{"id":1828,"date":"2019-09-02T08:34:28","date_gmt":"2019-09-02T13:34:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ellismorning.com\/blog\/?p=1828"},"modified":"2019-09-02T08:34:28","modified_gmt":"2019-09-02T13:34:28","slug":"september-2019-updates-goals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ellismorning.com\/blog\/2019\/09\/september-2019-updates-goals\/","title":{"rendered":"September 2019 Updates, Goals"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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I\u2019m sure I\u2019m not the only one who feels like this summer was a blur. How have we reached September already? In a bid to slow things down, I\u2019ve begun engaging in some routine-breaking.<\/a> This time of year, I try to savor the outdoors in particular, before it gets too cold again. Sitting or walking under some trees for a while really seems to clear the junk out of my brain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Writing Updates<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

With 80,000 words in 15 chapters, my Book 3 draft has officially cracked into \u201cnovel-length\u201d territory! I\u2019m not sure exactly how much longer I\u2019ll need, but I\u2019m hoping around 1-2 more chapters and 15K words will do it. At that point, I\u2019ll have a complete first draft. It\u2019ll be a mess, but a complete<\/em> mess! LOL. Once that happens, I\u2019m gonna give it another pass, starting from Chapter One, to smooth things out as much as I can. I\u2019ll also officially document the outline, character arcs, and other pertinent info that will aid my editor in her unenviable task of trying to make this thing as interesting and coherent as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Current Goals<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well-rounded Latin practice. <\/strong>Still reading and practicing flashcards daily or nearly so. I recently stumbled across the work of Phaedrus, who translated Aesop\u2019s fables into Latin poetry that I find much easier to read than, say, Horace (although I like Horace, sometimes I have to spend a whole afternoon to figure out three stanzas).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being a good Stoic.<\/strong> The Stoics cautioned against chasing after fame and wealth, and here\u2019s a good example of why.<\/a> I don\u2019t really need help there\u2014I\u2019m not much of a fame- or fortune-chaser\u2014but I do need help with my chronic worry problem. I have a strong imagination (as you might guess), and it continually invents the worst what-if scenarios to torment me with. This is called fortune-telling and catastrophizing, and they are habitual cognitive distortions<\/a> that I very much need to work on unlearning. Unexpectedly, I found some great advice about this in the last chapter of Gavin de Becker\u2019s The Gift of Fear<\/em>. The whole book is a must-read (you can find it for free here<\/a>). The last chapter especially makes interesting distinctions between a real, involuntary, useful fear response versus manufactured, voluntary, useless worry. It also provides strategies for constructively dealing with worry. For instance, if my imagination insists on springing into action, why can\u2019t I turn it around and use it for good? Why can\u2019t I imagine positive<\/em> what-if scenarios? People don\u2019t often predict that something good will come from a mishap, but it happens all the time! If the matter is out of my control, and all I can do is wait and see what happens, then I\u2019m better off assuming things will be fine, or even more than fine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s a nice bit of relevant Seneca: \u201cI may become a poor man; I shall then be one among many. I may be exiled; I shall then regard myself as born in the place to which I shall be sent. They may put me in chains. What then? Am I free from bonds now? Behold this clogging burden of a body to which Nature has fettered me! \u2018I shall die,\u2019 you say. You mean to say, \u2018I shall cease to run the risk of sickness. I shall cease to run the risk of imprisonment. I shall cease to run the risk of death.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Listening to German.<\/strong> Still haven\u2019t gotten around to Dark<\/em> yet (LOL) but I did get introduced to a show called Die Sendung mit der Maus,<\/em> which is a kids\u2019 show that has some good segments explaining how various technologies (like cell phones) work. I\u2019ll keep looking for those segments on YouTube. There\u2019s also a show called Wissen Macht Ah!<\/em> that is supposed to be similarly good. Finally, I got some inadvertent German practice when my husband started playing a video game called 11-11: Memories Retold<\/em>. You play alternately as characters on the Allied and German fronts of World War I. It\u2019s quite compelling for how simple it is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Civic Engagement. <\/strong>I\u2019m set to volunteer with registering voters in September, and possibly October depending if they need me. I\u2019ve also been sending quite a few emails and calls to my representatives regarding issues of concern, such as the shameful way asylum seekers are being treated. If you\u2019re American, you should also contact your reps about the things that matter to you. Keep in mind that a phone call or an email that you composed yourself make more of an impression than simply using an automatic form letter provided to you by a website. And signing online petitions is just a waste of time!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have a great month! I’ll check back in with you soon! :)<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019m sure I\u2019m not the only one who feels like this summer was a blur. How have we reached September already? In a bid to slow things down, I\u2019ve begun engaging in some routine-breaking. This time of year, I try to savor the outdoors in particular, before it gets too cold again. Sitting or walking under some trees for a while really seems to clear the junk out of my brain. Writing Updates With 80,000 words in 15 chapters, my…<\/p>\n

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