A difficult decision and a test drive

So there have been a few developments that I feel I should share. I've been feeling kinda bad about them, so maybe if I get things off my chest, I'll feel better.
Regarding NaNo: I started this endeavor with every intention of finishing it. I was so pumped about the idea of cranking out 50,000 words in a month, the idea that even though I'd be stressed, I'd create something worthwhile in that time. Unfortunately, things have changed a little bit.

It's not that I don't want to finish. I hate quitting things I've started, and this was the most difficult decision I've made in a while. I've discovered that this time constraint, while a good motivator, isn't really helpful for my writing process. I like to have ample time to brainstorm if I get hung up on the plot, and I felt really rushed and restricted within the parameters of NaNo.

I work a demanding job. I don't get to spend a lot of time with C, so when he's home, I don't write much. Recently we determined that we can't really afford living on our own, so we're moving in with C's parents...in a month. We have a lot of transitioning to do for that, and his parents will need a lot of help in the next few weeks in order to get everything ready for our arrival. I know that it's easy to find excuses, and that's not what I'm setting out to do. But in light of everything going on in my life right now, I'm far too distracted to write.

I'm not giving up entirely though. A friend of mine who was also participating in NaNo has agreed to hold a mini NaNo with me next spring, when we're not so busy. There aren't any prizes for winning NaNo, and there's nothing that says we have to live by their rules. We're both ok with our decision, and while I still feel a little like a quitter, I'm feeling better about my choice every day. The other things demanding my attention keep piling on, so it makes it a bit easier to live with.

To give you some happier news, C and I took my new camera for a test drive yesterday. It takes awesome photos, and we had lots of fun pretending to be professionals for the day. :P Here are some samples...

C took this next one, and he loves it so much that I thought I'd share it with all of you. :)

Enjoy!

J

Disney movies me me happy :)

We added 2 new Disney movies to our collection yesterday. We paid $5 for Toy Story 2 and 3! C's parents are upgrading to Blu-ray, so they're giving us a lot of their old DVDs once they buy the replacement for it. It's pretty convenient, since I don't know of any place you could pay $5 and get a new release DVD. :P

13 more to go!

J

#20: Get a new camera...

is complete! C bought me a gently used Nikon d60 on Wednesday. I have yet to play with it, as NaNo is still causing a frenzy in my life right now, but I'm really excited to start using it. :)

Speaking of NaNo, here's a little update. My computer crashed on Thursday, which caused a minor panic attack for me. Luckily, C's parents helped my parents get me a new computer, which I am typing on at this very moment. It was truly a lifesaver, because I had a few NaNo obligations that required a computer of my own (they had to do with music, so it would have been tricky with someone else's computer). I'm very blessed to have the family I have. :)

Also, I went to another write-in today, and wrote over 2100 words. I even won a word war for the first time! I'm feeling pretty good about being able to catch up on my word count this weekend. I'm hovering around 6800 right now (I have a little more than that), and I need to have 11,668 by tomorrow night. If I write 1500 more words today, I'm pretty sure I can make the goal for tomorrow no problem.

Wish me luck!

J

Updates

NaNo is officially underway, and I've found that I don't have time to update my blog as much as I'd like to. I'm throwing a bunch of Caterfly updates in this post to tide you over, since I really have no idea when I'll be able to update it again.

#39: Attempt NaNoWriMo at least once. This is officially in progress! I've started my novel, and I'm sitting at 2500 words at the moment. I'm a little below the goal that NaNo sets for writers, but I'm not too worried. It's day 3, and I have Saturdays all to myself, so I'll have plenty of time to play catch-up if I fall behind during the week. Things got off to a bit of a rocky start, but I'm going in a really great direction now. :)

#20: Get a new camera. I found a woman who is selling a Nikon d60 in mint condition, along with a bunch of other gear for it, for $350. It's a steal, and even though I feel like a sell-out even considering a Nikon, I really have to consider what's best for my potential career. C and I are going to go check it out today, and if it's in working order, I may be able to cross this off my list soon!

#47: Make a new friend. I've been on a bit of a friendship roll this last week. I'm hesitant to cross this one off just yet, because I consider a friend someone that you hang out with outside of work. It's not just someone that you only see at work or school, but never trade phone numbers with or do recreational things with. However, I have two potential friends. One of them, S, is the leader of my region for NaNo. She's taken me under her wing and is helping me stay motivated during this very daunting process, and she's really fun. We'll get to meet in person on Saturday, and we'll see how things go from there. The other, D, is someone I just met yesterday. She's a nanny too, and she takes her charge to the same play place that I take mine. We started talking, and found we have a lot in common. We traded numbers today, so we'll see if it leads to a new friendship. I'm excited! :)

#51: Listen to my entire iTunes library and get rid of songs I don't like. I made it through the As and I'm on to the Bs. I got rid of 30 or 40 songs in the As, which is small peanuts considering I have well over 5000. We'll see how much my library shrinks over time though. :)

That's all you get for now!

J