HEAD(hed), (n.) 1. the top part of the human body or the front part of an animal where the eyes, nose, east and mouth are. "Your brain is in your head." DIBS(dibz), (n.) 2. a thick, sweet syrup made in countries of the East, especially the Middle East, from grape juice or dates. [Arabic "debs"]--World Book Dictionary, 1976.
New year, a fresh start. Thankful for friends and family.
Throughout 2019 I tried an approach that helped my daily routine immensely and I want to share it. What I did was simple.
IF NOTHING PREVENTS ME
Instead of writing "to do" somewhere in my dailies and closing it in a box, I wrote "If Nothing Prevents Me" and left the space open. Instantly I had more flexibility and less stress. By not closing the box did not force me to fill it. And if something did not get done, oh well. I mark it as "IP" (in progress) and move on. At some point later in the day I went back and filled in the space around the list with a journal entry or artwork.
COUNTING THE HOURS
Inspired by Benjamin Franklin, I occasionally number the hours down one side of the page: 5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12. At each hour, I wrote in what happened, such as "Wake and day-prep," and "commute" and "Meeting" and "Gym" and even "sleep." This prevented me from making a full-tilt diary but gave some account for how I was using my time. Here is a picture of a page from Benjamin Franklin's journal as a model of what one might write.
One feature I'm integrating this year into my journal dove-tails into the "If Nothing Prevents Me" list. I plan to list "everything in my plate" and from that sort out what is within my control and what is not in my control. From these two categories, I think I should be able to determine what I can delegate, what I don't need to worry about, and what I can realistically accomplish.
FINALLY
My niece found this really cool channel on YouTube called "Chillhop Music" that runs live stream music. Just enough music, just enough beat, and no distraction. One artist called "Sleepy Fish" caught my attention. I'll share this chill instrumental to close things out. Hope there was something helpful here today.
One probably wonders what I’m working on. As an Independent Scholar, as I am not attached to a University, I am writing a commentary on the first book of a personal journal written by a 2nd Century Roman Emperor. In that book he lists 16 names and describes what each person contributed to his life. That’s the short version. I’ve covered the first 8 so far and hit a wall. Now I’ve gone back and am editing Chapters 1-3 to keep my mojo going. Not sure when I’ll be done but hopefully by years’ end. I already have another project lined up.
I'm nearly finished reading Joan Didion's collection of essays, Slouching Towards Bethlehem. The book was discovered through another book I was reading, Jon Krakauer's Eiger Dreams . If Jon felt this book was good enough to pack along on a mountain climbing expedition, then I'm interested. Took me three tries, but I finally found my copy on Amazon. One of the best book buys I've made. Joan selected the title of this book from William Butler Yeats' classic poem, Second Coming . The book title is shared with one of her larger essays, a record of encounters with people in the 1960's drug culture. Didion's book is divided into three distinct parts: "Life Styles In The Golden Land," a collection of articles capturing the California experience of the 1960's; "Personals," a few of essays of the first-hand nature; and "Seven Places Of The Mind", some thoughts about those parts of California that are now long gone. One essay...