Frugality & Summer 2012, Revisited

Last week I wrote about my summer derailment re: frugality.

Okay, so I was rationalizing my over-expenditure from May through August. Well, September.

What really happened? I came home, I bought a car to replace the 20 yr. old vehicle I had been driving that was sucking down money and self-destructing simultaneously. That equaled car payment + insurance hike, starting this month. Not huge, but a significant chunk taken out of a fairly stable paycheck (meaning even annual raises have little to no effect).

I knew this was coming, but I wasn't planning for it.

A subtle but significant difference.

Here's where I am now, after a weekend of coming face-to-face with paycheck realities (where compensation for my extra class and annual raise finally kicked in).

• I'm glad I'm already slated to teach a course next summer in London.
• I'm feeling good about my book coming out this month, beyond the accomplishment.
• I've got serious reason to be frugal: when I'm stressed, I spend money as an outlet.
• Facing my spending patterns and bills helps me know what not to do.
• I have a job that means I can meet all my bills and pay off credit: I feel blessed and lucky, even while I know I've worked hard for that reality.
• I have wonderful memories and "artifacts" from my summer trip.

Knowing the cost of things

A recent post at The Vivienne Files on "The price of a manicure" sounded very familiar.

Oh, wait.

I've been thinking the same thing, given my plans for the summer and my hopes to buy/build a retirement home in the next five years.

So what have I cut back on, without much thought?

• cable TV
• expensive skin and hair products
• new books
• manicures and pedicures
• meals out
• Starbucks and coffee cart coffee
• household goods

Cable TV: I work Netflix and DVDs I already own like crazy, take advantage of My U's library rentals, and occasionally buy iTunes for obsessions.

Expensive skin and hair products: I have learned to resist the lure of magazines and ads, and to use sites like www.beautypedia.com for advice about worthwhile products and www.drugstore.com for sales and discounts. Luckily I don't have to spend money or time on my hair, and with the purchase of my Clairsonic my skin has so improved.

New books: I buy eBooks at a decent price, "books" at a half-price shop, and use a library for everything else. Again, the bennies of My U. I also sell back books I buy.

Mani-pedis: Use to get superb ones from a place nearby at a great price. The woman I always asked for moved, to another shop under the same chain but closer to her kids. None of the other operators were as good, and I also realized I could easily do my own mani-pedis for free. So I do.

Meals out: Favorite restaurant closed, partner in crime moved away to another job. The result is that I eat out rarely. Less than once a week, in fact. I'm cooking and eating at home, which is truthfully a pleasure since I can better control my calorie intake. Eating out is more about meeting friends, and eating in will allow me to put the Pantry Challenge into play.

Expensive coffee: Yeah. At $2/cup it is better to use the Senseo in my office or the hot water kettle for tea. Or carry in a thermos from home, along with snacks and lunch.

Household goods: Since decluttering my house, I have no desire to re-clutter it. So I am paying attention to what I already have and love, not buying new stuff. I do need to buy another set of sheets, but that's it.

What do I want to spend my money on? At least one trip per year. This year: Paris for a month. Good jewelry. Maybe a Hermes scarf or two.

No wonder I'm tired!

At the end of April, I find that I have accomplished the following just this month:

1. produced a festival of staged readings for six original plays by my students;
• including guest artists that I recruited and hired for the project;
• including original music compositions stemming from a collaborative class with student composers, that I initiated.
2. intiated and mentored the successful submission process resulting in $7,000 in grants and $5,000 in awards to playwriting students for community/creative projects.
3. directed the Ama Ata Aidoo reading at the international-scope African Literature conference on campus, in front of Aidoo just prior to her talk on human rights.
4. mentored the staged readings of three ten-minute plays inspired by Joan of Arc for a Medieval Studies/English/Women's & Gender Studies/Creative Writing class, a project in play for a year.
5. dramaturged an original play at one of the top local theatres.
6. completed three upperclass courses successfully.
7. found and rented an apartment in Paris for June, and made/confirmed all my travel plans to home, Paris and Oxford this summer.
8. deferred my taxes, paid my traffic ticket, joined Women in Film and completed my Search Committee assignment.

My reward?

I mean...

First Quarter Goals

Late but not forgotten.

My goals for the first quarter of 2012 were simple: get my finances in order, take care of the details for my summer travel, and get myself out of a rut and into a productive cycle at work.

All completed successfully!

Financial goals:

• I met with the reps for each of the retirement funds where my money is located and had productive information meetings. I feel great about the status of my current funds.
• I have slight adjustments to make with one fund: transforming a general fund into a Roth IRA to forward my plans to build a swanky retirement home: TBD.
• I worked to get credit cards paid off, and have currently only two outstanding bills.
• I donated two printers and a laptop to charity, getting them out of my house while earning a tax credit.
• I transformed two discount coupons into cheap yoga classes for April-May, thereby forcing myself to exercise while saving about 80% of the possible cost.
• I found and signed a lease on an apartment in Paris for June, using my savings to pay for the trip--as planned.
• I scheduled my flights, including the ones with the cat, roundtrip to CDG/Heathrow and back as part of my summer course payment (no cost to me but the cat's flights and suitcases).
• I maintained a strict weekly budget on my groceries, making it for all but two weeks of this quarter.

Outstanding:

• Taxes for 2011: I will meet with The Tax Man prior to summer travel to handle this.
• Roth IRA: I will also handle this prior to summer 2012.

Summer Travel:

• Apartment in Paris: check.
• Flights: check (including the cat!).
• Chunnel tickets: check (not yet received, but bought).
• Class for July: a May 2012 project.

Work, Rut to Productive:

• Aidoo reading completed for African Literature conference: check.
• Playwriting students brought together with music composition students, resulting in original music for original play performances: check.
• Short Joan plays performed in Medieval Studies course on Joan of Arc: check.
• Original playwriting festival staging six plays with 28 actors, 6 directors (2 professional, 1 faculty, 3 students), 6 stage managers, 2 crew, and 6 happy playwrights: check.
• Students earning grants for community-based arts project with award-winning playwright and documentary filmmaker for one month this summer, total of $7K: check.
• Course filled with non-majors with positive response: check!
• Internship developed for studentwith film shoot in Louisiana: check!
• Book reviews for two journals: check!
• Entries for encylopedia on performing arts: check!
• Contract for summer course: check!
• Proposal for new fall 2012 night course: check!

April through June: focus on health and creativity.

I am impressed with myself!

My new netbook arrived this week, and I just replaced the 1GB Ram with a new 2GB Ram. Myself. Using a YouTube video.

Now all I need to do is replace the lame Windows 7 Starter with the real Windows Office software and we're golden.

Of course it's red, rather than blue, black or white. A nice brick-red. Mmm. It has a 10.1" screen and weighs something like 2 lbs. Nice sharp picture, quick start-up, and wireless connection.

Thank goodness something has gone right today!

9 in 9, Friday

Regular 9 in 9:

1. Get car's bumper repaired
2. Sell books, etc. to local shop
3. Deliver printers to Salvation Army (no, I never...)
4. Visit Tax Man and get 2011 taxes in (early?)
5. Put dress on eBay
6. Sign up with Habitat for Humanity
7. Contact new retirement fund for re-diversification of funds
8. Contact old retirement fund for information
9. Clean apartment top to bottom in one day

Creative 9 in 9:

1. finish 2nd manuscript and edit; submit to editor
2. catch up with playwriting binge, for a total of 18 submissions--7
3. write 5 pages/day on current play
4. read 5 new books-1,2,3
5. blog every day--1,2,3,4,5,6,7
6. exercise 20 minutes daily
7. edit 20 pages of 1st ms. for editor--1,2,3,4
8. create two creative assignments for students
9. create/design syllabus for new fall course

Yesterday and today have been "days of achievement": the house got cleaned, the book review got completed, pages got edited, and I had a lovely dinner with a friend. And I worked with both my old and my new retirement funds, where the outcome was that I actually have more money saved than I thought I had. That's always good news. More writing, editing, and grading ahead.

A Clutter-Free Closet and Emotional Baggage

Yesterday I had a conversation with my lunch friend about decluttering and our closets. This is a woman who once complimented me by saying I always looked perfect, so formal and dressed up, with everything matching--which struck me at the time as a kind of back-handed compliment.

Since that time, both our styles have evolved, and we've actually moved closer towards each other. I am less formal, giving up linen sheath dresses, pantyhose and pumps, while she has added higher-end soft tailored separates to her jeans-and-Tshirt look. This actually reflects our improved personal relationship as well.

Interestingly, at lunch yesterday I explained about my express closet experiment of the last eighteen months, moving from a fifteen-piece closet to a twenty-piece closet, where I rotate through the group on a regular basis, plus accessories, outerwear, and Tshirts. I've got a solid fall/winter closet and a solid spring/summer closet.

