Thursday, May 13, 2010

Month 1

It has officially - today - been one month of being 25. One month of having cheaper car insurance (not yet realized), one month of being able to rent cheaper cars (who knew?), and one month of steady running and writing (both of those having nothing to do with cars).

When it comes to running I always feel like I should be doing more, I should push myself harder, run more days, etc. Right now I have Kamel as a running buddy and I have to admit I never knew how much fun running with someone could be until now. I was always very adament about running alone (except for those handful of times I ran with Lauren Mig in college and wow I was in shape then). Running, for me, hasn't been about races or running a better paced mile, it's always been about exercise and stress reduction, about personal goals and private reflection. And those things are still there - I force myself up hills, I push myself the extra block, I run a notch faster than I really want to - but now I also have Kamel huffing and puffing beside me as extra motivation. I know he is pushing himself, I know he is forcing his legs to continue on, and that makes it easier for me to do the same. Right now we aim for 5 days a week of running. I think we're averaging about 4, which isn't bad, but of course I want to be better. We run/walk 2.5-3 miles and everyday the walking becomes less. Right now I am running a consistent 1.5 miles and struggle with the next 1.5 but it's happening.

It's slightly embarrassing to admit to the world that running a solid 1.5 miles is a mile stone. I know so many of you are able to pound at 6 like it ain't no thang. I applaud you. I'll get there though. I'm chugging away and I will get there.

I am also proud to say that I have only missed 6 days of writing in one month. 6 days is more than I wanted to miss - I wanted to miss 0, but the truth is my TOTAL days of writing before this month would have been 6 and not the 24 that I have accomplished. I'm going to take this month by month, every time the calendar flips, my new goal will be 0 days of not writing. It's amazing how productive you can be if you just sit down for a minimum of 30 minutes a day and focus.

Sometimes I missed days because I was too busy outside of the house to sit down and write. This is my biggest obstacle. Being a writer who succeeds means having to say "no" a lot more often than I would like. I need to put writing above that last minute social activity or chore, no matter how fun or seemingly important. This makes me difficult and sometimes puts a burden on others, but if I don't look at it like a job, it won't ever be.

As far as my life list goes - as long as we're talking goal making - I'm getting frustrated with the making of lists. I want to start crossing things off of them instead of making them longer. Instead of putting my energy into thinking of new challenges, I want to start taking on those challenges. Coming up in the next few months I will be reading more books by Atwood and Didion, exploring new baseball stadiums (chicago in June!), possibly (Cross your fingers, close your eyes, wish on a star, hopehopehope) working in the writing industry, and possibly possibly (eee!) going to england in the fall. I've started charting a roadtrip between Miami and San Diego for next summer as well (did you know that a one way car rental is RIDICULOUSLY expensive? Anyone have tips for this, please comment!). Once I start accomplishing a few things I'll get back to the list making. Maybe some smaller goals that don't take all of my spare time or all of my (spare) money. In the mean time I'll check in with you next month for a writing/running update. Onward!

5 comments:

  1. yay running buddies for ever! =)

    I also can't believe at how expensive it is to rent a car for cross country travel! It's almost the cost of buying a used car.

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  2. Whoo! I love this post. You're doing great at sticking to your goals.

    I have no helpful information about renting a car. Sorry!

    I think putting writing above other things is the hardest thing. At least during school you had a semi-legit reason to. But without those deadlines I'm worried I'll struggle (even more) with that.

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  3. You are coming to chicago and didn't even tell me? Harumph.

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  4. i did tell you goof! It's for maris's graduation from u of chicago law in june. :) remember when i was buying tickets?

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  5. Noooo but I have the worst memory in the world these days, so it is very possible. Remind me of the dates, will ya? ;)

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