Well, we´re at the end of another week already - time seems to just be racing away at the moment.
I have been rubbish recently with writing my blog - managing the minimum for my 101 progress and very little else. I guess that was the main purpose of the blog in the first place so I shouldn´t beat myself up about not posting more.
So anyway, here´s the latest update on my 101 in 1001 days :o)
I have finished reading Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel and have therefore read all 10 of the books on my prizewinner books list. It wasn´t until I wrote my update last week where I mentioned that I had broken my Kindle and don´t want to be carrying my iPad everywhere with me. I also mentioned that at least it meant I was listening to music each day, but what was I listening to it on...? My iPod... and until that point it simply hadn´t occurred to me that I could just download the Kindle app onto my iPod and carry on from there (temporarily of course - it will never replace my Kindle). I thought I may struggle to read regularly using the iPod seeing how much I hate reading books on the iPad, but actually, I much prefer it, so my life isn´t over :o) The book was fab and I was browsing in the bookshop at the station the other day when I saw another Hilary Mantel book which appears to follow on from Wolf Hall, so it is written in my Filofax ready for the end of my Fabulously Frugal No Shopping Challenge.
Transferring my CDs to iTunes is being continued today, at last - and I seem to be making a fair amount of progress. In fact, I am sat at the pc instead of my MacBook today and therefore have the CD folder right next to me, so am swapping out the CDs as each one completes - yay!!! Once the the ones in the folder are finished I will attack the pile that are in the computer cupboard to transfer across any that haven´t all been done, and then I will get my DF to bring in all the ones that he has in the car as I know that at least some of those haven´t been done yet - and I desperately need Biffy Clyro - Revolutions back on my iPod (everything got wiped off it on Friday when I pulled my Christmas playlist across).
The first of my Flylady habits seems to have kicked in properly now - my kitchen is now gleaming most nights. The only times it isn´t is when I have made a conscious decision not to do it as other things are ore important and I have made sure it is done first thing in the morning so it isn´t lingering in my conscience. As I´m still in the process of decluttering various areas (including cupboards which I am still terrified to open) I am not intending to add a new Flylady habit each month, but will add a new one as and when I feel ready - as she says, babysteps :-) I have started giving my sink area in my bathroom a once over most days, but it is not a habit yet. It will definitely be my next one though - swish and swipe!!!
I felt I had cheated on my Fabulously Frugal No Shopping Challenge on Saturday, but I actually hadn´t. I went into Manor to get small prizes to put into the crackers that we will be making for Christmas this year and I had a 20 Franc gift card from the last time I went there to buy some gifts for new babies. Unfortunately I couldn´t use it towards the prizes so I found a scarf (paleish turquoise with mainly white and a few pick swallows on - lovely for any time of the year, and some legwarmers - haven´t worn any of those since the 80s... which were reduced to half price). The card was due to run out on December the 24th so I couldn´t use it after completing my challenge, and I guess it is still frugal as I didn´t spend any real money...
I started on my two weeks of taking lunch to work with me on Monday, completely forgetting that I had booked Thursday and Friday off, so to make up for this I shall extend it to cover my working days between Christmas and New Year.
I´m still trying to work out if I am allowed to purchase a new Kindle to replace the one that I broke last week - I am managing without it, but it´s not good for my eyes and I can get a cheaper one as it is a replacement. Does it fall under wear and tear...? I need to decide pretty quick as we have a visitor coming over for Christmas and I would have to get it delivered to them before they come over... hmmm...
I went to a concert on Friday night, although it wasn´t what I had in mind when I wrote it on my list - picture a huge venue with Biffy Clyro or Metallica playing and that´ll give you an idea on what I was thinking. I attended the semi-finals of the Rock Highway competition and saw 8 bands play, including The Real Deal with my fabulous DF as their bassist. It was a really good night, with a few really good bands. The outcome was a bit disappointing, but there is still hope - I may write a separate post about that.
As Christmas is nearly upon us I have spent a bit of quality time with my boys decorating the trees (they have an artificial one upstairs and we have a real one downstairs) - I´m sure there will be a Christmas post coming up soon :o)
Have a great week,
LJx
Showing posts with label Prizewinner Books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Prizewinner Books. Show all posts
Sunday, 16 December 2012
Sunday, 9 December 2012
101 List Progress Check - 9th December 2012
What a week - it has been tough!!!
Let's start with the good news though:
I finished my two week challenge to drink 1.5 litres of water a day on Tuesday!!! I am very pleased that I managed not to actually drown during this process, and despite the good intentions of trying to keep to it, I spent the last three days in a planning meeting which isn't exactly conducive to drinking that much (I couldn't really disappear off to the loo every hour without everyone assuming that I'm pregnant), and then came the weekend, which is the hardest time for me to remember to drink. However, back to work tomorrow, so I will try to drink 1.5 litres each day that I am in the office.
For my Fabulously Frugal No Shopping Challenge... I have been a total angel :-) I resisted the lure of a vintage green Windsor filofax, which was particularly tempting as it was in perfect condition, green and I don't have any vintage filos... I then had to look for Silhouette Cameo suppliers as this is what my wonderful DF is getting me for Christmas, this obviously led to me having to browse various scrapbooking sites to try to get together a list of the other bits and pieces I need to go with it, and I have found some amazing designs and scrapbooking kits, and all the other paraphernalia that goes with it. So far I have been able to resist, although totally unable to let Ben know what I actually need - I am totally loving the SMASH book stuff from KandCo, I really can't decide which things are most important to get. I have seen so much fabulous stuff that I'm almost tempted to say that I can wait until my birthday for the Silhouette Cameo. It is just so tempting to sneak in an order...
My kitchen is still (mostly) getting it's final clean of the day before I go to bed so that when we get up in the morning it is nice and tidy - lovely!!! I had a bit of a moment this morning and started cleaning and rearranging the cupboards (rearranging the contents of, not physically moving the cupboards, that would just be crazy - they are fitted...), and now we can get to the things we need most for cooking easily, let's see how long they manage to stay in the right places. Next stop sorting out the food cupboards - my OCD really needs to kick on on those bad boys, instead of just closing the doors and ignoring them :-)
And this is where it all goes wrong... :-( I still haven't finished reading my final prizewinner book (Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel), because I had a bit of an accident on the way to the bus stop for work on Monday (imagine full on comedy, slip on ice, legs right up in the air, landing flat on the back and then smacking head on the floor). The accident itself was kinda painful but my neck and head are both OK again now and my lower back is almost back to normal, but my Kindle wasn't so lucky :-( I was carrying it (in its cover) in my rucksack, which was thrown over my right shoulder and took quite an impact when it hit the floor. It wasn't until the end of the day that I realised that it was broken and why (yep, that knock on the head made me pretty useless for most of the day, I was really struggling to think). I had tried turning it on at the bus stop, but the picture wouldn't change, I tried restarting it and still nothing - I figured it was just having a funny five minutes (being totally unaware that it was likely to have been battered in the fall - I'm sure my brain must have fallen out you know).
Thankfully I can still read it as I have the Kindle app on my iPad, but I hate reading books on the iPad, and simply refuse to carry it to work and back each day - so there goes pretty much all my reading time each day until I can get a new Kindle... why did this have to happen while I'm on my 3 month no shopping challenge - bah, sucks!!! Maybe I will have to give in and start taking my iPad to work... bleurgh!!!
But looking on the bright side - I have been listening to music on the way to and from work, which is really nice as I don't get time to listen to much music usually :-)
Have a great week,
LJx
Let's start with the good news though:
I finished my two week challenge to drink 1.5 litres of water a day on Tuesday!!! I am very pleased that I managed not to actually drown during this process, and despite the good intentions of trying to keep to it, I spent the last three days in a planning meeting which isn't exactly conducive to drinking that much (I couldn't really disappear off to the loo every hour without everyone assuming that I'm pregnant), and then came the weekend, which is the hardest time for me to remember to drink. However, back to work tomorrow, so I will try to drink 1.5 litres each day that I am in the office.
For my Fabulously Frugal No Shopping Challenge... I have been a total angel :-) I resisted the lure of a vintage green Windsor filofax, which was particularly tempting as it was in perfect condition, green and I don't have any vintage filos... I then had to look for Silhouette Cameo suppliers as this is what my wonderful DF is getting me for Christmas, this obviously led to me having to browse various scrapbooking sites to try to get together a list of the other bits and pieces I need to go with it, and I have found some amazing designs and scrapbooking kits, and all the other paraphernalia that goes with it. So far I have been able to resist, although totally unable to let Ben know what I actually need - I am totally loving the SMASH book stuff from KandCo, I really can't decide which things are most important to get. I have seen so much fabulous stuff that I'm almost tempted to say that I can wait until my birthday for the Silhouette Cameo. It is just so tempting to sneak in an order...
My kitchen is still (mostly) getting it's final clean of the day before I go to bed so that when we get up in the morning it is nice and tidy - lovely!!! I had a bit of a moment this morning and started cleaning and rearranging the cupboards (rearranging the contents of, not physically moving the cupboards, that would just be crazy - they are fitted...), and now we can get to the things we need most for cooking easily, let's see how long they manage to stay in the right places. Next stop sorting out the food cupboards - my OCD really needs to kick on on those bad boys, instead of just closing the doors and ignoring them :-)
And this is where it all goes wrong... :-( I still haven't finished reading my final prizewinner book (Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel), because I had a bit of an accident on the way to the bus stop for work on Monday (imagine full on comedy, slip on ice, legs right up in the air, landing flat on the back and then smacking head on the floor). The accident itself was kinda painful but my neck and head are both OK again now and my lower back is almost back to normal, but my Kindle wasn't so lucky :-( I was carrying it (in its cover) in my rucksack, which was thrown over my right shoulder and took quite an impact when it hit the floor. It wasn't until the end of the day that I realised that it was broken and why (yep, that knock on the head made me pretty useless for most of the day, I was really struggling to think). I had tried turning it on at the bus stop, but the picture wouldn't change, I tried restarting it and still nothing - I figured it was just having a funny five minutes (being totally unaware that it was likely to have been battered in the fall - I'm sure my brain must have fallen out you know).
