Tag: pandemicmusings

Stepping back from being an Beachbody independent coach/consultant

18
Jan
2021

So I had mentioned previously that I had decided back in December that I had stepped back from being an independent fitness coach/consultant for Beachbody.

The reasons for this decision are both simple but complex.

Though before getting into my reasons: I should also mention that Beachbody doesn’t guarantee that coaches will automatically earn money–you have to put the time and effort into the process.

So the first reason is that I’m not the biggest sharer of personal things on social media (though I had shared some of my progress pictures in the past)–therefore I wasn’t doing one of the main caveats of coaching–sharing my story.

This is because in part over the past couple of years, my weight has swayed back up and I have regained the weight I had lost prior to becoming a coach/consultant.

The weight gain was in part due to me dealing with a moderate level of depression the past few years (2018 was the capstone year for depression), and pretty much went into survival mode. One mistake I had made was not reaching out for help from other coaches that I knew. I didn’t want to share my issues, I didn’t want to burden others–I’ve learned over the past year or so–there is no shame is asking someone if they can listen, or if they can give you some advice on something.

That is one key take away I’m trying to take forward with me–that it is okay to ask for help when you need it, and it isn’t a sign of weakness asking for help–but a sign of strength.

But, since I wasn’t sharing my story, I wasn’t gaining customers–and without customers purchasing Beachbody products and improving their lives through my pages–I wasn’t earning any money. I was actually losing a little money monthly.

The second reason–is that I’m trying not mend my relationship with food. While proper nutrition is important for weight loss/management–neither of their nutrition programs seem to to be the right fit for me. I’m tired of trying to always count my calories/macros/colored containers, and while I’m trying to drink more water throughout the day–I don’t like being told when I should be drinking water and that half my plate is suppose to be veggies.

The third reason–is that I have never bought into the whole organic, non-GMO, gluten-free diet/nutrition mindset. True, I have bought (and do still occasionally buy) items that are labeld non-GMO or organic, but I usually just shake my head at the marketing strategy.

The list of GMO plants (as of 2019) include:

Maize (corn)–15 varieties

Soybean–8 varieties

Cotton–10 varieties

Canola–3 varieties

Cowpea–1 variety

Arctic Fuji Apples–1 variety

Sugarcane–2 varieties

The time and effort that go into producing GMO plants is extremely long–we’re talking at a minimum of 2 to 4 years, but usually much longer (depending on the flowering/germination rate of the plant).

Therefore, scientists put a lot of time and effort into generating a crop that has a single change in a gene that will extend it’s life, improve the crop, or help to start reducing the amount of water needed for it.

So truthfully–labeling items ‘non-GMO’ is a marketing scheme. Companies realize that we’re willing to part with more money for ‘organic’ or ‘non-modified’ items. Hate to break to everyone–humans have been ‘modifying’ plants and animals since we started doing agriculture (that is the very basis of getting better crops and animals). ‘Organic’ food is actually worse for the environment than GMO plants because it takes more land to grow the same amount of food.

So while I don’t buy into the reasons for ‘non-GMO’/’organic’ labeling and pushes, I will probably still end up purchasing products labeled that way because there may not be any other options on the market.

So to sum up my leaving independent coaching/consulting–while I share on social media I don’t share much, and therefore it isn’t easy to build a large fitness following. I was tired of losing the little money monthly (and currently need that money elsewhere). I’m mending my relationship with food, and I don’t want to be measuring, counting, or weighting anything (and that includes myself). Finally–I just got tired of seeing so much ‘non-GMO’/’organic’/’all-natural’/lets cut calories/need to do this to burn that off crap throughout my various social media channels.

I’m still a Beachbody customer–I’m keeping my on-demand subscription to have access to all the workouts. I’ve actually been a Beachbody customer for decades, and have nothing bad to say about them–these were my reasons/decisions for stepping away from the coaching side of their company.

Everyone’s fitness and nutrition journey is different–some don’t mind sharing their ups and downs with the world. I’m a little more private, which at times makes it a little harder to build up a consistent following.

While I will probably still be sharing my fitness/nutrition journey, it may just be a little more sporadic with very few pictures or measurements or things like that.

Reference for list of GMO plants: news.agropages.com/News/NewsDetails—34089.htm

No Comments financesfitnessHealthPersonal Developmentprofessional developmentReflections

Capricorn New Moon: self-development, self-compassion, & defining my purpose/vision

13
Jan
2021

So the moon will be entering the Capricorn constellation today, and it is also the first new moon transition of 2021. I’m hopeful that things are going to slowly start mellowing out over the next few weeks/months. Joe Biden & Kamala Harris will be getting sworn in as the new president & vice-president of the United States in a week. Hopefully all the knuckle-draggers and ass-hats will just slide back under their rocks for another couple of years. Though, white supremacy is an issue that we have to address as a country, specifically heterosexual male white supremacy (not to say that Caucasian women aren’t part of the problem–but the boy’s club is a bigger piece of the pie).

So one of the long-term goals I have is to try to consistently set and post goals for each new/full moon every month. I know that I missed several throughout 2020, so I’m hoping to be more consistent this year in setting, posting, and actually working towards the goals.

So, back to the first full moon of the year, which is happening tonight (or possibly last night depending on where you are in the world). The moon is moving through the Capricorn constellation, and according to “Moonology: Working with the magic of lunar cycles” by Yasmin Boland, there are several things that one can do during this time:

Plan for next year

Be ambitious with your plans for the next year (or few years)

Be kind (to both yourself and others)

Cede control (don’t micromanage or manipulate others)

Establish traditions (also working on your reputation–both personal and professional)

Then one should also look to see what zone/house the constellation is traveling through. You can base it off of your star/sun, rising, or moon sign. I usually do all of mine using my rising sign: Scorpio, though I could do it with my star/sun sign (Virgo), or even my moon sign (Pisces).

