ROW 80: Check in #3

My goals:
1.  Write 250 words a day.
2.  Blog frequently (these posts will count towards my daily word count)
3.  Complete 2012's NaNo (ZF), then complete my earlier attempt (DoVH)

My Progress this week:
I did not work on my manuscripts this week.

Reflection:
I am very disappointed to say that I did no writing this week. I got caught up in exercising, knitting, crocheting and all the other things that life threw at me.  That's why NaNoWriMo never works well for me.  That's why I am participating in ROW 80, though, isn't it?  It's the writing project that understands I have a life :)  Maybe next week I will focus more on writing.  We'll see.

What I'm Reading Wednesday: El amor en los tiempos del cólera

Well, I finally finished reading Emma by Jane Austen.  I had a difficult time getting used to the language at first.  It has been a long time since I have read any Austen.  The character of Emma really bothered me.  She is such a snot and a snob.  I almost didn't want her to have a happy ending.  I wanted her to end up sad and alone at the end of the book.

Now I am reading El amor en los tiempos del cólera by Gabriel García Márquez.  I love Latin American literature, especially Márquez and Isabel Allende, and I love reading their books in the original Spanish.  I am already so in love with the main characters!

IWSG: Spread too Thin?

It's time for another Insecure Writer's Support Group which was created by Alex J. Cavanaugh and allows writers to vent about their insecurities or lend encouragement to each other.  Go to the link to see what other writers are talking about this month.

This month finds me in the middle of a number of different writing projects.  I am participating in ROW80, which is a writing challenge that understands that you have a life.  You set a goal for each 80 day round and track your progress through blogposts.    My goal for this round is to write 250 words a day.  Blog-writing and work on my two unfinished manuscripts count towards the goal.  The amazing thing is that every day that I have put aside time to write, I end up writing more than 250 words.  Unfortunately, I am only setting aside writing time four days a week.  The weekends are too distracting.  It's hard to keep my focus.

I also signed up for NiNoWriMo, a monthly challenge where you set your own writing goal and track your progress.  I am using the same goal that I have chosen for ROW80; I just like the extra accountability.  I am already in the home stretch with one of my manuscripts and getting ready to tackle the next.

Another project I have signed up for is A Month of Letters.  I will be sending something in the snail mail each day that the US mail runs in February.  It's fun to write real letters again.  I started writing a letter to my sister, expecting to write maybe a page, and ended up writing 6 pages.  My hand actually hurt by the end of the letter.  I am planning all kinds of creative goodies to send through the mail this month.

Am I spread too thin?  Trying too many projects at once?  I don't think so.  I love the accountability and support of writing challenges.  Also, I love all the inspiration I find on the web in these unique challenges.   All in all I am feeling super inspired and motivated this month.

ROW 80: Check in #2

My goals:

1.  Write 250 words a day.
2.  Blog frequently (these posts will count towards my daily word count)
3.  Complete 2012's NaNo (ZF), then complete my earlier attempt (DoVH)

My progress for week #2:
Tuesday: 360 words in ZF
Wednesday:  WOTW blogpost 454 words
Thursday:  254 words in ZF
Monday:  apx. 800 words in a letter

Reflection:
The weekend is difficult for me.  No excuses this week.  I was just unmotivated.  But I did write more than planned every day I wrote.  Writing over 1,000 words in one week is good for me.  I hope I can keep it up.

WOTW: Diabetes

Diabetes: noun, a disease that causes high blood glucose levels

About a year ago, my aging cat was diagnosed with diabetes.  It all began when we took her to the vet for a flea allergy.  Every time that our cat happened to get a flea, which happens often here in the Pacific Northwest where fleas live year-round, she would end up covered in scabs and open wounds.  We took her to the vet.  Yes, it was definitely a flea allergy, and the best solution was a shot of cortisone.  The shot was amazing.  It definitely worked, and soon our little kitty was scratching less and her scabs were healing.

