People returned to their computers yesterday, apparently, and offered me enough inspiration to write that I am considering taking the NaBloPoMo challenge for December. More or less. Of the 34 views (plus potential 107 followers reading via email) on WordPress and 7 reads on BlogHer (woohoo! count ’em!) for yesterday’s post (“Contemplating the end of NaBloPoMo…”), yesterday’s poll garnered 7 votes (3 “write daily,” 2 “write every other day,” and 2 “other”), which I interpreted to mean readers like to read more often rather than less often…. (I suppose, actually, that it might mean only 7 readers actually reached the end of the post and saw I offered a poll…)
(That last paragraph contained a sentence that contained four parenthetical comments. Five if you consider the last parenthetical part of that same sentence. Wow. Probably more than you wanted to read.)
While November’s NaBloPoMo theme wasn’t actually a theme, it was merely “write daily” with suggested prompts if you’d like, December’s theme is More/Less — and I managed to hit on it twice in my first paragraph and once in my extraneous second paragraph. What caught my eye, however, was the brief post about NaBloPoMo titled “Explore More and Less with December’s NaBloPoMo,” specifically this:
This month, we’re looking at the two extremes of more or less. What we want more of in 2014, and which habits we’d rather not bring into the next year. We’re thinking about how we can do more with less, and how we can lessen our stress levels, especially for those jumping into another series of holidays.
This theme will help you set priorities. Sometimes we need to write it all down in order to realize which tasks are the most important, and which tasks can fade away.
The parts in bold (my emphasis above) are what make me want to try another month of NaBloPoMo, for the added stress and my lack of setting priorities was my greatest difficulty in trying to live my normal life and write daily in November. That will be the challenge.
But I want to write.
(More or less.)
Looking forward to reading your posts this month – best of luck fitting everything in without letting those stress levels climb too high!
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Thanks! That, of course, is my goal! I appreciate you reading and commenting. I will do my best not to stress while also making Sound Off worth your while!
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Looking forward to reading your posts through the month, Sarah. Great to connect via NaBloPoMo
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Thanks, Corinne! And thank you for tweeting my link! I look forward to getting to know you via NaBloPoMo! 🙂
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lessening stress levels, eh? (I’ve lived in Canada for almost 8 years, it’s a regular part of my vocab now). i’m still looking for the secret to having less stress. I feel like I can manage it ok, but I want less of it, ya know?
writing, like many other hobbies, or arguably, all other hobbies, teach us to slow down, and focus on ourselves so we can process things in our daily lives.
I love the idea that when you “spend” energy, you actually gain more energy. the same could be said of time, that there is time to do the things that are the most important to us if we make the time for them.
I am worried about the commitment I made to nanoblomo this month. I am traveling for 8 days this month to see family. how can I possibly have the time to blog? can I commit to a post every day for 31 days? will I have a new and exciting idea every day? i’m going to try. give it my all. that’s the best I can do, and that’s good enough. 🙂
it is beautifully encouraging to see that there are so many other people in the same boat. or similar boats. more or less.
I look forward to reading more of your posts.
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Hi! I loved your comment — made me smile this very early morning on which I’ve already slept through my designated writing period (anything period to 4:30 a.m.). I’m with you, except for the “eh” part… 🙂 Not from Canada though born in New Jersey and occasionally show a hint of an accent, not much. Mostly southern flair at this point of vocabulary….
The whole “how can I possibly do this?” (and not stress) thing is definitely the question — and the challenge. You are right in that we make the time to do what is most important to us… sometimes the problem is trying to do this even when others simply don’t get why this is important to us. I can go without sleep to write, but I find it harder to explain to someone else why this is so…
Yes, it is encouraging to know that others (more or less!) are in the same boat. I look forward to getting to know you as we struggle through December!
Happy NaBloPoMo! To a less stressful, more enjoyable writing experience…
Sara
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The “eh” is learned, but now part of my vocab. I was born and raised in NYC, but have lived in Ottawa now for 7.5 years. We used to be state neighbors! It’s a small small world. 🙂
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Fun stuff. I definitely have picked up a Southern flair though not a true twang. Do you end every spoken sentence with a question? 🙂
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Hahaha. Nope. I went to school for a year in Maryland and picked up a more southern drawl down there. It comes out on rare occasions when I am angry. I use “eh” on occasion, less so than most other Canadians for sure.
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Hi,
I found your blog via the NaBloPoMo blogroll, and I just wanted to say I really like your tagline of “Wait, did I say that out loud?” because that’s the story of my life. I’m going to attempt to participate this month as well, and hope you can continue too.
Amanda
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Thanks, Amanda! Hope we both succeed. 🙂
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Bad WordPress, bad! My name is Amanda, not Amanda twice. 😛
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You can be like Mary Hartman Mary Hartman… from a TV show probably in the ’70s. 🙂
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