almost made it!

One of my goals for the month of January was to not buy anything.  Obviously stuff like food, gas, etc are necessary purchases, but clothes, books and the like were out.  I made it until Jan 22 before I caved and bought some clothes at My Closet.  To be fair, we were having a $5 sale and it is for a very worthy cause.  But then I bought a few more things at My Closet on Saturday…and some craft supplies on Monday (which I did NOT need)…and  a couple more tops at My Closet last night…  Grrr…I was doing so well!  Oh, well.  That’s about the longest I’ve ever gone, so I’ll consider the month to be a relative success.  The point wasn’t so much self-deprivation as to stop the constant inflow of stuff into my life and give me a chance to purge a little.  I was hoping to make a dent in my craft stash, which I did (but have since replenished), and to go through my closet and sort out some things I no longer wear.  I did accomplish that much – in addition to the two tops I bought at MC last night, I also walked out with a receipt for $300 worth of donated clothing.  Whoo-hoo!  That’s a big deal for me – I’m a possessive type and it is very hard for me to let go of things.  What if I want them some day???

I’m trying to change my attitude about clothing.  Rather than buying clothes, I’m going to start looking at it as “renting”.  Perhaps it’ll be a little easier for me to relinquish them when they’re time has passed, rather than insisting that I must hold onto them because I paid good money to acquire them in the first place. We’ll see…

I also dropped off a couple of boxes of misc junk at the GoodWill.  Unfortunately I couldn’t stop myself from also going inside the store…sigh.  I found two large knit dresses – should be enough fabric there for some simple tops.  Also found a vintage orange plaid skirt, which I’ll alter to fit.  Some good deals to be had if you look for that week’s sale color tag.  But of course, just more stuff that  I don’t need…

everyone's life sucks

This must be the week of horrible life stories.  I’ve hear more tales of medical, marital, criminal, financial, and emotional woe than I would expect to hear in an average year.  Its overwhelming, and I’m just a bystander, so I can’t imagine what the actual participants are going through.  Wish there was something I could do, but I suppose lending a sympathetic ear will have to suffice…

longest book ever

I'm "reading" Atlas Shrugged. "Reading" as in listening to the audio
book. I'm on Chapter 6 of Part 2. Disc 21. Of 45. Read outloud,
the entire work is over 55 hours. It's fabulous, but I do not have 55
hours to sit and stare at a book. I'm going to make a great
librarian, huh? :P

However, this book has totally changed my opinion on driving. I hate
being in the car...or hated it until I started listening to this
story. I could drive for hours now! (55 hours to be exact.)

Happy 2009...now let's get down to business...

Here's to a happy little new year...  In the spirit of always filling my plate and having eyes far bigger than my stomach (or calendar), here are (some) of my New Year's Resolutions for 2009.  I'm trying to be specific, because apparently those types of goals are easier to achieve.

• Smile even when I don't feel like it
• Train for Lincoln half-marathon w/ ML
• Limit myself to one pop (or less) per week
• Save enough cash for a new camera
• Donate or sell 25% of my clothing/fabric/shoes/etc
• Knit pedicure socks
• Crochet or knit 5 scarves and hats to donate to Salvation Army or other charity
• Choreograph 3 new solos and perfect 3 current solos
• Work dancing into my everyday routine
• Try out every single belly dance video that I own
• Spend more quality time with the DH
• Buy less crap
• Of the things I make, keep only those that are beautiful or useful
• Try new techniques and designs, with the goal of the above in mind
• Study for and obtain my CISSP certificate
• Apply and be accepted in the Masters of Arts in Library Sciences program at MU.
  
• Earn at least 12 credit hours toward my MALS
• Learn to prioritize more and procrastinate less so that all of the above becomes feasible!

Not too much, right? :)  Well, so far, so good anyway...  I ran a few miles today, and will run with the group tomorrow.  I have done 2 of my belly dance dvds so far this week - new ones, too!  I put my Christmas cash aside for the new camera.  I'm signed up for 6 hours in the MALS program at the University of Missouri, to start in the next few weeks.  I am slowly learning to knit, starting by reworking the scarf I did (horribly) last year - and I can purl now too!  Go me!  And I'm smiling right now, so that's good... ;) 

Happy New Year!  I hope this motivation lasts at least through February!