Follow the Quest - Wherever it Leads You - T.A.Barron

[NightWolf714]

Today's Log (1/23/25)
It's a bit warmer today. I'm so thankful for that. Though somehow my hometown much further south got snow! To put it into perspective, growing up (18 years worth), it had snowed only twice. So it was weird seeing photos of it on facebook. O.o

Not as much done for exercising. Mentally I felt a bit drained. And was on Facebook much more than I should have been to be honest. I think, if it was a normal couple of weeks, doing 3 nights in a row would have been manageable. But this was a bit harder of a few weeks. But at least I'm off until next Friday and I've got vacation in a couple of days so that'll be nice. I ... will need the break.

Spoiler: Cat sad news

Talking with the mate, Marooney is still not doing well. And this is after a shit ton of fluids and meds. So we talked about his quality of life. How he's still not really eating. And we decided that we'll be making the call.

So .... yeah, I'll need a break. -_-

• Daily Hug Challenge - Day 10 completed. Still struggling to remember it first thing, but still getting it relatively early in the day so not too bad.
• Meditation Challenge - Took my official lunch break to make sure I got this in. Figured it would be helpful. And with that, Day 30 completed! Thinking I may do the other meditation challenge but instead of 1 minute, just have it as a 10 minute. I've been doing well with that time frame without looking at my watch. Make see about increasing it to twice a day.
  
  
• Universal Warmup - Held off
• Abs Standing - Held off. Gonna see if I can play catch up tomorrow but I'll be playing it by ear for the tail end of this journey.
• Better Sleep - Held off
• Balance Workout - Held off
• Daily Gratitude Challenge - Day 10 completed
  • I'm grateful that the weather is a bit warmer when I left to go home. Not warm, but warmer. And I'll take it. Along those lines ...
  • I'm grateful that one of the nurses apparently brought a small heater into the nursing station. Whomever that is, this is them ---->
    
    
  • I'm grateful that my work week is over and I get a bit of a break now. <3
  • Bonus entry. I'm grateful that work has great food. And that I'm encouraged to take leftovers home. It makes me happy to come home and be able to let the mate know that he won't have to worry about lunch plans.
• Counting Victories Challenge - Day 10 completed
  • Meditation challenge completed!
  • Got started on a rough sketch for a project. I have a minor deadline so I need to get started on it if I'm gonna do it.

 

[JCU]

Congratulations on the challenge.

I sympathize greatly with you. Remember all the good times you had and the life you gave Marooney. Take all the time you need

 

[Fremen]

Congrats

 

[Anek]

Congrats and hugs

 

[MadamMeow]

Congrats for the meditation challenge!

Big hugs for Marooney.

 

[NightWolf714]

Today's Log (1/23/25)
Today was better than expected. We made a vet appointment for tomorrow (technically today) in the afternoon. Lots of crying had. But also some good moments. The mate shared a movie he had seen recently called Happy Dead Day. It was a lot of fun! (Think Groundhog's day but with murder.) I was also able to take home a bunch of herb roasted pork from work which made a great dinner. I might have to ask our chef for a recipe on that. Oh, really, just ask him for all his recipes, haha.

That said, this was one of those days where doing anything productive was a victory. And probably overate a bit. But I was able to catch up on the standing abs challenge so that has me happy.

• Daily Hug Challenge - Day 11 completed
• 1-Minute Meditation Challenge - Did not start on. Mostly because I forgot. ^_^;;
• Universal Warmup - Completed
• Abs Standing - Day 22 and Day 23 completed. All caught up! I also realized I was in poor form for the side twists (meaning they weren't as effective of an exercise) so I made adjustments. Gonna have to keep that in mind. (For the curious, adjusting where the actual twisting motion was at.)
• Balance Workout - Held off
• Better Sleep - Held off
• Daily Gratitude Challenge - Day 11 completed
  • I'm grateful that I was off work so I could spend this night with my kitty, even if it's a bittersweet kinda grateful
  • I'm grateful I was able to play on Infinity Nikki some. New content dropped. Actually, new content dropped on Twisted Wonderland too. I might be gaming more than I want to admit on my vacation, haha.
  • I'm grateful that the mate can be a cuddle bug at times. Because today was definitely a cuddle bug kinda day while he was awake.
• Counting Victories Challenge - Day 11 completed
  • Caught back up on the January challenge!
  • Made sure to take time for myself to just be. Not perfect with the balancing of needs and desires (good and bad), but getting there.

