Winter Break Update

So this might not be the most exciting post for you readers, but I've found that keeping a To Do List is extremely motivating. Whenever I got bored or wondered what to do this week, I checked my list for ideas. Making this list also helped me to remember other smaller things I needed to get done, encouraging me to get them out of the way so I could work on my list. I think the fact it's public pushes me to become more efficient. Anyway.

Here are the goals I listed about a week ago, along with a quick update on my progress.

Practice wheel throwing and finish some artwork. Since I will be teaching some ceramics classes in the spring, I need to get as much practice in as possible. I went the entire first semester without throwing, so I need to get back into the swing of things! I spent a lot of time this week wheel throwing! Though I didn't get as much accomplished as I would like, I feel a lot more knowledgable about what I need to work on. This will definitely help me transition to wheel throwing at Haverford.

Find homes for my artwork. I have a lot more artwork than I can handle. I'd like to find good homes for my sculptures, bottles, and pots. When I'm selling or giving away my work, people always ask me, "Well don't you want to keep that?" As much as I enjoy making the work, I could not possibly display and store all of the artwork I will make from now until eternity. . . I've looked through what artwork I have, and I was pleasantly surprised that I have less than I thought. I talked to my art teacher from high school, and I'll be able to display/sell some of the pottery I have left. What I want most is to find homes for my sculptures though. We'll see what happens.

Finish knitting my scarf. I've been working on the same scarf since Thanksgiving, and I'd like to finish it soon so I can start learning to knit more complicated things! I haven't made any progress on this one since I posted about it. I'll definitely work on it soon!

Practice my sewing skills and make more bags. So our sewing machine is getting taken to the shop, and I've been using the one at my Nana's house. Hopefully ours will get fixed soon--that will make it a lot more convenient for me to practice! We got the sewing machine fixed, thanks to my Nana. I haven't gotten a chance to use it yet, but I will!

(This picture is really dark because my basement has horrible light. Sorry!)

Clean up the backyard and tend to my compost. Before Fall Break, I said to my mom, "I wish I could come home. I'd rake the entire yard for you!" I enjoy yard work. Though my mom wished I could have come home (and not just because of my offering of yard work), it wasn't feasible. When I came home for Winter Break I got a surprise--my mom left the entire back yard untouched. So I get to rake up all the leaves for my compost. Yay! My mom and I raked up and mowed over the majority of the leaves. In the past, we've always paid someone to come and haul our leaves away. Using the mower breaks them up so they can be quickly and easily condensed into a manageable pile and dumped on the compost.

(Sorry for the photo's blurriness. The sun was actually in front of me, though the clouds obscured it! The quality of my photos is pretty off today, huh?)

Clean up the garden. Enough said. I did as much as I thought was necessary. I didn't worry too much about all of the weeds because it is still winter. I got the tomato plants and trellises out though!

Finish "The Tightwad Gazette II". The trouble with library books is that I can't take them back to school with me. I'd like to finish this one before I go back. About halfway through. I checked out another book though so we'll see if they both get finished!

Go to the Value Village monthly half off sale. Since it's winter, I can't go to garage sales and I've been itching to go. The storewide half off sale once a month at Value Village is almost as good. Hopefully I'll find some cool furniture for my mom to refurbish! Apparently I've been away so long I'd forgotten which Wednesday the monthly half off sale was on. It's not the first Wednesday of the month--it's the last Wednesday. Oh well!

Cook up some recipes I've been wanting to try. I want to try recipes for making my own crackers and other items people typically just buy from the store. I didn't make crackers, but I did make hummus and yogurt! I'll fill you in on my yogurt making experience soon.

Research internship opportunities and apply. Haverford pretty much has more resources than they know what to do with. I want to take full advantage of them. I found a program I am interested in and emailed the contact at Haverford with some questions. I'll tell you more about this later too!

So that's my list. I'm happy with how many things I've accomplished lately, both on and off my list.  I can confidently say making this list public has helped motivate me and organize my time. How do you help yourself get things done? Post a comment below!