~Start writing my next novel, another YA western. Sorta check. I did write the first page or so, but then I had to switch to a short story with a deadline. It's also a western, and my first draft runs about 15,000 words. I'm on the cusp of the second draft, which I expect will be more like 12,000 words.
~Go see Age of Ultron again. Check. Decided I liked it a whole lot, but don't love it.
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| (Still, it wasn't until this week that I stopped having this as my cover photo in Facebook.) |
~Read 3 books about Robin Hood. Fail. I read two, The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle and Rowan Hood by Nancy Springer. I also started The Outlaws of Sherwood by Robin McKinley, but someone else put a hold on it at the library, so I couldn't renew it and had to return it. I've put a hold on it again myself, so hoping it comes back to me soon.
~Read at least 6 other books from my TBR shelves. Check! I read Juicy Pens, Thirsty Paper by SARK, The Trouble with Poetry by Billy Collins, Wanderlust Creek and Other Stories by Elisabeth Grace Foley, In the Company of Sherlock edited by Laurie R. King and Leslie S. Klinger, An Unexpected Cookbook by Chris-Rachael Oseland, and Dear Enemy by Jean Webster.
~Read at least 3 other books from the library. Check and check! In fact, I read more than twice that many. I read A Snicker of Magic by Natalie Lloyd, Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen, Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman, Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, The 13th Floor by Sid Fleischman, and Baby by Patricia MacLachlan.
~Have a squirt gun fight with my kids. Check! (It ended in a draw.)
~Have friends over for a sprinkler party. Fail. (Logistics were too tricky.)
~Clean out and organize my "crafting corner." Check!
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| (This is a major improvement!) |
~Make a collage of inspirational writing quotes to hang above our computer desk. Check!
~Finish watching Agents of SHIELD. Check!
~Watch Cranford and Return to Cranford. Check!
~Try new popsicle recipes. Check! We made pudding pops for the first time, blueberry-banana pops, watermelon pops several times, and peach-lemonade pops.
~Make lavender lemonade. Check! Cowboy and I liked it, but the kids didn't.
~Dance in the rain. Check! Did that more than once, in fact.
~Clean the pantry. Check! And I put down new shelf paper, too.
~Watch at least 6 movies from my TBW shelf. Check! I watched Legend of the Black Scorpion (aka The Banquet) (2006), Robin Hood (2005), The Long Riders (1980), Princess of Thieves (2001), Wyatt Earp (1994), and Saints and Soldiers (2003), all of which are now off my TBW shelves and either shelved with the rest of my movies, or in the bin to sell to the used book store. And I still have two shelves of movies I haven't watched yet. Sigh.
~Figure out if the dragon story in my head is workable. Check! It was, but I don't have time for it right now, so into the simmering pot it goes.
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| (I'm imagining Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin are toasting me here.) |
Yay me! I only failed a couple things, so overall, I think I had a pretty successful summer as far as checking boxes on my list goes. In fact, I found this so helpful, I'm working on a to-do list for the fall right now too, and hope to post it by Labor Day.
At least you had a list! I should probably start doing that. But congrats on accomplishing so much of what you'd hoped to do, that's always such a great feeling!
ReplyDeleteCarissa, lists are my lifeline sometimes! I get a big sense of accomplishment from checking things off. Also, if I'm getting stressed out because I have a lot to do, just writing it all down makes me level off because I know I won't forget things now :-)
DeleteHere's me feeling like a failure for the little I got done this summer. ;)
ReplyDeleteI need to get around to watching Return to Cranford... though probably I'll end up watching Cranford too just because. And I need to finish Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.!!!
Lois, but what do you count as "little"? Because if you've relaxed, read books, and enjoyed yourself, that's "getting things done" in my book.
DeleteBut yes, Agents of SHIELD starts up in a few weeks, so you might want to finish up last season.
SHE WATCHED WYATT EARP SHE WATCHED WYATT EARP!!!!
