Hailey Hudson's Blog, page 27

Blogmas 2019 Day 21

When Christmas vacation comes, my mind flips to one thing: BOOKS. Reading them, writing them, buying them. Last night I finished Queen of Nothing and SCREAMED because it was everything I hoped for. I reread some old pieces of my own. And then I spent too much time on Goodreads, my library’s website, and, yes, also Amazon–where I might have bought $45 worth of books (banking on the assumption I would get Christmas money today, which I did, so it’s all good). Anyway, I’m REALLY FREAKING EXCITED about drowning in books over Christmas vacation.

These are the books I bought:

Normally This Would Be Cause For Concern: Tales of Calamity and Unrelenting Awkwardness, Danielle Fishel
Traitor to the Throne, Alwyn Hamilton
The Library of Lost Things, Laura Taylor Namey
Surprised by Oxford: A Memoir, Carolyn Weber
Inside Mrs. B’s Classroom: Courage, Hope, and Learning on Chicago’s South Side, Laurie Baldacci
Across A Broken Shore, Amy Trueblood

The only one I’ve read before is Traitor to the Throne; all of the others are books that I really want to read and the library doesn’t have.

But enough about last night’s retail therapy. Today we took a day trip, from about 9:00 to 6:00, to Tennessee to see my grandma. It was really exhausting and I was dragging big-time the whole day. We had lunch and visited for a while. Then we drove back home.

Now the restful part of Christmas vacation can begin and I’m so ready. Normally I rest just enough to get me upright for the next thing, but now, I’m SO glad I don’t have plans again until Tuesday night and I can not only rest enough to make my body functional, but can also spend energy doing some fun things I want to do! This evening I managed to eat dinner, and now it’s 7:30 and I’m going to sleep.

Check out Blogmas Day 21 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2019 Day 20

What a crazy day. This morning I rolled out of bed at 9:45 and onto the couch for a client meeting (as you can see, the cat rolled right along with me); we finalized our January content calendar plus smoothed out some workflow issues, and it was very productive. Then I wrapped up two other projects and was officially on Christmas vacation!! At some point in the next two weeks, I have four small tasks I’ll have to do that should take a couple hours total, but for the most part I’m off work now until January 6th.

There was a lot of back-and-forth this morning trying to figure out if my car was ready, but it was finally determined that yes, it was. My dad picked me up early afternoon and took me to the tire shop, where I got my car–thankfully they were able to repair the tire instead of giving me a new one.

Next I headed to my cardiologist for an echocardiogram. The nurse who did it was really nice and I enjoyed talking to her.

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I had some time to kill between my echo and my voice lesson. So, first I went to the post office to pick up my Christmas package from Hanne. (Socks and tea and a bracelet!!) Then I swung through Panera to get some green tea with honey. (I can’t have coffee and I have been trying my hardest to learn to like tea, but it’s slow going–the green tea wasn’t my favorite, although it was helpful for my voice lesson.) Then I went to PetSmart to get a Christmas gift for Sophie and for the cat.

Finally, I headed to my voice lesson. We talked about breathing and control, and I sang a few different things so Tori could hear where my voice is right now; then we switched me from working on Burn (cause I was STRUGGLING) to working on I’m Not That Girl.

I fought my way through the traffic and got home around dinnertime. I ate a real meal for the first time in basically two weeks, and (so far at least, knock on wood), it went over pretty well which is awesome!! Now I’m dead tired, and going to bed with Queen of Nothing (which has been an AWESOME book so far–I haven’t read YA fantasy in months and I am loving it). It was fun having a busy day out today, and I wish I had the energy to do it more often!

Other notable notes from today: I met a nice homeless man and was able to help him out a little. My shirt was on backwards half the day and nobody told me. And I added up how much money I made this year–my first year truly freelancing full-time–and it was so exciting!

I’m SO glad to be done with work because now it truly feels like CHRISTMAS! This month was so crazy trying to manage work and health and everything; I’ve been physically ready for Christmas for weeks as far as buying gifts, etc., but now I finally feel like I’m getting in the Christmas spirit and it is SO exciting! (The cat loves me right now–I’m the perfect combination of tired + excited where I’m laughing hysterically and very loudly at nothing even though I’m alone in my apartment.) The next two weeks are going to be so restful and fun.