Thankfully I can still read it as I have the Kindle app on my iPad, but I hate reading books on the iPad, and simply refuse to carry it to work and back each day - so there goes pretty much all my reading time each day until I can get a new Kindle... why did this have to happen while I'm on my 3 month no shopping challenge - bah, sucks!!! Maybe I will have to give in and start taking my iPad to work... bleurgh!!!
But looking on the bright side - I have been listening to music on the way to and from work, which is really nice as I don't get time to listen to much music usually :-)
Have a great week,
LJx
Sunday, 2 December 2012
101 List Progress Check - 2nd December 2012
Hiya :o)
Happy day today - I have almost completed my 2 weeks of drinking 1.5 litres of water every day, I am so pleased with myself. It's been a pretty tough challenge for someone who usually manages less than 1 litre per day unless I really make an effort to drink more. It's not that I usually drink squash, tea, juice, coffee, fizzy drinks etc - I mainly drink water, I just don't drink much. I have been told many times that I should drink more, but I just don't feel the need to. But - here is the big question, have I felt any better for upping my fluid intake...? In a word, no. I pee more (unsurprisingly), but that is the only change so far (apart from at times feeling as if I'm going to drown, oh, and a strange feeling on occasion that my head is about to explode...). I may carry on trying to drink this much after the challenge has finished to see if it does have any impact longer term, in a way I'm hoping it doesn't so that I can go back to drinking an amount that I feel comfortable with.
Have I finished reading Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel yet so that I can mark of my "Read 10 Prizewinners books" as complete - no. I am finding it a fascinating read, and am reading pretty much every day, but still have quite a way to go. Today I thought I'd have a quick check on Amazon, and it turns out the book has 559 pages, so I don't feel too bad for taking so long to read it. The book includes historical figures (Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn), and has made me think about reading more about that period - more than any of my history lessons achieved,,,
I have also started on the Flylady path (admittedly I haven't done all the decluttering yet - honestly, I swear that as soon as you've done a room, I start on another area and then the first bit needs doing all over again...) and have been "Shining my Sink". I started doing this when I was off work and hoped to carry on when I went back and haven't done badly so far. I had a couple of nights where it wasn't done due to late finishes at work for month end and I know that I will have to let it slide for a couple of nights this coming week as I am out for dinner on Tuesday and the works Christmas do on Thursday.
As for the Frugal No Shopping challenge - what was I thinking? 3 months? Really??? This is even more tricky now that Moleskine have launched their Hobbit notebooks... Why did I think this was such a good idea? I can see me asking this question lots over the next couple of months, although I have made it through a whole month already. Surely the run up to Christmas and gearing up for yearend will stop me having time to think about buying anything, and then January will be manic at work... maybe it will go quickly :o)
Have a great week,
LJx
Happy day today - I have almost completed my 2 weeks of drinking 1.5 litres of water every day, I am so pleased with myself. It's been a pretty tough challenge for someone who usually manages less than 1 litre per day unless I really make an effort to drink more. It's not that I usually drink squash, tea, juice, coffee, fizzy drinks etc - I mainly drink water, I just don't drink much. I have been told many times that I should drink more, but I just don't feel the need to. But - here is the big question, have I felt any better for upping my fluid intake...? In a word, no. I pee more (unsurprisingly), but that is the only change so far (apart from at times feeling as if I'm going to drown, oh, and a strange feeling on occasion that my head is about to explode...). I may carry on trying to drink this much after the challenge has finished to see if it does have any impact longer term, in a way I'm hoping it doesn't so that I can go back to drinking an amount that I feel comfortable with.
Have I finished reading Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel yet so that I can mark of my "Read 10 Prizewinners books" as complete - no. I am finding it a fascinating read, and am reading pretty much every day, but still have quite a way to go. Today I thought I'd have a quick check on Amazon, and it turns out the book has 559 pages, so I don't feel too bad for taking so long to read it. The book includes historical figures (Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn), and has made me think about reading more about that period - more than any of my history lessons achieved,,,
I have also started on the Flylady path (admittedly I haven't done all the decluttering yet - honestly, I swear that as soon as you've done a room, I start on another area and then the first bit needs doing all over again...) and have been "Shining my Sink". I started doing this when I was off work and hoped to carry on when I went back and haven't done badly so far. I had a couple of nights where it wasn't done due to late finishes at work for month end and I know that I will have to let it slide for a couple of nights this coming week as I am out for dinner on Tuesday and the works Christmas do on Thursday.
As for the Frugal No Shopping challenge - what was I thinking? 3 months? Really??? This is even more tricky now that Moleskine have launched their Hobbit notebooks... Why did I think this was such a good idea? I can see me asking this question lots over the next couple of months, although I have made it through a whole month already. Surely the run up to Christmas and gearing up for yearend will stop me having time to think about buying anything, and then January will be manic at work... maybe it will go quickly :o)
Have a great week,
LJx
Sunday, 25 November 2012
101 List Progress Check - 25th November 2012
Here we go for the latest update with where I've got to this week...
I've started reading the final prizewinner book on my list of ten, Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. The first few pages are basically a huge list of characters as if it was a play, and there is no hope of even attempting to remember who is who, so I just don't bother trying. However, despite occasionally getting a touch confused about who people are (it's not so easy to flick back to the list of characters when you're reading on a Kindle) I'm finding the book rather interesting and am looking forward to finishing it this week and crossing another task off my list :o)
Last weekend I finally admitted that I was never going to manage to drink 2 litres of water a day (often I drink 2 glasses of fluid a day and that seems to do me just fine), so I have lowered my expectations to 1.5 litres a day for two weeks instead. I went back to work on Tuesday (after a fabulous two weeks off) and decided that I should start the challenge immediately. I find it much easier to increase my fluid intake while I am at work as I can pick up a 1.5 litre bottle of water (not that sparkly nonsense either - bleurgh) and have it on my desk to remind me to drink it. Yesterday was Saturday and I thought I would struggle to manage, but I drank three 0.5 litres bottles of water (just about) and am planning on doing the same today...
Another change I am considering making is the "go skiing" challenge. It felt like something that I should put on the list as I live in Switzerland, but the thought of doing it doesn't actually interest me, and to take the whole family skiing is so expensive that I have to really think if it's worth spending that much money on something just because I said that I should try it...
The try snowboarding challenge is a bit different as I'll probably do that in the UK on the dry slope at Warmwell with my mate Michy who goes there a lot and has said I should go with her. The other thing which is different about that is that I wouldn't mind trying snowboarding - I think I would find it preferable to skiing... for a start your feet are both attached to the same piece of equipment so you can't get forced into doing the splits!!!
I am now about half way through the task of copying my CDs to iTunes - thankfully I don't have too many. The next thing will be to copy all my tapes to iTunes - that will take significantly more time, and it would start a lot sooner if I actually got off my butt and went down into the cellar to find my tapes.
Last Sunday I baked a couple of types of biscuits with the boys, but it did involve cheating as I bought packets of biscuit dough and sweet pastry - and we slightly over did the cinnamon stars as they have so much sugar in they turn into rocks if you don't get them out at exactly the right time. We still have a pack of Ovomaltine biscuit dough, so I'm planning on making those ones with them today (huge glasses of milk at the ready to soak them so no-one breaks their teeth). Next stop will be to dig out a basic biscuit recipe so they can make them from scratch.
I still have the same Christmas cards outstanding as last week - I really must sort those out today...
My no shopping challenge is still going OK, but I keep seeing blogs with notebooks and Filofax inserts that I would love to have. Maybe I should stop reading blogs while I am doing this challenge. The challenge will be officially ending on January 25th rather than the 31st, as I will be going to the UK and will be visiting TK Maxx and Paperchase in Bournemouth. As I have no idea when I will be able to go shopping in the UK again after that, I will be making some purchases while I have the opportunity - I already have my eye on the Hoot Sweet range. :o)
I was hoping to take the family to London for a long weekend in February with the intention of taking the boys to see The Lion King and Shrek as the remaining two shows that I am going to take them to. However, when I was on the tram to work the other morning I saw a flyer for Salto Natale which is running here until January 2nd, and am thinking about taking them to see it sometime over Christmas - I'll be investigating further...
I am currently racking my brains to work out how Ben and I can have a two week holiday with no children before the end of the 1001 days. For us to be able to do this in the school summer holidays then we both need to be able to take three weeks off work so that we can spend a week with the boys as well. If we do it during term-time then we would need to have someone come here to look after the boys for two weeks. What we'd ideally like to do in our two weeks is go to Vegas, get married and head on to Mexico. I'm struggling to fit more than one week off during the summer, and whatever happens Ben will still have to log into work every day to do all the stencils design work... feeling a tad trapped by our jobs at the moment... even if I can sort out my side (possible, just a bit tricky - maybe I should try for a three month sabbatical and have done with it...), Ben has no cover to be able to completely forget about his work for one week, let alone three.
Anyway, that's where I'm at this week. Fingers crossed I'll work some things out this week :o)
Have a fab week,
LJx
I've started reading the final prizewinner book on my list of ten, Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. The first few pages are basically a huge list of characters as if it was a play, and there is no hope of even attempting to remember who is who, so I just don't bother trying. However, despite occasionally getting a touch confused about who people are (it's not so easy to flick back to the list of characters when you're reading on a Kindle) I'm finding the book rather interesting and am looking forward to finishing it this week and crossing another task off my list :o)
Last weekend I finally admitted that I was never going to manage to drink 2 litres of water a day (often I drink 2 glasses of fluid a day and that seems to do me just fine), so I have lowered my expectations to 1.5 litres a day for two weeks instead. I went back to work on Tuesday (after a fabulous two weeks off) and decided that I should start the challenge immediately. I find it much easier to increase my fluid intake while I am at work as I can pick up a 1.5 litre bottle of water (not that sparkly nonsense either - bleurgh) and have it on my desk to remind me to drink it. Yesterday was Saturday and I thought I would struggle to manage, but I drank three 0.5 litres bottles of water (just about) and am planning on doing the same today...
