January Update

First, my upcoming trip: I'm booked and set for another 2 weeks in Norway. It's been hectic around here trying to get everything ready for the trip on such short notice. I haven't had a chance to decide what I want to do the full weekend I'm there. But I managed to get an overnight stay in Amsterdam on the way back, so I'm really looking forward to that--last time was a blast.

Now, on to the topic of hand: what the hell did I do this month?

At the first of the year, rather than do the usual year-long goal setting that usually only gets about a quarter done and just serves to haunt me, I decided to make it more of a monthly/weekly thing.

January's goal was to simplify my life. Everyone knows that I lead a relatively simple life to start with, so that was probably just the wrong way to word it. Really, it was to remove obstacles in my personal life. If there are things I want to get done this year (and in the rest of my life), I need to remove from my life the things getting in my way. Loose the things I don't need/want to do.

My time is valuable to me. A good book suggested that I quantify it. How valuable is my time? It makes answering questions like "doing x will save me 2 hours a week--is it worth it?" easier to answer. I found a little calculator online that gave me a number. Yeah, it's probably bogus since nobody pays me for my off-time, but it's somewhere to start.

What I actually got around to was a bit modest. Loosing a quarter of the month to a toothache didn't help. And most of the changes were small and wouldn't interest most people here on the bloop. (and some of them seem a bit *too* anal--even for me) But two of them will surely get you all calling me a giant nerd:

1) I call her Rosie. Adam turned me on to this bit of simplicity. For less than 1/2 the price of a new one, I was able to stop vacuuming. I just push a button and Rosie cleans up the floors in the entire house and then re-docks herself to charge. It's just that little bit less cleaning that I have to do every week. She'll pay for herself in less than a year.

2) This was a little harder to do. I gave up cable TV.

Several times every week, I'd turn on the TV and, not having anything good on the DVR, I'd flip through the channels and find something I wasn't that interested in, but I'd watch it anyway. Then I'd realize that I'd wasted the entire night watching crap I didn't even like that much. So, after several conversations with Adam trying to decide on the best solution, I replaced the cable box with an Apple TV. Now, with a click of the remote, I've got all my music / playlists / podcasts / pictures instantly. And I can subscribe to a couple of TV shows I really want to watch through iTunes.

So, I don't feel guilty for wasting time watching crap on TV and I'll be actually saving money in a few months.

I also think I figured out why I don't get more reading done. I put in a very small change, and that made a world of difference. I think I've read more this month than I have for the previous six.

So, the steps I've taken have been small, but they seem to be making a real impact on my life already. More than anything, I'm sure it's because I'm more consciously aware of what I'm doing, but I feel more focused and ready to tackle things than ever.

Winter, here I come!

I just got the word that I'm heading to Norway this weekend for another 2-week stint. This "last-minute" travel always stresses me a bit since I'm the type that likes to plan for a week or two at least before a big trip. But it's cool. It should be a good time and I plan to see/do more than last time now that I know how it works over there.

P.S. Sorry, Kaia--looks like my visit to see you is getting put on hold a bit. But, don't worry, I'll be up to say "hi" as soon as I can.

The Plague

Man, what a long weekend.  I woke up this early Saturday morning with a massive toothache.  I spent all weekend sucking down Tylenol, Aleve and anything else I could think that would dull the pain.

Then, Sunday afternoon, while I was starting to contemplate getting out the Black and Decker and seeing if I could fix things myself, I got the chills and nausea.

So, the end-result is that I've got an abscessed tooth that will need a root canal once I get enough antibiotics running through my veins.  The Vicodin have taken care of most all the pain.  But I apparently have come down with the flu thing that's been making its way around.

But in-between taking handfuls of meds and praying to the porcelain gods, I'm in strangely high spirits.  Who knows how these things work?

Winter

In contrast to last weekend when I was sitting outside, enjoying the sun and relaxing, today's weather was winter.  43 degrees outside with a biting wind that makes me wish I'd brought my coat with me.  It's been wet and raining since 6 AM.  It's the perfect weather to sit at the coffee shop and get some reading done.

7 Degrees of Separation

I've been informed that I need to let everyone in on 7 things about me they don't already know.  But, as you're painfully aware, I am sometimes prone to divulging a little more than necessary on my blog.  So, this might take a little creativity and some reaching...

1. 90% of the time, I am utterly and completely disappointed with myself.  (might as well start out big)  I don't say this as a plea for sympathy.  I don't even view it as a negative.  While it's probably not the healthiest way to go about it, this is what drives my motivation.  It's why I'm always striving to do more--be better.  I'm afraid that if I ever stopped and looked around that I would wither and die.

"The lust for comfort murders the passion of the soul, and then walks grinning in the funeral."

2. As the antithesis to #1, I love my life. A while ago, I learned how not to be negative. Overnight (it seemed) the world was a better place. I don't know how or why, but I can't imagine being that bitter ever again.

3. My childhood best friend was accidentally shot and killed many years ago.  Even though I don't believe in God and an afterlife, I still talk to him every once in a while.  And any time I'm in that part of the country, I always make a secret detour to the visit his grave so I can sit and talk to him in person.  (and I still cry every time)

4. Before I got sick in Tulsa, I was a Hospice volunteer. It was one of the most fulfilling things I ever did.

5. I still think about the first guy I ever fell in love with. I'd still give up everything I have to be with him. (and I haven't seen or spoken to him in about a decade)

6. I didn't learn how to tie my shoes until like the second grade. (or maybe before then--I don't remember, but it took me forever)

7. I enjoy reading everyone else's posts. (sorry, I couldn't come up with a 7th)

Yeah, sorry 'bout that

And as a little tease to everyone living north of Houston...

