… and I don’t have much to say about it. Seriously, anyone else confused that the holidays fell on a Sunday this year? Sunday felt like a Monday, and for some reason I kept forgetting Tuesday. Seriously though, I only care that it’s January because I need to renew our car registration and think about health insurance stuff. Oh, and an upcoming rent increase (this is not an inconsequential thing but also we’re not moving).
The winter recess for my kids has lasted for three weeks and as we approach our fifth year here, this many weeks of rain and gloom over the school break is a first. Before this year, everyone was younger and in less need of entertainment, but not so this time. Since everything is wet, I have taken the kids for walks to Trader Joe’s and fake Target as I have finally gotten over getting up early to quickly do everything by myself. What do I mean by “fake”? “Fake” because it’s tiny and borderline useless except for truly basic necessities. I guess “capsule” would be less negative sounding? But what’s the point of selling kids’ toys but not kids’ underwear? Well stocked, it is not, but I am surprisingly able to buy a huge bottle of sriracha for pretty cheap. But back to getting outside, I run errands, they burn energy, we all win.
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Both the kids and I start class today. I am in denial about my semester beginning, which probably means that it’s time to get cracking. It is both a blessing and a curse to have the next few months of my life mapped out for me. Mostly because I have a syllabus, which means that as long as I complete my assignments I can fill in the rest of the time as I see fit. In addition to tutoring, I want to do a better job this time around with keeping up with my various communities and hobbies/activities that I enjoy. Understandably, I was hyper focused for the first semester, but now that I have crossed that mountain this next one shouldn’t be too bad.
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This past weekend, before it all began again, I needed to test out my new mouse, ear buds and finally unbox and check out my new printer. Also, in my last post I mentioned that I want to take up running because I think my fitness routine needs a refresh, but there’s rain in the forecast. In theory, I don’t mind being outside during weather, but do I want to spend time dealing with wet sneakers after the fact? No thanks.
This is where the power of YTube comes in. Over the weekend I tested out a running inside video… and I found it as a workable solution.
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I’m not going to bother too much with outlining goals for the year. In a nutshell I want to keep up with my school work, parenting, and my mind/body. This is all pretty vague, but since I’m not starting anything new that isn’t in progress already (except for the running and school projects) I don’t feel the need to be overly specific.
Recently, I met with my student support person to outline my goals that apply to this year but could also be expanded to include the rest of my school career. I am actively thinking about my post grad life, which means I want to be as strategic as possible with my time. So my focus will be on: doing research with an eye towards presenting, and working at a local language school over the summer. The working challenge always comes down to reasonably priced childcare+ scheduling, but now that my daughter is 5, I can find options for both kids to be at the same place. Fingers crossed.
Again for future planning purposes, I applied to the local community college for a Japanese language course. Bonus: they also offer a certificate as well, which is fantastic, so I can work on that alongside my master’s. Even though I am enrolled in a university and obviously language classes are available there, the cost was crazy pants. No discount for auditing! Being a local resident means community college is super affordable and also makes present me bitter at past me for spending so much money (per class) at the language school I parted ways with last year.
The kids will also be starting their own classes since I finally found a children’s language school. It’s an easy drive but not a close one, which makes me pause in regards to gas and returning home. After we get past the trial period I’ll start figuring out what I want to do.
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On the crafting front, my goals are small. Finish the crochet blanket that I started last year, and finish a sweater. I found a classmate who also likes to do yarny things and we’ve already met once over zoom. I remember going to craft night back in the day when I lived in Brooklyn so it’s nice to do something that I used to do. I’m sure my 🐢 pace will result in two new handmade items- the key is to limit my focus to just these two things. But it also helps that my social craft consumption is just 2-3 podcasts.
The blanket will go on the sofa. The sweater should be nice enough to wear outside.
Speaking of outside, I hope to sew more. This is again a carryover from last year, but since I was able to make two dresses for my daughter during my busy semester, surely I can find the same kind of energy for myself. At the moment, I have a pair of pants in progress. I want at least two pairs for my fieldwork assignment, and I’m on track.
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My last-ish “goal” is to cook/bake more new to me recipes. I think it’s fine to eat the same thing over and over again, but this is a bit limiting for my kids. We rarely eat out- I miss this about NYC so much- so they’re not exposed to lots of different cuisines. However, I think that they’re slowly reaching the point where they’re mostly willing to try something new (as long as something familiar is also available). As adults we can fall into ruts because it’s easier to automate life and we take for granted new experiences, so I definitely need to be more cognizant of too much routine.
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Oh, and a haircut… that would be good.
elysremix 
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