So the new moon in Capricorn is entering my third house, or my communication zone. This is a time to concentrate on communication, and spending time with siblings and friends. So there are several things that one can do during this time (again, taken from “Moonology”):

Take a public speaking course

Read the books you’ve got stacked up

Take a short trip

Hang out with your siblings

Study a foreign language

Really listen to others

Write those letters you’ve been putting off

So looking at the above lists there are few things that I can cross off, since we’re still in the middle of a pandemic (and it’s difficult to be around anyone who isn’t living in your house). Therefore, I probably won’t be spending too much time with my siblings (namely my older brother who is out in California)–though I am helping the younger one move back to town. Traveling is still out of the question (even a short trip), and any courses need to be virtual and already purchased (I’m trying to do a limited spending year).

So if I were to take ideas from the two lists and compile a short goal list for the Capricorn new moon they would include:

Work on developing my vision of where I would like to be in 3-5 years and what I wouldlike to be doing. In the same note, write out very specific goals/milestones that will help me achieve said vision.

Read (or finish) at least two non-fiction books that I have on my curated 2021 to-read list; and read at least three fiction books.

Finish at least one e-course from my curated 2021 to-be-completed e-course list

Work on getting better at self-compassion.

The vision will probably be the hardest goal to be working on–and one reason (at least for me), is that I enjoy learning and jumping from topic to topic. So while people might think that scientific writing is the best (and it is one of the careers I’m looking into)–I want to possibly do something that allows me to bridge STEM with the more interdisciplinary fields (such as humanities and social sciences), plus figuring out how to give back in a way that helps to improve the educational system of the United States.

So I will be using the words I chose for 2021 as guidance: growth, creativity, curiosity, happiness, and prosperity.

In addition, this month has already shown that I need to focus on ‘progress, not perfection’ and to quit reading the last chapter of my life and start writing the next one.

No Comments AstrologyBookscareerNew Moon GoalsPersonal Developmentprofessional developmentReflections

Reflecting on December’s Sagittarius New Moon Goals

12
Jan
2021

So the moon will be entering the Capricorn constellation tomorrow, marking the first new moon of 2021. We’re entering week two of 2021–though it still feels like 2020 (mainly due to the fiasco last week of the attempted coup by right-wing nut-bags (all of whom I hope are arrested, found guilty of treason, and spend the rest of their miserable lives in prison)). So before I can look ahead to the Capricorn new moon, I need to look back at the goals that I set for the Sagittarius new moon, and see how I did with each of them.

The goals for the Sagittarius new moon included:

Developing a ‘fluid’ daily/weekly schedule to for getting things done.

Setting up a goal list for 2021 (working via the larger 150+goals in 2002 days post)

Starting to work through different e-courses (and taking notes for future blog posts)

Finally, setting up a dedicated work station, and a semi-dedicated meditation area in the bedroom.

So how did I do with each of them?

In terms of developing a ‘fluid’ daily/weekly schedule–I’m getting better at it. Basically, I’m trying to do things in a 90-minute chunk with a 20-minute break between the ‘work chunks’. Currently I’m finding I do better in the morning than the afternoon. While I’m fine with this (everyone has a time of day that they work the best during), I may actually try to possibly get some more creative work done, or possibly work through an e-course (but not have a timer set for 90 minutes like I do in the morning) in the afternoon. This may also be the time when I could probably get some uninterrupted meditation time in.

Setting up a goal list for 2021–I managed this one. I decided that this year I would try it in the form of a bingo card. In addition to the bingo card, I also have a curated list of non-fiction books I would like to read this year (from my extremely larger list I started a couple of years ago), and a curated list of e-courses I would also like to work through (again curated from the huge list I’ve accumulated over the past few years).

2021 Bingo Goal Card

Plus I decided that I would also do a workout bingo card, but stretch the time frame to be from 2021 through 2023.

2021 to 2023 Beachbody fitness program bingo card

I worked through the ‘e-course’ Listen to Your Body Method. Though this was more of a weekly coaching/personal development program where there was a group zoom meeting once a week for about 10 weeks. This course opened my eyes to several different things that I’m going to try to start practicing (channel switching, incorporating ‘right’ brain activities into my day, having ‘conversations’ with my inner critic, acknowledging my inner critic, and slowly stepping into my power). Again, as I mentioned above with the goals–I have a curated list of courses I would like to finish during 2021.

In terms of setting up a dedicated work station and semi-dedicated meditation area–well, I almost have the desk cleared off and I’m thinking of turning the other desk/table into where I do my oracle/tarot card readings at night. I’ve realized that I’m still allowing a few things to keep me from totally moving forward in setting up these areas: 1) I use the desk chair as a nightstand (for my glasses, kindle, and journal)–I can easily still use it for that, as I wear my glasses during the day and would just have to find a different spot to lay the kindle and journal during the day; 2) things are still under the desk, but since I don’t really like sitting forward (unless there is room to stretch out my legs), I need to figure out what to use as a possible foot stool, and 3) I need to have a discussion with both my inner critic and anxiety about whatever other issues that are holding me back that I may not recognize day-to-day.

Currently my workstation is bouncing between the table at the window and my bed (and yes, I know that I shouldn’t be working on the bed as I may have a hard time falling asleep at night), and the meditation/oracle card reading is being done on the floor where I currently have my meditation mat.

