We’re firmly in the second quarter of 2020! Let’s face it—this year is not shaping up to be the best year ever in any way, but I’m committed to sticking to the goals I set, and hopefully, the act of marking some of them as achieved will help. Maybe. Who knows anymore? I mean, “survive a global pandemic” is a good enough goal at this point in time, but alas, let’s take a look at the goals I set at the end of last year when the word “pandemic” was not a part of my daily lexicon.
1. Move to a new apartment. The plan is to move in August (it’s only the hottest month to move, so why not?) After doing some preliminary research on what I can expect to pay in rent, though, I’m feeling disheartened and frustrated. Why is rent so expensive?! It’s causing me to toss around the idea of buying vs renting. It means staying in my tiny apartment for another few years, but it’s starting to make more sense to funnel the extra money I would be spending on rent at a new apartment (easily $500 more) and saving it for a down payment.
2. Pay off my credit card – and keep it paid off. I’m getting close to having this paid off. It will definitely get paid off in Q2 and then it’s up to me to keep it that way.
3. Complete 12 monthly health challenges. I haven’t been doing great with these, but here are the health challenges I’ve attempted:
- January: Drink water every day. Complete.
- February: Eat one serving of fruit every day. Not complete.
- March: No fast food. Complete.
4. Do one new thing every month. So far, so good!
- January: Learned to meditate
- February: Ran a mud race
- March: Went kayaking
5. Go on 24 first dates. I did not go on a single first date in Q1, lol. It would be a miracle if this was completed. When will dating be safe again?!
6. Make at least three “green” changes to my living environment. This is complete, actually! I may try to make some more green changes to exceed the goal I set. 🙂
- I eliminated one-use makeup wipes and now use micellar water and a reusable cloth to take off my makeup.
- I got rid of the disposable cotton pads I would use to apply toner and now use reusable cotton pads.
- I changed my mop from a Swiffer that uses disposable cleaning pads to this brand that has a reusable cleaning pad that I can throw in the washer.
7. Work out 150 times. I’m at 40 workouts in 2020 so far, so I’m on track to meet this goal (as long as I log 10 more workouts in April!). I love checking off my workouts on my chart!
8. Finish my novel and get through one round of revisions. Ugh. I made some good progress on my novel in January, less so in February, and not at all in March. I’d like to get back to my novel soon, but it’s hard to find the motivation right now. I think “trying to survive a global pandemic” is a good excuse, though.
9. Complete the 2020 Unread Shelf Project. I’m doing great with this challenge and it’s been really enjoyable! I like having one task a month to check off; it’s so much more doable for me because I know I’m reading books I want to read (after all, I bought them!) and can donate any books that I didn’t like or I DNF-ed.
- January: read any book on your unread shelf (Nasty Women, DNF)
- February: read a book that’s been gifted to you (The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver, ★★★★☆)
- March: read the book that’s been on your unread shelf the longest (Every Wild Heart by Meg Donohue, ★★★☆☆)
10. Get my third tattoo. This is still a very big goal of mine, but alas, one that will be on the back burner until we see what happens with COVID-19.
You are doing really well with your goals! Well done! You inspired me to get reusable cotton pads – I got some a month or 2 ago and really like them. Granted, I don’t use them right now because I don’t wear make up so don’t feel super motivated to keep up my night face routine. Maybe I will pay for that? We’ll see!
I didn’t set goals for 2020 and I’m kind of glad I didn’t because this year has thrown all of us such a big curve ball. One unofficial goal I had was to get our interior walls painted. But who knows when it will be safe to have someone (or a team of people) come in and do that? Oh well. I did pick out a color, though!
You are kicking butt! I am excited to see what your try new thing is for April!
Your green changes inspire me. I should try a more green makeup remover and cleaning solution for my floors, too.
So if you buy instead of rent will you look for something similar (condo) in a few years, or a home? Or, you don’t know?
I was just thinking this am how I want to get a Data tattoo but still don’t have a design in mind! Can’t wait to see yours when you get it!
Hey, man. Survive a global pandemic is a great goal!
The rent vs buy equation is so tough. I think we have landed in the place where, until we pay off a bit more of our debt, it makes sense to keep renting but we even question that. I think what we are going to do is have a look at the market after things kind of…settle a bit. It might be a thing where it makes more sense to buy then. Or it might not? Adulting is so hard sometimes.
I’ve also struggled with novel-ing in the last little bit. I think it’s because of how insane work has been. That said, I am trying to get back into a more normal routine with it. I joined a “Write 10K in a Day” group on Facebook, and they do a lot of sprinting these days (the Courtney project from YouTube runs it, if you’re familiar?). I’ve found that helpful.
Looks like you’re doing pretty good with the goals despite all the uncertainty 🙂 Hopefully things will get back to more normal sooner as opposed to later!
You’re doing great on your goals. I am impressed as everything seems to be “put on hold” right now… but I am glad you’re still finding ways to achieve those goals.
Don’t get me started on rent. CA is also so expensive. I dream of a nice, modern, large apartment… but I don’t see this happening here. I could use a second bedroom right now, too.
Do you already know what your third tattoo will be of, or are you still deciding? 🙂