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Yeah, well, I know HP’s been done to death, but it is my everlasting true nerd love and given the calendar timing, I thought the Yule Ball would be a fun add on… Start with what you know, eh. I was sorely tempted to switch out to a Red Rising or Martian theme, but I’ll save those for another time. Excited to be completing my first challenge as a Ranger! ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Marauder uses her 20 seconds of courage and scribbles her name on a small slip of paper, marches forward, and tosses in into the cup… Her doubts rear their ugly heads instantly with a barrage of taunts. but you’re not strong enough to… but you aren’t smart enough to… but you can’t compete with them… Marauder digs deep and, with a confidence she hasn’t felt in a long long time, stifles the voices. I AM strong. I AM smart. I CAN win this thing. Training must commence immediately. I only have 6 weeks to prepare… Preparation is the path. Passion is the key. Victory is the undeniable result. Quest 1: The Dragon Challenge Strength training is a key element to success in all the challenges, but the dragon challenge in particular could require feats I’ve yet to attempt. A very exhausted owl just delivered some dumbbells for my new training. How much does a dragon’s egg weigh? Hopefully lifting some heavy things will have me ready… Scheduled training will be performed three times per week starting with Dumbbell Division level 1. Keep an eye out for progressing something each workout. Trophy: new workout top Points: +3 STR/ +1STA Quest 2: The Merpeople Challenge Gillyweed is the key. Supplies are low in my area, so veggies are the answer for now. Superpowers of improved night vision, boosted immunity, increased blood flow, and anti aging properties are all bound to help in other quests as well. Surely, increased veggie consumption will make the gillyweed more palatable when the actual challenge comes… Required training consists of consumption of 3 servings per day of vegetables. Trophy: TBD Points: +3 CON Quest 3: The Maze The key to success in any maze is to keep your mind focused and clear. Be ready for surprises and obstacles. Observation is key… Required training will be my own form of meditation, an outdoor nature ramble with photo, 5 days per week. No speed or distance criteria, just get your head clear, and SEE. Capture one thing you observe with a photo and post here to training log. Trophy: New wool socks! Points: +2 WIS, +2 CHA Life Quest: Get smart, get warm, and prepare for the Yule Ball… Besides the obvious training required for the challenges, I need to keep up my studies, prepare for winter weather, and get ready for the Yule Ball. get smart… finish the 6 books remaining in your 50-book challenge for 2015. get warm… finish knitting a hat for the cool weather. prepare for the yule ball… work on grace with twice weekly yoga practice. no time restriction, build a healthy habit. bonus yule challenge… have all yule purchases complete or finalized by end of challenge. Trophy: new yoga mat for successful completion (>80%) of yoga challenge (yeah, I’m yoga-ing on the carpet, itchy). Points: +2 DEX, +2 CON

My gazillionth challenge. Bring it on. Main Quest Body weight squat. Sanity. Goals: Squat: 145. That's 15 lbs in 6 weeks. Again, it's not ambitious but it should be do-able. Game Plan: Squat. 2x week, test adding FS back in on deadlift days. Accessory: Minimizing time in the gym was good in some ways but over all it left me underwhelmed. Time to forget that noise. Focusing on doing accessory work to address squat weakness. Aiming to find a nice middle ground. Game Plan: Add in some of my previously removed accessory work. Super set like a boss. Mobility: Increase it, efficientize it. I'm going to work on ankles/calves for squats, but also shoulders because they're a little wonky. I'm going to experiment with mobilizing every night and see if that helps reduce the amount of mobility I need to do pre lift. Game Plan: Mobilize nightly - 20 mins or less. At gym - post lift (I seem to get the most bang for my buck when I do this); Focus - Mobilizing what I just worked. At home - whenever as long as I do it; Focus - Goats (mostly ankles), anything I've been ignoring, my next day lift stuff. Simplify: Again, I'm just back from vacation. Again, I got way too burnt out leading up to it. In anticipation of vacation I didn't take any time off of Job 2 and that sucked. The simplifying from last time was mostly successful. I got my morning and night routine stuff down and it's helped a ton. I didn't do as well with the morning stretching. So, revisiting that. Game Plan: Reassess mobility and glute activation. Experiment with setting timer. Plan and put in for off days at Job 2. I didn't do a wrap up of my last challenge (1. because I was nerding and 2. because I don't really ever anymore), but the other stuff I was working on went really well. I spend the majority of my spare evening time reading now, instead on the computer (my pinterest account is getting dusty) and I've pretty successfully removed myself from the work drama. I'm not sure if it's just not being in it anymore or what, but it seems like there's less around now that I've made my stance pretty clear. Regardless of the reason, I'm happy(ier). Side Quest: Annoyingly private side quest is annoyingly private. But new goal is to do at least one thing for it weekly. I'll check in with pass/fail.

ROSHAN BOSS LEVEL The next month or so is going to be pretty hellish and intense due to deadline after deadline. I can already feel the paralysing stress creeping into my brain, and I don't like it. I'm going to do the best I can for my work, but I won't be able to function like a reasonably sane nerd if I am focussed on work every second of the day. But I don't want to waste my free time staring blankly at Buzzfeed and the like. Hence, BOSS LEVEL! I don't just want to survive this challenge, I want to come out the other side even better than before. So I'm going to try a couple of new fitness goals (that hopefully won’t be too time consuming) and maintain my current level of Spanish. *Putting on my warpaint* STRENGTH Daily handstand practice Possible challenge reward: +3 DEX & +3 STR Inspired by Elastigirl's work, I'm going to give it a shot. 5 minutes a day isn't very much, and I'm curious to see where it can take me. AGILITY Run my first 5K and be quick about it Possible challenge reward: +4 STA Going to get me some endurance points if I can succeed in running 2 or 3 times per week. I have never really liked running before, but I'm on a roll with these challenges and I want to find out what I'm capable of. Plus I'm excited to keep track of all the numbers! INTELLIGENCE Read 100 pages of Harry Potter y la Camara secreta Possible challenge reward: +3 WIS I'm going to be very focused on work, but it is important to me that I don't lose all the Spanish wisdom that I gained in the previous challenges. *** Captain's log: Week zero : https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1cff21H66DzBNwdAgoh2gfq-qEeO2MBAIvJ449hkkL4A/edit?usp=sharing Week one : https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1cff21H66DzBNwdAgoh2gfq-qEeO2MBAIvJ449hkkL4A/edit#gid=2134899523 Week two : https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1cff21H66DzBNwdAgoh2gfq-qEeO2MBAIvJ449hkkL4A/edit#gid=2034992269 Week three : https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1cff21H66DzBNwdAgoh2gfq-qEeO2MBAIvJ449hkkL4A/edit#gid=953446945 Week four : https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1cff21H66DzBNwdAgoh2gfq-qEeO2MBAIvJ449hkkL4A/edit#gid=1831483484 Week five : https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1cff21H66DzBNwdAgoh2gfq-qEeO2MBAIvJ449hkkL4A/edit#gid=2092761640 Week six : https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1cff21H66DzBNwdAgoh2gfq-qEeO2MBAIvJ449hkkL4A/edit#gid=1543963910