This co-worker gawked.

Good news: I guess my limited closet isn't obvious, because it was clear she hadn't noticed it.

I outlined how the experiment worked. Since we had gotten to the discussion by talking about decluttering our closets, that was my point: how easy it was to get rid of things once I knew which things I was going to rely on regularly and which things I was never going to wear. One thing I had not realized was how simple it all sounded when said out loud.

The conversation went on to other things, but my mind lingered here. I looked at my "not wear" closet again when I came home and realized I still had more clothing to shed, lots of it. The things that are linger do so because I cannot readily get rid of them because of their emotional baggage for me--some form of emotional baggage embedded in each piece. Thus next on my list is facing the emotional baggage and dealing with these things, one piece at a time.

I also rescued myself yesterday: I nearly spent over $200 in sale pieces at J. Crew. Tremendous savings off the original prices, but the three pieces wouldn't really suit me or expand my closet significantly. It is certainly that time of year when new spring styles tempt me, but more the need both to buy something (anything?) and to "improve" my closet is seductive. Fortunately, I took a look at the $$$ and details and then thought about the things I need more (a netbook, rent money in Paris, a new car). I left the site without buying. 

Good on me.

9 in 9, Wednesday

Regular 9 in 9:

1. Get car's bumper repaired
2. Sell books, etc. to local shop
3. Deliver printers to Salvation Army (no, I never...)
4. Visit Tax Man and get 2011 taxes in (early?)
5. Put dress on eBay
6. Sign up with Habitat for Humanity
7. Contact new retirement fund for re-diversification of funds
8. Contact old retirement fund for information
9. Clean apartment top to bottom in one day

Creative 9 in 9:

1. finish 2nd manuscript and edit; submit to editor
2. catch up with playwriting binge, for a total of 18 submissions--7
3. write 5 pages/day on current play
4. read 5 new books-1,2,3,4,5
5. blog every day--1,2,3,4,5
6. exercise 20 minutes daily
7. edit 20 pages of 1st ms. for editor--1,2,3,4
8. create two creative assignments for students
9. create/design syllabus for new fall course

Yesterday was a sllloooowwwww day. I got phone calls made and completed some important business that had been hanging over me for a couple of weeks. And lived the saying, "When one door closes..."

Here's the good news: I have another great opportunity to make connections and build bridges across campus and within other departments. Lemons... lemondade.

9 in 9, Tuesday

Regular "9 in 9":

1. Get car's bumper repaired
2. Sell books, etc. to local shop
3. Deliver printers to Salvation Army (no, I never...)
4. Visit Tax Man and get 2011 taxes in (early?)
5. Put dress on eBay
6. Sign up with Habitat for Humanity
7. Contact new retirement fund for re-diversification of funds
8. Contact old retirement fund for information
9. Clean apartment top to bottom in one day

Creative "9 in 9":

1. finish 2nd manuscript and edit; submit to editor
2. catch up with playwriting binge, for a total of 18 submissions--7
3. write 5 pages/day on current play
4. read 5 new books-1,2,3
5. blog every day--1,2,3,4
6. exercise 20 minutes daily
7. edit 20 pages of 1st ms. for editor--1,2,3
8. create two creative assignments for students
9. create/design syllabus for new fall course

Monday was a tremendously successful day, right up until I got clobbered by allergies and sinuses. Lots done, but I had to crash in bed about 7 pm with otc remedies and the humidifer. Also, simply tired from the activity of the past several days: cleaning, packing up donations, errands, hauling, and editing. "Whupped" might be an accurate description.

Donated two working printers--one old, one new--to the Salvation Army, sold books/tapes to local used book store ($35 for household fund). Triumph of extraordinary proportions: I did not buy any books while selling! Sad news: no hits of eBay dress yet.

Today: lunch with a co-worker, appearance at a Dallas theatre event, then home to edit and grade, if I am not side-lined by allergy symptoms and remedies.

Frugal Thoughts for the Week

This past week and "the frugal."

1. I stayed within my weekly food budget: $5 on my $40/week, and $18 extra in sales/coupons
2. I stayed under my monthly budget for "big shop" health & beauty/cat's needs: $10 in sales, coupons
3. I set up a weekly $20 transfer from checking to savings
4. I pulled out a tremendous pile of books and cassette tapes to sell next week
5. I used my monthly membership at a local spa for a massage

In terms of "simple pleasures," yesterday I sat out on my back porch and read for an hour and a half, enjoying the breeze, the warm air, and a beer. In the middle of "so many things to do," that was a recharge.