I’m heading into 2021 knowing that I’m slowly getting better at time and project management (though I would rank both as can-get-better-at). I’m slowly figuring things out, and realizing that the path I carve for myself moving forward doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s path. I know that focusing on time and project management will be key for moving forward both personally and professionally in 2021 and beyond.

Also, taking the time to sit and reflect/question when I realize I’m hitting a roadblock in either area. One of the key things I realized last year–I’ve spent way too much time over the years being a ‘people pleaser’/team player in my career. That isn’t to say that being a team player is bad–it isn’t, but I also need to stand up for myself and my career and learn to start saying no to things that don’t align or wouldn’t help me move my career forward.

I have decided that the following phrases are going to be stay with me in 2021: “Progress over Perfection”, “You can’t start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading the last one”, and “Not caring what other people think is the best choice you will ever make”..

In addition the words I’ve chosen for 2021 are: growth, creativity, curiosity, happiness, and prosperity

No Comments AstrologycareerNew Moon GoalsPersonal Developmentprofessional developmentReflections

Looking back at the last month of 2020: reflections, & preparing for 2021

01
Jan
2021

So December is over–2020 is now in the past and here is to 2021 being more mellow, laid back, productive, healthier, and just all around better. While the Electoral College met on December 14th and finalized the vote–on January 6th, Congress is suppose to do the same thing. Then on the 20th, the new president and vice-president will be sworn in (as long as there is no stealing the election by a certain political party).

December was not a good month over all, in fact it ranks right up there with February and October of 2018 as one of the three worse months ever. There were a couple of deaths in the family, illnesses in the family, finding out friends came down with the SARS-CoV2 virus, and another friend having even more medical issues. But the month is over–2021 is here and with the presence of two vaccines (and hopefully two or three more by the summer), the world may slowly start getting this damn pandemic under control.

The US still hasn’t gotten the virus under control-when I published ‘November in Review’ I noted that the US had just under 14 million cases, and as of last night the US had almost 20.5 million cases (that is an increase of almost six and a half million cases in a month–a little over two million more than what we had in November).

We’re in the log phase–where numbers/cases are doubling at a faster rate than our hospitals can handle them. People are still ignoring the advice of the health professionals–wearing masks, washing your hands, social distancing, and not getting together in large groups. I’m almost afraid to think of how high the numbers are going to be this coming month. But as I mentioned there are two vaccines that have been approved for emergency use in people over the age of sixteen (or eighteen), but I probably won’t be able to get either of the shots (since both are a two shot unit) until the earliest mid-summer/early-fall. That means that there will probably be zero travel again for 2021, and hopefully sometime in 2022 I can possibly think of planning a trip again.

So as I gaze towards 2021, I need to look back at the goals I set for the last month of 2020 and see how I did with each of them.

Goals for December included:

At least 130-155,000 steps

Finishing up 10 Round and then either a week of YBB or starting one of the following combos: Muscle Burns Fat/Muscle Burns Fat Advance or 21-Day Fix Live/21-Day Fix Extreme Live

Read (or finish) at least 2 non-fiction books

No spend days/no spend weeks/hopefully no spend month

Finish up the writing/editing assignments for the Medical Writers Organization

Get halfway through one of the other advanced Cheeky Scientist programs

Complete at least two other short e-courses

Brain dump/organize/create a rough draft of an editorial/to-accomplish calendar/list

So how did I do with each of them?

At least 130-155,000 steps–I managed to get a little over 200,000 steps (209,869 steps to be exact). I managed to do five walks at Boomer Lake in December, and have realized that on days that I can get a walk in at Boomer Lake results in me getting over 10K steps for that particular day. Since June, I’ve managed to get a little over a million steps. Goal for 2021 is to have at least 1,825,000 steps (breaking down to basically 5,000 steps per day).

Finishing up 10 Rounds and then either YBB or Muscle Burns Fat/Muscle Burns Fat Advance or 21-Day Fix Live/21-Day Fix Extreme Live.

I finished up 10 Rounds the day after Christmas, and will probably be doing at least a second round of the program so that I can focus on some of the other moves (such as the rolls, slips, pivots, and foot work)–as the punches came easy to me.

I decided that I would start 2021 off with the combo of Muscle Burns Fat & Muscle Burns Fat Advanced. Currently I’ve done the first four days, and while it isn’t going to be one of my favorites (possibly the only time I do these two programs)–I am pledging to give each workout an honest try with a decent amount of effort.

Read (or finish) at least 2 non-fiction books

While I’ve been reading books all month, I haven’t finished any non-fiction books. The goal for 2021 is to have a shorter list of books to choose from–so instead of wondering which of the three hundred books I’m going to pick, the list is shorter at about eighty-eight.

No spend days/no spend weeks/no spend month

I managed to have quite a few no spend days, and I think even a no spend week. Though I still haven’t worked up to having a no-spend month.

Finishing the writing/editing assignments for the Medical Writers Organization program

These assignments weren’t finished this month. I’ve realized that while I’m thinking of going the scientific writing route professionally (probably freelancing to start)–I’m leaning more towards science education or possibly writing for a non-profit (museum, aquarium, zoo) and possibly doing less medical writing. I will be doing the assignments–but I’ve realized that while I’m a learner at heart, I also have a small bit of interest in the subject to really get into it.

Get halfway through one of the other advanced Cheeky Scientist programs

Since I haven’t finished the writing assignments for the Medical Writers Organization, I didn’t want to start another program without finishing that one first. I probably will start one of the other programs next month just to get a little traction going again in professional development.

