Ashtree

OMG It has been a tough week and a bit here- mental health went downwards (bipolar so I have ups and downs and they stick for a bit) and the WEATHER was abominable- but today for the first time in over a week I got back in the pool- it was MUCH deeper than usual hahaha! I got in 140 metres today, not bad for first day back in pool. I WEIGHED MYSELF- and at 153 kgs I do have a few to shed, but pool swimming is the best start. I am SO glad for the new character leveling system- I can't commit wholly to a 4 week challenge because my moods shift, but with that system, I don't need to complete a whole challenge to level up- I do what I can! So, getting there Today's fact is a fish fact! Sharks are the only fish with eyelids! So we shall wink at each other My father dived on a wreck once, the HMS Bounty near Pitcairn Island- and came across a shark. People so few out there that it was a shock for the shark too, and both went scooting in the opposite direction <3

OK! Now that I'm on week 2, I'm gonna tweak my challenge just a little to more effectively work with what I am learning about myself- Rather than try fit in 1 or more hours of swimming a day, I'm trimming it down and changing my goal- before it was to simply BE in the pool for up to 10 hours a week, but since I've been doing laps every day, I've been improving (wow what science is this??) So rather than aimlessly float and splash about to fill out 1-2 hours a day, I'm going to aim to improve my best each time I go in, or at least make an attempt to, until I can't do continuous laps anymore. This is working much better for me than just being in the pool, as I'm actively exercising and improving- last week when I began the 4-week challenge, I couldn't swim more than 75 metres without stopping and that took a lot of effort. Three days ago I could do 115, yesterday 125 and today 150. If I can push myself an extra 10-25 metres a day, then thats way better than floating about for 2 hours. I'll modify my Character page to go with that. My goal is simply to improve, but as incentive, I'll award myself 5xp for every 25 metres I can best on my new best-effort of 150m. Woot! Also have to get my swims in before the cool weather hits more often than not. Hopefully by then I'll be more comfortable walking in the wetlands/nature spots right across the road- not many houses with imaginary eyes watching me XD

WEEK ONE COMPLETE!! This week, of my main goals, I achieved- 10 Hours of swimming! (ok, about 9 hours and 20 minutes, but today's 20 minutes was interuppted by a thunder storm, so safety first- and anyway, I spent the entire 20 minutes swimming breaststroke and can now get about 125m of unbroken breaststroke in, so that's great!) I DID get into the living room and work through a lot of the stuff, and managed to stay *mostly* on top of the household dishes. So I consider that win. I went to the beach and got in some epic diving practice (duck diving not platform diving hehe) and I STILL have to record some moana which I may do just before dinner, and will post links to here I need to book an appointment with a GP to get weighed, and I have to go get Passport pics taken soon too, as I'm going to the UK in June (their summer, so when I get to Cornwall, I'll spend more time at the beach!) and I need to do some measurements, but I feel that's not gonna be so bad to have missed in week one since I won't change weight/shape too much in just 4 weeks. Perhaps noticeable differences will be seen after a few more challenges. and now for today's fact! As I just mentioned, I am going to the UK in June, and in some of the boggier, wetter, northernly parts of Britain, a popular sport is- BOG SNORKELLING. For this sport, they cut a 100metre trench in the bog- which immediately fills with boggy brown muddy water- participants don wetsuits and snorkels and race to see who swims the bog the fastest! Does it count as snorkel facts or diving facts? I don't know, but they wear a snorkel right? It counts!

OK no update yesterday because I went to the beach! Thats 1/2 trips for this challenge! While there I swam in the ocean baths (it's ocean water but in a pool, with sandy bottom, nice deep parts- immense size (can fit hundreds of people) and and and!!!! fishies! While swimming in the baths I practiced duck diving and equalizing while skin diving. I collected my first dived-for-in-a-significant-depth shell- ((and then lost it while walking out of the baths)) and also found a dead fish, quite stinky- on the bottom of the deepest part of the baths. I stole him from the fish in attempt to lure them to eat from the fish held in my hands (like, just the tippymost tip of the tail, it was recently dead, but dead fish...stinky). Crabs had already eaten through his middle. Many small fish darted to and fro around me, but were like "dang, why did the buffet on the floor suddenly become attached to a hand?" so I dropped the fish and watched them eat from afar. Thats when I saw a huge fin (comparitively) flapping in the grates between baths-and-ocean and freaked out, swam about 10 metres in one stroke, and then looked back to find nothing but a little bream. eh he he he... I've completed 9 of the 10 hours of swimming I needed to get done this week, so with one hour of swimming tomorrow I'll have the first set done, woo!! Still no weighins, need to book GP appointment. Today I completed 100metres breaststroke without stopping, when this time last week I couldn't even get 50m front stroke without being puffed out! So much improvement is happening! Kitchen is a mess but it's the weekend, I'll clean more tomorrow Spent a few minutes composting and burying more potato vines- and the cherry tomatoes have sprouted! Tomorrow (or tonight, later on) I need to record a Moana song or two!!!! Going quite well Now for TWO facts (seeing as yesterday I skipped one) First- I'm going to open the "facts" corner to include sea facts in general because I'm running out of snorkel/diving facts D Fact one- an easy one- Scuba stands for Self Controlled Underwater Breathing Apparatus! Fact two:Salt water is more dense than fresh water- it is harder to breath in salt water- and thats why i got puffed out more quickly while doing laps in the baths! hahaha!

