NaNo NO Wri

It started out so well. Got the first bis of my story down. And then some more. Hey, I was heading towards 3000 words and still going strong. 500 more and it was climbing. My story was going places. Yes, I would be a winner. Yes, this was going to be a-maz-ing. Yes, I was a writer.

But then No happened. I opened up my novel and it just looked back. "Where you going on this one?" if seemed to say. "Thought you had something important, something profound" I felt a twinge of shame. Yes, I thought that I had something insightful to impart. That I could write a soul wrenching love story that didn't rely on shagging, that was all about those untold emotions that course through us when we have love in our lives and when old lovers return.

No kept happening. Day after day. Inspiration alluded me and I was beginning to think that this task was too great for me. That I am a talker not a writer; that I don't have the words.

However, the muse strikes from the oddest directions. Part of my novel had been formulated when I was working on North Uist in 2006. The landscape is astonishing. Low hills, lots of water, bogs and peat banks, small townships scattered across and brown and green and brown. It was so different to any place I had spent previously. I found the photos I had taken all those years ago and it suddenly struck me where my story should be going.

Yes, there was a lot to explain about the history of these islands but I am writing a love story and I love these islands so isn't not going to be difficult and I will do it.

NO in November

NO alcohol. If I go out with friends then this one might get postponed

NO sitting on my arse for the night unless I have done some form of exercise

NO eating rubbish foods. Trying to eat less carbs 'cause it worked last time round

NO complaining about my job. If I don't like it, I need to get another one or at least look for another

NO faffing with NaNoWriMo. I will sit and write at least 2000 a day even if it makes no sense at the time (or afterwards)

NO living like a slob. I will get things sorted out and more streamlined

NO using might. It's either WILL or nothing

There you have it my November pledges

NaNoWriMo is coming

In just under 3 hours it's NaNoWriMo time again and I am going to be doing it.

I tried in 2008 but got nowhere, well a few thousand words but nothing that really made sense. But this time I'm doing it again. I still haven't decided if I'm going to resurrect the 2008 story or go for something completely different. A few nights ago I had thought and characters and ideas but no plot just coming at me so perhaps I should go with that.

It'll probably come down to me just sitting and writing and seeing what comes out.

Uh Oh! It's a Boyfriend Sweater

Every knitters knows the "Sweater Curse". For those that are unaware it's the breakup that occurs when a knitter makes, then gives a hand made sweater to a significant other (usually a boy/girl friend). Sometimes the gentle click of the casting on is enough to start the knell of the relationship, othersflounder after the sweater is received.

I met Mr Glam in February 2005 and in February 2006 I went away to work for a month on North Uist in the Western Isles. He asked me to knit him a sweater, full of cables and aran and lovely and everything marvellous and I thought that this time apart would be the perfect time to make the start. I bought the best wool from ebay - 10 skeins of wonderfully soft Bluefaced Leicester. It was delivered to the house in Scotland we were staying and I didn't make a start. The wool came back down with me and went through two house moves staying in the bag it came in.

Fast forward to October 2013. That's it seven years later. I had decided to make a serious attempt to sort my stash and came across the lovely BFL at the bottom of a bin bag. Mr Glam, who knows about the Sweater Curse, wondered if I was ever going to knit him the sweater. My reasons for not are not at all connected to the worry that it will end our relationship. It's mostly because I'm lazy and easily distracted and am not great at finishing things. Starting comes easy but finishing is a completely different matter.

But started I have. It's a cabled, seamless, scoop necked sweater knit called Olwen by AndreSue Knits. Mr Glam isn't keen on things being close round his neck so I think that this is going to work. I'm going for the largest size but have also upped the needles size to 5mm for the ribbing and 5.5mm for the main part. And boy is it a fast knit. This is it after 4 days.

Yes, I know there is a mistake on the cable. Or rather there was a mistake on the cable, I just dropped down the stitches and it now flows as it's meant to.

Daily updates

Okay, I have realised that doing a daily update of my exercise and food during my May Challenge is a bit dull.

Every day it's did this and ate that so from now on I'm going to do one at the end of the week and even then I think it might become a tad repeatative.

To keep you interested here's a picture of my new shoes

Marvellous May Day 3

Just a quicky today.

Exercise
Running - C25K Week 7 Day 1. 20 minutes of running following by 3 miutes of walking then another 5 minutes of running
The first block of 20 went really well. It was a bit windy and being on the top of a hill means that no matter where I go I feel it but it was good but boy was I glad when the 3 minute walk kicked in. Oddly enough it was the final 5 minute block that was harder but I pushed through and did it so am very, very pleased with myself.

The weights I did yesterday have made my shoulders and chest muscles ache and I'm a bit worried about doing them again tomorrow but I shall see what that brings

Food
Breakfast - Fritatta with bacon and green pepper
Lunch - Chicken with bacon and mushrooms (was meant to have salad as well but it had turned)
Dinner - Sausages with tomatoes and cucumber and radished
Snack - Salmon rolls

Marvellous May Day 2

This is that I look like at the moment. It's difficult to explain that I am not bothered by the way I look overall. I certainly don't obsess about things but there are times when I would like to be slimmer so that I can wear the clothes I find interesting.  I have always been in awe of those beautiful larger women that carry themselves with grace as I never felt entirely comfortable in my skin but it now realise that it's a state of mind. I have to be more accepting that I am who I am.

It took me a long time to realise that I am not pretty pretty. I never hated myself but I know I have a long face and straight hair and a largish nose and my features just kind of sit there. When I was a teenager, I wasn't bothered about how I looked. Not that I was skanky but I didn't wear make-up and I suppose that I never learned how to. My mum wasn't bothered and rarely dressed up, most of my friends were boys so I didn't get the grounding in how to be feminine. And as I grew older it didn't seem to matter but now I would like to be a bit more elegant.

My May challenge is not just about getting healthy and eating better, but it's also my chance to become the woman I want to be.

So here's the intimate details.
I weigh 207.6 lbs or 14.8st or 94kg. I'm not worried about weight but the scales I have also give things like water, fat and muscle and they stand at 23.8% fat and 35.9% muscle. In reality I'm not sure what these mean but I would like the former to go down and the latter to go up.
Full bust - 46 inches
Under bust - 38 inches
Waist - 39 inches
Hips - 46.5inches
So it's an hourglass that just needs a bit more definition and that for me is the most important part. Strong, healthy and fit

Exercise
My dumbbells are adjustable so I have made them to be 10lbs each. I don't know if this is too heavy but I wanted to challenge myself and see what I could do.
I did 3 sets of 10 reps each of Single Arm Extensions, Upright Row, Shoulder Press, Pullover, Incline Chest Fly and Chest Press as well as 1 set of 10 reps of lateral raises but my shoulder kept clicking which was a tad off putting. I was also planning on digging over a bit more of the garden but my aching arms put paid to that - it'll get done tomorrow.
I also did a variety of 100 crunches - straights, obliques, reverse (they are the worse) and sides.

Food
Breakfast - Eggs and an avocado (which is probably my favouritest thing in the whole world) ((apart from gin))
Lunch - Spicy prawns with crunchy salad
Dinner - Roast chicken with cabbage, cucumber and mango salad
Snack - Some beef jerky, a stick of celery and a palm of raisins