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100 Day Countdown

On this week’s “Happier’ podcast, Gretchen and Liz discussed the fact that September 23rd starts the countdown of the last 100 days of 2023.  They reviewed their “23 for 23” lists to see if there were any neglected areas they need to focus on before the year is over.

That’s a good idea!  I pulled out my own “23 for 23” list, which unfortunately only has nine things on it.  Oops.  But let’s review those nine:

  1. Go to the gym regularly (2-3 days a week.) – CHECK!
  2. Run a 50K – CHECK!
  3. Increase my protein intake- CHECK (I’m doing great so far!)
  4. Read 50 books- Still possible unless I fall off the schedule in November-December as I usually do.
  5. Participate in NaBloPoMo 2023- Oh yes!  More on that below.
  6. Organize my closet- Absolutely not.
  7. Fix foot- hahahahahahahaha!  That’s a good one.  I’ve had plantar fasciitis in my left foot for three years and it’s still going strong!
  8. Focus on getting 7-8 hours of sleep a night- Er.  More on that below as well.
  9. Send Christmas cards.

I like that last one- obviously when I made the list I was feeling guilty because I only sent out three cards last year.  I did buy a box of cards in January, so I’m cautiously optimistic that this one will happen.

Let’s go back to #8, sleep.  After a lot of big talk and small actions, my sleep is pretty much where it was a year ago.  I do go to bed earlier now, but I also get up earlier.  It’s very rare that I get eight hours- it’s usually between six and seven, and there are always a couple disastrous nights thrown in there of five or less.

WHY?

The good news is, I normally turn off all screens at least an hour before bed.  The bad news is, I use that time to read and sometimes I stay up too late reading.  I love reading at night when everyone else is in bed, but it just doesn’t fit with going to bed early.  That’s problem #1.

Problem #2 is that once I get in bed, sometimes I have trouble falling asleep.  This can be for various reasons, and doesn’t seem to correspond to anything in my life.  Sometimes I have to pee several times.  Other times, I drink an entire can of sparkling water before bed and sleep soundly.  Sometimes, I have the “moveable itch” phenomenon (this is probably self-explanatory.) Sometimes I’ll sleep really well after a long run or hard gym workout, but sometimes I’ll toss and turn for a couple hours.  AND, when I’m up late reading, often I don’t really want to go to bed because I’m not sure if I’ll fall asleep, or just lie there miserably.

SIGH!

There are still a lot of things I haven’t tried, and I’m going to renew my focus on sleep for the last 100 days of the year.

Let’s move on to a more pleasant topic: NaBloPoMo 2023!  Oh yes, I’m doing it again.  Not only am I doing it, but I have a THEME for this year, and some potential NaBloPoMo “projects.”  Ooh!  Exciting and mysterious!  I can’t wait.

Did you make a “23 for 23” (or any list of goals) this year?  Is there anything you want to focus on especially for the last 100 days?

Who’s doing NaBloPoMo with me this year???

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

More Posts

October Ultimate Coffee Date!

Hooray!  It’s the first Friday of the month, which means I’m linking up with Coco and Deborah for the Ultimate Coffee Date.  It’s obviously time to get out the Halloween mugs.  Pour yourself a spooky beverage and join me! The first thing I would tell you over coffee is, tomorrow is my son’s senior recital. We can’t be there in person but will be able to watch it via livestream.  I’m dealing with a cocktail of emotions here: disbelief that he’s a SENIOR in college, nervous for him (I mean, I’m sure he’s well-prepared and will do well, but a mom has to worry), sad that his time at Baylor is coming to an end, and of course- so, so proud of him.  The baby whose nickname was “Li’l Sumo” is now a MAN. So what else is on tap for the weekend?  My husband and I are planning a little at-home “Oktoberfest.”  I’m not quite sure what that will entail, other than beer of course.  My husband is very enthusiastic about the beer- “Let’s make it really cold!  We can get a bucket and put all the beers in it with some ice!”  WHOA THERE.  I’m not sure how many beers he plans on drinking, but my limit is probably 1.5.  We’ll have to have something to eat as well- I’m looking at this website with vegan Oktoberfest recipes. In other news, I got a letter saying that my request to postpone jury duty has been granted.  PHEW!!!  Interestingly, I’ve talked to three people who told me when they get a jury summons, they just throw it away.  They figure since it’s not registered mail, no one can ever prove they got it.  Huh!  Now I’m feeling virtuous about getting out of jury duty the “right” way.  Or, maybe I’m just a fool. Lastly, thanks to everyone who complimented me on fixing my blog.  Unfortunately I did NOT fix it (yet) and the only way it looks “normal” is if I include lots of photos (to make the post long.) Here’s one of me in my element…     What would you tell me over coffee?  Do you have any plans for the weekend?      