ReplyDeleteWell.....what did ya think? ;-D I'm dyyyyying to know!
Emma, I did. I liked it! A lot. I want to watch it again before I actually review it, but it is definitely one that stayed on my shelves, rather than getting put in the "sell me" box!
DeleteI liked how it told the story of Wyatt's whole adult life, rather than focusing on just the O.K. Corral and its aftermath. And Kevin Costner's portrayal was excellent -- the way he went from lighthearted and happy to very dour and closed off and not caring if he lived or died after his wife's death. Fascinating.
I have a peculiar fondness for Doc Hollidays, and I was quite taken with this one too :-) I don't think I've ever seen Dennis Quaid in anything before, actually, and I found him charming and ascerbic and quietly angry -- just what I want in a Doc :-)
YAY!!! I'm happy you liked it. :-) I can't wait to read your review!
DeleteCongratulations--it must feel really good to know that you were able to accomplish so much of what you'd planned!
ReplyDeleteOn a random note--I just took 3 free Myers-Briggs tests online, like we were talking about earlier. It was fun :) The results are sort of teetering between ISFJ and INFJ--one said ISFJ, one said INFJ, and one said that I was on the boundary line between the two. I'm not sure which one I belong to--I think it's possible I may just be a mix, like the last test said. Like, I really relate to a lot of what they say about INFJs, especially the part about being super-empathetic and loathing all forms of interpersonal onflict . . . BUT I don't think of myself as a particularly "intuitive" person in the sense of getting "feelings" about things/people that I can't explain. I just don't do that.
On the other hand, the ISFJ description doesn't really "click" with me because it sounds more concrete and practical than I usually am. Plus, I'm just not a naturally protective person. I'm just NOT. I mean, I do my best, but I'm usually too wrapped up in my own thoughts to be an effective defender against external threats. I'm much more apt to look for somebody to protect ME.
I know you're an ISFJ--so, do I seem to you like somebody who could share that type? Or is it more likely that I'm an INFJ? Just wondering what you think :)
Thanks, Jessica! It's very satisfying to know I didn't fritter away my summer, hee.
DeleteHmm. Because I only know you on the internet, I'm not sure I'm going to be all that helpful, lol. Charity has some good advice here on how to figure things out if you're caught between two. Also, here is a post she did on contrasting XNFJs and XSFJs -- I think that one would really help you a lot, because she spells out lots of the things going on with both of them and what the differences are.
(I kind of think you might lean a little more toward INFJ -- I'll be intrigued to hear what you eventually figure out!)
Thanks for the links--they're really helpful, especially the SFJ v. NFJ one. I can actually see something of myself in both descriptions, but overall, I do think I lean more towards INFJ. Like, you know how Charity says that ISFJs focus mostly on the present, with "one foot stuck in the past"? That's totally not me. I'm almost never focused on the present moment. I'm either thinking about the past, or the future, or some fictional reality. The present moment is just not a "thing" as far as I'm concerned :)
DeleteI'm not quite as intuitive as the INFJ description--like, I can't really "read" people's motives very well to know if they're bad or good (although my sister can). But I CAN read people's feelings really, really well, and that's kind of one of my most defining characteristics, if you know what I mean. I love trying to figure out what goes on in other people's minds and what makes them tick. And that being the case, I usually find myself able to like and empathize with almost everybody I meet. That's why I hate conflict so very much--I can't understand why we can't "all just get along," LOL. Whenever I witness a fight or argument, I feel like screaming at the people involved, "If you would just try to put yourself in the other guy's doggoned shoes and try to understand his doggoned feelings, you wouldn't be having this doggoned conflict and YOU WOULDN'T BE DISTURBING MY DOGGONED PEACE AND TRANQUILITY!"
Except I'm too shy to actually say all that. And so I just go to my room and brood. (Fanny Price, anyone?)
