The State of Things

Hello!  It’s been quite a while since I’ve posted, and I have to say, it feels good to be at it again, even if this is just a post to update you on my whereabouts.

Things have been busy around here.  As mentioned in my last post, we have our condo on the market.  It’s not been as busy in this area as I would like, but still, it’s going.  We’ve hosted several open houses, and we’ve had people make appointments to see it.  No one has yet to make an offer we can accept, but people are looking, and that’s something.  But it’s not just us; other condos aren’t selling either.  It’s simply the market and/or the time of year.  I am confident that it will sell; it’s only a matter of when.

In the meantime, we’ve been spending our weekends going to every open house we’re slightly interested in.  We’ve seen some that have potential and many that do not.  Either way, we’re learning what we want, what we don’t want, and what is negotiable and non negotiable in terms of true requirements.

Needless to say, my planner needs haven’t been as big as I thought they would be for buying and selling a home, at least not at this point.  I have a small list of things we will need to do at our next step, but for now, that list has been dormant.

As such, I’ve downsized back to my compact planner, moving into Cappuccino now that it’s fall.  (I had moved from Guinness into Daisy some time in August.)  I’m still rocking my compact layout and planning system.  It works so well for me, in fact, that I often feel I don’t have enough fodder for blog posts.  Great planning posts come from angst over which binder to use, what layout works best, and which inserts I would like to try.  And while some things could use a small change here and there, I am smitten with my compact binders overall.  I love carrying only what I need rather than extra stuff that I don’t need with me all of the time.  I am thinking about streamlining my sections and lists, but we’ll see what happens there.  What I have now works, and sometimes when I mess with what works, it only confuses my brain, and I end up going right back to what I had.

Not too much else has changed in terms of my notebooks and journals.  I should do an updated post regarding what planners I have (because I have sold many) and how I use my notebooks (because that has changed slightly).  I’m still using digital tools in conjunction with my planner, which works well, and which I love.  It gives me the best of both worlds and allows me to sort and organize my information how I need to based on how it’s used and accessed.

What else is going on?  Let’s see…

I started a new (to me) nutrition program back in April and am having great success with it.  I’ve lost just over 25 pounds, have more energy, feel (and am) healthier, and am experiencing less anxiety in my daily life.  This is not to say that I never experience anxiety, depending on the situation, but it’s less than I’ve experienced in the past.  My journey has been well worth it just for this reason alone.  I’m halfway to my weight-loss goal and love the program and the community surrounding it.  I’ve gotten more involved with it than I thought I would, so that’s taken up a good chunk of my time.

In other health news, I have found a reason for all of my sinus issues, and so I am working on improving that.  It’s not something that can be “fixed,” as opposed to improved upon.  It’s currently a work in progress, but progress is progress.

Back in June, our Winston crossed the rainbow bridge.  It was very heartbreaking for us because it came on suddenly (at least from what we were aware of).  We miss him everyday.  I feel it most when I am home by myself and have no one to talk to.  The house is just too quiet.  We both miss hearing the other talk to him, whether it’s saying hello to him, feeding him, or just interacting with him.  It’s a void that we feel deeply.  We will adopt a new kitty or two, but at this point, we’d rather wait until after our move.  If there is no sign of that happening sooner rather than later, however, we may adopt anyway.  We’ll see…

As far as this blog goes…I’m hoping to post more regularly going forward.  I have thought about posting often in the last 3 months, but the truth is, I just never made time for it.  Sometimes there was no time, but mostly, I just opted to do other things instead.  Part of that was feeling like I have nothing to post about (planner related, specifically), but I do miss writing, regardless of topic.  It allows me a creative outlet I don’t otherwise get.

I’ve been emailing with a reader and her support for future posts about my life in general has made me want to start there.  In addition, someone asked me a question on my Flickr page, and that got me scrolling through old photo posts.  I really missing snapping photos of my planner in use and doing photo challenges.  It was a fun little something to do each day.  It got me looking for opportunities and therefore made me look at my day differently.  So I’m hoping to start doing that again, maybe not on a daily basis, but at least a semi-daily basis.

One thing I’ve learned recently is that I tend to focus too much on my daily tasks rather than enjoying my day.  Sundays feel rushed because I’m trying to complete too many unnecessary tasks rather than relaxing with my husband, enjoying what our day has to offer.  Life can be that way for sure.  But somehow, I seem to have placed more importance on tasks than time.  I constantly feel in a battle with time and getting all of the stuff done.  Screw the stuff.  It doesn’t bring as much joy as actually enjoying my time.  So I’m concentrating on striking a good balance between the two.  It’s much harder (for me) than it should be.  Again, it’s a work in progress.

So…this is where I’m at right now.  I hope to keep writing, and do it more often than I have been.  I’d love to be able to get back to the weekly posting, but honestly, I don’t see that happening.  For now, I’ll write when I can and that will be enough.

Thanks for your continued support with this blog.

Happy planning!