Unfortunately, July was not a good month for me, and if you follow me on Twitter, you probably saw a glimpse of it. Early in the month, I received some bad news that included needing a small surgery. It’s something personal and hard to talk about, so for right now, I’m leaving out the details of it. I immediately took some time off of work to come to terms with it and to recover from the surgery.
After about a week, I still had some side effects and pain from the surgery, but I was well enough to do most things normally again. I started working towards getting my life back to a “normal” state. For about 4 days after the surgery, I spent most of my time lying down and just feeling crappy about the whole situation. It definitely took a toll on my mental health, and the moment I was physically well enough, I knew I needed to do something about it.
On the bright side, I had a close friend visit me shortly after I got the bad news. It was a trip she already planned, so the timing was coincidental, but spending time with her helped me feel sane about the whole thing. I also confided in another friend who I was able to talk in-depth with, which helped a lot. (You know who you are. Thank you.)
That time off gave me some time to focus on my hobbies, which I continued to do for the rest of the month. In terms of gaming, I made more progress in Mass Effect Andromeda (PC) and managed to finish 3 games: Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright (3DS), Bayonetta 2 (Wii U), and Pikmin 3 (Wii U). I’m slowly making my way through my backlog!
I also finished post processing all of the photoshoots I did during A-kon (which is one of my monthly goals!). Here’s a couple previews from each shoot. (More in my Facebook or Flickr album.)
One of my other July goals was to draw again. I’m very out of practice, so I used my own cosplay photos as reference and drew several quick sketches. I’m not actually happy with how they came out, but I’m still glad I did them. After all, bad drawings are better than no drawings, right?
On the other hand, I did finish a drawing I’m happy with, but I’m not showing it yet! Rezina suggested doing an art trade, and I loved the idea. I’m about to mail my drawing to her and will show it after she’s had a chance to see it!
So, this is how my monthly goals ended up:
- Start looking for new furniture to organize the house more – Unfortunately, due to the surgery, I ended up not doing this one.
- Finish post processing all photoshoots – complete!
- Draw something – complete!
Now for my goals for August:
- Lose 5 lbs – I’ve gained some weight the past few months that I’d like to lose. I already lost 2 lbs this past week, so here’s hoping I can lose 5 more in the upcoming month.
- Fix my stand mixer – It’s been broken since last year, and I actually have the replacement part. I’ve just been lazy about opening it up and fixing it. I miss using it!
- Break down most of the boxes sitting in our closets – I’ve realized that a bunch of our closets have boxes we don’t need anymore. I really should break them down to make room for other things.
- Buy new furniture – I didn’t do it in July, so let’s try for August. I especially want to add some more bedroom furniture.
I’m hoping August will be a much better month! How was July for you?
*virtual hugs* I hope the surgery went okay! I’m glad you had a couple friends to talk to about it and that you had some time off to recover from it.
Also!! I’m so excited for you to get your drawing and I’m so excited to receive yours! I’ll put it up on Twitter as soon as I get it!
Good luck on your August goals!
I’m sorry to hear about your surgery! I hope you are okay, and making a recovery. I’m sad to hear it’s taken a toll on your mental health, but I’m glad you had a friend there to support you.
Well done on getting your backlog cleared a bit! That’s always an achievement. I think your drawings are really good – I especially like the one of Pokémon Go trainer and Eevee. Thank you for sharing them. An art trade seems like a fun idea, it’s always nice to recieve post.
Good luck with your August goals! I go back to work after 3 months off, so I’m just hoping I get through August and don’t fall asleep in work now I’m not used to the long hours =p
I’m sorry to hear about the bad news you received. I hope you’re feeling better now and that you’re recovering. We love you so much Cat and hope that everything’s okay! If you need anyone to talk to, please feel free to send me a message! *big hugs*
I’m glad to hear that you got through some of your goals! Drawing has always been something I tell myself to get back into (I used to do Art at school and was really good at it back then!!) but I bet if I picked up a pencil now and drew it wouldn’t be great. It was always therapeutic! I saw on Twitter that you were doing that Art share with Rezina – eeek excited for you both! Sounds like a wonderful idea 🙂
Good luck with your August goals! <3
I’m so sorry about your surgery! I hope you’re feeling better
I’m glad that you were able to complete most of your goals despite that. As I said on twitter, I love your drawings and I think they’re wonderful.
I have to loose some weight too. I look fine physically but I’ve gained more than I wanted to so I’m spending August dieting and getting down to my goal weight.
Good luck with your goals!
Sorry to hear about your surgery! It’s never nice when something like that happens. Hope you’re doing okay with it now, and it’s great you had someone you could talk to about it. Hopefully August will be a happier month!
Glad you managed to get some gaming time in. I haven’t played anything for a few months now, because I’ve been so busy with other stuff. I’m definitely in need of a gaming day!
The photos look fantastic. I’d absolutely love to dos cosplay shoot with you one day, you’re amazing! Also, I can’t believe you’re not happy with those drawings. They’re brilliant!
Good luck with your goals for August!
I am so sorry to hear about the surgery and how it affected you 🙁 It’s good you had a couple of friends who talk to about and help improve your mood!
Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright — how did you like that game? That’s on my to-play list! I need to really get around to doing it.
Your drawing looks great! You may not be happy with them, but I think they’re good considering how you hadn’t drawn for a while 🙂 Just keep on drawing and you’ll improve! The art trade you did with Rezina is a great idea! I can’t wait to see what you drew for her.
I hope you’ll have a much better August <3 Take care!
I thought Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright was pretty fun! It was cool to see the two working together. The Layton parts were the usual, but I felt the Phoenix parts were weaker than the usual Ace Attorney games. Still worth a play though!
And thanks!
I am glad that your surgery went well and that you’re recovering well! I understand if you don’t want to speak about it but I am happy that a friend’s visit cheered you up! I love our photoshoots together~! And your skills at drawing is amazing. Reminds me of my husband’s skills. He has a talent for drawing too, it’s just getting back into it again.
Wow, I’m sorry to hear about your suffering with your surgery and problems. I hope the surgery fixed whatever was wrong and you only get better and better *hugs*
I really need to keep up with my twitter. -_-
Even if I don’t know what it was for, I know surgery is usually scary. I hope you’re better now and recovering well *hugs*
It’s great that you got some drawing done! I like that last one with the city background, nice depth. 🙂
The main thing I learned after I finished Inktober last year was that making something is always better than making nothing. Even if the art is “bad” or didn’t come out as expected it is at least something. Something can be built upon and learned from, nothing is just… well, nothing. Do keep drawing, and keep posting your drawings too! 😀
I’m sorry to hear that you needed surgery done last month. Hope you’re making positive recovery by now. It’s good that your close friend sent some positive vibes during her visit.
Glad to see some games being cleared from your backlog! I love the shots you’ve taken! You’re basically good at everything 😉 😉 ;). It’s so cool that you did an art trade with Rezina! Your artwork looks amazing. Did I ever see you with digital art?? I feel like you’d be legit at it too XD.
Good luck with your goals for the month and hope you’re feeling better :).
I’m sorry to hear July was not a good month for you 🙁 I’m hope you’re feeling better after everything <3 I'm glad that your friend was there to help you out – it's always nice when things work out that way.
Sending you lots of love and hugs, and good luck with your August goals <3
I nominated you for the liebster award!
https://dreaming-arcadia.com/2017/08/09/once-upon-a-birthday/