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Hey y'all! It's nice to be back after taking a challenge away to focus on recovering from eye surgery. My eye is healing really well, and I'll have my final check in with the doc this month as well as an optometrist appointment for new glasses prescription. Yay! For this challenge I will be going through my bookcase. There are notebooks, drawing pads, art books, writing, pattern books, songbooks, a cookbook, language how to's, and a bunch of novels. Not to mention pens, pencils, stuffed buddies, and more... This bookcase has become representative of my to-do list, and it’s growing teeth.I bought most of these books when I decided I was going to accomplish a big goal and the books and more were tools to help me reach those goals, but instead it became overwhelming. Maybe instead of focusing on the result, I need to focus on the journey. 1. Read the books. 2. Do the assignments in the books. 3. Decide if the book is worth keeping. 4. Deliver unwanted books to donation centers. Do not put them back on the shelf! 5. Draw and write in the empty notebooks 6. Keep the drawings I love and put them in a binder together. Take the trash ones out and recycle them. 7. Do not purchase anymore books, notebooks, drawing pads, supplies, etc. That's a procrastination tactic. 8. Record and reflect on my progress here. 9. Remember this is not a shame exercise. This is a fun practice to remind me that time and effort spent just for me is worthwhile. So we'll see what the bookcase looks like at the end of the challenge. What will stay? What will be gone? I can tell you that the Raggedy Anns on the top of the case are staying. (but they may need a good dusting ) Supporting this goal, I've set a limit to social media on my phone for 30 minutes a day. That gives me enough time to keep up with my friends and family, but also not so much time that I'm wondering where my free time went. I'm also going to continue following the "Put things away instead of putting them down." I save a lot of time not having to pick up piles of stuff. Cleaning is so much faster because I can just just start dusting right away, and I have less laundry to do. And I feel like I can focus better on what I'm doing because I'm not surrounded by a mess. Which reminds me, Bing Bong needs to go on the bed, not the keyboard. LOL

WORLD AT WAR AERI'S WAR FOR MASTERY Among the very particular things you must know before setting off to follow the path of an Apprentice of Intent; one who cultivates power, the art of seeing and mastery of the will, is exactly what makes a warrior. The Way of the Warrior A warrior thinks of his death when things become unclear. His ultimate weapon is the power of decision, as a master of his choices, executing them at his best, living strategically. Prepared for battle, gear carefully selected, every struggle is a warrior's last battle on earth. 'We are luminous beings,' that much you've heard. But it doesn't end here. There are ally and enemy forces in this world, and all can be turned. In order to conquer each of these forces a fearsome battle must be fought. When you least expect it, with or without your knowledge, you will be facing that which you thought your ally in one last stand. Enemies turned to allies, allies to enemies, to be defied and defeated only by those who will it, those who fight on and yet see. The ultimate goal of an Apprentice of Intent is to become a Lord of Knowledge. For that, one must develop unbending intent, and as a warrior, challenge and defeat one's four natural enemies: Fear, Clarity, Power, and Old Age. ______________________________ STORY INDEX Origins I: Dreaming Origins II: Forces Origins III: Planning Origins IV: Restart The Messenger The Trials The First Enemy The Rematch Meeting The Master ______________________________ EPIC QUEST LIST Woken by unseen forces, Aeri plots to bring about a revolution in the old ways and build a new world; she shall soon be known as: "The Light Bringer" . . . Beginning her journey as an apprentice, the first task given to her is to make contact with fellow newbies, seasoned warriors, and elders; set a line of communication and always take notes of progress and details of undertakings. It is through the ups and downs of each battle that one can improve tactics and scale them for winning the war. Below are the areas that must be covered to come out a victor in the war for mastery. It is a long list, I warn ye. Specifics for each quest can be seen in my Character Page, they will be updated as they come up for pursuit. Tales of major battles in the War for Mastery will be posted in this very thread. Whereas minor battles, result summaries and upgrades will be posted in my Battle Log. For bearing with the long scroll, thank you, - Aeri