Author: Roni Noone

Popping in late this week.

I’ve been having so much fun posting my daily training journal videos that I totally forgot to write here. Surprisingly, it didn’t even hit me until last night, in bed after Survivor.

All year, I’ve looked forward to these weekly recaps. They’ve been therapeutic. But for the past week and a half, the daily videos have met that need.

I’ve been enjoying my video journaling so much that I’ve started creating more of them, including quick salad ideas, sharing my thoughts on teaching, and capturing little moments from my day. It feels fun and low-pressure, kind of like the old blogging days, even if social media itself is a hellscape.

I long for the time when it felt like “content creators” had their own little corner of the internet, not that we called ourselves that back then. Now we are all at the mercy of algorithms more than ever, with very little control over who actually sees anything we share.

But even in the black hole that is social media, the simple act of putting something out somehow still gives me the outlet I crave. I’m doing more of the things I enjoy, like painting, training, cooking, and connecting with people online in ways that remind me why I’ve always loved documenting life and how beneficial it has always been for my mental health.

2025 Goal Check In

1. Blog Weekly.
   • so far… ✔️
2. Paint More. Don’t overthink it.
   • so far… ✔️
3. Make a new handmade pasta monthly.
   • Jan ✔️ ✔️
   • Feb ✔️ ✔️
   • March ❌
   • April ✔️✔️
   • May ✔️
   • June ✔️
   • July ✔️
   • August ✔️
   • September ✔️
   • October ✔️
   • Novenber
4. Hike at least twice a month.
   • Jan ✔️✔️
   • Feb ✔️✔️
   • March ✔️ ✔️
   • April ✔️✔️
   • May ✔️✔️✔️
   • June ✔️ ✔️
   • July ✔️✔️
   • August ✔️✔️
   • September ✔️❌
   • October ✔️❌
   • November (got to get out there!)
5. Perform one unassisted dip.
   • Still training.
6. Perform five strict pull-ups.
   • Still on singles.
7. Handstand walk.
   • Still training.
8. Take at least three yoga classes a month.
   • Jan ✔️✔️✔️
   • Feb ✔️✔️✔️
   • March ✔️✔️✔️
   • April ✔️✔️ ❌
   • May ✔️✔️✔️
   • June ✔️✔️✔️
   • July ✔️ ✔️ ❌
   • August ✔️✔️✔️✔️
   • September ✔️✔️✔️
   • October ✔️✔️✔️
   • November ✔️
9. Make homemade sourdough bread.
   • ✔️✔️✔️OMG I did it!✔️✔️✔️
10. Take the kids to Iceland.
    • IT HAPPENED!!!
11. Fix the holes in my house (long story, lots of plumbing issues this year).
12. Continue my Spanish Streak on Duolingo (I’m on day 1,231!!).
    • so far…✔️ day 1537
13. Take a Spanish class in person.
    • UGH This needs a whole post to talk about!!
14. Plan something special for The Husband’s 50th birthday!
    • I BOOKED IT!
15. Snatch 125lbs.
    • More confident in this goal now.
16. Compete in at least one weightlifting meet.
    • ✔️✔️DONE!! Had a blast too. Read more here.
17. Walk a minimum of half a mile daily with Marsh and, preferably, with the Husband, but I can’t base my goal on him.
    • Very rarely miss a night.
18. Track my movie-watching on Letterboxd.
    • so far…✔️ Click here to see!
19. Keep my citrus trees alive!
    • so far…✔️ (They seem to be okay in the house so far!)
20. Host an extended family dinner monthly.
    • Jan ✔️
    • Feb ✔️
    • March ✔️
    • April ✔️
    • May ✔️
    • June ✔️
    • July ❌ (But we went out)
    • August 👌🏻 (Mom hosted to give me a break)
    • September ✔️
    • October ✔️
21. Clean out and organize my closet and drawers.
    • DONE!!!
22. Thrift more and purchase no brand-new clothes.
    • so far…❌ I caved and purchased about five new items this year (mostly for the Iceland trip), but I have also visited many second-hand stores and attended my first clothes swap. I now consider myself a thrifter! 🙂
23. Take daily supplements more consistently.
    • so far…✔️
24. Reduce alcohol consumption to once or twice a month.
    • Jan ❌ 1/18, 1/23, 1/31 (close!)
    • Feb 2/1, 2/15 ✔️
    • March 3/22 ✔️
    • April 4/25, 4/26 ✔️
    • May 5/3, 5/10 ✔️
    • June 6/7, 6/19 ✔️
    • July 7/14 ✔️
    • August 8/9, 8/22 ✔️
    • September 9/27 ✔️
    • October 10/25
    • November 11/1 (dinner party)
25. Cook one new recipe/dish a month.
    • Jan ✔️
      • Spiced Rubbed Pork
      • Honey Soy Glazed Cod
      • Italian Bread
    • Feb ✔️
      • Thai Peanut Sauce
      • Overnight Pizza Dough
      • Sourdough Pizza Crust Recipe
    • March ✔️
      • Spicy Sichuan Noodles
      • Sourdough Cornbread
    • April ✔️
      • Ricciarelli
      • Homemade Orecchiette Pasta from Puglia
    • May✔️
      • Sourdough French Toast
      • Cuban Bread
    • June
      • Queso Fundido
      • Lemon Blueberry Sourdough Bread
      • Pasta alla Norma with Grilled Chicken
    • July
      • Char Siu
      • Crab and Corn Pasta
    • August
      • Marry Me Chicken
      • Mexican Barbacoa
    • September
      • Crispy Carrot Fries
      • ❌
    • October
      • Butternut Squash Soup (Used for inspiration)
      • Pecan-Cinnamon Streusel from this recipe
    • November