Reading and Eating

I finished the Ken Follett Century Trilogy!!!  Fall of Giants covered WWI, Winter of the World continued with WWII, and The Edge of Eternity starts in the 1960s. One thing I loved about these books is it showed me the continuity between these events.  I used to think of WWII as something that happened in the past, whereas events in the 1960s and 1970s were in more “modern” times.  Now I understand more the connection between WWI, WWII, the Cold War, Vietnam, and the events leading to the fall of communism. Edge of Eternity focuses mostly on the children and grandchildren of the original characters from Fall of Giants.  It was fascinating that a young man who fought in WWI, if he lived to a ripe old age, would also live through the Cold War.  There were characters in the book who endured Nazi Germany, WWII, the Soviet occupation of East Germany, and then saw the Berlin Wall come down.  It was incredibly moving to me that Black people who fought for Civil Rights in the 1960s could live to see Barack Obama elected president. I will say that, while I was reading it, Edge of Eternity was my least favorite of the three books, and I’m still trying to figure out why.  The first two focused heavily on Europe, and in Edge the focus shifted to the United States and Soviet Union.  There was a lot of detail about politics in the US, and while it was interesting, the story bogged down a little for me.  JUST A LITTLE!  I still enjoyed it, but whereas with the first two books, I didn’t want them to end, with Edge, I was kind of looking forward to finishing it. Then… I actually finished it, and the ending was so good that I cried.  There was an epilogue, which I was initially annoyed to see- I mean, the ending was perfect, what’s with this epilogue?  But then the epilogue also made me cry.  You guys- it was so good and I’m so glad I read these books.  I’ll be thinking about them for a long, long time. It was hard to move on to anything else, but I had to forge ahead.  I have some library books to get through, so I started this one: So far, so good!  I’m not very far into it, but I’m enjoying it. Eating-wise, I continued the pumpkin theme with some pumpkin oatmeal.  No special recipe- I just add a couple dollops of pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spice to my regular oatmeal. For dinner on Sunday, I went to Nora Cooks and browsed through her “Fall Recipe” section.  I ended up making Butternut Squash Curry With Chickpeas. It was good!  The only problem was, I should have doubled the recipe.  I like my Sunday dinner to also feed us on Monday, and I should have known one can of chickpeas wasn’t going to do that.  My daughter wasn’t a fan of the squash, but she’s obviously insane.  You cube the squash and roast it, and add it to the curry at the end- it was delicious. I’ll echo Engie’s recent question- what was the last book that made you cry?   What are you reading now?

A New Month

It’s October!  Time to get out the Halloween decorations- how exciting. Like many others, I’m looking forward to the Girl Next Door Fall Extravaganza episode for 2024.  While I’m waiting, I’ve been amusing myself by listening to their old ones.  One thing I love about these episodes is, Kelsey and Erica live in Arizona. Arizona weather is not Florida weather, but there are similarities.  Mainly that neither place has a true “fall.”  While the rest of the country is (hopefully) experiencing beautiful, crisp fall days, we’re still sweltering in the heat. In this episode from 2016, Kelsey and Erica talked about how they adjusted to fall in the desert.  They went through stages of denial, acceptance, and said they are now living in an alternate reality where it IS fall, dammit, because I say so!  That’s the way I feel- I put up my decorations and light a candle, so therefore it’s fall. Switching out my decorations (fall to Halloween, to Thanksgiving, to Christmas) also helps make one month distinct from another.  In Florida, we pretty much have two seasons: Summer, and SuperSummer.  There’s definitely a difference between January and July, but still- most days in January you can still walk around in shorts and a tank top. There are many times that I temporarily have no idea what month it is.  I know we all have those moments, but I doubt most people up north get confused between summer and winter.  In the absence of external cues, it’s important to me to make one season distinct from the next.  Otherwise time slips by much, much too fast. In this week’s Best Laid Plans podcast, SHU discussed how she marks the start of a new month,  One of the things she does is switch her screen backgrounds.  I like that!  I’m going to switch the photo on my phone, and I’m thinking of using this “terrifying” one of Charlotte… Hee hee… actually, she was yawning.  But she looks ferocious.  Here she is looking like her beautiful self: Magical black cats really do guard my home this month! Do you decorate for Halloween? Do you feel like you need to do something to make your months distinct, or does it naturally happen where you live?  