I also really identify with what people say about the INFJ tendency to "go into hiding and plan the next apocalypse" whenever someone has deeply disturbed or offended them. Because that's exactly what I do on the rare occasions when somebody has succeeded in making me really, really mad--usually by purposely humiliating me or by challenging one of my deeply-held ideals. I spend, like, the entire rest of that day furiously plotting out What I'm Going to Say to Him the Next Time I See Him. (But again, I never actually SAY it because I'm too shy/too softhearted. Ha.)
So yeah--the INFJ description tends to resonate with me more than the ISFJ, although I can see some of myself in each one.
Well, nobody completely fits everything of one single personality type -- your upbringing and personal experiences can make different traits more or less dominant, etc. Not everything I've read about ISFJs fits me, either.
DeleteRight. Plus, if everybody fit all the descriptions exactly, then that would mean there were only 16 kinds of people in the world, and that isn't so. The types are more like broad categories, I guess--like, "the majority of ISFJs tend to be like this, that, and the other," etc.
DeleteI don't think there are any other INFJs in my family--my sister Rosie is an INTJ, though. It's actually really funny, because, as it turns out, only about 1% of women are INTJs, and only 2% are INFJs. So we're both statistical rarities, if you will :) I always kind of knew that, though, without really thinking about it much--I've never met anybody else outside the family who was much like either Rosie or me, and now I know why.
I told her that the two of us would just be different together :)
Right! ISFJs are one of the most common types. My husband is an INTJ too!
DeleteAwesome! You know what they call INTJs? The "Masterminds"! :) I'm really proud of Rosie--she totally deserves the nickname, y'know :)
DeleteI'm also really kind of glad that I know, now, how rare my type is--because I was actually starting to wonder why so many people seemed to think I was a little "weird." I was like, why can't more folks understand me? Now that I know how unusual this is, it makes perfect sense. Now, instead of wondering, "am I strange, or what?" I can just be like, "hey, I'm different AND I'M PROUD OF IT." Which is a lot better, I think :)
Yup, my husband is totally a Mastermind. And I'm a Protector/Defender, which so suits me too, as I am quick to jump to protect or defend not only real people, but even fictional people :-)
DeleteAnd yes, being different and proud of it is much better than being different and guilty/annoyed/sad about it.
I think actually putting movies and TV on my to-do list is the only way I'll ever see them instead of using my free time on garbage. I could schedule them as rewards for being good.
ReplyDeleteNoumenon, what a lovely idea! I often use movies as a reward for myself. "If I get such-and-such done over the weekend, I can watch a movie after the kids are in bed instead of working on it then," etc. :-)
DeleteHamlette,
ReplyDelete*rubs hands* I love making lists like this (though I usually do mine on a weekly basis) and reading other peoples? Better and better. ;) And I hope that doesn't sound rude, I just enjoy getting to know people and their lists are so telling!
My younger sisters and I just finished a casual re-watching of Return to Crandford and oh am I always forgetting how much I love that movie! I'm also looking forward to checking out Lark Rise to Candleford when it comes in at the library. Have you ever watched it? I've heard some rather mixed reviews so I'm not exactly sure what to expect. :)
I hope you have a lovely weekend!
Eowyn, I sometimes make daily lists. I have a weekend list going right now that I only have 3 things left on, so I'm feeling pretty on top of things :-)
DeleteI have not seen Lark Rise to Candleford because my library doesn't have it and it's far too expensive for me to buy un-seen, alas. I've heard good things about it, but also some people don't care for it at all, so I'm interested to hear what you think!
I own a copy of "Outlaws of Sherwood"... I picked it up back when I was reading a lot of Robin McKinley's books. It's an interesting take on the Robin Hood legend, but isn't one of my favourite works by her. I actually like her "The Blue Sword" and "Beauty: A Retelling of Beauty and the Beast" much better. Both were favourites of mine when I was in junior high school.
ReplyDeleteLynn, I've never read anything else by her, but I'll keep an eye out for both of those! Thanks :-)
DeleteWow, you sure did have a productive summer!
ReplyDeleteYes, I did!
Delete