THINGS FOUND IN THE WOODS

The other day I took a day off to go duck hunting one last time before the season closes. The property I hunted had a river and a lot of warm water sloughs running through it and I walked them for hours (over 5 miles) in hopes of jump shooting some ducks.

Here are a few pictures I took while wondering about. (Sorry, none are of ducks. I saw a ton of deer and turkey, but zero ducks).

And I love the ties to the Wild West found all throughout Colorado. In the middle of nowhere, there was a stage coach stop. No clue where people would have gone to after getting off the stage coach, but still cool that it existed.

As you were.

ACCOUNTABILITY RECAP

I know you're all wondering how my week went but are just too polite to ask. So, sit right there and I'll fill ya in.

Total workouts: 5 (3 at OTF and 2 at the gym)
Total Workouts before 9: 3
Total days of healthy eat with NO cheats: 5
Total meals prepped: 15
Total weight loss: 3.2

As you were.

LAST WEEK'S RECAP

I know you've been waiting on bated breath for my recap of last week. Well hold your horses, here it is.

Total workouts: 4 (2 at OTF and 2 at the gym)
Total workouts before 9: 3
Total days of healthy eating with NO cheats: 5
Total meals prepped: 12
Total weight lost: .3 lbs

Week's takeaways: Portion control. Even though I'm eating healthy food, I can't eat tons and tons of it if I want to lose any real weight. But, learn and move on.

As you were.

LIST UPDATE - No. 13

Guess who has a book report to give?!?!?! (And no, I didn't just read the first and last chapter and then the description on the inside cover.)

Since my list has been up now for nearly a month, I'm sure you've got it memorized. So, I don't need to remind you that number 13 on the list was to read 6 books this year - three for fun and three for professional development.

This book was recommended to me by a fellow creative and it has been on my list for a while. So I figured now was the time to get to readin'. I'm not sure if this book falls on the "for fun" or the "for professional development side" of my list, but I guess at the moment, it doesn't really matter.

Here are my main take-aways.

1 - Find opportunities to steal time. She likened it to two dating high schoolers. Even if it was only for 15 minutes, the two would make it a point to get together and do whatever dating high schoolers do. Priorities were re-arranged. Things were done faster or removed from the list so time could be made to see each other. This is what needs to happen when we pursue our projects. A lot of 15-minute intervals add up to a decent amount of time.

2 - If you want to succeed, you need to be willing to eat the shit sandwich. For example, if you want to be a successful trial lawyer, you need to be willing to work un-godly hours. If you want to be a professional writer, you need to be ready to write and write and write despite receiving rejection letter after rejection letter. Basically, you need to realize that pursuing your dream means you are going to have to put in a lot of grunt work before your it's realized. If you're truly passionate about your project, you'll eat that sandwich and then ask for seconds.

3 - Don't let your perfect get in the way of complete. Gilbert isn't telling people to do their work, or pursue their dream, half-assed. She's just saying, at some point, it's going to be good enough for public consumption. Sometimes having something in the world for people to react to is better than never having it see the light of day because it wasn't perfect.

4 -  If you're in a rut, take a break. Do something else that channels your energy and brings you joy. Often times, and this is especially true for creatives, this allows your conscious to think about the issue or problem from a different angle. This often results in seeing things differently than before and coming up with a solution.

There you have it. My book report. I'd recommend this book to anyone who is interested in hearing real world examples about how others have mastered their craft in a creative space.

As you were.

WEEK IN REVIEW

For accountability purposes, and because I know you, dear readers, care so much, here is a recap of last week:

Total workouts: 5 (3 at Orange Theory Fitness and 2 at the gym for weight lifting)
Total workouts before 9 am: 4
Total days of healthy eating (with NO cheats): 7
Total meals prepped: 6 (only dinners)
Total weight lost: 5.1 lbs

As you were.

GUESS WHO'S TOO BIG FOR A TRICYCLE???

Brooks got a motorized 4-wheeler for Christmas so we were testing it out. In the process, he wanted me to ride his tricycle - which I did, with zero shame. I was a bit too big. But, the effort was there.

Please ignore the dirty garage and the christmas light cord taped to the ground.

As you were.

DID I JUST ADD TO MY LIST? YES. I. DID.

I'm going to do it...I'm adding number 35 to my list of things I want to do this year.

#35: Start seeking out, and creating, opportunities to hang out with people in my tribe. (Both people that I already know and by meeting new people.) 
(I know the word "tribe" is often overused and has a sort of sorority girl cliche' associated with it. Believe me - I spent several minutes searching for another word...but none worked.)

What I mean is, start surrounding myself with people who have a similar energy as mine and who provide inspiration.

We all know these people, or have at least come into contact with them from time to time. We often leave these interactions happy, refreshed and recharged. Sometimes, if we're lucky, we have that rare, "I've got the world by the neck and can do anything I put my mind to" feeling. Sadly, these feelings are rare and the positive vibes often evaporate quickly.

So, I'm going to make it a point to put myself in these situations as often as possible.

I believe the energy these hangouts provide help us operate at a higher frequency - and that's what I'm all about for 2019.

Because I over-analyze everything - EVERYTHING - I spent some serious time trying to figure out what draws me to this group of people. Besides "I like to feel good and have fun"  I came up with a few ideas...

• Most are very entrepreneurial in spirit
• They are doing what brings them joy regardless of what society says they should do
• Most have a "I don't care what you think" attitude. I'll do me, you do you, and we'll be cool.
• They've figured out what they want to do in life, and have gone after it. I am very envious of this courage and want to have more of my own. 

The first three points are very in-line with my thinking. My momma will tell you that I ever since I popped out of the womb I've had a "damn the man" attitude and have practiced a "live and let live" outlook.

The fourth bullet point is what I need to work on. I know what I want to do and I've been working extremely hard to make it happen. But, who wouldn't want to surround themselves with courageous dudes and chicks?

And, an even more important part of this list item, is to let the universe know I'm open to meeting new people who share the same energy. After all, if you always swim in the same pond, you'll always see the same things.

As you were.

NEW INVENTION

We just got some snow, and since I wasn't born in a barn, I take my snowy shoes off at the door. And you know what happens nearly every single time???

I come back a few hours later (this morning, it was about 12 hours later) and my shoes are sitting in a huge puddle of water. This is dumb.

So, I'm going to make myself a new invention...feel free to copy it for your own self-betterment.

I'm going to take a boot tray and a cookie cooling rack, and then, (hold on tight, this is where it gets tricky) put the rack in the tray and put my wet shoes on the rack. BAM.

Boots/shoes will dry. The water will collect in the tray. My floors will be clean.

As you were.