Complete at least two other short e-courses

December really wasn’t a month for me in terms of professional development–I couldn’t find the energy, push, or drive to sit through any videos this month. I have decided that I will be making a shorter list of e-courses that I would like to get through for 2021 (so that instead of having a massive list of courses to choose from, it will be a shorter, condensed list).

Brain dump/organize/create a rough draft for an editorial/to-accomplish calendar/list

I have managed to do at least one or two brain dumps–both on paper and digitally. I’m working on organization (smaller lists of non-fiction books to read, e-courses to work through, and a workout schedule for 2021). While I have the shorter list of non-fiction books and the workout schedule done, I’m still working on the short list of e-courses (hoping to have that done by the end of the weekend).

Once I have that list, I can then attempt to create a to-be-accomplished calendar or list to start off 2021.

So, looking back at everything I managed to meet some of the goals for December, and fell behind slightly on others. In terms of writing–I’m leaning more towards science education, non-profit, creative, with just a little medical (though if I find the topic interesting I may do more on the topic).

I’m still working on figuring out the direction to go in for career, blog, and life in general–but also figuring out how to make sure that I’m not laser focusing in on one aspect and neglecting everything else.

2021 is a fresh start in many ways, while still be in limbo for other things. So the goals for January 2021 will include:

At least 130-155,000 steps; since it is still winter I’m not sure how many walks at Boomer Lake I will be getting in, so I will need to think of other ways of getting the steps during the day.

Finish up Muscle Burns Fat and start Muscle Burns Fat Advance

Read (or finish) two non-fiction books from list

Read three fiction books

Finish the MWO & start another advanced Cheeky Scientist program

No spend days/no spend weeks/maybe a no-spend month

Time outdoors, meditation and/or sitting quietly

Daily craft time

Finish at least two other e-courses from list

While reminding myself: “Progress over Perfection”; “You can’t start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading the last one”, and “Not caring what other people think is the best choice you will ever make”/

I’m also stating that the words for 2021 are: growth, creativity, curiosity, happiness, and prosperity.

No Comments Month in ReviewPandemic2020Personal Developmentprofessional developmentReflections

Reflections and planning for 2021: Cancer Full Moon Goals

29
Dec
2020

So tonight is the last full moon of 2020–that means there will only be two days left in the year. This has been a very long year with everything that has happened, especially the SARS-CoV2 pandemic that we’re still in the middle of; while there have been two vaccines that have been granted emergency use–I’m not eligible for either of them until probably the summer time (I’m currently in tier four for OK in terms of need). Therefore I’m probably not going to be making any major plans for any type of traveling until maybe sometime in 2022 going towards 2023.

So the full moon tonight will be moving through the Cancer constellation. Looking within “Moonology: working with the magic of lunar cycles” by Yasmin Boland, there are several questions that one can reflect on during this time:

Have I been insecure, clingy, and no fun this month?

Have I been coming at what I want sideways instead of tackling it head-on?

Have I been sulky, moody, brooding, or manipulative?

Have I been secretive, and possibly even a tad paranoid?

Have I had enough family time, or time with people who feel like family?

Well, if I were to number the above questions 1-5, my answers this month would be as follow:

  1. I don’t think that I’ve been insecure or clingy this month. While I’m still not 100% certain of what I want to do with my life–I have several ideas, and need to fine-tune a plan/schedule to be able to devote enough time to each potential project. In terms of not ‘being fun’–we’re in the middle of a pandemic, and therefore there really isn’t anything to do, if one is listening to the health officials and staying home. Finding time for hobbies, in addition to the different ideas for my career are on the agenda–I’ve realized over the past year or so, I do have the tendency to be laser-focused on one thing to the determinate of other things (for example–laser-focused on career/job/school and ignoring health/fitness/hobbies).
  2. Yes, I probably have been going at what I want sideways instead of tackling it head-on. I think I found it a little easier to do it this way, since I’m not 100% certain of what it is I want to be doing.
  3. No, I have not been sulky, brooding, or manipulative. Yes, I’ve been a little moody–but hello, we’re entering the tenth month of this damn pandemic–everyone is getting a little moody.
  4. No, I have not been secretive or paranoid.
  5. Yes, I have been having enough family time (again–there is a pandemic and I’m self-isolating at home with my parents; and we’ve seen my younger brother twice since it started. We’ll probably be seeing more of him once he moves back into town). I would love to spend more time with friends, but again–pandemic, and it really isn’t safe to be getting together with people who aren’t in your immediate family/household.

In addition to the above questions, the full moon in Cancer is also entering my ninth house. The ninth house is the “Big Picture” zone. Basically this zone deals with all things in terms of personal growth, professional growth, travel, religion and philosophy, and so forth.

There are actually two questions you can ask yourself in terms of the above topics:

Have you been fussing too much over the details of your latest problems or tasks?

Is your life and mind expanding or narrowing?

If I were to number the above questions 1 and 2, my answers would be as follows:

  1. This is both a yes and no answer. Yes, I have been fussing too much over the details. I like lists, and I also like to basically have an outline (or at least rough draft) for various projects before starting things. This is more difficult to try to do when you’re thinking of switching directions career wise–especially, if you’re still uncertain about the direction. So instead of doing various things like networking, reading, listening to podcasts, and so forth I’ve been trying to make lists of skills, jobs, companies–but always second guessing and asking myself–“is this really the direction you want to be going”, and more often than not the answer comes back “I have no idea”. I don’t think I’m fussing over the tasks, but that is mainly because I’m not certain of what those tasks should be.
  2. I think that I’m slowly getting back into a learning mindset, and therefore I am slowly starting to expand both my life and mind again. I fell into a ‘closed’ mindset for awhile, more out of self-preservation since I didn’t know what I was wanting to do with my life. I now realize that instead of investigating things and asking questions, networking, reading and trying to figure things out (basically where I am now)–I narrowed my focus to just getting through the day/week to the weekend, and that isn’t the best way to live one’s life.

