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My life is very unsure again. I had a lot of plans but after this week I am not sure how things are going to work out for me. This challenge will mostly be a continuation of the same things, with a few small things added. I had a fabulous weekend last week, and when I arrived home a completely shit Monday at work and at home. Adding to that I had my 44th birthday, and like all the birthdays before, not what I wanted to do. I also have done something extremely stupid, just by trying to be nice. My house is going on hold again. A good way to see me cry. And I had a new business idea that strolled into my head completely uninvited last week. So great. And I don't have money to finance it. I am still busy with 31 Days to Fix your Finances, this is running over from the last challenge. And the stitches in my finger is coming out tomorrow. I am not sure how long it will take before I can use my hand properly again. Tonight it hurts. My challenge goals may seem a bit chaotic, but it is just refinements of previous challenges. I am happy with the basics, but I can do a little better. I want to be more mindful. I will set my alarm for every hour on the hour. Stop what I am doing for a moment, smile, do a few deep breaths and read my positive affirmation. And then consider if what I am busy doing is good. 1. Sleep 7 hours every night. Computer off at 9, in bed by 22:00, stand up at 5:00. And leave for work at 6:40 I've done this before, it worked very well for me, it is time to get back to it. 2. Exercise Stronglifts - continue with it when my finger is better. Do Neila Rey 50 push-up challenge Do my L-sit progression And then I must walk with purpose: I take my Border Collie for two long walks every day. Instead of just staring at my feet I can use that time to get in some movement. So every afternoon I must put on exercise clothes, go barefoot and be pro-active. 3. Every Damn Day The things that keep me sane. As long as I do these things, my life is better. Neglecting them means the depression is back. At home: Clean for 15 minutes every dayShowerShave and clean my handsMake my bedMeditateWrite in my journalDo voice trainingRead my daily positive affirmation x3Spend some time sorting out files on both my computers.At work: Clean my deskCheck the timesheetsFill in the diary 4. NaNoWriMo This year I want to do well with NaNoWriMo. Just pantsing it from a starting sentence just isn't good enough anymore. Rowan inspired me with a wonderful title: The Top Secret Spaceship Project. I have to work on an outline, with proper characters. And my typing skills suck, I really have to get better. Every day I will do an exercise on Typingweb. And I want to make something for the local group. The previous years I made them writer's blocks, but it is time to expand my ideas. This year will be some kind of box with the words "Don't Panic" in nice friendly letters on it. I just don't know what to put inside it. 5. No Spending Challenge My credit card is almost paid in full. I am in the position where I can decide not to spend any money. For this challenge I do not want to spend any money. I do have a little bit of cash in the drawer I can draw on if necessary, but preferably not. The only exception: I need to buy new sleepwear, the overlarge things I am using now bothers me. And any anvils or tools I found secondhand doesn't count. And finally, I am also holding Sabbath. From Saturday sunset until Monday wake-up I am not allowed to work. Unless I want to.

Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning. Winston Churchill And this challenge for me is the end of the beginning. I started this journey last year at the beginning of March, obese, unfit and unhappy. Now it is 15 months later, I have lost 40 kg (88 lbs), are reasonably fit and have got a solid base to work from. This is now the last challenge where weight-loss is going to be important, and I have to work on changing my eating habits as well. Main quest: To post a picture of me online, without a shirt, in my house on my birthday on 9 September. And I better be looking good. 1. Exercise I have got a cage, I've got weights, I've run out of excuses, so I am going to start / re-start Stronglifts. I started a pull-up/lunge/push-up challenge 4 weeks ago, and I will continue for now. For today I will be at 28/28/28 2. Finances This is the part outside my comfort zone. I have very small and very irregular income (it's a long, very embarrassing story). On the positive side I also have almost no debt, except for a little bit of credit card debt. And I also have an emergency fund if things go really haywire. But one thing I do not have is a real view of exactly where I am at this moment. For this challenge I will do The Simple Dollar's "31 Days to fix your finances" 3. Every Damn Day This is the things that make my life much better. This challenge I will write out a list and post it where I can see it. I went through a purge and minimalist phase a few years ago, and have been bragging about how good it is, but I still have too much clutter. If I just do my 15 minutes every day I should be perfect by the end of this 6 weeks. At home: Clean for 15 minutes every dayShowerShave and clean my handsMake my bedWrite in my journalDo voice trainingRead my daily positive affirmation x3Spend some time sorting out files on both my computers.At work: Clean my deskCheck the timesheetsFill in the diary And for this challenge I am also holding Sabbath. From Saturday sunset until Monday wake-up I am not allowed to work. Unless I want to.