(the ocean creature fear actually started when as a small child living on a pacific island, my brother and I were out with some other youth in a boat- and a large shadow of a whale swam beneath us. I felt very dwarved and quite spooked)

Actually, it's a funny thing- I have submechanophobia (a fear of man made objects underwater) and also a fear of large ocean creatures- especially whales- it's not a "AHH I CAN'T LOOK AT THEM" fear, but a "I could not swim near them" fear- a deep uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. I deeply love all creatures, so my fear isn't a "ahhh nooo! I can't stand them" reaction, but more of a belly-chills/appreciate from further away feel. That being said, if I saw one in trouble, I think I'd do what I could to help. But looking at submerged wrecks and stuff? That makes my stomach REALLY flip out, and I have to look away. But I love reefs, they're not too deep for me, and I do love lakes and rivers, and being ON the ocean. Being IN the ocean deep is a step I may have to take another time XD Today I didn't get a swim in as we were very busy, but I did get a huge chunk of living room organised! Today's snorkelling/diving fact is- Nitrogen narcosis- nitrogen is a gas that comprises a fair portion of the atmosphere, but is rendered inert by lower pressure. The further deep you dive (with a tank, obv) the more nitrogen you inhale, as the pressure begins to activate the nitrogen. After 100feet depth, the levels of nitrogen become dangerously high, rendering the diver with a feeling of drunkeness, and along with minimised sense of judgment resulting in risk taking behaviours. Too long or too deep and the nitrogen will cause you to black out, and die shortly after. The effects of nitrogen narcosis can be reversed by helium, but the best advice is- don't go that deep.

Thanks for the encouragement! (Moana had me pretty choked up too- I spent the first 4 years of my life living on a real life remote, isolated Pacific island paradise, it brought back many memories). Today I got in 2 full hours (woot- had to do some pool cleaning so did that IN the pool to bulk the time up haha) I didn't do so much lap-wise but did spend a good while treading water while having a conversation with my housemates. I would like to eventually complete some of the level-up-your-character quests for Scouts and a few others that include the Navy SEAL swim tests, like treading water continuously for 20 minutes. As ever I'm working up to being able to swim a full 200m without stopping, at the moment I can get about 120 when completely energised, and only about 70 on average. It's not hard to be motivated to get in the water though, I'm using it as my reward after the day's housework/caring (I'm a carer for my housemates, who are also doing NerdFitness challenges of their own, so we're all helping each other). I called the psychologists office!!!!! His books are closed til at least late March, early April- so that goal has been sorta-completed as far as I can with that, the main thing is I did what I had to. I just need to get continued medical leave certs to cover my mental health leave until then XD I got through MOST of the dishes once again, still some left over- I DO intend to do those tomorrow morning, in addition to the living room cleanup I've been planning as part of this challenge as some people from the national disability insurance scheme we have here in Aus will be over later in the day. For weightloss I haven't done any measuring or weighings because I don't have a set of bathroom scales. I will be visiting my parents before this challenge ends so I'll either use theirs or make an appointment with a local GP (yay free consults here in Aus) to do a proper check up. I went in the garden- not 5 minutes but I did add some vegetation to the compost and am making more of an effort to save foods that can go in it rather than just add it to the general waste bin. Now for the daily snorkel fact! Snorkels have existed since antiquity, and possibly much earlier- a simple reed used by divers. The first modern version of a snorkel was invented by...Leonardo Da Vinci! He was commissioned by the Venitians to create a diving suit that could allow the diver to breathe- it was really more of a scuba suit, really, as it was connected to a pocket of air in a balloon that floated on the surface. His suit incorporated an inflatable/deflatable pocket to promote floating to the surface. A recreation of his design is attached as an image in this post!!! (super fascinating to me because I majored in Classics, you know- Latin, Ancient History and that, and though Da Vinci is much much (several thousand years) later than that period, there is a nifty little link there for me) So, so far so good, halway through Week 1 and doing well!