Weekly Rundown

It was a great week!  That is, if you like heat, humidity, and hurricanes.  (If you don’t like those things, don’t come to Florida in September!)  Here in South Florida we’re sending love to those in the panhandle who got pummeled- while being grateful that we were spared this time.  As always, I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah (thanks, ladies!) for this Weekly Rundown.  Let’s just see how it all went down… Sunday 6 miles on the trail!  The first mile was walking, then 5 miles running.  It was hot, sticky, parts of the trail were overgrown and there were biting flies.  But I loved it. Monday Leg day at the gym!  Here’s how I found the squat racks: BOTH racks had heavy weights left on the bars.  Why do people do this???  I didn’t feel like dealing with it, so I went over to use an older squat rack in the corner.  Once again I avoided deadlifts because of my cranky low back, but did squats, some single leg balance exercises, and abs. Tuesday I continued my cautious every-other-day running schedule.  Today I walked half a mile and ran 2.5. I followed this with a MadFit standing core workout. Wednesday It was a strength day at home- upper body, Caroline Girvan deadbugs, and hip stability exercises. At 5 pm we got a call that school was canceled the next day because of the hurricane.  Wait, what?  This was the first I heard of Hurricane Helene (I really should start watching the news more.) In my defense, it wasn’t on track to hit us, but we still had a tropical storm warning. Thursday The good news was, since there was no school, I was able to sleep in a little and run in the daylight.  The bad news was, we had pockets of horrendous weather, and one of them happened during my run.  Wind, driving rain, and thunder and lightning in the distance.  I did 3 miles and then hightailed it back home- and as soon as I got there it started to clear up. I followed this with the MadFit standing core workout- except I didn’t realize it was a different one.  Apparently MadFit has at least two standing core workouts.  I like them both! Friday I was very proud of myself for getting to the gym twice this week for leg day.  This time I did squats and deadlifts.  My low back is still achy, but I just decided to carry on. Saturday 5 miles!  Well, the first half mile was walking, and then I ran 4.5.  I’m getting there… slowly but surely. Sunday On tap for the day- sleeping in and waffles!  I’ve decided to shift my “long” runs to Wednesdays (a day off from work.) Obviously there will be football as well, although the Dolphins play Monday night.  I’ll find a game or two to watch. How was your week?  Any “interesting” weather?  

28 Responses

  1. Okay, so I decided I WASN’T going to do NaBloPoMo and then my blog got deleted and now I think I might do it because a) I miss blogging so much and should have things back up and running before November AND b) I plan to “cheat” a bit and repost some old posts from earlier in my blogging history 🙂

    My sleep is so hit and miss lately. I have just made the switch to decaf coffee though, and I hope that helps a bit?

    I made 23 goals for the year; a few I’m abandoning completely, but most I’m THRILLED with my progress. This was definitely a good year for goals, and I’ve started my 24 for 2024 and am trying to make them really fun this time!

    Increasing my protein intake wasn’t a goal for the year, but I’ve definitely done this! I’m fully on board the protein powder train and make protein balls each week and have one for breakfast and generally one for a mid-afternoon snack. They are SO good. Oats, peanut butter, coconut flour, protein powder, some oat milk, cinnamon, pumpkin seeds. My mouth is watering just typing it out 🙂

    Reply

    1. Wait- I need that protein ball recipe! I’m emailing you once again.
      Yes! I hope you do NaBloPoMo. Just think- you probably have all these blog posts just waiting to get out. You can publish them all in November!