The Downstairs & the William Morris Experiment, Week #7

Today is vacuum day -- everywhere in the apartment! -- and clean the floors day... and then I tackle the downstairs closet.

This closet is deceptively large and yet, caboodled right now. I don't need more space, but I need to reconsider how I am using the space, with an eye to decluttering some things currently stored here.

Behind the coats are my suitcases, one cat carrier (for Jack's flights) and boxes I might need again.

The coat rack holds outerwear for all seasons and weathers, my doctoral robe (worn once a year at graduation), and items headed for eBay. Why aren't they currently on eBay, making me money? Yeeesssss....

• Pictures taken and ready for posting on eBay
• Reorganized the coats, wrapping one matching scarf over the hanger with it
• Brought extra hangers upstairs to clothes closet, where I need them

The small shelf belongs to the landlord and used to live outside. Better here, although it is currently storing things I won't use, like two bottles of chlorine bleach. Gotta go.

• Actually found three different-sized bottles of chlorine bleach, one of non-chlorine bleach, one of chlorine bleach cleaner; tossed the non-chlorine stuff and am contemplating how to didpose of the others without pouring them down the drain
• Disposed of the cleaners that were barely full or others I never use; threw out several old sponges, too
• Now I have space here for storing something--but nothing to put there right now

The built-in shelves store all sorts of things. My sewing kit, fabrics, and sewing machine. The downstairs cleaning kit. The other cat carrier. More boxes. Serious weeding out needs to be done here, and reorganizing things.

• Found small framed picture which I took upstairs to store with the others not hanging up right now
• Cleared out and refilled materials/bottles in downstairs cleaning caddy
• Shifted boxes around to create more storage space on these shelves, too--that remains open

Then, I store the microfiber mop (one of my best cleaning purchases, ever!) and broom/dustpan here. It makes the carpet dirty, but I have no broom closet in the kitchen, so they live here. Maybe a nice rubber floor mat?

• Or the cat's ex-placement, same difference until I get something better

No Spending Thursday: Accomplished!

Yesterday, I had a successful "no spend Thursday": carried my own water and coffee, brought snacks with me to my two lectures, resisted stopping anywhere on the way back home. Good start!

No Spending Day of the Week: Thursday

I decided to have a "no spending" day of the week. The hardest decision: which one it would be.

• Monday: I am always tempted by the start of the week, and usually have something forgotten from the grocery shopping of Sunday.
• Tuesday: My weekly "dinner out" ritual, that I want to return to
• Wednesday: Coffee cart?
• Thursday: Coffee cart?
• Friday: Coffee cart?
• Saturday: Coffee in the a.m. with friends, errands
• Sunday: Breakfast out, groceries and household necessaries.

Yeah, so why Thursday?

Better question for me: why not? I became conscious a few years ago that I was consistently buying myself "something pretty" on Mondays, on my way home. Like a bottle of wine, ice cream, shampoo, whatever -- anything to "treat" myself.

Little drips...

Bad practice. It is, after all, the little drips and drops of cashflow that really undo us. I know I won't drop $150 in one afternoon... but over 2 semesters... I will drop that much JUST on coffee. Or a muffin. Or lip balm. Or a magazine. Or... see what I mean? And that's $150 on top of groceries, rent, bills, gas, necessary expenses, entertainment, etc. That is just the frosting on the cupcake: not quite essential, but filled with calories, nonetheless.

...become huge sinking drains of cash

In essence, I need to resist impulsive/thoughtless shopping. I need to resist the coffee cart, period. The money goes directly to the athletic program, which I protest, since the cart is in the arts school and we have 1/10 the budget of the sports programs, so boo! hiss! Also, that's $2/cup... which is ridiculous on an $8/week basis. (The personal is political!)

  

But Thursday is the day my "working" day out doesn't start until 3:30--certainly time enough to drink and brew enough coffee at home that I can be done with it or bring a thermos for my 80-minute class. Y'think? Thursday I am usually in a good mood, feel I have accomplished a lot by the end of day, and rarely feel the need to reward myself with a "pretty, shiny" to boost my spirits. Or I'll have to be conscious not to schedule a haircut or doctor's apppointment on Thursday, thereby giving me a free day from appointments, as well (double bonus!)

