Resolutions, Part Two: January

While everyone is setting well-intentioned resolutions of Things To Do This Year (and you may recall that I'm one of them), some of us are quietly going about setting goals for the month of January only.  Some things don't take a year, or are too trivial to be added to Resolutions For 2014.

1) Work out and finish J's teddy bear

Ian's younger brother will be turning 16 in February, and I have not yet made him my traditional fifteenth-birthday teddy bear (this seems to be a pattern for their family: Ian did not receive his until his 16th either).  As J is an artist, I'd really like to incorporate some sort of colorwork.  I gave it a shot earlier this year, but the pieces did not turn out the way I wanted.  Somehow I need to get the darned thing to go together.

2) Get at least halfway through cousin's blanket

My aunt is due to give birth to her last child (a third boy!) in May.  When her second was born, I made him a granny square blanket (my first large crochet project, as I recall).  I made a granny stripe for her oldest last September.  In keeping with this tradition, I'll be making a granny ripple of my own design for the last one in red, green, blue, and brown.  In order to reach this goal, I need to have done 12 stripes on each side.

3) Purchase and complete birthday gifts for both my brothers

I have amigurumi in the works for both of them (read: I have a plan), but I need to purchase the patterns and get working quickly.  I only have about three weeks for one (Gandalf amigurumi!) and four weeks for the other (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles amigurumi).

4) Dye angora

The lovely angora yarn has been spun (although I don't know; I might need more), and is awaiting dyeing.  I'd like to make an effort at getting that finished this month.  This requires having Ian settle on a color, getting him over here, and going through the process with him.

5) Reorganize bookcase

I have a bookcase in my room, and it is... er, full.  Not that there's no more room, but that the current organization leaves a lot to be desired and I have too many books to fit in it currently.  It needs to be stripped, dusted, and reshelved.

6)  Purge school stuff from last semester and organize for spring

I'm pretty sure all my paper stuff is sitting on the floor in front of the bookcase, and I still have all my books.  I need to sell those back, clean out all the paper (keep what's important, recycle the rest), tweak my system for Round Two, and get ready for classes to begin on the 21st.

7) Plan Ravellenic Games projects and begin "training"

The Ravellenic Games start on February 7th, which means if I want to do anything I need to get everything laid out this month.  Since all I have planned right now is a pair of socks, I need to at least swatch, calculate the necessary magic numbers, and decide on a design.  More planning will probably commence once the event list is posted.

*8) Read Scarlet Moon and Snow in Summer

My two books for the month are both fairytale retellings.  Have I mentioned I love fairytales?  The first is Scarlet Moon by Debbie Viguié, a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood for the "Once Upon A Time" series (written by several different authors under one publisher).  It is 157 pages and I've just noticed that the moon on the cover has a snarling wolf face in it.  The second is Snow in Summer by Jane Yolen, a retelling of Snow White that my aunt gave me for my birthday.  Snow White currently has a special place in my heart, since last year I wrote the first draft of a novel loosely based on the story (125 pages, 25,000 words; it was legitimately a novel!).  It is 243 pages, set in West Virginia, and there are way too many hidden faces on the front cover.

*9) Get through the first four weeks of C25K

If I stick to a Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule (which I should), I can get almost halfway through C25K by the end of January.  It will be cold outside, I'll be running in jeans, it'll have to be squished in around a babysitting job (such a blessing) and the first bit of school... but that's all fine.  I'll get through it.

I want to come up with a tenth thing.  If I do, I'll add it to the list.  I'm going to try to post updates at the end of each week -- that's the 8th, 15th, 22nd, and 29th.  That way I have the last two days to post the annual resolutions update and plan to have February's resolutions posted on the 1st.  See, I can plan stuff to keep it on time.  I just can't seem to keep it that way!