Snapshot: January 2015

The year started with a bang. And what I really mean by that is actually the opposite of a bang, and more of a giant quiet. Which after a couple months of busy, the two seemed more or less the same...

We were out at the coast with Jordan's family for Christmas, and then everyone left and we didn't. We spent January out here last year as well, and it was definitely a highlight for both of us. So we were quite determined to do it again.

The rhythms of the days out here are so restful. Jordan and I are by no means busy people in regular life. But even for us, our days in town can easily fill up with friends and projects and work. Out here there's just the beach.

Of course it's not a total retreat, we get lots of work done out here, but the minimizing of everything else makes life so simple. We work. Then we walk on the beach. Then we read. Then we go to sleep. Repeat. Clean and simple living at its finest. I wouldn't say I'm exactly ready to leave, I'd stay out here forever, but I am feeling very refreshed and energized and ready to take on some new projects in February.

The peace and quiet did a few strange things to me. One of my goals for the year was to get into some habit of daily journaling, which I've tried on and off many times, and it's never stuck. But suddenly out here it was both easy and natural. I journaled every day this month without breaking a sweat. We'll see how it goes when we get back to regular life, and if I'm still feeling successful, maybe I'll have a few tips to offer.

I've also started reading poetry, which is certainly something I've not done before. We'll see how long that lasts...

Also, Jordan loves playing board games, and I've always been a bit lukewarm about it. I've had my favorites, but even towards those I felt like there were things I'd rather be doing. However, all of a sudden I'm a bit obsessed with playing games, and spend my evenings trying to convince Jordan into playing something with me! It's a really weird change, and I'm not sure what brought it on. We did get a bunch of new games for Christmas, so maybe I was just waiting for those games?

I gave up watching TV and movies while we were out here. For no real reason other than the TV out here is really small and I have certain standards, you know. But it has added to the luxurious quiet of being out here and I did read a lot of books. But I'm for sure looking forward to catching up when we get back home.

The best investment we made this month was a Thermos. I've spent a good amount of time complaining about never being able to get a good cup of tea when I wanted one. It was only just this month it occurred to me that I could just bring the tea with me. Problem solved. Life changed. Now we have tea everywhere we go.

I've got a lot of projects I want to do, or at least start, in February. I think it will be a big cleaning and organizing month. My capsule wardrobe has got me inspired to capsulize everything else in my life. We'll see how that turns out. Also, I'm excited to begin my digital project life, and also before I had my digital realization, I had already determined to try a real paper version with one of my old scrapbooks. I'm sure I'll share more on that once I get going.

It was a really great month. I feel really sorted and ready to go. Ready for February!

How was your month?