Week 26: Book Outline and Quarterly Planning

This week's goal was #59 from my list of 60 and a work-related goal:

Create outline for book about Agile in everyday life

Kind of difficult to write an interesting blog post about creating an outline. There's not even a picture I can post! However, I've been toying with the idea of writing an Agile-related book for years, and so this was the first step.

Something I discovered when working on this is that at this time of my life, I don't want to spend solitary time in front of the computer.  I struggle to even get this little weekly blog post written so I'm really not motivated to take on a book.

That being said, I went to an Agile user-group meeting this week and it's always fun for me to spend time with other Agilists. Every time I start talking about Agile (especially with others in the field) I realize how much I really love the mindset and philosophies and want to stay active in that world. And my ego got a big boost when the organizer of the group publicly recognized me and wrote me an email about how happy he was to have me at the meeting.

So, even though I did not feel like 'working' during this beautiful summer week, I'm very proud of myself that I got my butt in gear and not only wrote the outline for this book, but pitched a couple of articles to TechBeacon. I'm a frequent contributor for them and I've already talked to some of the publishers before about reusing some of my content for a book and they were all for it!

I'm also exploring a lot of options so that I can stay active in the Agile community without having to do the traditional thing of going into an office every day.

What worked well:

• Helped me organize my thoughts around different book ideas that have been rummaging around in my head.
• Good to go to the user-group meeting and reconnect with other Agile coaches.
• I have a lot of good ideas for alternatives to a book that I could do to stay active in the Agile community.
• I pitched a couple of articles and wrote a first draft of an article that might be used at TechBeacon and repurposed for a book.

What could have been better:

• I'm just not in a place right now where I want to spend a lot of time writing. But even if I don't use the outline to go on to write a whole book, I might use it to create ebooks, a course, blog posts, podcasts, etc.

And since it is the end of the quarter (Happy Half New Year's Eve!), it's also time to do some reflection and planning for next quarter! Yippee!

Reflections:

What's working well:

• Overall, I've kept up my pace of accomplishing and blogging about one goal a week.  I feel healthier, happier, and like I have better relationships. I've met a lot of new friends and am much more intentional and mindful in my every day habits.
• I haven't missed a single day all year of getting at least 10K steps and I've really enjoyed meeting new people in hiking Meetups.  I'd logged over 1000 miles for the year by early June, so I'm on track to get 2019 miles by the end of the year.  

• I made my second set of slideshows of my '60 until 60 celebrations.'

• I've made a lot of progress on house projects and learning new things, especially Spanish!

What could be better:

• I haven't kept up with my weekly 1:1 celebrations and I don't want to pressure friends who are very busy to have a 1:1 celebration with me, so I may not end up having 60 of these.  In fact, "Taylor" from my slideshow, wasn't even a "real friend" but someone who was part of this DCPA "Blind Date Experience" (Still, it was a cool, unique experience, so I "counted" it!

Plan for next quarter:

There are a bunch of goals that I've already planned for or started working on or that I think I can complete in the next quarter. Though I may change my mind, these are the goals that are in good shape to be completed before the end of September:

• Hike in beautiful spots Including Crested Butte during wildflower season) 
• Try PickleBall
• Contribute to any cause that a friend asks me to support
• Practice the piano and be able to play some of the pieces I used to play well along with some new pieces.
• Explore an acting class or group and try to get a part in a play
• Go to the Meowolf exhibit in Santa Fe with Stella and Matt
• Visit Minnesota friends in August
• Dress up and go to a musical at the theater
• Sell, give-away, throwaway and organize what’s left of my games, puzzles, and toys
• Put DIY walls in basement that will allow me to hang pictures, etc.
• Label and repair my breaker box
• Get rid of or repair floor lamps
• Hang pretty lights in basement and bedroom

Yay!!

