The 2017 List

{Documenting adventures in my new Passion Planner}

A few things I wouldn't mind accomplishing this year...

Adventuring-Related:

+ Visit 5-7 more EBRPD parks with dog and parentals.

+ Go on a road trip with Janelly.

+ Plan STSS 2017 trip.

+ Explore more of San Francisco.

+ Visit Ruth (St. Louis, MO) or Debrr (Urbana, IL).

+ Keep track of wages and set aside 10% for travel.

+ Take solo trip somewhere.

+ Go to a Giants game.

+ Show Patrick snow.

+ Try 1 new restaurant per month.

Communication-Related:

+ Get back to blogging (at least once a week).

+ Send 5 letters or cards (that aren't thank you cards) to separate people.

+ Show Mom CreativeLive, Skillshare, and other learning websites.

+ Send 4 surprise care packages to friends.

+ Listen to 10 podcasts.

+ Reach 300 followers on Patrick's instagram.

+ Get Dear Dog Photography's instagram back up and running. 

Dog-Related:

+ Enroll Patrick in more doggy classes/get him to be less reactive to people and doggers.

+ Make 2 bowties and 2 bandanas for Patrick and his friends.

+ Eat out with Patrick there.

+ Volunteer at the local shelter at least once every 2 weeks for 2 hours.

Health-Related:

+ Get 6+ hours of sleep at least 3x/week.

+ Try rock-climbing.

+ Try biking with the dog.

+ Finish my large water bottle every day.

Self-Improvement Related:

+ Graduate OT school with good grades.

+ Do my best during Fieldwork II.

+ Bake 3 new things.

+ Practice handlettering.

+ Drive to 1 new place every 2 weeks to practice driving.

+ Keep room clean and begin to glean through the stuff in there.

+ Get a haircut.

+ Do less complaining and more encouraging.

+ Keep van as neat and clean as it is now.

+ Write more.

I'll try to document as I go; the padre, pupper, and I already crossed off a new-to-us East Bay Regional Park yesterday, so we're doing good! Let me know if there's anything on this list that you'd like to join me for or if there is anything you think I might like to try this year! <3

List Love // A 2016 Recap

{Outside the Seattle Art Museum; photo credit: Steph}

So as stated in the previous post, it's been over 525 days since last I wrote. And a bunch of stuff has happened since then. Granted, nothing drastic and no grand milestone moments, but still. So just in case anyone was wondering what I was up to {and also just for my own journaling need}, here's an abbreviated version of my 2016...

January:

+ Began my second semester of OT school.

+ Continued to work part-time at a local tutoring center.

+ Hung out with coworkers a few times.

February:

+ More school.

+ More work.

+ Hung out with Janelly & Debrr individually several times (including a cake tasting for Debrr's wedding-- AUGH!)

March:

+ More school.

+ More work.

+ First anniversary of Zoe being gone.

+ Had way too many all-day Saturday classes.

+ Went to Silicon Valley Comic Con with Janelly.

+ Celebrated Patrick's first birthday.

April:

+ More school.

+ More work.

+ More all-day Saturday classes.

+ Gave a bunch of in-class presentations.

+ Wrote several looooong papers.

+ Finished finals.

+ Had dinner and caught up with a college friend.

May:

+ More work.

+ Did three weeks of fieldwork-- first two weeks at a mental health setting, third week at a physical disabilities setting.

+ Celebrated the parentals' 31st anniversary.

+ Explored some of downtown San Jose with Tommeh.

Last bit of May and almost all of June:

+ More work.

+ I have no idea what else I did because I forgot to write it down in my calendar thingmerbob.

+ I do know I wrote 40+ pages of field reports in six days because... heh... procrastinator.

July:

+ More work.

+ Did another week of fieldwork-- this time a pediatric setting.

+ Went to basic obedience classes with Patrick.

+ Spent a lot of time watching my friends play PokemonGo while hanging out with them.

+ Had several hangouts with Debrr, Ruth, and Janelly in the span of, like, one weekend, becauuuse...

