GoodReads Challenge: Reading Less But Learning More in 2014

If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.

~ Oscar Wilde

Beginning in January, I am participating in the One Page a Day Challenge.  Hopefully by the end of the year, I'll have 365 pages worth editing.

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ast year, I completed my GoodReads Reading Challenge ahead of my goal: 213 was the challenge, I read 221. 

Would be more impressive if at least a third of those books were all like War and Peace, instead of short novels averaging fifteen chapters each.

So this year, when I was wondering how many books I should challenge myself to read, I decided to scale the number down.

This frees me up to read more non-fiction ~ which I tend to ponder and journal about.  I contemplated reading less paranormal novels, but that wasn’t realistic.

So, 200 books in 365 days it is.  I can just add this challenge to my overall plan for 2014.  

Image credit: Tabby Soltis

Speaking of which. . . .

The Plan – Day Seven Update

In related news, here’s an update on my 2014 Plan

Spend more time with friends

Since January 1, I have spent time with friends 4 times and plan to see four more friends between today and the 14th

Write More

Began journaling on January 1 and haven’t missed a day yet.  I even went so far as to pick a word specifically for January (Letting Go) that fits with my word for the year (Flexibility).

Eat Healthier

Yesterday ~ my first day back at work in almost a week ~ I juiced and ate nothing solid all day. . . and promptly developed a migraine.  This was doubly terrible because I was meeting one of my fellow Sherlockian friends to see Danny Boyle’s production of “Frankenstein” at the Shakespeare Theatre. 

I managed to make it through 2.5 hours of brilliant writing and acting, but that migraine really kicked me in the head and I had to resort to the worst possible non-food meat in the entire universe to stop the agony. 

Still, no beating myself up.  Today, I moved on and ate breakfast.  New strategy – meal planning, with events in mind.

Exercise

Does jogging with your dog in frigid temps count?

New Digs

Haven’t done anything yet.

Find Peace

Well, spending time with friends contributes to my sense of peace and well-being.  But I need to make sure I go to bed earlier.  Because what that really means is that I will put on my jammies at eight-thirty, read for an hour, and lay in the dark for another twenty minutes waiting for sleep to take over.

Since I read on the train, perhaps I should use that hour to meditate and see if that helps me to fall asleep easier.

Oremus pro invicem,

~ Mikaela

So far, so good.  How are you doing with your New Year Plan?  Did you pick a word for the year yet?  And are you participating in the 2014 reading challenge?

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The Power of a Word: Defining 2014

Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind.

~ Rudyard Kipling

Beginning in January and continuing throughout the year, I’m participating in the One Page a Day writing challenge.

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ach year, for as long as I can remember, I’ve chosen a word that would help shape and define the new year.  Sometimes, it’s been two words.  Last year, I didn’t choose one.

Perhaps that is why so much of 2013 I felt lost and uncentered.

But I have 365 (well, 364 now) brand new days to unwrap and enjoy to the fullest.  And so, yesterday, I chose a new word.   

Flexibility.

Our expectations tend to be impossibly high ~ for others, but most especially for ourselves.  And when we or our loved ones fail to live up to those expectations (some which are never even spoken aloud!), many of us become angry, frustrated, disappointed, even depressed. Some of us give up, thinking that it isn’t worth it to try, since we are bound to fail anyway.

It’s a twisted kind of pride, actually.

Pick Yourself Up, Dust Yourself Off

Because the truth is, no one is perfect.  Everyone fails.  But the great thing is, it’s temporary.  There are always triumphs and successes as well as failures.  Instead of beating ourselves up about our failures, we should learn from them, tweak what we were doing, and try again.

And in the process, we need to remember to be kind.  To others and to ourselves.

I was queen of emotional and verbal self-flagellation.  No matter what happened, no matter who may have been involved, I always blamed myself.  Negative self-talk and phrases such as “you always do that,” “you are so selfish and stupid,” and countless others, would swirl around my brain like a noxious, amorphous cloud.

Image credit: Teach the Younger Women

It was like being swept up in a tornado of worthless thoughts ~ a monster of my own making ~ with a little help from other dysfunctional people.

I say “was” because this year, I am determined to make a fresh start.  To banish those hateful words and phrases from my mind and my heart and my conversation.  To become instead, the queen of flexibility.

To be flexible is to be laid back.

To be flexible is to be kind.

To be flexible is to be understanding.

To be flexible is to let go.

Start All Over Again

I had a chance to put this mantra into practice yesterday.  My plan was to juice and start my detox.  My first mistake was turning down breakfast and when I told the person why, she said, “How long are you going to do that?  You know you’ll just fail and go back to eating junk again.  What’s the point?”

Le sigh.

I rolled my eyes, ignored her, and then later, proceeded to prove her right by eating the most wretched food known to man.

I could almost hear Monsanto rubbing their collective hands in evil glee.

But I had already chosen my word for the year.  And when I journaled later, I reflected that it was okay to start my detox on January 2nd.  That I had no one to please or answer to but myself.  And that I could choose to allow this one false start to ruin and impact the entire race.

I chose flexibility.

I chose understanding.

I chose kindness.

I chose to let go.

I chose to be laid back, and say oh well, and get myself into position to win this morning.

It’s going to be a great, flexible, year.

Oremus pro invicem,

~ Mikaela

Do you choose a word to help you define the year?  What is your word for 2014?