Another change I am considering making is the "go skiing" challenge. It felt like something that I should put on the list as I live in Switzerland, but the thought of doing it doesn't actually interest me, and to take the whole family skiing is so expensive that I have to really think if it's worth spending that much money on something just because I said that I should try it...
The try snowboarding challenge is a bit different as I'll probably do that in the UK on the dry slope at Warmwell with my mate Michy who goes there a lot and has said I should go with her. The other thing which is different about that is that I wouldn't mind trying snowboarding - I think I would find it preferable to skiing... for a start your feet are both attached to the same piece of equipment so you can't get forced into doing the splits!!!
I am now about half way through the task of copying my CDs to iTunes - thankfully I don't have too many. The next thing will be to copy all my tapes to iTunes - that will take significantly more time, and it would start a lot sooner if I actually got off my butt and went down into the cellar to find my tapes.
Last Sunday I baked a couple of types of biscuits with the boys, but it did involve cheating as I bought packets of biscuit dough and sweet pastry - and we slightly over did the cinnamon stars as they have so much sugar in they turn into rocks if you don't get them out at exactly the right time. We still have a pack of Ovomaltine biscuit dough, so I'm planning on making those ones with them today (huge glasses of milk at the ready to soak them so no-one breaks their teeth). Next stop will be to dig out a basic biscuit recipe so they can make them from scratch.
I still have the same Christmas cards outstanding as last week - I really must sort those out today...
My no shopping challenge is still going OK, but I keep seeing blogs with notebooks and Filofax inserts that I would love to have. Maybe I should stop reading blogs while I am doing this challenge. The challenge will be officially ending on January 25th rather than the 31st, as I will be going to the UK and will be visiting TK Maxx and Paperchase in Bournemouth. As I have no idea when I will be able to go shopping in the UK again after that, I will be making some purchases while I have the opportunity - I already have my eye on the Hoot Sweet range. :o)
I was hoping to take the family to London for a long weekend in February with the intention of taking the boys to see The Lion King and Shrek as the remaining two shows that I am going to take them to. However, when I was on the tram to work the other morning I saw a flyer for Salto Natale which is running here until January 2nd, and am thinking about taking them to see it sometime over Christmas - I'll be investigating further...
I am currently racking my brains to work out how Ben and I can have a two week holiday with no children before the end of the 1001 days. For us to be able to do this in the school summer holidays then we both need to be able to take three weeks off work so that we can spend a week with the boys as well. If we do it during term-time then we would need to have someone come here to look after the boys for two weeks. What we'd ideally like to do in our two weeks is go to Vegas, get married and head on to Mexico. I'm struggling to fit more than one week off during the summer, and whatever happens Ben will still have to log into work every day to do all the stencils design work... feeling a tad trapped by our jobs at the moment... even if I can sort out my side (possible, just a bit tricky - maybe I should try for a three month sabbatical and have done with it...), Ben has no cover to be able to completely forget about his work for one week, let alone three.
Anyway, that's where I'm at this week. Fingers crossed I'll work some things out this week :o)
Have a fab week,
LJx
Sunday, 28 October 2012
101 List Progress Check - 28th October 2012
So - what have I managed to do this week?
Well, I finished "The Sea" by John Banville - another book that although I enjoyed reading it, I found it quite disjointed (lots of flipping from one time to another) and although I can follow what is going on, it's not a style of writing I particularly like so I'm guessing I probably won't read this one again. I have just ordered "Wolf Hall" for my Kindle as it is the final prizewinner book on my list and am kinda wishing I'd read the reviews before doing so, or at least not read them after I'd ordered it... I have a horrible feeling that I'm going to find this particularly hard-going. It sounds that there are quite a lot of grammar issues, which are likely to totally do my head in. Fingers crossed I won't get too frustrated as I will insist on completing the book even if I don't enjoy it... Happily I don't have to start it immediately as I am currently reading "Glory Bus" by Richard Laymon. I try to read at least one book in between my "challenge" ones to keep me sane... I'm not sure that's working out so well... oops!!!
My exercise hasn't gone too well this week and therefore my abs are totally in hiding. I really need to give myself a big kick up the butt and get on with it!!!
One that I forgot to include in my post last week was my purchasing of a posh/designer handbag. Technically it could be said that it's not a handbag, as it is a manbag. However, surely a manbag is just a handbag for a man... I was looking for a proper handbag (girly and everything), but spied this fantastic thick brown leather Fossil manbag and was immediately seduced... The first thing I checked was of course if I could fit my A5 Kendal in there (I checked that at the shop before I bought it) - it wasn't easy to get in, but it is a chunky thing, although it's not a bag to put your A5 in if you don't want it getting scratched by the zip - that's one chunky zip too...
I have started on my quest to get all my Christmas cards and presents sorted by the end of November. I have ordered some of the presents I need to get already, have found what I'm getting for the boys for their main presents, and will be sorting out nieces and nephews on-line during November. I was hoping to order cards from the UK to come across with my mum, but really can't find anything worth ordering, so I'm just going to bite the bullet and see what I can find over here this year. The intention is to get them and write them all out before Mum goes back to the UK so she can take them back to post for me. :o)
I have also been doing my Christmas planning in my Dodopad, so it's all going well at the moment.
I am still considering doing the Fabulously Frugal challenge from November 1st, although I'm not sure yet. I need to write my declaration and list my exceptions, or a detailed declaration. For example, I could choose to eliminate all spending on stationery items and not specify anything else, or I could plan to be frugal on everything and list only the exceptions . I think I may be going to the UK at the end of January for a family get together, obviously flights etc will cost money, but I won't exclude myself from going just because I am having a frugal 3 months. Likewise, I don't intend to cancel Christmas, just stop spending as much on myself :o) And that sounds like I usually buy myself Christmas presents... that's just weird...
I have half of number 92 on my list completed - all the electrics have been signed off in our house in the UK, so that's one less thing to worry about, just the gas to get done and then I can cross that task off.
The fitting of the new shower has also finally happened, and there is no need to re-do the whole bathroom at this stage, so that one can now be crossed off - yay!!! The extra good news about this is that if I stay with Dave again at any point, I now know that I shouldn't get scalded in the mornings by a temperamental shower that hates me. Yay!!!
There is one other item that is currently in the pipeline and which I will be able to mark off as complete when I do my progress check on November 11th, but you'll just have to be patient to see what that one is - in fact, I am so excited about this one that it may get it's own miniature post on the day that it is done :o)
Have a great week,
LJx
Well, I finished "The Sea" by John Banville - another book that although I enjoyed reading it, I found it quite disjointed (lots of flipping from one time to another) and although I can follow what is going on, it's not a style of writing I particularly like so I'm guessing I probably won't read this one again. I have just ordered "Wolf Hall" for my Kindle as it is the final prizewinner book on my list and am kinda wishing I'd read the reviews before doing so, or at least not read them after I'd ordered it... I have a horrible feeling that I'm going to find this particularly hard-going. It sounds that there are quite a lot of grammar issues, which are likely to totally do my head in. Fingers crossed I won't get too frustrated as I will insist on completing the book even if I don't enjoy it... Happily I don't have to start it immediately as I am currently reading "Glory Bus" by Richard Laymon. I try to read at least one book in between my "challenge" ones to keep me sane... I'm not sure that's working out so well... oops!!!
My exercise hasn't gone too well this week and therefore my abs are totally in hiding. I really need to give myself a big kick up the butt and get on with it!!!
One that I forgot to include in my post last week was my purchasing of a posh/designer handbag. Technically it could be said that it's not a handbag, as it is a manbag. However, surely a manbag is just a handbag for a man... I was looking for a proper handbag (girly and everything), but spied this fantastic thick brown leather Fossil manbag and was immediately seduced... The first thing I checked was of course if I could fit my A5 Kendal in there (I checked that at the shop before I bought it) - it wasn't easy to get in, but it is a chunky thing, although it's not a bag to put your A5 in if you don't want it getting scratched by the zip - that's one chunky zip too...
I have started on my quest to get all my Christmas cards and presents sorted by the end of November. I have ordered some of the presents I need to get already, have found what I'm getting for the boys for their main presents, and will be sorting out nieces and nephews on-line during November. I was hoping to order cards from the UK to come across with my mum, but really can't find anything worth ordering, so I'm just going to bite the bullet and see what I can find over here this year. The intention is to get them and write them all out before Mum goes back to the UK so she can take them back to post for me. :o)
I have also been doing my Christmas planning in my Dodopad, so it's all going well at the moment.
I am still considering doing the Fabulously Frugal challenge from November 1st, although I'm not sure yet. I need to write my declaration and list my exceptions, or a detailed declaration. For example, I could choose to eliminate all spending on stationery items and not specify anything else, or I could plan to be frugal on everything and list only the exceptions . I think I may be going to the UK at the end of January for a family get together, obviously flights etc will cost money, but I won't exclude myself from going just because I am having a frugal 3 months. Likewise, I don't intend to cancel Christmas, just stop spending as much on myself :o) And that sounds like I usually buy myself Christmas presents... that's just weird...
I have half of number 92 on my list completed - all the electrics have been signed off in our house in the UK, so that's one less thing to worry about, just the gas to get done and then I can cross that task off.
The fitting of the new shower has also finally happened, and there is no need to re-do the whole bathroom at this stage, so that one can now be crossed off - yay!!! The extra good news about this is that if I stay with Dave again at any point, I now know that I shouldn't get scalded in the mornings by a temperamental shower that hates me. Yay!!!
There is one other item that is currently in the pipeline and which I will be able to mark off as complete when I do my progress check on November 11th, but you'll just have to be patient to see what that one is - in fact, I am so excited about this one that it may get it's own miniature post on the day that it is done :o)
Have a great week,
LJx
Sunday, 21 October 2012
101 List Progress Check - 21st October 2012
Well, I don't seem to be making a huge amount of progress in my 101 in 1001 at the moment. I'm feeling a bit lacklustre about the whole thing for some reason - more planning required methinks!!!
So what's happened this week?