Week 25: Host a Theme Party

I love a good theme party. Themes are just great to spark creativity. Whether it be for New Year's Resolutions, gift-giving, figuring out what to write, or having a party, I love having a theme! So that's why this week's goal is #28 from my list:

Host a theme party (Flamingo, Carpe Diem, Wine-Tasting, Murder Mystery, Games, Purple,etc.)

I picked Pink Flamingos as my theme because I have a plethora of pink flamingo paraphernalia that needed to be put to good use! I have really been trying to live by this "use it or lose it" mentality and not just storing a bunch of stuff that I'll never use.

I'm not really sure how my pink flamingo collection began, but I've always been enamored by the whimsical figure and the bird does represent warm, sunny places which I am always lusting after. I happily accept the pink flamingo as my personal mascot and, hence, have enjoyed additions to my collection over the years (Thanks to my kids, sister, and most recently, my favorite blog commenter, MB!)

I even collect pictures and movies of pink flamingos I've seen at various zoos or in unexpected places!

Here's a movie of the Marching Flamingos that my friend, Lisa and I saw at the Ardastra Zoo in the Bahamas last year. I had such a moment of bonding with the confused flamingo who didn't know where he was going.

Yes, I have a lot of fondness for flamingos and we're in danger of getting side-tracked on this post, so let's get back to the party... 

I belong to a women's group who meets monthly for a potluck and this month I'd volunteered to host, excited that I'd be able to fulfill my theme party goal. I assumed women would be much more amenable than men to wearing pink and embracing the silliness of a pink flamingo party.

The women came through with potluck dishes that included salmon, shrimp, crab, beets, watermelon, and strawberry-rhubarb crisp for dessert! We drank rosé and pink spiked punch which tickled us pink!

I made good use of my many flamingo accessories and was touched to get some sweet pink roses from one of the ladies to adorn my table.

My hat and glasses collection came in handy for people to pose in a flamingo 'photo booth' area which added to the flamingo falderal.

The only sad part is that my good friend, Cathy who is the friend who got me involved with this group, wasn't able to come because she's been recovering from back surgery. I did set up a little flamingo card-making area so we could remember our friend and let her know we were thinking of her.

All in all, I would say we successfully flamingled!

What worked well:

• Nice that my friends embraced and participated in the theme by wearing pink and bringing pink foods!
• Had fun putting my various flamingo items to use.
• Nice that I found the flamingo photo backdrop at Dollar Tree! (In fact, Dollar Tree is a good source for flamingo stuff of all sorts!)

What could have been better:

• So sorry that my friend, Cathy, is still in so much pain from her back surgery and wasn't able to make it.

Week 24: Learn Spanish

For as long as I can remember, I've been fascinated with foreign languages.  At age 17, after a lengthy application process to become a Rotary Club Exchange Student in which I'd specified that I wanted to go to Italy, France, or Spain, I was told I had been accepted into the program! Unfortunately, the country I was told I would go to was Japan... Japanese was not really a language on my list, but, hey, I'd do my best.

That was over 40 years ago, and I've forgotten most of my Japanese. I, also, never lost my desire to learn Italian, French, and Spanish. This year, it was time to pick one of those languages and get serious about learning it!

That's why Goal #24 on my list of 60 is:

Get better at a foreign language (Spanish, French, and/or Italian) and practice with a friend

With the recognition that many of those snowbird spots I'd like to visit in the winter are Spanish-speaking countries, I figured Spanish would be the most practical language to master.

Unlike my "experiment with a new instrument" goal, in which I tried the guitar for about 5 minutes, I have been SERIOUS about this goal to learn Spanish.  I decided my "acceptance criteria" for this goal would be to have at least 100 days in a row of studying and needed to include practicing speaking with a native.

I'm happy to report that I'm on a 104 day Streak in Duolingo and in the Sapphire League! Take a look at all these lingots I've earned!

Besides Duolingo, I'm also using the Pimsleur apps to practice with listening and speaking. The Pimsleur app is great because it's designed to be used while walking or driving.  Pimsleur has 5 Levels, each with 30 lessons, and I just finished the 3rd Lesson of Level 3.