So the goals for this full moon period may look like a long list–but a couple of them are hopefully going to be checked off the list before the New Year (as they’re part of another goal series that I’ll share in another post).

The goals for the Cancer Full Moon include:

  1. Continue with my night tarot/oracle card reading and brief meditation.
  2. Update various goal posts (150+goals in 2002 day [next installment will be in Feb]; Level 10 life)
  3. Develop a fluid schedule/planner
  4. Make a list of books (mainly non-fiction) to read in 2021 and e-courses to finish in 2021
  5. Read at least one personal/professional development book from said list
  6. Finish one small e-course from said list
  7. Renew one professional membership

And as always the following quotes are going to be coming with me into 2021: “Progress over Perfection”, “You can’t start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading the last one”, and “Not caring what other people think is the best choice you will ever make”.

No Comments AstrologyBookscareerCraftsfitnessFull Moon GoalsHealthPandemic2020Personal Developmentprofessional developmentReflections

Reviewing Gemini Full Moon Goals: improving, reflecting, and starting to plan for 2021

28
Dec
2020

So we’re going to be entering the last full moon of the year (and December) on Tuesday.  That means there will literally be only two days before the end of 2020, and the start of 2021. This is one of the few years that I’m actually looking forward to staying up late to see the year out—and hopefully 2021 will be a lot more mellow, laid back, and more productive.

But before I can look the next full moon, or even start trying to look back on the month or year—it is time to look back at the goals that I set for the Gemini full moon and see how I did with each of them.

What were my goals for the Gemini full moon? They included:

            Read (or finish) at least two non-fiction books, and take (or highlight sections) notes in order to also post a book review on the blog (and possibly amazon as well).

            Continue to work on improving my evening/afternoon meditations.

            Get creative in figuring out an schedule/calendar for things. I’ve had ideas of doing everything from a ‘syllabus’ (treating different areas like they were ‘school subjects’) to making a to-be accomplished list. Needless to say neither has really stuck (though to be fair on the to-be accomplished list, the first draft was more of a brain dump). I may try to make a hybrid of the three—a brain dump, cleaned up into a to-be accomplished list, which can be formatted into one or more ‘syllabus’.

So how did I do with each of the goals?

In terms of reading/finishing two non-fiction books—I managed to start two new ones, but haven’t really finished any of them. I think that one part of my problem this year in terms of reading non-fiction books, I have SO many of them on my personal/professional/non-fiction reading list that at times it’s hard to choose which one to read at any given time. Another part of the problem is that sometimes I’m not in the mood to read non-fiction, so I will go read a fiction book instead (and I have managed to finish at least five fiction books during the Gemini full moon).

I am still improving my evening meditation routine. If I can manage to get my tarot/oracle card reading done prior to taking the dogs outside for their last romp—I can then meditate after I bring them in, instead of trying to get the card reading done and then meditate. Though this hasn’t happened as often as I like—therefore I may try to meditate and then do the card reading.

In terms of trying to develop an schedule/calendar, I’m going to be doing a couple of different things as we head into 2021. For starters I’ve created two ‘bingo cards’—one is a 2021 goal bingo card and the second is a 2021-2023 fitness program bingo card. I’m also going to be making a shorter list of books to read and e-courses to complete—and if I manage to finish everything on the lists, I will go back to the master lists and select some more to add to each list. I’m also going to start working on ‘channel switching’ (more on this in a later post); that once I get bored (or have reached a particular time limit) with something I will go do something totally opposite. This means that if I’m doing a lot of computer work—I will go do some chores, or a walk, or play with the dogs; and if I’m doing chores, I’ll take a break and read or just sit and be for a while.

It may not have been perfect this past month in terms of meeting these goals—but this is the last month of 2020, holidays, and lets just say that December 2020 is a month that I’m more than willing to ignore for the rest of time.

I am still going to be using the following quotes as we move into 2021: “Progress over perfection”, “You can’t start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading the last one”; and “Not caring what other people think is the best choice you will ever make”.

No Comments AstrologyFull Moon GoalsPandemic2020Personal Developmentprofessional developmentReflections

Mid-month updates, semi-reflections, & setting a direction for 2021 & beyond

15
Dec
2020

So we’re now basically halfway through December—there are only sixteen days left in 2020.

Fingers are crossed that 2021 goes a lot smoother than 2020 did—though I know that I shouldn’t just sit back and expect things to work if I don’t’ put the work in as well.

I had big plans for the blog in 2020—I was going to be doing weekly posts on different personal/professional development courses that I was taking, I was going to restart the yearly photography challenge, and I was going to post at least one book review a month.

Needless to say—majority of that didn’t happen. In part because of the pandemic, and I was just too pissed, irritated, and frustrated at the world to be able to write anything coherent. Also because of my mood, I only really finished one e-course program (which I still need to write a review over)—I did several small ones but didn’t really take the greatest notes on them.

I read quite a bit—though most of it was fiction, but again didn’t really take any notes (or highlight anything) to be able to go back and write a book review. In terms of the photography challenge—I started it in September, managed probably a week and a half, was looking at the news a little too often—got pissed, frustrated, and irritated again at the world and quit posting pictures.