I've started reading The Sea by John Banville, I haven't got that far in it yet as I haven't done any reading the last couple of nights, but am planning on going to bed reasonably early with my Kindle tonight :o)
I did some more exercise this week, although still haven't managed to get into a routine yet. I did Tummy Tuck from the Brazil Butt Lift programme on Wednesday morning (my ribs felt like I'd been in a fight from Thursday afternoon until Saturday morning, and still feel a bit bruised now), and yesterday I did Kenpo X from the P90X programme which is great!!! If I can get into doing at least three workouts a week (even if I only do 30 minutes) then the abs should begin to do something...
Transferring my CD's to iTunes - well, I had Friday off work so thought if I switched on the pc then I could just swap CD's each time I walked past... using this method I managed a grand total of zero CD's, as I didn't actually get round to even turning the pc on - useless!!! I guess I just wasn't designed for multi-tasking :o(
I am aiming to get all the Christmas cards and presents sorted by the end of this year , so I've pulled out my Dodo Book of Christmas with all my lists from last year ready to go. I'll also be using this to plan everything else for Christmas - food, what to get, cooking plans etc.
Yesterdaywe I spent too much money and think that, as well as wanting to complete a Frugal is Fabulous 3 months challenge, I am beginning to need to. Despite previously being a total anti-shopper (I could go into town knowing what I needed to find, and by the end of my shopping trip I would be grumpy and would have decided that I didn't really need anything on the list anyway), I am now a bit of a shopaholic, it is time for intervention... Thankfully my DF has taken over the anti-shopping mantel. So I think I need to make the decision regarding when to start my fabulously frugal challenge, I will be going back to Caribbean Princess' blog to check out the rules and tips.
The question is, do I start my challenge next month, or should I wait until after Christmas? I will still be allowed to by things for Christmas and I will need to work out exactly what my official declaration will be, and what is excluded (eg buying Christmas cards and presents for people).
Have a fab week.
LJx
So what's happened this week?
I've started reading The Sea by John Banville, I haven't got that far in it yet as I haven't done any reading the last couple of nights, but am planning on going to bed reasonably early with my Kindle tonight :o)
I did some more exercise this week, although still haven't managed to get into a routine yet. I did Tummy Tuck from the Brazil Butt Lift programme on Wednesday morning (my ribs felt like I'd been in a fight from Thursday afternoon until Saturday morning, and still feel a bit bruised now), and yesterday I did Kenpo X from the P90X programme which is great!!! If I can get into doing at least three workouts a week (even if I only do 30 minutes) then the abs should begin to do something...
Transferring my CD's to iTunes - well, I had Friday off work so thought if I switched on the pc then I could just swap CD's each time I walked past... using this method I managed a grand total of zero CD's, as I didn't actually get round to even turning the pc on - useless!!! I guess I just wasn't designed for multi-tasking :o(
I am aiming to get all the Christmas cards and presents sorted by the end of this year , so I've pulled out my Dodo Book of Christmas with all my lists from last year ready to go. I'll also be using this to plan everything else for Christmas - food, what to get, cooking plans etc.
Yesterday
The question is, do I start my challenge next month, or should I wait until after Christmas? I will still be allowed to by things for Christmas and I will need to work out exactly what my official declaration will be, and what is excluded (eg buying Christmas cards and presents for people).
Have a fab week.
LJx
Sunday, 14 October 2012
101 List Progress Check - October 14th 2012
It's that time of the week again - what progress have I made this week?
Prizewinner books - this week I read Amsterdam by Ian McEwan. I thought I'd have a quick check of the reviews on Amazon to see what to expect and was very wary when I saw that it only had 2.5 stars (many of the lower marks appeared to Ian McEwan fans who compared this book negatively to his previous books). However, I read it cover to cover in a couple of days, and it didn't feel like a chore at all. If that's Ian McEwan at his worst, then I'm definitely going to check out some of his other books :o)
Music - CDs to iTunes. I decided to get a few of these done on Friday evening, and had forgotten how quick and easy it is to do this. I'm going to do a few each day and hopefully it won't be too onerous and won't take too long to complete.
I've just ordered a tape to MP3 converter from Amazon ready to transfer my tapes to iTunes - that's going to take some time, but at least it means that I'll be able to listen to all my old music again.
Ripped abs - I'm finding it hard to get started on this one again. I did the P90X 2 Core workout on Sunday (which nearly killed me) and the Brazil Butt Lift Cardio Axe workout on Tuesday. P90X Chest & Back was planned for Thursday, but I ended up pulling an all-nighter at work on Thursday (it's been a long time since I've had to work through to the early hours of the morning - and boy did it knock me for six!!!). Unfortunately this scuppered my chances of getting a workout in on Friday or Saturday as well. However, I'm feeling a bit more alive today, so am planning on doing P90X Shoulders & Arms later today (that's going to hurt tomorrow as I've done no upper body work in ages...).
That's it for this week. Catch you next time. Have a fab week.
LJx
Prizewinner books - this week I read Amsterdam by Ian McEwan. I thought I'd have a quick check of the reviews on Amazon to see what to expect and was very wary when I saw that it only had 2.5 stars (many of the lower marks appeared to Ian McEwan fans who compared this book negatively to his previous books). However, I read it cover to cover in a couple of days, and it didn't feel like a chore at all. If that's Ian McEwan at his worst, then I'm definitely going to check out some of his other books :o)
Music - CDs to iTunes. I decided to get a few of these done on Friday evening, and had forgotten how quick and easy it is to do this. I'm going to do a few each day and hopefully it won't be too onerous and won't take too long to complete.
I've just ordered a tape to MP3 converter from Amazon ready to transfer my tapes to iTunes - that's going to take some time, but at least it means that I'll be able to listen to all my old music again.
Ripped abs - I'm finding it hard to get started on this one again. I did the P90X 2 Core workout on Sunday (which nearly killed me) and the Brazil Butt Lift Cardio Axe workout on Tuesday. P90X Chest & Back was planned for Thursday, but I ended up pulling an all-nighter at work on Thursday (it's been a long time since I've had to work through to the early hours of the morning - and boy did it knock me for six!!!). Unfortunately this scuppered my chances of getting a workout in on Friday or Saturday as well. However, I'm feeling a bit more alive today, so am planning on doing P90X Shoulders & Arms later today (that's going to hurt tomorrow as I've done no upper body work in ages...).
That's it for this week. Catch you next time. Have a fab week.
LJx
Sunday, 7 October 2012
101 List Progress Check - 7th October 2012
Hello!!!
It´s time for another update...
OK - so the prizewinner book "Paddy Clarke ha Ha Ha!!!" by Roddy Doyle did grow on me. I found the style of writing quite off-putting at first, but as the character gets older you notice the changes and it is very cleverly done.
Ripped abs - hmmm, well today I have started again and taken my Day 0 photos ready for comparison. Thankfully the work I did earlier in the year, despite only being for a short time, wasn´t all wasted - I lost 11 kilos at the time, and have only put 1 back on, so hopefully the exercise will be able to tone me up reasonably quickly. I did my first workout today which was X2 Core from the Beachbody P90X2 programme - it nearly killed me, but that´s a good sign right? Anyway, I think I´ll leave the P90X2 to Ben and stick mainly to P90X myself - with maybe a bit of Brazil Butt Lift thrown in for good measure. The main question though is do I do the full 90 day programme (exercising six days a week) or do I just try for three workouts a week...?
Scrapbooking - nope I still haven´t actually done any yet, but I have discovered Jessops photo books, which I can use to have my photos printed into books for posterity - how did I not know about these? I love looking at old photos, but since going digital I hardly ever print any out at all, but with this I can upload photos, design all my layouts, add text, borders etc. It´s not quite scrapbooking, but to be fair, it´s not a million miles away from digital scrapbooking. I may make up a few books and then save physical scrapbooking projects to be done for special occasions.
I also had a proper look into the world of digital scrapbooking and found the app ScrapPad for the iPad. Unfortunately I don´t have any photos on my iPad yet to be able to create any meaningful pages, but it is so simple to do and there is a pretty good selection of backgrounds and borders. My two boys also had great fun playing with the app and creating pages, just using the backgrounds, borders, embellishments and stickers that are in the app. For only 3 pounds it has a good selection, and you can get more kits for around 99p each, although you don´t need to. I´m going to be looking to see if I can get this app for the MacBook as well, who knows, I may even be able to print some pages out to go in my filos or on my desk at work.
Hope you all have a great week.
LJx
It´s time for another update...
OK - so the prizewinner book "Paddy Clarke ha Ha Ha!!!" by Roddy Doyle did grow on me. I found the style of writing quite off-putting at first, but as the character gets older you notice the changes and it is very cleverly done.
Ripped abs - hmmm, well today I have started again and taken my Day 0 photos ready for comparison. Thankfully the work I did earlier in the year, despite only being for a short time, wasn´t all wasted - I lost 11 kilos at the time, and have only put 1 back on, so hopefully the exercise will be able to tone me up reasonably quickly. I did my first workout today which was X2 Core from the Beachbody P90X2 programme - it nearly killed me, but that´s a good sign right? Anyway, I think I´ll leave the P90X2 to Ben and stick mainly to P90X myself - with maybe a bit of Brazil Butt Lift thrown in for good measure. The main question though is do I do the full 90 day programme (exercising six days a week) or do I just try for three workouts a week...?
Scrapbooking - nope I still haven´t actually done any yet, but I have discovered Jessops photo books, which I can use to have my photos printed into books for posterity - how did I not know about these? I love looking at old photos, but since going digital I hardly ever print any out at all, but with this I can upload photos, design all my layouts, add text, borders etc. It´s not quite scrapbooking, but to be fair, it´s not a million miles away from digital scrapbooking. I may make up a few books and then save physical scrapbooking projects to be done for special occasions.
