Final Reflections on February 2013 (a little late)

The end of February really snuck up on me. I was actually at work, filling out something for a customer, and when I wrote the date down, I was shocked that it was the last day of the month already. January had gone by so slowly, in an entirely pleasant way. But February flew by.

I have to admit that I didn’t pay a whole lot of attention to what was going on in the world during February. As far as I can tell, the biggest news story (in the U.S. anyway) was that the country is in financial trouble. Big surprise. I know there was talk of budget cuts & sequestering Congress. Other than that, I’ve been tuned out.

I seem to have been much more wrapped up in my own life in February. In January, I had entered a novel writing contest. In February, I discovered that I hadn’t even made it past the first round. It was disappointing & it threw me a little off my game for about five days or so. The bright side is that I don’t see the disappointment as an indictment of my writing skills. The first round of the contest was based on the pitch, so I think the fact that I didn’t move forward had more to do with my sales skills than anything else. Even so, criticism is always a tough pill to swallow.

Luckily, I rallied. By the second to last week of the month, I had finally finished my second romance novel. As of yesterday, I had finished my revisions & sent it off to a couple of friends to read. I’ve also been working hard on romance #3, which now stands at just over halfway done. I even started working on romance #4 again, which I hadn’t worked on for months. So I’ve been feeling pretty proud of myself for persisting in the face of failure.

On the other hand, I’ve also been feeling very lonely lately. I’m not entirely sure why. I was actually busier/more socially active in February than I was in January. Still, I seem to be craving more strongly that deeper connection that’s always been difficult for me to make with other people. I don’t get out as much as I used to when I was younger because of budget constraints. It’s frustrating. I’m not sure how to fix it. It’s hard for me to talk about these things. Growing up, I was taught not to burden other people with my problems, so I feel shy about reaching out.

Still, I expect to rally even from this. Life isn’t always sunshine and rainbows, and yet we get by. Today is the opening of the MLS season, aka my favorite time of the year. I’m looking forward to warmer weather. And I’m excited about the fact that I’m still writing. Sometimes the small things make the biggest difference.

Oh, I’ve been cooking from home a lot more in the last few months. Much to my surprise, I’m greatly enjoying it. However, I’m looking for more recipes, especially healthy ones. If you’ve got a recipe that you love & that is relatively easy to make, please send it my way.

So that's what's been on my mind this (last) month. If you're stopping by to read, let me know what's on yours!