Check out Blogmas Day 20 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2019 Day 19

This morning I wrote a quick article on chat marketing; ate a sandwich (which upset my stomach–just the act of eating will do it these days–and ended up being my only food of the day); and then spent two hours scheduling all of a client’s social media posts for the next two weeks.

Early afternoon my mom picked me up to go back to my car and have it towed. Today roadside assistance came 10 minutes after I called them, which was amazing after sitting there for three hours yesterday! We picked up my Christmas cards/gifts from my mailbox and then my books from the library.

Back home, I tidied up and put some laundry in the washer; my apartment has been a mess for days but I haven’t had the energy to pick it up, and it was really just driving me crazy. Then I did a few more hours of work: editing and submitting some articles for one retainer client, and uploading blog posts to WordPress for another.

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Unfortunately I did not get done with work until 7:00. By then I was so drowsy and brain-dead that it took every last bit of my energy to take a shower; for some reason I was extremely nauseous, too, and went straight to bed with Queen of Nothing (which I have been waiting for for FOREVER).

Check out Blogmas Day 19 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2019 Day 18

It was almost 11:00 this morning before I could drag myself out of bed with a headache and heavy legs; last night was exhausting. So I got a slow start, made breakfast (hooray for feeling hungry!–although it ended up being my only meal of the day), and dug into the dating apps piece a little. (I also discovered a YouTube channel where a dietitian reviews “What I Eat In A Day” videos made by popular YouTubers and I can’t stop watching it.)

Early afternoon I had an appointment with my primary care doctor. It was very productive: I got a prescription refilled, had bloodwork done to make sure I don’t have nutritional deficiencies from not being able to eat, and got a referral to see a dietitian at the hospital.

After my appointment I picked up my groceries and was heading home to finish working and have a restful evening. At a red light a mile or two away from where I live, though, another driver pointed out that I had a flat tire–so I pulled into the parking lot of a liquor store (this was around 4:00) and called roadside assistance. They promised a crew would come in X amount of minutes; the crew didn’t come; I called them again; and they set a new arrival time. We went through this process SEVEN times. Meanwhile, it was getting colder and darker and my phone was dying. Finally, after almost three hours, a couple of teenagers came, but they didn’t have the equipment they needed. So my family picked me up and brought me home and I left my car to be towed in the morning.

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When I got home I went to sleep by 8:30. Obviously, I didn’t get any work done. And since I have a very limited amount of energy, I have to budget it carefully for each day–and I didn’t account for that three-hour ordeal, or having my car towed Thursday, or going to the tire shop Friday. So this flat tire is really throwing off my whole week.

Check out Blogmas Day 18 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2019 Day 17

The kitty and I woke up warm and cozy in my bed this morning while it was raining outside. I got up and answered a few emails, then headed out to meet my friend Andrea for an early lunch at MOD Pizza. I had a kids’ size pizza with dairy free cheese (which tasted good, but gave me severe abdominal pain until I could get home to my pain medicine and heating pad). We also went to Marshall’s and got new bowls for our respective pets (and I got a handcrafted ceramic mug for $4). It was great to catch up.

Back home, I was extremely drowsy and the rainy day didn’t help! I drafted my piece on tart cherries, finished the research (FINALLY) on the enormous dating apps piece, and filmed some video tutorials on email marketing/HTML.

In the evening my dad took me to dinner at O’Charley’s (where I played it safe with a plain baked potato) and then we drove around and looked at some Christmas lights.

When I got home, I stayed up too late reading and thinking about this situation (I have a lot of thoughts) before going to bed.

Check out Blogmas Day 17 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2019 Day 16

I feel like this GI flare-up is never going to end. I’m so weak and tired because I can’t eat. The weekend was nice, though, and this morning I was ready to dig back into work. I can’t wait to knock out this four-day work week (fingers crossed, that is) and have two full weeks off. I worked for a while on video tutorial prep and an article on chat marketing; then I wrote a blog post about whether dogs can eat bananas.

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At 1:00 I got up from the couch, practiced voice, and made myself an almond milk/banana/peanut butter/honey smoothie, which is about the only thing I can stomach right now. (I gave Sophie a mini smoothie too, because yes, dogs CAN eat bananas.) Then it was back to work, this time on the dating apps piece. I find I’m always way more productive at the house than at my apartment (which is funny, because a quiet environment and increased productivity was something I was looking forward to before moving out).