+ Attended Debrr's WEDDING.

+ Went to Renegade Craft Fair SF.

+ Turned 25 and celebrated padre's 61st.

+ Had dinner and caught up with another college friend.

+ Began volunteering at the local animal shelter to walk dogs.

August:

+ More work.

+ Met up with Evelyn and Ivy for lunch and adventuring.

+ Did a lot of cleaning and organizing.

+ Watched a lot of Olympics.

+ Adventured to Seattle and Portland for five days for our annual STSS Adventure. It was eventful and quite a learning experience.

September:

+ More work.

+ Began exploring new-to-us East Bay Regional Parks with the padre and pupper.

+ Ran a lot of errands in preparation for starting school again.

+ Started second year of OT school.

+ Attended K9 Therapy Dog Training sessions with Patrick.

October:

+ More school.
+ More work.
+ More K9 Therapy Dog Training sessions.
+ More hiking with the padre and pupper.
+ Celebrated the madre's birthday.
+ Wrote a lot of papers.
+ Made a lot of presentations.
+ Went to the Bay Area Pet Fair with the parentals and pupper.

November:
+ More school.
+ More work.
+ More K9 Therapy Dog Training sessions.
+ More hiking with the padre and pupper.
+ Celebrated Thanksgiving with the parentals.

December:
+ More school.
+ More work.
+ More hiking with the padre and pupper.
+ Participated in my cohort's Secret Santa gift exchange.
+ Won a Passion Planner via Instagram.
+ Completed finals right before Christmas.
+ Watched several movies with the parentals (Up, Kung Fu Panda, Tangled, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2, Ocean's 11-13, New Year's Eve).
+ Made five batches of waffles on Christmas Day.
+ Did some annual after-Christmas shopping with Janelly and Brittani.
+ Deep-cleaned the van-- it's SO CLEAN.

So that was my year. A lot of school, a lot of work. All in all, though, a pretty good year. Much improved from 2014 when I was in limbo trying to figure out what I was going to do after college. :P Yay for getting a little better at adulting? 

One Little Word // Embrace

{Patrick on the lookout for adventuuure!}

Starting anew isn't hard. New years, new notebooks, new planners, new friendships? Love those. Great at those. Starting again? Starting again is hard for me. It's like running into a middle school acquaintance you aren't sure if you should acknowledge or not. It's been a long while, you aren't sure if they remember you, and even if they do, what do you say about the large amount of time that has passed?

The last post on this blog was July 25, 2015. That's a year and a half ago. That's 527 days. That's a long time.

I always get stuck on whether or how to explain my absence. It wasn't intentional, but I think it was necessary. Eventually I'll get around to recapping individual events, but not today.

---

My One Little Word for 2015 was "fearless"; this year, I've chosen "embrace" as a concept to focus on throughout 2017.

I'm not a big hugger. So "embrace" doesn't mean I plan on going around enveloping friends and strangers left and right. But it does mean that I want to embrace opportunities, challenges, adventures, friendships, and my own quirks.

To give a quick overview of this upcoming year, January to the end of April will be spent finishing the classroom portion of my graduate program. From late May to mid-December, I will be completing two three-month fieldwork placements. Besides that week or two in early May, my entire calendar is already scheduled and my time accounted for. It's kind of hard to make big plans and grand resolutions when I know what my year looks like-- homework, projects, and unpaid 40 hour work weeks.

In spite of or perhaps due to the fact that everything has already been scripted out for me, I want to keep the following things in mind as the year progresses:

+ Embrace opportunities. // I know I've been given a great opportunity to study occupational therapy and that it wouldn't be possible without a lot of parental assistance, both logistically and financially. But sometimes I forget to be grateful when stressed or frustrated or tired. I need to work on being more thankful for what I have, as well as looking for chances to make professional connections that may be useful in the future.

+ Embrace challenges. // This would be where I say something like, "what doesn't kill me makes me stronger," or "I need to step out of my comfort zone." The former of which is a saying that bugs me (there are plenty of things that won't kill you, but leave you weaker), but the latter is definitely true. I need to remember that challenges and other achievable things that cause me apprehension are things from which I can learn and grow.

+ Embrace adventure. // Even though pretty much all my weekdays are spoken for in 2017, I want to still go outside and enjoy non-school-related things from time to time. So I'm penciling in hikes with the pupper and padre, weekend hangouts with coworkers, and maybe a solo trip to visit friends living out-of-state. Adventure doesn't even need to be a "me physically going somewhere new" thing; it's a mindset and I hope to revel in it this upcoming year.

+ Embrace friendships. // I'm not the best at keeping in touch with my friends, unless I can see them face to face. Oh, I'm decently informed about what's happening in their lives, thanks to Facebook and Instagram, but I rarely am the first to reach out and schedule meet-ups. This year, I want to get a little better at that. I still can't promise I'll respond asap to text messages, but I hope to send out more letters and cards, since snail mail is more my style. If you'd like a note or two, make sure I have your address, please! (:

+ Embrace my own quirks. // In 2015, I wanted to be more "fearless"; only problem is, I'm not that by any definition of the word. I'm a naturally cautious person, a practical/logistics person, a planner. I have my moments of "let's do this random spontaneous act that's mildly reckless to the rest of the world, but oh so daring to me," but they're few and far between. This year, I'm vowing to be more accepting of all facets of my personality and not apologize for or try to change them. Self-confidence. I'll be working on that.

I'm excited to see what this year has in store for us all. It's bound to be interesting at least. Here's to a 2017 where there's more good than bad and more love than hate. <3

Weekend Reading Material // No. 38

^ via Constance Lyu ^

No. 38 // July 25-26, 2015

+ Because food made "for women" is not just a super obvious marketing ploy, but also just plain terrible. I can say that because this guy tried eating nothing but "female food" for two weeks and wrote about it.

+ STEBEN'S GETTING MURRIED. Not, like, this instant, but his engagement photos came out a couple weeks ago and auuuugh, SO ADORBS. Also. Bookstores. Yes.

+ Dear People Who Live in Tiny Fancy Houses... {and subsequent/related response articles}.

+ Additionally, besties who built their own community. STSS is down. Now to find the perfect location...

+ And I really really want to stay at this cliffside {literally} hotel in Peru. Because that HAS to be awesome. I'd probably go with the zip-lining option over climbing up there though.

--

Happy weekend, friends! We're working on increasing Patrick's exposure to strangers and new things, so we'll be taking him to a campfire thing tonight that the parentals are volunteering at... wish us luck!

The 23 List // June Update

^ The bridge at 1.77 miles on a Lake Chabot hike with the padre. Isn't it pretty? ^

+ take a road trip... where I'm actually behind the wheel and there are other people in the car // Well, I didn't take a road trip, but I DID finally drive with someone other than my parentals in the car last week! *cheercheercheer* I felt really accomplished the entire rest of the day. :P

+ hike a trail that takes longer than five hours from start to finish // The padre and I have been slowly increasing the length of our walks around Lake Chabot, now that he's able to handle the distance and hills better. Even though our walking speed is gradually increasing as well, it will probably still take around five plus hours for us to go all the way around. Not sure we'll be able to accomplish that in the next two weeks though. Still. Progress!

+ read three nonfiction books, cover to cover // Coolhaus Ice Cream Book by Natasha Case & Freya Estreller. I've been a fan of their company since my freshman year of college, so following along with their success has kind of felt personal. I dunno how to explain it-- you know those companies that you just click with? This is one of mine. I most likely won't be making any of their ice cream recipes anytime soon, but I'm hoping to try a few of their cookie recipes before the end of the 23 List.

+ reach 50 Instagram and 500 Pinterest followers // Numbers time! 82 Instagram friends, 540 Pinterest peeps. Pretty awesome.

