Starting the New Year Off Disorganized

While I tried to improve the domestic aspects of co-running a household, I tended to relate more to hyper-focused, workaholic personalities. In addition to feeling overwhelmed by the clutter, I also struggled with feelings of failure and inadequacy. I felt like an imposter or, at least, a hindrance.

Decluttering and Letting Go of Sentimentality 

As I tackled each cluttered space in our apartment, I felt both frustrated and relieved. On the one hand, I was frustrated by how much I had accumulated and how hard it was to let go of certain items. On the other hand, I felt a sense of accomplishment and liberation as I got rid of things I no longer needed. It was a bittersweet process, and I often questioned why I had held onto certain things for so long. For example, I had some autographed items and original or hard-to-find EPs from bands that no longer existed but were sitting in boxes gathering dust.

I want to become less sentimental and embrace technology to minimize muddles. I can take photos of the autographed items or upload the hard-to-find music to store these memories, allowing me to keep the sentimental value of these items without taking up physical space in my home.

As I thought about my tendency to hold onto sentimental items, I remembered the challenges my aunts and best friend faced after their loved ones passed away. Eventually, someone will toss their things. So I used the Marie Kondo method to determine if items were sparking joy or wasting space. To declutter and streamline my possessions, I planned to devote around 2 hours daily to this task and refocus 15 minutes of each workday hour on this goal.

Our Cats Don’t Like the Chaos Either 

Our cats—Chip, Trixie, and Hersey—didn’t like the chaos and change, but they were getting along surprisingly better than I was. I went from “zero to overwhelmed” before I started anything much. Despite the challenges of dealing with the chaos in our apartment, I was grateful to have the support of my brood, who helped me cope with the overwhelming feelings of disarray and uncertainty. As I reflected on my behaviors and habits, I realized I needed to improve my living environment and well-being.

As I worked on decluttering and downsizing my possessions, I was also focused on achieving my New Year’s resolution to publish my design portfolio online. 

Declaring and Publishing my Design Portfolio, A New Year’s Resolution

The inspiration for creating a design portfolio and blog was to secure a job with a living wage that met my cost of living needs and made me feel self-sufficient. My goals for my portfolio and blog are to showcase my work and process, gain new work opportunities, and better understand myself and the world around me.

Creating my portfolio blog has been a process of trial and error, with many starts and stops. I have used various tools and resources available to me. Still, the biggest challenge has been prioritizing and developing a process for creating and organizing my documentation. To overcome these obstacles, I spent the first part of last year improving my soft skills and learning about bullet journaling.

I have learned that even if a designer is highly skilled and knowledgeable, the inability to illustrate and document their process can be time-consuming and frustrating. Therefore, investing time upfront in creating organizational assets, templates, and procedures is essential and will be invaluable in the long run.

Not having a functional portfolio may have been the cause of many of my career pivot struggles. Some premade website themes had broken elements or took too long to load. In contrast, others needed more user-friendly features or were not up to date in terms of functionality. As a result, I needed extra time to prioritize, organize, and learn about aspects of design that the design boot camp I attended didn’t cover.

Struggles as a Junior Designer

So I’ve been working on this year’s New Year’s resolution to get my design portfolio published. I focused on improving my online presence and creating a professional portfolio website to achieve this goal. I’ve made progress in learning WordPress and basic HTML and CSS. However, I still have much to learn about coding behavior and responsive design.

During the post-graduate Career Phase at Flatiron School, I struggled to effectively illustrate my skills in my portfolio, making it challenging to stand out among my peers. My depth of knowledge in design and design software often places my skills at more of a senior level than a junior level. Still, due to my lack of commercial or agency work workflow and collaborative experience, I’m often seen as more junior than senior. This dichotomy currently leaves me in limbo.

To overcome these obstacles and achieve my goal of publishing my portfolio, I need to continue learning and developing my skills and seek opportunities to apply them to real-world projects.

After the New Year, I was determined to make publishing my online website a priority. However, unexpected events disrupted my plans. My partner and I decided to spend a few days at a local hotel to ease the stress of dealing with the chaos in our apartment due to impromptu fumigation. Thus we now had to navigate the challenges of staying in a hotel with our cats. 

