Seabright's 2022 Battle Log of Awesomeness

[Seabright]

 

Tues, Sept 27

 

Blogging 

• Create logo
• Done! Your Garden is Fab is born!
• Bonus accomplishment: Registered 2 other similar domains and pointed them both to my primary domain.

Hiking and the outdoors

• Sneak in a walk during off-site at some point.
• Done! Even brought along the spousal unit.

Accessibility

• Set up time to talk to PJ.
• Done! We're talking tomorrow.

Remodel

• Find pics to illustrate white vs green
• Doh! Just talked about it some more, didn't really happen.

Bonus excitement

• Did all of the above during a day-long on-site meeting - the first in 2 1/2 years!

 

Tomorrow:

• Figure out how to format and upload my logo.
• Walk down to the beach at the end of the day.
• Meet with PJ.
• Look for backsplash pics.

[Seabright]

Wed, Sept 28

 

Blogging 

• Upload logo
• Done! 

Hiking and the outdoors

• Sneak in a walk during off-site at some point.
• Done! Went on my own this time. I actually, um, well, you know, um, I actually like that better. Sotto voce.

Accessibility

• Talked to PJ.
• Done! Got a couple of contacts, and got myself put on a style council as the accessibility champion.

Remodel

• Find pics to illustrate white vs green
• Done! White is back on the menu, boys! Ordered some samples. 

Bonus excitement

• Everyone who was at that all-day on-site meeting yesterday received covid-exposure notifications around Noon today. 

 

Tomorrow:

• Find a template for my site
• Try for an early am walk through the harbor
• Reach out to one of those contacts for accessibility
• Look for backsplash pics. I only need to find 2.

[Seabright]

Thurs, Sept 29

 

Blogging 

• Find a template
• Not done. Changing this to setting up email first.

Hiking and the outdoors

• Sneak in a walk at 11am
• DONE! Nice walk through the yacht harbor.

Accessibility

• Reach out to Tina and that one Innovation Week person
• DONE! Now scheduled to be the accessibility champion for Innovation Week.

Remodel

• Find out if that one vendor has a local showroom
• DONE! No joy on the dealer thing. Ordered some samples instead.

 

This weekend:

• Set up site email
• Go for hike in Henry Cowell
• Talk about wall color in kitchen with spousal unit

 

Other stuff

• I still haven't found a good format for these micro-updates. All I know is that based on past experience they are important to keep me moving forward...even if I'm just writing 'not done' a zillion times in a row.
• Made an appt for an initial chat with a financial advisor. Time to put some of my anxiety to rest!

[Seabright]

Fri, Oct 7

 

Well, clearly THAT didn't work. Back to weekly updates. I'll get there...I'll just try to fail faster. 😉

 

Blogging 

• Found a template
• Which needs to be drastically customized
• Fiddled with host/domain settings to get email to work and eventually gave up. Will just transfer the domain the host...if I had known it was going to be so hard, I would have done it that way in the first place.
• Wrote a tagline
• Learning to use the interface

Hiking and the outdoors

• Snuck in a walk here and there, but not as a regular thing.
• I'm not liking how this is going. It's too easy to get involved with work stuff and just end up sitting in front of my monitor all day.
• Now that the weather has cooled down, going for a walk after work is more doable. 
• Starting today!

Accessibility

• Connected with all the teams.
• Gathered some tips/videos/things-of-interest for Innovation Week. Still more to do, but getting there.

Remodel

• The penultimate version of the cabinet design and contract is in my inbox!
• Caught a couple of items that weren't called. Getting those explicitly added now.
• Tile samples arrived. They are nice, but, of course, expensive. Of course!

 

Other stuff

• Made flu and booster appts for me and the spousal unit.
• Initial meeting with a financial advisor who only wanted on-going relationships to the tune of $500 a month forever. She can go whistle for it.

 

Next up:

• Go for a hike in Henry Cowell after work
• Get list of appliances to designer, finalize the design, and sign the cabinetry contract
• Start writing my home page

 

Go, team!

 

[Seabright]

Fri, Oct 14

 

I'm feeling pretty good. For fear of putting the whammy on things, yeah, I'm feeling pretty good.

• Had a delightful check-in with my quack homeopathic doc. Holy smokes! I think this stuff is working.
• I feel like I finally have time to think about, you know, stuff.
• I feel like that ol' thick shell I've had around me is starting to dissolve, and the splinter is ready to come out. 

I actually haven't felt like this in quite a while, so, of course, I think there's probably something wrong. Maybe I have anthrax.

 

 

Blogging 

• Drafted a content strategy for the site. 
• Hey, figured I might as well think ahead for the day I have a team of writers creating articles. 