+ get a job // DONE. My month long unintended hiatus was partially due to starting a new part time job, partially due to our new pup, Patrick. But yeah! I'm working again and actually getting a paycheck as opposed to my normal "work for free internships" thing. Whoot! Excited.

--

It's been a chill month. I'm not hermitting, per say, since I'm going outside almost every day to work for a few hours, but I didn't do any adventuring either. It's been lots of dog, lots of walking with the padre, and lots of working. Hopefully next month will involve more adventures and playing {it'll help that Patrick will have all his shots by mid-July and can then go outside in public places-- right now he's stuck in the house and backyard}. There's a wedding and several birthdays coming up as well, so those should be fun!

-- 

The 23 List updates for September/October, November, December, January/February, March, April, and May in case you missed them. (:

TV Finales of 2015 // Thoughts

Last autumn, I reviewed a bunch of TV premieres and tried to judge my chances for continued viewing based on one episode alone. Well, after an entire television season has passed, I can now reveal which shows I actually stuck with and which fell by the wayside! I think I might be the only one who cares in terms of the mysterious question of "WHAT DID SAM WATCH THESE LAST NINE MONTHS," but that's okay. I want to know. So I shall write. (:

Scorpion:

Ermahgherd. If there is one show that I am willing to fangirl over, it's this one. I'm not even sure I can put into words what I love about it so much without *squee*ing, but I'll try. The writing was consistently good {although there were a few filler episodes, but even those were still interesting}, the action sequences are excellently put together {this may be the one show that could make me nervous (read: elevated pulse for the last fifteen minutes) every week}, that chemistry/fit between all the actors I said they needed more time to develop and strengthen at the start of the season? Yeah, it's good now. Ugh. Seriously, the overarching storylines for the characters and their relationships to one another is just... I can't even.

There are few things I am willing to watch on repeat {only The Italian Job and Guys & Dolls until now}, but this show has definitely been added to that very short list. So so SO excited for Season Two and crossing my fingers that it maintains its quality.

The Amazing Race:
This was something I just started watching this season and, much to my surprise, quite enjoyed. Now I kind of want to try out for the show, but one, I'm so not prepared yet and two, I don't know who I'd try out with. It seems fun, if a tad crazy and very intense and stressful and conducive to angry/tired tears. But other than that... :P

Fresh Off the Boat:
Initially wary of the title, the show itself isn't too bad. The jokes are funny without being too self-deprecating or counter-racist {you know, if all the jokes were about how awful Caucasian people were or something}. A lot of the 90s references DO go over my head {I grew up then, but didn't really participate/care about the pop culture stuff}, but that's on me. It's been renewed for a second season even though viewership has been slowly dropping according to the numbers, so let's see if ABC will give it another full season or if it'll be cancelled midway through {which is what I'm thinking might happen}.

Once Upon a Time:
Eh. That entire Frozen-centric first half was so. totally. useless. The storylines weren't exciting, the acting was meh, and I just couldn't get myself to be enthusiastic about what was SO OBVIOUSLY a marketing ploy by Disney to prolong the hype over a mediocre movie. So I took a break from the show.

The second half of the season, I semi-watched. Like, we'd turn there if the Great British Baking Show had a lull, but if I missed a week or two, I'd survive. And then I watched the finale. Because you HAVE to watch alternate universe episodes, you know? And ermahgherd. So. Good. The writers hit their stride once more and threw in plot twists and better storylines and more interesting characters. That cliffhanger was excellent, I must say. I'm guessing the second half of the season was heaps and heaps better than the first, but I'll have to wait until it all comes out on DVD to catch up on the Villainesses/Evil Trio storyline. Hopefully Disney is done with Frozen for at least another year. Integrate Star Wars when that releases? Fine. Bring back Arendelle when Frozen 2 releases? NO.

Big Bang Theory:
"But what do I do about THIS ring?" Asdfjklsfdsjkl.

