There are many things that you can do with $50. As a boy, I could hardly fathom $50. Now, it represents a specific amount of time, time that i must work in order to generate $50.
But, sometimes the things you spend $50 on are a total waste. Other times, they are far more valuable than just the $50 you spent. I recently had one of those experiences. It was awesome.
Value is a funny thing. $50 worth of gas doesn’t get you very far, but I bet if you didn’t have it, walking that far would feel worth far more than $50.
I’m trying to remind myself to value things. We are so rich. Be thankful.
Archives for January 2014
Work…
Hug Yourself. Hug a Friend. Hug a Shrink. Or work. Work hard. Work will save you. Work is the only thing that will see you through this.
– Sam Baldwin, Sleepless in Seattle
Which question am I really wrestling with?
I watched Paul Miller’s Ted Talk. He’s the tech journalist that took a year off of the internet. I really enjoyed listening to him talk about his experience. I can’t wait to read the book, actually.
I see a lot of my own angst and worry in his journey. I feel his questions about productivity and the internet on a really gut-punch level. I guess I wish I could figure out which question to ask: Is my problem that the internet robs me of productivity or is my problem that I don’t really want to work hard?
I think I like to think it’s the first question. But maybe it’s the second.
Working, lately
Man, if you want to get into reading how-to-get-stuff-done posts on the internet, you’re starting down a path that has no end. I know this because I’ve read more than my fair share of those posts.
And now, for your edification, I’m going to add to the ever-growing pile. Let me say, though, this is a less-prescriptive, more descriptive approach.
Lately, I’ve been trying to focus (for the umpteenth time) on creating more than I consume. Output > input. And here’s what I’ve done:
– I’ve cut out extraneous news sources. I read one website for local news and another for national news. If those two venues don’t cover it, I’ve decided that my world won’t end for not knowing it.
– I’ve cut out the bulk of my reading that was not related to the things I say I care about. I did a mind map of this, actually, in classic “I’m-a-geek-who-gets-things-done” style. I mapped out the things that I care about and then the things that it looks like I care about based on my behaviour. I’m working to eliminate the stuff between.
– Focus on enjoying experiences rather than understanding minutiae behind experiences. I love trivia. I love details. But as a result, I can spend a whole football game reading up on the technology that allows them to show the first-down line. Seriously. I can explain it to you in detail. I know that they moved in the past few years from that process being a two man operation to mostly being a one-man gig. I know the reasons that it’s a combination of art and science.
None of that contributes to my enjoyment of a football game, though. So, I’m trying to appreciate the experience for what it is.
That’s about it, at least lately. These are the things that are working. What’s working for you?
Slippers – a review in Haiku
For Christmas I got slip-
pers. They are warm like the fires
of Mount Doom. Awesome.