#MonthlyMotivation - it's all about the moderation

 

Happy December, my friends. We've made it through 2021 (almost). I chose this month's motivation with deliberation as it fits my mood going forward into a new year. I've spent so much of my life trying to get more done in less time, juggle all my glass and rubber balls (thank you, Gary Keller- so sorry I ignored your advice), and alternated between a mix of a "the heck with it" attitude and one centered on "do all the things". I didn't get very far.

2021 has been a year of tough love. Both with myself, and those around me. There's nothing like a pandemic to force one to examine and set boundaries of a personal kind. If you are interested, I've narrowed my stance down to the same I hold for everything else in life: we are all entitled to our own views, and I'll respect yours - as long as you allow me the same courtesy. But, pandemics aside, my embrace of "all da hustle" left me feeling panicked, defeated, discouraged, and damn tired.

Yet, 2021 was an amazing year for my writing productivity. How? Blinders and a whole lot of mindset work as offered by Pahla B., Dr. Edie W., Clarissa Guillen, and Christina Oman, to name a few amazing thought leaders. While each of them have their own life area they focus on, they all share the belief that our thoughts create our feelings, which drives our actions, which leads to our results. Links to learn more about them are available on my Links of Interest page and I hope you check them out.

Despite thinking that by focusing on one thing at a time I was falling behind, it's the moderation mentality that has allowed me to rewrite, re-edit, and republish two short stories and five novellas in twelve months. (Let's pause for the patented Chrissy dorky fist pump. It's okay, you can join in. You ready? *pump* Go me!)

2022 is looming large and, I admit I'm nervous. What comes next? Can I keep going and achieve most, if not all, of the cool things I desire? My biggest, over-arching goal is to live a life of joy, energy, and enthusiasm, and by taking each day at a pace I can manage, no matter what other accomplishments comes my way, that's the star I'm shooting for.

How are you feeling as we wind up another year? What has made a difference in your life? If you don't want to share online, just shoot me an email at chrissymunder@yahoo.com. I'd love to hear how you are doing.

It always comes back to our thoughts.

 

October's Monthly Motivation.

 

And, while I'm no Daniel Craig, nor a United States Navy Seal, I was pretty damn smooth this past month. Heh.

Yes, my October monthly motivation is posted a little later than usual, but hey! It's been one of those quarters. Celebrate with me, my friends. I just completed the last of my Q3 projects and my Q4 and month of October can officially begin. Yay!

After I pass out for a few days.

Wow. That's about all I can say. Wow. September was an amazing month for me productivity-wise, and funnily enough, it's because I made a supreme effort to slow down and work on one thing at a time. All that other stuff clawing at my ankles and needing to get done? They are still there. And still clawing. But my industrial-strength blinders really proved this month's motivational quote true.

So yay! Deep breaths. Then it's time for my Q3 review, my Q4/monthly planning, and I'll be diving in once again. I hope you had a good start to your October and are enjoying the slide into the Fall season. Have you made the switch from multi-tasking yet? it's one of those things you have to try to decide if it makes a difference. How does it work for you if you have?

It's Rocktober, baby!!

Or, as we call it here at Chez Munder, my favorite month of the year! Some people love summer and equate the late Fall with a winding down period. Others love January and the start of the new year, I feel that same rush of new possibility and opportunity every October 1st. And it's here!!

But, I can't have to much fun just yet. I'm finishing up a final, Q3 project that is pushing my Q4 off for about another ten days. It's all right. I can wait. (barely!)  Then I'll take a few days of down time before jumping in! Because, just like the wonderful B. Kliban shows us, sometimes you have to ignore all the little things going on around you and rest when and where you can.

Are you rocking into the new month?

It's another one of these weeks!

Happy Tuesday, my friends. I hope you are cruising through your week with energy and enthusiasm. It's another one of these (those?) weeks here at Chez Munder. There is cool writing stuff happening. There is not so cool elderly parent/extended family stuff happening. There is simply a whole lot of STUFF happening. And while I've not yet squeezed in my quarterly review and planning, I have a good idea already of what my Q4 projects will be. Heh. Good times. It's okay. We are going with the flow and mentally spending time in our happy place. I hope you get to do the same.

