by jessica on November 24, 2010
I have this dream that won’t leave me alone…
I dream of wide open spaces, of vast land, of a place where if you stretch your arms out to the sides you won’t be able to touch your roof and your next door neighbours roof at the same time. Where the air is clean, and the views are beautiful, and the vegie garden is massive. Where chooks roam around, and maybe even a goat, where the dogs can chase things to their heart’s content without being boxed in by suburban fences.
Where I can sit at a massive window and write my little stories as my cat sleeps on the windowsill in the sun.
Where our kids will be able to have adventures, and play and laugh and ride dirtbikes and dig holes and catch yabbies in the creek.
That’s the kind of country life I dream of.
My addiction to Country Living magazine does not help me to forget this dream 
by jessica on November 18, 2010
OK, it’s not MY home, but I wanted to share some of the stuff I’ve found on the web that I find inspiring. I have no idea where most of these come from, I right-click and save all over the place.
This wood panel fencing would look great in my pool area:
Inspiration boards are always…inspiring! I have a couple near my desk, one with covers I have designed for my novels (to keep me motivated) and one that changes all the time – sometimes it is an idea for a story, sometimes it is pictures of things I want to incorporate into my house like paint swatches, pretty house designs, etc.
I sure wouldn’t mind a kitchen like this one.
I heart this tunic dress…
I have demanded that someone builds me a pagoda-thingy like this to go next to my pool…
A delightful kitchen…
And some pretty lights for the backyard…
Well, there you have it. A little slice of inspiration for the weekend.
This weekend, I plan on going grocery shopping to stock our bare shelves, drinking some Cherubino chardonnay, lazing by the pool, going to the gym, getting a hefty chunk of novel writing done, and maybe even writing a few posts for you lovelies to read next week.
What are you up to this weekend?
by jessica on November 16, 2010
I have lots of goals. I’m a list-writer, I love making huge elaborate plans and deadlines for things. A lot of the time, I don’t make it to the deadline, life gets in the way, blah blah blah. But in addressing my latest goals for the summer, I have been thinking back to two times when I did give my all and I did pass the finish line. I’m probably repeating myself a little bit but here goes:
When I was 21, I decided to go to America and work at a summer camp with my friend Rach. As a lifeguard and swimming teacher. And I couldn’t swim more than about ten metres of frontcrawl/freestyle to save my life. And I had three months or so to get fit and be able to swim 400m nonstop, and demonstrate that I could teach kiddies the basics of swimming.
- I swam almost every day
- I knew exactly what I was working towards – my bronze medallion and lifeguard exams – and I practiced specifically for that. Each time I swam, I recreated the test until I could do it in under twelve minutes.
- I had someone to hold me accountable.
- I had a do-or-die deadline
- I had something really amazing to look forward to if I passed my exams.
And I did it! I went from being the girl who had never done anything very athletic to being a daily swimmer. I lost weight, toned up, my skin was clear, my eyes sparkled and I had heaps of energy. That was probably the fittest I’ve ever been, and sadly things have gotten pretty sedentary since I arrived home 5 months later.
When I was 24, I decided I needed to finish my first novel. I had been trying for years, getting nowhere, having a bunch of pages and a loose outline to show. I got so frustrated that I developed a deadline (I finished it just in time to mail in for the Vogel award) and I wrote my little heart out. I woke up and I wrote. I wrote in my lunch hour at work. I came home, got changed into my jeans, and wrote until bed time. I didn’t cook or clean very much. But I finished a novel in about 8 weeks while still working full-time.
- I had a support system (thanks to the lovely Jed cooking and taking care of things)
- I had a deadline that was set in stone – the deadline for submissions to a publishing award. I wanted it – badly. I didn’t win, but the 25K prize and publishing deal was pretty motivating.
- I had the end in sight. I knew exactly what I wanted/needed to write. I had everything mapped out.
- I enjoyed what I was doing, despite the long hours.
- I knew I was achieving something great.
Which brings me to my next goals. They’re pretty lofty, but they’re not impossible.
In the next eight weeks, I want to:
- exercise every single day
- Finish my second novel, “Wombstone”
- eat clean, healthy and (mostly) organic food during the next eight weeks.
Holy shit, thats pretty radical. And to do it all at once? Probably insanity.
Want to see the pretty goal sheets I made? OK, here you go:
And finally, the why’s of what I’m setting out to do:
- I have a wedding coming up in 8 weeks that is centred around swimming and lounging on a boat all day. And I really want to feel happy in my skin, not insecure.
- I have six novels to write in this series I’m currently working on, and I’d like to have some kids after I finish the first few novels, BUT before I’m thirty. Doing the math, that means I gotta get into gear and finish the first novel.
- I have 2 weeks off at christmas, which would be the perfect time to get some solid writing done.
- It’s coming into summer, and I’m sick of eating heavy foods and feeling tired.
- I have to haul heavy wine cartons all the time (because of my job, not because I’m an alco) and I want to feel strong!
- I’ve been in a huge rut mood-wise all winter, and I know the way to feel better is through getting some exercise in each day. I want to make this a lifelong habit.
- I’m ready for the next chapter of life. Bring it on!
