In an effort to hold myself accountable to my yearly goals, I post the progress made at the end of each month.
I’ve now passed the halfway point of the year, and to be completely honest, I am not pleased with my progress thus far. Goals that should have been completed long ago remain unfinished, and as a result, others are beginning to look less and less likely.
I’m not pleased.
1. Don’t die.
No one came even close to killing me last month.
2. Lose ten pounds.
Lost 5 pounds in the month of July. Unfortunately, I had added 10 pounds since January, so I am 15 pounds away from the goal. But at least I’m moving in the right direction now.
3. Do at least 100 push-ups and 100 sit-ups five days a day. Also complete at least two two-minute planks five days per week.
Done.
4. Practice the flute for at least an hour a week.
Flute still broken. Broken flute still in car.
5. Complete my fifth novel before the birth of my next child.
Not complete. I’m working hard, though. I promise.
6. Complete my sixth novel.
Looing forward to returning to my sixth (and seventh) novel after I manage to complete the fifth novel.
7. Sell one children’s book to a publisher.
I am struggling to find a clever end to a picture book. Once I do, it will be sent to the publisher for review. I am tempted to crowd source a clever ending because I’ve been pondering this problem for three weeks without any luck.
8. Complete the book proposal for my non-fiction, photographic collaborative project.
The novel and the memoir are simply taking precedence at time.
9. Complete three chapters of my memoir.
This project, which will be part of an overall proposal, will be completed this summer after the novel is finished.
10. Complete at least twelve blog posts on my brother and sister blog.
No posts in July. We remain stuck on three, and I have yet to get a laptop into my sister’s hands.
11. Become certified to teach high school English by completing two required classes.
I have located and registered for the first of two classes that I need, and it was the class that was considerably more difficult to find. I begin taking classes in the fall.
12. Publish at least one Op-Ed in a newspaper.
Same as the previous two months. I published a piece in Beyond the Margins in April, which is not exactly a newspaper but is a great place (and maybe even a better place) for an author to publish.
I still have two pieces currently in the pipeline with hopes of both finding their way into print soon. My editor and I are actually working on one this week. I also wrote a blog post last month that I chose to keep off the blog in hopes of placing it somewhere else as well.
So there’s plenty of potential.
13. Attend at least five Moth events with the intention of telling a story.
I competed in my third Moth event, a GrandSLAM championship, on July 17 at the Highline Ballroom in Manhattan. Details about the evening can be found here and here.
I plan on attending (and hopefully competing if my name is drawn) at two more Moth events this summer. They are:
Tuesday, August 14 (Theme: About Time)
Thursday, August 23 (Theme: Yin/Yang)
If you would like to attend either of these StorySLAMS with me, please let me know. I’m always looking for company.
14. Complete the necessary revisions of our rock opera (The Clowns) so that it can be staged as a full production in 2013.
Revisions are nearly complete. A local playhouse is very excited about producing the show, and the director and I met last week to discuss the revisions that are needed. We will be going to New York next month to cast the show, and we have actual dates for the performances at that I can share soon.
15. Rid Elysha and myself of all education debt before the end of the year.
Incremental progress has been made in July.
16. Give yoga an honest try.
I have a friend with some free classes who has offered to bring me to a lesson. I have yet to take her up on her offer.
17. Meditate for at least five minutes every day.
I mediated for five minutes a day on everyday in July, and it has become a surprisingly important part of my day. At this point it simply remains a means by which I clear my mind, but if that is all it ends up being, that might be okay.
18. Agree to try at least one new dish per month, even if it contains ingredients that I wouldn’t normally consider palatable.
In July I tried bruschetta, which I liked, and quinoa, which was okay.
19. Conduct the ninth No-Longer-Annual A-Mattzing Race in 2012.
The race is planned for the fall.
20. Post my progress in terms of these resolutions on this blog on the first day of every month.
Done.
