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November


November is upon us! And you know what that means? Soon it's my birthday. You know what else? Soon it'll be Christmas. You know what else? I'm doing a Christmas Fair in December. Now I am thinking of all the cute little yuletide pyrography things I can make...... hmmmmm.... yeah it feels like the run up to the solstice from here is gonna be hectic, as usual. It's that time of year when we scrape our pennies together and rush around looking for presents to buy each other. I'm gonna try and not spend a lot of money, well, to be honest, I don't have much choice! I don't earn a lot of money so I have to figure out cheap ways of doing things. This usually means hand-made presents. Oh I have a lot of making to do! I want to make a lot of pretty pyrography things, and I also want to make candles, it is the perfect time of year for candles, especially now that it is actually dark by 5pm. Less sunlight makes for less serotonin, the "happy hormone". The cold wet weather makes us much less inclined to enjoy outdoor activities, but we have to get ourselves weather-proofed and face the elements if we want to absorb some sunshine. If you are feeling down this winter, talk to somebody about it, because you will be surprised how many people relate to your problems. Wrap up warm, put your best walking boots on, and take a stroll in the sun. Nature is your best medicine! I learnt this today when I decided to take a random walk, and discovered a wooded area I had never been to before! It's great to try something different! I had fun exploring the little wooded walk, squelching in the mud and marvelling at the low slung sun as it cast long shadows through the trees.

This is a time of reflection for me. I am going to be turning 30. I know it's just a number, but it's quite a big one. I have always expected my thirties to be accomplished, settled down, pulled together, and altogether grown up. My twenties have just felt like a mess, scrambling around, trying to figure things out. I always thought that I would have figured things out once I was in my thirties. Well, maybe I have figured some things out. Maybe this is a delightful new chapter in my life, a chance to let go of everything that didn't work, and focus on the things which are working. Life ain't bad right now. I have to check myself every now and then to make sure I stay on track. Someone on youtube described the human psychology as that of a chimp and it's trainer. Your chimp-self is the instant-gratification-seeking oaf in you, the part of you who doesn't want to accept responsibility for anything, and just wants to run wild. The chimp-trainer in you is the one who decides to think things through and consider the long-term effects of your actions. The idea here is that we all need to learn how to work with our inner chimp, without letting it run amok. It's this chimp-self that I have to talk out of procrastinating, and persuade it to sacrifice some leisure time for more productive persuits. I got a whole bunch of fun plans ahead. Just having a plan brings a huge sense of accomplishment. Give yourself small steps to take, and you can get there, little by little. If you can take one step today, what would it be? A little motivational talk to myself.


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