Spent most of March 2021 feeling exhausted and napping. I am one of those people tend to sleep when times get tough, so I’m starting to feel the pandemic is finally getting to me.
Clever Girl does contribute to my sense of exhaustion, but at the same time, she forces me to keep going. And thank goodness for that!
Then there’s the inexhorable decline of my kidney function. And all of a sudden the first quarter of 2021 is over and nothing much has changed.
| Virtue | Feb | Mar | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beauty: body I enjoy exercising my lean, healthy 59 kg body several times a week. • Eat < 5g of salt and sugar per day. • Walk 10,000 steps per day. • Sleep 8 hours each night. • Go vegetarian | 🙂 67.2 kg | 🙂 67.1 kg | With Clever Girl’s final vaccinations done, we’ve been taking longer walks. And I still enjoy taking them first thing in the morning. Started my performance-enhancing injections, but it’s too soon to see much effect yet. Still not sleeping as well as I’d like at night, but I’ve started to include more magnesium-rich food in the hope of generating more energy. Updated my Summer wardrobe and planned my Winter wardrobe. |
| Beauty: garden My garden is peaceful (lush and abundant, providing habitats, weather protection and a mystical threshold) Q1&2: finish the plan and start landscaping/planting. | 🙂 | 😐 | The dog has not managed to escape the yard, so that’s excellent. On the other hand, she still brings sticks into the house to eat more comfortably. Oh, and that thing about tending to nature under the washing line holds for this dog as well. (Doh!) |
| Beauty: home I live in a comfortable home that soothes my soul. | 🙂 | 🙂 | We got a carboad box for dog toys, and throw them in there when she abandons them. The other day, she picked her way through it and even put some back. |
| Friendship: Friends I love meeting new people, and as I am friendly and outgoing, I make friends easily. • Make some local writer friends. | 🙂 | 🙂 | Didn’t visit with anyone, but had a cup of tea and a zoom conference with someone I met at the Emerging Writers Conference a couple of years ago. Lovely to see her again! |
| Friendship: Creatures My creatures are happy and healthy and find my garden a haven. | 🙂 | 🙂 | It is incredible how much Clever Girl has grown – she really looks like a labrador now. She met her first possum. Incredibly it came down from the rafters to the ground and sniffed her paws before dashing back to safety. |
| Friendship: Contribution I share my knowledge, time, and money with those who need it. • Write and publish stories. | 🙂 | 🙂 | Published The Ghost Detectors, right now, the only other place you can get it is in the The Histories of Hayward Hall. Next story due the 15th. |
| Pleasure: Recharge Read 104 books | 😐 | 😐 | Haven’t really found time to read much, and am 17 books behind schedule. • What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast • Australia’s Muslim Cameleers • How to Balance Your Life • The Now Habit • Off the Clock • I’ve been “cheating” a bit and watching streaming services because I’m too tired to read. |
| Wisdom: growth I learn and grow every day. • Visit a historically or culturally significant venue or event each month. | 🙂 | 🙂 | While it would be nice to go out to visit a museum or gallery, right now we’re focused on training Clever Girl to be a happy and self-contained dog. Thought about decisions, dumb luck, and losing my mind. |
| Wealth: time Write 653,236 words to complete my first million fiction words. | 🙂 | 🙂 | • Writing streak hit 85 days • Wrote 13 short stories. • Wrote 18,195 words. |
My productivity journalling has mostly documented naps, and feeling guilty for them. There hasn’t even been any stickers!!!
But our lives are in a constant state of growth and change. This could be a time of renewal and rejeneration, so perhaps, with Winter coming, it’s time to sink into guilt free napping. To schedule them even.
Was your March 2021 more productive than mine?
You can find more monthly reports on the Life Worth Living page.