annnnnnnd today went fairly well- got paid and then had to use all of it immediately in rent and sundry, so feeling kinda "panicky" about money though I know it will be fine. Only got just under an hour in the pool today, weather wasn't so great and I was sore from yesterday's many swim. I did get into the garden and started the compost bin which is important, and just need to get a hold of some seeds etc to plant the rest of it. Mostly cucumber and zucchini, raddishes, silver beet- the easy, quick result stuff. Did some needed housework but it's never ever truly done XD gonna really focus on that tomorrow. I DID submit a medical cert I needed to as part of my ongoing mental health stuff and intend to call the psychologist's office tomorrow to see if the books are opened yet (booked out last time I called). Other than that- not much- so onto my Swimming/Snorkelling Factoid for the Day! When snorkelling, it's important to breathe slightly more deeply than regular breathing. This is because the snorkel can contain more CO2 from your exhalation. Breathing this in and out can make you feel air-starved, so slow, deeper breaths- without hyperventilating- will make your swim much more comfortable!

Got 2 hours and 20 minutes in the pool today and a total of 24 laps for both of them.Also lots of splashing about XD Helped my housemate (who has a disability) go through and clean/organise their room. OH spent time in my Garden planted more sweet potato (the vines are good for eating as well as plants) so one row will be for the taters, one for the vines, that means I gotta pile up dirt on the vines as they grow to encourage the taters, and let the vines grow rampant on the other. Also planted some cherry roma tomatoes! Dishes are- a lot of them are done- the ones in my room all taken out. I do all the dishes for the household so it can pile up a bit but I did get through about 4 loads of it (it had built up a bit as I was away on the weekend) aaaand my snorkelling/swimming fact for the day: Freestyle isn't a stroke! I always thought it was- but it's actually called the Front Crawl- it's just that freestyle means FREE style, and as front crawl is the fastest, it's the one used in competition! I didn't know XD

UPDATE! Went swimming today, 1.5 hours/10, woo! Also spent 5 mins in garden piling more dirt onto my sweet potato vines, yay!

DAY ONE: Not much today, but I was at my parents' this weekend, and on return there is definitely an unpleasant smell upon entry into the house- and I can't lay my finger on it. I think it's just a sort of semi unwashed/stale/mildewy with lots-of-animals and delayed-change litterbox smells. So this week my goal is to do a good full over clean up.and help my housemates (who have disabilities, so it's tough for them) get into a routine of general tidying up and stacking/bringing dishes into the kitchen (I'm guilty of dish hoarding too though ha). And I need to find a way to make paper pellet litters stink less. But as for my other challenges- swimming is easy, we have a pool and it's summer/heat wave right here in Newcastle NSW, so I don't think I'll have any trouble there at all.

This is not my first challenge, but I fell off the wagon so I'M GETTING BACK ON. (its late and I'm tired so posting this now and will edit/fine tune later) Presenting my Moana-inspired 4 Week Challenge! MY QUESTS- to lose weight, keep a cleaner home, do some gardening and GET MORE SNORKELLING/SWIMMING! Each of my challenge goals and sub-goals are based on songs from the awesome Moana. Goal 1: Lose Weight: We Know The W(eigh) Visit GP/Get weighed properly. Weigh and measure self once a week. Goal 2:Swim more/snorkel- How Far I'll Go Swim every day- swim at least 10 hours a week. Learn about sea-swimming/snorkelling: Post one paragraph/fact/update per wekeday day! Go beach swimming twice during challenge. Goal 3: Mental health- Where You Are! See psych/get into therapy! Record/Release 2 Moana songs a week! Makes feel good. Goal 4:House Cleanliness/Housework- Shiny! Dishes out/stacked and washed everyday. Tidy Living Room- General organisation. Goal 5 (bonus goal): Garden! CONSIDER THE COCONUT! Spend 5 minutes a day in my garden! Plant more things!

