Indefinite Projects
*Drawing/ Editing/ Uploading the daily comic - This is a big time sink. It's hard to know if it is worth it, but at this point I've spent nearly half a year on all the editing, so I think I shall just keep going.
*Keeping the household relatively clean - (Haha.) When the mold in the shower starts to become sentient, I clean it.
*Blogging approximately once a week - This includes thinking of something to talk about and taking pictures. I do like keeping my writing skills polished, which was the reason I started the blog in the first place. It's also so that all the family members who don't see us all that often can discover what we've been up to.
I draw four comics per page in my sketchbook. When editing it for the internet, I crop out each comic so it can be posted individually.
Long Term Projects
*Souvenir Patch Quilt - While it is kind of an indefinite project because of the continual collection of patches, most of the work is embroidering the USA and quilting the rest of the of the quilt.
*School - Luckily I like what I'm learning, but I'm a little stressed out about deciding how far to take it. Do I want to just learn some things or do I want to go for another degree? For now my decision is to not make a decision.
It took me two and a half hours to embroider Maryland. I don't have positive feelings towards the state of Maryland at the moment.
Projects Where The Finish Line Is In The Distance
*Christmas knitting/ weaving - I don't usually do handmade gifts for more than one or two people, so this year is an anomaly.
*A thank-you woven scarf - There is someone who I can only thank with a handmade scarf. The only deadline I have is my personal guilt of not doing this sooner.
This is one of the last Christmas gifts left to do
Short Term Projects
*Most of these are the annoying things that come up to prevent me from finishing anything else. Things like a doctor visit, taking the car in to be looked at, and various other errands. All important, but I wish I didn't have to.
Projects On My Mind But On The Back Burner -
*Comic Stories - I have four distinct comic story ideas in mind. Unlike the daily comic, they all have a definite end. I've tried to forget about all of them, but all the ideas swirl around in my head, so I occasional write or draw a little thing about each one to stop it from bothering me.
*Other Book Ideas - I have three other book ideas. One a humorous depiction of Silicon Valley and two others that relate to business and creativity. I've been taking notes for them whenever inspiration strikes...which is usually in the bathroom.
*Painting - While I am taking a watercolor class (thank goodness, or there would be no time carved out) I really would love to have a little time to make a small painting or two to apply what I've learned in class and have a little creative release.
This is a quick color study for a much larger painting due my class
It's tough to know what to give up when it comes to all these lists. They all seem like personal projects, but at the same time there is limited payoff because either I'm not getting feedback or the project is starting to feel like a slog. My bad habit when all my projects aren't feeling like fun is to start a new one, but as this list is showing me (and maybe you) is that a new project is probably ill advised. So I'm not really sure what to do except lean into it and get some things off of the list. If anyone has any advise or commiseration, please do share. I'm sure many of you also have a list that is long and full of terrors!
4 comments :
That's tough indeed... I think the hardest part ( at least to me it was ) is acceptance. Accepting that you want too much at a certain time it hard, but my experience is that as long as you don't really accept or admit to the gut feeling that it's too much, the choice on giving up anything from your to-do list won't be made.
( that's just my experience of course, can't say if it's the same for you.. ).
Good luck with sorting it out, I do hope you won't crack
Yes, I can definitely empathize. Every time I cross one thing off my list, I add 500, or so it seems. Of course, there are projects and things to do, but then there's the whole world of self care (sleeping, eating well, exercising) and that seems to be where I always shave time from in order to get other things done, which ultimately does me and everyone around me a disservice and reduces my capacity to accomplish things.
This is exactly why I don't make list- I do not want the reality to smack me. :)
I can truly appreciate your approach to making decision on whether another project is in the cards for you. It is smart and responsible.
Having said that, is it wrong that after seeing a couple of your projects that I want to add them to my long list as well? ;)
"It's hard to know if it is worth it"
I think that's an important thing to think about, how are you judging its worth? What is it that you want to gain from it? How are you measuring its success.
FWIW, I love your embroidered patch quilt. It looks amazing. I am embroidery-curious but have no time for a new hobby so I'll admire yours from a distance. :)
Post a Comment