This month felt seven years long. Beyond the [gestures helplessly at the absolute shitshow the US has become], January was a rough month at work. Let’s review…

Spending

I spent $6.00 on my monthly sewing subscription, $14.99 on my audiobook subscription (my one pre-planned book-buying exception), and $86.98 on a cardigan and some nice shoes from eBay. I also purchased four web classes or workshops (though two were for next month). Besides some office supplies, I think the only other thing I bought all month was an overpriced commercially licensed graphic I needed for a project. I was way too busy with work to shop!

Books

I hinted at it in my December wrap-up post, but I’ve decided to change the way I purchase books as an experiment. I haven’t tracked a specific budget amount for years, but I’ve been consistently buying more books than I read. My to-be-read piles, both virtual and physical, have gotten entirely out of hand!

I already track my reading, including whether each book I finish is a purchase or from the library. I’m going to give myself a pool of imaginary “tokens” for future book purchases based on the books I finish each month. I’m going to start with half the number of purchased titles. I read or listened to 25 books in January. Seven of those were either from the library or re-reads, leaving 18 first-time reads that I paid for (at some point in the past). Half of that number gives me 9 imaginary tokens for book purchases in February. This restraint should definitely shrink my backlog! I expect it will never happen, but if there are any leftover tokens, I’ll carry them over to the next month. I know this seems complex, but it’s my weird experiment and I can do whatever I want! Hahaha. I can change the rules if this doesn’t work out, and I may also do another month or two with no purchases this year.

Since my audiobook subscription counts and I already plan to purchase three ebooks in February (including one pre-order), I can only buy five additional books next month. Will I make it? I don’t know, but I’m going to try.

Writing

I committed to a second year of monthly short stories for Deadlines for Writers, and I really struggled with my story this month. In fact, I wrote three stories from the prompt word — not three drafts, three individual stories. I edited and posted the best one, and saved the other two drafts in case I can make something of them later. Turns out it’s pretty hard to write when your internal battery is almost completely dead. Who knew?

Goals

I set five goals for January:

• Write a short story
• Try a new recipe
• Finish all client W2s by the 23rd
• Visit the MFAH
• Go 31 days without buying any books

All complete! As I mentioned, I posted my short story (even though it was a slog). I actually tried a new recipe on the first day of the month: a really good and simple tofu scramble that I’ve already made multiple times. I did indeed finish all of my client W2s and 1099s by the 23rd, though it was by the skin of my teeth, as I worked until about 10:00 p.m. that night! I set my deadline so early because the post office has changed the way it processes postmarks (as a low-key voter suppression tactic, but it just also happens to affect anything with a postmark deadline, not only mail-in ballots). I missed one exhibit I wanted to see, but I went to see the Louvre fashion exhibit at the MFAH with a couple of friends this week. It was so cool! The curators chose to display it in the permanent collection galleries, so it was all over two museum buildings (instead of a single exhibit on its own). The art surrounding the gowns reflected design elements in the garments and truly enhanced the viewing experience. I had a fantastic time, and loved seeing all of that haute couture close up. I took so many pictures!

And, finally, I did indeed go 31 days without buying a single book. That was challenging, not gonna lie. (Full disclosure: I downloaded a few free ebooks, but aside from the pre-planned exception of my monthly audiobook subscription, I didn’t buy any others!)

Next month, I intend to:

• Write a short story
• Try a new recipe
• Complete two online courses

February is a short month, so I’ve decided to do the least. ✨

Everything Else

• Somebody told me I had “resting tragedy face” this month. Almost certainly accurate.
• On a happier note, I met up with some local members of the Newkirk Museum of the Paranormal at the beginning of the month, and it was great fun to hang out with some like-minded weirdos. I recommend it!
• I survived the January work explosion once again, but I am seriously exhausted.
• All the ancient pipes in our condo building survived the most recent deep freeze, which was a nice surprise. These pipes have a… track record.
• I don’t remember watching a single damned thing all month. I probably watched something at some point? But I have been stressed and didn’t take any of it in.

And that was January.