February? Ok, sure.

I’ve been seeing a lot of jokes on Facebook lately about how long January felt. I don’t usually find January that long. It’s February that gets me.

But I’m determined that that’s not going to be the case this year.

Usually, I find it February somehow takes forever and I end up dumped into barge without feeling like I did anything during the month before.

January actually felt pretty good. I had just a few specific projects to do – which always helps. The timing of those projects was dictated by somebody else but I was glad that I recognized that the scale and scope of those projects meant that I wouldn’t be able to take on anything else.

I need to practice that a bit more for myself, I think.

There’s no reason why I can’t choose my number of projects, choose their scope, and choose their timing.

I just need to convince my ADHD brain that those decisions makes sense.

Let’s see how that goes.

Oh! Here’s my blog

Well, it looks like I got out of the habit of writing in here again.

I’ve been doing a lot of writing in other places, but kind of lost track of the fact that I like to write in here.

So here are a few scattered thoughts that I’m putting down in one place to get myself started.

1) Yesterday, I spent a lot of the day writing and I really enjoyed being in that focussed headspace. I need to create more room in my schedule for more focussed time like that. I want to do a lot more writing.

Despite the fact that I know that the more I write, the easier is to write, I always forget that when I’m trying to get started.

And I am going to put that re-realization into practice and put more posts on my professional blog.

2) On to something else, I attended a rehearsal last night for a show that I’m in on Thursday and it was really exciting to be around a different group of creative people.

A lot of these performers are comedians, and it was interesting to see their take on the same issues that storytellers face and to hear their vocabulary around how to re-shape something to make it closer to what you want.

It just reminds me of how much I enjoy getting different types of creative people together to work on things or to give each other information. It’s something I’m planning to do a lot more throughout 2025 and beyond.

3) I’ve also been feeling drawn to making more zines lately and I’m going to actually put that practice into action starting today.

By the end of the day, I’m going to have a series of ideas sketched out for my first zine of this year

January 1, 2025

Luckily, I am not someone who puts a lot of faith in omens.

Otherwise, the fact that the first thing I did this morning was slip on the stairs and fall down a couple, causing me to twist my back, would be a very bad sign for the year ahead.

Instead, I’m recognizing that accidents happen – sometimes you just step wrong.

And none of that has anything to do with the year ahead.

What I do know is that I am starting the year properly because once I had that happen this morning I adjusted my plan for the day to match what my capacity was and to ensure that my day could still be as satisfying as possible.

And then really proves to me that I’ve gotten much better at taking good care of myself over the past few years.

I didn’t try to get everything done on my list.

I didn’t for ahead like I had something to prove.

I took my injuries, minor as they were, into account and did what I could instead of doing what I thought I should.

And I’m actually quite proud of myself for that.

After all, the things on my to do list and any goals, I might have are all supposed to serve me. They are not about objective, abstract, ideas of what needs to be done.

And it’s good for me to remember that.

New Year’s Eve

I love treating NYE as a mostly regular night.

It feels like mixing the magical and the mundane to be journaling and drawing while people set off fireworks.

I’m not usually a fan of the saying ‘start as you mean to go on’ because I don’t usually know how I want to go on but this time I am certain:

I plan to spend this year going easy on myself and doing things on my own terms.

That works for this evening and it works for 2025.

A relaxed Monday is strange but good

Last Monday, I was still getting things ready for Christmas. I was running errands and picking up gifts and making mental lists.

This Monday, I am sitting in a comfy chair covered in a blanket, reading and drinking tea.

I have stuff to do later, but it’s mostly things I’ve chosen to do today instead of at another time.

So, the idea of a relaxed Monday is kind of weird, but the practice of a relaxed Monday is pretty damn good.

I’m pretty sure Khalee agrees.

A dog snoozes in a chair
A photo of my light haired, medium sized dog, Khalee, snoozing on an oversized burgundy leather armchair. There is a Christmas wall-hanging of a lit red candle and a poinsettia and leaves on the wall above the chair back.