It's so great to know you guys have my back, even when I've been absent <3 Things are- going- ish- certainly I've kept *mostly* on top of my cleaning, and I've been swimming twice, and did two laps last time. So that's about 50% for my cleaning stuff, and 30% (I need to recheck my rewards scheme) for Swimming. Australia is going through a heat-wave as I type, and then a few rainy days in there- but I should hopefully be *finally* getting into the garage sometime in the next week to get that whole thing started. It's just waaaayyy too hot this time of year. I am still waiting on some of my orders. Since it is the end of the academic year here, and holidays are coming, plus my status as "unemployed" (meaning more time on job searches) my challenge has been slow- not fall off the wagon slow- but not slow enough to graduate myself into level 1 at the midway point. I'm cool with that. I do have some excellent news though- hehe- Vinnie and Rikki! I sort of realised that I would never be happy without ratties in my life, so I adopted two little boys!!!! They're so boisterous and playful, it makes the White Bros stand out so much in how much older and sleepier they are- when it was them with Chuckie, they seemed so young to me. They've been occupying a lot of my attention of course, and in the new year I'll be giving them some grand cage upgrades. They're such little Assassins, acrobats and all. The older boys don't mind them, but they're probably Grandpa-grumbling at them sometimes. Still haven't booked the docs appointment because I'm waiting on a new healthcare card which entitles me to free GP visits (We have "bulk billing" medical centres in Australia, but you just get the first available doc, and they can change each visit- I'd like consistency of care, so I'd rather have my welfare healthcare card so I can go to a GP who you would normally pay for, and have them each time.) But if I don't get that before the challenge ends, I'll go to the bulk-bill place, at least for a basic weigh-in. Then when I have my card, I'll get a full physical done. Still clinging to the wagon! Not dropping off yet!

Thanks so much for the support everyone, it has been a very tough week for me. Chuckie was one of those very special rats. I did, however, cave on one bit- the White Bros. I just couldn't justify sending them on to the next world when they had so much life in them still. They had a bit of trouble adjusting to Chuckie's death at first (I always let the rats see and sniff their departed siblings when possible, as they have such a strong social connection it would be cruel to take one away without explanation). I think it's the first death they've ever experienced. They were very mopey for a few days, but they're doing much better now. I plan on doing up their cage and adding more levels/compartments/hammocks when I get back to my place, which will be this evening sometime. I HAVE been working on my challenge- I purchased a number of items for the studio, but I'll save an update on that for when they arrive. I'll also be getting into that garage sometime in the next week for sure- to take pics and start that cleanup. I didn't end up doing the nature hikes, I was too down, but I will hopefully be going swimming on the weekend, and I guess I'll do some "laps" to make up for what I missed. Cheers everyone!

Thanks everyone <3 @Mueshel It is a shame I could handle them a little bit, but I didn't want to stress them out by handling them as often as needed to build trust. I knew they were happy with Chuckie, and Chuckie was VERY happy with them, so I didn't force it. As for the Challenge- I'm skipping the RP for a bit, as I'm a bit low spirited. Update: I've completed two full room cleans, so that's 20% of my side-challenge complete! I've also purchased a large (and quite old) dressing table, still in awesome condition- which came with a VERY BIG MIRROR. If I stand far enough back I can see my entire body in it, even if I move in big steps side to side. This will save me loads of money on BIG STUDIO MIRRORS until such times as I build a proper one (using shrinkable reflective mylar). This means I'm 20% on Challenge 4 and 10% on Challenge one. I'm going to be a bit delayed on some of my other challenges this week, as I've come home to my parents' place for the "end of rattie life" stages. My local, trusted vet is where I'd prefer to take them, and they'll be buried all together in a snuggle pile in my parents' yard. I'm not near the beach now, or a pool and it's raining all week. I could swim in the local creek but it's not the cleanest- so I'm going to swap out swimming this week for a walk, we have some nice nature tracks nearby. Everything else is pretty much on hold until I get back. Cheers all!

As an Australian, we hath not the acorn squash. I could probably do the jumps, but if not, can we find an unusual alternative for us? We're opposite seasons.

Hiking poles may make you feel more confident, I'm a slow descender too- and I've been hiking since childhood. I do know one thing- once I actually had a few falls, I was less afraid. It may be worthwhile practicing safe falls and rolls so you feel more confident in the field.

