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 |   The Good Life. |
I am a professional musician  , worship leader , small business owner , songwriter , aspiring author and freelance nonfiction writer with a chemical engineering degree . But that's just my resume. My profile of qualifications is only one of the ways in which I am unique. Here I chronicle my personal and professional goals and my efforts to achieve them. Occasionally I fail. Mostly, I take daily baby steps toward all my long-term goals. Much like the stories I pen, the songs I compose, and the businesses I run, I am always a work in progress. ![Merit Badge in Music
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To a dear friend whose talent for writing music is sensational. May you have a fabulous New Year, (((Brandi)))!!! *^*Kiss*^*
Big hugs,
Sherri *^*Heart*^*](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/genre-Music-1050.gif) ![Merit Badge in Organization
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I don't know how you do it, but I assume there's magic involved *^*Bigsmile*^* I have really enjoyed this month of planning and preparation for NaNoWriMo and I love how organized it all is. Thank you for hosting a great challenge and for your dedication to helping so many of us prepare with confidence and trepidation for National Novel Writing Month (known to sane folks as 'November' *^*Laugh*^*) at your [Link To Item #1474311]](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/general-Organization-1150.gif) ![Merit Badge in Leadership
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For your hard work, commitment, talent and innovation in running the October NaNoWriMo Preparation each year, which helps many of us get our scattered thoughts together for November's novel-writing. And also because this badge has ducks on it.](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/general-Leadership.gif) |
| I caught up and then exceeded my word count goal today. Now I'm 1k ahead instead of 2k behind. I was on a pretty good roll, but then I got tired of writing. I don't think I could do that as a regular eight-hour-a-day job. I'd go crazy. BUT... it does feel good to be writing every day, even if only an hour or two. I'm thinking of my post-NaNo writing strategy. I want to focus on songwriting, but I was also thinking of setting a one-fiction-contest-entry-per-day (week?) goal to keep developing my fiction skills. A songwriting contest would be cool. Does one exist, or am I going to have to create it myself? Moving and Renovation  Move crap out of the garage: One load taken to Goodwill.  I can fit a lot of boxes in my Jeep-with-a-capital-JUNK. Move crap out of the studio: No activity since the first load, but this will come in droves with the renovation this week. I'm also sort of waiting to hang holiday decorations, since that's half the junk that needs to move around/out/somewhere besides in the middle of the back-room-which-shall-be-a-computer-lab. Renovation: Starts tomorrow!Knitting: No activity. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. Um, 23-something. We're officially closed for Thanksgiving Break (one week), so I'm sorta kinda technically on vacation. Except I'm moving, renovating, going to see a teacher's recital tomorrow, decorating for the holidays, etc. etc.Speaking of the holidays, I'll be roasting my first bird this year. Wish me luck. And if I'm an utter failure, you'll never know unless I tell you. Or unless someone else who tries the bird tells you. But if anyone did that, I'd have to kill him. Writing: Blog at MT.com by the end of the month:  30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: N/A in November. 2,000 NaNoWriMo words per day: Ahead of goal at 39k.Count points: No. |
| My NaNo outline just underwent another revision. I'm such an organization junkie. And the plot is advancing nicely. I'm happy with the story. I'm also happy with my progress, but I'd like to catch up my word count. I'm at 33k, and my target by the end of today is 36k. Moving and Renovation Rent a storage garage: Move crap out of the garage: No activity, but I plan to go over today after playing at the Mexican restaurant and grab a load. Move crap out of the studio: Got a couple totes out yesterday. That's about half, not including the stage, which requires Keith's help and the trailer. Renovation: Starts Sunday!Knitting: I worked on it last night, but it hurt my wrists, so I stopped early. Keith is out tonight, so I won't work on it then. Maybe tomorrow night. Maybe I'll give up this hobby and donate all my yarn to charity, because I value the use of my hands for other things. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. Well, we invoiced on the 15th, so we've started to see some December withdrawals. Enrollments are still climbing, too. Net 235 today.Writing: Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: N/A in November. 2,000 NaNoWriMo words per day: 11/18 target is 36k. I'm at 33k this morning.Count points: 9 I've been so bad. And I'm having some crampy pains today, and we both overslept. So we didn't walk. But food for today: (2) Coffee (2) Yogurt (5) Granola bars |