Hiking and the outdoors

• Well, boo. Nada.
• It's been pretty cold, drippy, and dreary here, but that's no excuse, especially since I'm supposed to be some bad-ass adventurer.
• I'll do better next week.

Accessibility

• Talked to a bunch of people.
• Reviewed a bunch of existing resources, most of which need a refresh.
• Let my boss know that this was going to be my #1 focus for the year.

Remodel

• Laid down some do-re-mi and placed the cabinetry order!
• We placed the order, I tell you! Eeeeeet eeeeeeees doooooooonnnne.
• Called for strong drink after writing the check.

 

Other stuff

• Made flu and booster appts for me and the spousal unit.
• Initial meeting with a financial advisor who only wanted on-going relationships to the tune of $500 a month forever. She can go whistle for it.

 

Next up:

• Go for a hike in Henry Cowell this weekend. It can be a short one.
• Order appliances. Ye  gods.
• Start writing my home page

 

Have a wonderful weekend, my little Rebels!

[Seabright]

Fri, Oct 21

 

I think I'm starting to see the results of the Information Diet I put myself on at work. I just seem to have more energy to think about things. 

 

Next up: take control of Slack! 

 

 

Blogging 

• Home page done.
• Created draft Terms and Privacy pages.
• Did a TON of research on LLCs, why, when, and how. Still thinking about this.
• Did MORE research on merchandising avenues and techniques.
• Realized this morning that I was using the research as an excuse not to write anything.
• Oh, the insidiousness of pencil-sharpening!

Hiking and the outdoors

• Took some fall pics of what's blooming in the garden. Need to get in the practice.
• Great mid-week hike up in the redwoods.
• Then it hit 90 for the rest of the week and was WAY too hot to move.
• Cooled down today. Am planning on skipping out early for a light hike along the river.

Accessibility

• Talked to people which led to other people which led to persuading the RIGHT people to include more inclusive designs in our illustration library.
• WIN!
• Yay for me!

Remodel

• Ordered appliances. 6 month wait for the refrigerator. Doh!
• Ordered the sink.
• The spousal unit fell in love with a bad-ass farmhouse apron front model, so that's what we ordered.
• Over budget now and work hasn't even started.
• Sobering up.
• Now rethinking all other materials decisions as a way to bring costs back in line.
• Farewell gorgeous $60/sq ft hand-painted tile!

 

Other stuff

• Got the flu and boosters. No side effects! Yay!
• Learned about back-door and mega-back-door Roth IRAs. Wha....?? Who knew? Should have started doing this years ago, but, oh well. 
• Set up some stuff.

 

Next up:

• Get up early on Sunday for Fall Creek hiking.
• Make appt to choose shower system.
• Start writing my About page.

 

[Seabright]

Tues, Nov 1

 

Doh! Forgot to check in on Friday. I'll do better next time. You know, maybe. 

 

 

Blogging 

• Realized that site design and tech stuff had become a major roadblock to moving forward with actual content.
• Reached to someone for help---which is HUGE for me. I got a 'maybe' in response, so I'm going to find a backup.
• 'Maybe' ain't good enough for me anymore. ANOTHER revelation!

Hiking and the outdoors

• A couple of nice hikes, including a GORGEOUS walk in the woods at Fall Creek.
• Pumpkin carving outside in the chilly fall weather.
• Need to do more, but something is better than nuthin'. 

Accessibility

• Talked to people to find out why our entire accessibility site had been deprecated.
• Found out why....and got things changed to 'Needs Refresh.'
• Am now on the project to refresh. 😉

Remodel

• Picked out backsplash tile.
• Picked out bathroom subway wall tile.
• Followed up with designer on scheduling and details on ordering stuff.
• A tad nervous because they cashed my check but I don't have a scheduled start date.
• Designer on vacay until mid-Nov.
• Hmm. I'm sure everything is fine.

 

Other stuff

• I continue to have old Life Stuff surface in my brain as a result of my homeopathic remedy.
• Can't wait for when all the trauma gives way to things like imagined slights.
• Coughing is much better, though.

 

Next up:

• Plan good hike for this weekend.
• Try out a new recipe or invite a friend over for dinner.
• Get another referral for help setting up my site.

[Seabright]

Tues, Nov 4

 

Oh wow. So much good stuff happening!

 

 

Blogging 

• Met with the person who will be helping me with my site. 
• Reached at agreement and a timeline.
• Gave her access to necessary accounts and assets.
• Got a registered agent.
• Registered as an LLC.
• Working on terms, privacy, and moderation policies.
• We're on our way!
• Yay!

Hiking and the outdoors

• Rainy weather but squeezed in a couple of nice walks between squalls. 