Setting Thursday as "The Day" means I'll be conscious about it, too, and after succeeding with one day, I can move on to a second day. Like a "no spending" Monday.

So, for 2012 Thursday becomes "No Spend Thursday." Let's see how it goes.

Bedroom, Day Two

Today I am taking on the three tasks of repairing the dresser (and reorganizing it), hanging the two posters, and getting the multi-plug in place.

Repairing the dresser: This is simple. The dresser, an inexpensive but pretty IKEA one has inexpensive cardboard floors to its drawers. The center one has bulged downward, due to the fact that I stored pajamas, slips, and bathing suits in there--apparently heavy as a group. That affects the bottom drawer, by pushing it open--constantly. To solve this problem, I propose to use duct tabe to lift the cardboard back into place, followed by moving the heavier clothing to the bottom drawer and putting the t-shirts into the middle drawer.

For this, I need duct tape (bought clear duct tape: worked perfectly).
.
Hanging the two posters: I have all the materials I need. The right size picture hangers and a hammer.

Placing the multi-plug: here, I have to buy the right plug from Home Depot. Since I live in an older complex, the outlet requires a two-prong plug. Once it is in place, I can plug the bed light and the phone into the plug, leaving an extra outlet available for my nook, the laptop, or whatever I need to read, work, or watch a movie in bed. Ahhhhhh... luxury! (Bought three: now study light works, too!)

This is obviously a simple series of tasks, so today should get 'er done.

• Hang large poster (2 hooks)
• Hang small poster (1 hook)
• Buy and insert plug; replug phone, bed light
• Repair dresser drawer with duct tape
• Redistribute clothing for weight on bottom

2012 Declutter: Week 1

My goals for this year include decluttering, donating, and re-thinking my apartment, car, and office space into a cleaner, leaner space. My inspiration is, as before, the wonderful quote from William Morris: "Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful." (Thanks to Jules at Pancakes and French Fries for reminding me!)

First up: the bedroom. The coming week I'll be tackling the basics in this room.

This is the simplest space to fix in the house, which is why I start here. The tasks for initial improvement are as follows:

• reorganize the closet, top to bottom
• repair the dresser and reorganize the drawers
• hang two framed posters
• buy a multi-plug for behind the bed; plug in phone and lamp, with extra outlet space
• reorganize and declutter underbed storage of bed linens
• buy a new mattress and boxspring (long-term goal)

See? Simple. Most of these tasks can be completed once I buy a few items: duct tape, a multi-outlet plug, some storage boxes. A trip to Home Depot and Michael's, and I may be done.

Let's start with the closet. What gets stored in this closet?

On the floor:

• the vacuum
• the mop and bucket
• the washbasket
• the drying rack
• an electric fan (probable donation)

On the left side:

• smaller, framed art and personal photographs (top shelf)
• postcards and cards used for projects, memory boards, and creative exercises
• baskets of extra beauty and health products
• boxes of "stuff" (to be culled, donated, tossed)
• beading materials and mailing envelopes, bubble wrap, postal tape
• smaller gift bags, gift wrap, ribbon, cards

On the right side:

• blankets and afghans, some in storage bags
• jewelry box and extra pieces in larger jewelry boxes

My biggest issue is that none of the current storage boxes match, so right now the interior looks jumbled and cluttery even though everything is neatly packed up in a box. Second, there's no real logic to what's on what shelf, or why there are similar things in other closets in other rooms.

I like the open baskets for the beauty/health products (extras bought on sale or in multiples). They need to go on a shelf where I can see them easily, so this height is good. One basket has facial care and cosmetics, one has lotions and skin care, and one has medical stuff including sinus and allergy pills, aspirin, and the rest of the quick-grab stuff. This shelf will probably not change much.

But the boxes! Ugh! One simple idea I favor: replaced the currently mismatched photo boxes with three to six photo boxes all in either solid red, white, or black from Michael's; not only would that match the stuff in the closet, but throughout the rest of my apartment. I can also replace the clear plastic boxes with solid white ones from IKEA already in use elsewhere. You might say I am too matchy-matchy, or that the door is kept closed and no one goes in there but me... but yeah, it bothers me.

Solution: I got four white photo boxes from Michael's on sale ($8 total) and shifted everything into these. I also incorporated two IKEA Kassette boxes of approximately the same size. Much better looking, and the six boxes more easily hold what was jammed into three. I didn't really want all-white, but I would have had to wait on the photo boxes at Michael's--white was the ONLY solid color in stock--and so I settled, which turned out better than fine.