Last week’s post really helped me frame a lot of things in a different light, and I cannot express how much it has positively affected my life right now.

If you didn’t read it, I will summarize it with a quote from my lifting coach:

This week, after sharing my lift videos with my online weightlifting coach, he said something I know, but tend to forget.

“How can you let go of the result and just put energy into it.”

After he said it, I let out a pretty big sigh.

I’ve learned to bring this concept into most areas of my life, but I needed the reminder. I mean, it’s similar to the “enjoy the process” concept, right? But the way he phrased it felt more powerful because I’m all about putting energy into things at the moment.

That pretty much sums up my life at the moment.

Wednesdays are probably not the best day for me to blog, because by this point in the week, I’m spent.

It’s nothing and everything. I don’t want to talk about it. Instead, I will focus on my three things.

Paint them!

I posted that on social media a couple of days ago, after doing a tutorial from my favorite art creator Andrea.Nelson.Art.

I haven’t been painting as much lately, but I have definitely painted more this year than I would have if I didn’t post my 25 Goals for 2025 back in January. I’ve also written more, started baking bread, making pasta, taking yoga more consistently, and have reduced my alcohol consumption immensely!

Jami left this comment on last week’s post:

What am I overthinking?

EVERYTHING!

Which probably means I should write more, because I hate being stuck in my head. However, when I think about writing, I start questioning myself and my own motivations.

I’ve been in such a good place in so many ways.

This is gonna be short because I still need to clean up dinner with Ry, take the dog for a walk with The Husband, and get ready for bed to watch Survivor!

I know it’s cheesy, I don’t care. It’s these little things that keep me going, and I need all the little things at a moment. I feel like I’m on an emotional rollercoaster.

Other things that are keeping me going…

In an attempt to stay off social media because I can’t handle *waves hands around aggressively*, I find myself focusing on what I can control to stay sane.

What can I control?

Great question! I’m glad you asked.

Welp, so much for getting back to my Wednesday posts.

At the gym this morning, it hit me… I totally forgot to post yesterday. I blame the Monday holiday. I haven’t even wrapped my head around my new weekly schedule, but since we kick off the semester before Labor Day, I need to adjust it again in the second week.