Progress Report and New Beginning

I have made a great deal of progress since December 6, 2013, just walking and watching calories. I am down from 200 pounds to 179.6 pounds as of this morning.

Today, I am starting 10 Week Body Change. I had to take measurements and a photo to begin.

Weight: 179.6 pounds
Hips: 43 inches
Waist: 38 inches
Left thigh: 25 inches
Right thigh: 25 inches

I know that is pretty awful, and maybe too much information, but I want to come back with progress…

It is a good thing I already made some significant changes, because sodas are taboo, as are artificial water sweeteners… Gonna be some difficulty with that, but at least I have somewhat weaned myself.

The food choices look pretty good, but some things are gonna be challenging.

My new goal is 120 pounds… That should be quite a change.

We shall see…

Here is what I look like today:

I am so grateful to have come this far… Now I have more to look forward to accomplishing.

Always,
Jo Ann

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365 Creativity Project-Day 361

Journal entry:

A Cheering Mile

The happy sun smiled
Down from a cloudless blue sky
Lifting my spirits
As I walked beneath the rays
It poured out upon my path.

The cold seemed so out
Of place in shining brightness,
But it was bracing,
Justifying my heavy
Sweater to keep me cozy.

Hope pranced with gladness
Enjoying her time outside,
Her joy made me grin
And wonder why I do not
Do this more often again.

Walking is not hard
It only takes a little
Of my busy time,
I need to make it into
A habit of healthy life.

Jo Ann J. A. Jordan
Friday, January 4, 2013

Photographs:

I am grateful:

1.   Hope finally stopped coughing.
2.   I took a nap and caught up on some sleep.
3.   I decided to take a walk with Hope.
4.   This is day 361 of my Creativity Project.
5.   I take time to write this list each day and so am more mindful of the good things in my life.

I hope you enjoyed your Friday. Mine did not go exactly as I planned, but it was a good day. I challenged myself to do something creative and you should too. You will never know what you can achieve if you do not make an effort. I am sure you can do more than you imagine.

As a prompt, write about your experience of being outdoors today. Maybe you have not thought about how beautiful nature is lately, no matter the weather there is something pleasant about being outside. Write. If you use this prompt, please leave a link to your work in the comments below.

I am so glad you found your way to my blog. I would love to have your thoughts, suggestions, or criticism, so please leave a comment. If you enjoyed your visit, perhaps you would like to subscribe to Chronicles.

Always,
Jo Ann

365 Creativity Project-Day 137

The second exercise in What If? is to use one of your first sentences and take your story in different directions by adding a second sentence. I found this interesting. I had never thought about how each sentence could change a story so drastically.

My thoughts are concentrated on other places:

Reluctant Explorer

I rarely travel away
From home preferring my own
Environment to any
I have opportunity
To visit on a journey.

Sometimes other places call
With sweet majestic voices
That make me want to venture
Far from my comfortable
And familiar residence.

Mountains, forests, beaches, all
Entice me with their beauty
Cajoling me with their songs
Of rare untamed adventure,
Life is unpredictable.

Jo Ann J. A. Jordan
Friday, May 25, 2012

Photographs:

Lucy and Max…

Angel Bear…

Hippopotamus…

Angel Dog…

I am grateful:

1.   I slept in today.
2.   Laura, my daughter-in-law, called to say she had gotten home safely from her trip to Okinawa to see Alex, my son.
3.   Alex works in a support position in the Air Wing of the Marine Corps.
4.   The hot dogs and French fries I cooked for supper were very good.
5.   I enjoy reading, writing, art, and photography.

I hope each of you had a fabulous Friday. If you have one, I hope your long weekend is enjoyable. If you feel so inclined do something creative with your time. It will help you feel joy.

Let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment.

Always,
Jo Ann

365 Creativity Project-Day 84

Journal entry:

April PAD Challenge, poem two:

Unwanted Visitor

It is ever present
Only a heartbeat
Away from everyone,
But only visits once.

It comes stealthily,
Unwelcome, uninvited,
Bringing discomfort
For all it touches.

It takes the good,
The evil, without judging
Anyone’s virtue or merit
It has no feeling anyway.

It is the great leveler
Making all lives equal
With its faithful stroke,
Death, life’s final visitor.

Jo Ann J. A. Jordan
Monday, April 2, 2012

April Platform Challenge-Day 1

Name: Jo Ann J. A. Jordan

Position: Mother’s Caregiver, Mother, Pet Mother, Writer, Poet, Blogger, Photographer

Skills: Organizing household, caring for people and animals, writing, editing, handwriting, photography, drawing, painting, graphic design, creative thinking, encouraging people

Social Media Platforms: WordPress, Blogger, Multiply, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, LinkedIn

URLs: http://www.hopefuljo.wordpress.com

Accomplishments: Store manager, won several awards for service, edited and published Original Creations Magazine, raised a United States Marine, photographed nephew’s wedding

Interests: Faith, family, dogs, helping others, all types of writing, reading, calligraphy, art of all types, photography, graphic design, computer technology

One sentence that defines me: I am a Christian, a mother, a dedicated daughter, and enjoy working creatively.

