Hello Treasure Seekers! Here we are for another meeting where I think, then I write; so you can read, and maybe then you think too! Not too hard, I hope. It is good to think about things, but if you are Always Thinking…like I am, it can be exhausting. Want to know a secret? It is also exhilarating.
I am building a website. You know that if you follow this blog. I am writing a book. You know that also for the same reason. I have more than one book in me to write, and that is something that I am happy about. In the music world, there are one hit wonders. I want to be a best selling author, and that means I have to write more than one book. I don’t expect to hit it out of the park with my first book, but a girl can dream.
So what holds people back from taking the leap of faith into the exhilarating world of chasing your dreams and chasing their passion? I have been thinking about that a lot, lately. I have been dragging my feet about my website launch. I am struggling with the importance of it. I want to change it, but not too much. There needs to be a bit of familiarity to make people want to take the leap with me, and that requires a foundation built on trust. I am working hard to put myself out there so that when I make the leap, there is a landing pad to aim for. Since I am writing about this in the Treasure Seekers category, I need a map and a big letter X to the destination.
I have been working on this website in my mind for months. I know what I want to do, and now that NaNoWriMo is over, it is time for me to take action on it. I do have time this weekend, but me, really, building my own website? I never learned how to do anything like this before? What if nobody ever goes to it? What if nobody ever buys any books from my website? What if it fails?
The fear of the what ifs can be paralyzing. If you are too scared to try, then you have already failed. What is the alternative, then?
To take action. To stop thinking and start doing. I don’t always have all of the answers, but I have never been too afraid to ask questions. More importantly, the end result is worth asking questions for. I am working on all of this with an end goal in mind. Although like a resume, a website is never going to be sufficient to be left alone when it is done. Inevitably there will need to be changes and updates. If it is left the same for too long, it runs the risk of losing its zest. That is one of the reasons that I have decided to move this blog to my own website.
It is a risk. It is scary. It involves a fair bit of work, which I am not scared of, itself. I am more worried about getting stuck in the middle and not being ready to launch on New Year’s Day. That is the goal I have set for myself, and with that in mind, I have time, if I get working on it right away.
The other thing I see people sharing online is the fear of being seen as an imposter. I am an author. I am writing constantly, several times a week if not every day. I had to build up my stamina as a writer. I needed to test the waters (make a splash) with the blog to see if it was something that I would keep working on, instead of something I just wanted to play with and drop when I got bored. I am still writing here, so I passed the first test I gave myself. I pushed to learn new things. I am taking courses online. I am not spending a lot of money on this passion, yet. I will need to work on a business plan. That means I have to take another course (YAY! #HAPPYWRITING has a course for me to learn how to do this) and I need to take the next step. I need to research what I need to know about publishing options. In the middle of everything I have going on right now, I also have to write my book. Then I will literally switch gears and write another book. The second book will be going in a completely different direction. I have a concept already. It is another one I NEED to write. I am hoping to get the first two books out of my system so that I can prove that I can write a book, and start preparing to make the fantasy trilogy a reality, not just a dream.
When I publish my first book, and sell just one copy, I will no longer be working towards the passion of becoming an author. Of course, I want to sell more than one copy of my book. One is a good place to start. Then we will see what happens. Until that day comes, I will keep working on writing and building my website. If I am doing instead of thinking about what to do, it takes the fear and the imposter syndrome right out of the equation. That is something to work for. When I am a best selling author, and I believe that I will be one, I can start tackling other dreams. Chocolate diamonds are a part of that dream…
#TreasureSeekerTuesday
Treasure Seeker Tuesday: Photo by Tish MacWebber; Photo Edited by Noa Price
Okay. I said I wasn’t going to write in this category every week. I still stand by that, but today I had some free time, a new dress to wear, and that led to me playing with makeup today.
First of all, I am wearing the dress I bought during Black Friday 2017 that I had to take home after I tried it on. I love it.
My new navy dress
I love it so much I want to wear it for my Author Headshots, whenever I plan that day. I thought it would be warmer, being a knit dress, though. I will be changing in a bit to work in the kitchen, and I will hang it up for another day.
A tale of 2 lipsticks is what I am sharing today. A lot of you liked the pink one last time. I have worn that same pink, and also tried a bronzer and a different blush today. I used the Maybelline Expert Wear Mocha Motion eyeshadow palette. I did not use the shadow eyeliner. I used the essence one I used last time, and I also used the same Maybelline Mascara.
I watched some videos on the contour NYX palette I have. I learned to use salmon pink under my eyes. I also used green for red tones under my foundation. I used a little of the bottom left concealer on my forehead also.
