Journal Jar Prompt Number 013

Sorry that I've been missing in action there for a while, but with school getting more advanced every day, I don't always have the time to sit down at the computer and write a post. Also, I've been busy preparing for the NaNoWriMo contest in November - basically what you do is, put simply, write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. Those 30 days being the month of November. So without further ado, here is my next simple pleasure.

Simple Pleasure #9: Tae Kwon Do. Yes, you read that right; I take great pleasure in martial arts. I can't explain to you how much enjoyment I get out of it - and it makes me feel good whenever I accomplish something. In fact, just last week I got my orange belt. That is the first belt that you actually earn. And it just feels so good. I'm going to be competing in a tournament on the 13th of November - in areas of competition. I'm feeling good about the sparring, breaking, and sword fighting, but not so sure how I'll do on form. We'll see!

Journal Jar Prompt Number 012

Hey everybody! I'm back again for today with probably a couple more posts. So right now I'm going to talk about another simple pleasure of mine. In case some people reading haven't been following, I used random.org to pick a prompt. It told me to make 14 separate posts about 14 different simple pleasures of mine. I've done 7 so far, and I'm hoping to complete several more today. Also, I've actually been posting more than once a day... I just am enjoying it so much that I can't help myself!!

Simple Pleasure #8: Exercise. Exercise? You may ask why I like to exercise... there are a lot of people that hate it. Well, it's not so much that I love it as much as I love the results. I'm not exactly sure how many of you guys have heard of P90X before, but it is this really intense training program. There is a 1 hour workout every day and it is really hard! But, in just one week, I gained about 3 pounds - in muscle! I'm much stronger than I was before, now that I've been doing it for about 3 weeks. It gets easier every time you do it, but even then it's still hard. For example, in the Arms and Back workout, if you do as many chin ups as they do (somewhere around 20 each time), by the time the entire workout is completed, you oftentimes have completed more than 120 pull - ups!! Crazy isn't it? And I thought I was in shape before I started this... apparently not! Well, long story short, they've had reviews from really fit guys... think personal trainers, runners, etc, etc and they were really worn out after the first workout! as you can see, it really is intense! I don't know why I like to exercise, especially in this way, but all I know is that I do and I enjoy every moment of it.

Journal Jar Prompt Number 011

Ok, now we are on the 7 post of a series of 14. After this we are halfway there! So I've already posted 6 of the things that make my life enjoyable - my simple pleasures. This one is very similar to the last post, but it really isn't the same thing. No matter how many times you guys tell me that it is, every time I'll tell you that it is very different. I'll tell you why...

Simple Pleasure #7: Writing. Like I said before, this is very similar to my previous post about reading. I don't just do any writing however, oh no, I like to write about very specific things for very specific things. This may not make sense now, but it should by the end of this post. I do like to write stories on occasion, but I think that I've bitten off more than I could chew in the past (i.e. starting my writing with chapter books instead of short stories) but I think I've finally figured out exactly what works for me. The answer to that; what works for me, in short, is writing scripts for plays. An example of this is that right now I am working on a script for a short (approx. 20 minutes) teenage mutant ninja turtle series that me, my brothers, and a friend are going to do for youtube. I don't get bored as easily, since it is about a subject I'm interested in and it makes me feel good every time I finish writing out a scene.

Journal Jar Prompt Number 010

The next simple pleasure of mine is #6. I thought at first that thinking up all of these pleasures would be tough... a very hard thing to do. But as I'm actually sitting here posting, it seems that the more frequently I post, the easier it gets. Every time I sit down to write about a new simple pleasure that is completely and wholly mine, a new one comes to mind. I find that if I try to sit down and write them all out as a list, it's not working too well. It is working to do them one at a time - a single step forward into what seemed intimidating at first is now easy as pie.

