Check!

√ Week #1 Check In for Walking in this World by Julia Cameron

A group of quilting.about.com forum members are reading this book, which is sort of a workbook for opening oneself to creativity. Yes, it's a little touchy-feely, ,but it's also very interesting to learn about what keeps us from fulfilling our creative dreams.

So, here's the rundown:
1) Morning Pages: 2/7, which isn't very good. I was surprised that these were hard to do -- not so much the time (I knew that would be hard!) but actually having enough to say for three pages.

2) Artist's Date: Yes, although it was more of a busman's holiday than a play date! I actually sat in the concert hall for an hour and listened to the music. My mind was free to wander (it's well-traveled after that hour!) but I just relaxed and tried to enjoy the experience. It was refreshing, and I left the concert feeling better than I did went I went in.

3) Walk: Nope. This is going to be my biggest problem, hands down. I've got to find a place and/or a way to do this -- given my asthma, I can't walk outdoors when it's cold. My artist's date this week did serve a similar function, though, so I refuse to feel guilty.

4) Tasks: I did the first two (What the Hell, Might as Well and Express Yourself). The first was easy, and the second was difficult. The third (Do Nothing) didn't happen. I do enough "almost nothing" as it is -- no need to encourage more, thanks!

I've been reading a little about productivity and personal organization this fall, and it struck me that some of what Julia is saying (take one baby step at a time and don't worry about the end product) is kind of like David Allen's GTD. Not exactly -- Getting Things Done is much more structured -- but the concept of just doing something without getting weighed down by the next ten things is very powerful. Difficult, sometimes, too!