Bethwyn's 2015 Manifesto~

Sunday, January 4, 2015
I often set goals for myself, or dreams, or challenges. I don't always like those words, and I don't always do them. I also don't always wait for a new year to set goals for myself, as I find some of the best goals come to you halfway through the year, when you're hibernating during Winter (well...in the Southern Hemisphere, anyway).

But there are a few things that I would like to try in 2015, and I'd like to make myself a little more accountable - thus, announcing them on my blog. Hmm.

Challenge #1: Don't buy new.

Okay, so what do I mean by this? I'm talking about clothes here. I find I buy clothes from different places and then feel frustrated with myself for buying new when I know I enjoy op-shopping a lot more. I also don't always know whether I am supporting some sort of sweat-shop or such-like when I buy new from places like Myer and Target. I am working on being more informed in this way and 'voting with my money', as it were.
So, I want to only buy clothes from op-shops this year.
There will be exceptions, including underwear-type-things, and socks/stockings/tights, because reasons. But I am aiming to buy those kinds of things from Australian businesses that are transparent about where their cloth comes from and their labor. I am currently loving my sole (pun intended) pair of Ghostly Label socks, and am lusting after a few others for when the weather cools down again...

I may also make exceptions for beautiful dresses that I have been lusting after over on Etsy, for example, as long as I can pinpoint where they came from and who they were made by. :)


Challenge #2: Good things come in threes.

I recently did a count of how many physical books I have on my shelves at home (that is, ones I OWN) that are unread. The total, on the 27th of December 2014, was 191 unread books. One hundred and ninety one. Yes, I agree, that's a little ridiculous. I know there are plenty of other people that have way more, and also plenty with wayyyy less, so I am not beating myself up about this. I'm just getting proactive about it.
Here is my challenge: for every three books I read off of my shelf (I will keep a list), I will gain one 'book buying token' (actually just a crystal that I put in a bowl to keep track) to symbolise that I may now buy a new book. This doesn't mean I HAVE to buy a new book, nor does it mean that I can just go buy a book willy-nilly without making space in my budget for such spending (yes, I budget), it just means that I have earned the right to buy a book. It's like a book buying ban, but with little tokens of loopholes.
I'm trying very hard to get my TBR pile down a bit this year, and with the Aurealis Awards finishing up soon I may actually be able to do that. I've already finished off four books from my shelves since the 27th, so I am feeling fairly positive at the moment.

Note: I have also added another proviso that if I pick up a book from my shelf to read and I don't want to read it, or find myself not enjoying it, I must either donate it or sell it. The majority of my books can be borrowed out of the library at a later date if it turns out I really MUST read it, so no harm done.

Plus, to be honest, I'm kind of lusting after these bookmarks more than any book at the moment...
...or, you know, pretty much any of the bookmarks from the craftedvan etsy store... (Psst! Katharine, if you're reading this, they have Sherlock ones!!)


Challenge #3: Health things.

This one is a little less thought-out than the others. Basically, 2014 was the year of 'trying to find out what the heck is going on in my body', and, at times, it kind of blew. It meant putting my health, and my heart/hope, in other people's hands sometimes, and that was hard. Sometimes they would be caring and gentle, even if they couldn't help me, and other times I wondered why they even bothered. I'm not saying I'm giving up on the medical world - not at all - I'm just going to listen to my own body a bit more, and experiment with diet changes and sleeping changes, and even exercise, by myself for a little while. All of my nice doctors have been saying that it's really more of a maintenance thing than a 'finding a cure' thing, and I want to try that.
So, 2015 is going to be a year of research and experimentation. It's going to be a year of 'let food be thy medicine' and exploring health food stores like they're made of candy. And it's going to be the year I return to swimming and yoga more than before. I still do yoga at home, but not very often, and I really want it to be more present in my days. And swimming? Something I have always adored. I am a water baby - always have been. But I stopped doing it because it was too hard, and then I built some social phobias around that, so I just stopped trying altogether. This year, I'm heading back. Xin is going to help me out past the first few hurdles, and then I'm going to build a routine for myself as much as I can. Please feel free to send pictures of swimmers rocking it, or platypuses, or other creatures being graceful in the water. They will be little messages of support for me.


Actually... I think I may have just discovered my totem animal for 2015. Yeh platypus.

Challenge #4: Doing the worky-work thing.

Ah... talking about less thought-out... I just started applying for jobs again. Yes, I'm still sick. Yes, I'm still unable to work outside my house for very long because of countless symptoms that come up. But I'm trying. I'm mostly looking for work that I can do from home, and I'm working on establishing myself as a freelance writer/blogger/book reviewer (a wordsmith ^_~), but it's long-going and it's a little daunting. But I sense that I need to start trying, so that's what I'm going to do. If you have any suggestions, please leave them in the comments below.



That's it from me! I have many other goals and ideas for 2015, but they will be written down in my workbook and kept just for me for a while, I think. I honestly am not very good at keeping my blog updated on yearly goals, so that may be best.

What about you guys? Anything in particular you want to do in 2015? Love to all who read.

6 comments:

  1. What an awesome list lovely! Wishing you much joy and success from your plans. *lovelovelove*

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  2. Grrr did signing in lose my comment? (This is Katharine, blog thing hates me! Third try lucky....)

    I said something liiike:

    My friend showed me those bookmarks, and got me the Doctor Who set for Christmas! They're really tiny though - from the photos I thought they were a lot larger, but they're more like 1 or 2cms long? I can take a better photo to show their actual size if you like, because they're kinda expensive. Really well made, though.

    I love your crystal idea! I want to do something similar, but first I really need to go through all my books, and donate/bin all the books that are falling apart too much to read, or I no longer have any interest in. Then when I have a pile or 'maybe' and 'yes', then I'll take on your crystal idea I think :D

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    Replies
    1. I think I have a similar problem sometimes when commenting on your blog! So weird O___O

      Ah fair enough! I honestly don't mind them being small, though. I'd just need to find a box to keep them in whenever they weren't in a book XD Sometimes I have bookmarks that are so giant they just keep falling out of the book when it's in my bag...

      Thanks!! I'm kind of semi-going through my books by trying to read them, as I honestly don't really know what some of them are about anymore? It's been that long. Yay crystals! :D

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  3. Health food stores like they're made of candy? Worst health food store evah!!!

    It's super hot right now babe. Let's hit up the pool! Like, now! Hurry up and read this so we can go!

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    Replies
    1. Haha I did think about that actually... worst analogy evah XD

      yessss swimming would be great about now!

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