Resolution check in: The Irish Edition
Resolution 1: Love life with passion and dedication. Be brave and honest. Live with no regrets. Live fiery!
I am doing pretty well on this. I'm in Ireland about to travel to London and then Paris. Upcoming readings include:
Things are going pretty well in the passionate life department.
Resolution 2: Take a class in something new once a month. Cello has stuck. Let's do capoeira and maybe modern dance or swimming!
So, I have, since my last posting on this topic, done a lot of new things. Not a lot of classes, but definitely some cool things in there. Wine tasting, running and meditation with teenagers (part of a Post-session, co-taught with three great friends of mine), sea kayaking, surfing. I could do better in this department, but still I am doing a lot of new things.
Resolution 3: Be the best godmother, friend, sister, aunt, daughter, granddaughter, cousin, etc. that I can be. I think that's a good one to keep up. I think I'm doing well in this as well. Trying to stay as connected as possible.
Resolution 4: Be healthy. Eat out twice a week at most, cook more, (the divine help me) hike, sail/kayak, swim, read more for fun, enjoy massages, etc. I could totally do better on the cooking at home part, but hiking, kayaking, swimming, reading, massages, surfing (an attempt), paddleboarding (an attempt), etc. I've doing well, I think.
Resolution 5: Be the best scholar I can be by submitting at least 5 articles this year, writing a new book of poetry, promoting my 2nd book, being an active presenter, working with colleagues, editing The Acentos Review anthology and journal, etc. Develop my craft as a teacher.
I'm very behind on this. I submitted 3 but also got 3 rejections. I have been pretty busy presenting all over the country, though. Promoting the second book has gone well, from my reading schedule that is steadily increasing, happily. I am definitely an active presenter. I'll be at Furious Flower, CCTE in San Diego, LitQuake, the Teacher and Teaching Media Conference in the Fall and CCTE (San Jose), AWP and AERA in the Spring. In addition, I was accepted into the Saint Mary's MFA in Poetry Program, so I will be starting that in the fall. I just finished the work for my second to last class for the MA in Ed Leadership. The last one is the legal studies in education class, which I will begin prepping in two weeks. I have to also work on my promotion paperwork and my third book. I have a series of poems in mind to explore while I'm here in Ireland. We will see how it goes.
Resolution 6: After August 1 (yes, I'm booked until then, and I know that's ridiculous), commit to being in this place (as in California) rather than traveling all over the country and world...
Well, it turns out the real date is August 6, because that's when I go back to San Francisco. The majority of my dates are in California, but it just so happens that my boyfriend is also a traveler. We have travels planned together, but we both really value home, too. Trying to cultivate both.
Resolution 7: Find and cultivate a home. Grow roots.
I was actively looking at houses. Now, I'm waiting for the market to drop a bit. It's a bit too crazy out there to buy in Oakland where I would like. We will see. I'm open to what the universe sends my way.