My parents got home mid-afternoon and I took about an hour and a half break from work to sing some more, sit around, etc. Then I headed home, where the kitty was very happy to see me; I filmed a video tutorial, did a little marketing, and cried at this video. Christmas break is so close I can taste it…

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In the evening I took a shower and then the kitty and I got in bed for some reading time. I finished Wildflowers of Terezin and started Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America.

Check out Blogmas Day 16 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2019 Day 15

This morning Joshua and I went to (my) church. I sang with the kids, and then we listened to the sermon. It was a tiring but nice morning.

In the afternoon/evening I made chocolate covered pretzels for our next door neighbors, watched YouTube (and almost fell asleep), worked on my talk for Diamonds, did research on nearby nutritionists, practiced voice, and read Wildflowers of Terezin. My stomach was a mess today and I was in some pain in the morning, so it was nice to have an afternoon at home, and it’s nice to be at the house.

Check out Blogmas Day 15 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you today?

Blogmas 2019 Day 14

I felt awful this morning, but once I got up and got moving I was able to survive everything I needed to do. I drove my brother somewhere, hung out at my apartment until he was done, and then picked him up. I also went to Brooke’s house for a couple of hours to hang out with her family and celebrate for a while because she graduated from college today, which is amazing!!!

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At home I collapsed in bed for a long nap and then was able to eat something later in the evening. I felt a lot better after that. Joshua and I planned my charcuterie board tonight, complete with a grocery list and diagrams–recently I’ve become obsessed with themed charcuterie boards, and I’m making one next week. He got really into it too (what teenage boy doesn’t love this?) and it was fun.

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Check out Blogmas Day 14 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2019 Day 13

Boy, am I exhausted. Today was pretty much the same as every other day this week: I didn’t feel well, and I banged out as much work as I could. I was able to wrap up the pieces that were due Monday so that next week I can just focus on everything due later in the week. I think I’m on track work-wise. A client said to me today how awesome it was that my last day of work for the year is the 19th–next Thursday–and I thought, yeah, but I’m killing myself trying to get there! It will be really nice to have two solid weeks off, though.

Midday I came over to the house, because my parents are traveling this weekend and I’m staying with Joshua and Sophie (which means dog pictures instead of cat pictures for you the next few days). It’s kind of ridiculous how much stuff I brought for three nights–clothes, food, books, work stuff, Christmas gifts, medical stuff…

[image error]The blurred out part is the bag with Christmas gifts hehe

This evening I wrapped gifts and we watched I Love Lucy. Around 9:30 I finally managed to eat something (which backfired on me) and then we had a huge fiasco with the dog. It’s pouring rain and she didn’t want to go outside, and she made both Joshua and I go out and stand in the rain before she would come too. So I was outside with her in the rain twice, and then both times she came in and did a huge “zoomie” before I could dry her off–I’m not kidding, she did zoomies for a solid thirty minutes and got the furniture and everything wet. But I think we’re finally calmed down and ready for bed. Or at least, I sure am.

[image error]This heartwarming scene lasted for about 10 minutes before she showed her true colors and growled at me.

Check out Blogmas Day 13 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2019 Day 12

I wasn’t feeling too well this morning (I was up until 11:30 last night reading Notes From A Young Black Chef and that didn’t help) so I stayed home from tap class. That was disappointing, because I’m switching dance studios after the New Year and today was the last class, but I needed to focus my energy on work. I have 12+ projects to get done for seven clients by next Thursday, and I’m stressing out just a LITTLE. I should have waited until after the New Year to start accepting new clients.

So that’s what I did today: worked. I wrote about Instagram content creation. I wrote about food books that will inspire you to travel. I wrote about chatbots. Then I researched dating apps, and worked on finding company sponsorships for Diamonds, and put away laundry.

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I had hoped to go to the house tonight because my family was putting up their Christmas tree, but I did not make it. I was very sleepy, and my legs hurt a lot; I hate to keep missing things but I have to spend my energy on work. The kitty, who was especially snuggly today, and I had a quiet evening at home with a baked potato for dinner (my stomach has not been happy today either) and then reading Heidi.

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Also, I feel like it’s important to note that I watched the In the Heights trailer approximately 5679295 times today and got goosebumps every. single. time.

Check out Blogmas Day 12 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?