Monthly Goal Update – April 2014

9:44:00 am

How is the summer going on in your part of the world?? Bright & sunny, hot & sweaty or just plain hell fire? :D

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I hate summer, but I like May – it’s my anniversary and birthday month, which translates into ‘shopping and gifts’ month :). It’s also the month of summer rains, which I enjoy; thunder, lightning and all!!

April wasn’t a good month for me. Apart from the searing heat, everyone in the family fell ill and they’re still recovering. Our maid decided to quit suddenly (again) and I fell behind in all my goals. But the biggest blow was from a client who cheated me outright. I sent her some articles on which I spent a lot of time and research, after which she just disappeared without any response to my mails or messages. Afterwards, I found those very articles popping up on various websites, with no credit to me whatsoever!!! I’m having a hard time now, contacting those website owners informing them that they’ve published stolen content. Needless to say, this has been a very demoralizing experience for me :(.

I know I’m supposed to forgive that person and not keep the resentment building within me, but right now I just can’t help heaping curses on her. It’s a lesson, I know, and I’m trying to make the most of it by alerting others too.

Anyway, moving on to more pleasant news, Cub finally learnt swimming!! He was so scared initially and used to cry but now he just loves diving into the pool and I’m so proud of him!! He’s inspired me to learn too :).

1. Health – Proper workouts have been close to negligible, though I have been active since I do all the housework now. (No maid, remember?) There’s also the walking to and from the pool where Cub has his classes, so I do kind of get in a short walk everyday. Food wise I’ve been eating less, though not exactly healthy food. I’m not much of a soft drink/cold coffee drinker, but the extreme heat saw me reaching out for those unhealthy options. Have you ever tasted them without the fizz – they’re gross!!! I’m proud to say that I’ve become quite regular with my green and black tea.

2. Family – I have been a little stressed what with Ms. CheaterFace and people getting sick, which has led to a little more yelling from my side. Cub and I played Lego together and some online games as well. Took a trip with the in-laws and spent some time with the extended family during a cousin’s wedding.

3. Time Management – Major Fail. The maid disappearing really upset my schedule. Although I did manage to finish all my work and get the house clean, I was stressed throughout and was running around like a headless chicken.

4. Writing/Blogging – Began working with a new client which has been going well so far. A few pitches didn’t work out since I have decided that I’m not going to write for extremely low pay. I need to spend time and effort, so I might as well make it worth the trouble. And I’ve already talked about how one *@#$# client fleeced me.

The blog has suffered a slump, and I’m not proud of it. Hope to make amends in May.

5. Budget – I visited Lulu mall during our Kochi trip, which is good fun for kids and okay otherwise. I did a little bit of shopping from there – this cotton kurta in blue from Fabindia, this lipstick from Faces, and this EDT and this hand cream from Marks & Spencer. I actually need some more clothes, many of my older ones are faded or don’t fit right anymore. I wondered if I should wait to lose weight before shopping, but then I read this post by Sal at Already Pretty and decided to focus on dressing my ‘today’ body. Writing income was a little on the lower side, have to do a little more aggressive pitching.

6. Personal – I started reading ‘Two Men in a Boat’ and made some progress with my accumulated magazine collection.

Word of the Year – I have been anything but mindful last month, with all the stress. It was so bad that I didn’t even realize I wasn’t being mindful!!

So that’s how it was. I hope that May is much better and brings in more quality work and helps me relax without slacking off. I need to prioritize better and stay calm.

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Random – Here’s a photo I clicked of the moon; it isn’t all that special but I found it beautiful – single crescent against a plain starless sky.



How about you guys, how was April?? Any special plans for May?

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24 comments

  1. gosh! what a terrible ordeal! hugs!!

    My April just flew! With Spring here - its meant a lot of outdoors' time, picnics, walks and plays :)

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    1. Picnics and plays - lucky you!! Yes, it was an ordeal, but a lesson as well. Hope to be more alert in the future!

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  2. I went through the being cheated phase too! that was so long time ago. That is why I try and work with reputed names now. Did any of the websites get back to you?

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    1. One of them did, asking for proof. I forwarded the mail I'd sent her with my article as an attachment, I didn't have anything else :(.

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  3. May is my anniversary month too :). Why can't you try your hand at Technical Writing and Instructional Designing, if you are interested in writing?.

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    1. I haven't thought about those options yet. Thanks for letting me know, I'll explore them in more detail!!

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  4. My birthday was the 5th. Here's hoping things look up for you this month! ♥

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    1. A fellow Taurean!!! Yeah I hope so too, Kathy :) Have a great month!!!

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  5. Well trying to comment a second time now :( I hope things get better for you over the next few days. As for that woman find her on twitter or elsewhere and bombard her with stuff, don't let such people get away. And even I am going to start learning swimming by this weekend, your cub inspires me too now :-)

    Richa

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    1. Got your comment now, thanks!! Yes, apparently she's popping up on other sites as well, but people are calling her out on her fraud now.

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  6. That's awful that a client would cheat you like this! ! I'm sure you'll keep this in mind for the next time and ask first-time clients to pay at least a percentage upfront!

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    1. For sure, Roshni!!! I'm reading up a lot on how to stay safe from scammers!

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  7. Such cheaters some people can be! April was hard for me too. My maid too quit when I was right in the middle of A to Z, with two kids and housework and my daughter's school, annual day program practice, I fell behind on my goals too. Good to know that you are now catching up well :) All the best Fab :)

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    1. Wow, sounds like you had a lot on your plate!!! I was enjoying your DIY posts for the A to Z :)

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  8. Hell that! I had one horrible client right when I began years ago. Since then I have been extremely wary and cautious. Take it as an experience that has taught you for life. You will never to be cheated again. April was very hectic for me too. I was vacationing and traveling and work was good as well. The weather has turned beautiful these past few days and I hope it remains the same. Good luck with May!

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    1. It rained non stop the whole day yesterday and the weather became so much cooler!! Yes, I hope May turns out much better :)

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  9. Oh my gosh...April did sound crazy for you...*HUGS*, but as usual so beautifully written :)

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  10. Oh that's horrible Fabida! I hope you stay careful in the future. I know how hard you work at each and every article and someone to take advantage of you like that is just disgusting. I am sure Karma will make the person who did that pay. Don't worry it's going to be an awesome May!

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    1. Thank you, Swapna!! I sure hope May turns out much better and yes, this is definitely a lesson for me!

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  11. That's very awful. Beware of such people Fabida, once I was cheated like that and felt helpless. Now I always make sure that I get paid first. April treats like that....it was hectic and crazy month for lot of people. Hope you will have joyous and blessed May :)

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    1. I know Disha, I'm now reading up on how to identify cheats; guess I was too naive. Hope you have a great May too!

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  12. I remember the discussion about the cheating client! I hope you got a response from the websites where she posted this stuff!!

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    1. One of them did take it down, thankfully!!

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