Moving and Renovation Rent a storage garage: They're going to make me call or stop by.  Just sign me up over email, already. Move crap out of the garage: No activity. Move crap out of the studio: No activity. Renovation: Starts Sunday!Knitting: Tonight and tomorrow! I will knit a little doggy bell ribbon. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 237, up three since yesterday. Writing: Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: This goal steps aside in November for the one below  2,000 NaNoWriMo words per day: Still catching up. I have 3,381 to write today to meet my 11/16 target of 32,000 words. Count points: 11 (so far)(-2) Morning walk/jog (2) Coffee (4) Crackers (7) Party Mix |
| NaNo'ers, today officially begins the second half of November, 2012. (Hint: you should be past 25,000 words by now.) Moving and Renovation Rent a storage garage: Sent email requesting the one I want. It was hard work. Move crap out of the garage: No activity. Move crap out of the studio: No activity. Renovation: Starts Sunday!Knitting: Planned for tomorrow and Thursday evenings in front of the tube with Keith. Yes, this one is actually still a tube. I realize they're rare. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 234.Writing: Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Done!* 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: This goal steps aside in November for the one below 2,000 NaNoWriMo words per day: Catching up. I'm now only 2,159 words behind.* I delegated this to an awesome teenage student who needed a project to boost her self-confidence. She did a GREAT job! I may ask her to do it again, if she's willing.  Count points: No, damn it. I swear I will soon. Tomorrow. Aw, hell. Today! Except starting now because I lost track, prolly around the time I ate tortilla chips for lunch topped with an afternoon snack of more leftover Coldstone ice cream. |
| It's time to re-evaluate my goals. I didn't even add my daily NaNo word count goal to my blog the first of November; while I publicly track that on WDC and NaNo's website, this blog is where I hold myself accountable. I also have two impending moves converging at the end of this month: (1) I'm closing on my house and need to get my stuff out, and (2) we're renovating the studio and need to get some stuff out. Both moves require storage garage rental and scheduling movers or a bunch of stout friends. And third, I started a knitting project: I'm making a bell door hanger for Sammy so he can let us know when he needs to go potty at the school. So without further ado, I announce my newest goals: Moving and Renovation Rent a storage garage: Got email quotes and ready to sign a lease. Plan to stop by on my way to work, maybe, if I get moving on time this morning (i.e., NOW.) I also need to purchase a padlock, and preferably one that's resistant to bolt cutters. Despite the gated location, I'm nervous about theft; I experienced a theft from another gated storage facility once. Soon after that, hail and wind damage took out the roof of my house, and then State Farm dropped me for two homeowner claims in a thirteen-year period. *kicks State Farm* Move crap out of the garage: Furniture and appliance donations complete. One more load of trash to the street this week. Need storage for the rest, and as soon as I sign that lease and get access, I'll start taking a (small) load over every day on my way home from work. Move crap out of the studio: Pending storage and acquisition of color-coded tubs. Our receptionist, Karen, had this cute idea to get an orange tub for Halloween decorations, red for Christmas, pink for Valentine's Day, green for St. Patty's Day, blue for July 4th, and of course purple for everything else (the official Michelle Tuesday color. But I couldn't find colored storage tubs in singles anywhere on the Internet. So I handed her the reigns. Delegation is so fun. Renovation: Keith and Roy, a studio dad, have been talking about demolition of the window display. Karen's husband Brian is working on a custom-built desk idea for the new computer lab. We have conflicting issues: Practicality of Use versus Code versus Maximization of Capacity. I can't find a ready-to-use desk that's big enough to hold a laptop and a mouse but small enough in width to leave a code-friendly exit path and small enough in depth to fit five lab stations along the west wall. But, damn it, my custom dimensions are perfect, and I'm tired of being told by my construction-savvy helpers that custom-built desks aren't an option. What they mean is, *they* can't personally build custom desks that will look nice.Knitting: Not today. This is a good thing to do in front of the TV with Keith, because for some reason it's less offensive and anti-social than sitting on my laptop in front of the TV. Since I work tonight and tomorrow night, this will happen Wednesday. It should be a quick, easy project. It's like a ribbon ten stitches wide, although I'm using tiny needles, so it is taking awhile to grow length. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 234.Writing: Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Pending. 