July Summary (What all distracted me)

So much happened in July that I ended up not posting much of anything for the entire month. There was more other stuff than writing and a little fitness on the side. Here is what has gone on lately, for anyone who is interested. :-)

Moving

I moved to Los Angelos early in June but that was into my sister's studio apartment and with just a car load of my belongings. July we moved into a new apartment. There was a short interruption that I'll discuss next but we spent part of the beginning of the month transitioning in apartments. Towards the end of the month, then, I drove all the way back up to Oregon to get the rest of my belongings. My dad drove over to help as he has a truck. We did end up leaving some stuff behind for the old roommates as they weren't quite worth the effort needed and didn't want to get a trailer. It was around 16 hour drive each way but heading down to LA again was done in two days, whereas on the way up, I did the drive in one day.

Visit Home

At the beginning of July we had to make an unfortunate trip over to Wyoming. My grandmother had suffered with Alzheimer's for the past few years and she passed away. We (My sister and I) went to attend the funeral and just be with our family. It was a long drive both ways but wouldn't have done it any other way.

Bad Luck

Had some not great luck, in particular with my car. Had a very minor accident that involved very little damage and no injuries, but was very jarring and a hassle. Then, day before leaving for Oregon, I popped a back tire on my car. Had to wait for road side assistance as I wasn't sure on how the use the jack that came with the donut tire thing my car has. I could change a tire but have never done it by myself with the car. Had to get a new one, which was an added expense on an already tight budget.

Work

My work schedule has been rather sporadic at the new location. There was a slight issue with the transfer in that the system put me as unavailable every day when it went through and the newer person doing the schedule didn't notice, so I wasn't on the schedule for that week. I did fill in at a different store and am still in contact with them. Other times I've gotten okay hours. I'm also applying for positions higher up and have been trying to get further in the company for a couple of years now. In progress but also looking around for opportunities.

Fitness

Still going to the gym and lifting. Not doing much running yet as I haven't found a place to run though am looking at a park that isn't too far away. The gym is only about 11 miles away, but that can be a long drive here in LA. I was a little sporadic with my lifting due to the lots of driving and things that went on during the month. I got in one lifting session in Wyoming along with some walks. In Oregon, I just packed up things. I'm starting a peak cycle in my weight lifting though, despite not able to compete at the APA Meet in October. Working towards a possible PR on all of the lifts. Trying to get squat above 200 and increase a little on bench. We'll see how deadlift will go as that I would like to see increase a decent amount but hard to tell the results.

Writing
This was hit the hardest. I haven't done much writing at all. I did a tiny little bit on North West and am on the very last chapter of the first draft. Need to get the last section done.  Need to up my game on this now that I have a place to set my computer aside from the bed. We have a table up and even have a new couch in the living room. Writing will happen in August along with a couple of blogs and hopefully some youtube videos.


August is a big month. Applying for jobs, trying to write, lifting heavy and my birthday. Hope it goes better than July. Hoping for good things this month.