I've also been using other apps and books to learn the grammar.

I discovered there are a bunch of apps that will let you pair up with a native to practice so I signed up for Conversation Exchange and have gotten some partners to practice with.

The biggest investment I made was signing up to go to a Costa Rica Immersion program in January called Conversa! Conversa provides study materials and workshops and earlier this week I participated in my first workshop in which I spoke with natives! I was awful, but I did it!

I've had several opportunities to speak with native Spanish-speaking people during this 104 day stint. I've attended Meetups for those who want to learn Spanish and classes and spoken with friends who know Spanish. It's very discouraging that every time I try to speak to someone, I can't seem to get the simplest sentences right! And when I listen to native Spanish speakers? Forget it! They speak way too fast for me to be able to understand.

But I AM improving and I'm excited and looking forward to using my skills in Costa Rica next winter!

What worked well

• Gamification aspects of Duolingo motivate me to practice every day
• Love practicing with Pimsleur courses while I'm walking or driving
• So many apps available online for free, including those that let you practice with native speakers!
• Lots of opportunities to practice with classes, Meetups, native speakers, and friends
• I see improvements by consistently studying and the repetition of phrases and vocabulary
• Excited about going to Costa Rica next winter and participating in Conversa

What could be better

• It's discouraging that even after so much study, it is still so difficult to understand or converse 
• Becoming fluent may not be possible unless I live in a Spanish-speaking country

Week 23: Binge Watch a Netflix Series and Bonus Goals

Binge watch a Netflix series? You may be thinking that's kind of lame goal. If that isn't the epitome of what it means to be a lazy 'couch potato,' what is? But Goal #41 from my 60 until 60 list is, indeed:

Binge watch a Netflix series with someone

Note the "with someone" requirement.  That's what takes this goal out of the "couch potato" category and instead becomes a "bonding experience."  I have happy memories of binge watching "Lost" with Scotty when he was in high school.  We had a long stint of "Breaking Bad," together, too (that is until he started watching it with his Dad..  Geez, Scotty, you couldn't wait the weekend out?)  

The point is, I really enjoy a good Netflix binge when done with a partner.  It's like reading a book you can't put down, but with someone else.  Maybe it was bad mothering on my part, but when we got on a binge, Scotty and I were up half the night, not being able to resist watching 'just one more' episode.

So while it's not a challenge at all to "binge watch a Netflix series," it's kind of a big challenge to do that "with someone" when you're single. In fact, I was almost thinking I was going to have to 'cheat' on this one and just binge watch the same Netflix series as someone else and talk about it afterwards. 

However, I got my chance to accomplish this goal with my long-time binge buddy (and youngest child), Scotty, when he came home for an unexpected visit last week. The series we found was perfect for binge watching: "Dead to Me"..  a dark comedy about a woman in search for the hit and run driver who killed her husband.

This series worked out great because it was only one season and ten 30-minute episodes, so watchable in 5 hours. We did start at about 8pm, though, so it did bring us to 1:30am giving me that late-night-we're-being-so-decadent-and-disobedient feeling. (Perhaps this is leftover from my own childhood, when it was a 'big deal' to stay up past 'bedtime.')  It also was a series that we both really liked and that's hard to find when were talking about a 24-year-old boy and his Mom.

But, for all of you goal critics out there that scoff at such a lazy challenge, I accomplished a couple of "bonus goals" last week that weren't even on my 60-until-60 list.

First of all, I went to Colorado Springs to see Scotty's promotion ceremony to First Lieutenant at Schriever Air Force Base.  I'm sure the training I gave him with all those late night binge watches helped prepare him for the challenges he faces daily as an officer in the Air Force.

Seriously, my biggest, most important life goal has been to raise my three kids and it's my greatest joy to see them happy and successful as young adults.

