Sunday, November 01, 2009

October Recap & November Goals

Okay all, here's a recap of what happened in October:

  • I did manage to meet up with Scott! (Yeah :))
  • I did make an extra $25 this past month primarily via online surveys (check the links on the right hand column if you are interested in making some easy extra cash too!)
  • I photographed 2 strangers for the 100 Strangers Project...not the ten I had hoped, but better than nothing!
  • I went on at least 2 photo excursions (Black Creek Pioneer Village & the 7th Annual Toronto Zombie Walk)
  • I met 3 new men...granted it was online, but I think that still counts and we shall see what will come of it. :)
  • My goal was to add $700 to my relocation fund. I added $800! Yahoooo.
  • I collected a few recipes for the family cookbook and photographed one session...please note, if you haven't sent your receipes yet...I still need them!
  • I bought all new fancy bras (threw out the ones that were rather dire) in order to upgrade my feminine wiles. At least under my clothes! :) (This also puts me part way to my 35 Goals Project)
  • I stopped using take away cups for coffee and started using a thermal mug and went back to using the thermos that Darryl and Patti got me last Christmas. Yeah me!


    November Goals are pretty basic this time around.

    I totally fell off my budget the past few months, so I want to bring that back again. I plan on being pretty strict this November too!
    I still need to save a lot for the relocation (if it is to even happen) and there are still some things I need to save for....new phone, Christmas gifts, new laptop, etc.
  • I want to sell and toss/donate some of my things. I have far too much that I don't need and that are just taking up space and energy.
  • I want to try a few new recipes to keep my lunches interesting.
  • I want to spend MUCH more time at the gym. There are a couple of classes that I like, but I need to ramp up my activity there in general!
  • I want to be more organized! So, keeping things neat and tidy and watching less television will help! I will also do much better at tracking things in my organizer.
  • I want to photograph 10 more strangers
  • I want to attempt NaNoWriMo...
  • I want to buy at least two new cute pairs of pajamas and throw out the old tshirts I've been wearing.
  • I want to add at least 20 things to my Etsy site.
  • I want to keep my living space tidy tidy tidy!
  • I want to restrict my intake of diet Coke...this will be tough for me, but I'm going to try and limit it to twice a week max.
  • I want to go and see the BodyWorlds exhibit...anyone wanna join me???
  • I want to purchase the majority of my Christmas gifts online so that I can be finished early!


    Whew...looks like it will be a busy November *whew* I bet get started!!

  • Saturday, October 31, 2009

    Happy Halloween


    Happy Halloween everyone!
    Well I'll be updating my goals tomorrow and I am seriously considering NaNoWriMo again this year...although I am a bit stuck as to what my novel would be about. Hmmmmm. Don't know if I am motivated to write thousands of words in a day again..like the dissertation. Gah.

    Still taking photos on a regular basis and loving that everyone is starting to submit their recipes for the family cookbook!! Please keep 'em coming!

    This week has been a lot about scary movies and getting to bed early to avoid getting sick again, catching up with some old friends and maybe even making some new ones.

    Monday, October 26, 2009

    Autumn & Zombies...and oh yeah..Scott!


    The trees are all starting to lose their brightly coloured leaves and it won't be long until we need to scrape the cars of ice and switch over to flannel sheets on the bed. I love fall, but am less enamoured with winter. Every year I hope things will be different, but mostly it's all about staying warm and hibernating.
    This year though, I do plan on breaking out the skates more often than I have in ages and involving myself with my many nerdy projects.

    This past weekend I met up with Scott and had a really nice afternoon shooting zombies at the 7th Annual Toronto Zombie Walk

    and just hanging out and kvetching about life. I do have to issue a bit of an apology to Scott though for my lethargic behaviour and wandering brain.

    I found out that my bank card had been compromised and the bank had actually blocked the card. Hence I had like $20 to my name. It's all been fixed since and I didn't find out about all the fuss until Sunday, I just thought my transfer hadn't gone through! *sigh*

    Scott is doing well...and is bearded! It was so great to catch up with him and hopefully it won't take as long as this meet-up did :)

    Monday, October 19, 2009

    Standing Up For Myself

    I rushed around the house this morning getting dressed, making coffee, scarfing down some cereal and tossing together a tomato and an apple for lunch. It was the best I could do in such a hurry.

    At lunch I remembered the snack machine in the lunchroom. I usually eat outside while the weather is nice, but it's getting tougher to do now that winter is fast approaching. The lunchroom was packed (as usual) but I managed to grab myself a seat and a package of Garden Salsa Sunchips ($1.00) to supplement my rather pathetic lunch.


    A coworker sat across from me and made a comment about the tomato/apple I was having for lunch and how healthy I was. I replied back, "Yes, but I'm eating badly too..all about balance" and laughed and pointed to the Sunchips. I shrugged and went back to the crossword puzzle.

    English is generally not spoken in the lunchroom (and rarely in my workplace!) and everyone went about chatting and eating. The coworker sitting across from me is one of the few other employees who speaks English.

    I was halfway through eating my sad lunch...and was about to put a sunchip into my mouth and my coworker said, "You shouldn't eat that."
    I was taken aback and a voice came out of my mouth that shocked even me when I looked up and said, "I'll eat whatever I like."

    My coworker said "what?" And I repeated it.
    This time, louder and clearer...and dare I say it...hopefully a bit meaner.

    I often find that I get angry at myself when I don't think fast enough on my feet to put people in their place. I then stew on what I should have said/done all day. Well, not today. Today I was pleased for standing up for myself and taking ownership over what is MY choice.

