Here's a mildly belated roundup post. I've been doing okay about getting work done, although I've not been sticking perfectly to the schedule I wanted. However, since I'm still getting a significant Pile of Things done---and even starting to make my own crazy goals for the week---I feel okay about it.
With respect to non-work-related things:
1. Afghan: I have now moved on to another skein, and should (I hope) be done with this afghan panel sometime this week. I need to give my hands a bit of a break, though, I suspect.
4. Revamp wardrobe: I have acquired two vaguely-khaki-esque pairs of pants that are infinitely more grown up than my jeans. I consider this an immense achievement, although I admittedly probably can't wear either pair with black shirts and not feel funny.
13. Cook one new dish: My June repertoire has been excellent, what with having more time after school let out. There were, of course, the previously mentioned cheesecake and failed puddings; however, I've also added a strawberry cake and a raspberry buttermilk cake, both of which are delicious recipes found on Smitten Kitchen. Highly recommended. I also have on my list what I can only call `babka-muffins', also from Smitten.
21. I'm still doing okay-but-not-perfect on fruit and veggie servings. As usual, the problem remains getting the veggies, not the fruits. Fruits are delicious and easy; vegetables involve cooking, and cannot typically be consumed as part of a cake.
22. I'm also doing okay on exercising! I've gone out a couple times each week, either with biking or running. I'm also doing a lot more walking, as N. and I have been going downtown a lot and he hasn't got his bike here; I've therefore been walking a good three miles a day on average, which cannot be anything but good for me. It's definitely helping me feel more energized, which is fantastic.
25/26. Skin and teeth: Holding strong and doing well.
28. Failing at calling Mom and Dad regularly enough. Need to do this tonight.
29. CMV reading: Reading Fairyland right now, and enjoying it immensely.
36. F-lang practice: Not often enough.
37. Bed-making: Managing to get it done if I can N. out of bed before 11.
44. Lang-8: Managing it so far.
57. Tea: I did it! I went to afternoon tea! More on this later, as it's worthy of having its own entry.
And that's about all she wrote, as it's said. I've had a full week, and I'm feeling happily energized right now---it's an excellent feeling, and I have this project and the onset of summer to thank for it.
27 June 2012
20 June 2012
Tuesday (Wednesday) Roundup
I've managed to get some work done in the last day and a half. I finished both a work book and a pleasure book yesterday, and the plan is to get a bit of reading done today, too. This is better than it had been, at least, if not as good as I would like it to be.
Roundup:
1. Added about a foot and a half to one of the afghan panels.
21. Fruits and veggies: Okay this week, though not great. I need to make more effort still.
22. Exercise: I've started again! I've run four times and biked once. The first three runs, I was very good---I didn't run too far, and was careful to take care of my knee, which has a few problems. However, on the last run yesterday, I went with two friends to run on some coastal trails. This was lovely---it was a great run. However, we went for 5 miles, and that was just too far. I now have sore metatarsals. I am currently the picture of "don't overextend yourself when you're starting an exercise program".
24. I went to the dentist. Apparently I am to now go once every three months, not once every six---I guess active saliva glands=insane amounts of tartar buildup, no matter how often you brush your teeth?
25. For skin care, I've been doing good with lotions and pumicing, but also got myself a sunburn, so I guess that's some fail.
26. Still doing better with tooth care. Go me.
28. I've managed to do okay with calling the parents---I've made my goals. ;)
36/44. I've been writing on Lang-8 some this week, which certainly helps both with the Lang-8 goal and the language practice goal. I'm also considering adding a second language to my set, just for the hell of it. I'm just trying to figure out what language to do. I took Spanish in high school, and can still read fairly well, but it doesn't interest me very much. I'm trying to figure out if I want to do Azerbaijani (which I've studied a wee bit), or if I should play with Dutch, French, or Korean.
37. Utter fail at making the bed. Admittedly, it's quite difficult to make the bed when your partner is still in it when you get up.
73. I forgot to mention this in my last spout of talking about new restaurants, but my housemates and I went to Upper Crust Pizza to celebrate one of my housemates' advancing to candidacy. It was excellent to see him level up, and the pizza was quite good (certainly some of the best in town).
Roundup:
1. Added about a foot and a half to one of the afghan panels.
21. Fruits and veggies: Okay this week, though not great. I need to make more effort still.
22. Exercise: I've started again! I've run four times and biked once. The first three runs, I was very good---I didn't run too far, and was careful to take care of my knee, which has a few problems. However, on the last run yesterday, I went with two friends to run on some coastal trails. This was lovely---it was a great run. However, we went for 5 miles, and that was just too far. I now have sore metatarsals. I am currently the picture of "don't overextend yourself when you're starting an exercise program".
24. I went to the dentist. Apparently I am to now go once every three months, not once every six---I guess active saliva glands=insane amounts of tartar buildup, no matter how often you brush your teeth?
25. For skin care, I've been doing good with lotions and pumicing, but also got myself a sunburn, so I guess that's some fail.
26. Still doing better with tooth care. Go me.
28. I've managed to do okay with calling the parents---I've made my goals. ;)
36/44. I've been writing on Lang-8 some this week, which certainly helps both with the Lang-8 goal and the language practice goal. I'm also considering adding a second language to my set, just for the hell of it. I'm just trying to figure out what language to do. I took Spanish in high school, and can still read fairly well, but it doesn't interest me very much. I'm trying to figure out if I want to do Azerbaijani (which I've studied a wee bit), or if I should play with Dutch, French, or Korean.
37. Utter fail at making the bed. Admittedly, it's quite difficult to make the bed when your partner is still in it when you get up.