And that afternoon, I climbed the Manitou Springs Incline with Scotty! This is something he'd been encouraging me to do, but I knew it would be tough.  I mean, take a look at this sign:

OK, maybe hard to read it, but basically it says every year about 100 people have to be rescued so don't do this unless you're in shape!

Scotty said people in good shape could do it in about an hour, so my goal was 90 minutes. Both Scotty and I were happily surprised that I was able to do it in 55 minutes! In fact, Scotty said most of his Air Force buddies couldn't do it as fast as I did it, and he couldn't wait to tease them that his Mom was faster than they were.

Last week, I was disappointed that I hadn't been able to run the Bolder Boulder with Scotty, but doing the Incline with him with a decent time made up for it!

Things that worked well

• "Dead to Me" was the perfect series to binge-watch since we could do it in one night and we both liked it!
• Happy that I'm able to spend quality time with my kiddo, even though he's a grown-up and living on his own now.
• Love my two unplanned "bonus goals" - Scotty's promotion ceremony and doing the incline with him.
• So proud of Scotty for the man he's become and happy that he felt proud of me for doing the Incline!

What could have been better

Can't think of single thing!

Week 22: Bolder Boulder

This week's goal was #3 from my list:

Participate and dress up in at least one fun race like the Bolder Boulder

Bolder Boulder is a big tradition for me. This was my 21rst consecutive year of participating in this 10K and I love it for many reasons. It signifies the start of summer (my favorite season!), it's a great way to remember my brother (a runner who served in the Air Force and died on Memorial Day), and.. it's just a fun party!

I love that  people dress up, that there are bands, music, and people on the sidelines doing crazy thing like giving out shots of tequila or belly dancing or squirting all the runners with water guns.  I love the beautiful scenery as we run through the streets of Boulder and every year I think: "I am SO lucky to be able to experience this!"

But I admit, this year I had a touch of melancholy, too. I have back problems and had been told by doctors to give up running a couple of years ago. Of course, in my naive I-can-overcome-anything way, I had hoped that if I built up my core, ate better, and built some muscle, maybe the doctors would give me the thumbs up to run again.  But, no..  Still too much risk of a fracture due to my curvy spine.

OK, so I couldn't run. That was disappointing. But, when there was a group on the sidelines that said they'd drink for push-ups, I was easily able to crank some out! (Something tells me the drinkers were paying no attention and were not impressed, but, hey, I was proud.)

Another cool thing? When the Bolder Boulder Marketing email to remind everyone to sign up was sent out, the picture that was used was one with me, my two sons, and daughter-in-law from last year:

Now that made me feel awesome! I may have a bad back, but we were the frickin' poster people for the Bolder Boulder!

This year, none of my family went with me (probably another thing that kind of bummed me out), but I was happy to be able to walk with a new friend, Mary, who just moved to Boulder. Here we are posing with a dino. (I have an immediate bond with anyone who will hug a dino with me.)

Even though rain was in the forecast (and you can see, I was prepared with my umbrella hat), the weather held up and the end-of-race festivities and skydivers were all able to take place with the background of patriotic songs, honors and military anthems in Folsom field.

The music and the tributes always move me and remind me that there are heroes out there and people who have made such big sacrifices for the safety of our country. Thinking about them reminds me that my back problems are nothing in comparison.

What worked well

• Weather held up!
• Love this tradition that I've been able to participate in every year for 21 years.
• Love honoring my brother and all those who served in the military, especially those who gave their lives.
• Love the colorful shoes and clothes and all the costumes and creativity.
• Love the bands, dancing, and sideline parties.
• So grateful that I'm still healthy enough to be able to participate.
• Fun that I got to know a new friend.
• Exciting that my family was the "Face" of Bolder Boulder in the reminder email that went out.
• Nice that I was strong enough to easily crank out the push-ups so that those sideline people could drink.

What could have been better

• Disappointed that I couldn't run.
• Had so much fun last year with my family, so missed being with them this year.