Navigating Hotel Life and Portfolio Progress with Cats 

As I navigated the unfamiliar territory of hotel life with my three cats, I encountered several challenges, including a need for more chivalry among some hotel patrons.

As I arrived at the hotel, I was overwhelmed with luggage, including a rolling suitcase, a backpack, a lap desk, a travel guitar, and a small case for toiletries. My partner was walking ahead of me and didn’t realize when the guitar case strap slipped off my shoulder and onto my elbow, trapping me in the doorway and leaving me unable to move.

A guy exiting the hotel ducked underneath my arm instead of holding the door open for me, even though I was struggling with luggage and trying to free my trapped arm. As I juggled my bags and guitar, I tried to maneuver through the doorway, but the strap on my arm had gotten caught, and I couldn’t move. The man didn’t seem to care about my predicament and just walked on, leaving me struggling, stammering, and agape momentarily.

Achieving a Sense of Accomplishment and Comfort

Despite my initial concerns, our cats were well-behaved in the hotel (better than that unchivalrous guest, at any rate). The staff was happy to provide extra cleaning services, and I brought the cats’ favorite toys and bedding to make them feel more at home. They spent the evening lounging and playing in the room while I worked on my website. 

I used WordPress as a content management system for my blog and initially used Elementor Pro as a web builder. However, after struggling to add design elements, I switched to using a pre-made WordPress theme from Phlox Pro.

As I spent the first two nights in the hotel working on my website, I replaced the demo content with my own graphics, images, links, and text. It felt great to have a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction as I progressed on my New Year’s resolution to publish my online portfolio.

However, not all of our cats were as comfortable in unfamiliar surroundings. Trixie, our anxious cat, spent most of the day and night under the bed, barely eating.

I brought some of her favorite blankets and toys to help Trix feel comfortable and calm in the hotel’s unfamiliar surroundings. I set the blanket under the bed, creating a cozy and private space for her to retreat. I also made sure to separate her food dish from the others, so she could eat peacefully without feeling threatened by the other cats. 

Despite her initial anxiety, Trix slowly adjusted to the new environment. Every so often, I’d see her poke her head out from under the bed to check out the situation, notably when my partner, Tiger, returned to the room for the night. By the time we were ready to check out and return home, Trix seemed much more acclimated to the situation and was acting more like her usual self.

A Successful Hotel Stay with Cats

Our stay in the hotel with our three cats was a success. It was a nice break from the stress of the apartment fumigation, and we all had a comfortable evening. With some planning and consideration, it is possible to have a productive and stress-free stay with your feline friends, even during unexpected displacements.

The Exterminator’s Visit and Returning Home

Just as everyone was starting to relax, it was time to return home and start going through things. The exterminator reported finding no pest activity, which set my mind at ease. However, it did not change our plan to deep clean and minimize our living environment.

A Lack of Exercise Takes Its Toll

I had been recovering from surgery for about two weeks when I caught COVID-19 again, so I had to take a lot of time off from exercise. I had always been careful about my diet and exercise routine. Still, with everything going on, I couldn’t get back into the swing. I was frustrated with myself for letting my muscle tone slip and for the extra weight I had gained around my belly. 

I tried to do some light exercises while we were preparing to move out of the apartment for the fumigation. Still, it just wasn’t enough to make a difference. I felt sluggish and unattractive, which affected my confidence and motivation. My New Year’s resolution to achieve a healthy weight and BMI needs prioritizing again.

Even though my resolutions could be progressing better, especially compared to six months ago when I started making great strides, I’m trying to stay optimistic.

As I continue decluttering my home to find equilibrium in the new year, I am constantly reminded of the importance of simplifying sentimentality and taking up more technology. As I pursue publishing my design portfolio, I am reminded of the importance of perseverance and self-improvement. Mostly, I’m grateful for the support from my loved ones and cats. And as I navigate my challenges, I hope others can find inspiration and motivation in their lives.