Accessibility

• Spent a few hours refreshing pages.
• Then found out I was working on a deprecated site.
• Hilarity ensued.

Remodel

• Talking about bathroom floor-age. 
• Not much activity at the moment.
• Really, actually getting started on actual work is months away.
• Looked at a lot of pictures.

 

Other stuff

• Learned a new recipe! What? Fact.
• Lung function continues to get better.
• Able to clearly identify things that cause a reaction.
• Among other things, I was basically eating a nightshade stew several times a month. 
• Also, beer. Boo!

 

Next up:

• Plan good hike for this weekend.
• Make a nice dinner for a friend on Saturday.
• Mack down on those policy pages.

[Seabright]

Fri, Nov 11

 

Woke up with crazy-low energy. Oh well. I can still go out there and get 'er done!

 

 

Blogging 

• Finished moderation page and I'm actually happy with it.
• Terms and privacy are  now in draft mode.
• Found a bunch of good pics and gave my helper access to them. 
• Site is coming along.
• Registered as an LLC. (Wait. What? Fact.)
• I really really really want to get the admin stuff done. Boy howdy, do I ever.

Hiking and the outdoors

• Meeting-packed week, but got in a couple of pretty walks around the block here and there.
• Nice after-work hike up in the rainy redwoods.
• Not feeling very zippy right now. Rethinking weekend hike to make shorter/easier. 
• Not super-pumped about how I'm doing in this area. It's my NUMBER ONE life goal, and I've been consistently putting this on the back burner.
• No bueno.

Accessibility

• Fixed a bunch of stuff.
• Yay for me!

Remodel

• Sink arrived and we went to check it out. 
• Whoa. It's going to be a show-stopper in the kitchen. 
• Decided we both like polished nickel. 
• Not much else going on.

 

Other stuff

• Big step backward with the ol' lung function stuff. Think that development may be tied to whiskey shots and cookie eating.
• Bulbs and seeds arrived! Got to get 'em in the ground.

 

Next up:

• Plan scaled-back hike for this weekend.
• Move the 'hiking' section of my NF battle log report to the top. It is, after all, the most important thing and should be #1. 
• Start up yoga in the mornings again. It doesn't have to be a lot...just something.

Okay! Got get 'em!

[Seabright]

Fri, Dec 2

 

Whoa. Progress all over the place! Yay for me!

 

Hiking and the outdoors

• Did some work in a couple of garden beds.
• Planted 75 daffodil bulbs.
• Planted a zillion seeds...and then watched the local finches chow down. 
• No walking or hiking, but lots of movement.

Blogging 

• Terms, privacy, and moderation statements are all done and uploaded. Done, I tell you. Done!
• Site looks like your basic blogging website now. Nothin' fancy. Which makes sense, since there's no actual useful content on there at this point. 
• I'm now an LLC with a registered agent and EIN and everything. This may have been overkill, but what the hell.
• Email sign-up, contact form, and other admin stuff now done. 
• Posted a couple of very old pieces of writing up there, just to have something.
• Getting close!

Accessibility

• Fixed some more stuff.
• Found out there's an entire design system site being constructed on a new platform from the ground up. The people building it just copied someone else's accessibility site and just plugged it in there. Argh. Oh well. Job security!

Remodel

• Looked at bathroom floor ideas but didn't really agree on anything. This part might be tough.
• Appliances are all in, except for the refrigerator.
• Decided on getting seeded glass locally for the cabinet doors in the kitchen. Yay, small businesses!
• Starting to clear out portions of the basement in order to have someplace to store everything while the work is going on. This is a HUGE project in and of itself.

Other stuff

• Went to the quack doctor who pointed out that small steps backward related to a lack of exercise and a bunch of crap eating are to be expected. He gave me some booster-ish stuff and told me to hang in there. Compared to where I was in January, I'm still lightyears ahead. 

Next up:

• It's supposed to rain this weekend, but hoping to knock off a little early today to sneak in a walk in the woods.
• Write the 'About' page.
• Contact designer and appliance people about the refrigerator.
• Get back on track with cooking, eating well, and all of that goodness.

 

Yes, Rebels! Teeing myself up to finish strong!

[Seabright]

Fri, Dec 9

 

Dang. After all that incredible progress in November, this last week has been a sad, sad situation.

 

I did get through a lot of Cobra Kai, though. 

 

Hiking and the outdoors

• Nada

Blogging 

• Nada

Accessibility

• Nada

Remodel

• Nada

Other stuff

• Tons and tons of gnarly work stuff happening this week. Big win for me in not falling apart, though. Yay for me!

Next up:

• All the stuff from last time.
• Write the 'About' page.
• Contact designer and appliance people about the refrigerator.
• Get back on track with cooking, eating well, and all of that goodness.