I also had a proper look into the world of digital scrapbooking and found the app ScrapPad for the iPad. Unfortunately I don´t have any photos on my iPad yet to be able to create any meaningful pages, but it is so simple to do and there is a pretty good selection of backgrounds and borders. My two boys also had great fun playing with the app and creating pages, just using the backgrounds, borders, embellishments and stickers that are in the app. For only 3 pounds it has a good selection, and you can get more kits for around 99p each, although you don´t need to. I´m going to be looking to see if I can get this app for the MacBook as well, who knows, I may even be able to print some pages out to go in my filos or on my desk at work.
Hope you all have a great week.
LJx
Saturday, 29 September 2012
101 List Progress Check - 29th September 2012
Hi All,
Just a quick check in today as it's all been quiet on the 101 front this week. It's been monthend at work so totally manic and no way I was up to even thinking about doing anything when I got home each evening (apart from trying to plan where to go for a few days away in November).
I am currently sat in my new room, which is now looking peaceful and relaxing - I'm looking forward to writing a post and taking lots of photos for it very soon.
So, what have I actually managed to achieve on the 101 list this week... erm... nothing... oops!!!
However, I did download "Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha!!!" by Roddy Doyle yesterday, which is one of the prizewinner books on my list and I read the first few pages on the train on the way home from work - so far I haven't been able to get into it, but I'm hoping that will happen over the next few days :o)
Ooh - and I'm blogging about my 101, so that's an achievement, right...?
Off to do a bit of planning re some of my other challenges now.
Have a great week.
LJx
Just a quick check in today as it's all been quiet on the 101 front this week. It's been monthend at work so totally manic and no way I was up to even thinking about doing anything when I got home each evening (apart from trying to plan where to go for a few days away in November).
I am currently sat in my new room, which is now looking peaceful and relaxing - I'm looking forward to writing a post and taking lots of photos for it very soon.
So, what have I actually managed to achieve on the 101 list this week... erm... nothing... oops!!!
However, I did download "Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha!!!" by Roddy Doyle yesterday, which is one of the prizewinner books on my list and I read the first few pages on the train on the way home from work - so far I haven't been able to get into it, but I'm hoping that will happen over the next few days :o)
Ooh - and I'm blogging about my 101, so that's an achievement, right...?
Off to do a bit of planning re some of my other challenges now.
Have a great week.
LJx
Sunday, 23 September 2012
101 List Progress Check - Sep 23rd 2013
Hi All,
Woohoo!!! Paperwork sorted? Yes - at last!!!
Here a lovely picture of me sorting paperwork last Sunday evening, in anticipation of the arrival of my Filofax display case and stand.
I have finished reading Schindler's Ark - it is such a good book. I will definitely be reading it again, and really must get hold of the film on DVD (I don't know why I'm insisting on putting myself through this - I can guarantee I will cry...lots).
My de-cluttering is continuing, and although I haven't started doing Flylady routines yet I have set up my 5 week cleaning plan ready to start the rotations. Today I have also listed the daily/weekly tasks that can be delegated to my children which they (currently) are quite looking forward to as it is an opportunity to earn some cold, hard cash :o) We'll see how long they find this a good idea. I am refusing to let them earn money for doing the things they should just do anyway (keeping their rooms tidy(ish), getting ready for school properly in the mornings, putting their toys away etc), but they seem to be understanding that and haven't argued at all. Wish me luck for it lasting the week (or even the rest of the day).
Have a great week,
LJx
Woohoo!!! Paperwork sorted? Yes - at last!!!
Here a lovely picture of me sorting paperwork last Sunday evening, in anticipation of the arrival of my Filofax display case and stand.
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| Surrounded by less than half the paperwork that I had to go through in total. The stuff on the shelf under the table is all for shredding (that pile grew even more before I'd finished), and the filled folders are the filing that had already been done at that stage... |
My de-cluttering is continuing, and although I haven't started doing Flylady routines yet I have set up my 5 week cleaning plan ready to start the rotations. Today I have also listed the daily/weekly tasks that can be delegated to my children which they (currently) are quite looking forward to as it is an opportunity to earn some cold, hard cash :o) We'll see how long they find this a good idea. I am refusing to let them earn money for doing the things they should just do anyway (keeping their rooms tidy(ish), getting ready for school properly in the mornings, putting their toys away etc), but they seem to be understanding that and haven't argued at all. Wish me luck for it lasting the week (or even the rest of the day).
Have a great week,
LJx
Friday, 14 September 2012
101 List Progress Check - September 14th 2012
Hi Guys,
Sorry I'm a bit behind - I've been a bit busy and don't have a huge amount to report on my 101 at the moment.
I am currently reading the sixth prizewinner book off my list "Schinder's Ark" (better known as Schindler's List) by Thomas Keneally. I remember watching the film years ago, and will definitely be needing to watch it again after I have finished reading it. It is so disturbing, and yet hopeful at the same time.
After stating in my last post that I had got all the paperwork from various cubby holes for filing, actioning etc (and feeling quite proud of myself), I discovered a whole stack of more paperwork on the top shelf in the computer cupboard this week - aargh!! However, being the dedicated thing that I am, I have been through it all, added a load to my shredding pile, stuck another load in the bin, and my pile for filing is now double what it was. But at least both filing piles have been put in order ready to be integrated and filed. I have even remembered to buy some new A4 lever arch files for the purpose. It is still a work in progress and I will have to go through my other paperwork which is already filed (in a totally random way in comparison to how I want it all to be), but I will get there!!!
Now that home is beginning to be a bit more organised (I have actually managed to clear the shelf above the coats - now that was a total mess), I am ready to start thinking about when to do which household chores, instead of trying to get it all done in one massive go each time - that's no fun, takes out a huge chunk of my weekends and leaves me drained from constantly being asked for things by my boys when I'm trying to get things done. I have discovered the perfect friend for helping me in my quest for a less stressful time - the iRobot Roomba - I love it!!! I used it for the first time on Wednesday, and it wasn't really a time-saving device on it's first use as I was just stood watching it. I even smiled at it very proudly - it was like being a proud new mum all over again... combined with the fear of the Dalek running round the house and trying to break down doors...
Have a great weekend :o)
LJx
Sorry I'm a bit behind - I've been a bit busy and don't have a huge amount to report on my 101 at the moment.
I am currently reading the sixth prizewinner book off my list "Schinder's Ark" (better known as Schindler's List) by Thomas Keneally. I remember watching the film years ago, and will definitely be needing to watch it again after I have finished reading it. It is so disturbing, and yet hopeful at the same time.
After stating in my last post that I had got all the paperwork from various cubby holes for filing, actioning etc (and feeling quite proud of myself), I discovered a whole stack of more paperwork on the top shelf in the computer cupboard this week - aargh!! However, being the dedicated thing that I am, I have been through it all, added a load to my shredding pile, stuck another load in the bin, and my pile for filing is now double what it was. But at least both filing piles have been put in order ready to be integrated and filed. I have even remembered to buy some new A4 lever arch files for the purpose. It is still a work in progress and I will have to go through my other paperwork which is already filed (in a totally random way in comparison to how I want it all to be), but I will get there!!!
Now that home is beginning to be a bit more organised (I have actually managed to clear the shelf above the coats - now that was a total mess), I am ready to start thinking about when to do which household chores, instead of trying to get it all done in one massive go each time - that's no fun, takes out a huge chunk of my weekends and leaves me drained from constantly being asked for things by my boys when I'm trying to get things done. I have discovered the perfect friend for helping me in my quest for a less stressful time - the iRobot Roomba - I love it!!! I used it for the first time on Wednesday, and it wasn't really a time-saving device on it's first use as I was just stood watching it. I even smiled at it very proudly - it was like being a proud new mum all over again... combined with the fear of the Dalek running round the house and trying to break down doors...
Have a great weekend :o)
LJx
Saturday, 25 August 2012
101 List Progress Check - 25th August 2012
And here goes for the latest update...
Supplements... woohoo!!! I now have three completely empty tubs, and a couple that are started so I think I'm good to say I'm done, although I will obviously continue to take them to use up all the ones that are in the cupboard. :o)
I have read The English Patient, which was a book with really interesting characters and left you wanting more - so I have now read five of the ten prizewinner books that I have to read.
I started to de-clutter our apartment last weekend - it's something I've been meaning to do for ages and just never got round to, but having read David Allen's Getting Things Done book I felt it was time to at least get started. There is still a lot of paperwork in the cupboard to be filed properly, but I know that there is no paperwork that I have anything outstanding to do with. I now have all the paperwork that was lying in various random spots about the place in three trays - bills to pay (thankfully this is a very small pile as I am good at paying bills monthly and on time), filing, and requires action.
As part of this de-cluttering and wanting to create space generally we went to IKEA (again) and bought some drawers to go in the bottom of our wardrobe and some shelves so that all out tops could be folded up and put in it. I threw out all my clothes that don't fit me or that I have no use for and freed up three drawers worth of space (one of which was rapidly filled with scrapbooking supplies) - so I can now mark off the task "Clean out my Closet" as done - yay!!!
Today I went to town to buy a few things to help with my filing, so had a good hunt around in Thalia and found a few essential pieces...
And being on my own at the time I also managed to find a few pieces that have nothing to do with my filing at all, but are obviously totally essential to my Filofax habit...
This paper is fabulous, although thin - the make is Miquelrius from Spain. One thing about living in Switzerland is that you pay a huge premium on most things, especially paper products for some reason, but sometimes I just see it and have to have it there and then without the hassle of going home, finding it on the internet, getting it shipped to here and then having to pay a separate bill for duty. It often is still cheaper to do things this way, but is just to painful sometimes to make that kind of effort - and you miss out on the instant gratification that sometimes a girl just needs.
I tried to get a picture of the scrawl from the rainbow pencil, but it doesn't show up well in the picture. Needless to say it will feature in a future post when I use it properly :o)
One last pic before I finish...
Off now to do a bit more de-cluttering before I can sit down to set up my home A5 filo :o)
Have a good week.
LJx
Supplements... woohoo!!! I now have three completely empty tubs, and a couple that are started so I think I'm good to say I'm done, although I will obviously continue to take them to use up all the ones that are in the cupboard. :o)
I have read The English Patient, which was a book with really interesting characters and left you wanting more - so I have now read five of the ten prizewinner books that I have to read.
I started to de-clutter our apartment last weekend - it's something I've been meaning to do for ages and just never got round to, but having read David Allen's Getting Things Done book I felt it was time to at least get started. There is still a lot of paperwork in the cupboard to be filed properly, but I know that there is no paperwork that I have anything outstanding to do with. I now have all the paperwork that was lying in various random spots about the place in three trays - bills to pay (thankfully this is a very small pile as I am good at paying bills monthly and on time), filing, and requires action.
As part of this de-cluttering and wanting to create space generally we went to IKEA (again) and bought some drawers to go in the bottom of our wardrobe and some shelves so that all out tops could be folded up and put in it. I threw out all my clothes that don't fit me or that I have no use for and freed up three drawers worth of space (one of which was rapidly filled with scrapbooking supplies) - so I can now mark off the task "Clean out my Closet" as done - yay!!!
Today I went to town to buy a few things to help with my filing, so had a good hunt around in Thalia and found a few essential pieces...
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| Monthly dividers and alphabet dividers |
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| A5 notebook, 2013 A5 Year Planner, white sticky labels and rainbow pencils (three as I figured the boys would steal mine if I only got one) |
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| Side view of the notebook - 8 colours |
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| Not a very good photo unfortunately, but the sheets are perforated for easy removal, the paper is quadrille with a header box at the type in the same style as the Filofax notes pages |
I tried to get a picture of the scrawl from the rainbow pencil, but it doesn't show up well in the picture. Needless to say it will feature in a future post when I use it properly :o)
One last pic before I finish...
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| This was the view from our balcony when we got home from shopping!!! |
Have a good week.
LJx
Monday, 13 August 2012
101 List Progress Check - August 13th
Sorry!!! I have got behind (seems to be my general state of being at the moment). Work seems to be getting a bit hectic again with project work, and I have just got my boys back from the UK and the started kindergarten and school today. Tonight they are back to normal, not going to sleep and getting out of bed every ten minutes because daddy's not here to give them a talking to - joy!!!
So, here is the lowdown on my 101.
Prizewinner books - I have now completed The Color Purple and thoroughly enjoyed it. It is definitely one I would read again in the future.
Classic films - I finally got round to watching the rest of Taxi Driver. The ending is not quite what I was expecting (although, to be fair, I'm not sure what I was actually expecting), but was done in proper bullet fest mode :o)
Supplements - still ploughing through these babies... yum!!!
Ripped abs - OK, so I have totally fallen off the wagon with this one (mainly thanks to my dad and his feeder personality - and my obvious lack of willpower). I have now put back on five of the eleven kilos that I lost. However, today Ben came home with one of these body fat scale things and apparently I have a body fat percentage of 38%. Having since looked on the internet and discovered that in most guidelines this puts me in the 'obese' category I have decided that:
a) the scales don't work; or
b) 38% isn't actually obese (although that sounds pretty high...); and
c) I really need to get back on the healthy eating and get some sort of exercise routine
re-established (stopping recording that in my filo was a bad move - I lost all
accountability)
accountability)
No-one needs to worry that I am suffering from any illusions as to my size, I know I am not huge and have no intention of trying to lose three stone or anything drastic as that would make me officially underweight and in danger of malnutrition. Just for info, I currently weigh 59kg (approximately 9st 2lb), and am 5'6".
Seeing Jessica Ennis in team GB has also helped my motivation - she is stunning, and those abs? Utter perfection.
Skincare routine - four weeks done, and I have kept it up since I finished (apart from one evening), so there is hope for me :o)
Finish work on time with no work to take home 2 days a week for 3 months - I have finally got round to checking my work log (I have been monitoring as I am trying very hard to leave work on time every day, apart from monthend, and have been doing pretty well). I have discovered that I completed this particular challenge quite early in June, and have further success regarding the third of my working hours challenges.
Work very late for 2 nights at monthend, and 2 'normal' late nights per month with no work to take home for 2 months - I managed this for March, April and May, but it messed up by one extra proper late night in June due to some project work, but as the challenge was only for two months then it's all good - yay!!! In fact, the last few monthends haven't even needed 2 very late nights, just the one for the close itself - double yay!!!
And the final work one...? As above, but with hours back in the form of working from home on Fridays with an early finish... Well - for the monthend close nights I have been having the hours back in the form of time off, I don't do that with the standard late nights though as I don't see a need to. When this challenge was set my working hours were excessive to say the least and I really didn't think that the working hours challenges were going to be achieved so early in the 1001 days, and that these hours have now pretty much become the 'norm' for me is pretty amazing.
I am happy therefore to say that all my working hours challenges have been met, and as much as everyone likes to laugh at my Filofax collection and how much I love them and praise them, it is pretty much entirely down to the use of them for work that I have been able to achieve this more balanced work/life thing. Go team Filofax!!!
Ooh - almost forgot!!! I successfully completed my two weeks of being nice. The last day was a bit of a struggle, so I just had to remember how much effort I had already put in, and that I didn't want to have to do the first 13 days all over again just for one mindless comment :o)
Have a good week,
LJx
Work very late for 2 nights at monthend, and 2 'normal' late nights per month with no work to take home for 2 months - I managed this for March, April and May, but it messed up by one extra proper late night in June due to some project work, but as the challenge was only for two months then it's all good - yay!!! In fact, the last few monthends haven't even needed 2 very late nights, just the one for the close itself - double yay!!!
And the final work one...? As above, but with hours back in the form of working from home on Fridays with an early finish... Well - for the monthend close nights I have been having the hours back in the form of time off, I don't do that with the standard late nights though as I don't see a need to. When this challenge was set my working hours were excessive to say the least and I really didn't think that the working hours challenges were going to be achieved so early in the 1001 days, and that these hours have now pretty much become the 'norm' for me is pretty amazing.
I am happy therefore to say that all my working hours challenges have been met, and as much as everyone likes to laugh at my Filofax collection and how much I love them and praise them, it is pretty much entirely down to the use of them for work that I have been able to achieve this more balanced work/life thing. Go team Filofax!!!
Ooh - almost forgot!!! I successfully completed my two weeks of being nice. The last day was a bit of a struggle, so I just had to remember how much effort I had already put in, and that I didn't want to have to do the first 13 days all over again just for one mindless comment :o)
Have a good week,
LJx
Wednesday, 1 August 2012
101 List Progress Check - August 1st 2012
Hi Everyone (Anyone...) and Happy Swiss Day!!!
Yep, August the 1st is the national day over here and there were fireworks going half the night last night and it sounds like firecrackers are currently the order of the day (lots of bangs going all evening so far, and as it's still light out I'm guessing it's not full on fireworks).
So, what have I achieved since I last posted a 101 progress update... let's see...
Shakespeare - complete. I read The Taming of The Shrew last week and I have to say it is probably the most enjoyable of the five plays that I have read.
Prizewinner books - I have now started reading The Color Purple, and it's shaping up to be pretty good. I a looking forward to see what happens next.
Make up daily - yay!!! Another challenge completed. I wore it every day for a whole month and am still going even though I no longer have to.
Skin care - yep, that one is still going on, have I noticed any difference in my skin? I'm not sure, but then I don't look at it that carefully - maybe I'll check it out properly at the end of my month :-)
Being nice - wow!!! Today is day twelve of my two weeks of being nice challenge (it sounds better than day twelve of my not being horrible challenge) and I am doing remarkably well. It is monthend at work, which is usually the time when I am most horrible, and I'm not. Two days to go... maybe I can arrange to work from home on Friday...?
Supplements - is there no end to these things...? Although to be fair the challenge is for three months, but I think I got about six months worth.
30 Lists in 30 Days - another achievement. I have one which just needs a bit to finish it off and need to get them posted on here, but I am done.
Classic films - I haven't actually watched any more yet (fingers crossed for this weekend), but I have bought Scarface starring Al Pacino...
Dinner by candlelight - we had dinner at the hotel when we were in Germany, complete with lit candles on the table. It wasn't actually dark yet, but it still counts, right?
I need to check my work hours and dates to see if I've completed another of the challenges for those, fairly sure I have, but as I have decided to have a separate work Filofax I need to remember to bring it home to check.
And the piéce de resistance? Wearing feminine clothes for a whole week. I started this one on Wednesday last week (including wearing feminine clothes at the weekend) and finished it yesterday. It was so nice to get a pair of jeans on for work today, but I may be back to dresses for the next two days as it seems to be easier to be nice when I'm wearing feminine clothes. And here is the proof that I really did do it...
OK - so that wasn't the best outfit for going to the Giger museum, but how was I to know that it was going to be all sloping cobbled streets - oops!!! Although I did (eventually) manage to spot someone with even more inappropriate shoes than me there :o)
That's me for now.
Enjoy the rest of your week :o)
LJx
Yep, August the 1st is the national day over here and there were fireworks going half the night last night and it sounds like firecrackers are currently the order of the day (lots of bangs going all evening so far, and as it's still light out I'm guessing it's not full on fireworks).
So, what have I achieved since I last posted a 101 progress update... let's see...
Shakespeare - complete. I read The Taming of The Shrew last week and I have to say it is probably the most enjoyable of the five plays that I have read.
Prizewinner books - I have now started reading The Color Purple, and it's shaping up to be pretty good. I a looking forward to see what happens next.
Make up daily - yay!!! Another challenge completed. I wore it every day for a whole month and am still going even though I no longer have to.
Skin care - yep, that one is still going on, have I noticed any difference in my skin? I'm not sure, but then I don't look at it that carefully - maybe I'll check it out properly at the end of my month :-)
Being nice - wow!!! Today is day twelve of my two weeks of being nice challenge (it sounds better than day twelve of my not being horrible challenge) and I am doing remarkably well. It is monthend at work, which is usually the time when I am most horrible, and I'm not. Two days to go... maybe I can arrange to work from home on Friday...?
Supplements - is there no end to these things...? Although to be fair the challenge is for three months, but I think I got about six months worth.
30 Lists in 30 Days - another achievement. I have one which just needs a bit to finish it off and need to get them posted on here, but I am done.