 

[Mamatigerj]

Cheers for completing the Meditation Challenge!
Love and prayers for your kitty.

 

[PetiteSheWolf]

Hugs for you and Marooney. I'll tell Good Doggo Scherlock and Good Cavies Grizabelle and Bespin to help him through the rainbow bridge.

 

[NightWolf714]

Today's Log (1/24/25)
Today was a long day. Or, rather, it started out as a long day and then the evening just sorta disappeared. I woke up a bit earlier than expected. Not a bad thing since I needed to semi-adjust my sleep schedule. But the wait for the vet appointment was agonizing. Afterwards we drove by the nearby reservoir to hang out for a bit before getting dinner. Then it was a struggle with loosing track of time. Part of that was because I took a long nap. And part of it was packing and getting ready for a trip. The mountains are calling! Only did a partial workout and that's quite okay since I plan to go to bed early and still have things I want to do first.

• Daily Hug Challenge - Day 12 completed
• 1-Minute Meditation Challenge - Meant to start up. Didn't. We'll see how it goes tomorrow.
• Universal Warmup - Completed
• Abs Standing - Day 24 done. A bit nervous about my ability to keep this up on vacation but I should have some downtime for it.
• Balance Workout - Held off
• Better Sleep - Held off
• Daily Gratitude Challenge - Day 12 completed
  • I'm grateful that it's vacation time tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it!
  • I'm grateful that for dinner, the mate and I happened to think the same thing. Especially since it wasn't a normal pick. (We went to a chicken salad place.)
  • I'm grateful that an online friend is sharing a gift he's drawing for a friend. He's so excited about it, I can't help but be happy about it.
• Counting Victories Challenge - Day 12 completed
  • I made it through today. That's a victory
  • Managed to get most of the packing done so far!

 

[Anek]

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[Mamatigerj]

I hope your vacation will bring you peace and restoration; mountains are usually good for that.

 

[FlowersandPetals]

So sorry about your loss

 

[NightWolf714]

Thank you @Anek , @Mamatigerj and @FlowersandPetals .

I think this trip is just what I'll need. Especially since I've already had a dip in the hot tub and it's hard not to feel relaxed after that. <3

Today's Log (1/25/25)
Honestly? Didn't do shit today, haha. Crew was understanding of me being so we left out a little later than normal, but still early enough for me. About a 4 hour drive, I think it was? Settled into the cabin and we just all kinda vegged and enjoy our company for the evening. It's a cozy lil' chosen family vacation. <3 I'll make up the standing abs tomorrow, at least partially (though we have some big dinner plans so we'll see).

The hard part is that I'm such a kid at heart, when I get excited about something I can hardly sleep, LOL! So thinking of going to bed a bit early tonight.

• Daily Hug Challenge - Day 13 completed - Got it before we hit the road
• 1-Minute Meditation Challenge - Will start up eventually. ^_^;;;
• Universal Warmup - Skipped
• Abs Standing - Skipped
• Balance Workout - Held off
• Better Sleep - Held off
• Daily Gratitude Challenge - Day 13 completed
  • I'm grateful that even though we left late, we were able to get to the cabin before dark. No one wanted to drive up the mountain in the dark.
  • I'm grateful for the plush leopard my bestie got me during the ride when we stopped for groceries. She knew I had a rough week so when I told her I was struggling with the temptation to get him, she did as a gift. <3
  • I'm grateful vacation mode has started. We love the lil' chosen family trip to the mountains.
  • Bonus! I'm grateful that this is the view I'll be able to enjoy for the next few days.
    