Time keeps on slipping...

 Last month of the 3rd Quarter! Man, time flies. I'm starting September off with a much better feeling than I had at the beginning of August. Due, in no small part, to my hacking and winnowing down my projects and priorities down to a very nubby nub. What can I say? I love to over-estimate ALL THE THINGS I can (not) get done.

None of that matters because we are sliding into Fall. Or Autumn, as some prefer. This is my favorite season and when good things happen in my life, it's usually during these couple of months. Need proof? Well, October will see some releases coming out. Yay! I'll share details and all the rest as they come to me. But it's exciting to feel I'm making progress again after more than a few stalled years with my writing. The first thing in the morning, bed-making, treadmill, writing ritual, and writing habit has made all the difference. And yes, this is the point where I shake my head and wonder why I fought it for so damn long.

My online presence hasn't been the most consistent. Sorry if you've missed me! It simply is the first thing to go when I start feeling overwhelmed. We'll see how this month plays out. In the meantime, I'm taking this month's motivation to heart. I hope you do as well. Especially when it comes to yourself.

How is your September starting? Are you excited to finish out this quarter?

Did you love yourself today?

 

Happy Thursday, friends. So, I'm jumping right in with the big question: what was your first thought when you read this quote from the awesome Pahla B of PahlaBFitness.com. Did you cringe? Offer up a snarky yeah, right? Snort? Did you simply break down into hysterical laughter?

I hear you. Once upon a time, I probably would have joined in any, or all of the above. I never thought of myself as athletic growing up. You're talking about an gal who was asthmatic, near-sighted enough to wear glasses since the age of 2, and one who wore braces on her legs when very young to help with a birth issue.

So, all the activities I considered athletic (hitting a softball, shooting a basket, or playing dodgeball-yes, I'm that old), weren't my strong suit. In a funny aside, I never understood that it was probably my lack of vision that impacted all of these activities (you do have to *see* the ball to do anything with it). I just figured I wasn't athletic and because of that belief, the very idea of exercise as an expression of self-love seemed ludicrous.

I carried this belief for most of my life. Until all of a sudden, I didn't.

Because, moving my body, in anyway I can, is now something I do every day. And have done for well over 12 years. No, I still cannot hit a softball, shoot a basket, or dodge a ball. But I am stronger than I have ever been. I am more flexible than I have ever been. And, my cardio endurance is not too bad for an old broad. This body I fought for so many years is an amazing miracle and it can do amazing, miraculous things.

I could list out all the things that have brought me to this point and all the mindset shifts that have occurred because of it, but that's not really where I want to go. To keep it simple, I just want to say, move your body today. Love yourself. And then do it again tomorrow.

Hellooooo August!

 

Whooh, baby. How is your August shaping up? This month's motivational quote is a good reminder not to forget what's truly important.

You might have thought, had you caught my "July was awesome!" recap that I'd be sliding into August flush with calm and confidence. Heh. I wish. 

I knew Q3 was going to be busy with a capital B. I knew I *probably* over-booked myself with things to accomplish. I *might* have over-estimated how long a few projects would take. But, I'm going for it anyway. 

That wasn't a decision I made lightly. But, spurring me on is the knowledge I have plans for the 4th quarter of 2021. Big plans. And one big project. To make space for that one big project in Q4, I need to knock these planned items out in Q3 and if I let myself, I'll feel the weight of all that pressure. 

So despite the way my August already feels crushing, I'm focusing on my top priority for the week and then the top priority for each day. Am I struggling to let the rest go? Absolutely. but, I think it will be worth it.

Hopefully you have not overbooked your August, and you are simply chuckling at this poor, misguided soul. But, if you are in the mix right along with me, be sure to make room for some laughter.

Have a good month!

When it all comes together...

Hey there! How is your summer going? Can you believe that July is almost out the door? I hate to see the month go because this, my friends, this is the month everything seemed to gel and I'm in massive celebration mode.

Chief among my wins for this month are:

• Hitting send on a Halloween-suitable novella submission
• Hitting the mark with 45lbs down on my weight loss journey and dropping 4 pants' sizes
• Improvements in my parents' health so we were able to visit them for the 1st time since the pandemic began
• Totally rocking my morning treadmill/writing ritual/writing habit
• Writing all 18 of my planned work days without the need for a mental health day or battling a super-sized load of resistance.