I’m hoping to change things back around come 2021—there are two vaccines now approved for emergency use in terms of dealing with the SARS-CoV2 pandemic, though I probably won’t be able to be in line for it until probably late summer or early fall (this means that I won’t be doing any major traveling until sometime in 2022). The US elections went the way I wanted (Biden & Harris won, and will be sworn in as the president and vice-president of the US on Jan 20 2021).

How am I planning on turning things around?

Setting up a fluid schedule that will allow me to move between different projects/subjects with a little more ease and not feel like I’m leaning too much in any particular direction.

Possibly having a weekly (or monthly) theme in terms of major blog posts. I will still be doing my new/full moon goals & reviews, plus my month in review. In addition if I start up the photography challenge again, it may just be the picture with a small blurb under it (I may or may not go to the lengths of trying to do heavy research on the topic—especially if I’ve posted pictures before—I may actually link back to the old posts).

Possibly trying to narrow down what I’m talking about (though currently this thought is giving me a small case of the hives). I’ve realized throughout 2020—I have to keep things varied, and I love to learn—I’m actually making several long lists of topics that I wouldn’t mind diving deep into, but I also need to figure out how to make those topics flow within the overall theme of the blog.

I will also be expanding on various pages, plus adding in other pages as well to the site. Since I notice that when I post pages, people may or may not realize that something has been added to the site—therefore within two to three days after pages are posted, I will post a quick blog update linking to said pages. Currently that will probably be within the bird section of the blog, and possibly the travel section as well.

I also realize that it will probably take awhile to build up a large following, since I’m still trying to figure out what I want to be posting on—it’s hard to answer the question of what will help others, when I’m not even sure what direction(s) I want to be taking the blog.

Suggestions are always welcomed—just remember that all comments are usually initially tagged as spam (depending on your IP address and email), and it is up to my sole discretion then if comments show up on posts or if I delete them.

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Time for reflection, planning, & goal setting: Sagittarius New Moon goals

14
Dec
2020

So the moon will be entering the Sagittarius constellation today, and its last ‘new moon’ phase for 2020. That means there are 18 days left in December and 2020. Truthfully I’m more than ready for the month and the year to be over (but more on that in the month in review post).

So what are some of the things that one can do during the time of Sagittarius new moon?

Looking at the book “Moonology: working with the magic of lunar cycles” by Yasmin Boland, you can:

            Get away—travel.

            Study.

            Search for meaning.

            Laugh.

            Be grateful.

With the moon entering into Sagittarius, this is also my second house or the “cash, property, and values” zone.  Since the world is still in the grasp of the SARS-CoV2 pandemic, the holidays may not shape up the way they do normally for people (I’m actually hoping that people are smart and stay home and have very small gathering for the holidays—set up zoom meetings with family that live far away). I haven’t really been in the holiday spirit the past couple of years—at least not wanting to have a lot of gifts under the tree for myself.

There are several reasons: the main is that hopefully within a year or so I’m going to be moving and I don’t want to be adding any more boxes than what I’m already going to have to add to the ones in my storage unit.

As I’ve mentioned before in numerous posts—I’ve been thinking of working towards a minimalist lifestyle. Luckily the lifestyle can be tailored—as I know I will have quite a few tarot/oracle card decks (one thing that I am trying to limit—but at the same time I love), but will have very few books on the shelves. The books that will be on the shelves will mainly be school textbooks that will be serving as reference books for various posts/courses that I’m also thinking of developing in the future. Anyway, back to the second house—the cash, property, and value zone.

So some of the things that you can do during this time include (again, according to “Moonology: working with the magic of the lunar cycles”):

Start a savings account.

Pay your bills, taxes, debt, etc.

Hire an accountant, if it’s all too much.

Showcase your talents.

Get a neck and shoulder massage.

Invest in an expensive neck cream.

So if I look at the above two lists, there are some items that I can simply check off already—I have a savings account (though it has been used over the past year), and I’m paying my bills, and trying to get my debt down. I would love to travel—but again, we’re in the middle of a pandemic and the holidays. Even if it wasn’t the holidays—travel (especially plane travel) is on hold until I’m able to get the vaccine for the virus and that probably is going to be late summer/early fall 2021 at the earliest. Also—not getting a massage, because hello—pandemic and not wanting to be in close contact with strangers.

With the way the year has started and is ending—I am working on trying to develop a daily gratitude practice, where I write down at least one thing I’m grateful for daily; I’m also trying to find humor in the day (but again with the state of the world—this is a little difficult).

So if I were to make a small goal list for the Sagittarius new moon period, the goals would include:

  1. Develop a ‘fluid’ daily/weekly schedule for getting various things done.
  2. Setting up a goal list for 2021 (working via the larger 150+goals in 2002 days post)
  3. Starting to work through different e-courses (taking notes for future posts)
  4. Setting up a dedicated work station, and a semi-dedicated meditation area in the bedroom

And as always as I head into the last few weeks of December, I am going to remind myself to keep the following phrases/quotes front and center:

“Progress over Perfection”, “You can’t start the next chapter of your life, if you keep reading the last one”, and “Not caring what other people think is the best choice you will ever make”.

While 2020 did NOT go the way I was hoping—it is almost over, and here is to a hopefully joyous and prosperous 2021.

