May Goals

May goals!!

1. Go to follow up doctor's appt: test for zika, chagas, other diseases maybe picked up in South America, and normal annual check up.
2. Start physio again. Appointment made.
3. Make appt for therapist now that I have a recommendation.
4. Go to the Stardome. Check! Learned about the evening sky in autumn. Got rained out (again) from seeing anything through the telescopes, drat it.
5. Meditate a few minutes every day.
6. Make work and food plan every week.
7. Start going to work out classes and/or walk 30 min/day.
8. Book photography class.
9. Make bookings for Routeburn Track huts & plan trip. Have huts booked, trip is planned out but the rest of the bookings (flights/qtown stay/bus tickets) not booked yet.
10. Go to one Meetup. 
11. Have lots of fun. :) No stressing about work. 

Work Stuff:

1. Give 1 public talk.
2. Make PhD plan with supervisors.
3. Write every day: 
1. Draft and finalise award application (M) for 1 June submission. 4 pages.
2. Draft grant proposal #1.
3. Draft award application (PT) for end of June submission.
4. Write draft of short summary of how RSNZ award was spent.
5. Outline paper #1 (lit review/methods/results). 
6. Finalise PhD proposal.
4. Process all data from December.
5. Start labwork again.

April Goals Checked Off!

I only had half of a month in April to get any goals completed, but I did OK!

1. Make follow up doctor's appt: test for zika, chagas, other diseases maybe picked up in South America, get flu shot (and receipt to claim back from work!), and normal annual check up. Done
2. Make physio appointment for May.
3. Get therapist rec from P & make appt. Got rec from P.
4. Prepare for public talk.
5. Revise PhD proposal. Done
6. Write PhD review. Done
7. Start grant proposal #1. Will outline starting 26 April.
8. Make workplan to be ready for conferences #1 and #2 in 2017. Meeting with supervisors scheduled week of 26 April. Moved to May.
9. Update my CV, LinkedIn, Twitter, blog, staff page, and Researchgate profiles.
10. Go to the Stardome. Next month...
11. Meditate a few minutes every day. Sorta.
12. Make work plan every day. Mostly!
13. Research workout classes. Done. Going to pay $100 for a 3 month, 10 concession card and see how that goes before committing to a longer term. I'm aiming for a 30 min walk every day, plus 1 class a workweek to start, and then build up to 1 class/weekday plus a 30 min walk.
14. Photography class research! Done
15. Back up computer. Make image of laptop HD on external hard drive. Done!

Hurrah! Next post: May Goals.

April Goals

Short half month since I was on holiday most of it! Fewer goals, too:

1. Make follow up doctor's appt: test for zika, chagas, other diseases maybe picked up in South America, get flu shot (and receipt to claim back from work!), and normal annual check up. Done
2. Make physio appointment for May.
3. Get therapist rec from P & make appt. Got rec from P.
4. Prepare for public talk.
5. Revise PhD proposal. Done
6. Write PhD review. Done
7. Start grant proposal #1. Will outline starting 26 April.
8. Make workplan to be ready for conferences #1 and #2 in 2017. Meeting with supervisors scheduled week of 26 April. Moved to May.
9. Update my CV, LinkedIn, Twitter, blog, staff page, and Researchgate profiles.
10. Go to the Stardome.
11. Meditate a few minutes every day. Sorta.
12. Make work plan every day. Mostly!
13. Research workout classes. Done. Going to pay $100 for a 3 month, 10 concession card and see how that goes before committing to a longer term. I'm aiming for a 30 min walk every day, plus 1 class a workweek to start, and then build up to 1 class/weekday plus a 30 min walk.
14. Photography class research! Done
15. Back up computer. Make image of laptop HD on external hard drive.

21 Days Later...

I'm just trying to stay awake long enough to beat the jetlag. I arrived at 4:30 am from Santiago and I'm so exhausted but happy-tired from my three week trip away to South America. Trying to stay awake til 9 or 10 pm tonight. Only 7-8 hours to go!!

The trip was really awesome. I did end up checking emails, and answering a few in the first week, but mostly just to clean out the junk so that I wouldn't be overwhelmed when I got home. After the first week, I no longer responded to emails, even the urgent ones. I AM ON VACATION. My out of office reply should tell you everything you need to know.

I didn't get everything done I wanted to before I left. I meant to, but then...yeah. I reached Sunday pm before I realized I wouldn't get it all done. I could have killed myself to turn something in by my trip on Wednesday pm, but then realized I didn't have to. My deadlines are completely arbitrary. 100% made up to pressure me beyond my limits. No thank you. So I simply worked on my tasks during the work days as much as I could, and came home to pack and get ready for my trip calmly and without any stress. Yay! I feel like I am learning. No stress over arbitrary deadlines = good. Things always get done. I always get things done, and done well. There is absolutely no need to participate in this abusive cycle. 

I go back tomorrow, officially, but am thinking of making an appearance in the morning and then going home to work to get a head start on my real work. If I am in all day, I will just spend it talking to people about my trip, answering stupid emails, and getting pulled into useless meetings.

In short, the vacation was great. Not what I expected at all, but still great. Saw lots of beautiful places, experienced lots of new things, spent lots of quality time with dear friends, and got to see two weddings and their cultural differences.

Why, I suppose a pictorial post is in order when I get my stuff unpacked and digital media organised. :)