No one can say if the diabetes was already in her system or if the shot caused the disease.    Cortisone can raise blood glucose levels and trigger diabetes in cats. Our kitty had always been small, but she became absolutely scrawny.

Then came the morning that changed all our lives.  Kitty could not control her bladder.  When I fed her, she took  one bite, then sat back and urinated.  She urinated on every blanket and chair that normally brought her comfort.  She was obviously in pain and could not stop, even though she wanted to.  My husband and I had to go to work, so we locked her in the bathroom with all her necessities and headed out the door.

I had my official evaluation and observation at work that day, so I had to be there for the morning.  I scheduled a vet appointment for the afternoon and put in a sub request for a half day, then continued with my planned observation, all the while thinking that my cat was sitting at home dying alone.

Both my husband and I took a half day to take her to the vet.  Neither of us truly believed she would survive the experience.  The vet took a urine sample, something that no cat will ever enjoy, and reported back that she had a bladder infection.  He added that based on the high sugar levels in her urine, she probably was diabetic.

And so began our new life:  daily shots of insulin, occasional blood glucose tests which involve pricking the cat's ear to get a blood sample, new expensive food, and infections anytime we miss more that one insulin shot.  With treatment, our kitty has gained weight, acts like a kitten again and seems like she may live a few more years.  We had a recent scare when her blood glucose level fell to 59 (normally it should be around 180), but we got it back to normal with a little corn syrup and some food.  The rest of her life will involve more work than we expected, but we do love her, so it's worth it.

ROW 80 Check-in #1

 I have decided to join ROW 80.          

ETA:  I will use these same goals for NiNoWriMo

My goals:
1.  Write 250 words a day.
2.  Blog frequently (these posts will count towards my daily word count)
3.  Complete 2012's NaNo (ZF), then complete my earlier attempt (DoVH)

My progress for week #1:
Tuesday:  WOTW blog post (apx. 100 words)
                 Wrote 253 words in ZF
Wednesday:  Wrote 233 words in ZF
Monday:  Wrote 394 words in ZF

Reflection:
I did not make my goal of 250 words each day this week, and I have an excuse.  I was planning a surprise party.  I never said it was a good excuse or that it actually excused my lack of discipline.  I just said I had an excuse :)  Anyway I plan to do better this week.

WOTW: Equality

Equality: noun, the state or condition of being equal

I have been thinking about this word a lot after the inauguration yesterday, on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. President Obama mentioned equality frequently during his speech, and the topic was all over my local NPR station.

"We the people declare today that the most evident of truth that all of us are created equal -- is the star that guides us still; just as it guided our forebears through Seneca Falls and Selma and Stonewall; just as it guided all those men and women, sung and unsung, who left footprints along this great mall, to hear a preacher say that we cannot walk alone; to hear a King proclaim that our individual freedom is inextricably bound to the freedom of every soul on Earth.

"It is now our generation’s task to carry on what those pioneers began, for our journey is not complete until our wives, our mothers and daughters can earn a living equal to their efforts.

"Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law, for if we are truly created equal, then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal, as well.

"Our journey is not complete until no citizen is forced to wait for hours to exercise the right to vote.

"Our journey is not complete until we find a better way to welcome the striving, hopeful immigrants who still see America as a land of opportunity, until bright young students and engineers are enlisted in our workforce rather than expelled from our country. 

"Our journey is not complete until all our children, from the streets of Detroit to the hills of Appalachia to the quiet lanes of Newtown, know that they are cared for and cherished and always safe from harm."               --President Obama

It made me think about what equality means to me.  I agree with everything the president listed, but I think there is more to add.  Equality exists when we stop talking about an achievement gap based on race, socio-economic status or gender in schools, when all schools can afford the resources and technology that they need, when teachers are once again respected and trusted.  Education should not be ignored or pushed aside.  Education can make all men equal.

What did you think of the inaugural address?  Did you celebrate MLK, Jr. Day?  How do you define equality?