When I went for breakfast this morning, I noticed how damn nice it was outside. So, around 10 AM, I grabbed a chair and sat outside and read for a couple of hours. Perfect weather--about 70 degrees, not a cloud to be seen and a slight breeze to keep me cool. I even managed to get a little sunburn on my pasty-white chest.

Weekend Recap

I don't think I mentioned this on the blog yet, but I got the HD-DVD player for the 360 as a Christmas gift. Very cool, but kinda sucks since the last couple of weeks have indicated that HD DVD is on its way out. But, while I have it, I've been enjoying NetFlix's HD DVD selection. In the last 2 weeks, I've managed to watch:

• Transformers (Kinda cool, kinda sucked--don't try to bring the funny if that's the best your writers can do. And the plot holes were big enough to drive Optimus Prime through.)


• AvP (Micah has been bugging me to watch this. It made a good mindless action flick)


• Knocked Up (Not bad, but not worth the hype.)


• Constatine (Unexpectedly kick-ass little flick--bought it off Amazon after watching)


• Brokeback Mountain (Cheap find on eBay. Damn, that's a gorgeous movie in HD)

In-between movie watching and reconfiguring my finances after the credit card problem, I've been trying to focus on my '08 goals--especially my overall focus of January: simplify. I need to remove the day-to-day and week-to-week obstacles to me getting what I want.

Towards that goal, I've unplugged the DVR and will be turning off my cable next week. There's hardly ever anything on that I want to watch. And when I do find something I kinda want to watch, I almost always wish I'd spent that time doing something else. The few shows I really want to watch (Lost, House) I can download off the Internet an hour after they are broadcast. And with the Media Center PC hooked-up to the TV, I don't think I'll miss cable. (and I'll have an extra $50 every month in my pocket)

But I've never been very good at focusing on anything for very long. That means that month-long goals are easily forgotten and replaced by those day-to-day obstacles I'm trying to remove. So I found a little tool to remind me and help me keep track of how I'm doing.

It's a little 3x5 card I found the template for and customized it with my own goals. I have a new one each week and I can even "keep score" on the back. But the real motivation is that it fits in my back pocket. So, several times a day, I'm reminded of my goals and what I do/don't want to accomplish.

And, on this one, you can see that I've filled in a couple of bubbles for today. (Saturday) That reflects one small change in mindset I made this year. I consider the week to start on Saturday--not Monday. All of my calendars have been updated to reflect this.

That means (even if subconsciously) I percieve Saturday and Sunday as the launching-pad for the week. I set goals and have 2 full days away from work to get as much done as I want. That seems to be more healthy than looking at the weekend as the end of the week and the "last chance" to get something done that you've put off the first part of the week.

Shout Out

I wanted to give a quick shout out to the fuckers that stole my credit card number. I hope that shopping spree over the holidays were fun. Sounds like Visa is being cool and picking up the tab for that.

But if you screwed with my airline miles account, I'll be coming for you...

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?

I promise that posts with actual content are coming very soon. Until then, I wanted to share this. If this isn't the strangest thing you've seen this week, I want to know what the hell you've been smoking.

One more chance to get it right

Ok, here's the obligatory 2007/2008 post...  First, thanks to the good folks in the bloop that have breathed a little life back in the group.

The holidays were good.  I was able to insulate myself a bit from the overwhelming consumerist side of Christmas, so I was able to enjoy it more without the little devil on my shoulder whispering defeatist ideas into my ear.

I took a little over a week off from work and headed up to Oklahoma to hang with the folks for a couple of days and then we all drove up to Branson to spend a few days with my half-brother and his family.

It was good and I enjoyed myself a little more than I thought I would.  (having to interact with a dozen people 24/7 for 3 days is very tough mentally for me)

Unfortunately, because of the weather, I didn't get to see hardly any of you good folks.  Damn shame.  I'll make up for it this year somehow.

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Not surprisingly, 2007 didn't end the way I had planned it to.  That's both good and bad.

The last half of 2007 brought some real, significant changes to how I look at the world.  I slowly started to realize the full extent of how I'm not actively involved in my own life.  I started to consciously notice how much I had let the day-to-day mundane activities had taken-over.  And I noticed how my job had changed from something I enjoyed to just being another player in the rat-race.  Things had to change.

Halfway through the year, by most people's measurements, I had it made in my career.  I was the supervisor of an international team of developers.  I had been tapped by my boss to take his job when he moves up this year.

But I was miserable.  Fucking miserable.  I'm sure you remember some of the posts.  So I took a leap and told my boss to demote me.  Rather than chance loosing me (his words), he literally invented a new position for me.  It's my dream job.

Now I enjoy work more than ever before.  I get to work on things I think are important.  And I finally have more balance between work and non-work.  (I know all of you have heard this before, but it's part of the narrative here...)

I've made some real changes in other areas as well, but I'll save those stories for later.  I'll just leave it to say that I'm starting to get a taste for living my life on my own terms and it's the best I've felt in years.

So now comes for the time to talk about resolutions for the year.  But I'm changing it up a bit this time.  Rather than producing a laundry-list of giant goals that I have to stare at taunting me from the refrigerator door, I'm trying something that should make things more manageable.

Rather than looking at the whole year--which is too long of a time for me to plan goals for--I'm planning by week.  52 chances to set goals.  If I don't get to one, no big deal--I've got 51 more chances to do better.

I'm planning to share most of these as they go.  I've got the first few goals roughly sketched-out and I'll go into them soon.  But the recurring theme for the first of the year is "simplify".  It's time to take those things that take up my valuable time and either eliminate them or find another way to do them.