Things done: 0
Worked on: 27, 38, 45, 67, 71
When I considered coming up with these goals, I decided to seed it with a couple easy ones that could be knocked off in little time. One of those is 21: purchasing component cables for the wii. This has been on my to do list for months. Why I haven't done it yet is a mystery to me, but I put it on there to encourage myself to finally do it and give myself an easy win when I start to feel that my motivation is waning.
I tried not to make my list too easy, though. In writing about my goals, I knew that I would be inspired to reflect on the story behind them and the experience of getting them done and the feeling of satisfaction of completion. Some are obviously more inspirational than others, but that doesn't mean that the simple ones can't end up doing that, too. So, I tried to strike a balance. Too many easy ones means no reflection. Too many inspirational ones would be a lot of work before feeling any amount of accomplishment.
Lastly, I wanted to make sure that these were all possible. I kept in mind my own financial situation and the control I have over my life. If this were my dream list (maybe I need to write my top 10 dreams), I'd include a trip around the world. Unfortunately, my life doesn't accommodate that right now, so it was left off. We'll just have to wait for the year I'm independently wealthy and make goals.
This weekend I began the pursuit of completion and realized that there may be forces beyond me that will affect my ability to get through the list. It is hard to find out you aren't the center of the world (that was not on my list, please note). It turns out the geek craft night (number 67) hasn't been meeting for a couple of months. Quickly I jump to the internet and put out a message on the yahoo group where I found out about it. Someone responded expressing interest as well, but so far the organizer hasn't responded. Here is now a simple one (just show up one night at some location) that has just gotten more complicated. I'm hoping the original organizer will pick it up again- otherwise, I may need to figure out a way to fulfill this goal in another way. Maybe I should just show up alone and knit by myself in a corner on some night? I will be the sole geek. It probably wouldn't be the first time.
I do hope that you will have patience when reading what I write. I had an old boyfriend long ago tell me that I don't tell stories so much as facts. Perhaps a string of facts is as close as I get to a story. In grad school, someone (I don't remember who, although I remember where I was standing and what I said to spark the following evaluation) commented that talking to me was like reading a stream of consciousness novel. This does not bode well for all the fascinating stories and insights that will come up as I sort through jewelry and scan pictures and call people I have only communicated with via Christmas card for years. Recently, though, someone told me that I am full of stories and when I denied this, she looked at me as if I were kidding her. Perhaps this is a time of change for me- so please humor me until the change is complete and I find my story-telling voice instead of my fact-telling voice.
Special note to M- thanks for joining me in this! I am looking forward to seeing your list.
2 comments:
Oh my gosh, Anne! I just had time to REALLY read this just now. You ARE full of stories! Even though we haven't seen each other in person in years, one of the things I most remember about you is that you were always full of stories and had a really funny way of telling them. So, don't believe the old boyfriend or whoever told you talking to you was like reading a stream of consciousness novel (God, I hope it wasn't me after reading Frauelein Else...if it was, I KNOW I was just teasing you!). Sounds like both of us need a "get over my writing anxiety" goal. (I too have a huge stash of writing neuroses! It's one of the reasons for my writing group/class goal!)
I honestly don't know if it was you, but the stream of consciousness comment doesn't really bother me. I've had at least one or two people say that I "keep them on their toes." I do know that my logical progression doesn't always fit other people's logic- but I guess that is why I studied Romanticism and ran from those Enlightenment philosophers :)
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