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Fitness goals on track; the rest need work: A review of Scorpio New Moon Goals

13
Dec
2020

So the moon is going to be transitioning through it’s last new phase on Monday, and moving through the Sagittarius constellation. That means there are only about 17 days then left in 2020. I’m more than ready for the month and year to be over (probably more on that in the December in Review post). When I wrote the original ‘Scorpio New Moon Goal’ post—the world had a little over 54 million total cases in terms of the SARS-CoV2 pandemic; now the world is at a little over 72 million, the US was a little over 11 million and is now at a little under 17 million (~16.7 million); so we’ve had probably 6 million cases in a month here in the US—I’m ready for the vaccine and for people to start listening to the scientists and start trying to understand science. While there are now two possible vaccines—they’re both 2 shots (with ~3-4 weeks between the shots), so it will still be quite awhile before things get back to some resemblance of ‘normal’. But enough of the pandemic rants—back to looking at my Scorpio new moon goals.

Before looking ahead to setting up my Sagittarius goals—I should look back and review the goals that I set for the Scorpio new moon.

So what were the goals that I set for the Scorpio new moon?

They included:

            Meditating and/or B-R-E-A-T-H-E

            Starting 10 Rounds

            Start working through one or two of the finance courses that I had bought.

So how did I do with them?

In terms of meditating—I think it’s been about 50/50. I am trying to sit quietly more often during the day if possible, but having an actual mediation routine down—nope that hasn’t happened yet. I still need to figure out where to place the mini-speaker and iPod (though as I’m writing this, I have an idea). So, this is something to still work towards in 2021.

In terms of starting 10 Rounds—I have 2 weeks left in the program; I should be finished right around Christmas. While it isn’t an all time favorite right now—that’s because I feel like I have two left feet in terms of trying to get the foot movement down (and let’s not even talk about the boxer’s bounce). So I may repeat the program again sometime in 2021 or 2022 (while I did have a rough draft of my workout schedule for 2021—I may be revamping it before the new year).

In terms of working through one or two of the finance courses that I bought—well, I totally forgot that I had it down as a goal. Currently, I’ve been having to semi-force myself to do e-course work. I’m doing good with one program, but that is because there are also weekly calls going over the material—and technically what I learn in that course, will be used for the rest of my life (it is a personal development/self-awareness course).

So I would say that I was about 50:50 on meeting the goals for the Scorpio new moon. I will be finishing up a workout program over the next two weeks—and that will almost meet the goal I had set back in June of finishing four workout programs before the end of the year (I will possibly make it 4 if I finish up the last week of the year with yoga booty ballet).

In regards to the other two goals—I’ve realized that one problem is trying to set up a routine. While I know that I can possibly get more accomplished if I have a schedule set, there is a part of me that finds it difficult to adhere to the schedule. In part that could be rebelling against the memories of the last job, where we had to write down and account for how we spent the day—every day, for probably a month or two straight. I’m also trying to remind myself that having some unstructured time is okay—the rest of the time around it should be somewhat structured.

Also I haven’t totally figured out when my ‘peak’ productive hours are; I have a long morning routine (which probably could be shortened)—where I get up, have some coffee, read or do a paint-by-number picture on the kindle, then I will feed the dogs, get the paper, and then have breakfast. So it could be anywhere from thirty to almost ninety minutes after getting up that I’m having breakfast—then it could be another twenty to forty minutes after breakfast before I’m doing my workout. So, I know that I could be using that time better.

One thing that I may start doing is tracking my energy and also doing things in say 75 to 90 minute blocks (or less time for say a workout), take a small break and then go on to the next task. Though, it will require some testing and modifications—because if I’m working through say a module for an e-course I won’t know how long each individual video is and it may go longer than the 75 to 90 minutes (though I may just take the break and then go back to the task until I get it completed).

So as I look towards the Sagittarius new moon, and then the Cancer full moon, and then 2021, I will continue to remind myself:

“Progress over Perfection”, “You can’t start the next chapter of your life, if you keep reading the last one”, and “Not caring what other people think is the best choice you will ever make”.

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Reflections of November: Fitness on track, everything else is a work in progress.

01
Dec
2020

So November is over—the presidential election went the way I wanted (though I was quite shocked at the number of people who thought the last four years were good and wanted four more years of the same shit). The Electoral College will meet in less than two weeks to finalize the vote, then on January 20th the new president and vice-president will be sworn into office.

I’m still working on figuring out the type of fluid schedule that will have me getting stuff done, but at the same time not feel like I’m being stuck in a rigid schedule.

The US still hasn’t gotten the virus under control—when I published ‘October in Review’ I noted that the US had over 9.4 million cases and now the US is just under 14 million cases (that is an increase of over 4.5 million cases in a month). This means that we’re starting to double in cases a hell of a lot faster than we were even a month ago. While there are several vaccine candidates that are being pushed for emergency use—it will still be awhile before the general population will have access to it (I’m hoping that the first series will be going to the front-line workers—the doctors, nurses, and emergency staff that have to deal with daily; and the two main vaccines require two shots a month apart). While the election went the way I wanted–it will still take a while to get the virus under control and then travel may be possible by sometime late 2021 or early 2022. I’m still planning on at least (hopefully) one mental health trip somewhere.

So as we head into the last month of 2020, I should look back on the goals that I set for November and see how I did with each of them.

Goals for November included:

At least 130-150,000 steps—I’ve realized that as it gets colder, I’m less likely to take my dog out for a walk and I usually am sitting more than anything during those days. Therefore I’m going to have to figure out something to do (possibly put on movies or something and march in place to get the steps).

Finish up the combo calendar of Yoga Booty Ballet & LIIFT4; then start 10 Rounds (which is 6 weeks and should take me right up to Christmas), with a little Yoga Booty Ballet tossed in here and there

Read (or finish) at least 2 non-fiction books

No spend days/no spend weeks/no spend month

Finish the Medical Writers Organization program

Get half way through either the Management Consultant Firm or the Project Management Consortium programs

Start working through at least one e-course that deals with Python

Complete at least two other short e-courses

Start refreshing Spanish

So how did I do with each one?

