13 Seasonal Goals: Winter 2014/2015

Hello, everyone! It's been a little quiet around here with the holidays and a general case of the "mehs" on my part. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and is ready to jump in to a bright new year.

Although I achieved some of my autumn goals, there were many that I didn't complete, so I'm looking to be more productive in the coming weeks by setting some goals for the winter season.

Donate to a person/cause I want to support.
I'm not 100% sure what I will donate to yet, but a donation shall be made!

Undecided social thing.

Undecided social thing.
The social things are tough for me because I literally have one local friend and family to hang out with, so I pretty much let things happen as they will regarding social plans. Sad, I know.

Save at least $100.
Perhaps this can be the start of my A-kon fund!

Complete a winter writing challenge.
Lacy and I wrote down 30-ish words/phrases related to winter/the holidays, and I plan on using them to write short stories or poems throughout the season.

Make an accessory for my dark mori witch cosplay.
This is something I wanted to do for my autumn goals, but I didn't have the time or resources to do something. To be honest, I'm not exactly sure what I want to make, so I need to do a bit of thinking and planning.

Find a new job.
My job is killing me, and I need to get out. Plain and simple.

Get a haircut.
It's been over a year! I need a fresh start!

Go to a movie.
It's also been over a year since I last went to the theater to see a movie, so I'd like to go see The Hobbit!

Read a book that takes place during winter.
I read a couple winter/Christmas themed books already, but I have a couple more that would make nice season reads.

Create  a playlist for one of my characters.
I love the idea of associating music with stories or characters, and I have a very particular idea regarding by character Berry-Black and music. He's a singer who owns a lounge/club, and I might choose him for this project. 

Paint a canvas.
Still have those canvases. Still have those paints. Still haven't done a dang thing with them.

Make a purchase I've been meaning/planning to make.
There are several things I've been trying to get around to buying, and I'd like to mark at least one of those off my list this season. Maybe I'll buy the wig for my witch costume. Maybe I'll pre-register for A-kon. Maybe I'll by that cheap ball-jointed doll head to practice face-ups on. Not sure what it will be yet, but hopefully at least one of these things will happen.

Well, that's what I came up with for this round. Hopefully I can accomplish a lot and have fun while doing so. Do you have any goals you'd like to complete this winter? Feel free to tell me about them in the comments. Or, if you decide to do a blog post, v-log, etc., about your goals, I'd be happy to add a link to your entry!

For more seasonal goals posts, please take a look at the following:
Petticoat Pedaler
Night Lights and Day Dreams

Thanks for a reading, and have a very Happy New Year!

Strangely,
Chantel

Memories, Dreams of Autumn

Autumn is upon us! In theory, anyway. Here in south Texas, there’s not much of an autumn to speak of anymore, but I have wonderful memories of the season from when I was a child.

I remember the way the air started to cool, almost imperceptibly, but there was a sense of warmth surrounding the season, the same way the smells of fires burning in fireplaces makes a cold winter day seem somehow warm.

I remember the leaves on our chinaberry tree turning gold, orange, brown, and red. I remember them falling to the ground, hiding the green of grass beneath the new colors of fall. My twin sister, Lacy, and I, along with our friend, and neighbor, Jay, would gather twigs and rocks, sit among the leaves in our front yard, and pretend to be out camping. The crunch and rustle of leaves filled the air as we shuffled through them. We were warriors, fantasy creatures, ninjas, royalty, anything our imaginations could conjure. And although spring, summer, and winter provided unique opportunities for play, I somehow remember autumn the most clearly.

Perhaps it’s because I yearn terribly for the season that seems to escape me year after year. I want the crisp, cool air. I want to see the leaves change and fall. I want to feel the difference between the seasons instead of having only the near-constant heat of spring and summer as they spread later and later into the second half of the year. This yearning is what, on occasion, makes me think I’d like to move somewhere generally cooler so I can experience distinct seasons again. That, and the fact that I want to wander through beautiful forests like some kind of faery, and there aren’t any beautiful forests where I live. Another dilemma is all the amazing sweaters the stores sell around this time. I love so many of them, but it’s so pointless to buy so many sweaters when I can only wear them a couple days a year. It’s tough.

Autumn Leaves by Colin Brough

To me, autumn is magical. I all too often, when working on stories, make sure to build my timelines to include part of the season because I’d much rather write about cozy sweater-wearing characters crunching through leaves, sipping hot beverages, baking delicious pumpkin-based goodies, and anticipating the holidays than any number of things that might take place in spring or summer.

Plus. Plus! It’s the season of baking, steamy bowls of soup or chili, hot cocoa, Halloween, Thanksgiving, warm colors, and so much more! Lacy and I have already made a few pumpkin-based treats, like frosted pumpkin cookies and pumpkin cinnamon roll pancakes. Honestly, for a season that barely exists in this area, I look forward to it almost all year. My body is ready for autumn…always.

So, what’s autumn like where you are? Do you have any particular memories or thoughts regarding the season? Feel free to tell me all about them! No matter how you feel about autumn, I hope it starts off magnificently for you, and that it is full of delightful surprises.

Strangely,

Chantel