      Reply

  2. I had some rough months of sleep earlier this year and happy to report that it’s going much better. The first thing I do every morning is check my sleep stats on Oura ring. Of course, I love to get a good grade lol and I get some fab feedback on my sleep stages etc. Looking forward to seeing your daily blog posts. Not sure I have enough to say everyday…

    Reply

    1. Last year I definitely had a few too many posts that were, well, kind of lame. That’s why I’m starting earlier this year and already making plans!
      I’m glad your sleep is going better, and it’s good to know that these things can improve!

      Reply

  3. Sleep is a complicated thing, isn’t it? I do generally get around 7.5 hours of sleep/night. If I did much below 7, my body lets me know THAT IT NEEDS MORE. I wish I was one of those people who needed less sleep. But I have come to accept that I need sleep. This will be challenging when my kids are older and go to bed later. Right now, our bedtimes/wake times are really well aligned. I am definitely the early morning parent and usually let Phil sleep in. But I figure eventually the tide will turn and Phil will be the night parent and will stay up to usher the kids to bed, etc. So his time is coming. 😉 Ha. I have had terrible insomnia in the past but luckily it is mostly managed now.

    I have never done NaBloPoMo and probably never will – which is ok! And I did not make a 23 in 23 list. I am very weird about setting goals/making lists like that. It puts more pressure on me and that’s something I don’t need right now. I know that sounds like a total cop out! I did make a list in 2019 and I accomplished more than I would have if I hadn’t made the list, but it was sort of this thing that hung over me during the year! Maybe when I am out of the trenches of parenting, I’ll be more drawn to challenges like that!

    And re: a visit to FL. I will definitely let you know if I am coming to Florida! Chances are I will be in the Miami area for work at some point. And our sales conferences tend to alternate from California to Florida. 2024 is in Cali but 2025 should be in FL! We are planning to take a family trip to FL in the spring but will probably be very far north of you – we are looking at Destin or going back to the Tampa region. We really love the Gulf Coast! But I am going to meet you some day!!!

    Reply

    1. Overall I think sleep gets easier as the kids get older- especially when they’re teenagers, you don’t need to be up to usher them into bed! There is an in-between phase where it gets a little tricky, but you have Phil there to help you out. I can definitely function on less sleep, but I know it’s not optimal. A lot of days I feel really sleepy during the day, and it’s not good.
      I always think I’m going to make a big goal list for the year but it never happens. I think this 9 was the best I’ve ever done, although I’m laughing at myself a little, because the list is clearly labeled “23 for 23.” Ha.
      Yes, you’ll be pretty far from me, but I can see why you’re going to Tampa- I love it over there.

      Reply

  4. I like the idea of doing a goal push for the last 100 days of the year…and may I say that I also like having a goal list of 9 things instead of 23 things cuz…23 is a lot to keep track of. And also as someone who comes from a family with long life spans, I don’t see doing a “75 in 75 list” when I’m 100.

    If it helps, I have the exact same experience with sleep. Either I need to get up one million times to pee or I can sleep through the night with no correlation to my water intake. A hard workout might mean a great night of sleep or it might mean a disastrous night. My go to is listening to sleep meditations, which usually work but every once in a while my brain just won’t shut off. So I dunno…

    I think that NaBloPo was a one and done for me. My goal for this year is to be a better commenter.

    Reply

    1. Well, it’s a little comforting to hear you have similar issues! Although I wish we both didn’t have them.
      Yes, when will this goal/year matching end??? It’s going to get crazy. Well, I couldn’t even come close to 23 so I doubt I’ll be attempting 24 next year.

      Reply

  5. You checked off a lot of things on your list, so go you! The sleep thing is tricky for sure. I hope you can figure it out. It’s hard to be underrested.
    I won’t be doing NaBloPoMo but I will be cheering on everyone who is!

    Reply

  6. I am so excited that people are talking about NaBloPoMo already. Yay! I am so thrilled you’re already committing and you even have a theme and some projects lined up… Jenny! You’re ahead of the game. I need to start giving it some serious thought myself.