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: This goal steps aside in November for the one below 2,000 NaNoWriMo words per day: Pending and behind, so 4,000 goal for today.Count points: No, and Keith pointed out that I'm an utter failure in this, since we made a deal. I was supposed to start counting if he quit smoking, which he did, like a year ago.  Therefore, I'm proud to report that I had three cups of coffee (so far) at a point apiece, a small handful of mixed nuts (2 points) and my leftover ice cream from Coldstone. Delish breakfast, and loaded with protein. I will continue to report on my food consumption throughout the day.Total so far today: 9 (3) Coffee (2) Nuts (4) Leftover Coldstone ice cream concoction (about 3/4 cup) And in other goal-related news, I would like new bedding and a new car. "New, bigger house" is also on the list, but we're realistic. |
| Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 234 and climbing. Writing: (1)  Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Not yet.(2) 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: Yes, indeed. Still not caught up, but no further behind. I hope to write an additional 2k today and catch up to my 11/13 target of 26,000. We have a gymnastics meet later today. That's great writing fodder - incredibly boring between the parts where *our* kid performs.Count points: Nope. And we went to the Japanese steakhouse for dinner in honor of the boy's birthday yesterday. Lots-o-calories. Especially in the aptly-named Yum Yum Sauce. |
| He's 41 today, so the "big one" was last year (and how ironic that he barely beat his 41st birthday to have his first heart attack scare at 40?) Blood pressure and cholesterol meds, healthier eating choices (sometimes), daily morning walks and a switch to half-caff (which in itself might cause my first heart attack scare) are our first steps toward a modified lifestyle. In fact, yesterday's walk included a short jog. We do plan on walking/jogging this morning, but in honor of Keith's birthday, we'll be setting aside our healthy eating habits and gorging ourselves at our favorite local Japanese steakhouse. Here's to overeating! It may be the boy's birthday, but I still have to work all day: music school from 9-2 and praise band from 3-5, which makes Saturday my longest official workday of the week, at a whopping - gasp - eight hours. I'm looking forward to the week after next, because the school is closed for Thanksgiving - one of our four annual week-long closings. Sadly, instead of vacationing, we'll be renovating. Which is good! but not vacation. Thank God for Christmas. I mean because of Jesus, of course, and not because of a second week-long closing. Okay, maybe I mean a little bit because of a second week-long closing. NaNo News: I'm supposed to be at 22,000 by the end of yesterday and 24,000 by the end of today. My current word count is 21,728. I'm a little distracted by an impending home sale closing - sorting through a garage full of stuff for donation/keep/trash always takes longer than you allocate. And with work and birthday stuff going on today, I'm not sure if today will be my catch-up day. Also, I'm stuck in a super-long chapter. It's not that I'm rambling, really, I mean I'm not saying the same things over and over again or rewording myself in some boring manner that just makes the whole chapter seem to go on forever for readers who got the point that I was trying to make pages and pages ago... Sorry. I think this chapter was underdeveloped in my outline. So while the plot and characters continue to grow, I need new chapter headings and possibly a plan to get me to the next chapter in my outline, and it's slowing me down. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 234.Writing: (1) Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: PENDING.(2) 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: YES, and I've kept up with my 750Words.com challenge, but I'm behind my NaNo goal.Count points: Nope. I think I'm just praying that fat decides on its own to melt off of my body. |
| Gah. I have a teacher out with a fever and may need to sub if I can't find someone. I have to sing at Senor Patron at lunch today (hopefully a big crowd due to the holiday!) Tomorrow is Keith's birthday, so I need to shop. And I need to stop at a storage place, check out their pricing and possibly hire them, and apparently move a bunch of stuff out of the garage at my house before tomorrow, because volunteers are coming to pick up some furniture we decided to donate. It seems like a lot, but it's probably not. It just feels that way because several of the to-do items landed on my plate in the last fifteen minutes. Stupid smart phone. Remember back in the eighties when we only had answering machines, and you could screen your calls, and there was no Internet or texting? Remember when you could hide under the covers and pretend - sorry - I'm nowhere near any kind of communication device, so you're out of luck? Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 233. C'mon 250!Writing: (1) Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Pending.(2) 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: Not yet, and I have 3k to write today. All I managed yesterday was my 750Words.com entry.Count points: No. A friend told me that the new weight watchers program allows you to eat all the fruits and veggies you want. That might be a good option for me, because I like mindless snacking. Yesterday, I ate/drank three cups of coffee, one fiber granola bar and one Nutrigrain bar in the morning, a shitload of candy all day, and then two tacos and half an order of chips/guacamole from Chipotle. That's pretty good, right?  But this morning, Keith and I added a leg of jogging to our walking path. Right now, the path is 1.1 miles, a quarter mile of which we're jogging. We're slowly building up to normal-people exercise.  |
