photo credit: @markusspiske via Unsplash
It’s been (quite) a while since I took stock. The months are just flying by. I honestly don’t know how it’s September. Where did this year go?
Demerits
- Feedly. It’s been on and off again. I have no logical explanation for why it’s working for a while and then it’s not. I apologize for this inconsistency. I am not sure if it’s a Feedly problem (although I know that other blogs seem to be affected at times), or a hosting problem, but despite serious efforts, I still have not been able to sort this out yet. (I think it’s working now, so fingers crossed it stays this way.)
- The state of my kitchen table. Engie recently shared things about her home (I loved that post!) and asked why the dining room table becomes the landing pad for every random piece of mail/business/shopping/to-do list item, and I’d like to ask the same regarding our kitchen table. I swear I try to keep it clutter-free, but I am not doing a good enough job and I am constantly moving things around. I need to set up a better filing system elsewhere.
- Not spending enough time in our backyard this summer. I’m not sure if you want to call this a demerit, but it makes me sad. I did not put any effort into our backyard this year. I didn’t plant anything (because I was traveling in April and May during the time I would usually set up the garden) and then it was so hot that I didn’t want to spend any more time outside than absolutely necessary. I did clean up our patio set up and got out the umbrella, and I think we might have had dinner out there twice, but didn’t do much else to make the yard inviting and I am a bit disappointed in myself.
- Screen time. I’ve been scrolling way too much in the evenings lately. I am pulled into the abyss of recipe and IKEA hacks reels (and now I want a makeover of our whole home!). It’s such a nice distraction. I feel that I am getting some worth out of it but at the same time, I lament that I didn’t open my Kindle App to read instead. Sigh. I know I can fix this.
Gold Stars
- Wardrobe purge. A few weeks ago, I pulled everything out of my closet and started sorting. I knew that once I had everything spread out on our bed, I’d have to go through it and clear the bed before bedtime. Do you trick yourself into doing things like this? In the end, I only spent maybe 2 hours of my time and got two big bags of clothing (one to donate, one to toss) out of my closet. I felt so accomplished. (Now I have to go through my footwear. I started with donating some of my retired, but in-good-condition running shoes recently.)
- Reorganization of my desk/work area. I have a fairly small desk and it gets cluttered up quickly, but I rearranged a few things (to make it more functional) and have a little bit more room to put things down (e.g. my coffee cup and my notebook).
- Marathon training. That is a huge gold star for me. As you know, I am no stranger to (almost) daily workouts and you know I stick to my routines, but running five days a week is kind of new for me and it’s been an adjustment. But I am in week 7 of marathon training and have been able to hit all training sessions every week. I thrive on sticking to a plan.
- Communication. One of my biggest pet peeves is poor communication and while nobody is immune from making mistakes, I am trying really hard to be a good communicator, especially at work. Few things drive me more crazy than people not responding to meeting invites, emails, or requests. I’ve been working on timely responses and answering every and all questions in emails from colleagues.
- Hunting down European plums at the Farmers Market. Once a year, I need to bake a German streusel plum cake. Need I say more?
How have things been going for you? Share a recent demerit and gold star with me!
Elisabeth
September 18, 2024 at 3:05 pmSo many amazing gold stars.
Scrolling is a consistent demerit for me, but sometimes I think it’s a good thing. It’s okay to let my mind wander on the internet. It’s a slippery slope, but I bet you make excellent use of your time and having some “mindless” scrolling of things that legitimately interest you (IKEA hacks are SO cool) is still activating your brain and engaging you?
Going through old clothes is one of my favourite ways to de-stress!
And the marathon training is incredible. So proud of you!
San
September 18, 2024 at 8:20 pmI think you’re right – some wandering on the Internet is allowed, even encouraged, as long as we keep an eye on it ;)
Nicole MacPherson
September 18, 2024 at 3:20 pmThose are some great gold stars! I love a wardrobe purge.
My garden has been a huge gold star this year. I now have pumpkins and butternut squash to harvest. It’s been so much fun and I am actually seeing the difference in our grocery bills. Maybe not enough to make up for the actual cost of building the garden but hey, those are sunk costs.
Demerit…I was feeling very impatient with some people last weekend and I really should have been better about that.
San
September 18, 2024 at 8:20 pmOh you’re garden is definitely a gold star – I am living vicariously through you, my friend, you’ve been doing such an amazing job!
Meike
September 18, 2024 at 10:31 pmMaybe next year will be a better garden year for your outside space? I would have liked more time relaxing in the backyard but I spend a fair amount cleaning it up. I am so impressed by your Marathon Training. I did sign up for Fitness classes and I would give myself a foldstar for that. I realized I need the commitment of signing up at a specific time and not being able to back out of it.
San
September 21, 2024 at 2:37 pmThis is great. If you know that signing up for a class will get you to stick to your exercise routine then that’s the right thing to do!
coco
September 18, 2024 at 10:58 pmour dining table is a lego stationary, 1/4 of the table, and I’ve given up telling lizzy to put them somewhere else.