    Reply

  7. Oh man, just the sound of you putting out a number and a list of goals kind of makes me itch to commit to something! However, I am definitely not doing NaBlo; I find it hard enough to write one or two posts a week AND respond to comments AND comment on other people’s blogs thoughtfully; I think something would suffer if I tried to post every day. It would probably be my sleep, speaking of sleep. I get about 6 hrs and 40 mins on average, sometimes 7 hours, and it is probably not enough. I don’t fall asleep at work or anything, but I definitely have a night once in a while where I fall asleep while reading my book at 6 pm!

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  8. NaBloPoMo is going to be the last month that I do this dumb write a post every day project I’ve set up for myself and I can HARDLY wait. Also, I love how abundant blog posts are in November! It makes me so happy!

    Reply

    1. I know!!! There’s never a shortage of things to read. And, I can hardly imagine your blog at this point without the daily prompts. It’s been a long time!

      Reply

  9. You’re making great progress with your goals.

    I’m going to be away for all of November so no NaBloPoMo for me this year., which is disappointing.

    Not being able to sleep is awful. I need pretty perfect conditions to get a good sleep but for some reason the last few months I’ve been sleeping pretty well(for me). But I have had multiple colds and am feeling really tired so I think my body is needing it. I hardly ever spend less than 7 hours in bed but most times it’s over 8 hours, I think I just really need a lot of sleep.

    Reply

    1. I’m sure my body would be VERY happy with your sleep schedule! It sounds awesome, and I’m glad it’s been going well for you. I also need conditions to be right to sleep well- mainly, I need the room to be cool enough, which is hard in South Florida.

      Reply

  10. 100 days! I’ll be doing a review of my 2023 goals next month and we’ll see where I’m at. I’m happy with how I stand with the majority of my goals, but there are a lot of financial ones that I’m not going to hit, which is upsetting. But oh well!

    I’m sorry sleep has continued to be so wretched for you! I’m starting to realize my afternoon naps are affecting my sleep SO MUCH. Argh! I used to take a short power nap (45 mins – 1 hour; yes that’s short for me, ha) on weekdays, but gave them up last week and slept SO WELL at night. Now I have to think about giving up my LONG weekend naps. I love them so much, though!

    Reply

    1. I usually take a 30 minute nap in the afternoon, and I don’t want anyone to tell me I can’t do that anymore! I love my naps so much as well.

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  11. 100 days! That makes me feel like I should set a goal for the rest of the year.

    FWIW I think New Year’s cards should be more of a thing. They are non-denominational and you can get them out in the aftermath of the holidays instead of the mad lead-up.

    Reply

    1. I did send our New Year’s cards one year, and it worked really well- I just sent a New Year’s card to everyone who sent me a Christmas card.

      Reply

  12. Have you already done a post on how you increased your protein as a vegan– and what you target per day? If not, would you? we are struggling with this ourselves, and live in a place/country without access to a lot of vegan premade foods (think: veggie ground round, veggie burgers, seitan, veggie sausages)… which also has it’s plus sides (they can be really… not great for you, as you just wrote about). On the plus sides, we have a lot of beans, lentils and usually access to great tofu…

    Reply

    1. Okay, I’m probably due for a “protein update” post. Beans, lentils and tofu are probably the best options! I also usually have a protein drink for lunch, which is just protein powder mixed in water (the one I use right now is called Upnourish which I order from Amazon.) I haven’t been focusing on it as much lately, so maybe I’ll do an eating “day in the life” post where I track my protein.

      Reply

  13. I’ve seen a few of the 100 days left in 2023 posts on social media and it definitely intrigues me. I know we’re under 100 days now but I feel like i want to make a list of things to do so that i end the year strong!

    Reply

    1. Yes, it’s a good idea- because the other option would be to just get really lazy, start celebrating holidays and end the year pretty “weak!”

      Reply

  14. I think you’re doing a great job on your 9 for 23. 23 goals is about 22 too many for me… I do not do well at tracking them. I can barely remember a word of the year. (umm… hm…) 😉

    Reply

    1. Ha ha, last year I couldn’t remember my word of the year. Finally I remembered that it was “start.” Start? That seemed like a good idea in January but made no sense in July.

      Reply

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