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| PNW winter |
I’m singing the winter blues while I look forward to
the comfort and warmth of mild spring weather. The idea of spring seems far-reaching
when temps in the PNW continue to hold fast to flat-out bone-chilling cold and
we are teased with a few days of sunshine only to get blasted with a blanket of
snow again.
Getting out for walks with Jozee is a highlight for me, and
we were treated to a few days of beautiful weather last month and the end of
January when we were able to enjoy parks and lake and river walks, even if it
was a little cold. The sun on your face helps you ignore the cooler temps.
But I’m seriously ready for spring and warmer weather, even
if it means rain.
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| Jozee on a river walk |
In the meantime, while I dream of hikes on sunny days, I’m
working on my book projects...
My young adult is coming along while I continue to write and
also while I work through notes and pages first typed years ago – it’s
interesting when I can see the difference in my writing (then versus now) and
can make changes based on what I’ve learned since I first began writing the
book.
My new series has also received my attention and I have a
list of projects to complete now that I’ve mapped out what I want to do with
the series. I’m excited to start checking those items off of my task list.
In addition to my writing projects, I’ve also focused on a
couple of other projects…
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| Therapy dog training |
Jozee and I have begun some new training. I’m currently taking
classes to become certified as a therapy dog handler and she’s taking classes
to prepare her for testing to become a therapy dog. My classes will be complete
later this month and her classes go into next month, after which we’ll complete
a test together as a team. If we pass, we’ll begin visiting at a nearby
hospital a couple of times a month. If we aren’t able to pass the initial test,
it’ll mean some additional training and another test in six months. It’s not
all bad, as that would mean Jozee would be older (closer to 2 years) and I’ll
have shadowed other handlers to learn better skills. Either way, we’ll get
there and eventually take part in the rewarding experience of visiting hospital
patients.
This time of year is when resolutions from the New Year
begin to fizzle and I’ve noticed a swarm of posts and worksheets or e-course offers
from bloggers and writers about how to avoid procrastination, increase
productivity, find an ideal routine and prioritize priorities in order to stay
on task. Since I’m a writer and not immune to procrastination or self-sabotage,
I read some posts and took advantage of some of the worksheets and a few e-courses.
While I have my 90-day plan for my writing projects, which helps me review my
goals in an attempt to stay on task, I never thought about a 90-day plan for my
personal life. In my review, I realized I haven’t been solidly on task and that
my work/life balance isn’t really balanced, possibly because I’m working from
home and sometimes those lines are just too easily blurred.
The month of March is going to be a month of learning, where
I’ll learn more about therapy dog training, more about myself as I work on the “ideal”
routine and more about my writing while I review and revise a project from the
past and get to know new characters as I piece together a completely new series.
These projects will keep me busy enough while I wait for the
break of winter when it finally gives the stage to spring.
What about you? What projects keep you busy during the cold
winter months?
Whatever the project may be, stay warm out there.
Until next time…
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