Lifestyle of Learning 2023 Edition: Volume 3

 It is important to me that I challenge myself to learn and grow...

April 18- June 30

This has been a busy and challenging period of time. I have traveled which always nourishes my spirit. This trip was, however, different than any that I have taken before. It was a journey to face some old memories. I had new experiences, learned more about every area that I traveled through, and learned so very much about myself. This journey is documented in previous posts.

I continue to make significant progress in working my way through Balancing the Sword Volume One. It has motivated me to continue making my way through the Old Testament. I have finished Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Psalm, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes.

In addition to reading scripture, I read Too Loud, Too Bright, Too Fast, Too Tight by Sharon Heller; Girl in the Band by Kim Gordon; Genesis: Finding Our Roots by Ruth Beechik; Making Art a Practice by Cat Bennett; Agents of Babylon by David Jeremiah; The Right Words at the Right Time by Marlo Thomas and friends; A Country Year by Sue Hubbell; The Dressmakers of Auschwitz by Lucy Adlington; The Missing Treasures of Amy Ashton by Eleanor Ray; Lost Books and Old Bones by Paige Shelton; A History of the Writings of Beatrix Potter by Leslie Linder; and Blacklisted by History by M. Stanton Evans.

I played Exploding Kittens, Can't Stop, Phase 10, 42,

I went to some art galleries in New Mexico.

I made collage master boards and clusters. Interesting process.

I saw performances of Pippen and Moana Jr.

I worked out.

I photographed a wedding. I edited the wedding photos and learned how to use google drive to email them to the couple.

I went to an art museum for their Art in Bloom exhibition which involved floral arrangements and fashion designs inspired by art in the museums collection.

I saw an incredible exhibition of enameled vessels.

I visited a museum that has an incredible collection of Mimbres pottery; including the' largest and most complete collection of Mimbres materials in existence from a single prehistoric Mimbres site.'

I have continued my journaling and am doing it in an artsy style.

I watched the movie Dark Waters.

I tried my hand at monoprinting and began working with my watercolors. I also coffee dyed papers.

I attended a trivia event.

I researched JADE -justify, argue, defend, explain. 

I did the heart walk.

I listened to many podcasts: Snake River Killer, Zone 7, Still..., The Exorcist Files, Killing Dad: The Crystal Howell Story and more.

I attended  several work related meetings to include the Ownership Culture Committee meeting, Ownership Culture Steering Committee meeting, Shareholders Meeting, and the accounting huddle. These meetings expand my understanding of the place in which I work and its culture.

I saw flickers at the park. It prompted me to research woodpeckers in Missouri.

I got a basketball and went to the park before work to shoot some hoops. Its been a long time. It was a little discouraging at first. My back was so tight that I couldn't extend my arm the way that I needed and my left foot/ankle is so problematic that I couldn't jump the way that I wanted to. My back and shoulder are loosening up and am able to take better shots now. I still have a long way to go but I am thoroughly enjoying myself. So fun!

Goals Revisited and Renewed: Part 2

 Midway through the year is a perfect time for me to revisit the goals that I have established for myself. It is time to assess progress, revise the goals if necessary, and renew my commitment to them. In the previous post I revisited my original 2023 goals and Could Have Been Me goals. In this post, I am going to check in on my 23 Hard Things in 2023 goals. In addition to the larger, overarching goals expressed in the previous post, I have expressed the intention to attack 23 hard things in 2023. These are things that I believe will add something of value to my life or they are things that need to be done but I have struggled to prioritize. So, let's see......

1) Write 12 snail mail letters. Amongst my friends and family, I am known for NOT writing letters. They accept this about me but I know that they value letters. I value them so I am trying to connect with them in a way that delights them. I wrote 2 letters this month; one to my dad for Father's Day and the other to a niece who graduated high school. I have now attained my goal - 12/12 - DONE!!! I will continue to write letters throughout the year. There are more people out there who I know will delight in hearing from me.

2) Initiate three dates with hubby. No progress.

