Cilenia's Beautiful Mess: Where in the World is Cilenia? My week in a nut shell

SO - The year started out a little rough for me personally. I had all these great intentions and lots in the works to get started on… and then it happened! Compy melt down! (Also why you have not seen me online anywhere and posting here or on my personal blog). BUT, it does make for a great inspirational post right now. lol This week I will have a lot more inspirational layouts from all of us too.

Now, if you know me, my compy is my right arm, I admit it! It's where I work, I play, I journal, I teach, I chat, I keep in touch with my friend's and family… yes, right arm is the only way to feel about it. I felt crippled!

The problem was, I had seen little issues coming up and knew this was coming and procrastinated about it for a few months now. My Bad! And really bad that it took this for me to do something about it actively. So guess what has been added to my 2012 goals list?! lol To never let this happen again and make a plan of a maintenance schedule so it never does. :)

So what does a Visual Journaler do in a time like this? Journal of course!

Why? First because I was able to express the negative and get it out of my system. I put it away. I have lovingly named this layout Melt Down partially because that's what my compy did, and partially it's because that's what I did that day. Not good! And I'll be honest, if I didn't journal about it, it would have been far far worse… not a pretty picture. lol

I did write in my paper journal (BECAUSE MY COMPY wouldn't cooperate! lol) But I did also transfer it to my digi journal for the last 4 days. :) I like to see my progress over the 4 days of the situation and somehow it makes me feel all better inside. I do know that the process gave me the time to think and be a little creative AND helped me test out the restored computer and as you will soon read, it also was my hour today for ME!

I had my frustrations that first day, (denoted with the red paint and ink splattered and the scribbled scratch (which was far more intense in my paper journal but thought I'd spare myself that here.)

I took a negative experience and have now, four days later, turned it into an opportunity. An opportunity for me to get it together, create a plan, not let it get there again, and get control back over my compy and some chaos folders!

Ahhhh A deep sigh of relief came as I created my new plan.

So here you are… my days of melt down and progress in my visual journal.