    I get that I am a bigger gal. I will never be a size 2, let alone a size 0. No offense, but I don't want to be a zero..never taking up any space in this world. But just because I am bigger than a size 6 gives you NO right to make comments on what I am eating. Just as if you were a size 2 I wouldn't comment on what you should be eating!

    The more I think about it though, the more I notice that I make an effort in my life to not say anything to anyone that might be considered rude, out of turn or just none of my damned business! Whatever happened to tact, manners, grace? What gives people the notion that THEY should make judgement on someone else for their choices?
    More often than not, I find it also reflects back on how I respond to people as well. I am generally taken aback when people make comments that I believe are inappropriate, rude or even downright derogatory. So much so that I don't say anything at all...and that is what I am going to change. Starting now. Offenders, be on guard.

    I will not ask you how much money you make (and honestly, I'm not really interested unless you have a job for me too), how much you weigh, what size you wear..unless we are talking about shoes (cause I'm all about the shoes) or call you demeaning "masked as cute" nicknames (chipmunk cheeks) or make you feel badly about yourself. You don't deserve it....and neither do I.

    Wednesday, October 14, 2009

    Glutton for Punishment?

    Soooo...I went out on a photoshoot earlier in the year with this guy and we had a great time.
    Between now and then, we've chatted a lot, exchanged a few texts back and forth and even made other dates with each other that have inevitably ended up cancelled for whatever reason.

    But here's the thing...I don't understand why I bother with this guy at all??!!
    I recently asked him to join me on a photo excursion..and he assumed it was tomorrow and threw up all these reasons as to why he couldn't. I was immediately put off and told him that it was actually during the day AND next week. He laughed and said he misunderstood. I never pressed the question as to whether or not he'd be interested again, because honestly, I'm not.
    It just irks me that he contacts me and acts all friendly. I mean really, why bother????

    It's weird. I mean, I really like this guy as a person....but I need a lot less punishment in my life (I punish myself enough thanks!*L*) and a lot more reliability from friends/potential dates in general. So...I've made the decision to pull the plug on our 'friendship'. Which seems a bit dramatic I suppose (esp considering he'll never even know), but I need to decipher where I need to place him in the future.

    Cute boy who I may be interested in (but entirely not ready for dating-type relationship) to friends to.....barely acquaintance. *shrugs* Carry on. :)

    Monday, October 12, 2009

    Restarts - The 100 Strangers Project



    So I've decided to restart the 100 Strangers project over at Flickr.


    I had started a while ago (and only made it to 3 people) but wasn't loving the images at all, so this is my 'official' restart.


    This is the first stranger I've collected for the project. He was one of the 'characters' at Black Creek Pioneer Village when I visited on Saturday and he had the bluest eyes I've seen in a very long time. He was a little taken aback and requested I photoshop any blemishes, but otherwise, totally cool.

    I have to say that I absolutely love this portrait too, which makes it a very challenging (and promising) start to 100 Strangers! I have not been to the village since I was in grade school and I went for the sole purpose of capturing the autumn leaves and getting some shots in general. It was a great day for it and pretty relaxing! I wandered by myself in and out of the buildings and took photos whenever and wherever I felt. It was a great way to distance myself from my everyday shooting!

    Parking - $8.00
    Admission - $15.00
    A Photo That I Absolutely Love - Priceless.


    You can view the rest of the photos here.


    It's funny, but I absolutely adore fall (and October especially) and that I actually have a lot of things to do this month to keep me snapping photos and keeping busy! I plan on heading to the MET show next weekend (miniature enthusiasts of Toronto) to see if I can pick up some things for the dollhouse (mainly lights so I can finally electrify the bloody thing). If you are interested in knowing more about the show or coming along (ahem..Jean) then drop me a note!

    Also, the Toronto Zombie Walk is on October 24th and I plan on heading into the city to snap some zombies for the project (and for sheer entertainment value) and have a laugh. :) If anyone is up for this too, please drop me a line!

    I have to mention that I won a couple of things from Joy over at her site that I will be posting about either later today or tomorrow.

    Monday, October 05, 2009

    September Updates...

    I swear...where has the year gone??

    I've completely gapped on an update with September,so I'm only a week late!*L*
    Besides my goals, I also rejoined the 52 week project, finally got headfirst into the family cookbook project and did some decent clothes/boots shopping :)

    As for an update on my September goals...here goes:

    My September Goals:
    Find a way to earn an additional $40 this month ($40+/40) :Pass! I actually earned just over $40 this month completing surveys,etc. It may not seem like a lot, but an extra $40 is better than $0! That money went directly into my relocation fund.
    Do Not Spend ANY coins: Epic Fail. I have been saving my coins...but this month I dipped into it for coffee money.:(
    Photograph 10 strangers: Epic Fail
    Frame artwork:
    Epic Fail
    Gym at least 10 times/month (5/10) : Partially completed. With Christine joining the gym, I have actually got my stuff together and joined her. This is the second goal this month that made me not really worry about the fails I had.*L*
    Print more photos from Scotland :
    Epic Fail
    Scrapbook 10 pages:
    Epic Fail
    Stick to my budget!!! :
    Epic Fail
    Spend only 15 minutes a day cleaning : Epic Fail..ish. I actually need to spend more time cleaning now so that I clean on a regular basis and it works!


    October Goals will be about 3 things primarily.
    Food. Gym. Men.

    The great news about October is that I get 3 paycheques...which means a decent amount of money can be put into my relocation fund! :)

    Blog Widget by LinkWithin