October.  October seems like the last chance to be productive before the delightful insanity that is the holiday season hits.  It’s the fall stretch.  The charm of the beginnings that September offers are over, and Halloween, the tip of the Holiday Season Iceberg, doesn’t hit until the very last freakin’ day of the month.

October is about anticipation.  It’s about weather cooling down, it’s about pumpkin spice lattes, and it’s about getting things done.  This is what I am going to get done.

How I Did Last Month

Write and publish nine blog posts.  I made it to eight!

Reach out to people!  Say “hi” to other bloggers I like at least three times a week.  I didn’t necessarily do this three times a week, but I certainly “met” more than nine bloggers overall.  Here are some favorite blogs that I found this month:

Unlocking Kiki– This blog makes my desire to go to Iceland even more intense than it was before.

Eurolinguiste– I love Shannon’s enthusiasm for language.  I will be using her site a LOT when I am working on one of my goals this month.

Local Adventurer– I love Esther’s love of local adventures.  This is something we have in common.

The Overseas Escape– for travel photography!

We Took the Road Less Traveled– because Casey made me want to simultaneously live abroad again AND go on a cruise (the second of which I never felt a desire for before).

Go to yoga twice a week.  This was a total fail.  I had to cancel my membership at the beginning of the month.

Go on one local adventure.  Local adventures are .  I went on three local adventures this week.  I walked around Point Reyes Station and had a pomegranate mojito.  I explored a new battery in the Marin Headlands (post coming soon!).  I also hiked up Telegraph Hill to Coit Tower.  This was my favorite local adventure this month, and it’s the one that “counts” for this goal.

Best of Blog in September

My favorite posts this month took us to my two favorite places in the world: Wales and San Francisco.

Goals for October

• Improve my photography.  Specifically…
  • Work on getting photos that tell the whole story for my blog posts.  Sometimes I know I am going in to an adventure with the intention of blogging about it.  Other times, I find something delightfully unexpected while I am out wandering and I decide to blog about it half way through the adventure.  Either way, I usually walk away missing some photos that I feel like I need in order to tell the whole story.  Usually its an establishing shot, pictures I of something I saw repeatedly (like “Don’t Enter!  Go Away!” signs at Coit Tower), a beautiful shot of the main “thing” itself, or photos that include parts of me that are not my feet.  In  other words, pictures with my face at the place I am visiting.
  • Find and read two articles with blogging photography tips.  Implement those tips.
  • Use my regular camera (not phone) in order to get better pictures.
• Write and post 8 blog posts.
• Go on a local adventure.
• Develop a plan for learning some conversational Greek with my husband.  Why Greek?  Could it possibly have to do with some potential travel plans for next summer???

Maximize Your Month

Maximize Your Month is an encouraging link up hosted by Esther from Local Adventurer, Hsiao-Ting from Shouting Chow, Mariah from Food, Booze & Baggage, Lindsay from Lindsay Does Languages, and Shannon from Eurolinguiste.  Visit their blogs to join this month’s link up!

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