| This article makes me want to write 90,000 words instead of 50,000. 90,000 is a good, symmetrical number for one month. At my current daily goal of 2k, I'll write 60k, which also has nice symmetry, but isn't as long as 90k. I may target 3k per day next year. In fact, can we do this again before next November? One per year just isn't enough. NaNo is wicked fun. And post-Christmas-stuck-in-snowdrifts January is so boring. I did plan on dedicating December to songwriting, though. And Prep is half the fun. Maybe Prep in January and write in February? It's a leap year!!! I could write 87,000 words. But wait, we're EDITING in February. Okay, fine. Prep in December, then JaNoWriMo? I need to plan out 2012. GOAL: Publication Before Devastation !All these "fun" writing projects interfere with my paid freelance writing. But since I just started earning (a little bit of) money at work, and since we skyrocketed to 234 students in the last week, maybe I don't need the freelance work anymore. On the other hand, it might be good for my writing resume. Now that I'm doing it again, I remembered I enjoy writing and might consider it for a future career choice. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 234 and probably not going to reach  that goal. Why did I have that goal again? It was 300 originally, which is ridiculous, but even 275 is a stretch. Based on last year, we grew by 200 in 12 months (roughly Oct. 1 - Oct. 1), which is about 50 every quarter. So 250 by the end of December is more in line with history. I must be some kind of overachiever to think I could reach 300 *or* 275 by 12/31. But at our current rate, we'll probably exceed 250. That would be nice, because I get a sweet pay raise at 250 students.Writing: (1) Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Pending.(2) 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: Indeed, and thank you, NaNoWriMo and 750Words.com.Count points: O.M.G. What is the matter with me?? Stupid Halloween. I've gained three pounds in the last two weeks or so, despite walking a mile every morning (which, at 170 -excuse me, 173- pounds, is more work than it was at 145 pounds.) The walking is good and gives me energy. The eating habits will change. What's with my cycling ambition? I floundered for like a month, and now I'm ready to take on the world. I accomplished several long-term to-do list items yesterday. Wait a minute... cycling ambition... sudden attack of productivity yesterday... walking every morning for a week now... coincidence? Damn. I hate exercise. I hate that the evidence of its value is right in my face. |
First, I think I'm in love.  Evernote Second, today kicks off Week 2 of NaNoWriMo 2011. I've discovered - after Prepping this novel - that my work is in three acts sandwiched between a prologue and an epilogue. Nice, except that Part 1 is wayyyy too short. And I'm about to start Part 3 - at about 15k words. Don't get me wrong; Part 3 will probably be a hefty chunk. But what happens during NaNo when you realize you need more meat ten chapters ago? It's not editing, exactly, but it's not Express-Train-Full-Speed-Ahead-To-The-Finish-Line writing, either. I need to regroup, adjust my outline and think. Lucky for me, I don't work until this afternoon. But I shorted yesterday's word count and only just caught up, so I have another 1,500 words to go today. Which I'll write after outlining. Because I'm already outlining. I'm a NaNo Rebel and proud. And I reserve the write to change my mind about my novel format. I am, after all, the author. Moving on to my daily blog template, which I snagged from Evernote in the wake of Google Notebook's Bad News. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 231! Chugging along. November was a big enrollment month for us last year. I have no idea why.Writing: (1) Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Pending.(2) 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: This is a stupid goal during NaNo.Count points: Well, no. And I think I've gained two or three more pounds. But amazingly, I feel better, possibly because of our daily morning walks. |
