NaNoWriMo time

With a goal of writing regularly instead of word counts I decided to try national novel writing month (NaNoWriMo) this year. I even made a little habit tracker in my new bullet journal. 

Some days have had more words than others. But I've written every day so far. Some writing has been over lunch breaks. Some has been in the evenings after younger kiddo has fallen asleep. 

How I Use Trello

Awhile back I asked on Twitter if anyone would be interested in hearing about how I use Trello. While this is aimed at making ADHD organization easier, this should still be useful for anyone looking at Trello.

This post is about what features I use. I'm not going to reinvent the wheel with explaining how all the settings work. Trello has good documentation on thier website. 

Trello

What is Trello? 

Very quickly, Trello is like a virtual bulletin board. Where you can create cards to hold information. The cards are organized within lists on the board. A user can have multiple boards. This can be for solo use or collaborative. 

When setting up a board I try to keep the purpose in mind when deciding how information is going to flow or live. How task oriented? What's the project scope? 

Examples: 

-When I was job searching each list was a step in the search process. Then each card was a specific job application, and I'd move the cards from one list to another. This follows the logic of a card being on a list based on where it is in a process. 

-For my job workload organization I do time based lists. I usually have each list cover a month worth of time. This can also work with Quarters. 

-I've got a Story board for writing and a general art board for ideas. Lists here are more topic based. Like setting ideas, muse prompting, or material type.

Trello Settings used:

This is under power ups, the calendar feature is something I use on most boards. Calendar or not all cards can have a due date. Due dates can send reminders. What I like about the calendar is that it can toggle from a list view to when things are due. This is a helpful view, and cards can be dropped and dragged on the calendar as needed, which updates their due dates. Note that they still stay in thier list. This is also more functional on the desktop web version than mobile app.

Lables are my next favorite feature. While cards live on lists they can have multiple labels for organizational purposes. For my job board this is the type of task. For my committee team board this is team role based. Both boards are time based lists. Labels show on the calendar and can be used when filtering a board. 

Email settings are another feature I use. Trello allows for card creation by email. This is under the email to board setting. Trello will generate a email address for the user and the board, which I then save as a contact in outlook. Email subject populates the card name while body will be the card description. And any attachments on the email will be uploaded to Trello.

Trello does have a personal paid version, thier Gold, which allows for more power ups per board. They also have a business class which gives more boards per team. What's covered in this post is available with the free version. 

A note on mobile, I have an Android phone and use the app in addition to desktop. The app can display push notifications when a due date is approaching. And I can use the "add card to Trello" option whenever there's a share button on my phone. 

New Post

Looking at 2020 and thinking about how often I'm updating this blog. I still want it to be writing with a slice of life, which can be tricky when I haven't been writing as often as I'd like. I have my other blog for more professional / higher ed data type posts. 

Short post is short, more to come soon. :) 

Peony

Found this in my drafts and figured I'd post it.

One Word 2020: Heal

Last year was forward, which was good in theory. But thinking further healing from the past needs to be part of the process. Only looking forward doesn't help in the long run.

Micro Fiction

I signed up for an online class for writing micro fiction. This is with a professor I had previously had, and I'm excited to be working with her again. 

I'm also looking forward to writing again. I know I need to work on my revision skills and figure that short fiction would be a great place to hone this skill.

Test post

Test post to see if the Blogger app on my Android phone even works anymore.

Racism is not a mental illness

I found this as a draft, of which I'd originally written for a Facebook group. The topic still resonates on its own so I revised this a bit.

Can we discuss racist actions without using words like crazy, insane, or anything else related to mental illness? I've seen this a few times and wanted to write a stand alone post. The point of being more intentional with our interactions on this topic.

Two main points with this, the first being that calling racist behavior crazy can look like an excuse for it. Like someone doesn't know better. Which removes accountability in a way.

The second point is abelism. Using a disability/ disorder to describe something else in a negative way is abelism. With mental illness there is enough stigma around it already that we don't need to use related terms in a negative way. And some of us with mental illnesses are working hard to address racism. Calling someone else's racist actions insane lumps us in with them.

Some other words to use: unbelievable, unacceptable, inappropriate, ect, as a start.

Of darkness and light

Of darkness and light and moving forward. I saw this picture on a Facebook page and it speaks to me. There's something about recognizing the impact of the dark times, and taking those lessons forward. 

Image description: A woman standing with arms forward, light in hand and around her. Text reads "Thoes who have seen the darkness have the most light to give. @therandomvibes".

Image

2019 - Forward

I decided on Forward for my one word. To kick off the year I drew this in my new marker sketchbook. Inspired by Steven Universe.

Picture here because Blogger wouldn't post with it.

One word 2019

I've done the One Word "resolution" a few years now, some years more successful than others. Now I'm trying to decide what word I want for 2019.

"Start looking forward and stop looking back" - Steve Universe lyric (What's the use of feeling blue) kind of resonates for me. I think forward may be a strong option for my 2019 word.

Awesome is another word I've been pondering. That's the word on a journal from a close colleague, and could be something positive to focus on.

I still have a few days yet to decide. Along with my word I want to decide how I'll make a point to reflect on it.

Who else does one word? Or resolutions? Or a vision board?

Reading: Earthsea

I've been wanting to read more of Ursula Le Guin's work for awhile now and recently got the chance to do so.

This month I read the first two Earthsea books. I enjoyed her world building, and it was easy to get into Ged's story as he learned to be a wizard then set off on his adventure.

I liked how she didn't mention Ged's race until further along in the story. Which she did deliberately because she knew many white readers wouldn't accept a non white hero. (1967).