I can also pick up some relatively inexpensive storage bags at the Container Store for my two afghans; everything else has a plastic zip bag. That makes the blankets easier to store and stack, plus I can see which one is which, when it comes down to it. Both afghans were made for me by my crafty grandmothers, so storing them carefully is important.

Solution: I got two sets of clear cubes for three afghans (oops!) and one summer quilt; one large cube for the thicker summer-weight quilt; and thinner clear bags for the unhung curtains and one thin summer-weight quilt. Come warmer weather, I'll need something in which to store my large down comforter, but that's April's problem. 

The breakdown of tasks is, then:

• buy photo boxes at Michael's and replace mismatched boxes (Goodwill)
• buy 2 storage bags at The Container Store for afghans
• gather similar stuff from other closets and relocate like:like
• cull all stuff to be stored (discard, donate, relocate)
• organize and label boxes and fill appropriately
• redistribute stuff to be stored elsewhere
• toss stuff to be discarded
• set donations aside

Days to complete this: Saturday.

2012 Goals: The Beginnings

Given my ambitious personal goals for 2012, it is time I get started, right?

Having thought it over, my January goals are the following:

• Resources/Health: improve my daily energy, so I don't feel quite so tired at the end of every day
• Resources: deal with money issues hanging on from 2011 and re-think spending for 2012
• Creative Closure: submit second mss. to editor by 1.31
• Community: develop one new and one old "group"/community for 2012
• Living Situation: Goodwill, Salvation Army, and eBay by 1.31; insulate front and back doors

Since the spring semester begins on 1.17 and I have three new classes to jump-start, these goals are certainly do-able for the remaining part of the month.

Daily energy: this is the toughest, because it will require long-term changing of habits involving meals, exercise (ugh!), and hormones. You can't buy or find energy--you have to make it, yourself, by doing things differently. Not my strong suit. But... necessary. Changes will include:

• eating every 3-4 hours;
• increasing complex carbos (fruits and vegs, whole grains with B vitamins) to match already present proteins;
• taking vitamins daily;
• taking hormones every day;
• exercising 30-40 minutes at least 4 times weekly;
• getting 7-8 hrs. sleep every night;
• scheduling/organizing all of same, so as not to get behind/stressed.

Money issues include things like studying my monthly bills for where I can cut expenses; getting 2012 taxes completed; continuing to pay my credit cards steadily, while NOT using them (!); making my weekly/monthly grocery bills leaner--again, all long-term planning issues. It wouldn't hurt to get a jump on my 2011 taxes, either; since I've been keping better records, that should be easier than it ever has been.

Submitting the second mss. means writing at least five times weekly, with a weekly page tally of about 25-40 pages. I'm 2/3 of the way through this mss., but need editing time as well. That means one to two hours daily for writing.

Enriching my group work might already be solved: I have an invitation to join a local women's group in my area of expertise, I am working with a local theatre group already on a solid project, and I have a social group that should be meeting again (for the second time) this month. Again, just needs scheduling.

And the work on donations, selling, and the house? One shot deals, each of which require some preparation time but nothing too much. I can get one of these done per week, or over a particularly empty weekend.

What accomplishing these means is that by the end of this month, I'll feel better (although I am considering that the "energy" issues are really a three-month project, considering the need to change old habits for grounded, new ones), my bank account will be leaner and meaner, my house will be cheaper & warmer, more clutter will be gone, I'll have two new group relationships developed, and I'll be moving onto mss. #3... a great kick-start to 2012!

Resolutions -- or Goals! -- for 2012

It's that time of year again, and I have to assess 2011's goals and repurpose them for 2012.

Thankfully, this is not too hard to do, since I have been pretty steadily working on each of my 2011 goals and thinking a lot during the last week about how to revise them for 2012.

Here we go!

2011's goals were, as I took them in this blog:

1. Improve Overall Health
2. Change My Living Situation
3. Manage My Resources
4. Build a Better Community
5. See Creative Work to Closure

Health: This was only an okay goal, over the course of the year. While I worked on stabilizing my hormones and depression, I did not embrace exercise. For that reason, my weight and overall condition did not improve (note to self: it's true about exercise!). Positive outcomes: my depression is under control, my mood swings and other perimenopause symptoms are under control. My allergies/sinus problems flared up in the final weeks, but using a humidifier every night (!) as well as increasing my intake of H2O hugely improved that, rather than the OTC remedies I started with. Overall, I am in great health. Negative outcomes: my LDL cholesterol is high and not coming down, my weight is still over the line and not budging except bits and tweaks. I need to lose serious poundage and remember to maintain my health through habits of hydration, nutrition, movement, and meditation.