| I just got used to keeping track of my entire life with Google Notebook, which replaced my color-coded collection of notebooks I used to carry in my purse. Now Google is discontinuing Notebook. There goes my to-do list, blog templates, song lists, worship planning, work task inventory, personnel notes, writing inspiration, ongoing work projects, and miscellaneous contact information for potential gigs and other work-related contacts. Bleh. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 228.Writing: (1) Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Pending.(2) 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: Exceeded expectations. Over 2,000 at 750Words.com, NaNo word count 12,068.Count points: I figure I'm doing so well on my other goals, why waste time on this one?? Haha except I've been doing better since the hospital incident. We've walked the last two mornings, and I've been eating healthier. A little. But not counting. |
| I spent the night in a hospital with Keith. Turns out that first EKG, the "abnormal" one that prompted the urgent care nurse to call an ambulance and send Keith to the hospital complete with a dose of nitro, was fine after all. The AI overreacted in its interpretation of the chart, which in turn made the nurse overreact. The cardiologists at the hospital read the faxed copy of the original EKG and suggested that a review of the actual - you know - data might have revealed that the computer misread a little noise. But the results of four blood tests, half a dozen vitals checks and about a dozen additional EKGs were all swimmingly normal. Well, he does have elevated cholesterol and blood pressure, which he'll control with low dosages of medications, diet and exercise. Look out, folks. I may be changing my diet and exercise habits in the very near future. And that is likely to make me very cranky. I only wrote 755 words yesterday (just enough to clear the daily threshold at 750Words.com.) Luckily, I'd gotten a little ahead on Days 1 and 2. But I'd wanted to get a little more ahead on Day 3. So there will be some catching up this afternoon and weekend. After a really long nap. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 228. Fifty more in less than two months might be a stretch. I need a promotion, I think.Writing: (1) Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Pending.(2) 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: Only 755 words yesterday (goal: 2,000), and none so far today.Count points: Um... no, but... gah. |
| Because of my self-imposed scroll ban, I can't brag there about my new Merit Badge. So I'll brag here: It has duckies! Best Buy for Business is being stupid. I ordered two new laptops for our computer lab, which I received promptly via delivery service - like maybe two days later. Now a month and a half has gone by, and I still can't use them. Why? Because the key codes I need for the antivirus software, which are delivered instantaneously via email, have still not arrived. So I've decided to buy my own damn antivirus software and make them refund the software purchase. I need to schedule someone to repair or replace a window in my house before we close sale (OMG YAY) on 11/30. It was on the home inspector's list - a little 24"x24" basement window has a cracked pane. So I get this postcard in the mail from Lowe's: $99 installation on windows!! And the windows run around $100 (I saw them on the website ranging from like $79 - $129.) So, I'm decent at math. I figure that's a total of around $200 to meet this requirement. ($100 window + $100 installation = $200.) I get a quote from the guy at Lowe's (after mentioning that I had this ad) - $99 is just for the installation of the window. It doesn't include: 1. removing the old window, (I'm not kidding) 2. finishing/making pretty the house around the outside of the window, (still not kidding) 3. finishing/making pretty the house around the inside of the window, and (God's honest truth) 4. obtaining a city permit to do the work. (to replace a window in kind?) Grand total (including the most expensive window, of course - he didn't mention the $79 window): $450.   That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. Even more stupid than expediting laptops and taking your sweet old time to email software codes to make the laptops usable. Needless to say, we won't be scheduling our window repair through Lowes. Moving on. Today I need to: 1. NaNo (because I slept through my 5:30-6:30am designating NaNo'ing time), 2. Install my own antivirus software on two lab computers, and 3. Obtain quotes for window or glass pane replacement, ...in addition to reconciling business accounts. So, do any of you struggle with overeating? And, if you do, do you ever eat everything in sight trying to satisfy some elusive craving that you can't identify? Okay, so maybe it's just me. But I discovered that I struggle with the same psychosis with productivity. For the last several weeks, I've been blah, not really wanting to do anything, feeling like I have a big long to-do list that I'm avoiding, doing a bunch of other random stuff to satisfy some need to complete something, and yet, feeling baffled when I re-read my to-do list and find it's actually very short. I found my productivity craving yesterday. Turns out I haven't reconciled the business account since September 6th - a task I normally assign myself weekly. You know. So it won't get out of control. Therefore, today, I will reconcile accounts until they're caught up, and then I expect to feel much better. And then I'll walk across the parking lot to Dunkin Donuts and get a blueberry cake donut. Or sausage pancake bites. Or maybe a plate of shrimp tempura from Mr. Sushi. Or cheesy garlic bread from Romeo's pizza on the other side of the parking lot. Or some tortilla chips from the teacher's lounge. |
