Hello!
We're a quarter of the way through the year so I thought I'd check in with some updatering - starting with those resolutions!
Spend Less Money
Well, yes! I haven't bought much that I don't need.... in comparison to before at least. Only bought one dress and a few cheap make-up bits tacked on the end of already existing orders. I've saved money for driving lessons and am actually spending that money! On driving lessons! AHHHH!
Use Things Up
Um... I've kind of been doing this! I am using up a lot of skincare products and some make-up products. I've also discovered that giving things away to people who will actually use them is a great way to not waste things... so have been cheating a little. Ha. It is really satisfying making my way through cheap skincare products to then reward myself with better products. My skin is getting better and better and I've only upgraded to Lush's price range! Banging!
Lose Weight
After finding out I gained 9 lbs over Christmas* I did put some effort into this, and shed a few of those pounds.... then got too ill to bother and put them back on. I'm just about feeling well enough to count calories so am on
My Fitness Pal again (LisaStockleyJG of you're on there) and
My Diet Coach, and generally doing what I was in
this post again.
I did try just eating more fresh fruit and veg, whole foods kinda thing after watching a bunch of
What I Eat In A Day videos by Niomi Smart - but while I felt much better, I gained weight, haha. So while I'm back to the old calorie counting that has always worked for me - I will be learning more about the calories of healthier foods and hopefully be losing weight and eating better at the same time!
Bring The Joy
Ah! This is why I need to do these posts - I forgot I was even trying to stop whining so much! I think the effort I made at the beginning of the year has made a difference, though - my Twitter is less whiney (if you can believe that). I think having a journal to vent in and colouring in regularly has helped channel that whinging, too. Now I remember that this is a thing, I will try harder :)
Waste Less Time
I'm sure I've been achieving this. I rarely find myself spending ages wasting time procrastinating online. I always seem to have so much to do!! Giving myself more to do each day may have something to do with this.
Start A Journal
I'm over halfway through one. I have smashed this goal. It's there to keep all the notes, vent all the feelings, sketch all the ideas and plan all the to-do lists. WHY HAVE I NOT HAD ONE FOR SO LONG?!
Health
I figure a healthy diet will help my poor, broken bod out and hopefully help me feel a bit better. I struggle to eat super healthy having no energy ever, so much preparation! Luckily I got a Nutribullet for my birthday so I can just chuck in fruit, veg, whatever, blend it up and either gulp it down or cook it into a soup. It's great. I just need to figure out how to shop well, now! As mentioned before, eating lots of fruit and veg has made me feel better, it's just a matter of finding the ideal way to incorporate it into my life :)
Daytime is becoming a thing in my life again! I've been getting more day shifts at work which means getting up early (for me) often enough to scare me into getting to bed sooner each night and I'm almost getting enough sleep when I have to wake up at 10am, rather than 4-5 hours. I also feel so,
so much more awake, alive and human in the day time. It's been wonderful. I'm even getting so tired I want to go to bed a more sensible times each night. I am losing a couple of hours sleep each night which isn't good, but I'm hoping the more I get up early, the more I'll adapt and get everything done in time to get to bed early, too.
The time has come, finally, for me to make more of an effort to not drink alcohol. I am officially too ill. Every hangover involves violent vomiting and lasts around a week. I can't do it anymore. It doesn't even feel worth it now. Plus it's expensive and I'd rather pay for education, driving lessons, food, books or zines. I will write a post going into this in more detail, maybe.
Dog School
At the time of writing this I have 69% (snigger) of my GoFundMe goal! Tips at work have got better recently, so I'm contributing as much as I can myself which feels great. Obviously I'm grateful beyond words to everyone who has donated or shared my campaign. I have been trying to get my reading done but find it so hard to fit studying into my life right now. I feel the time and energy I spend on this blog should really go into education but more on that later ... ;)
Driving
So. My mate with M.E. and Fibro passed her driving test lately, so obviously I asked her for the contact details of her instructor! Someone with experience of teaching the chronically ill? YAY! He is brilliant, complete understanding of pacing and fatigue and even cut a lesson short lately because I was too tired without charging me for the whole booked time! My first two lessons were fab and I did really well according to my instructor (he'd know, right?), my most recent lessons have fallen pray to fatigue, but work has been crazy and I hadn't had a chance to rest before them. Things are getting back to normal at work so hopefully my next lessons will be super again!
Blog
Recently having a blog has been stressing me out - I feel I need to jump through hoops to keep it going, when I should be spending the energy on studying, drawing, and everything I want to do. It feels more like an obligation than something I'm excited about and want to do. Stress.
This got me thinking "what do I want my blog to be?", which is what I always wanted it to be - an accessible place for me to get excited about things and share them with others in the hope it's helps someone somewhere one day. It's basically what my zines are but this platform has way more reach, and so is more likely to help people. It's also a way for my friends and family to keep up with me as I'm way too ill for a social life. It's not a job. It's not something I have to do. It's not a numbers game.
While posting once a week is the most regularly I can handle, I may not be able to do so when work gets busier and I'm trying to learn how to drive, how dogs brains work, and finish my next zine all at the same time. And this is okay. Blogging was meant to be an easier way for me to express myself and create, for joy and as a hobby, not a rigid, super serious job. Maybe posts will have to be even less regular. Would you mind if that happened? Who even reads this? Any ideas?
We'll see where this revelation takes us! Hopefully I'll be enjoying writing posts more again, and you will enjoy reading them more, too :)
*All of December and January counted this year. Cor, did I get porky!!