It's not that July was magic, rather it's been the culmination of the last year of mindset work and acceptance of where my sight loss has left me as an author. (It's okay, you can roll your eyes and say What? You're still working on that? Because yes, yes I am.)

I'm taking the rest of the week off to work on my monthly review, setup my August plan, and clean up a few of the messes around me. Then I'm jumping back in to keep the momentum going.

What was my reward for meeting so many of my July goals? This beautiful hamsa bracelet.

I'll see you in August!

There's at the end of this novella tunnel

 Another Friday, another celebratory treat coffee. How did your week go? Did you take a moment to smile or be silly? I hope so. Today's cup of fun flavor is Jingle Bones, part of their Christmas in July celebration. It's a coconut, caramel, and vanilla blend.

This week I hit 4 co-working sessions, which the progress on my novella reflects. Yay! A big thank you to all my fellow co-workers for the inspiration and motivation in a variety of platforms. I'm in the final clean-up and formatting stage and shaking my head at the number of times I over use my favorite words.

My fingers are crossed to hit the finish line next week, will you wish me luck? I'm battling my self-sabotaging/procrastination tendencies which are telling me that this would be a FANTASTIC time to redo all the tags and categories on my blog and story posts.

Don't get me wrong. I know they are a mess and I am itching to redo them. But, I am also learning to prioritize, focus, and work on the projects and tasks that move me toward my goals (can you hear that in Sarra Cannon's voice in your head? I can.) So, begone shiny object! Begone!

Stop my month! I want to get off!

 Do you know that feeling? I knew Q2 was going to be busy and I knew April was going to fly by. But wow, what happened to May? From April 1 to now has been a one-way trip while strapped to the front of a bullet train.

Think about that visual. Can you relate?

There’s no way to point out any one thing but we are living in interesting times and the juggling of responsibilities, both personal and professional, has seemed all that much harder. Life has been about the flexibility, hasn't it?

And here I thought those stretching exercises wouldn’t pay off. I am *this* close to reaching my childhood dream of becoming a contortionist. Don’t judge. Ten-year old me thought that was the height of cool.

If I’m honest, the markers and milestones in Q1 and Q2 haven’t been all negative. Sure, I meant to write this specific post at the end of March and I’ve not completed any of the four(!) writing projects I had slated for the first six months of 2021. But there’s been some amazing wins this first half of the year. 

Chief among them? I hit the big 40lb mark when it comes to weight loss. (That number still blows my mind.) I’ve accepted the reason I’ve not finished those two novellas-in-progress is because the stories need more before I consider them finished (sigh), and I’ve developed a consistency in my day to day habits I once thought impossible. I’ve also delved back into the world of MM Romance with the release of two novellas. 3rd Time's the Charm came out in April, and Stormy Weather in May.

That’s a lot to celebrate.

Not so coincidentally, I’ve also been listening to and learning from some amazing thought leaders when it comes to mindset and upper limit beliefs. You might have seen some of my posts #MindsetIsEverythihg.

My favorites include Clarissa Guillen, Christina Oman, Dr. Edie, Pahla B, and Cara Harvey. Each of these women come from a different place in life and have a different focus, but all of them share the belief our thoughts create our feelings, which drive our actions, and which then produces our results. I’ll link each one to a favorite teaching so you can experience them yourself.

But understanding and working with my mindset isn’t the answer with all of life’s woes even though it does help me live each day with enthusiasm.  The weight of all my must-do’s (get-to's with a mindset shift!) is still there, and I’ve had to be both a little more creative and a lot more disciplined to get things done. 

As much as I tell myself I’m a shiny object lover and easily distracted and I want to do ALL THE THINGS, realistically, I can’t. My inner two-year old then lies on the floor in the middle of my writing space and kicks and screams because ALL THE THINGS! NOW! (Have you ever been in a store with a tantrum-throwing two-year old? Whoo boy. Good times. But you can't slink off and leave them there, no matter how much you are tempted.)

What can I do? Lower the pressure. Narrow my focus. No matter how much I don’t want to.