| OMG, by some odd twist of sanity, I find myself writing a mystery/suspense/thriller. *outside of my comfort zone* Been sickish and crabby. Always good for relationships with friends, employees and family. But Nyquil is my friend - and by Nyquil I mean the generic stuff behind the Walgreens pharmacy counter, because Procter & Gamble doesn't make Nyquil D (aka "the good stuff") anymore.Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 227.Writing: (1) Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Yes for October. Pending for November.(2) 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: Um... most definitely.Count points: I can't tell you how much Halloween candy, ice cream, cake and other junk I've eaten. I've got the munchies so bad. I think it has to do with my compulsive need to be productive. I'm a human - what can be more productive than eating and drinking? |
I HAVE BEEN BANNED FROM SCROLL FOR THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER. Now that we have that urgent bulletin out of the way, let's move on to the less pressing news. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 227.5. This morning, I established a monthly pay heck for myself.Writing: (1) Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Caught up through Sept. Still owe for Oct. GAH. MUST BE DONE BEFORE NANO. Today would be good, but I have church, and then more church, and then a Halloween party at the music school later today.(2) 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: Yep. 750 Words, which was interspersed with general bitching about the dog, my schedule and my cold.Count points: (2) Four cups of coffee and counting, thanks to nasal congestion. I should switch to tea. I mean if I keep drinking all this coffee, I might go insane. Or I might drive other people insane. Kinda like my dog drives me insane. Kinda like this weather is driving me insane. I can't believe it's November already. It's so cold out. The holiday music will probably start on Tuesday. At the stores, I mean. If I went to the stores. Which I don't. I mean I do sometimes. But as little as possible. *switches to decaf* I started this, and I need help populating the data. Your assistance is much appreciated. I think Storm Machine  has all my daily update emails except 2010 (?) So if you have those, please let me know.
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| I can't figure out what the trigger was. I had clear, defined goals. Then... I started achieving them. And now? I don't know what I want. I'm not sure if it's because my business is more successful than I dreamed it would be, so instead of vision, I focus on mundane tasks. Or maybe it was the introduction of Sammy, our now eight-month-old puppy, into the household and my daily schedule. Maybe it was picking up an extra service at church and a new gig at the Mexican place, which fulfilled my needs for performance and income. But whatever the trigger, my give-a-shit has fizzled. This is one of those entries I expect will bore the poop out of readers. It would bore me. I wouldn't even post it, except that I'd like to document it for my memoirs (or my therapist?) when I'm rich and famous. I figure someone is going to want to see the highs and lows involved in becoming a superstar. Maybe future flounders will read this segment of my saga and think: Shit, if she could feel that way and still be the wealthiest, smartest, most well-known celebrity in the world, then maybe my own blahs aren't the end of the world. Even in lethargy I'm an ambitious, overachieving egotist. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 227.5. I'm delighted with that, because it means that not only do we have a receptionist, but I start earning a (little bitty) salary! And when we get to 250, I get even more , so that's good. Writing: (1) Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Caught up through Sept. Still owe for Oct. OMG, I need to just buckle down and write a flippin' blog post. I don't know why I'm so allergic to this task.(2) 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: I wrote over 2,100 words at 750Words.com today. Count points: Hell no. Shut up. I've decided I have a love-hate relationship with Adele. She both rocks and sucks. |