    
• Counting Victories Challenge - Day 13 completed
  • At one point, got into a bit of a mood. But directly afterwards, I was able to explain that the situation spiked a bit of adrenaline and anxiety, so it was gonna take a moment for that to stop. That is a new thing for being able to so quickly explain how I'm reacting. So this is a big victory.

 

[Maegaranthelas]

Big hugs for you

 

[PetiteSheWolf]

Hugs, and that's a lovely view!

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Dear @NightWolf714 I am so sorry for the loss of Marooney. I hope you will find comfort now in memories of the good times you shared together, and knowing you did the best for him you could.



I hope you will have a wonderful and restorative vacation!

Congratulations on completing the Meditation Challenge!

 

[NightWolf714]

Today's Log (1/26/25)
I feel like I must be trying to recover spoons and energy. It's only 10:40 my time (though 11:40 local time in the mountains) and already ready to get to bed. Though this isn't a bad time to do so. The main negative about the cabin is that there's no sound insulation. Everyone is respectful of my sleep schedule, but I still hear them walking and such. ^_^;;; Plus it's nice to sleep when I want and wake up when I want. One day, I'll be able to do this on the regular and that will be wonderful~

Got to meet some of the metamour's family. That was super exciting! I don't know why they were in the area, but we met up for dinner at the crew's favorite restaurant here. Ate waaaaay too much, haha. I'm allowing myself flexibility with that since it's vacation mode. Even got some Dr. Pepper cream sodas to have on hand, and it's been ages since we've bought sodas other than sprites for mixing drinks with. I did get my exercises in! I thought about the meditation, but never got around to it. I'm gonna have to consider prioritizing that. But can't blame me for prioritizing reading my new books based off Twisted Wonderland (my phone game obsession) instead since I just picked up the newest releases. XD

• Daily Hug Challenge - Day 14 completed
• 1-Minute Meditation Challenge - Skipped again
• Universal Warmup - Got it!
• Abs Standing - Day 25 and Day 26 completed. Caught up again, yay~
• Balance Workout - Got it! And got the bestie to try it too, haha.
• Better Sleep - Completed with the bestie
• Daily Gratitude Challenge - Day 14 completed
  • I'm grateful that the cabin has a hot tub. It's so relaxing, even if it makes me sleepy, haha.
  • I'm grateful that we got to meet the metamour's family. That was really nice. And everyone got along well too.
  • I'm grateful we got lots of good food. I'll be happily munching on leftovers tomorrow
  • Bonus: Grateful that since I don't have to go back into work on Friday, at least for a couple of days I can sleep as much as I'd like. Even got a nap in. ^_^
• Counting Victories Challenge - Day 14 completed
  • Been doing well expressing with the group what's going on mentally and physically with me as needed. There were a few times I previously would have been snippy, but I handled them well. ^_^
  • Wanted to be lazy, but got the exercises in anyways.

 

[Aldethar]

Really well done @NightWolf714. I think I might need to steal.. I meant burrow, definitely burrow, the idea for daily gratitude challenge. And maybe writing just a tad more

 

[NightWolf714]

Really well done @NightWolf714. I think I might need to steal.. I meant burrow, definitely burrow, the idea for daily gratitude challenge. And maybe writing just a tad more

Do it! I think it's really been helping. And I feel ya. I want to draw more, but I never seem to prioritize it the way I feel I should.

 

[NightWolf714]

Today's Log (1/27/25)
Fun day today! Mostly chilling and relaxing. We did leave the cabin for a little bit to hit Kroger and visit a couple of gaming stores. At the first one, I got this cooperative mystery solving game. I wasn't going to get anything at the end one, but the mate surprised me with a super cute dice set that was totally my aesthetic. <3 I'll have to get a picture of them sometime! Evening was mostly chill, though we did get to play some pathfinder (and I got to break out my new dice set for it). It was a lot of fun! We all seemed more present for the game than we had in a while and we think it was the chairs and table set up. So we're gonna try it at home, too. I can't believe we've only got one more full day at the cabin though. Big sad!