3) Purge 1200 items. Through June, I have purged 1122. I have 78 more items to purge in order to reach my goal. 1122/1200.

4) Read 48 books. By the end of June, I have read 47 books. I am including books of the Bible in this count. I am still reading at least four other books per month. I am rocking this goal! 47/48.

5) 12 of the 48 books read need to be books that I own. In June, I read the History of the Writings of Beatrix Potter that Maceo gifted me for Christmas. (It was a fascinating read) In 2023, I have read 11 books from my personal stash. 11/12.

6) Have one adventure per month. For me, an adventure is doing something new or takes me out of my comfort zone. In June, I participated in the Heart Walk. I did this by myself and feel good about that. I also acquired a new basketball and shot some hoops one morning before work. I want to keep hitting the hoops. Fun!

7) Make and maintain a minimum of six monthly journals. Done!!! June's journal makes my sixth monthly journal! Now, I have to decide the direction that I want to take with my journals and my paper stash and all that jazz. 6/6.

8) Make a minimum of 36 blog entries. I made no progress on this goal during the month of June. I haven't blogged about New Mexico or shared wedding photos that I took or shared what I have been learning. I am going to turn my attention to this blog and will take this into consideration when I make a decision about what my journals will look like now. This post and the previous goal-related post are my 13th and 14th posts of the year. 14/36.

9) Repair camera. DONE.

10) Repair mandolin and learn to play one song. NOPE.

11) Dance. No progress.

12) Learn to tiptoe (move like a child). YUP.

13) Learn to skip (move like a child). NOPE.

14) Do a cartwheel, although a roundoff will do. NOPERS.

15) Remove tree from front yard. DONE.

16) Repair front porch stairs. DONE. Note: we have also repaired the light above the sink and have replaced the windows above the sink. Presently, we are getting estimates on re-piping the house.

17) Write letter to Carole's mother. Written, not sent.

18) Take vitamins a minimum of 275 days of the year. I have taken my vitamins 151/180 days, thus far. That is a 84% success rate. I can do better. 

19) Floss teeth a minimum of 275 days of the year. I have flossed 116/180, thus far. That is only a 64% success rate. Surely, I can do better than that. I NEED to do better than that!

20) Track expenditures a minimum of 275 days of the year. Just as I did in May, I struggled to track my expenditures in real time and with accuracy during the month of June. I have made notes on some days but not to completion. I have about 24 of the 30 days documented in some form. Now, is the time to get back on track. Today, July 1, I start anew!!!

21) Do not go to Andy's alone. Ok, I'll fess up... I have failed. I was given gift cards to Andy's and that made it impossible (apparently) for me to resist its siren call. Sigh.

22) Try 15 new smoothie, salad or vegetarian recipes. NOPE.

23) Complete at least 75% of Balancing the Sword, Volume 1. I am more than 2/3 of the way to my goal. I have now read through the Songs of Solomon. I am feeling good about this!

By revisiting my goals, I can see that I am quite successful with some of my goals. I have developed a good return with my Bible study, reading, and vitamins. I need to improve my flossing routine and revive my tracking of expenditures. I think I am struggling with trying new recipes because I am still so focused on using up the items in my pantry. I will let this goal stand for now but it may need to be revised in the future. I am making progress in reaching my physical goals but am struggling more than I anticipated. I will refocus on these goals, as well. The home repair and debt repayment related goals have been met with wild success. There is now momentum in those areas and I hope to capitalize off that momentum in a significant way. I can feel the energy surging within me and it is that energy that helps me get in the zone and get it done. I am ready to rock and roll for the remainder of the year!!!!

Goals Revisited and Renewed: Part 1

 I have expressed my goals in three different ways this year - my original original 2023 goals, 23 Hard Things in 2023, and the Could Have Been goals. These goals are a reflection of who I am at this present moment, what I dream of, what I value, who I want to be and what I want to do. The year 2023 is now at the midpoint. This is the perfect time for me to revisit those expressed goals, revise if necessary and renew my commitment to them. 