Then I added Annabelle Perfect Bronze in Sunkissed after blending the colour correcting pink & green and then applying the QUO foundation I used last time. I then chose a pinker blush, by Maybelline. It is called Dream Bouncy Blush, and the colour is 45 Orchid Hush. It is more natural than my new winter blush I wore the last time.
SO I used the pink lipstick on the left side of the pic below, Urban Decay Vice Liquid Lipstick (ZZ). The right is Lip Lingerie, by NYX. The colour is Lipli20 French Maid, and I was told when I bought it that it was one of the most popular colours. It is a less bold colour, so it is even a more natural look for me than the pink.
I am going to share the pics below, and then you can see the tale of 2 lipsticks for yourself. Which one looks more like a best selling Author look to you? I have not purchased my new glasses yet.
If you have a preference, please leave a comment below. Thanks for reading, and have fun playing with makeup. I do.
#MakeupMonday
We are on the verge of a new year, Treasure Seekers! I have alluded to picking a word to define my 2018 earlier in the week. I picked the word success. I want 2018 to be my most successful year ever.
What does that mean to me? Well, I sat down and wrote a list for my Facebook posts until New Year’s Day. I started this on December 17th, and that gives me a count of 15 days until January 1st.
Here is my list of what it would mean to have a year of Success in 2018:
15.Launching my Website on January 1st, 2018. (I have 14 more days to work on this)
14.Learning how to make a proper Launch and Landing page before the website launch on January 1st, 2018. Also setting up an email list and starting a newsletter.
12. Supplementing my income with sales from my website.
11.Plan a real vacation. 2 weeks. Need to fly to get there and back. 2 days before and after, 10 days at the destination.
10.Jewellery sales increasing after adding the jewellery to the website.
9.Using my 2 new 2018 planners to the fullest extent.
8.Purging things. Lots of things. More than last year.
7.Finishing the Housecleaning challenge. A Bowl Full of Lemons runs it, check it out online here. There is a Facebook Group, but it is a closed group. You will need to ask to join it if you are interested in that.
6.Having a job related to the field of writing.
5.Collaborating with musicians to get at least one of my songs recorded and playable for other people to hear. Writing more lyrics.
4.Getting a new pet (or a duo).
3.Becoming more active.
2.Lose weight the right way
1.Become a Best Selling Author.
I know. That list is ambitious. It reflects my current mindset and goals. I am writing it here and now (and all the rest of December on my Facebook page) because I am not making New Years Resolutions this year. I am just going to set the bar high and do my best to make my way over the top.
I challenge you all to do the same. Let’s make 2018 the best year ever. I am starting now. What about you?
As always, feel free to comment on what this post meant to you when you read it. If you pick a word or want to share a list of your own, I would be happy to see it.
#TreasureSeekerTuesday
Treasure Seeker Tuesday: Photo by Tish MacWebber; Photo Edited by Noa Price
Well, another weekend is coming to a close, and I have hibernated for as much of it as I could. Winter is here, and it has been cold outside. Sleeping in was on my list, and I can say that it happened indeed. I woke with no alarm clocks being set for 2 days in a row. It was glorious. My favourite thing about the weekend is sleeping in. Sometimes I have to get up and go do things, but not this weekend. I stayed home and did things here instead.
Friday night I didn’t even go get the car. I came home after a day of Christmas Cheer at work. I had to decorate my pod for Christmas, and I did it up right!
I don’t know why the pic is squished, and I had to add a little bit of graphics to hide the photo bomber. 😀 The wall on the left had a lot more Christmas balls hanging before I was done. My taller Santa is on the top right, and there were 2 gingerbread people behind where my head was by the time I had finished. I had fun, and I am hoping that my efforts earned me a prize.
I had to pack it all up at the end of the day and brought it all home. I have just encouraged Roy to clear a space for the Christmas tree and village in the living room. Since it is a small tree, I will set it all up in the little spot I had him clear. I will share pics of that next weekend after I have time to set it all up. There is just the two of us, so no need to make a big production. I do want to set it up, though. Tis the Christmas Season, and I am wanting to take a pic with it after it is all done.
Saturday was spent working on Social Media. I am working on building my author profile, as you know if you are reading my blog, and I came across a post by a friend asking about what word I would want to use to define my 2018. I thought about it, and 2017 was worthy of 2 words. Learning and Challenges. As I thought about it, really not that long at all, a word came right to the forefront of my mind that I wanted it to be. I then turned it into a graphic and made it my cover pic on my wall.
