Day Six

Day six. I have an index card tacked up above my desk that just says "show up for the words." So far, I have. In the past week, I've written over 3,000 non-poetry words. I've written four poems. Fifteen journal entries. Three blog posts.

Maybe I'll blog more this year. Maybe I won't. Either way, it doesn't matter. We're all going to die. In the relative scheme of things, we're all going to die pretty soon.

Last night I watched Hard Candy. A little Ellen Page kicking pedophile ass. It was a pretty good movie. I'm also finishing up my third book of the year. I have a pile of books next to my desk I'd like to get to. But the new semester starts on Tuesday. Soon after that, I begin working in the factory again. I always set high expectations for myself, and I rarely meet them.

Maybe I ought to start putting things on my to-do list like "drink a beer" or "complain about my body."

Tuesday after my first day of class, I'm leaving for Indiana to do a reading with my two favorite blonde poets. We're getting tattoos, and then we're going on a writing retreat. I have been looking forward to this for months. I'm almost sad to see it come and go.

But today I will water the plants and make bread. I will make a packing list. I will clean my desk, do laundry, put away my clothes. I will wash my face, and walk outside. I will do small things well.

All the Good

Here are some good things that happened last year (yes some good things happened last year):

I wrote 56 poems.
In a year where I spent over two months in the hospital, I count this as a win. This averages out to about one a week. Hopefully this year I write many more.

I read 48 books and 13 short stories. 
See previous post for details.

On top of all that reading, I did a lot more watching.
Which, for now, I'm going to be okay with. I watched about 90 movies. I watched 55 seasons of TV shows. This year, I'd like to flop the reading and watching. I'm aiming for 100 books. I don't have a goal for movies and TV.

I practiced yoga.
Not a lot. But I did practice. I've been practicing yoga for over four years now. My goal for this year is to go 2-3 times per week. If I make it a habit again, the hope is that I'll want to go more.

I got rejected.
Again, not a lot. I usually aim for 100 rejections in a calendar year. It means that I send out my work. I got 28 rejections in 2016.

I got a four acceptances.
From THRUSH, Word Riot, Poetry City USA, and Vinyl.

My nieces were born.
I now have two more nieces, who were both born in November of 2016! Audrey and Katie Beth.

I fell in the alleyway
while trying to go put my face into a gigantic cardboard cutout of a lobster.

I did eight poetry readings.
Poets & Pints, Three Blonde Poets, Ali O'Reilly's book release party, The Red Stag Supper Club: New Shit Show (Twin Cities Lit Crawl), Altcomics, Poetry City USA @ Sisyphus Brewing, First Mondays @ Troubadour, The Christmas Spectacular)

I became a little obsessed with Patti Smith
after reading Just Kids.

I turned 30
and refuse to feel weird about it because I'm coming into myself and hey that's cool.

I walked.
A lot. Like, over 300 miles. It's what I spent most of my summer doing. I'd just leave the house with no direction and come back a couple of hours later. I found a lot of weird trails by the Mississippi. One time I helped a lady parallel park her car.

I took two aerial yoga classes.
Taking an aerial yoga class was on the list I made of 40 things I want to do before I'm 40. I did this twice! It was fun and hard and I'll probably do it again. I also took a barre class, which kicked my butt.

I cooked a duck.
And we ate the whole thing in one sitting.

A LOT of D&D got done.
Carlton Beerjug got into some serious shenanigans this year. He's a rogue elf, and he likes to steal.

My new chapbook came out!
It's called OVER THE MOON and you can order it online.

I bought a lot of lipstick.
Like, a lot.

I spent a week on Mallard Island.
With nine other women poets from Minnesota. It was one of the most magical weeks of my life. And I get to do it again next summer.

I won tickets to a Very Weird Concert.
By randomly calling into The Current when I heard "be the tenth caller now! Here's Garbage while you dial." I won tickets to see The Starfolk and Ice Palace.

I ate, approximately, 358 avocados.
This number was approximated using my memory and all of the pictures of avocados I posted to my Instagram account.

I spent five days camping and canoeing in the Boundary Waters.
It was pretty intense. I had never been to the BW before. We had to carry all of our supplies, canoes, and tents/packs on our backs while portaging between lakes. But it was beautiful. I caught a walleye and a turtle stole it.

My husband and I celebrated our six-year wedding anniversary.
We stayed in and made Indian food because it was like, -25 degrees outside.

I survived. 
And for many days of 2016, I didn't think I would.