April Platform Challenge-Day 2

Short-term goals:

1. Finish April PAD Challenge
2. Finish April Platform Challenge
3. Write every day
4. Take photographs daily
5. Get new contacts
6. Keep all appointments
7. Read Bible daily

Long-term goals:

1. Finish 365 Creativity Project
2. Collect poetry for a chapbook or book
3. Enter some photographs in a show
4. Finish Read The Bible For Life this year
5. Read 36 books this year
6. Write a book, memoir or novel
7. Lose some weight

Photographs:

Yellow flowering weeds…

So many little flowers…

Blooming bush…

Last of Wisteria…

Dandelion seed pods in front yard…

Amaryllis bud…

Amaryllis bud…

Flowering bush…

I am grateful:

1.   Mom was able to go out with her best friend, June.
2.   Mom brought me some lunch.
3.   It was not hard to write a poem today.
4.   I enjoyed watching WrestleMania XXVIII with Mom last night.
5.   I stayed home all day.

I hope your day has been enjoyable and that you found something creative to do.

Always,
Jo Ann

365 Creativity Project–Day Six

This has been a productive day. I have drawn and painted a picture, created a song, taken some photographs, and written a journal entry. I have also finished up the week’s Bible study with my Mom.

First, the picture I finished early this morning before going to bed:

The song I created while walking with Hope and my handwritten journal entry for today:

The photographs I took today:

A different angle on the Radio Flyer. This image haunts me.

Hope sniffing…

Hope hurrying toward me with her tongue licking her nose.

Wood and rocks with Radio Flyer in the background.

Hope in profile.

Hope relaxing after our walk.

As I work toward doing something creative every day it seems to get easier and feel more rewarding. I encourage anyone who is contemplating doing one of these projects to go for it. It stretches your abilities and gives you practice to help you move forward with your artistic pursuits. My only regret is that I did not begin earlier.

I hope you are following along and will continue with me on this adventure. Your input is priceless to me. If something touches you, or amuses you, please let me know. Even if you have a negative comment I am interested in hearing what you have to say. This is a journey on which I hope to improve my skills, so all opinions are welcome.

I hope you are having a wonderful day and that you are inspired to do something creative.

Always,
Jo Ann

Beginning A Project For 2012

I am hoping to accomplish something creative every day forward for the year. Much of this will entail writing, but there will be some artwork, photography, crafts, and whatever else I come up with.

For today I took a picture of the books I am reading daily:

The two at the bottom I am reading aloud with my Mom as a Bible study. Our church is doing Read The Bible For Life this year, and although I do not attend, we are participating in the study. The other five I chose to read this year for personal edification.

The following is a scan of the hand written journal entry I made this evening:

I mentioned my new Invicta watch and I guess I should show you what it looks like:

I chatted with Alex a bit today and learned he is enjoying Hawaii. He has begun writing again, which I think is marvelous because Alex is very talented.

I am running out of time so this will be my creation for today. Stay tuned for more as the days go by.

Always,
Jo Ann

Thankful Thursday and Thoughts–September 8, 2011

I am thankful:

1.   Mom and I had an enjoyable lunch at Hudson’s Barbecue while we were out to run errands yesterday.
2.   Penny is doing well on the medicine the veterinarian changed.
3.   I have read some excellent books recently.
4.   I archived some of the free eBooks on my Kindle, and with the memory freed the device is working much better.
5.   Alex and I chatted a few nights ago and he seemed to be doing well.
6.   The temperature was a bit cooler, so Hope and I walked a mile last evening.
7.   I have been cooking more, and Mom seems to really enjoy it. I still hate to cook, but it is nice to make her happy.
8.   The recent storms have passed us by without any damage.
9.   Jeremy fixed the air conditioner on my Buick.
10.  I cleaned out all the freezers, so there is only good food inside.

I have been trying to stay home as much as possible because going into town has been making me very nervous since my niece, Leigh, and her family had their van stolen. I know they were in a different city, and that Washington, D.C. is a high crime area, but I cannot seem to shake the feeling that something bad might happen while I am out. I am more comfortable at home on the average day.

I managed to buy some books and bookmarks at Borders’ going out of business sale. I would have liked it more if I had had more money to spend, but some is better than none. I am so disappointed that my favorite bookstore is ceasing to exist. I suppose Amazon will get my business from now on because there is no nearby physical bookstore. Thankfully a new library is opening near here soon. I read many more library books than books I own. Reading is an expensive habit without library books. The free eBooks on Kindle give me lots of reading material too. One thing I really must begin to do is leave a book if it doesn’t interest me and stop plodding through books just because I started them.

I am planning on going to my thirty year class reunion this month, but am a little hesitant about it. School was not such a pleasant thing for me because I was bullied, though I do have some good memories on the academic side. I have always enjoyed learning. I hope this reunion is better than the ten year one I attended.

Laura, my daughter-in-law, found a puppy. She seems totally taken with Luna who is a black Lab mix. I think with all the attention she is giving the puppy that it should turn out to be a fine dog. I have no doubt Luna will be just as spoiled as my Hope.

I have not been paying much attention to my creative side. I fail to write, I fail to draw, and I fail to paint. Somehow I need to get back to those things, but my enjoyment of reading seems to hold me captive. There should be a balance, where I create and I read, but that does not seem to happen. At least I am not hooked on television. Computers, yes, books, yes, but those things give me some hope that I can be reunited with my creative side. I should really come here and blog more often, but I have little incentive. I often feel I am only talking to myself, and I can do that in my head without all the effort of typing out the thoughts and making them sensible. I manage to post on Twitter and Facebook quite often via TweetDeck, but even that seems futile at times. One day I am going to make a collection of my best Twitter posts and bring them here. I think some of them are quite erudite.

I hope all of you are doing well and living happily. I am happy in my life be it ever so simple.

Always,
Jo Ann