2022 Week 2/52: Chromophobia & Anne Lamott

Hi everyone! Time for Goal Check Sunday Week 2/52! 😃

Goal #1: Manage My Eating Disorder

✅(1) Goal accomplished in eating between 1200 to 1700 calories during the hours of 7:00 AM and 7:00 PM for this week.

After tracking my calories for about 266 days, I discovered that my current relationship with food is much better than before. I no longer debate with myself for 30 minutes or an hour to see if I should eat something. My brain is beginning to understand that I’m not a failure if I don’t eat under 1500 calories. There is room for a surprise/unexpected treat if I’m really craving extra food especially if my daily exercise calories cover the overage!

Goal #2: Become more organized starting Week 2/52

✅ (2) Goal accomplished in spending 15 to 30 minutes organizing every day using a timer. This past week may have been the most organized week of my life so far! 😁

I’m not yet enjoying it but playing this Instrumental Pop – Work Playlist | Productivity Music helps me greatly.

Goal #3: Write consistently

✅(3) Goal accomplished in writing between 2 to 8 hours every day this week. My dedicated time blocks and listening to lo-fi music when writing has kept me on track!

Goal #4: Read books to gain knowledge and new perspectives

✅(4a) Goal accomplished in reading 30 minutes a day for 5 days this week. I finished Ingrid Fetell Lee’s Joyful and started reading James Clear’s Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones.

Women are told to wear muted colors as they age, lest they appear as if they’re trying too hard to look young. This is a far-more-insidious kind of chromophobia (fear of color), driven not by lack of confidence but by the tyranny of public opinion. Could it be that our world would be much more colorful if only people weren’t afraid of looking foolish?

Ingrid Fetell Lee, Joyful

🚧(4b) Goal in progress: I will summarize 6 books and post them on this blog.

Goal #5: Improve my listening skills

✅(5a) Goal accomplished in listening to one Design Matters Podcast. This week, I listened to Debbie Millman interview Anne Lamott.

I listened to the podcast several times because I identified with Anne Lamott’s descriptions of her childhood, particularly when she said “I learned a lot of tools for surviving in that kind of stress you encounter in a really unhappy family. You make them happy.”

Like Anne, I lived in an unhappy family that tried to present itself to the world as a happy one. It was terrifying for me to see my maternal grandmother bringing out the kitchen cleaver on a regular basis and threatening to chop people up when the fighting got out of control between my aunts and uncles. When my relatives retrieved me from my hiding space in between two wooden dressers, they’d tell me that I was too sensitive.

I no longer accept my maternal relatives’ view that I had a good childhood. It was likely good in comparison to their childhood, but by the standards of 1980s Shanghai, I grew up in an emotionally and physically abusive household.

✅(5b) Every week, I will listen to one TED talk. This week I listened to How to stop screwing yourself over | Mel Robbins

Mel hates the word fine. “…here’s the deal with saying that you’re fine: It’s actually genius. Because if you’re fine, you don’t have to do anything about it…That thing you want, you’ve convinced yourself that you’re fine not having it. That’s why you’re not pushing yourself. It’s the areas in your life you’ve given up…Oh, I’m fine. My mom’s never going to change, so I just can’t have that conversation…I’m fine. We’ve got to wait until the kids graduate before we get divorced.”

I think Mel is likely right because for years I convinced myself it would be fine if I never became a writer. But I wasn’t fine and grew sadder and more disappointed in myself with each passing year. Going forward, if anyone asked me, “How are you?” I will no longer say fine.

Goal #6: Emulate Krista Tippet’s (Winner of the National Humanities Medal, Peabody Awards, Webby Awards) way of speaking.

✅(6) Goal accomplished in emulating a sentence of Krista Tippet’s for Week 2/52 from this Design Matters Podcast.

Goal #7: Learn how to grow microgreens from Mark starting 6/1/2022 (Week 22/52)

🔜(7) Goal N/A for Week 1/52.

Goal #1: Maintain my mental and physical health

✅(1a) Goal accomplished in singing two positive songs and one song of my choice every day.

✅(1b) Goal accomplished in meditating and practicing 25 minutes of yoga 5 to 7 days this past week.

🔜(1c) Goal N/A for lifting weights 3 to 5 days a week due to my strained neck.

✅(1d) Goal accomplished in doing a physical activity for Week 1/52.

✅(1e) Goal accomplished in sleeping before 11:30 PM every day.

Goal #2: Work on my marriage

✅(2a) Goal accomplished in continuing my weekly marriage meetings (#180), financial checkups, and date nights with Mark.

✅(2b) Goal accomplished in helping Mark organize for 15-30 minutes every day this past week.

Goal #3: Encourage my mom to expand her worldview starting Week 4/52

🔜(3a) Goal N/A of teaching my mom English for Week 1/52.

🔜(3b) Goal N/A of practicing Senior Yoga with my mom teaching my mom English for Week 1/52.

🔜(3c) Goal N/A of teaching my mom how to become more proficient at using her iPhone for Week 1/52.

Goal #4: Prioritize friendships

🔜(4a) Goal N/A of meeting up with friend 1 to 3 times a month due to Covid.

✅(4b) Goal accomplished in chatting with 1 to 3 friends over the phone/zoom. Super P and Coco for Week 2/52!

Goal #5: Remember my late father through cooking starting Week 9/52 on 3/3 (my father’s birthday).

🔜(5) Goal N/A of posting recipes on this site for Week 2/52.

Week 2/52 Goal Summary

✅Accomplished goals: 14

❌Goals not met: 0

🔜Goals N/A for Week 2/52: 7

🚧Goals in progress: 1

This week’s completion percentage: 100% (14/14)

Week 1/52 completion percentage: 91%

Week 2/52 completion percentage: 100%

2022 Average completion percentage: 95.5%

Dear readers, how was your progression towards your 2022 goals? 😃