• Daily Hug Challenge - Though I'm still gonna keep it on the rotation for a bit to see what I think of it.
• 1-Minute Meditation Challenge - Eventually I'll start, but it may be once I get home at this rate, haha. ^_^;;
• Universal Warmup - Completed
• Abs Standing - Day 27 completed
• Balance Workout - Kept it a short exercise day, so skipped
• Better Sleep - Skipped this one too.
• Daily Gratitude Challenge - Day 15 completed
  • I'm grateful that I seriously have the best polycule ever. One thing happened that bugged me a bit, so I ended up expressing that and everyone was super understanding. We talked for a little, all okay, and I was able to enjoy the rest of the evening. I'm proud of myself but also happy that they are the kinds of folk that I can trust coming to them about. <3 (Previously, this is the sort thing that would simmer and then I erupt about, but I'm finding just how much I can trust my crew. And I'm incredibly thankful I have them in my life.)
  • I'm grateful that we all shared our food. All the snacks to be had, haha. (I'm on vacation mode, after all. Though trying not to over do it too much and eat some healthy stuff, lol.)
  • I'm grateful for the hot tub here. So relaxing. Even when all 5 of us cram into it, lol.
• Counting Victories Challenge - Day 15 completed
  • We managed to get crafty with the main boss of this section of the pathfinder game and not have to deal with a bunch of annoying minions. And we all got to shine for the battle! So fun! ^_^

 

[JCU]

Congrats!

 

[Maegaranthelas]

you won at hugs!

 

[Aldethar]

Do it! I think it's really been helping. And I feel ya. I want to draw more, but I never seem to prioritize it the way I feel I should.

After I am done with the costume I want to still keep at least 1 hour as a "learning" hour.

So if there is anything that tickles my fancy I can do it at that point... and yes. Drawing is also up there

 

[Fremen]

Congrats

 

[Mamatigerj]

Happy Hug Badge! (i can highly recommend continuing)

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Congratulations on completing the Daily Hug Challenge!

 

[Anek]

Congrats!

 

[FlowersandPetals]

Congrats on the hug challenge!

 

[NightWolf714]

Thank you @JCU @Maegaranthelas @Fremen @Mamatigerj @Laura Rainbow Dragon @Anek and @FlowersandPetals !

After I am done with the costume I want to still keep at least 1 hour as a "learning" hour.

So if there is anything that tickles my fancy I can do it at that point... and yes. Drawing is also up there

That's a really good idea to have an hour dedicated like that!

Today's Log (1/28/25)
So against my better judgement, I did not end up exercising today. And now I'm thinking it's a little too late to do them. Which, I'm not sure how successful I'd be doing them tomorrow since we'll be traveling back home eventually. So I may need to do 2-days worth twice to finish on time. We'll have to see though!

It was a fun day. We managed to make it to the Alcatraz East Crime Museum. The metamour K (I realized, I might need to specify since there's two, haha) wanted to go last time we were in the area, but we weren't able to. So we made it a priority this time. Even managed to get a discount through my workplace. Had a TON of fun there! Then once back at the cabin I had a dip in the hot tub. Took a nice lil' nap and then we played HeroQuest through the evening. Sad it's the last day, but it's been a really good time. We also got to see two of the raccons who live in the area! <3

• Daily Hug - Completed
• 1-Minute Meditation Challenge - Obviously held off, lol
• Universal Warmup - Held off
• Abs Standing - Held off, meep!
  
• Balance Workout - Held off
• Better Sleep - Held off
• Daily Gratitude Challenge - Day 16 completed
  • I'm grateful for midday naps and that I am able to get them sometimes. I always forget how nice they are, even if I don't fully fall asleep
  • I'm grateful for HeroQuest. It's really fun. And it's let me try out being a Storyteller/DM/whatever you wanna call it even if it's not fully a TTRPG.
  • I'm grateful that it's just kinda understood that we're all gonna get distracted by cute animals. Even if it's a bit hard to reign us in afterwards, haha.
• Counting Victories Challenge - Day 16 completed
  • We made it to Alcatraz East! Maybe not a huge victory, but we; remembered that was a thing, planned it, got tickets ahead of time to save money, and had a blast!
  • The party didn't wripe, haha. Not that it would have been easy for them to have, they are slightly over powered. But I still kept it fun for them (I'm running the current campaign for them). Which, honestly, me running is a victory for each quest honestly. XD

I now leave y'all with the raccoon friends. Since I might do a little bit of straightening up before bed to make tomorrow easier. And read through alerts. ^_^;;;

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

I now leave y'all with the raccoon friends.

