And, in fact, I even did a non-update blog post yesterday, link is here.  I wrote it based off an experience I had this week in a class I teach, and that evolved into an interesting facebook discussion about teaching students to write and communicate.  If you are at all interested in that, feel free to check it out.  Would love to see what fellow writers/readers think about it.  
• Read one book a month.  I read, for October, 4 books in total.  Of course, that includes the 2 books I read while I was on my vacation, and another one that was for a class I was taking. Hopefully I can get some reading in this next month but I am not going to push it given I will be writing like a mad woman for NaNo.  
• Moving 5 days a week—Only did 3 days, but 3 is better than none so I guess I can't beat myself up too bad!  On the plus side, I've been cooking since yesterday--soups and a casserole, so I should be good for all my lunches and dinners this upcoming week.  My week always ends up being so busy that I rarely have time to cook, and then I end up eating like crap.  This way, I can grab and go, and at least my choices will be the healthier ones I cooked, as opposed to fast food or pre-packaged foods that end up making me feel all blah.  

Happy Halloween!!  Good luck this upcoming week and see you Wednesday!

ROW80 Update--Oct. 27th

Better late than never...right?  I hope so. I was just going to skip the post for yesterday, but then I thought to myself, "no, then I will get used to that and that could result in a downward spiral, where one skipped post leads to another and then another, and then somehow that could all wind up leading to a zombie apocalypse!"  So, yes, I am posting this even though it's late.  I don't want my brains eaten.  


Anyways, this is what I woke up to this morning.   

Sorry for the blurry-ness of the picture, I took it with my phone.  That little fur ball is my 10 pound, 11 year old, Siamese mix, Dutchess.  (I believe she may be descended from the evil Siamese cats in "Lady and the Tramp" because, well, she has a bit of evilness in her.  I swear sometimes when she looks at me, I get the feeling that she is plotting my demise.  But that is a post for another day.)  She was nestled under the covers, and somehow I had been nudged to the edge of the bed--talk about a total bed hog.  I have to admit that, if I were to guess, I think she is trying to tell me its too fricking cold in the morning!  And it was freezing this morning.  Freezing as in the air felt like ice when I got out of bed and my fingers and nose felt frozen.  Upstate New York can get pretty darn chilly in October (case in point--we are supposed to get a little bit of snow today) but I always try to wait until November to turn the heat on.  I think though, after this morning, I have to break down and turn it on. 

Enough about that four legged fiend, and my grumbling about turning the heat on earlier than planned. Here is my update for the week so far:

• Moving 5 days a week—3 down so far.  By Sunday I should have hit my goal since I carved out time tomorrow (Friday) and Saturday for that purpose
• Writing 1 hour a day on my WIP(s); Outline for NaNo by Oct. 31—um,yeah this sadly is not getting done. I've hit the daily goal twice so far, and am planning on putting in the rest of the afternoon today on the outline.  I was going to do some homework today, but after working on my project for three days in a row for Bibliography class (which thankfully is done and submitted--woot!)  My brain needs a break to just write and plan, and plan and write.  That relaxes me, and I need it.
• Comment/respond to three blogs—Doing that now!  Time to check in on all my fellow ROW80-ers and  NaNoWriMo victims…I mean, err, participants!!  I am getting pretty nervous as we get closer to the start date.  Also, anyone who is doing NaNoWriMo, check out Fun Not Fear!  for an awesome site done by fellow writers and ROW80-ers Em and Lena.  It has a TON of helpful information and links for NaNo and writing in general!
• Blog once a week, minimum, whether ROW80 update and/or otherwise—I am meeting this goal!  Yay!  I would like to try to write more non-update posts, but, it all goes back to time.  And I don’t have much of it lately. Sometimes I combine my update with whatever I am posting, because I have set aside the time for that and well, that is me being efficient!  However, as I write this, I am also editing something I will be posting later today or tomorrow morning which I'm pretty excited about.  It will be an interesting topic I think, and I've already had a spirited facebook conversation about it, so would love to see what you all think about it too!
• Read one book a month.  I have to read one this weekend for a class and am close to finishing the first book in the Darkfever series by Karen Marie Moning.  I love to read and ever since getting back from Hawaii, I always am sure to make time for it.  It keeps me sane and really is a nice way to end the day--just relaxing with a book and some hot apple cider. I think this goal will be the least of my troubles this round!! 

That is it for me so far.  Good luck the rest of the week and see everyone on Sunday!

ROW80 Update

Wow.  I can't believe it is already Wednesday--time is just flying by! This is gonna be a short post since it is almost midnight and I have early day at work tomorrow. So here goes:

I haven't done as well as I would like to since last check in on my daily writing, or my outline (though I have been hitting my workout goals--yay!).  In fact, other than a few random notes here and there, I haven't done much at all. Instead I have been focusing on getting caught up on homework, regular work projects and things I'm trying to get done around the house. I think, okay well more like I hope to be all caught up by this Sunday.  After that, things should settle down some. I know that November is gong to be insane with it being the start of NaNo and I also know I will have two projects due for the classes I am taking, so I want to be on track, and perhaps even a little ahead, by the time Nov. 1 roles around.  Getting ahead is especially important with regard to my class projects (one in Bibliography and another in Modern American Novelists).  I want to get ahead of the work this time, and head off any procrastinating on my part which I sometimes (okay, well a lot of times) do.  I am trying to take the work "procrastinate" out of my vocabulary!

