Progress

I am trying to decide whether I regret saying I would write a blog post every day. Maybe I should have said I would write a blog post, a social media post, or put something up for sale on Etsy.

I guess I can always change the parameters.

So yes, a bit late today; Early Zumba always seems to wipe me. It is only half an hour earlier than the class on Friday morning but that seems to make all the difference. I am stiff in my shoulders and arms from the yoga yesterday as well. But on the plus side, I was actually productive yesterday; I did some banking, some admin, tidied and backed up my computer, went for a walk, sorted out my limited edition prints and ordered some more mounting supplies.

Boom.

Today, I am going to start assembling the large prints and put my Maidenhead Clock Tower framed prints up on Etsy for sale, and then maybe painting time? Who knows.

Looks like the looooooooooong restful weekend was good for me.

Happy Easter?

The Easter weekend has been and gone and it felt like a long one, and not necessarily in a good way. I decided to have a break from art and try and relax and get my head back in a more peaceful artistic state. I am not entirely sure it has worked but it was good to take the pressure off feeling like I need to make the most of this time and churn out some work.

Ironically I do feel like I need to paint today, but possibly not paint the picture I have already started. I am tempted to put than to one side for the moment and start on something different. The original picture I chose to paint, just feels like the wrong subject to be tackling at the moment, so I think I need to succumb and just paint something else. I will see how this day progresses.

On the plus side it felt good to get back to my routine this morning and get up and do some sun salutations. I managed 20 this morning. I also made the mistake of weighing myself. Highly un-recommended but it is another bit of me that I need to tackle. I am in no way overweight or unhealthy but I have a condition that is dependent on my weight, and whilst I look fine, it would be good to be at least half a stone, if not more, lighter.

It is debatable at the moment, whether taking on all these tasks in one go, will be too much. But I have a real chance to get into some healthy habits over the next few weeks, so I will kick myself if I don't at least try! Here is to hoping.

Stay well everyone.

Focus

Zumba is half an hour later this morning, which has seemingly given me enough time to get up, do my yoga, have breakfast and write this post before I need to start. Seems successful.

I attempted to finish my painting yesterday, which I didn't quite manage but I have worked it up some more, so it is a bit closer to being complete. I am not wonderfully happy with it at the moment, but it feels like, by this point, that I just need to get through it. I am always too harsh as well so I am sure it will be fine once the finishing touches are in place.

Bizarrely as well as my body remembering its yoga poses my fingers seem to be remembering how to type quickly. I didn't realise how out of practice with everything I have become. I think endlessly self motivating to get up and work and get underway is progressively draining. I have slowly been losing my focus for a long time and last year definitely pushed me over the edge. Set back after set back is ok for a while as long as you get a break at some point. Recently though it seems like every time something good might be happening it goes wrong, and I have to start again. I can believe and have faith most of the time; I am positive and I work hard, but there comes a point when even the most resolute start to doubt what they are doing. I am on this page at the moment. Lost and directionless. I know the answer is within me, I just need to push the negativity and the tiredness and the doubt to the side and dig it out.

What is it that you really want to do?

A bit of Zen

So I think I have discovered that this regime may be ok to keep, the only problem at the moment is the start time but hopefully that will improve. I am not, and never have been, a morning person, although I do like early mornings when I manage to see them.

Yoga is such a zen way to start the day, I can see why people do it. I managed 15 sun salutations this morning as my body is starting to remember how to do them although my form is still terrible. I am hoping they will help sort my back out, as well as giving me a strange calm, holistic feeling to carry with me throughout the day. Here is to hoping.

I did manage to complete my admin paperwork and file my tax return yesterday so that is good. Now it is time to either start painting or make some limited edition prints, and hopefully not spend too long wistfully looking at the sunshine outside. 

Oops

I realise it is going to look like I massively failed this morning, and I guess I kind of did. 

I had an online Zumba class at 9am this morning, and I had intended to get up early enough to do the sun salutations beforehand. However I can already feel all my muscles aching from yesterday so I decided Zumba would be enough, and I'll do yoga tomorrow. I then completely forgot about writing a blog post and started my admin instead. Hence belatedly writing it now. 

So 'the plan' failed, but the productivity succeeded. So I guess, like yesterday, it is still a 50/50 success. 

  

Rock and Roll

It is definitely not as early as I hoped it would be. I am probably an hour earlier than normal, but an hour later than I wanted to be. So half a success, it was the first day though, so I guess I can ease myself in. The good thing is that it was a nice way to wake up. The sun salutations are quite uplifting and calming so I feel more focused than usual and ready to get under way. I haven't completed any sun salutations for a long time and it showed. I am beyond stiff, so I hope that will improve with regularity. I also only started with ten so I would like to build up to a lot more. 

I also realised that if I am writing a blog post everyday, these posts might get pretty boring, so I apologise in advance. I am not sure if much art will happen today. If it does it will either be making some limited edition prints or finishing off the half started painting.

The first task will be getting in a food shop for an isolating friend, and then maybe working on my Tax Return and setting up next years files.

It is all rock and roll here.

The Purge

So it seems as though I still have too much on my mind. It is sunny, but I need to stay indoors, I should do some exercise but my back hurts, online zumba is coming, but it will interrupt my work flow, I have a text, three texts, twelve texts. I have eaten too much cake. I need to go and queue for some food and the post office. I need to head out for some fresh air. People need to know I am OK, I need to check that they are OK. I need to earn some money somehow....

Oh.

My.

God.

I need to stop thinking. 

Please brain, just shut up for a moment. I started a painting yesterday and managed to paint the background before I decided I wasn't even vaguely in the right head space to get it done. It is propped up in the lounge patiently waiting for my head to clear.

So I have come up with a plan. I was going to say one that won't work as I keep coming up with these plans but I should be more positive. I can't self sabotage before I have even started. So are you ready?

I need to get up EARLIER.

I am going to do some yoga sun salutations to start the day. Focused breathing.

Then breakfast and a shower.

Start the working day with a blog post and a brain purge to maybe start emptying whatever the hell my head is full of.

And then go, be free and do my day with no routine. But it has started well, and it has started an hour or two ahead of where I normally am. 

So that doesn't sound too bad. I feel like I can do this. I have the next few weeks of no work to make this my new way to attack the day, and I am writing it here to make it official. You can see whether it works or not by whether there is a blog post and at what time I posted it.

So come on. Lets do this. (and I'm having the weekends off, unless this routine makes me feel amazing)