A long time ago I lived in an attic apartment with a fire escape outside the kitchen window. I had raccoons come to visit me there when I was cooking. They'd sit right outside my window, grooming one another, and watching me like they fully thought I was preparing the food for them! Cheeky little critters! And bold when they live in urban environments.

 

[NightWolf714]

A long time ago I lived in an attic apartment with a fire escape outside the kitchen window. I had raccoons come to visit me there when I was cooking. They'd sit right outside my window, grooming one another, and watching me like they fully thought I was preparing the food for them! Cheeky little critters! And bold when they live in urban environments.

That's exactly what they were hoping for, I'm sure!

 

[NightWolf714]

Today's Log (1/29/25)
Today was a long day. I stayed up late because the original plan was to take our time packing and leaving the cabin. I didn't expect to wake up and find out that the others had gotten into "end of vacation, time to pack up to leave" mode. It was already hard enough that I woke up earlier than intended (the only real negative about the cabin is that it has zero noise insulation to it). I tried to help pack as well but it was a bit overwhelming at times.

And to be honest, it was nice to be back home. Well, mostly. Arriving was hard on me. I was already tired and a bit irritable, so when a driver in the neighborhood acting like they were pulling out in front of us, everyone in the car got freaked out. And then I forgot that we got flowers from the vet's office for condolences about Marooney. So lots of crying happened.

But then I took a long nap while the mate offered to unpack most things. Got up, got some dinner and we watched a movie. A bit rough at one point (main character's mom had died and her relationship with her is a major part of the film. The anniversary of my mom is next month, so ouch), but was a really good movie. Better than I thought considering it was a sequel. Happy Death Day. I hope they are able to make that 3 movie they hinted at!

After that was just relaxing for the most part, trying to fix my sleep schedule back to a night shifter's one in preparations for Friday's shift. I still wonder about picking that one up, lol. We'll see how it goes. I also sent out an email to a counselor to see if she's taking appointments. Thought that might be a good idea with everything going on.

• Daily Hug - Completed
• 1-Minute Meditation Challenge - Gonna try to start it tomorrow to help adjust into back home routine.
• Universal Warmup - Held off
• Abs Standing - Got day 28 done. Gonna see about catching up tomorrow!
• Balance Workout - Held off
• Better Sleep - Held off
• Daily Gratitude Challenge - Day 17 completed
  • I'm grateful I get to sleep in my own bed again. <3 (Even though I brought my memory foam pillow and weighted blanket, lol.)
  • I'm grateful that the situation with the bad driver wasn't as bad as it could have been
  • I'm grateful for the flowers that the vet's clinic gave the mate and I. It's nice to see that he was thought of. Also, they arrived there on Monday so I'm glad they were safe until we got home. ^_^;;;
• Counting Victories Challenge - Day 17 completed
  • I managed to do a workout today, even if I wasn't really feeling up to it. I figured it would make me feel productive, which would improve my mood since it usually does. And it did.

 

[NightWolf714]

Today's Log (1/30/25)
Today was a mostly good day with rough patches. I allowed myself to sleep in an extra hour and I'm glad for it. It was a bit rough because we had agreed to remove the cat related items. That made it really sink in that not only do we not have a cat currently, but we won't long term. I agreed on this and think it's for the best, but it felt more real. The mate did offer to take care of it all while I was sleeping, but I thought that would be upsetting. That said, we had fun with rearranging parts of the house. The office space we're mostly in feels so incredibly open now. I've still got one box of stuff from rearranging that needs a new home, but there's no rush on that project. I keep wanting to do an in-depth clean and organizing so I felt very productive. Just when it got less clinical and more emotional, I had to be honest with myself and take rests.