Living Situation: 100% improvement, maybe 150%. No more crackhead landlord, no more cracker box, reduced rent, more green space, and more light. Thsi one was a total success, despite sacrificing a good deal of savings on the 3-month overlap of spaces.

Resources: Time is a constant battle, between "shoulds" and "want tos." Yo, I'm human. However I did add the Rescue Time Robot to my desktop, and it tells me I am 79% more productive than average. So shut up, Critic's Voice! Money is another, different battle, but this year I did pretty well. I have a more affordable appartment (and even though I might only be saving $100/month, the happiness factor makes that huge). I rearranged my retirement $$ is a way that makes me feel more secure. I opened several successful venues of frugality for decluttering, including selling unwanted items. Energy is the real battle, and that's the 2012 focus.

Community: This, too, was a success. I joined a short story group of women I enjoy and while we've only met once, I look forward to more meetings. I opened myself to the performing community in town, and am building bridges there. I opened myself to the community on my campus, and am trying to open out of my division, my school, and into the university in a positive way. I need to set more goals here, however, and be open to groups of strangers.

Creative: This was a big success! I sold my first novel (coming out in June!) and have almost completed the second, which I am certain will be equally salable. I sent out my short plays in a month-long binge and have had one hit so far, and three rejections (so I've got a long way to go). It felt great, however, challenging myself to complete and submit projects.

Overall, 2011 was a good year in terms of my goals. I plan to build on that in 2012:

Improve Overall Health: not much change here in direction. However, I plan to focus specifically on maintaining good habits (like using the humidifier every night) while building new ones (like 30 minutes of movement every day). I'd like to add daily meditation and vitamins, but I think I'll be conservative in this area, since it is one that truly needs daily focus.

• January-April: make it a habit to spend 30 minutes every day in movement of some kind
• May-August: add daily meditation (which will work with my 2012 summer plans)
• Sept-December: add supplements and vitamins
• get a mammogram
• get a colonoscopy
• get a dermascan 

Living Situation: This is easy. Renew lease on apartment (i.e., don't move!). More, start researching the pre-fab house I love in detail through contacting the company and chatting with them. And start looking at the places I think I want to build it: Oregon, Northern California, and Washington are the three places I'm thinking about now. But they might stink once I look around. So... research.

Resources: As ever, my biggest battle will be managing time. I have come to hate scheduling and to-do lists. And yet.... I need a new car, I need a new mattress & box spring, I need to pay down (or off) my credit cards. All worthy goals, all hard to do at the same bloody time! This year I want to build on my basic foundations of frugal saving and repurposing and decluttering: I find that I am about done with the wholesale donations to Goodwill, etc., and while that is an easy and intelligent manner of getting things OUT OF MY HOUSE (and onto my tax savings) I must needs find other ways to open what one of my favorite blogs refers to as "additional revenue streams." And finding new energy is part of the Health intiatives above, plus the hormones.

Community: continued reaching out, across phone, email, work/personal connections to develop relationships with new people/groups as well as people I already like, love, and connect with.

• Habitat for Humanity: in the Dallas area
• Alum group: for connections and fundraising/support of current programs
• Short story group
• Theatremakers/academics/women in both

Creative: Here, I have very specific goals

• Finish and sell second and third novels
• Binge with short plays in February and Sept-Oct
• Journal daily: dreams, ideas, etc.
• Finish and send two reviews
• Finish and send encyclopedia entries
• Polish and send two articles (from ALA papers, 2011) to journals
• Present two-three conference papers (one scheduled, July)
• Blog daily (in either blog) and continue to post my own photos

Here is my overall goal for 2012: Make lemonade all year long, every day.

I am so tired of negativity, including my own. I really believe everything is an opportunity, seen in the right light. Context and response are everything... they can turn what looks like failure or an impass into something wonderful. Not to be goopy or stupid about it, but to stop letting myself define my view by others' vision. Ugh! Especially since I am butt-tired of the men in my life having stupid, negative, misanthropic outlooks anyway.

Oh, does that sound negative? Nope: it's all good.