Day 1 In order to keep track of time and my mind, I shall keep a journal. At least until such times as the paper serves a greater purpose. For want of companionship, I shall write to you, unknown reader, in what remains of this tattered book I found when I entered this abandoned shack. Last night I slept at the base of a large cliff, nestled between two boulders for cover and protection. This morning, as soon as there was enough light to see, I began climbing the wall. Using my only carabiner and a length of rope joining me to it, I commenced picking my way up the rock, fervently hoping in my malnourished and dehydrated daze that I did not make any mistakes. four hours, with frequent breaks, and I was at the top. Exhausted. I lay there in the heat of the mid-morning sun- I pulled my dusted and dirtied scarf over my head, and did not move until nightfall. I had to be sure the shelter was empty. At dusk, I moved inside. Exhaustion prevents me from taking inventory this second, but I will rest more comfortably tonight than last. Now, I will sleep. DAY ONE Ok, so the first day of the challenge has come, and I've got some updates. First of all, I'm tackling cleaning the whole house, since I have to wait on finances to get the shed started (I mean, apart from sweeping and stuff). Today I focused on my room, which is also my rat's room (where their cage is). Cleaning their cage is an immense task that takes hours, but today was the last time I'll be cleaning their big cage, as I moved them into the smaller "rattirement villa" to help my boy Chuckie in his old age. It's actually related to a small setback in my progress- my boy Chuckie is very elderly and has lost a lot of the use of his back legs. He's my longest lived rat at just over 2 years and 7 months old, and without leg use, his life is very basic, and will be very uncomfortable if he develops sores from dragging. I've made the call (to my mother, who will make the call to the vet *for* me) to have my boys put to sleep next week. This is a very upsetting process, even though I've come well to term with it, and have been mentally preparing for a long time. Chuckie lives with two 18 month old albino boys I rescued earlier this year- they're terrified of humans and adore Chuckie. They are inseparable. They both are developing signs of complicated respiratory infections, which is common in rats, and even more so in rescues. Even though they're only middle-age (in rat years), I've decided it's in their best interests to go with brother Chuckie. This means they'll alll be together in the little hamster crate while the vet gives them "sleepy gas" and it will be their last memory- snuggling together (I'm also giving them chocolate and yogurt for breakfast that day). NATURALLY this is gonna have an affect on my productivity, but having owned rats for over 10 years, it's a very hard but very frequent journey. This time, though, I'm not adopting more ratties, so that may also be a bit tough for a bit. I've had them constantly. Now it'll just be me and my cat, Wilbur. *ok, let's it off, shake off those sads* um, taylor though, meh. ANYWHO I have successfully completed 10% of my Side-Challenge! My room is clean, I got rid of a heap of clothes- which my housemate gladly accepted, so recycling points there- and I even maneuvered a giant 2.5 metre tall cage through our tiny hallways and down a flight of stairs THROUGH a cat-net, while being cried at by my cat from the window (he wanted to be outsides wivs mama). Upkeep of my bedroom will reward me with 2% each week (each room of the house I spot-clean gets me an extra 2% on my side challenge). Huzzah! Tomorrow, I'm picking up some second hand mirrors for the shed- not studio mirrors, but BIG enough to work in a pinch. I'd eventually like to get some portable full length/width mirrors. I also have to pack away my camping gear...

You found the raiiinnbooowsss! tee hee!!

THANKS SO MUCH EVERYONE!!!!! @annyshay AHHH! THANKYOU! Assassins is DEFINITELY where I see myself, and already I'm finding so much support and advice in there. It's gonna be fantastic, not just for my dancing, but also my everything else- as a hiker, rock climbing and scrambling are things that Assassin-style support will be really useful for. @fffffinn I hear ya, fortunately each of those steps are rather small in and of themselves, and it's all something I had to do anyway, so I'm sorta adding it to my challenge for an easy-win, hehehe. I'll have a bit of help with some of the tasks, though- which is gonna make it even more attainable. Thanks so much guys! I'm gonna be posting some "before" pics of the space soon!

I feel drawn to Assassins because of the focus on body-weight training, and being in the moment- immediacy is a major thing for me. Being in an environment and making fun out of it- that's everything to me. My main focus is acrobatics/gymnastics and dance- stuff I've never really done before. Growing up, I was into endurance activities- like pack-hiking for up to a week at a time, or martial-arts. I always *wanted* to do the gym stuff, but being a fat kid (fit, but still fat) I didn't think I could, so never tried. I know better now. My inspiration is every single costumed vigilante or villainness. Especially... So while I continue to also work on my endurance, hiking skills etc- I really want to focus on this new aspect. My entire first challenge is focused around prepping my unused garage into a dance and acro training space for myself.

