Sunday, July 24, 2016

everything's coming up hollyhocks

Here is my tally for the week. Accomplished goals are highlighted in green, worked on are in yellow and didn’t work on at all are written in red.

Writing
1) My novel
           a. Do one more edit, typing up an outline for each chapter as I go. Spend one hour a day on it. Worked on it four hours.
b. Spend three hours per week working on a pitch for publishers and agents. Not at all.
           c. Decide on a title. These are the contenders, with my favorite highlighted:

The Way Home
Finding the Way Home
Where the Sky Meets the Sand
When Family Happens
Returning Home
Family Matters Most
A Mother Like That
Just Like That
2) Blog twice a week here. Done
3) Blog three times a week on the Dino Chronicles. Done 

Reading –
1) Finish reading three books - “Little Bee”, “More Than a Story” and “My Maasai Life”. Read in “My Maasai Life” almost daily, so that is on track.
2) Read three ROW blog posts twice a week. Done

REACHING –
1) Update my website once a month. Nope
2) Submit three pieces. My goal for the year was originally to submit 18 pieces this year. I am at FOUR. That is so far behind I don’t even want to think about it. But I would still be happy with 12 for the entire year, so that is attainable. Nope, none
3) Once a week post something promoting my books or myself on each of my social media. Yup

Personal –
1) Physical
a) Lose ten pounds. Haven’t lost an ounce.
            b) Stop eating junk food and stop snacking between meals. Been really trying
            c) Work out more faithfully
1- Exercise four mornings a week. Done
2- Lift weights and/or run four nights a week. Only did twice
2) Spiritual
a) Read my Bible every night. Umm, I read my Bible four or five nights
b) Read a devotion every day. This was so close, I would fudge it, except, really? I’m pretty sure I was at six days, but no green, because lying is a sin! J

NONPROFIT –
1) Start planning our next trip. Nope
2) Sign up for the fall round of craft shows as fundraisers. Nope

At the end of the week, when I feel like I have been nothing but a lazy slug, I look at the color I added to my goals, and it doesn’t look quite so bad.

 The first picture is the hollyhocks I transplanted to a bed by my garage last year. They seem to be doing really well. The second picture is the original bed behind my house, where the hollyhocks compete with some lilies and irises. I don’t know if that is why they are a different shade than the ones by the garage or not. I sure didn’t plan the color-thing, but I may have found the answer

As you can tell by my color-coded goals, sometimes color is planned, sometimes it’s not. 

7 comments:

  1. The hollyhocks are gorgeous. :)

    You made progress. :) Progress is good. :)

    I love the title you picked. So evocative.

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  2. Neat... I never knew that hollyhocks changed colors. I haven't successfully grown any at our house, and my mother's always died off due to careless trashmen. I hadn't actually thought much about them until my husband's grandmother told me how much she hated them. "Outhouse Roses" was her name for them

    And yes, there's a lot more green and yellow than not. Some weeks are like that. Things just get busy

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    1. Other people have said they don't like hollyhocks, but I can't imagine! I love mine. They are like a weed, and that's about all I can grow. Some day I will blog about where mine came from and why I'm particularly attached to them.

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  3. Gorgeous flowers, and awesome progress on your goals. I like the title you've highlighted as your favorite. Could you tighten it to simply "Where Sky Meets Sand?" I don't know if that suits the story, but it's a little bit shorter. Just a thought. Take care!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the thoughts on the title. I will definitely mull that over.

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