| It's highly underrated. I left my laptop power supply at work, and the battery is of course dead. Now, back in the old days, we would shrug and do something else, like watch TV, do the laundry, or read a book. Or heaven forbid, go for a walk or something. I'm addicted to technology. The fam gets on me all the time for having a PC permanently glued to my lap. And today, after finding myself laptopless, I first went down to the (dungeon) teenager's room and tried to use the old desktop. That worked for a bit, but unlike the teen, I know a little about old desktops. It's been slow. Well, turns out the master drive is an old drive Keith threw in to salvage his photos and music files, and his slave drive is the original (huge and mostly empty) hard drive that came with the computer. Remember master and slave drives? So I'm opening up the computer, unplugging hard drives, tried switching them, unplugging one and then the other, switching the data cable (remember ribbon cables?), and rebooting between each sequence. No luck. Ah... the jumpers. But I have to remove and disassemble the hard drive compartment to read the labels on the drives... And I realize I'm doing all this just to get online, blog, check the school schedule in Google docs, update the October prep forum, update the spreadsheet and web page, write my 750 words, write my own prep exercises, send out close out email with an apology for missing yesterday, logging into quickbooks and chase and reconciling accounts, and finding subs and rescheduling teachers. Hard drives and jumpers were really standing in my way; there had to be a better way. So now I'm on the 10 year old's Acer tablet, which is like an ipad knock off. The virtual keyboard is a pain in the ass. I can't even open scroll. Can't type fast enough to do 750 words without possibly losing out on my cheetah badge, which I'm one entry away from winning. Prep updates are out of the question; I can't even figure out how to highlight text let alone copy/paste. And yet, here I am blogging on this stupid thing. It just goes to show you how addicted to technology I am. In fact, I'm thinking that after I fold the laundry and take the dog for a walk (two tasks I wouldn't even be doing if my laptop were operational), I think I'll just head in to work six hours early so I can get some shit done. And tonight? I shall remember my power supply when I return home. |
| Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. 224! But we still need four more students to start this week in order to meet our October goals. Meanwhile, our new receptionist started a day early (Saturday), so, yay, we have a receptionist! Writing: (1) Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Caught up through Sept. Still owe for Oct, and it's getting close to the end of October.(2) 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: Not yet today, but the day's not over. I've written at 750Words.com every day this month. I'm on a 28-day streak and shooting for 30 so I can get the next streak badge. I'm also shooting for the "Cheetah" badge, which I should earn the same day (tomorrow).Count points: Not technically, but my weekend wasn't too horrible since Keith and Abby were out of town for a gymnastics meet. I ate my typical snacks and avoided the meals that I'm usually compelled to eat with the fam. I'm not sure how I went five days without checking in. We're seven days from NaNo, which of course I intend to try this year after spending time prepping the book. We started a new worship service at church yesterday, for which I'm the worship leader, and that has taken a lot of time (and still has a lot of kinks.) I've had several gigs (one wedding, one funeral, a Halloween party, and two days so far at the Mexican restaurant, which hired me to play once a week.) I had to practice for some of that. And I've started researching how to create a nonprofit for my scholarship program, which I will implement with the support of the local school district. All in all, a productive month, but I do sometimes wonder the purpose of some of my goals. Maybe I'm too much of an overachiever. |
| Sammy is at the vet. I have a feeling he's not going to like as much tonight as he did this morning. We're starting a new worship service on Sunday mornings, and I'm in charge of the music. This Sunday is the first one. Also, the Mexican place hired me to play every Friday. So new job-ish stuff. Meanwhile, we're at 224 students and have our receptionist lined up, so my responsibilities at work have decreased. I'm tired because I keep waking at 5:00 AM, not because I'm overworked. Maybe the dog will sleep more now that we've surgically removed his aggression. Reach 275 students at MTMS by 12/31/11. It looks like 226, but we have a couple November withdrawals to process. It's probably still 222.Writing: (1) Blog at MT.com by the end of the month: Pending for October.(2) 30 minutes of daily freestyle writing: Damn, I haven't written my 750 Words yet. I've been at church all day working on worship planning and waiting to hear back about Sammy. I've also been working on my business database *again* but I never get anywhere. I always hit a wall, and the next time I get the inclination to start it back up, I start over.Count points: I've had three donuts and two cups of coffee. That's breakfast and lunch, and I have no idea how many points. |
| I need SEVEN more "likes" for my music school's Facebook page to reach 200. So if I don't have your "like" already: https://www.facebook.com/MichelleTuesdayMusicSchool Much love. By the way, to all of you who "liked" my status yesterday about the Mexican restaurant, they hired me. So thank you, thank you, thank you!!! for your help. |
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