Introduction: Day 0 There's nothing out here but a wasteland of misery and destruction- and a shit-tonne of dust. I am weak, and ill-prepared. If I am to survive, I will need to find shelter- recover my health, and build my strength. I shield my bleary eyes and look up to where the sun lays, giant and aggressive at the crest of a cliff, it's unending shower of painful rays strangling out the last shreds of moisture from the choking landscape. I gaze so long I begin to see dots- dark smudges against the backdrop of fierce, fiery orange. Strangely still for a trick of the eyes. that is when I notice it is not a trick of my vision at all, but an actual, physical object. A shack, standing strong in the nothingness that surrounds it. It is ramshackle, it will surely need a great many repairs to fortify it, but it is there, and it is real. Shelter at last. Ashtree's 6 Week Challenge! My name is Tree, and this is my first 6 Week Challenge, and my theme is Post-Apocalyptic Shelter Repair! i.e- I'm gonna clean my garage and turn it into a dance studio/gym! My long-term goals are fitness and recreation based- in my youth I was a member of a scout-like club called "Pathfinders" and I did so much outdoorsy-fitnessy-healthy stuff, but I have since gone way off the rail. The past 10 years have been a struggle of fighting mental illness and fixing myself emotionally- now that I have it under control (not cured, but controlled) I want to rebuild myself into a greater version of who I was before. Nerd Fitness is how I hope to attain that! So, without further adieu, my 6 Week Challenge Goals: Main Goal 1: Clean the garage, turn it into a great studio for fitness. A good survivalist has priorities: Shelter is one of the highest. This is something I HAD to do anyway (the cleaning part) so why not make it a goal, amirite? To achieve this, I need to do the following things: Sort and organise camping equipment.Find containers or storage for gardening stuff- especially the fuel.Sweep the entire garage.Debug. Despider (move them outside nicely)Purchase and lay-down foam flooring.Purchase and set up new "studio mirror" (it's an old dresser with a giant mirror...)Set up curtain dividing storage space from studio space.Attach power source (no power at the moment)Purchase and set up punching bag and frame.Set up lighting. This goal will be graded based on how many of the items I complete- 10% per item. Main Goal 2: Swimming, at least Once a Week! A good survivalist makes use of accessible resources! Both of my housemates go to aqua-aerobics, and also just plain old swimming, twice a week. I'm not in the financial-space to pay for sessions, but there's no reason I can't go to the pool with them and just swim. I also live near beautiful beaches, with ocean baths- that are free. It's hitting summer here, so I should really make use of those. Grading wise, I'll assign 10% to each session, which means I *won't* be able to make 100% just by attending. The extra points can only be made by swimming laps while there (I tend to just...float and splash). 5% per lap. Main Goal 3: See Doctor, Create Weightloss Plan: A good survivalist takes care of their health: I am a fats. I have always been a fats. What I have not always been is unfit. As a child, I was involved in everything- camping, hiking, sports, orienteering, canoeing, band camp- if it was an optional activity on a sign-up sheet, I was there. Since mental illness took over in my late teens, I have neglected myself in a big way. I am no longer able to hike 25km in 2 days with a 15kg pack like I could when I was a teenager. That was something I loved doing and something I miss greatly- as you can see in my "goal bars" below, I want to- however long it takes- get back into the rough scrambler mode I once was, and hike a cumulative 100km with a pack. To get there, I need to get myself in shape- my pack belt doesn't even clip around my waist anymore. I don't know how much I weigh but it's more than conventional scales can display, so my only step for this goal so far is to see a doctor about my weight, make some plans, find out what I actually weigh and go from there. 100% just for seeing the doc on this one, because I have been putting it off a long long time. And now- just for fun- Side-goal: Just be a little bit tidier in general, geez Tree... A good survivalist is neat, tidy- with a solid working knowledge of their inventory. This one is easy- over the next few weeks of this challenge, I just need to progressively tidy up, get rid of stuff I don't need and organise what I do need. I'm about to start a course online, so I need to make sure my work-space is workable. I have to share that room with my housemates, and it's also where I feed my cat- so it *really* needs to be organised. As well as my room. And the bathroom- the sinks have standing water in them that need to be fixed too- I basically need to make this a livable environment. Grading? 50% for initial clean of whole house next week, 5% per "upkeep" job thereafter. I think that's everything covered now- WOO! LET THE APOCALYPSE BEGIN! -Tree