Both wardrobe purge and cleaning up the desk would feel rewarding for me too. I do it once every 1-2 months, especially for the girls to get rid of clothes that don’t fit anymore. I like to declutter too, few minutes per day, and gives me some small accomplishment feelings.
oh on luteal phase training. From what I’ve read, it doesn’t impact all women, but I know it affects me for sure, either because it takes me longer to cool down as basal temperature is higher, or just generally lower energy. I also sleep less in those days, although not every month. You can write it down for few months to observe your personal pattern. It’s useful to know so you don’t feel like you’ve lost fitness.
San
September 21, 2024 at 2:39 pmHaha, I am glad to hear other people’s dining room tables are also clutter magnets ;)
It’s great that you figured out that you’re affected during your luteal phase. I read a book about female training and working with our hormons/cycles and it’s fascinating to me! Definitely something to pay attention to!
NGS
September 19, 2024 at 8:46 amI have officially broken up with Feedly. They don’t treat you right, so they don’t get me as a user!
Gold star: I did recently declutter one of the totes under the guest room bed. I’ve only had it on my to-do list for 21 months.
Demerit: The dog was sick yesterday and I worked at home to care for her/clean up the disaster area she created and I didn’t really get any work done OR even manage to fit in a workout for myself. Boo. I prioritized badly.
San
September 21, 2024 at 2:40 pmHave I told you how much I love that you have an old school blog roll now? :)
Oh, I just read your post about Hannah being sick…. I am so sorry you had to deal with this. I’d say that cleaning up the mess was your workout.
Melissa
September 19, 2024 at 11:34 pmYour posts seem to be coming through to me fairly regularly at the moment so maybe half a star for feedly? Your marathon training is going so well and good job on the wardrobe purge.
I am currently sitting at my dining table, which is also our kitchen table and it has my computer, empty packages from my new iPhone, my normal glasses, my iPad, my glass of water, a puzzle we’ve finished, another one that’s half done, a shopping bag with tights in that I bought this morning, pen, cookbook, G’s iPad, fruit bowl with two lonely apples, journal, camino travel book, some receipts and two pieces of mail that my daughter was supposed to take home with her. Demerit points for me too! My desk is also a demerit for me. The table will clean up pretty quickly but I need to get stuck into my desk.
Gold star is updating our wills, POA’s and ICOD file.
San
September 21, 2024 at 2:41 pmYes, Feedly has been working for me again for a little while… so fingers crossed it stays this way! (Thanks for the feedback, btw, it’s good to know it’s been working for you too!).
Haha, I am so glad to hear that I am not the only one with a cluttered dining/kitchen table :)
Tobia | craftaliciousme
September 20, 2024 at 11:41 pmCongrats on all the gold stars.
I am craving streusel cake and I think I am going to bake one this weekend. Still discussing if plum or apple. That would be my gold star.
Demerit. Screen time. Just last night I spend 2 hours watching reels. Why? I wanted to read. Sigh…
San
September 21, 2024 at 2:41 pmI think you should have some streusel cake PRONTO :)
I don’t even like reels that much and have been sucked into watching them, too. Ugh. Why?
Tobia | craftaliciousme
September 22, 2024 at 3:34 amWell, I made streusel cake with apples and it’s amazing. Will have two pieces today because it’s Sunday.
And no social media for me today so half a demerit I guess.
Lisa’s Yarns
September 21, 2024 at 7:33 amI think you can defer that backyard demerit and really enjoy your backyard this fall when it’s not quite so hot!
Demerit is not making the best choices when eating out while traveling. Did I really need that glass of wine or those fries? My gold star is training for and running my 10 mile race.
San
September 21, 2024 at 2:42 pmDon’t be too hard on yourself, Lisa. Eating out when you travel is a convenience and an excuse to have something that you usually don’t eat/drink on a regular basis. ;)
Congrats again on your 10-miler, you ran such a good race!
Stephany
September 21, 2024 at 8:30 amLots of great gold stars! Sometimes I do love a good mindless scroll, especially when it’s not something that is going to bring me down, like scrolling political posts lol.
Demerit: Letting a mean comment get to me, sigh
Gold star: Getting through the hardest HIIT class I’ve done so far. I’m proud of myself for keeping up with the more “fit” people!
San
September 21, 2024 at 2:43 pmI am sorry that the comment on your blog affected you in a negative way. It happens sometimes and I hope you are over it now.
I am so proud of your for going to the HIIT classes and making such great progress there. It sounds like your coach really knows how to move you forward!
Sara
September 22, 2024 at 1:47 pmI’m a demerit on the kitchen table as well!! If you come up with a system, I want to know about it! :) I’m stumped on my gold star – I guess I have to give myself credit for surviving a crazy work week that involved cross-country travel and a red-eye flight from LAX-DC with relative ease and a positive attitude. I went to bed when I needed to (early) and managed to do a pretty good job staying healthy during that trip, too.