April 2022 - Q1 recap, Q2 forecast

Hello everyone!

Sorry this is a bit late. I was traveling last week, and life has honestly been quite a lot. Better late than never though!

Now that the first quarter of the year is done, let's look at how I did overall:

Strength Training

Last month I managed to be pretty consistent. I lifted weights about 2-3 times a week, and managed to start incorporating mainly 5 and 7 lb weights. I know it's not a lot for many of you, but it's an improvement for me! I also went on walks quite frequently and managed a run about once a week. Yoga has been very hit or miss, but I have found myself incorporating yoga stretches informally to stretch things out after weight lifting. So overall, I'd say a fairly good month for exercising. Last week didn't really do much since I was visiting my partner at his place, but again, lots of walking and we did hike and I did go for a run.

Save Money

Happy to say that despite spending wayyy too much in the month of March (a common occurrence I'm finding) I still managed to stay at my savings goal for the quarter. So, I didn't save any money, but I also didn't drop too low. A little disappointing that I won't be at a higher amount than I had originally planned, and I already anticipate a couple unexpected expenses coming in that will probably affect my original goal, but I'm glad I didn't fuck myself over too much with the over-spending. I'll be doing my monthly budget after this and will be keeping a tighter hold on my wallet moving forward, which will be difficult with my trip at the end of the month T-T

Cryptid Storyboards

We are just under halfway through boarding! I think I only boarded one more scene last month, and I boarded another earlier this week, so I am behind my original schedule. However, I am still making progress, and I'm excited at seeing the short come a little bit more alive.

Final Patreon Commissions

I have finished 2 of these and have a third sketched and ready to actually be worked on. I'll need to deliver the 2nd one, but I'm happy to be nearly done with these.

Overall I think my first quarter went all right. It wasn't as fully productive as I had wanted, but I was also dealing with quite a lot in my life that made things difficult to focus and be motivated. In terms of my content schedule, I've been mostly on track there, which I've been really happy about. I've also started incorporating a new system into my planning that has, so far, been pretty effective at getting me to do what I need to do. I am happy I managed to hit my savings goal, even if I'm a little bummed I won't be able to surpass it. And I'm proud of myself for managing to exercise a little more consistently.

So, let's move on to my goals for the second quarter!

Quarter 2 Goals

Triathlon Training

I have officially signed up for the Santa Cruz Triathlon, which will take place in late September. That gives me around 5 months to train and prepare. I still don't feel fully at peak, but I'm going to start incorporating triathlon-specific training nonetheless, albeit slowly. My knees are still not in great shape, and I am not the most consistent at taking my collagen or other protein powder, so my gains aren't as noticeable either compared to a month or two in to my marathon training last year. Nonetheless, I have started noticing something. I'm wondering if incorporating more cardio will accelerate that.

I also want to be more diligent about strength training in the regenerative sense, ie exercises I had learned during physical therapy. I'm not in physical therapy right now, but I did find a decent resource somewhere that went over a lot of the stuff I had done there, and I finally found my resistance bands, so I'll be working to incorporate that more regularly. I'm going to start looking into a gym with a pool as well so I can work on swimming, because that is certainly my weakest trait. And since I don't have a bike, I imagine I'll be going to the gym for cycling too.

Saving Goal

I'll still be trying to hit my original savings goal for June. I think it'll be a bit tricky since, again, I have a couple of big expenses I will have to make that I didn't initially budget for, but I'll do my best. I will also need to start making large expenses for my move, such as renting a uhaul, which will likely put a dent in my actual end amount, but considering I'm saving money for my move, I figure it's kind of like. Spending the money I'm saving on the thing I'm saving for. If that makes sense lol.

Move to California

It's happening! I'll be moving in mid-June, which feels both far away and super soon. Things have already been set in motion, and I still have a lot of things to do, namely pack, but yeah. This is probably the Big Thing, since I'll be moving EVERYTHING in this one trip. My original plan had a smaller move in June and my big move later in the year or early next year, but I figured it would be way more convenient overall, and potentially cheaper as well, to just do it in one big go. Which does mean I'll need to tow my car... which I've never done before. Thankfully my friend will be flying in to help me drive, so it'll be an adventure. My plan is to get everything scheduled out and reserved in April, start packing in May, and kick into action in June. It's gonna be crazy! I enjoy watching moving vlogs, so I'll try to vlog as I move along, but no promises.

Cryptid Dating

As mentioned above, I didn't make as much progress on my boards as I wanted. Definitely for this second quarter I want to get the boards finished. I don't know if I'll be able to finish the layout stage, but I would like to start it, and I think an animatic is still viable. The progress is slow, which I expected in a way, but it's still moving along which is exciting!

So those are my main 2nd Quarter goals. It's a lot, and my calendar is kinda insane, but things are coming together and starting to happen. If you subscribe to the wheel of the year sort of thinking, it definitely feels like I'm coming out of the sleepier winter/spring and entering the full growth !!!! of late spring and early summer. Which is stressful, but also exciting!

Thanks again for reading. Let me know what goals you're working on! How was the first three months of the year for you? What are you looking forward to in the next three months?