the (holiday!) weekend + committing to...

i was sitting on my couch last night, watching last night's stellar episode of mad men, and -- during the commercial breaks -- wondering if i'd enjoyed my holiday weekend or if it was a bit of a wash. do you ever feel like that? for some reason, i felt like i didn't really do a whole lot, which made me a little sad -- i spent a lot of time with myself, by myself, and often at home.

but then i wondered why that made me feel strange. after all, i went to see a movie by myself on friday night (going the distance, which was very cute and much smarter than i had hoped), i gave myself some much-needed relaxation time on saturday night, i got back into what will hopefully be my fall routine of exercising outside, alongside a beautiful sarasota sunset, and i actually cooked a somewhat elaborate and very tasty dinner for one last night -- a nice change from my typical cereal or soup regimen. and in between all that, i did spend time with my friend k. and  had some much-needed catch-up time (complete with frozen yogurt) with my friend m.

so, i think my ambivalence about the weekend stems from the fact that my days off are usually filled with other people. it's fairly rare that i spend a significant portion of time alone. that's why, in doing so, i was forced to more closely examine some of the aspects of my life that i'm maybe not so content with lately -- things that i'd like to change or adjust or make better. i think that always leads to some natural discomfort. but i also think it's all a part of growth. and i'm all for that -- even if it makes me moody from time to time.

so, with all that being said, here are my little goals for the week. tell me yours, too, will you?

+ actually taking action on the aforementioned things i'd like to change. and being really present to the things i think and feel.
+ continuing the being-outside thing. it's amazing the endorphins you get from a brisk jog on a warm fall night.
+ cooking every meal i eat this week (and trying to stay away from those brach's candy-corn pumpkins that i am unabashedly addicted to. no judgment; they are delicious.) i'm also thinking i might try and go back to being pescetarian-only again, since -- aside from the animal rights reasons -- all the chicken i eat lately seems to be in fried form, which is not so good. i was a strict vegetarian for a solid five years until 2009, so this wouldn't be such a leap for me, but we'll see. (also, this probably deserves its own bullet, but oh, well.)
+ keeping my messy bedroom clean.
+ trying to take more pictures of sarasota to share with you here. i was struck by this the other night while driving down one of my favorite streets, which was lit with white twinkle-lights and anchored by beautifully arranged shop windows. sometimes the beauty of this city makes me catch my breath.

that's all for me for now, but again, please tell me your goals for the week -- and i'll see you back here tomorrow! xoxo

photo of the cherry blossom girl's wedding by marianne taylor. p.s. how am i just discovering alix's blog? it's stunning.