Also this weekend, I have set goals for working on my website, done 2 completely different profile pics in preparation for my Author Headshot, and also for my Blog. I am launching the monthly Makeup Monday category tomorrow. I will not be posting there every week, I have 3 weekly posts now, and if I add too much more I will not have any time to write my books! I can say that I am steeping the GGMS I wrote about making on Thursday, in Trust Your Gut and that I have 3 types of chicken cooking in my oven as I write this. Last week was more of a ground beef week, this week it is all about the chicken!
I will be sharing more about my word choice for 2018 in Treasure Seeker Tuesday this week. Which means the one I wrote for this week is now scheduled for Boxing day. What? I actually have a Tuesday already drafted for 2 weeks in the future AND I know what I want to write about this week? I think I might actually be getting a handle on this blogging thing. I would love to get ahead enough that I don’t sweat missing the deadlines anymore. But, as I have said before and will again, progress is progress.
I did not go out into the cold and snow this weekend, but my Ambivert Personality has to be balanced somehow. I found out this past week that when I do the personality type quizzes, that I am sometimes an Extrovert, and other times an Introvert. That tells me I am a little of both, which is called an Ambivert. I like being social, and outgoing, but not all of the time. Sometimes I need a weekend or two to just be at home relaxing. I can do either when I want to, but I also equally enjoy both activities.
Do you have a Defining Word picked out for 2018 yet? If you do, please share it below, and keep it in mind for Tuesday. If you are up for a challenge, I have an idea that you can participate in if you want to try an experiment with me.
#WeekendWarrior
Trust Your Gut is a series of stories about real people with weight issues, and complications arising from those issues. It will explain what the person is facing, what their options are, what they have decided to do to take action, and why they chose the path they are on. Each person’s story will be based on truth, so it won’t all be happy, but it will be real. The goal of this series is to get people talking about options that are available for people who have weight issues, on either end of the scale. If you would like to contribute to this series, there is a contact form linked on my Homepage for this blog. I know there are people out there that want to help people like them; as I do.
The names here may or may not reflect the person’s real name. If someone wants to remain unknown, we will choose a different name for that person’s story. The goal is to help people, and anonymity is a valid personal choice for contributors. I will use a person’s name only if they give permission to do so.
This week I am pleased to share another of my own stories.
Here is Trust Your Gut: Tish’s Story; Part 42
I got creative in the kitchen, yesterday. It has been a while. I made brown rice and added fresh mushrooms, green onion, and leftover roast beef in it. I used hoisin sauce. It was in the cupboard, so I used it. It made supper for 2 last night, and my lunch today. I have a little roast beef and green onion left for my roast beef special sandwich for lunch tomorrow. I really love roast beef, green onion, tomato, mayo and A1 sauce done up like a roast beef salad sandwich. My mom named it The Roast Beef Special, and I make it every time I cook a roast beef in the oven.
It has been a busy year for me. I have been working hard on the book, the website, the organizing, the blog, and building my business from the ground up. I have spent hours working on all of these things, but I think I forgot something along the way. Me. My health. I got lazy.
It is so much easier to be lazy and not do the work needed to live a healthier lifestyle. I have lost and gained. I am again scared to weigh myself. I am just not wanting to know the bad news. I am getting back into the practice of making better choices. I have to. My health depends on it.
I have had to work on the insulin levels again. That means I am doing better, when I start having lows it means I am needing to lower the dose. That means my body is responding to the things that I am doing right.
We are on the edge of a food-centered holiday. I am not sure how well I will do. On one hand, I can make treats and try to stick to the THM plan. It is a good way to try to plan ahead. There will be times, though when I will not be in control of the meal, and I will have to make the best choices that I can at the time. Other times I will make things that I know will be good choices to have to eat when I can. So I do have a plan. Sort of.
I also need to start making the moonshine again. Yes, you read that right. THM has a recipe for Good Girl Moonshine. GGMS as it is called, has water, apple cider vinegar, and ginger with a sweetener in it. I add Black Cherry Berry Celestial Seasonings tea to mine. I really enjoy drinking it, and it makes you run to release it if you catch my drift. I have learned that I should not drink it during the day while I am at work. I can have it after work and on the weekends, though. I bought a mason jar with a spout just for the GGMS. I think it is time for a test run. I need to start making little changes now so that I will be on track for 2018.
Have you started thinking about New Year’sResolutions yet? I have, and I will get them organized and plan things out better this year. I did a lot in 2017. What do I want to accomplish in 2018? More. I want to take everything I have done in 2017 and do it better in 2018. It is a place to start, and to build on. That is something I can do, start with little things, and push my limits and go for everything. One thing at a time, then another, and another. I have to start somewhere, and I am not going to wait. The only one that loses out if I keep putting things off is me. And the only thing I want to lose is weight. The time is now.
#TrustYourGut