I ended up making dinner for us. I'm proud because I made a small mistake while cooking (making burgers and I put his cheese on his patty too early so it was all over the frying pan), I didn't beat myself up about it. I just laughed, realized that was a learning moment, and then called the mate over to look at it so he could help me save it. Turned out not to be too bad anyways (he just folded the cheese until it fit on the patty, lol). Didn't get all I wanted to do tonight, but I did better with the time management than I had been the last bit. I feel like I'm making progress.

Just hoping work isn't too crazy tonight. I tried to catch up on emails briefly and I'm not 100% sure what I'll be walking into once I wake up.

• Daily Hug - Completed
• 1-Minute Meditation Challenge - Finally started, lol! Got a 10 minute session in. Meant to get a second, but I'm happy I started
• Universal Warmup - Completed
• Abs Standing - Got Day 29 and 30 done!I finished on day 30, so that's what counts, haha.
• Balance Workout - Completed
• Better Sleep - Completed
• Daily Gratitude Challenge - Day 18 completed
  • I'm grateful for that extra hour of sleep I got
  • I'm grateful I didn't have too much in the way of plans or things I needed to do. That's nice once in a while to have a relaxing day like that.
  • I'm grateful that the cheese on the mate's burger was okay, haha.
• Counting Victories Challenge - Day 18 completed
  • Got a full workout done today. It's been a minute since I've done that.
  • I treated my cooking mistake with compassion, humor, and saw the positive of it being a matter of learning experience. This is so out of character to how I've previously been! I'm proud of myself for handling the situation well.

 

[JCU]

Cleaning up after an animal is the worst.

Congrats on pulling through with supper!

Congratulations on the challenge!

 

[Fremen]

Congrats

 

[Obsinosterous]

Congrats for finishing Standing Abs Challenge.

 

[Anek]

Congrats!!

 

[Mamatigerj]

Happy Badge Day!

 

[FlowersandPetals]

Congratulations on finishing the Standing Abs Challenge!

Big for you! I know too well how it feels when a pet passes away. We went a year and a half without any cats after our Sweetpea died My husband and I always had pets in our 30+ year marriage, especially cats. Take your time with yourself in this. Grief is a process. You will get through it!

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Congratulations on completing the Standing Abs Challenge!

for saying goodbye to Marooney's things.

 

[NightWolf714]

Thank you so much @JCU @Fremen @Obsinosterous @Anek @Mamatigerj @FlowersandPetals and @Laura Rainbow Dragon

 

[NightWolf714]

Today's Log (1-31-25)
Last night ended up better than I thought it would be! Apparently a lot of the craziness over the past week has mostly calmed down by the time I got there. Yay~ Still relatively busy, though, as I had a few extra things to work on. But still managed to get a bit of a workout in. Decided to start up the Foundations program. We'll see how it goes! I'm hoping it's not too easy, but going easier is probably a bit smarter at the moment with the emotional stressors.

• Daily Hug Challenge - Completed
• 1-Minute Meditation Challenge - Day 2 completed with one session of 10 minutes
• Universal Warmup - Completed
• Foundation Program - Started! Did level 2. I was debating about level 3, but I didn't want to push myself too hard since I have to get up early this afternoon.
• Balance Workout - Skipped
• Better Sleep - Skipped
• Daily Gratitude Challenge - Day 19 completed
  • I'm grateful that it's a bit warmer outside. And the earlier rain stopped by the time I had to head into work
  • I'm grateful for the yummy breakfast the mate made up for me! Usually it's just a quick thing I can warm up, but he made me some french toast. NOM!
  • I'm grateful that work wasn't too rough like I was worried about. I think it was a good move to go in and get back to normal a bit.
• Counting Victories Challenge - Day 19 completed
  • I did some sketches for an art project I've been meaning to do for ages now. Isn't that the eternal struggle, lol.

 

[NightWolf714]

Today's Log (2/1/25)
Yay, we survived the first month of the year! XD

But honestly, it's been one heck of a month so far. Yet somehow I'm in a really good place. I think maybe the daily hugs, the victory counting, the thankfulness reflections ... maybe they're helping? Along with the other stuff I'm doing. I also read a section from my Radical Acceptance book about trying to do more smiling, even just little half smiles. I think that might be helping too.

