Autumn is my favorite time of year. I very much fit the “basic bitch” stereotype with my love of crunching dry fallen leaves, pumpkin spice anything, and reading novels in a coffee shop on a cold wet day. I feel no shame about this, because I know that autumn is typically my happiest and most productive time of the year.

I think this may be because my brain still connects fall with the start of the school year. I’ve spent the past 20+ summers in intellectual hibernation, but come September I quickly pull myself into Get Shit Done Mode. In what feels like a parallel to the start of the school year, next week I start my new yearlong work commitment: I will be an AmeriCorps worker at a library, which feels like a dream come true. I will be spending autumn (and the next 12 months!) constantly surrounded by books.

That said, I’m currently feeling stagnant and unproductive. I partially blame this on my last job, which I finished last Thursday. But my brain also still feels like it is in summer hibernation mode and I’m desperate to force a shift. I’m also having trouble figuring out if I’m being too hard on myself or if I really am a lazy hot mess right now. I gave myself a week off between jobs to be productive and to prep for the new job, but it is already Wednesday and I’ve done jack shit.

I woke up this morning and decided that I needed to hustle. Along with my regular weekly and daily to do lists, I’ve concocted an Autumn List as well. This includes:

• Fall cleaning (The most daunting task on the list!)
• Training/job prep
• NaNoWriMo prep
• Searching and applying for more freelance writing gigs
• Writing and submitting more of my creative writings

All of these things, along with some “life maintenance” things I’ve been slacking on since I’ve been both busy and low on money…including getting a bad tooth cavity handled. Actually, I think I’m going to blame my lack of productivity on that now…dental pain is really distracting!

• Current drink: pumpkin spice black tea
• Current book: The Modern Witchcraft Book of Tarot by Skye Alexander
• Current audio book: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
• Current music: Rocc – Hope You’re Doing Well