Done for the Week: Gotta Run

I am beginning to get my groove back, after traveling, "sleeping over" with my grandson, recovering from the triathlon, and groping my way into a new semester and a new set of schedules.  A little greater intentionality paid off, I think.  Here are the particulars:



Done List--Week of Oct. 4-10

1. Continued off-season triathlon training, temporarily tailored to prepare for 5K in 2 weeks--swam once, biked twice, ran twice
2. Registered for 5K race, proceeds to support Alzheimer's research (hope I can remember to show up)
3. Finished The Cradle, by Patrick Somerville; All is Forgotten, Nothing is Lost, by Lan Samantha Chang; Arthur and George, by Julian Barnes
4. Continued significant support to transitioning nonprofit organization
5. Worked my two part-time jobs
6. Published 5 blog posts
7. Meditated 5 times
8. Wrote 6 Gratitude Journal entries
9. Wrote 5 Morning Pages
10. Spent 4 hours working on my novel--found a new place to write
11. Spent  1 hr. cleaning garage, with my husband--not quite finished
12. Continued removing laundry-from-hell from basement floor
13. Went out with my husband for 1 not-so-happy and 1 very nice Happy Hour; continued reading aloud Elizabeth George's In the Presence of the Enemy
14. Planted mums and removed overgrown burdock and other weeds--my yearly gardening effort
15. Attended 2 yoga classes
16. Celebrated my birthday with my family--great dinner, my favorite mostly-frosting cake, and a dozen red roses!
17. Walked my dog 3 times, including 2 trips to the dog park, his personal Eden
18. Wrote my mother a letter, and mailed it!
19. Attended 2 transitional jobs meetings
20. Spent time doing "grief work," and coming to accept my timetable for processing my father's death
21. Worked and read outside, storing up sunshine and Vitamin D

Last week's composite focus goal was 

to make the effort to spend the Wednesday time on writing, and to make one other two-hour writing appointment that I will keep. . . . [and]. . .  also . . . to try. . . to "meditate frequently, exercise more, and get my house in better shape so I can stand living here."

Done, done, done and done.  Highlighted in green, above.

In red above, and highlighted in green as well, is my most significant accomplishment for the week, the time I spent working on my novel.  Despite not feeling well, I kept to my decision to spend the two hours  between dropping off and picking up my grandson at preschool writing.  Because last week featured yet another in our series of nontypical schedules, I had only one such occasion, so I had planned to set the additional writing appointment to give me the four total hours I will normally be able to count on.  And  though I stood myself up for the first appointment I had made with myself, because of trying to accommodate my family's weekend activities, I did put in the two hours on Sunday.  I also took the opportunity to try the public library closest to my grandson's preschool as a writing location, and determined that it will work better than the cafe I had been using.  And I learned that it was possible to find a couple of extra hours in the week.  

My focus goal for next week, therefore, is to spend six hours working on my novel.  And until I feel a bit more secure about my steadfastness in the self-care realm, I will continue to keep exercise, meditation and housecleaning in the foreground.

And now, I've gotta run.  Literally.