Dear Kayla: Tea, inspiration, and brain food

Dear Kayla,

Four weeks from now, I'll be leaving for Peru to. I'm nervous-excited :D:

Anyway I figure that once I'm there I want to get into a routine. While I haven't have the perfect routine post-graduation, I did set some guidelines for myself. I made this:

I had a 2 part time jobs, a temp job for an online magazine, and an online class to focus on, but tons of other projects I wanted to work on as well: our two blogs, yoga, writing,  reading books, reading the news, learning about the publishing field, being healthy, having fun, finding inspiration, etc. It was pretty overwhelming at first. Organizing it all to fit my ever-fluctuating schedule helped so much. Even if I didn't stick to this all the time, I could keep track of what I needed to do, my priorities, my hobbies, my goals. I put a big tea cup in the middle because anytime is a good time for some warm hydration; it cools me down when I feel stressed or tired. I figure I'll have to make another one of these schedules in Peru.

And if this schedule was made to organize the things I wanted and need to do, here is the opposite of a 'to-do list'; here are my acomplishments::

-Bought a plane ticket for Lima, Peru
-Finished my online Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) class
-Received recommendations from my college professors
-Read 17 books/comics
-Joined a book club
-Made YouTube/BookTube videos
-Filed my taxes
-Took bike rides
-published some poems

Yay:) I hope it doesn't seem like I'm showing off. But I think everyone should try it. I get anxious
about all the deadlines and future things I need to finish or start or practice everyday. Every once and awhile it's good to recognize our mini accomplishments.

Hoookay. Bye for now,

<3Ginny

Self Education

Hey there internet folk. I graduated college, and it's my first semester out of school! So while it still feels like my life is divided into semester intervals, I thought I'd design my own semester out of school. While school gave me practical and valuable information, there are some lessons I have to learn for myself.

Introduction to Independent Study

This is a project I've designed to stimulate my mind and nurture my talents.The idea is to do things I like, while also being disciplined enough to follow my ideas through to the end. My course is mostly designed to be intellectually stimulating, but exercise and meditation are also important as well.

Course Objectives

• Self growth
• Practice, practice, practice
• Improved communication skills both with others and myself

Ongoing Reading List
in no particular order

1984 by George Orwell
The Fiction of H.P. Lovecraft
On the Road by Jack Kerouac
Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain
Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind by Shunryu Suzuki
The Poetry of Rumi
The Diviners by Libba Bray
Nine Stories by J. D. Salinger

...And many more found on my goodreads account.

Assignments

• Record my dreams
• Write one passage, fragment of of thought or doddle about each book I read
• Only review books that really make an impact on me and/or are worth sharing 
• Participate in and communicate with the blogging and BookTube communities
• Become familiar with recently published authors and books
• Get in the habit of free writing regularly each week. Become in touch with my inner voice
• Educate myself and research current events
• Educate myself and research historical events
• Take a moment out of each day to be thankful for the blessings in my life

This is no end to this semester.  I feel I will always be a student in some sense or another. There will always be books to be read and something new to be learned. There is always room for growth.

Anyone out there just graduate college or high school and feeling this out-of-the-womb restlessness? How are you adjusting? I'll see how this plan goes.

Until next time!
Ginny