At least 130-150,000 steps—I’ve realized that as it gets colder, I’m less likely to take my dog out for a walk and I usually am sitting more than anything during those days.

I managed to hit and surpass my step goal this month. I managed to get a little over 218,000 steps (218,813 steps to be exact). I managed this because I took four walks up at Boomer Lake (and the total walk usually gives me about 10-12,000 steps).

Finish up the combo calendar of Yoga Booty Ballet & LIIFT4; then start 10 Rounds (which is 6 weeks and should take me right up to Christmas), with a little Yoga Booty Ballet tossed in here and there

So I finished up LIIFT4 mid-November. The rest days were either used as rest days or I did a walk, or yard work (because we did have a ice storm at the end of October). I managed to do Yoga Booty Ballet during the first half of LIIFT4—I may add in a week at the end of month (December) since finishing up 10 Rounds will be around Christmas and I can either start a program a week early, or possibly do a week of Yoga Booty Ballet and then start something new after Jan 1st.

Started 10 Rounds on the 16th, and currently I feel like I have two left feet in terms of the foot movement and no rhythm at all for the slips and rolls. But it’s only my first time through—I may do it again sometime in 2022 (as I have most of 2021 already planned out).

Read (or finish) at least 2 non-fiction books

This month I managed to finish reading the following books:

Quit your job and follow your dreams by Michelle Klup

            This book basically gives tips on how to get various things in order (finances being the big one), how to transition to part-time, and how to just go about trying to figure out how to translate your dreams into a career, or a hobby.

No spend days/no spend weeks/no spend month

I managed to have a couple of no spend days—but they seldom stretch to no-spend weeks, and it didn’t stretch to a no-spend month. One reason—my impulsive habit of buying e-books, and if the synopsis of the book sounds interesting I’ll purchase it and may or may not get around to reading it for awhile.

Finish the Medical Writers Organization program

I’m almost through the fifth module of the program—I just have to do the writing and editing assignments, post them in the group and get feedback. Then finish up the 6th module. I have realized that while I’m thinking of going writing—I probably want to focus on either science education/outreach and/or writing for a nonprofit (such as Nature Conservatory, Sierra Club or a zoo/aquarium).

Get half way through either the Management Consultant Firm or the Project Management Consortium programs

I think I watched the first two videos for each program. Having the basics for consulting will be good; even if that isn’t the path I currently want to go on. I have no problems with long hours for a job—I just don’t want to be adding in huge amount of travel (which consultants do, depending on the company they work for and the area they may be assigned). I’m thinking that one way to showcase my project management skills will be to have a better posting schedule for the blog, posting regularly on different social media sites, and creating/posting original content on Linkedin as well.  All-in-all two rather large projects I need to start planning out.

Start working through at least one e-course that deals with Python

            Nope, this didn’t happen this month. I realize that in addition to trying to relearn/refresh a language, I will also need to consider this goal also as a ‘class’—schedule in the time or I’m not going to get it done.

Complete at least two other short e-courses

Watched the short course on skillshare: Capture your writing ideas: how never to lose track of blog or book ideas.

            Basically this short course just talked about different ways of keeping track of ideas: either analog (paper and pen) or digital. I’m basically a hybrid—I like writing out on paper, but I also like to have a list of things digitally as well. I would give the course probably 4 out of 5 stars.

Start refreshing Spanish

            Nope this didn’t happen again. I’m actually thinking that I need start thinking of this challenge (refreshing my knowledge of a language or learning a new language) as an actual class. I probably will need to write down that I will spend ‘X’ amount of time per day working on this task—otherwise I know that it isn’t going to get done.

So a little progress was made (namely on fitness) this month. In part, I will admit to being ‘glued’ earlier this month to the news to find out who would be declared the winner of the US presidential election, and the various stupid lawsuits that the outgoing president had launched to try to change the outcome.

I have to remind myself that the only person that I need to be in competition with is myself—and who I was yesterday. I’m working changing my mindset and self-talk. As I had stated last month—it took me awhile to realize that the all-out and full-speed ahead mentality/push basically brought me to that brick wall and burnout. I wasn’t using my strengths the way I should have been using them, and I was trying to meld myself into someone else.

The ‘reboot break’ may not be going as planned—but it has been beneficial. Now all I need to do is figure out the best methodology that will work for me to achieve my goals. The biggest question for me going into 2021 will be—what do I want to be doing in five years, and where do I want to be at that time.

It’s time that I start to draw my own map to my own destiny instead of relying on the maps of others. Therefore–

Goals for December will include:

At least 130-155,000 steps—December is probably going to be fairly cold and I’m not sure how often I’m going to be able to make it up to Boomer Lake for a walk.

Finish up 10 Rounds and then either do a week of YBB, or start one of the following combos: Muscle Burns Fat/Muscle Burns Fat Advance or 21-Day Fix Live/21-Day Fix Extreme Live.

Read (or finish) at least 2 non-fiction books

No spend days/no spend weeks/hopeful no spend month

Finish the writing/editing assignments for the Medical Writers Organization program.

Get halfway through one of the other advanced Cheeky Scientist programs

Complete at least two other short e-courses

Brain dump/organize/create a rough draft for a editorial/to-accomplish calendar/list

And finally reminding myself: “Progress over Perfection”, “You can’t start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading the last one”, and “Not caring what other people think is the best choice you will ever make”.

No Comments fitnessHealthMonth in ReviewPandemic2020Personal Developmentprofessional developmentRebootBreakReflections