I dunno. I just feel like I'm in a good place. Despite the anniversary of my mom coming up soon. Despite Marooney. Despite everything feeling difficult. I'm feeling creative. I'm feeling productive. I'm feeling loved. I just hope this feeling sticks around for a bit, you know?

OH! One thing that's really cool! I saw myself in the mirror yesterday. And I was amazed at how I looked! See, about 2 decades ago I had a gastric bypass. (If you are looking at my birth date, yes, that math is correct.) Lost 100 pounds from it (which is a lot when you're not even 5 foot tall). Kept the weight off though I spent years being paranoid about that. But I always had loose skin/loose subcutaneous fat. I just kinda resigned myself to thinking that that's just how it'll be unless I'm willing to do cosmetic surgery.

But I've been working out. I finished the standing abs challenge. I started some collagen. And y'all, I could fully see my belly button. My stomach fold lined up with the top of it. I haven't been able to do that since I can't remember when. I was absolutely giddy! It makes me feel hopeful that I can make some of the changes to my body that I want to. And while I'm struggling with a level 2 program, that's the encouragement I need to show "naw, it's working. You got this. You're making changes and it's gonna be awesome."

I'm still a work in progress. But I saw a quote once relatively recently about how you can be a masterpiece and a work in progress at the same time.

• Daily Hug Challenge - Completed
• 1-Minute Meditation Challenge - Day 3 completed with one session of 10 minutes. Though I should have closed the door to the room since I could hear the mate doing VR chat. Whoops~ I still got it in though! Just not sure how ... what's the right words for it ... deep of a meditation I got? Still, I completed it. ^_^
• Universal Warmup - Completed
• Foundation Program - Day 2 completed at level 2. I did do full squats instead of just half squats, though, because that's easier for me. Whew, that was a workout!
• Balance Workout - Skipped
• Better Sleep - Skipped
• Daily Gratitude Challenge - Day 20 completed
  • I'm grateful that I didn't have to get up as early as I thought it would. I was going to visit the momma-in-law and the brother-in-law. The mate had already headed out earlier to help with stuff. Apparently he let them know I worked the night before so they let me rest a bit more and came to our place afterwards. I didn't fully go back to sleep, but just resting was so nice~
  • I'm grateful that, once again, I'm shown that the people I love are understanding of my weird ass sleep schedule. Again and again, people are being flexible for me and it makes me feel so loved and valued. I was a bit worried going back to night shift, even though I love it.
  • I'm grateful that youtube understands my errantic musical tastes. Like, yes, I do want to hear The Weeknd, Mika, Studio Killers, then Malhari from Bajirao Mastani along with Creepy Nuts. XD Seriously, my youtube "My Mix" is such a weird mix, haha.
• Counting Victories Challenge - Day 20 completed
  • Today was a kinda chill day so it's hard to think of what I even did today, haha. Today was a good day. Does that count as a victory? ^_^;;; I kept up my workout even though I wanted to be lazy. So we can go with that, sure.

Now to listen to a couple more songs (I got recommended one called Swords by Unicorn Domination and I just have to see if it's as queer as it sounds like it should be, lol), quickly do dailies on Infinity Nikki, maybe dailies for Twisted Wonderland as well, then off to bed.

 

[NightWolf714]

Bonus grateful because I just realized it. The mate was gift a SAD light that wasn't needed. It looks a bit old (the website on it doesn't work, lol), but it still works! It's a basic model, but you can't complain about free. XD My old one finally broke on my and it helps a lot with the night shifter life. <3

Gonna try to remember to start that up tomorrow!

 

[MadamMeow]

Congrats for Standing Abs!

 

[NightWolf714]

Congrats for Standing Abs!