Original 2023 Goals

*Money related goals: Earn ESOP - I do not have it confirmed yet that I earned any stock for the last fiscal year. In the meantime, I am working hard to make sure that I am getting enough hours to earn stock this fiscal year. The stock price for the company that I work for jumped $30 this year and is projected to continue to grow by leaps and bounds for the next five years. I definitely want in on this action. This has me reconsidering my timeline for work, home improvement and hitting the road. I may set a goal to continue working through the age of 62 so that I can be fully vested. In the meantime, I would focus on completing the home improvement tasks. I may revise my road trip plans as well. I may strive to do a segment of the trip each year between now and age 62. I have to be on the road!

Pay for Maceo's move or Visa - I have more than enough money saved for this. I should know more by the end of the month about which I will be funding and the amount needed to accomplish it.

Pay off Kohl's credit card, Herb's credit card and student loan - this goal has been revised and the revised version has been accomplished. The Kohl's card, student loan, and American Express have all been paid off. Herb's card has been paid down but I am not going to focus on paying it off; that is now completely his responsibility. We refinanced our mortgage and rolled the AMEX and H's CC (well, most of it) debt into the mortgage. This will slow down the interest accumulation on that debt and I will now have the ability to pay a larger amount towards the mortgage - new goal: have the mortgage paid off in under 15 years! With the exception of the mortgage, all debt with my name on it is paid off! That's huge and feels so good!

Adhere to my $150 entertainment budget, review subscription services, and "use it up" - I haven't reconciled my June expenses but believe that I went over a smidge. I definitely need to refocus my attention on tracking these expenses better. I am satisfied with my status as it relates to the other two goals.

*Decluttering goals: purge a minimum of 100 items per month, reclaim attic and set up guest space, "use it up" - I have not touched the attic nor made progress on setting up a guest space but I have been making steady progress on using things up or getting rid of them. Through June, I have purged 1122 items!!!

*House related goals: repair front stairs, haul large trash, clean yard and remove curly tree. We have repaired the front stairs and removed the curly tree. The yard cleaning is roughly 50% completed. We are actually now moving forward with getting the house re-piped!

*Other: one adventure per month, move like a child, journal, floss, take my vitamins, stretch, strengthen, read, investigate - I have had one adventure per month, although they have not looked the way that I had envisioned when I set the goal. I am doing things that are uncomfortable or exciting or both. I have made progress with all movement related goals. This bum foot of mine is slowing me down. I will press on. I journal, floss, take vitamins and read routinely. Investigating, on the other hand, hasn't happened at all. Going to Silver City and revisiting a bit of Calvin's life has removed some of my drive to investigate the issues surrounding his death.

Could Have Been Me Goals

*Defeat the hoard: I am making steady progress on this goal. Thus far, in the year 2023, I have purged 1122 items. This doesn't include food or scrapbook items, unless I am giving those items away rather than using them up. I am steadily peeling back the layers of my life. I am learning what is of value to me and, of those things that I value, what I value more than the other. It is a process. I am defining myself and how I want to spend my time, my money, my life. I still have a long way to go on this journey but I am taking steps in the right direction.

*Be debt free: Surprisingly, I took a huge leap forward in achieving this goal. As mentioned before, I now have no debt in my name, with the exception of the mortgage. And I have a clear plan to have the mortgage paid off in 15 years! If I stay focused, I can be entirely debt-free by 70! I know that I need to make progress on home improvements and we will need to address vehicles within the next 15 years. These factors need to be taken into consideration, a plan needs to be developed so that I can truly be 100% debt-free at 70.

*Take my EPIC American road trip: No can do, just yet. Reaching the other goals, however, contribute to making this one a reality.

*Be strong: I have made progress on this. My bum ankle/foot and being fatigued is hampering my progress but I WILL figure this out!

This post seems plenty long, so, I will address 23 Hard Things in 2023 in the following post.