I will be checking around the ROW80 blog-o-sphere tomorrow and Friday to see how everyone else did--hope everyone's week has been great!  Good luck the rest of the week and see you Sunday!

Time Wasted Is Time Lost

So since my last ROW80 update, I’ve come to an important realization about myself.

I am the most unorganized person I know.

This was kind of a shock, because I really thought I was more organized than I, in fact, actually am.  Since Wednesday, I’ve been updating my calendar, keeping tabs on how I spend my time, and yeah…I waste a lot of time.  Take for example, yesterday. I woke  up at 730 am, which is crazy early considering I was up until like 230am the night before (an anomaly in and of itself!).  But when I woke up, I could have gotten things done…but I didn’t. Instead I lazed around in bed, watching a little TV, and then fell back to sleep until a little after 9.  It wasn’t a good sleep since it was only for a short period of time.  It was, well, I guess I would call it more of a “waste of time” sleep.  And wasting time isn’t an option.  I mean how the hell I am going to get crap done on my list if I’m sleeping for no apparent reason!  I was wide awake at 730.  I could have gotten my butt up and used that time to write or workout a little longer. Or get some homework done.  But, in the end that  was an hour and a half wasted.  When I pondered that for a bit, that was when the second realization hit me. 

I don’t get to rewind the clock.  I will never get that time back.

I mean, I knew that, but I don’t think I really ever understood that.  Guess I must be a little behind when it comes to learning life lessons.  In looking over all my goals, and all the other work I have to do, and my desire to still have some semblance of a life, I realized that I don’t have the luxury to waste time.  But then, none of us do, do we? 

ALOHA! I Have Returned...

1.      Hawaii was AMAZING.  I have never had such a fun, relaxing and stress free 10 days in my entire life.  And I miss it.  Not only the place, with its incredible scenery, amazing beaches, wonderful ocean and laid back atmosphere; but also the fact that I did not take ONE work related phone call while I was away.  I didn’t return a call, heck I didn’t even listen to my voicemails!  This was the first time in (7) years that I took a vacation and didn’t call in for a tele-conference, or return calls, or have to email the office.  Being mostly unconnected from work, and even my life in general, was incredibly freeing, and I really, really needed it.  I even went places without taking my cell phone!  I mean, I haven’t done that in…well since I got my first cell phone!  Being almost entirely unplugged from technology was scary at first, but I quickly got used to it.  Don’t get me wrong, I missed talking to friends and family, and I missed blogging and reading other people’s blogs; but I did NOT miss being unconnected from work.  I think I need more vacations like that.

As you can imagine, coming back to work after all that time away has been beyond difficult.   I find my mind wandering way too often to the days I spent laying on the beach in the sun, or swimming in the ocean, or having my afternoon happy hour of pina coladas, mojitos and whatever else sounded good at the time.  Those were the days.  And it doesn’t help that my job is just as I left it—emotionally draining and just a whole lot of ‘blech’. 

If this trip has confirmed anything I already knew before, it is that I so need a job change…But that is what I am doing all this for right?  I mean, the going back to school to finish my Master’s degree; the working less at the job I hate; and taking on more classes to teach (which I love).  I’m doing all of that to get to my ultimate goal of getting out of the current job I have. So I just have to suck it up and deal with it a bit longer.  The writing I have been doing since I started this ROW80 adventure has been helping me a great deal to handle the stress from work too.  It helps me relax and forget about it, for at least a little while, and gives me time to focus on what I enjoy doing.  After all, we all need, and deserve, a little down time! 

So, all that being said, I have made my list of goals for the next round of ROW80.  The goals for this round are similar to the ones from the last round.  The difference is that I have a lot more at the start.  After finishing the previous round, I decided to combine the goals I had started with in Round 3 with the ones I ended up adding and revising throughout.   Ultimately, this round is going to be about organization.  I need to get organized in all aspects of my life—my full time job, the part time teaching I do, homework, and with my writing.  So by setting up these goals the way I did, I can work the time I need to put into those parts of my life (i.e work and school)) around my writing goals.  My calendar is going to be a rainbow of colors; I can just see it now.  Bring on the highlighters!  Maybe blue for writing, red for full time job, yellow for teaching…the possibilities are endless! 

So, without further adieu, here are my ROW80 goals:

ROW80 Update and A NaNoWriMo Decision

This is going to be a ROW80 update and blog post combined in one.  It's just easier to do it that way today since I am heading out to brunch with my best friend to hash out some major decisions I'm in the process of making in my life.  I need to bounce some ideas off of her and I know she will help me find which direction I'm heading in, instead of flailing about.  

First, I'll get my update out of the way on the ROW80 goals.  I continue on target for the activity goal, 6 days of activity out of 7, on top of the 6 out of 7 before that!    Woot! *pats myself on back*  Sundays are my day off, and thankfully so, because my muscles are screaming for a little R & R.  Though, I may sneak in some belly dancing later this afternoon--I'm trying to get this one move down and its driving me crazy.  As for writing, I'm plodding along, but this part of the WIP is going slower than the first half.  I think because the work has taken such a different turn than what I initially expected.  I need to adapt the ending I had planned for the twists and turns the WIP has decided to go in.  But…slow and steady wins the race right?

So with ROW80 going well, on to the next question that has been stirring in my head recently: