Sunday Focus

I have just returned from a week at the beach and it has occurred to me that 1/3 of my 90 days have passed and I haven't done Jack. In less than 60 days, I'll be 49 years old. At the end of April (on the other blog, I just realized), I set four goals to accomplish by my birthday.

1. Study for & pass the Enrolled Agent Exam



2. Take a pottery class



3. Develop better eating & moving habits



4. Clean and organize my house

I have done:

1. Nothing

OK, I am eating at least a rainbow a day, along with a lot of other crap that needs to go. But that's something. I walked on the beach, but walking one week out of the year is not going to cut it. Sure, Forest Acres isn't the beach, but what is? Maybe I should go walk in the swamp. I'll bet the snakes are out.

On the day I discovered FlyLady.com, I was so inspired that in a frenzy of cleaning and organizing, I swept my front porch. Yeah, I'm thinking there is more to do, too. I have managed to keep the health inspector satisfied (if she doesn't open the cupboards), but I think my standards should be higher.

I have thought about the enrolled agent exam, but since I have to take all three parts and I don't have any money, it just depresses me.

I am going to take the pottery class... maybe in August instead of July, though. No... I'll take the damn class. I've wanted to do that for 40 years. I won't put it off even a month.

OK, well now I'm going to take my Dad's car back and walk back. Then I'm going to clean the public areas of my house. I have some budgeting issues to take care of today, but maybe I can find the money and the inspiration for the enrolled agent exam.

OK: 54 days to go. Surely I can do this. Maybe.

Goals, dreams, and wishes

It is now summer, and I am not really going anywhere on any of my goals. It seems that the little bits of life have interfered, or maybe I let them draw my attention away from my goals. Life is important of course, but were these things I wanted to spend time on? Maybe my goals weren't really my goals, just dreams or wishes, or even "shoulds" I have placed in my life. I'll have to think about that.

In the mean time: Goal 1: I haven't lost a pound. The scale hasn't budged, and I think it may be broken, because my clothes are actually TIGHTER!!! I am embarking on a healthy eating plan (never say diet, remember) which involves mindful eating.

When I went on the Best Life Plan (not a diet), I lost weight in the preliminary stage. I kept careful track of my eating, typing it into the Best Life calculator and meal diary. It worked really well for me, because I like to see those numbers. So I thought about what I was eating and what I needed to eat more or less of. I didn't give up anything, I just thought long and hard before I ate some things.

The second stage of the Best Life Plan involved giving up certain foods. Some of it wasn't a problem for me. I eat whole wheat, brown rice, and whole wheat pasta. I like to try new grains. But the Plan asked me to give up all caffeine and full fat cheese. And it was tax season. And that wasn't going to happen. I decided the plan wasn't great for me, because I can't work with any plan that tells me to completely avoid anything. I know I'm contrary, but if you tell me NOT to eat liver, I'd probably crave it, even though I hate the stuff. Since I've only seen I cheese I wouldn't eat one time (it had volcanic ash in it), I'm not going to fare well on a diet without cheese.

So now, I am taking my thoughts and the thoughts and insights of others, and trying to eat mindfully. Annie from writers and witches, and words, oh my! has talked about eating the angel way. It is intuitive, mindful eating (at least as I see it. I'm less spiritual than Annie.) She speaks of eating a rainbow, which ties in with my mother's belief that your plate should be pretty, look at the colors of food and see what works together. By eating a rainbow (fruits and veggies of different colors), you can pretty much cover your dietary needs for vitamins, minerals, and other good things fruits and veggies have. She also talks about white foods, which are protein. Because of her, I realized I am really protein deficient, which explains a lot.

The plan, or lifestyle, is really pretty simple, and makes mindful eating much easier. It's not a matter of eating whatever I want (like the Karmal Sutra dinner plan), but eating what I really need to eat, and being aware of what my body and my mind need and want. Interestingly, I find myself craving pineapple, juicy peaches and strawberries, without the ice cream. And knowing I can have Karmal Sutra means I don't HAVE to have it.

So we will see what eating more protein and lovely fruits and veggies does to my energy levels. And later I'll talk about Goals 2 & 3.