Honestly, reducing my priorities and goals to one item a month is hard. So damn hard. I fight myself every time I do it. For some reason inner-Chrissy is convinced she can take three classes, write three books, and work on three new habits every single day of the week.

Inner Chrissy is a machine. A Terminator. She is convinced she can out badass a 1984 Arnold every time she takes on a project.

Real life Chrissy? Not so much.

To translate this into my June, I have ruthlessly chopped my plans to one item and one item only: completing one of my novellas-in-progress. Then, and only then, will I move forward into planning my Q3 with a focus of only one project a month.

For anyone interested in the system I use to understand my priorities, plan my writing and life goals, and evaluate and adjust as needed,  there is a new round of the HB90 Method offered by Sarra Cannon starting on June 13th. (I'm excited to see the changes Sarra has made in her time tracking system.) Please consider using my affiliate link if you sign up and remember, once you purchase the course you have lifetime access and each new quarter is an opportunity to refine your process. 

How is Q2 of 2021 working out for you? What adjustments are you making to add time and energy to your life and goals? Leave me a comment or send me an email  - chrissymunder@yahoo.com. I’d love to hear from you.

In which I learn mindset is everything once again.

Whoo! Clarissa is nailing it today!

Hey there, friends. I had something else I was going to post on, but I was listening to Day One of Clarissa's latest masterclass on YouTube and had to stop and share.

This, my friends. This.

As always, she's speaking some amazing truth. I can't wait to see what's in store on days two and three.

If you are, know, or have a young person in high school or college, they need to be learning from this woman. And while she coaches college women (and men) of all ages, her message has a far greater reach.

 If you are a person trying to lose weight, please stop and listen. If you are a writer battling resistance or not finishing your story, pleas stop and listen. If you are a human trying to function in this world, please stop and listen. 

#MindsetIsEverything #gamechanger

You can find more Clarissa online @Sherocksatcollege, free videos on YouTube, Instagram, and her website.

We have the power to choose

 

I'm a little behind already, but I'm determined to get this month and quarter back on track! How is your Q2 starting out?

Another round of Camp Nano Shame

Brought to me, by my arch-nemesis, Reality.

Photo by Trà My on Unsplash

Happy Tuesday, friends. April and Camp Nanowrimo are right around the corner and I am feeling the shame. Yes, I thought I was going to join in this round. No, I am not. Am I disappointed? You bet! But more by my continued insistence on over-scheduling butting into Reality.

Yeah, Reality gets a capital "r", every time.

Am I ready to answer the eternal question of "why do I keep thinking I can do more in shorter period of time"?  Probably not. 

Am I getting better and recognizing the actual time a task takes me? Eh, a little bit. (Brief pause here for the mental image that comes along with that statement. Please be sure to include the hand gesture.)

March is on the way out and I am still: reviewing a final proof of 3rd Time's the Charm, release date April 10th, continuing the major basement declutter and clean-out started months ago, facing down the ending of my current novella-in-progress, giving a read thru of a friend's soon-to-be-released work, powering through a backlog of course modules from a course that is both sadly and unexpectedly, closing at the end of April, and prepping the upcoming edits for Stormy Weather, due to be released on May 1. There's a monthly and quarterly review and plan still to be squashed into the mix somewhere, as well as all the other personal and home stuff going on.

Did typing all that out reduce my shame any? Actually, it did. If only because when I type out all the things I *think* I'm going to get done before the end of March/April I get a good laugh out of it.

Are you going to be joining in Camp Nano this April? Let me know and I'll cheer you on. And let me know if your plans have run into a little Reality. We can laugh about it together.

Do you have a minimally viable plan?

It’s been a tough week at Chez Munder, friends. TOUGH. On all fronts. Usually, I can squeak by when life needs my attention. Maybe my emotions are out of whack, but I’m totally crushing my word count. Or, maybe my writing is lagging, but I’m rocking the home responsibilities. This week was an all-around ass kicker and I’m mentally, emotionally, and physically beat.

Did you notice I broke my chain on 2021 Tuesday blog posts? Yeah, sometimes there’s just too much real life in my real life.