Classic films - I haven't actually watched any more yet (fingers crossed for this weekend), but I have bought Scarface starring Al Pacino...
Dinner by candlelight - we had dinner at the hotel when we were in Germany, complete with lit candles on the table. It wasn't actually dark yet, but it still counts, right?
I need to check my work hours and dates to see if I've completed another of the challenges for those, fairly sure I have, but as I have decided to have a separate work Filofax I need to remember to bring it home to check.
And the piéce de resistance? Wearing feminine clothes for a whole week. I started this one on Wednesday last week (including wearing feminine clothes at the weekend) and finished it yesterday. It was so nice to get a pair of jeans on for work today, but I may be back to dresses for the next two days as it seems to be easier to be nice when I'm wearing feminine clothes. And here is the proof that I really did do it...
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| Wednesday - red H&M dress and lily-white legs |
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| Thursday - black and cream River Island retro dress , again with the lily-white legs |
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| Friday - H&M casual butterfly dress, legs hidden |
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| Saturday - ready to shop in black skirt and top, lily-whites are on show again |
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| Sunday - black skirt, girly top from Next |
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| Monday - new butterfly dress from H&M |
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| Tuesday - newish swallow dress from H&M |
Enjoy the rest of your week :o)
LJx
Monday, 16 July 2012
101 List Progress Check – July 15th 2012
Happy Sunday!!! (OK, OK – It is Monday now, but I wrote this on Sunday)
No time to write loads, too much fun to be had here on my holiday, so here’s the list:
Make-up daily – still going strong, even on a Sunday at Centerparcs, which feels a bit weird… lol
Skincare was restarted on Monday 10th, and is going well so far, though I can’t believe I said I’d keep this up for a month. But once the month is done I should be able to keep it going afterwards, which is a good thing – it is something I should have started when I was much younger…
Supplements – yay!!!
Midnights Children – woohoo!!! 83% down according to the Kindle. Thinking about it, this may not be the longest book in the world, it may just be that I have only been able to read a little each day. I may have to check out a bookshop to see how big the actual book is.
I have now done 13 of my 30 lists in 30 days, and will start publishing them soon… depending on the internet access here and the amount of time I have available to myself to hide out in Starbucks – ha ha ha!!!
We are on our family holiday at Centerparcs now. We arrived in a deluge of rain on Friday afternoon (ooh, is that our private pool? Oh no, it’s just a very large puddle by our door).
Friday evening nobody fancied doing the cooking, so we all went to Café Rouge for dinner, which was really nice and the boys were very well behaved. They drew pictures for each other (see, I knew that being apart for almost two weeks should make them be nice to each other for at least ten minutes), and were kept entertained by the fish swimming around, although I was expecting one of them to fall in…
Saturday was pretty wet, but we went out to explore a bit and the boys were fascinated by the bones and animal poo in the Rangers Lodge (nice), and they loved the outdoor playground. After a late lunch we took them to the Subtropical Swimming Paradise. We were there for two hours, so by the time we left both boys were shattered. Dinner and ice-cream were soon followed by bed at 8pm, and they were asleep within minutes, not waking up until I woke them up after 7am to see a deer outside our villa. They will be swimming every day!!!
Have a great week,
LJx
Wednesday, 11 July 2012
101 List Progress Check - July 11th 2012
Another super quick one as it's been a hectic week or so (again) and I'm having to check off my achievements from memory as I haven't written anything at all down...
Wearing make-up every day for 4 weeks - still going strong, although I almost forgot yesterday morning (I arrived at my dads on Monday night and saw Marcus for the first time since last Sunday so he was a tad excited and wanted to play). I started on the skincare thing on Monday evening and am pleased that I bought myself some new Olay day and night moisturisers - they smell really nice, fingers crossed they'll help plump out those wrinkles that are lurking :o)
I forgot to take my supplements over the weekend and on Monday, but I really don't want to start again as I hate taking them - I am very tempted to just carry on and add a few extra days at the end. I guess that officially that could be classed as cheating, and I have enough supplements to last for well past the three months so could in theory start the clock again from yesterday... bleurgh, what a thought!!!
Midnights Children by Salman Rushdie - will it ever end...? Enjoying reading it still, but I think the key word in that is now still.
I didn't get round to watching Cabaret or Evita despite my best intentions. I tried to watch Cabaret on the Sunday evening after I arrived, but fell asleep ridiculously early on in the film... oops!!!
My 30 Lists in 30 Days challenge is off to a slow start and I'm a bit behind, but thankfully there is nothing to say that you have to do one each day for 30 days, just that all thirty need to be completed in the 30 days. I will be catching up very soon. It's a bit tricky trying to sit and do these lists when there are other people around (or at least that's what I'm finding).
Two sleeps until Centerparcs at Longleat for the family holiday - yay!!!
Have a good week.
LJx
Wearing make-up every day for 4 weeks - still going strong, although I almost forgot yesterday morning (I arrived at my dads on Monday night and saw Marcus for the first time since last Sunday so he was a tad excited and wanted to play). I started on the skincare thing on Monday evening and am pleased that I bought myself some new Olay day and night moisturisers - they smell really nice, fingers crossed they'll help plump out those wrinkles that are lurking :o)
I forgot to take my supplements over the weekend and on Monday, but I really don't want to start again as I hate taking them - I am very tempted to just carry on and add a few extra days at the end. I guess that officially that could be classed as cheating, and I have enough supplements to last for well past the three months so could in theory start the clock again from yesterday... bleurgh, what a thought!!!
Midnights Children by Salman Rushdie - will it ever end...? Enjoying reading it still, but I think the key word in that is now still.
I didn't get round to watching Cabaret or Evita despite my best intentions. I tried to watch Cabaret on the Sunday evening after I arrived, but fell asleep ridiculously early on in the film... oops!!!
My 30 Lists in 30 Days challenge is off to a slow start and I'm a bit behind, but thankfully there is nothing to say that you have to do one each day for 30 days, just that all thirty need to be completed in the 30 days. I will be catching up very soon. It's a bit tricky trying to sit and do these lists when there are other people around (or at least that's what I'm finding).
Two sleeps until Centerparcs at Longleat for the family holiday - yay!!!
Have a good week.
LJx
Wednesday, 4 July 2012
101 List Progress Check - July 1st 2012
This is kinda late as I have intermittent internet access at the moment, but here is the latest update on my 101 from Sunday: :o)
Wearing make-up every day for 4 weeks - I started this Wednesday last week and decided on Monday to continue doing this, and see if I can manage four weeks. This is a good time to to do this as I have no children until mid-August (apart from the week in Centerparcs, but that is holiday time). I think I will try to start doing the skin care routine later this week as I have more time in the mornings and evenings.
The supplements were going OK until I forgot to pack them for travelling to the UK today, so I've missed a day, but will be back on track tomorrow as I have more waiting for me me so will play catch up then.
I'm now about halfway through Salman Rushdie's Midnights Children, and finding it a good read, although the lack of commas when listing things can get a it annoying at times. It is pretty interesting, but I didn't realise how long it is, which I guess is one disadvantage of getting books on Kindle.
I've now got my hands on the DVDs Cabaret and Evita so will be watching those shortly. I'm particularly looking forward to watching Evita, as when I was younger I had a book of music from various musicals and a few from Evita were in there.
I went into Devizes with a friend of mine today, showing him round various spots where I used to work, wander, or just sit and chill. We went into The Lamb for a drink and he spied a poster for 'Avebury Rocks II' with The Levellers playing next Saturday night - yay!!! I think we may have to go, so that could be one concert down and off my list - go me!!! Possibly camping, but I'm guessing that spending one night in a tent doesn't constitute 'going camping'.
I started my 30 Lists in 30 Days challenge on the plane this morning, and so I must find time each day to do this. As I am away at the moment then I will need to post these as and when I can as I doubt I will have internet access every day.
Have a good week.
LJx
Wearing make-up every day for 4 weeks - I started this Wednesday last week and decided on Monday to continue doing this, and see if I can manage four weeks. This is a good time to to do this as I have no children until mid-August (apart from the week in Centerparcs, but that is holiday time). I think I will try to start doing the skin care routine later this week as I have more time in the mornings and evenings.
The supplements were going OK until I forgot to pack them for travelling to the UK today, so I've missed a day, but will be back on track tomorrow as I have more waiting for me me so will play catch up then.
I'm now about halfway through Salman Rushdie's Midnights Children, and finding it a good read, although the lack of commas when listing things can get a it annoying at times. It is pretty interesting, but I didn't realise how long it is, which I guess is one disadvantage of getting books on Kindle.
I've now got my hands on the DVDs Cabaret and Evita so will be watching those shortly. I'm particularly looking forward to watching Evita, as when I was younger I had a book of music from various musicals and a few from Evita were in there.
I went into Devizes with a friend of mine today, showing him round various spots where I used to work, wander, or just sit and chill. We went into The Lamb for a drink and he spied a poster for 'Avebury Rocks II' with The Levellers playing next Saturday night - yay!!! I think we may have to go, so that could be one concert down and off my list - go me!!! Possibly camping, but I'm guessing that spending one night in a tent doesn't constitute 'going camping'.
I started my 30 Lists in 30 Days challenge on the plane this morning, and so I must find time each day to do this. As I am away at the moment then I will need to post these as and when I can as I doubt I will have internet access every day.
Have a good week.
LJx
Sunday, 24 June 2012
101 List Progress Check - Jun 24th 2012
Hello, good evening and welcome!!!
Keeping it short again today - behind on everything at the moment, but feel I would benefit from a very early night - I keep aiming for one, but it never happens.
So, this weeks progress:
Shakespeare - I have to say, I'm really not getting into Shakespeare - maybe if I saw it on the stage the way it is supposed to be I would find it easier, but to read it - eugh!!! I have now read Anthony & Cleopatra though, and I found it better than the others that I have read so far, so four down one to go. I'm due to read The Taming of The Shrew, and then I think that unless I get into it via joining a drama group or something, that I will probably never read another Shakespeare play again... which kind of saddens me. Maybe when I have finished the 101 things in 1001 days I should give myself the objective of reading one or two Shakespeare plays a year, but watching them as well and studying the text as opposed to just reading it.
