I hope everyone is doing well; it's so surreal to think we're already in the month of April. Feels like we just started 2024 (although, to be completely fair, it also doesn't feel like we started 2024 and like the past few years never really finished). It was a busy week full of family birthdays (and tomorrow is one of my best friend's birthday, too). Sleep has been a challenge this week, and I have to wonder if it's due at least in part to the upcoming new moon and solar eclipse tomorrow. Whatever the reason, it's been impacting energy and motivation levels rather hard. Hopefully, things will start easing up soon. Here's to smoother sailing (and hopefully not too hot of weather because the weather has been all temperamental and bipolar again).
Sleep was rather challenging Sunday night/Monday morning; it was a rather lethargic, exhausted kind of day. Not sure if it had to do with energies or what. Dream recall was rather muddled, too, but I think it might have involved going to some sort of school with April. I was able to get somewhat better sleep Monday night/Tuesday morning, but I still felt rather tired when I woke up. From what I could remember from the dream, it involved the cartoon Jackie Chan Adventures. Jackie and Jade were there for sure, and I think they were searching for something (not sure what). There was also something about painting/dyeing corks with some special ink and making cool designs. No idea what for, but it was rather interesting. That's all I could remember upon waking.
Sleep was tricky Tuesday night/Wednesday morning; dream recall was a complete blur, too, so I had no idea what transpired in the dream realm. Sleep wasn't much better Wednesday night/Thursday morning, but I could remember a little bit from the dream. There was something about creating emoji/stickers. They seemed to be pretty unusual. Not sure what else occurred, though. It was a real struggle getting up on Friday, and dream recall was a complete blur. Kind of felt like I hadn't slept at all. Waking up Saturday was a bit better, having gotten more sleep, but I had kept waking up and was unable to remember what transpired in the dream realm.
Sleep was still kind of tricky when I kept waking up this morning, but I did manage to get more sleep and was able to recall my dreams easier. Details were a bit hazy, The first part I could somewhat remember involved traveling with Corliss. Not sure where we were going/what our plans were, but there seemed to be some group after us and some group trying to help us. It was weird. I think we ended up visiting some kind of hospital/rehab center for some reason. Seemed like we needed to be one step ahead of of the one group that was chasing us.
Not sure how that part ended, but the next thing I remembered was being in some building/school with April. We were at the bottom of some stairwell with a few other people (not sure why). This guy that had this very condescending air about him came up to April and I and said we needed to come with him. He kind of seemed like an instructor of some sort. Not sure where April ended up, but the guy forced me to go outside and participate in some massive competition. He seemed to have something against me, though, as there were 4 teams already set up with so many people on them, but he stuck me on my own team. He didn't even give me the instructions or means/equipment/resources to participate and told me, "Good luck succeeding," with a scoff because apparently I would fail if I didn't get any points. No idea what his problem was with me. Unfortunately for him, I not only managed to find a way to get the some means of participating and scoring points, but I managed to get in the top 10 ranking of participants; I also think my team (of only myself) managed to rank 2nd overall. The guy was horrified at my accomplishments, as if he fully expected me to be unable to achieve a thing.
There was something about watching dogs with April and Iris, going on walks around town with them. The last thing I could remember was hanging out with April, her mom, and Iris. We were at their old house before April's dad passed away. I think they had been trying to set me up with some of Josh's friends (not sure if it was in a romantic sense or just thinking that I "needed more friends"). I remember not feeling all too thrilled about the prospect. They had magnets that I had given them all over the house. The carpet near the bathroom was soaked, too, but that seemed to be because April's mom was trying to "shower" Iris outside of the tub for some reason. I came to chat with April, and this guy came up to their door, knocking and not wanting to leave. April told me that he was not getting a hint. It even started raining a bit, but he was not leaving, choosing to be super stubborn about it. He started wandering around the perimeter of the house, trying to get a glimpse inside through the closed blinds. April wasn't too happy about it. Iris came out, thinking it was a game, and opened one of the blinds, dancing and being silly. April wasn't thrilled about that outcome because that meant the guy knew people were home. Not sure what happened after that, as it's all I could remember once awake.
The boys were excited to have the day off on Tuesday thanks to voting and schools being polling places. They had us watching funny Bluey clips (proclaiming Bandit to be the best character and that things were always funny when he's on screen), the best clips of Dragonball Z Abridged, updates for new Funko Pops, theory videos, gaming videos, etc. They thoroughly enjoyed their extra day off. Otherwise, it was a pretty normal week. The younger brother loved telling me about and showing me all the different foods his cooking class has been working on, too. They were excited for the weekend and are looking forward to their extra day off in a couple of weeks.
Tsuki was her typical self, getting into antics and being adorable. She enjoyed plenty of cozy cat naps, getting all snuggly and cozy in all of her favorite spots, but especially her chair. Tsuki enjoyed hanging out on the porch when it was nice out, lounging on her window shelf for some birdwatching, listening and watching the rain from the cracked window, lurking around corners, playing in boxes, trying to steal my laptop, and being a goof. She definitely keeps things interesting and makes life better.
Artwork for the week included more diamond art:
This week I created more new content for Creativity Chronicles, so feel free to check out the newest content!
New Creativity Chronicles' articles included:
As we enter the second quarter of the year, please remember to take time for you and self-care. There are always new things that life, society, and others will want you to do, but make sure you have the means to accomplish it and remember to fill up your own cup. With the constant new additions to to-do lists, it can become all too easy to push yourself too hard and try giving more than you have. Your well-being is important, though. You matter. Take care of you just as well as you take care of others; when you take great care of yourself, you're able to be more productive, efficient, and helpful, too. There will always be more things to do, so make sure you can enjoy the journey along the way. It won't be as worthwhile if you achieve a lot but are completely miserable along the way. Do your best, find joy in the small things. and be gentle with yourself. Your timing and life doesn't have to look like anyone else's; do what's best for you and go at your own pace. You've got this! Have a wonderful rest of your weekend and take some time for fun!
Food for thought for the week included: