Happy New Year

The thirty-first of October marked the Wiccan sabbat Samhain (pronounced sowen or saw-win). The holy day observing the end of the harvest season as well as the night where the veils between the worlds of living and the dead is at its thinnest. A night to remember and honor loved ones and ancestors. It is also known as the Wiccan New Year.

As with the traditional calendar, New Years is a time for personal reflections and making changes. The personal reflections for me began before Mabon and with that, I have six things that I will be working on over the next year.

No. One :: lose the extra fifty pounds I have been carrying around.
I will be thirty-six in March and it is not going to get any easier to get back into shape the closer I get to forty. I have been getting back into the habit of walking with the hounds and this week I will be starting a daily exercise program...what that is exactly is still being worked out. (I do see Jillian Micheals 30 Day Shred in my future.)

No. Two :: read more.
I read a ton but it mostly tends to fiction. Brain candy. I have been building a feminist library for over a decade and there are so many wonderful books that I own and have not yet read. For every work of fiction I read; I will be reading two non-fiction books. You can follow my current reading list here!  The non-fiction book I will be reading first is:  Reality Bites Back:  How Guilty Pleasure TV is Making Us Sexist, Shallow, and Socially Irresponsible by Jennifer L. Pozner.  I had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Pozner years ago at Ball State University during Women's Week.  She is an awesome force and I am looking forward to reading this book.  Cowboy and I do not watch T.V..  We own a television but limit our viewing to mostly film.  There are T.V. shows that I love (ahem, Battlestar Galactica) but all of them are viewed long after they have aired via Netflix through the US Postal Service.  I have never gotten into Reality T.V. and I am sure that after reading this book I will better prepared to articulate exactly why.

No. Three :: write more.
Blog posts, knitting patterns, and letters to friends and family.  I am going to be researching grants as well and hopefully apply for one or more that will benefit our creek and/or our acres of forest.

No. Four ::  take more photos.
With a real camera.  The iPad is great but it really does not take the best pictures.  I have a point and shoot camera at the moment and in the next year I would like to invest in a real camera like this one.

This wonderful hat was knit for me by the amazing Knitsnips.  This hat has become a staple in my wardrobe.  I absolutely adore it.

Pattern:  Sockhead Hat by Kelly McClure

Yarn:  Cherry Tree Hill Fingerpaints in Sweet Pea (I think!)

No. Five :: be fearless.
Fearless in everything.  This one is a bit harder to expand upon, but my fabulous wonderfully magical friend Courtney summed it up perfectly awhile back with these words, "i just hope my girls see that spark - i want them to be fearless in every facet of their lives - even in the most domestic ones".  I have been thinking about this (and been inspired by this) so much since she posted this blog entry.  I am not fearless most days but I want to be.  Click on fearless to read her post in its entirety.  One of my sisters visited me last week and we made a pie.  From scratch.  A first for the both of us.  The kitchen is one area that I intend on conquering my fear of...more on that later!

Pumpkin Pie Recipe

No. Six ::  knit a pair of fucking socks!
Seriously, every knitter I know has knitted socks in their repertoire.  I will have a pair or pairs this time next year!

It is my hope that I will be making progress reports over the next year to keep anyone interested up to date on my progress.  This blog post was my inspiration.  A year from now I will be happy I started.

Happy New Year Friends!