 

Yes, Rebels! Teeing myself up to finish strong!

[Seabright]

Fri, Dec 16 

 

Back on track! Bonus points for mailing all my Christmas cards and getting up this morning at 5:00am to write an essay.

 

Hiking and the outdoors

• Nada
• Wish I could this one was better, but it is what it is.

Blogging 

• About page written and up on site.
• Tested site for accessibility and found image gaps.
• Currently renaming all img filenames and adding alt text.
• Asked my helper for an invoice to wrap up the expenses for 2022 tax purposes.
• Almost there!

Accessibility

• Finished all the updates to the old page!
• Reviewed  the proposed new page and found it to be horrific!
• Informed a bunch of people of the plan so I'm not working in a silo!
• Yay for me!

Remodel

• Set up an appointment with the designer to talk tile.

Other stuff

• Started making a healthy lunch again.
• Tried a new recipe and it was really good--and easy to make.
• Had one of those homeopathic moments where a new dosage had me reliving chiildhood trauma. Took a couple of days to get that one out of my system. Better now. 

Next up:

• 2-week vacation starts today at 5:00pm. Woo hoo!
• Will spend this time doing some hiking and outdoors-like stuff.
• And napping. Power napping.

 

Alrighty, Rebels! The end of the year is nigh!

[Seabright]

Fri, Dec 30

 

Last update of the year! Yay!

 

Hiking and the outdoors

• Welp, it's been raining raining raining here, but got in a very nice walk in the redwoods during the 3 hour window where it wasn't raining.
• The last 2 days saw me doing some yoga-ish stuff for the first time in a long time. Gotta get flexy and strong for hiking in 2023.

Blogging 

• Pushed the site  live! Live, I tell you! Live!
• I then spent a couple of hours fixing everything that was broken.
• Next up: editorial calendar and actual writing.

Accessibility

• On vacation since 12/17, so nada. 
• Looking forward to getting back to this next week.

Remodel

• We have a start date! A start date, I tell you!
• March 20.
• We picked out kitchen floor tile (because the first choice didn't actually work so well).
• Designer is now doing the tile plan for both rooms so we can place our orders.

Other stuff

• You know, it really did take a while to shake off that reliving-childhood-trauma thing. Like, well past Christmas. Better now.
• Have kept on track with a fairly healthy hot lunch that's quick and easy to fix.
• Looked at the finances through the eyes of someone who would reallllly like to retire in 5 years. This may not be possible, but let's act like it is, just for fun.
• Did some great power-napping with kitty-kins. 

Next up:

• Joined the Anit-Challenge Challenge! Woo hoo!
• Reset for 2023!
• Yay!

 

I'll do a year-end wrap-up in a bit. Stay tuned.

[Seabright]

Annnnnnd, that's a wrap!

 

Time to grade myself to see how I did! Woo hoo!

 

1. Eat right and take care of myself

• Did great with the eating, and inadvertently lost a bit of weight to boot.
• Prioritized all medical appointments and did what I was told to do.
• Connected with a cool quack doctor. (Yay, homeopathy! Who knew?)
• As part of the homeopathy stuff, inadvertently addressed some underlying childhood trauma for the first time. Like, ever. 
• As a result of all of this, I feel lighter, healthier, and more optimistic than I have in years.
• A+

 

2. At work, I now care about just 2 things: accessibility and partnerships

• This was a huge change for me, and reduced my general work anxiety level HUGELY.
• I put a stickie on my desktop to remind me to ask myself 3 things when a niggle arises.
• To with, will caring about this...
  • Get me hiking and camping more?
  • Strengthen my peer partnerships?
  • Make an impact on accessibility?
• Sticking to this has made me less of an oaf in meetings, and a better and more pleasant partner overall.
• There's still some work to do to repair old damage, but I'm well on my way.
• A-

 

3. Keep moving forward on the remodel

• Looking back, it now seems sorta silly that this had to be an official goal to get things going, but there ya go.
• We have a start date, cabinets on order, a strong start to picking out materials and accoutrements.
• We'll be challenged by living in a 10-ft trailer for 8 weeks in 2023, but we are trained professionals and this does not phase us.
• All in all, I'm really happy with how far we've come. 
• A

 

 

POWER WORD FOR 2022: Joy!

• Joy was achieved! 
• Mostly in the form of wonderful hikes in the redwoods and surrounding hills.
• Awful foot issue now managed.
• Looking forward to doing more in 2023.
• Yay!
• A

 

Okay! That's 2 As, an A- and an A+! What's that spell for achievement on those 2022 goals?

 

A

 

Woo hoo! Bring on 2023! I'll meet you there, Rebels!