Thankfully, I have a minimally viable plan (MVP) for most areas of life and responsibility when things kick up and they are a saver. Some people may call these Plan B, but I resonate with the word image painted by the words minimally viable. What image do these two words paint for you? 

My MVP is more than a Plan B.  It’s a small, itemized list of 2-3 tiny (sometimes infinitesimal) tasks that, if I can’t manage anything else in my day but check those 2-3 items off, I’ll call the day a win. My MVP removes any emotion from the task and it feels easy, even when nothing else in my life does.

Maybe I didn’t do my weekly housecleaning, but there are no dishes in the sink, and we have clean underwear for the next day. Maybe I can’t get my planned exercise in today, but I took a 15-minute walk out in the fresh air. Maybe I couldn’t face calling my family, but I sent a cheerful text. I won’t lie, friends. Some days my MVP is simply getting out of bed and getting dressed.

These plans weren't developed overnight and I've adjusted them repeatedly. In many ways the content of my MVP doesn't matter. What's important is they reflect the current priorities in my life.

This week helped me realize I need to adjust my writing MVP. I’m at a tough part in my edits, I’m waiting for the story to thread itself together, and I'm avoiding my keyboard. This is a sure sign my MVP for writing is too large. Too scary. Not minimally viable.

So, I’m scaling my writing plan back a few notches. It’s frustrating, because I’ve set some large writing goals this year and I’m disappointed to find myself behind, even while leaving (I thought) a nice chunk of margin. But small progress done consistently will build the mindset and discipline I’m going to need to reach them.

How’s your March going? Do you have a minimally viable plan for when life gives you a poke hello or you feel mentally and emotionally exhausted? What’s the one thing you do in a day that helps you feel satisfied?

Since I’m still running behind this week, here’s my minimally viable workout for today. Nick always makes me smile, and does anyone else think he looks like Joseph Michael, The Scrivener Coach or is it just me?

I dare you to walk 15 minutes with Nick and not feel better afterward.

For anyone interested in more of the philosophy and practicality behind my planning and how I narrowed my priorities, I'll remind you there's a fresh round of Sarra Cannon's HB90 Method starting March 14th. Please consider using my affiliate link and remember, once you purchase the course you have lifetime access and each new quarter is an opportunity to refine your process.

Ready to join me for #TheWalkingWriter?

Happy Thursday, y'all! After I shared one of my big, bucket list goals--to complete The Crazy Horse Memorial Volksmarch in 2022--I received quite a few emails and comments which circled around the same question: how will I, as a blind person, train and build strength in order to complete the walk?

My stock answer to most "how do I" questions is pretty standard and runs along the lines of: the same way a sighted person does. Depending on my mood, I might then segue into a bit of Blind 101 and ableist language education.  I am not a blind person. I am a person who happens to be blind.

All knee-jerk responses aside, I thought this could be a fun way to share some of the many ways I strive to stay active not only as a person who is blind and lives in a climate with snow and ice a large percentage of the year (which, yes, does limit some of my outdoor activities), but also as a writer with strong sedentary and nap-loving tendencies. 

Want to come along? Just look for the #TheWalkingWriter tag here on my blog in 2021. To make things a little easier for those of us who are leery of making any financial commitment right now, I'm going to share mostly free or inexpensive ways to meet my goals. 

I'll start small this first post. Like, five minutes small. One of my favorite writing techniques is the Pomodoro Technique. Not only does it help me stay on track and avoid distractions during my writing time, but it also allows me to sneak in a quick check of both my current fitness state and my cardiovascular progress.

How do I use it? I set my timer, write or edit for 25 minutes and then, for my five minute break, I walk stairs. A single flight. 12 Steps in all. Over and over again without stopping. That's it. Then back to the writing. Then another five minute stair break. 

Okay, I hear some of you snickering out there. But try it yourself. Just walk up and down one flight of stairs for five minutes without stopping. Let me know how you feel. Don't be surprised at your results. I was truly horrified my first attempt. Maybe it's a not a challenge for you, and maybe you won't break a sweat and your heart doesn't try to pound out your chest. Bless you, if that's the case. Mine sure did.