Modern Family:
When you know you're being renewed for probably at least another two or three seasons, I guess you don't have to try so hard with the season finale. Or at all. This WAS another very good season of Modern Family, but the finale was so. weak. The jokes were O.o, the storylines O.o, and pretty much no cliffhanger whatsoever. Definitely disappointed with the finale episode, but the rest of the season was fine. My favorite episode was probably the one shown entirely via Claire's computer screen. My parentals were like... "Whaaaat."


CANCELLED SHOWS:

Selfie: SIIIIIGH. Told you ABC would cancel it. All the sad faces. ))): Boo. Not happy this was cancelled, but wasn't surprised. Because again. ABC. *shakes head* {I think I'm not waxing eloquently about my disappointment on this one (and A to Z) because it's already been half a year since they ended and we've had time to adjust. I'm sure I would've had more to say had they justjustjust been cancelled}.

A to Z: Foresaw this one not surviving, too. Not AS disappointed {more like resigned} when NBC called it quits on this show since it was starting to get a little "eh", but I would've liked it to end in a different spot. Wasn't a fan of the finale. Girl passes up major job offer to stay with Boy? Been there, done that, still not a good solution. For a show that discussed the Bechdel Test, that finale was a pretty lame move.

Forever: Alas, ABC has cancelled this one, too. Oh, ABC. Why you so cold-hearted. I've started to get the feeling that anything that doesn't feature major makeout seshs or partial nudity ends up cancelled on this network. I'm pretty sure the timeslot ABC stuck it in didn't help any {10-11pm is pretty late at night for a show with no adult content, guys}. Upside, Season One was wrapped up in a nice little bow in terms of completing all unfinished storylines, so at least we weren't left hanging?

Mindy Project: Not something I'd watch religiously, but it works for mindless TV if I need a break. FOX cancelled it at a weird place this season, but if you didn't know, Hulu picked it up for the next season. So it's only semi-cancelled. It'll be interesting to see where she goes with this pregnancy storyline.


SHOWS I ONLY WATCHED THE PILOT FOR:
Gotham: too scary. I can't watch this by myself at night. Sheesh.
NCIS: New Orleans: I didn't feel attached to the characters enough by the end of the pilot to care what happened to them in the second episode. I feel a little bad saying that, but it's true! I hear good things about the show, but it's not something I feel the need to tune in for each week.
Agents of SHIELD: technically I watched the entire first season, but after the season two premiere, I gave up trying to keep up with all the new characters and weird plotlines they introduced in one fell swoop. Tommy loves it though and it IS impressive {or majorly devious, either one} how Marvel integrates its movie releases into the TV show plotlines. Nice job on that guys. This Comm major gives you an impressed face. 

Sunday Thoughts // No. 6

No. 6 // May 25-31, 2015

+ Since the padre and I aren't quite ready for another dog yet, but the house feels slightly empty without pets, we're thinking maybe fish can hold the fort until the right dog comes along. You know how last week we cleaned out the weird bar/sink area in the breakfast nook {I didn't name it, that's just what it's called}? Our old fishtank is also there, so we scrubbed that down and filled it with new water, too. We'll need to run the filter and add pro-fish chemicals this week, but maybe next week we'll have fish friends! :D

+ American Ninja Warrior started up again Monday. Literally the only show I'll watch of all the summer fillers. Not sure about this new female co-host, but maybs she was just nervous during the first episode? O.o

+ All the fruit! We've got strawberries, blueberries, pears, apples, cherries, blackberries, and persimmons in the house and it's great. And oranges and bananas, but I don't really get excited over those...

+ There's a new series I want to start on the bloglet soon that I put some work into this week. It's not anywhere close to being ready to publish, but progress is being made! 

+ The songs on mental replay lately: Octahate, Centuries, Good Girls, and Here's to Never Growing Up. {Why must the music videos always be so O.o ? Siiigh}... Also. I just realize they're all slightly angry sounding. I swear I'm a happy person? :P

Written Sunday at 4pm:

+ Sooo, there's a new addition to our house thanks to Maddie's Fund weekend. I'll explain in a bit, but yep. It's exciting news!