Something that I really enjoy reading on other blogs are lists of favorite things or loved links. I wanted to do something like this here, but I wanted to have my own spin on it. So, I am going to try to talk about "Some Things" from the week.
1. Something I love...
I recently found a shop on Etsy that I adore. The shop is called NearAndDear Designs by Brooke Witt. I found this shop when I was looking for a special gift for one of my dearest friends who got married in November. The print that I ordered was based on one of Brooke's designs that includes two states. Each state has a heart: one heart for where the couple met and one heart for the place they were married. The hearts are connected with a dotted line, and the print includes the couple's names and the wedding date. I love that my friend and her husband can hang this gift in their home forever. I love that it is a picture of their love story showing where they met and where they wed. I hope that they love it as much as I do.
2. Something I found interesting...
I am a big fan of the Today show and an even bigger fan of their Trending segment. This week, Katie Couric talked about a professor's banning of laptop computers in his classroom at Pace University (no, I don't think it's 2006 again, she was actually back this week filling in for Savannah). I found an article written by the professor online. I work in education, so I found this fascinating. With all the distractions that come with computers, I am not surprised that the "no laptop" rule has resulted in more meaningful interactions with students. Plus, the research findings that people are more likely to process and retain information when taking notes by hand make complete sense to me. There are many things and many times when I prefer to write by hand.
During the discussion about this on Today, Al Roker brought up a book that he is currently reading that is related to this topic, and so this brings me to....
3. Something I want to read...
The Revenge of Analog. And I just learned this very minute that the book is temporarily out of stock. Ugh! Of course, it is. Thanks, Al Roker. Just kidding, Al. If it wasn't for you, I would not know about this book. This books talks about the importance of "real, tangible things" and how even in a digital world, these "real things" are so important and are making a come back in many areas of our lives. I love this. I can't wait to read it. Come on Amazon and Barnes and Noble...stock up!!
4. Something I am reading now...
I love Gilmore Girls. I love Parenthood. And I love Lauren Graham. So, when her latest book, Talking as Fast as I Can came out, this was the number one thing on my Christmas list (I absolutely love getting a new book to read for Christmas). I could have easily read the book in one day, but I am pacing myself because I just don't want this to end. There is so much to love about this book (Old Lady Jackson is just one of favorite parts - what a smart lady she is!). One surprise, much to my delight, was Lauren's advice on writing. I absolutely love reading about writing tips and strategies from successful writers (Big Magic is positively one of my favorite books ever, and now this book is on that list as well). In fact, one part of the book leads me to my next point...
5. Something I want to try...
Lauren Graham writes about the Kitchen Timer technique for writing, which she received from a famous screenwriter and director. I have tried many strategies to get myself to write regularly, but this actually sounds doable. There is a lot more to this technique than what I am going to share here, but for now I'll focus on my favorite points. First, you make a writing appointment with yourself, and treat it just as you would any other important appointment. If you miss your appointment, you do NOT make it up. You start fresh the next day. During your writing appointment, you can choose one of three tasks: 1. Work on your current project. 2. Write in your journal. 3. Stare at blank pages.
If you write in your journal, you can write about ANYTHING you want to. Anything is okay. Choosing not to write at all is also okay. But you must not do anything else. Write for your project, write in your journal, or stare at your pages. Those are your choices. Let's face it, many of us require mini-breaks when working hard on something in order to stay motivated, so if you need a break or a distraction, use it to your advantage. Be distracted by your own thoughts and write it down. I love this idea. Some of my best writing is spontaneous writing.
6. Something else I want to try...
I am also reading Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way. I started this book almost a year ago, and I am restarting it now. One exercise that Cameron requires is what is called Morning Pages. Every morning you are to write three pages by hand (I think the professor from Pace would support this technique). On these three pages, you are to write anything and everything that comes to mind - it should be your stream of concisousness. This exercise is meant not only for you to clear your head so that you can focus on your work, but also to spark ideas and ignite your creativity. I am curious about trying the Morning Pages exercise with the Kitchen Timer. Will Morning Pages help me to be more focused on my projects? I'll keep you posted on how I do. Maybe I will call this my Morning Kitchen Timer. (Look at that! My creative juices are already flowing!)
7. Something I am trying right now...
As I shared previously, I am not the best with money or organization, so no surprises here, creating and sticking to a budget has never been very easy for me. I downloaded an app almost a year ago called Daily Budget. It is about as basic as a budget app can be, which is what I need because I have a tendency to make everything so overly complicated that I give up. I will write more about this another day, but here is a quick summary of what I love about the app:
You enter how much money you have to spend in a week, and the app gives you a daily budget. A handy feature within the app is the Big Spendings tool, which allows you to to enter items that you need to save up for and the date that you need the items by. The app automatically deducts the necessary amount of money that you need to set aside each day from your daily budget. This is your new daily budget.
Any time you make a purchase, you enter that amount, and the app deducts it. Because I don't spend money every day and then other days I spend a lot of money, there will be some days (and sometimes several days in a row) where I am in the red. This definitely makes me think twice about some of my purchases. It is too soon to tell whether my current budget plan is reasonable and effective. To be continued...
8. Something I learned...
Thanks again to Today's Trending, I learned something new: what dabbing is. Except, I still don't really know what dabbing is, but I saw a clip of a congressman's son dabbing during a swearing-in photo with Paul Ryan. The son is supposedly grounded for the dabbing. Seriously, what would I do without Trending on Today?
9. Something else that I learned...
I discovered this week that one of my favorite shows is no longer on Netflix. That's right, folks. Netflix said goodbye to Fixer Upper on the last day of 2016. You probably already knew this. You probably had time to plan for it. I, however, am too late for the party. Why did I not know this sooner? I would have binge watched for sure. I learned it the the hard way as I sat all cozy under a blanket on my couch and started searching and searching for my beloved show. I don't get HGTV, so now I am shopping around for TV plans that would allow me to watch the show, but I also want to go back and finish Season 1! (See? I am always late for every party!) How can I do this??? If you know, please tell me.
10. Something I am curious about...
Last year, I read about Bullet Journals for the first time. I believe I read this on Modern Mrs. Darcy. It was sort of confusing to me at the time (who am I kidding - I am still confused about it), but I am now officially curious about them. They sound like they could be a really cool tool, but they also sound like something that I could easily get carried away with and make so overly complicated that I end up abandoning the whole idea after spending hours and hours trying to set it up. If I give this a try, I will need to be as minimalist as minimalist can be. However, keeping things simple is not really a strength of mine. If I decide to take the plunge, I will be sure to share more about it.
Well, this concludes my first edition of "'Some Things' from the Week." Have a spectacular weekend!
Curiously,
Beth
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