Thank you! ^_^

 

[NightWolf714]

Today's Log (2/2/25)
Blessed Imbolc, the welcoming of the first signs of spring. This holiday is usually pretty important to me because I specifically follow Brigid. But Imbolc kinda ... sneaked up on me somehow? And the BF even gifted me an Imbolc workbook for Christmas/Yule. Lol, there's always flexibility with the holidays so I'll probably celebrate tomorrow evening. And that'll mostly be going through the workbook I got or something. I don't honestly do a lot for the holidays, if I'm being honest. I might change that at some point though.

But anyways, onto today's log! It was a fairly good day. A bit tired, but was able to get a bit more sleep than I thought I would be able to since we hosted family day. Though we forgot bestie was coming over early since she had an early half-shift of work beforehand. Whoops~ Luckily she came in quietly and went straight to sleep on the futon, so I wasn't woken up at all by it, haha. Good session of Pathfinder and a bit of show watching afterwards. I didn't think I'd get to spend much time with the mate afterwards but we managed to sneak in some time for the two of us before he had to get to bed. One bit of a rough point. And I've been a bit moody (mostly good, a few lower points though). But over all, it was a really good day I think. I think the mental health measures are working pretty well.

Now if only I could get my time management back on track!

• Daily Hug Challenge - Completed
• 1-Minute Meditation Challenge - Day 4 completed with one session of 10 minutes. Done just before bed. Usually I do it much earlier in the day, so that was an interesting experience to compare with. My brain was like a New York train station of thoughts, though, so the meditation at that point was probably a good idea. Haven't made the jump to two sessions a day yet, but this is showing that it's a good thought.
• Universal Warmup - Completed
• Foundation Program - Day 3 completed at level 2. Well, I think it was level 2. I got mixed up with my counting so it was either 5 or 6 sets, lol. Kind of a fun one, though.
• Balance Workout - Skipped
• Better Sleep - Skipped
• Daily Gratitude Challenge - Day 21 completed
  • I'm grateful for chances to cuddle with both the BF and the mate. And even with my bestie a bit! <3
  • I'm grateful for TTRPGs. They are a blast! I ended up scheming using a random item in my inventory I never got rid of and it was great~ Plus, I love the RP aspect of it. My character is such a jackass at times, haha.
  • I'm grateful the progress I've been making with my health. It's only February, but I'm seeing the progress in my emotional, physical, and mental health. I'm also doing well enough to see my limitations. But in this case, that's a good thing. I know where I am (sorta) and so I can plan where to go next. And I've seen how far I've gone, so that motivates me to keep going.
• Counting Victories Challenge - Day 21 completed
  • There was a bit of a rough point this evening before the mate went to bed. We were talking and I got mixed up by something he said. (Not surprising, we're two flavors of neuro-spicy, haha.) Normally I get overwhelmed, defensive, and aggression due to the defensiveness. Then we talk about it, and get into another spat about the analysis. It's ... a difficult pattern I'm trying to work on.
    
    BUT! I'm so proud of myself you all. This time I noticed I was getting snippy because what he said didn't make sense and sounded like it was conflicting something. I quickly shot out a question. And as soon as he tried to answer, I felt myself getting hot in the face and my body ready to spring. BUT I RECOGNIZED IT! More than that, I was able to ACT on it. I signaled that I needed a moment since I didn't trust talking. He didn't catch on at first (he thought I had a question cued up, which, fair enough). Soon as he finished, I was quite and introspective enough to ask for a moment. Stood there for a bit, breathing, and sitting with the emotions. I then tried to explain that I wasn't understanding, and if he could explain it because I knew I was missing something. I managed to say this more gently, though a bit rough. And we were able to get on the same page a lot smoother than normal. I did cry, because I still built up some emotions that needed to be released. But it was way healthier and he was able to go to bed with both of us doing better.
    
    THIS IS HUGE FOR ME! So there's my victory of the day, if not month, haha.

 

[PetiteSheWolf]

Well worked with this victory, and happy Imbolc Wait ... Were you BrigitForged (or some name close) ?!

 

[JCU]

Happy Imbolc!

 

[NightWolf714]

Well worked with this victory, and happy Imbolc Wait ... Were you BrigitForged (or some name close) ?!

Nope, never gone by that name before. Though I love it, haha.

And thank you and @JCU ! ^_^