{From 2016’s “To-Do” List blogpost}

Resolutions are weird.

And kind of hard to keep up.

Why don’t we call it a to-do list instead?

Let’s start a new tradition this year and make to-do lists NOT resolutions.  There is still plenty of time to make YOUR 2016 list!  I love making lists and checking things off of them.  I pretty much always have a little notebook going with grocery store needs, crafty ideas, letters to write, and adulting to be done.

I’m pretty motivated to get stuff done, but somehow it helps me get bigger and/or intimidating things accomplished when I write them down.  When I was in high school and college I made these lists at the beginning of fall semester.  These days I do them at the year change, although I’ve also though about making another list on my birthdays.  Maybe that will be another new tradition we can start! 

Here is last year’s list of things to-do! I’d originally planned a mid year update (which is close to my birthday), which honestly might have prompted more work getting done on the list. In fact I am going to add that to this year’s list, haha!

What did I get done?

1. Make & use a pinhole camera. NOPE.
2. Write a new zine. NOPE.
3. Go to eye doctor. YES! (in March no less but still need to order glasses )
4. Go to dentist. YES!  This ended up being a pretty big deal. For years I have been thinking about/dreading getting crowns on my 2 front teeth. I finally bit the bullet and got them done and they look amazing. I’ve even managed to pay them off…no small feat on its own.
5. Set up/load pictures to a cloud. NOPE.
6. Grow a garden. YES! It wasn’t the biggest or the best ever, but it was a very good start. I’ll probably write a separate post about the garden stuff since I have very big plans for this year’s growing!
7. Finish top secret quilt. NOPE.
8. Deal with vintage Etsy stock. SORTA. I went through and purged a bunch of it, leaving just the really cool and probably valuable pieces. Now I need to make an appointment with a couple of stores to try and sell the stuff.
9. Finish tee shirt quilt. Progressing–definitely got some work done, and am currently working on it since it’s no longer making-to-sell season.
10. Build doll house. YES! Well, I didn’t so much build it as accuire one and begin decorating it. I look forward to showing more progress as it happens.
11. Purge and revamp wardrobe. SORTA. I def purged a bunch before I moved but it needs another go round. Doesn’t it always?

Things that weren’t on the list that I enjoyed doing:

I think it’s worth noting some of the things that were not necessarily on my list but ended up being important to me and feel like accomplishments.

Coloring and drawing. I’m definitely a functional artist–nee a crafter. I kinda burned out on my local quilter’s guild but missed one particular quilter; I’ll call her Genie. Anyway, Genie told me about a journaling class/workshop/club that meets every other Wednesday at Gallery 27. I started going and totally fell in love. I’ve had so much fun doodling, coloring, and writing just for fun. It’s definitely weird not to have a finished product that I can wear or sell, but the sensation of accomplishment is just as strong.

Math. You read that right. It’s beyond insane–I know it is. When I got my new job as an assistant 8th grade math teacher I was scared pretty well $hitle$$. I’d merely applied for an assistant teacher job and had no idea what subject I’d be doing. Honestly if I hadn’t been so desperate for a change I’m not sure if I would have been open to trying something so scary. But I did, and OH BOY am I glad. So now sometimes I do math for fun–long division and big multiple digit multiplication and functions. I KNOW THE FORMULAS FOR THINGS LIKE SLOPE! I tell you this to tell you to TRY SOMETHING YOU THINK YOU ARE BAD AT. I mean, something you think you are TERRIBLE HORRIBLE NO GOOD VERY BAD at. Just try it. It may turn out that it could be your new favorite hobby or even career.

Going to the gym. Again, I promise no one has hijacked my blog. It really is Coon-Smith typing away here. This is not a body-shaming thing of any kind. I am confident in myself and how I look/feel/am but the fact is that I have not only put on some weight, but I’ve been leading a very sedentary life. I’m focused mostly on getting my heart rate up to keep the old ticker in good working order. The elliptical machine, y’all. That thing is awesome! In the past, as far as heart health goes, I’ve mostly just jogged and that is ruff on the joints etc. The elliptical is like running on weird mechanical air. I’ve also been spinning–hoping to get enough practice to be able to keep up with Mr. Smith on a road ride sometime in 2017. I’m getting no kickbacks from this post but I do want to mention that Planet Fitness has been awesome for me. The staff greet me when I arrive and leave. No one has creeped me out (fingers crossed on that). No one has given me weird looks about my admittedly weird clothes (I go straight from work and don’t change anything but my shoes). So yeah–the gym has been a *pleasure*? It has.

Here is the list for 2017!

 

I’m actually working on a *vision board* to go along with this, so stay tuned for another post where I tell you all about this list!

What are some of the things on YOUR to-do list for this year?

Did you check off lots of things from your list last year?

What did you enjoy that wasn’t even on your list?