Summer Goal {Recap}

Well guys. I had these goals you see. And, well... I sucked it  up. So much so that I almost didn't do this recap, but I figure, I cannot ignore it. I should talk about what happened. (psst. SPOILERS, life happened). But here we go:

*No Alcohol until September: I like a good beer. Or a good dirty gin martini. I have been a bartender. I appreciate fun mixed drinks. And all this is well and good, but Sometimes I (honestly) don't know what moderation is, and it has been weighing on me a lot lately. Just something on my mind. There are a lot of things personally I want to accomplish this summer, and I think removing alcohol from the picture would be a good way to clear my mind and give me a fresh perspective  Also, I really just like proving to myself that I can stick to goals, and have will power. It gives me a great sense of self, and I thrive on that.

*NOT COMPLETE* At all. Basically, in all honesty... I worked in a restaurant atmosphere, at the beach, with 18-23 year old people all summer long. And one brewed his own beer. An excuse? No, not at all. Did I have fun? Most the time. Did I meet lasting friends? Ill say, one. sure. 

* Financial goals. (and I just now because of spell check realized I spelled financial wrong on the image, and am wayyy to lazy to go back and edit it. whatever.) So, as I stated in a past post, my plans for this summer include work, and lots of it. I start today training at a breakfast diner (I have to do stints as a busser, hostess, and cashier), and by June will be serving there regularly  And its a fast paced place, with good tips to be made, so there is that. Otherwise,  I am searching still for a night serving position, but have applied man places. These two avenues combined all summer, I hope to be able to pay off both my credit cards ($4500+), Pay back my mother ($2000+), save money for a plane ticket for myself and Nigel to the west coast in the fall ($350+) and stock away savings for a few months rent and deposit wherever I plan to move to ($2750+). I have four months to get this accomplished, and I do think it is feasible. Added bonus if I save enough to have a little pocket for a new car once back out west...I think also, as a last little footnote, that this will be the summer to get my tattoo. Or maybe it will be an end of summer reward. carry on now...

*NOT COMPLETELY* Which implies, that yes I got some of this done. I bought a car. I got all  my shit to the east coast. I paid my mom back $1000. I paid down Credit Cards (a little). I bough a ticket to Seattle in November for a wedding. I put aside some money for my move to Asheville. Nigel now lives with me here in Pawleys, but I owe someone money for that (...Nick, Ill never NOT owe you money, it seems). It happens. But, not a total loss.

*Books! So, this is a smaller goal, which I think is important in the midst of loftier goals...but, I brought home  five books with  me that were in my collection, but I had not had the chance to read yet. I would simply over the course of the summer, read and enjoy these books. They are:Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer, What is the What and A Heartbreaking Work Of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers, The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama, and Skinny Legs and All by Tom Robbins.

*NOT COMPLETE* So okay. I read non of these books. Well, I read HALF of the Dave Eggers. This isn't to say I didn't read this summer, it just proves you cant really (or I cant) dictate what I am going to be in the mood for all summer long. I Read Under The Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes. If you haven't read it, DO IT. So good. NOTHING like the movie that used the book as a (very loose) backbone. Great food and travel writing. I devoured every book written by John Green (The Fault in Our Stars, Paper Towns, An Abundance of Katherines, Will Grayson Will Grayson, Let It Snow) and am currently waiting to read Looking for Alaska by the same author. Now, these books are all Young Adult, and I loved them. Paper Towns and The Fault in Our Stars being my favorites. I had always been a fan of John Green (kinda a dream man of mine) from his VlogBrothers series on youtube. Or Mental Floss. Or Crash Courses. You pick. all. are. brainy. and. wonderful. I had been meaning to take a peek at his writing for a while, and then was handed Paper Towns by a new friend this summer and (with the encouragement that I reminded him of one of the main characters) I dug right in. Beyond that I re-read the Little Prince, HP1, and two Salinger. So, not a total loss. 

*Tech cut back. Now, this may seem silly, as I am getting this blog going again, but it cutting out certain areas, to let other areas flourish  I recently erased my facebook app, my facebook messenger app, and my gchat app. You can obviously still text me or call me. This is just eliminating checking all those stupid things, as well as making it so yes, I am still available, but no not by every means possible. removing the clutter. In the same vain, I will be updating this blog a good bit, but don't plan to otherwise be on facebook really at all. of course there will be times, and I will still check it, but I don't plan on doing big status updates, etc. On the other hand, I will be writing letters and emails all summer long. So there is a use for facebook y'all, send me your mailing address and we can become pen pals! and since I wont be on facebook a lot, the updates you tell me in letters will actually be updates! Isn't that grand? As for other technologies... instagram, vine, and twitter. I'm keeping them...for now.

*KINDA COMPLETE?* I mean, I kept facebook off my phone. and Face book messenger. and Gchat. I have written a few handwritten letters this summer. I updated the blog, but not a TON. But I def. was still on Facebook on my laptop a good bit. Eh. *shrugs* I guess I didn't feel consumed by it all, so that is a win. 

*Focus on me. What do I mean by this? I just mean that in between all the work, and reading, and such that I take the time and just... clean out my head. I don't know a whole lot of people here in Pawleys, and while at first I was looking at this as a negative, I think I am going to use the chance to just...get to know me again. I am over analytic, stressed, and have a bit of Monica Geller syndrome in my current life. These are all things that have popped up or grown as I have gotten older. I just want to take this summer to both sort these things out (and calm them down a notch) as well as make peace with them. Easier said than done, when you are a judgmental cynic. (hey everyone, you know all that critique I throw around in life? Just know that I throw it at myself 10x worse. Yeah, sucks, right?)

*COUNTING THIS AS COMPLETE* You know what? Yeah. I mean, Ill ALWAYS have a zillion tings going on i my head, but overall my stress level and such has def. been pulled back. I have taken money issues with a lot more ease. I have read more and gone to the beach and just sat there more than i have in a long time. I went running ( big stuff) pretty regularly for a while, and simply to get out and clear my head. so yeah. WIN.