Simple Pleasure #6: Reading. Reading is another very important part of my life. I think that the cool thing about reading is all of the different subjects out there to read about. There are books on countries, cities, animals, plants, famous people, etc. Anything that you would want to know can most likely be found in a book. One of my favorite places to be is the library. Being surrounded by all of those books just calling out to you to come and pick them up. I am most intrigued by mystery books; Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys in particular. I like how they have a plot - they aren't too easy to read, yet they don't take an amazing amount of work. When I'm reading for pleasure, I don't want to be bothered by not knowing what is going on. A book that I'm reading right now is The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien. For those of you who aren't aware, The Hobbit is the book that (Tolkien) wrote before he did his famous Lord of the Rings trilogy. I haven't read that trilogy yet, or even watched the movies, but that is my next choice after this one. Also I like the Inkheart and the Eragon books. Both are trilogies.

Journal Jar Prompt Number 009

Well, this is my 5th simple pleasure post; I haven't been posting these pleasures in any particular order - basically I've just been thinking about things that I enjoy, the first thing coming to mind being what I post about. I'm not quite sure of the reason for this, but I do know now that what I'm about to tell you guys about is probably one of the greatest pleasures in my life - simple as it may be!

Simple Pleasure #5: Cooking. I know that there are a lot of people out there who hate to cook - absolutely, positively, hate it. I can't figure out why. I've been cooking dinner every night for my family for a while now and it never grows old. I love using the knifes, the pots and pans, the fresh ingredients - I think this is why I want to be a chef when I grow up, but you never can tell. I just think that it is so easy to do... when I'm working in the kitchen, I often loose track of time and discover that I want to be there longer. That's why the idea of working as a chef - being in the kitchen all day long is so appealing to me. I get caught up in my work and often times even forget what I was doing or even what needs to be done in the future. I've noticed that since we got new knifes, pots, etc, that I am now much quicker at chopping things. I can chop a medium onion into slices within 2 minutes and dice a small onion into a fine dice for burgers in about 3. I enjoy experimenting with different techniques and preparation experiments - often times preparing weight watchers or low fat meals. I love to cook. I want it to be my life.

Journal Jar Prompt Number 008

Now I'm on simple pleasure number 4 out of 14. After this one is complete, I will have 10 more to go. You never really know how much 14 is until you post 14 simple pleasures, one at a time! It is fun though, so I don't mind that much. So here we go.

Simple Pleasure #4: Another one of my great pleasures is spending time with my family - just hanging out, having a good time, playing games with my brothers, simply having a talk with my mom... they all make me feel good. Something me and my brothers do together a lot is to just go outside and do something together; ride our bikes, have foot races, play our version of capture the flag (we call it Stealth Master), jump and flip on the trampoline or even just going down to our basement to exercise. We like to pretend that we are different characters from shows we like to watch, especially ninja turtles - that is one of our favorite shows! Another thing that I like to do is to help my little sister Sage (she's 3 years old) do crafts. I like encouraging her to make things like I do, helping her along in her development. Playing with her is another thing that always makes me smile - she is just adorable and, once you're done, she always gives you a big hug and a "thank you!" It puts a smile on my face!

Journal Jar Prompt Number 007

I'm back with another post. Today I want to talk about my 3rd simple pleasure in life. I'm really having a great time posting about this stuff because I feel like I can just let what I'm thinking go on the page, and that makes me feel good. Also, I feel like I am capturing a moment in time, but instead of a visual of the memory, what I'm capturing is a feeling that I have at that particular time, a couple minutes worth of thoughts caught in a net, captured in mid - air.

Simple Pleasure #3: I love to craft. I find any type of craft enjoyable, and I'm willing to try anything. Some of the crafts I've already tried and am currently working on include: card making, scrapbooking, quilting, sewing, quilling (a work of art made from rolled strips of paper), crocheting, knitting, art journaling, making ATCs (artist trading cards) or inchies (1"x1" works of art), cross stitch, jewelry making, and many, many more! I normally go in spurts; for example, right now I've been working on cards and ATCs a ton, while I used to be scrapbooking all the time. Since the right season for quilting is starting to come around (fall and winter), I'm starting to get this weird urge to quilt and to cross stitch, as well as to knit and crochet. This muggy, humid, hot weather, is not right for those types of crafts, so a lot of times I work on paper crafts during the summer. Jewelry making I really work on year round because I love to do it, and it literally never gets old to me.