Also interesting is that the first book was initially a stand alone. It wasn't meant to be a series. A line she wrote about Ged going off on further adventures was wrapping the story up. Yet it turned into a hint of further story for the series.

After that first book she wrote Left Hand Of Darkness. Then travel brought setting for the second Earthsea book. Ged is still a part of the story, but he's not the main character. Tenar is introduced here, this book is her story.

Self care and environmental support

Back in 2009 we moved into our house, and had the opportunity to watch the somewhat established gardens bloom. There were a variety of flowers.

On the side of our house in a shaded area grew a peony plant. I watched it grow and unfurl it's leaves, but no blossoms. I transplanted it to the actual garden, with sun and better soil. The next year it blossomed huge white flowers.

A part got left behind in that section of shade. It still grows year after year, as does the garden one. The garden one still blooms. The shade one never has.

When we think about self care and discuss the topic, always remember how much of a difference the environment can make. And be the sun for others.

RIP

"Words are events, they do things, change things. They transform both speaker and hearer; they feed energy back and forth and amplify it. They feed understanding or emotion back and forth and amplify it."

-Ursula Le Guin, Telling is Listening

I finished rereading her Left Hand of Darkness last November. I'm currently reading Wave in the Mind. Her writing resonates.

I just heard the news of her passing this evening. Rest in peace.

Diverse Speculative fiction thread

Via Twitter, a call to highlight speculative fiction by People of Color. Sharing here for others to see and so I can easily find again.

Via @silviamg

One Word

I've been thinking about my word for 2018, something to resonate with where I see myself needing to grow, and to focus on. This has taken a fair amount of thought. Then it hit me recently.

Joy.

I've been struggling with the depressive episodes of my cyclothymia. Along with a challenging situation. The day I bought this journal I ran into a particularly rough spot in dealing with the situation.

Last week I was reading through old blog posts of mine, and this one struck a chord. Seeing Joy Through the Eyes of My Toddler . With the way things have been I need to find these moments of Joy. The post was a good reminder of that.

So I'm going to be more mindful of enjoying what I can. In order to not loose myself in the sea of negative.

Joy.

ADD - hyperfocus

With attention deficit disorder comes hyperfocus. At least for me. When engaged properly this can be a powerful tool for productivity.

Fairly recently I realized that it is also a way for my overactive mind to let out some of that extra mental energy. Which in turn helps my mood. This isn't only a productivity asset but a necessary outlet for me. Writing is a hyperfocus activity for me, and I'm feeling the positive impact on my mood since writing daily for national novel writing month.  

Mental illness and community

I recently wrote about my mental health and disability for my professional newsletter. The article is linked below. This is a short summary of my Cyclothymia and Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) in my professional career. I also included how campus resources have helped me start to move from the medical model of disability to the social model 1. This means seeing myself as differently abled instead of broken. My article also included the Institutional Research community. Sharing stories can help grow community connections.

This sense of community connection is important. For at least the past several months when my depressive episodes hit I have been struggling with my sense of belonging where I am in my campus community. I know depression lies. But it can be hard to keep sight of that when in the worst moods.

This has gotten me thinking more about what an inclusive community looks like. Campus resources have been helpful, and I do have some wonderful colleagues, both on and off campus. In those times when I feel like I don’t belong I have thought about if I could feel a stronger sense of belonging elsewhere. In thinking further, I realized that I can help with the community I’m currently in. Part of it is managing my own mental health, being intentional in spending time with others helps there. I can also help build support for others as well. I chair the assessment subcommittee of our campus Diversity Committee. I’m also leading our newly formed faculty and staff with disabilities interest group. Both of these together can help grow connections between colleagues along with assessing our progress. System change doesn’t happen with one person, this is a collaborative effort of people working together. I’m not just building my own support network, but also helping our community.

There is still stigma around mental illness. In sharing my story, I’m doing my part to help break the stigma. In thinking about disability as a social construct, versus an impairment 2, I was wondering if the stigma around mental health could be seen as contributing towards a disabling environment. Like how a building with stairs can be harder to navigate then one with ramps for someone with a physical impairment. A social environment where one feels less worthy because of their mental illness could make one feel more disabled.  

My ask eAIR article:
http://www.airweb.org/eAIR/askeair/Pages/Diversity.aspx

1 “Disability and Ableism in Higher Education,” Jennifer Ashton, Ph.D. and Milo Obourn, Ph.D.

2 “Disability as an Intersectional Social Identity,” Milo Obourn, Ph.D. and Jennifer Ashton, Ph.D.
http://digitalcommons.brockport.edu/divconf/2017/schedule/24/

Building Bridges

As an artist I like symbolism. How something can be face value and also something more.

Take bridges for example. They span physical spaces to make connections and facilitate transportation.

Symbol wise we can focus on the idea of connection. Beyond the physical space I like to also think about bridges as connecting people. Allowing ideas to cross spaces. Perhaps these spaces are organizational. Or identity.

We have two covered bridges on campus. Both of which converge at the administration building & library plaza. One bridge crosses a main campus road to our special event and recreation spaces. The other bridge crosses railroad tracks and connects to an academic building.

Our campus is walking distance to a village of the same name, Brockport. Some mornings I drive through the village instead of using our main campus entrance. Turning from Main Street to Adams, while still in the village, the one bridge is visible in the distance.

While working on a cross departmental project this past semester the term building bridges came up. I still think of that conversation when looking at our campus bridge from the village.

A To Z: story a week

So I signed up for a story a week challenge. This one follows the alphabet so each week is the next letter. We started this month, and I wrote a Drabble for A.
Today is the first day for week B. Today I was at a work retreat at the lake. So I'm going with "Beach" for a theme. Going to ponder a story idea a bit before diving in.