What about when I lived in a house or apartments without internal stairs? How did I sneak activity into my writing breaks? Well, when bored with simply walking through the house practicing my cane form, I turned to another favorite and free resource, YouTube.

Yes, it's visual. Yes, I'm not. The key is to find exercise classes with strong verbal cues. One of my favorite instructors is Leslie Sansone and her Walk At Home videos. The beauty with Leslie? She uses four steps, not a lot of room, and as long as you keep moving, you can't do it wrong.

Here's a quick, five minute walking break perfect for doing in front of the computer during my Pomodoro break:

Granted, five minutes at a time won't build the strength or cardiovascular fitness I need to compete the volksmarch, but it builds consistency, habit, and confidence. Plus, I consider anytime I get my blood pumping and my heart going a win and good for my writing. 

How about you? Did you set any health goals in 2021? Are you an at-home exerciser or do you prefer a gym? If you're an author, how do you fend off a nap-attack when it's time to write?

#MonthlyMotivation

 

The end of Q1 2021 is getting closer! *cue the theme from the movie Jaws* 

How are you doing on your Q1 goals? I've been making some slow, but steady progress in some areas, but it's time to buckle down and finish this novella!

Ready to join in the next round of the HB90 Method?

 I’ve always loved to plan and set goals. I never learned how to turn these plans and goals into effective action until 2018 when I found Sarra Cannon and the HB90 Method. Does that sound a little incredible? It’s true.

I shared a little about Sarra and the HB90 Method back in December, but the live class had already closed. I wanted to post early enough this quarter that anyone interested could still join in.

So! A new round of the HB90 Method will be starting on March 14th. If you are familiar with Sarra, visited her blog, Heart Breathings, or watched any of her YouTube videos where she shares highlights of her process and simply want to jump right in, please consider using my affiliate link to join. It doesn’t cost you anything extra and I get to feed my office supply addiction. Yay!

If you’d like to hear a little more personal feedback on my results from the class, please continue reading.

I’ve posted a few of my goals this year and as another month races to a close, I’ve already made more progress than expected. Am I going to achieve everything I hoped for this quarter? Of course not. I’m not a machine, or even close to a perfect human. I also am still working on my tendency to overschedule myself, set unrealistic expectations, and continually underestimate how long a simple task will take. Does anyone else struggle there? 

What I am doing is taking consistent action using a reliable, realistic system that is flexible to my needs, energy, and available time. You might say, well, that’s great, Chrissy. But you’re an author and Sarra’s a successful author and entrepreneur. I’m not.

It doesn’t matter. The process I’ve learned in the HB90 Method is one I apply to everything I’m working to achieve, in all areas of my life. It’s how I’ve already filed our taxes for 2020, decluttered the back storeroom, and posted weekly on my blog in 2021 when I hadn’t touched it in months. It’s how I finally sat down and voiced my dreams and priorities beyond a simple “I want to” and made a plan to make them happen.

You may have time for only one goal, or you may have time for eighteen. It doesn’t matter. There have been many quarters where I’ve only been able to focus on one simple outcome and, despite clinging on to my determination with everything I had, didn’t reach it. But I’ve finally stopped beating myself up over it because I know I made my plan and followed my plan to the best of my abilities instead of giving up or chasing after the next shiny thing that popped up. 

This sounds a little sales pitchy or too good to be true. That’s not my intention. What I do want to do is share the satisfaction I feel when I actually get to cross something off my dreams list and how I learned the steps that got me there.

Here’s a video of Sarra which highlights her 90-day planning. But the HB90 Method is more than pretty sticky notes all in a row. I’ve always been a visual learner and sure, that’s one of the reasons I love the method so much. But, as many of you know, I’m now more blind than not. It’s my ability to visualize Sarra’s method and translate the process to a system that works for me that makes it so valuable. I hope you find it the same.

Pushing through and finding the right incentive.

 Goals. Goals. Goals. January used to be all about resolutions, but the last several years the buzzword seemed to have shifted over to goals. Big goals. Small goals. Stretch goals. Maintenance goals. Outcome goals. What habits do we need to support our goals. Surprisingly, I'm not yet goaled out. How about you?

I've shared a couple of my own goals for this upcoming year and my hopes for the perseverance it's going to take to see them through. Whenever I wonder if I have what it takes, I'm reminded of one of my more memorable characters, Matthew Morrison from the short story, Butterscotch Kisses.

Matthew feels he has a lot to overcome. He successfully manages his dyslexia and a more outgoing identical twin, but when his fear of heights becomes a relationship deal-breaker he's determined to take action.  He's sure if he could only overcome his phobia the resulting boost of self-confidence will power him through the rest of his life. Or, that's what the self-help audio book tells him.

If only things were so easy. Reading through my list of all I need to do to feel confident I can climb the Crazy Horse Memorial there's a teeny part of me that raises a hand for attention and tells me I'm not going to succeed. But, like Matthew, I'm determined to keep trying. Stay tuned and I'll share my progress along the way.

How about Matthew? Does he ever conquer the three-story toboggan run tower? Does Adam, the Cut-Ticket-Guy offer him the right incentive? Find out for yourself with a copy of Winter Warmers, including  Butterscotch Kisses, Matthew's story.

Matthew Morrison is determined to conquer his fear of heights and achieve a winning outcome. At least, that’s what the best-selling, self-help book he’s listening to promises. Being stuck on a three-story tower in the middle of a snowstorm wasn’t part of the plan. With no St. Bernard in sight, it’s Cute Ticket Guy Adam to the rescue, and an outcome Matthew never anticipated.

Winter warmers come in many shapes and sizes, from the tongue-in-cheek to the hot-as-hell. Enjoy a quintet of heart-warming tales of men loving men from Clare London, Chrissy Munder, JL Merrow, Josephine Myles, and Lou Harper that are guaranteed to leave you with a smile on your face.

eBook available from Amazon

Bucket List Goals - Love 'em? Hate 'em? Sharing one of my own.

 Bucket list goals. Have you ever made one? I used to chuckle when I reached *that* part of goal setting. The "dream big", and "if nothing stood in your way" part of the process. But, I'd close my eyes and write a few things down, usually with a snort of derision.

Imagine my surprise  a few years ago, when  I was neck deep in my declutter process (Brief aside: seriously, neck deep! Why does a blind gal have so much damn paper clutter sitting around? Why? I'll let the hoarder gods mull over that question.) I came across some 10 year and 5 year goals I had written down at one point, never actually expecting to reach them. I read through my list and wow! I had actually accomplished some of these.

No, not my desire to be able to complete 5 one-armed pull-ups inspired by Linda Hamilton's arousing physicality in Terminator 2: Judgment Day. But a few smaller, and less out-of-this-world bucket list goals had actually come to fruition. Go me!

Ever since then, I've made a point of including one of my bucket list goals in my 3 year plan. What am I working on this year? Well, with COVID and the chances of my getting a vaccine stretching out to August, and my desire not to have my choices impact my friends, family, and extended community this is actually my 2022 "Big Goal." 

In September of 2022, I'm going to join in the Crazy Horse Memorial Volksmarch. If you are unfamiliar with the Crazy Horse Memorial, I strongly suggest you head out to their website and learn about their commitment and mission. Consider making a ongoing donation.

My first visit to the memorial was all the way back in 1972, and I've been able to make it back eleven more times, including a notable visit to experience a  night blast. But, as much as the memorial means to me personally, I've never made a visit at the right time of year to join in one of the walks up the mountain. It's always been on my bucket list.

You might think, pfffft. A 6.2 mile walk up a mountain? No biggie. I might have thought that way, too. But, not to harp on it, things have changed for me. I don't want to merely have someone take my arm and drag me around (the sighted world's main and totally incorrect idea of what to do with a blind person). Plane tickets and a place to stay are the least of my planning. I'm going to have to train for this. 

I need to work on my balance. I need to discover what kind of cane and tip will give me the best feedback over rougher terrain. I need to build my forearm strength, improve my ambidextrousness with my cane use, and practice walking longer distances and times because the arms get tired, folks! I also want to play around with some talking GPS software and work on my situational awareness. 

When I write it all out like that, there's a lot to work on. Perhaps 2022 isn't too far away, after all. How about you? Have you made bucket list goals? Have you ever accomplished one of your "no way" goals?

Here's a quick look at what I'm working toward: