Snapshot 2/28/21 // “Winter Woes”

Currently listening: “Ultraviolet” – Stiff Dylans
Currently watching: Anne With An E S1
Currently playing: The World Ends With You: Final Remix
Currently reading: Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

January may have been a beautiful thing but February was an ugly entity. It snowed like the ninth circle of hell over here. Listen, I appreciate snow. I really do. For summer to exist there has to be a winter. But there was just no end to the snow this month. Between the seasonal depression of it often being dark outside and then further worsened by the never-ending snow keeping me locked inside I was very, very not myself. So did I have extra hot chocolate? Yes, yes I did. Among lots of cake as well.

My healthy habits, no lie, fell to the wayside this month. Besides my winter woes, work was especially stressful and there was a lot going on with my family too. Everything is okay but not out of the woods yet. I’m crossing my fingers though as March waltzes in, so will spring.

February Goals:

1. Do pilates twice a week! Fail. I think I did it only twice this month, nevertheless twice a week. Did I mention there was cake?
2. Work on The Lowell Saga everyday! Check. I did do this nearly everyday. So win.
3. Use social media more! Check. My handle is @jaiiiilynn4 for both Insta and Twitter if you want to connect!

March (the month where spring better show up to my party) Goals:

1. Make more mindful and healthy food choices! After the eating disaster that was February, I’m looking to make better choices in March. Less cake and more fruit! Less pasta and more vegetables! Honestly, I feel so much better when I eat cleaner food and I have to remember that the next time I feel the need to reach for the chocolate bar to just not. Stress eating does not make the bad feelings go away, it only perpetuates them. I’ll take broccoli over bloated any day.
2. Finish the middle bit of The Lowell Saga! I want to finish the tricky middle bit of my story this month. There is a very specific treasure my trio is looking for in the middle of book 1 of TLS and I have scenes scattered throughout my draft that I want to attempt to string together to get this part done this month. Then hopefully I can head to the ending bits for April. AND THEN, start book 2 draft 1 in May.
3. Find more focus in my life! Sometimes life feels like a frozen tundra where everywhere you look is snow, icy wind and emptiness. That was an analogy but you get the point. If I haven’t said it enough February was rough in all facets of living. In March, I want to get my shit together in my personal, work and writing lives.

What I Read:

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• Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. I enjoyed this a lot. Don’t get me wrong, it definitely had it’s faults //SPOILERS// – insta love, definitely not a favorite trope of mine between Kaoru and Akiva, but I digress- //END OF SPOILERS//, but the writing was strong with vivid imagery, a magical world, and important moral message. Also the characters were very, very lovable. I do adore Kaoru, Zuzana and just their friendship in general. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens in the rest of the trilogy.
• Fire and Hemlock by Diana Wynne Jones. This book is my heart and soul. It is one of my favorites of all time and I cannot remember how many times I’ve reread it throughout the years. The only indication would be by how cracked its spine is honestly. This book will be with me till I die, it is just that kind of story and anything I say about it will be biased. I really love this book. It’s definitely not for everyone but for those to who it resonates with it really hits home. It’s so many things. A coming of age story, a love story, a story about heroes and villains and just so well balanced that no matter how many times I reread it I find more things I missed before. If any of you have read this book and know exactly how I feel and exactly what I am talking about please let me know. I need someone to vent and gush and just express all my feelings with. Let’s get together in Nowhere 😉
• Ballerina Body: Dancing and Eating Your Way to a Leaner, Stronger and More Graceful You by Misty Copeland. I love Misty Copeland and I love ballet, even though I only took it for a year when I was five before changing to horseback riding for ten years. Honestly I wish I had stuck with it but I love horseback riding just as much. I wish I had done both actually, and karate. I did karate for a month but I digress. ANYWAY, I enjoyed reading this and learning about some of Misty’s exercise routine, food preferences and personal journey. I really respect her so it was interesting to read. I also love barre but haven’t been able to take a class in almost a year due to COVID. But as soon as the world gets up and running again I’m running back to the gym. Reading this book was meant to keep that goal in mind and remember to stay fit and make healthy choices for my 2021 resolution!

What I’ll Be Writing:

• Poetry- posted every Wednesday
• Writing Is Hard | WIP Writing Update- posted in the middle of the month
• Snapshot! Monthly Recap- posted the last day of every month
• Announcements- posted as needed

If you want more information about any of the above, you can check out the About page on my site or just click here.

Fabulous Posts I Read in February:

• Erin @ Reading On A Star “Discussion – Drawing the line between inspired or copied content“
• Shivani Gupta @ The Eternal Words “The Stars“
• Olivia @ Purely Olivia “Why Can’t I Stop Falling in Love With Fictional Characters? // An Exposé of Yours Truly“
• Zoewiezoe “Purpose“
• Mary Drover @ Mary and the Words “#marywrites: Introspection“
• Marie @ Drizzle & Hurricane Books “ BOOK BLOGGERS TALK #1: THOUGHTS ON THE FUTURE OF BOOK BLOGGING“

My Round Up of February Posts:

• “The Poet”
• Announcement! Radiate Literary Publication #2
• “Mrs. Hyde”
• “Unwell”
• Writing is Hard | WIP Update | February 2021 | Power of Notebooks
• “Favorites”

Can I just say Anne with an E is such a beautiful show? Honestly, like I. Am. Floored. I didn’t even finish the first season yet and I am just in love with everything. If you haven’t seen it yet I highly recommend. So much so, that y’all already know I ordered the complete series to read.

How did February treat you? Do you share my pressing sentiments over Anne of Green Gables? These are the questions that need to be answered.

Till next time,

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