Prizewinner books - This week I have started reading Midnight's children by Salman Rushdie. I like the style of writing that is used for this, with the story in the past interspersed with the current thoughts of the writer.
My working hours have been on track this week. I stayed late on Thursday (which was great as I was in the middle of the most amazing thunderstorm - it was totally mental), and finished early on Friday as I was pretty much dead :o)
Supplements are still going in, and exercise has still not been restarted, must do something before my belly starts sticking out again and looking pregnant - it's weird the way that after you've had children, that is your stomachs natural shape unless you attack it...
I have just ordered Evita and Cabaret off Amazon, so will be able to get those when I am in the UK, so should be able to watch them this month as I have a couple of weeks off work.
We have our first family holiday booked up to start in a couples of weeks time so that'll be another one off the list, and then Ben and I have a weekend watching the Grand Prix at Hockenheim, while the boys stay with the grandparents... this is preparation for our two week holiday which we will hopefully be able to do next summer. This summer the boys will mainly be in the UK without us, but that will be good for their English as they speak Swiss German five days a week. If that works out OK then we may see if we can do the same again next year :o)
I think that's all for this week,
Will be flying to the UK next Sunday so will try to post an update before I go, as I'm not sure when I'll get a chance to between now and the end of July otherwise (although I will be trying to).
Have a good week,
LJx
Keeping it short again today - behind on everything at the moment, but feel I would benefit from a very early night - I keep aiming for one, but it never happens.
So, this weeks progress:
Shakespeare - I have to say, I'm really not getting into Shakespeare - maybe if I saw it on the stage the way it is supposed to be I would find it easier, but to read it - eugh!!! I have now read Anthony & Cleopatra though, and I found it better than the others that I have read so far, so four down one to go. I'm due to read The Taming of The Shrew, and then I think that unless I get into it via joining a drama group or something, that I will probably never read another Shakespeare play again... which kind of saddens me. Maybe when I have finished the 101 things in 1001 days I should give myself the objective of reading one or two Shakespeare plays a year, but watching them as well and studying the text as opposed to just reading it.
Prizewinner books - This week I have started reading Midnight's children by Salman Rushdie. I like the style of writing that is used for this, with the story in the past interspersed with the current thoughts of the writer.
My working hours have been on track this week. I stayed late on Thursday (which was great as I was in the middle of the most amazing thunderstorm - it was totally mental), and finished early on Friday as I was pretty much dead :o)
Supplements are still going in, and exercise has still not been restarted, must do something before my belly starts sticking out again and looking pregnant - it's weird the way that after you've had children, that is your stomachs natural shape unless you attack it...
I have just ordered Evita and Cabaret off Amazon, so will be able to get those when I am in the UK, so should be able to watch them this month as I have a couple of weeks off work.
We have our first family holiday booked up to start in a couples of weeks time so that'll be another one off the list, and then Ben and I have a weekend watching the Grand Prix at Hockenheim, while the boys stay with the grandparents... this is preparation for our two week holiday which we will hopefully be able to do next summer. This summer the boys will mainly be in the UK without us, but that will be good for their English as they speak Swiss German five days a week. If that works out OK then we may see if we can do the same again next year :o)
I think that's all for this week,
Will be flying to the UK next Sunday so will try to post an update before I go, as I'm not sure when I'll get a chance to between now and the end of July otherwise (although I will be trying to).
Have a good week,
LJx
Saturday, 12 May 2012
101 List Progress Check - May 12th 2012
Well, it's been a pretty uneventful week on the 101 challenge front, however, I am pleased to report that I finished reading The Shipping News.
It didn't grab me, but that could be due to the unusual use of short sentences throughout the whole book as I felt that it didn't flow for me, or it could just be because I've had a lot of other things going on and therefore maybe wasn't fully engaged. Having said that, I enjoyed the book and would read it again, and would probably find it easier to get into second time around. I have never seen the film, but would definitely like to so I can see how the characters were brought to life for the screen.
I am hoping to watch Papillon or The Sting sometime this weekend as I didn't get the chance to watch a film this week, and then I will be two down on the classics :o)
On the health front I have been disgracefully lacking on the exercise front (having done none since my last update), but I have remembered to take my supplements twice a day and have managed to drink 1.5 litres of water most days, still not often enough to consider that particular challenge started, but I'll be on it soon..
I bit the bullet on Wednesday evening and ordered stationery for my Happiness Binder - probably enough for all the Filofaxes I own to be honest, oops!!! - and did overspend a bit, but I am not going to need to buy any pretty paper for a while. That'll make my fabulously frugal three months a bit easier when it comes round - ha ha ha :o) I should also be receiving my scrapbooking papers and stickers that I bought off eBay soon, and they will hopefully be just what I need to start on making dividers for my beloved filos.
I have dug out my copy of The Happiness Project by Gretchen Ruben so that I can read through it again and make some notes as I had intended to do last time. I will write down any special quotes I find as well to go on my pretty paper in my Happiness Binder.
Even though I am not getting through the 101 in quite the way I had hoped (I think I was possibly over-estimating the number of hours there are in a day), I am glad I started this challenge as I am doing and seeing things that I probably wouldn't otherwise have got round to.
I will try to be more timely with my updates as I had planned to post weekly and have been pretty remiss so far.
LJx
It didn't grab me, but that could be due to the unusual use of short sentences throughout the whole book as I felt that it didn't flow for me, or it could just be because I've had a lot of other things going on and therefore maybe wasn't fully engaged. Having said that, I enjoyed the book and would read it again, and would probably find it easier to get into second time around. I have never seen the film, but would definitely like to so I can see how the characters were brought to life for the screen.
I am hoping to watch Papillon or The Sting sometime this weekend as I didn't get the chance to watch a film this week, and then I will be two down on the classics :o)
On the health front I have been disgracefully lacking on the exercise front (having done none since my last update), but I have remembered to take my supplements twice a day and have managed to drink 1.5 litres of water most days, still not often enough to consider that particular challenge started, but I'll be on it soon..
I bit the bullet on Wednesday evening and ordered stationery for my Happiness Binder - probably enough for all the Filofaxes I own to be honest, oops!!! - and did overspend a bit, but I am not going to need to buy any pretty paper for a while. That'll make my fabulously frugal three months a bit easier when it comes round - ha ha ha :o) I should also be receiving my scrapbooking papers and stickers that I bought off eBay soon, and they will hopefully be just what I need to start on making dividers for my beloved filos.
I have dug out my copy of The Happiness Project by Gretchen Ruben so that I can read through it again and make some notes as I had intended to do last time. I will write down any special quotes I find as well to go on my pretty paper in my Happiness Binder.
Even though I am not getting through the 101 in quite the way I had hoped (I think I was possibly over-estimating the number of hours there are in a day), I am glad I started this challenge as I am doing and seeing things that I probably wouldn't otherwise have got round to.
I will try to be more timely with my updates as I had planned to post weekly and have been pretty remiss so far.
LJx
Sunday, 6 May 2012
101 List Progress Check - May 6th 2012
Oops!!! I thought I had posted an update last weekend, but clearly I hadn't, so here is the latest re my 101 challenge...
Last weekend I managed to cross off my challenge to watch 10 new releases, so here is my final list:
- Thor
- Harry Potter (the last one)
- Captain America
- The Green Lantern
- Happy Feet 2
- Puss in Boots
- Contagion
- In Time
- Jane Eyre
- The Help
For the classic films, I have now watched Brief Encounter and I'd been led to believe that it was supposed to be one of the most romantic films of all time, but I just didn't get that. Some married guy tries it on with a married lady, they kind of hook up, but don't, but fall in love and then it's all over and they are sad - the end... maybe I'm heartless, or maybe I was just expecting too much. I thought I'd be in floods of tears, but just didn't identify with the characters.
I have also managed to blog about my set up for my A5 Filofax - the format of the blog wasn't quite as intended (ie write post for Lucy re my A5 work FF) for a couple of reasons. Firstly, I lost my A5 work Filofax shortly after I wrote my list and since then have moved between various set ups so now I am using one A5 Filofax for everything, and as I have my own blog now it made sense to post the details on here instead of sending it to Lucy to post onto hers. You can see my post re my A5 here, and if you would like to see what binder I am currently in (I have moved twice since), you can see this here.
Prizewinner book number two is ow started - The Shipping News by Annie Proulx. I am finding the short sentence structure that she uses a bit unusual/awkward at times, but it seems good so far.
I started taking my supplements again on Thursday (after forgetting to take any since my last 101 post when I said that I was going to take my ones for that day when I finished posting, and then not doing so).
This weekend I have been browsing at modes4u and artbox, checking out the funky stationery so I can get some for using in my happiness binder to write quotes/jokes on that make me smile. Unfortunately I now have wishlists totalling approximately £200 - I really need to reduce those lists before I end up with a whole stationery shop in my cupboards...
Today I completed the task of making a birthday cake. As I haven't made a cake from scratch in many years it was an interesting experience... Unfortunately you can't get self-raising flour over here so I had to find out what the right amount of baking powder that I needed was as the recipe book doesn't have that info (despite being a general cook book that gives all the basics), and I didn't have any caster sugar... Oh and I didn't have any sandwich tins so had to stick it into one deeper tin, which I'm sure means I should have adjusted the temperature and times, but never mind. It came out a lot better than I was expecting it to, and although I wouldn't go as far as to say it was a total success, it was far from being a failure and actually tasted really good.
On the work front - I have now managed to finish on time on Mondays and get home in time for DF to go to band practice, and haven't had to bring work home with me (excluding monthends, where I have either left later, but still in time for DF to go and with no work to bring home, or have left work on time and brought some work home with me - which was all part of the deal so that is fine).
Until next time...
LJx
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| OK - it's far from perfect and as I was rubbish with the 'decorative icing' I made it into a face - and no it wasn't for a 4-year-old, it was for a 36-year-old |
Until next time...
LJx
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