73. I forgot to mention this in my last spout of talking about new restaurants, but my housemates and I went to Upper Crust Pizza to celebrate one of my housemates' advancing to candidacy. It was excellent to see him level up, and the pizza was quite good (certainly some of the best in town).
17 June 2012
A Sunday Refocus
Finally---released for the summer! This last week was our week of finals, and so I spent it variously grading, reading a few papers, putzing and not doing any real work, etc. Finals work for a grad student who has no final papers is kind of a strange no man's land---one both must work, and yet has very few obligations.
I wanted to take today, then, as an opportunity for mental regrouping. I've felt really stagnant in the last couple months, both in life and work---like I'm not moving anywhere in either category. Every once in a while it's good to rededicate one's self to moving forward, and that's today for me, I think. I have a summer---a wide open, terrifying summer---and I need to make the best possible use of it.
So, here's the plan and the promise:
1. Wake up not too early, not too late, and go exercise (something I actually managed to do this last week).
2. Post-exercise, come home on weekdays and start working. Try to hold to a 9-5 or 10-5 most days.
3. Take evenings and weekends off if I want to.
I think this may at least keep me working well this summer, although I'll have to be disciplined. Writing a dissertation is scary....
I wanted to take today, then, as an opportunity for mental regrouping. I've felt really stagnant in the last couple months, both in life and work---like I'm not moving anywhere in either category. Every once in a while it's good to rededicate one's self to moving forward, and that's today for me, I think. I have a summer---a wide open, terrifying summer---and I need to make the best possible use of it.
So, here's the plan and the promise:
1. Wake up not too early, not too late, and go exercise (something I actually managed to do this last week).
2. Post-exercise, come home on weekdays and start working. Try to hold to a 9-5 or 10-5 most days.
3. Take evenings and weekends off if I want to.
I think this may at least keep me working well this summer, although I'll have to be disciplined. Writing a dissertation is scary....
09 June 2012
Just a bit of a roundup.
It's been a busy week---almost two weeks---indeed. My partner arrived back in town for the summer, and I am finally almost released from school for the year.
In my roundup:
4. Revamp wardrobe: I did, at the very least, manage to take some things to a resale shop. I still have a few more to go, and I probably ought to be a bit rougher in getting rid of some other thing.
7. Pick three baking/cooking things and perfect them: I tried two rice puddings in the past week. Both failed. The first was a profound problem with the recipe---it asks one to add eggs to hot milk. Skeptical, I did it anyways, and oddly enough ended up with a horrid stringy egg concoction. The second failure was not a failure, per se, but a rice pudding recipe that produces a rather flat and cakey pudding. As I like my puddings to be soft and gloopy, it was not particularly satisfying.
13. Cook one new dish a month: Well, there were the two failed puddings. I also came up with a cheesecake: Vanilla cheesecake with an almond meal crust, topped with lemon zest whipped cream and raspberries. I was very pleased with this latter enterprise.
15. Pay down Key interest: It is currently just below $3000. I feel good.
21. 5 servings of fruits & veggies: Ahahaha.
22. Exercise 3x a week: I've got a new pair of running shoes! I've got a bad knee, as well, so I also need to exercise caution, but I'm excited. I took them out this morning, and it was good.
26. Floss/brush: Doing good.
28. Call Mom/Dad: Doing good.
32. Listen to all the music I have: Unfortunately, this goal has been vastly improved upon because my external harddrive has gone kaput. I'm trying to rescue it, but I may have lost a significant pile of music.
37. Bed made: Fail.
41. Read all the books I own: Made this worse by buying three new books this past week.
73. Go to 25 restaurants in town that I've never been to before: I went to Porter Cafe this week. I got a cheeseburger, which was large and certainly edible (if not special). I also went to Pono Hawaiian Grill today with the boy. I got Korean short ribs, which were fattier and messier than I might have liked; however, I think there will be some hits there.
81. CMV's books: I finally got a copy of Fairyland.
In my roundup:
4. Revamp wardrobe: I did, at the very least, manage to take some things to a resale shop. I still have a few more to go, and I probably ought to be a bit rougher in getting rid of some other thing.
7. Pick three baking/cooking things and perfect them: I tried two rice puddings in the past week. Both failed. The first was a profound problem with the recipe---it asks one to add eggs to hot milk. Skeptical, I did it anyways, and oddly enough ended up with a horrid stringy egg concoction. The second failure was not a failure, per se, but a rice pudding recipe that produces a rather flat and cakey pudding. As I like my puddings to be soft and gloopy, it was not particularly satisfying.
13. Cook one new dish a month: Well, there were the two failed puddings. I also came up with a cheesecake: Vanilla cheesecake with an almond meal crust, topped with lemon zest whipped cream and raspberries. I was very pleased with this latter enterprise.
15. Pay down Key interest: It is currently just below $3000. I feel good.
21. 5 servings of fruits & veggies: Ahahaha.
22. Exercise 3x a week: I've got a new pair of running shoes! I've got a bad knee, as well, so I also need to exercise caution, but I'm excited. I took them out this morning, and it was good.
26. Floss/brush: Doing good.
28. Call Mom/Dad: Doing good.
32. Listen to all the music I have: Unfortunately, this goal has been vastly improved upon because my external harddrive has gone kaput. I'm trying to rescue it, but I may have lost a significant pile of music.
37. Bed made: Fail.
41. Read all the books I own: Made this worse by buying three new books this past week.
73. Go to 25 restaurants in town that I've never been to before: I went to Porter Cafe this week. I got a cheeseburger, which was large and certainly edible (if not special). I also went to Pono Hawaiian Grill today with the boy. I got Korean short ribs, which were fattier and messier than I might have liked; however, I think there will be some hits there.
81. CMV's books: I finally got a copy of Fairyland.
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