Quick plug for a friend's book, but I promise, I wouldn't do this if it wasn't worth sharing.
After I'd been reading her blog for at least a year, Megan Lyons became perhaps the first blog person I met in real life. I invited her to boot camp with me one day, and years later, we still see each other at 5:30 a.m. a few days per week. As frequently happens with someone you talk to consistently in such a vulnerable state (early, no makeup, sweating), it was easy to connect and she quickly became a friend. Anyway, she has her first book going on sale today!
Here are two links where it is available:
http://www.thelyonsshare.org/starthere/
http://www.amazon.com/Start-Here-Diet-Free-Ultimate-Happiness/dp/0986133205/
I've gotten to read it already. My thoughts:
It's a good book that distills a lot of research and theories about health into concise and practical tips. It's well-researched, but reads conversationally and in a straight-forward manner. It's clearly targeted toward people who are starting a journey toward getting healthier, but I feel like I've been on the "healthier" path for nearly a decade, and I felt like there were a lot of points I was able to take away from the book as well. Suddenly, I'm looking at sugar grams on labels now. And I'm standing at work more frequently. These were things I certainly knew were smart before, but the book has inspired me to actually DO them. I'm thinking more about vegetable variety. I've been great about getting more than my share of veggies every day, but at the same time, every single day I think I eat beets, spinach, kale, peas and carrots. This book reminded me that I'd benefit from subbing those out for different veggies, giving me different nutrients (and the magical things she calls phytonutrients), at least on occasion, even if those 5 veggies stay in pretty regular rotation. Husband and I have been doing a "grateful list" of 3 things each before bed for some time, but I'm making a point to think about it more during the day now. I feel like there are lots of aspects of the book that resonated with me. As with most blogs I read and most healthy people I know, Megan advocates a healthy lifestyle over any type of "diet." So the suggestions she makes have a goal of being simple and sustainable habits. I would say it's a quick read, but at the same time, I'm certain I will continue to re-read parts of it.
Highly recommended, so if you're interested, please check it out. There's a kindle version available (I don't actually have a kindle, but I was able to read the kindle version on my computer), and of course a paperback version. Plus, of course if you buy it, I expect that there's some good karma for supporting a good person who deserves success!
Wednesday, January 13, 2016
Tuesday, January 12, 2016
Small Things
Figured I'd share a few small things that really have made me happy in the last week.
First, as part of my new year "straightening out" phase, I accomplished a major thing: a clear(ish) desk at work!
First, as part of my new year "straightening out" phase, I accomplished a major thing: a clear(ish) desk at work!
(Just ignore that massive stack in the upper right hand corner, which is my paper in-box. For a "paperless" company, there are still a ton of paper records that I end up receiving, and unfortunately, all of those pages need to be reviewed and summarized...)
Previously, I had papers from about 5 matters spread across the top, and even though I rarely referred to them, they took up a lot of space and I wanted them accessible. I went ahead and just stacked them up in alternating directions, and now my desk surface is totally clear except for that stack! (Well, clear except for that stack and the in-box, details, details...).
But my desk didn't stay clear long. Happily! One blog I read all the time, Running on Lentils, posts frequent running clothing reviews. My running wardrobe is OLD. I'm one of those "if it ain't broke" people (and generally as cheap as $hit unless it comes to travel money), and aside from making the move to tech fabrics in about 2006 when it became all the rage, I've basically just continued to wear a lot of the same stuff, with some additions over the years from Christmas gifts, race shirts, and the occasional purchase. But I think some of Jenn's blog is rubbing off on me -- I sometimes read one of her reviews about how much she likes quality pieces and why, and I think, gee, I'd love to have a pocket for a key in my running capris! So sometimes she convinces me to look at a Lulu item on sale and if it's in my size, it's on my desk before long.
Of course, step 2 is that I should purge an old pair of running pants from my current collection to make room for these, but I'm actually low on pants, so I probably won't (plus the whole "hoarder" thing...).
My other big office thing... finally fixing my water bottle. I've had this water bottle from The Lyons' Share that I use a lot of the time (the other bottle is a generic Aladdin one from Target that I use when I'm washing my regular one).
Well, a while back, I dropped the lid when I was refilling it, and the cap to close it actually broke off, so I've been using it like this:
The second picture shows it better, but that's basically nothing between water and my laptop and my work papers if I tip the bottle over. After I broke the lid, there was no way to close it (but, not a wide opening, so less fatal that it could be I guess).
Well, at boot camp last week, I finally told Megan that my cap was broken, and she replaced it!
Isn't it lovely?! Honestly, makes a big difference in my days though -- I can keep the bottle closer now since it's spill-safe, so I drink more! And that nagging worry that I'd knock it over is gone (along with any nagging fear a co-worker thought my broken topped bottle was ghetto...).
All three of those things have made me very happy. Sometimes it's just the little things, right?
Thursday, January 7, 2016
Getting it done
I'm a big believer in the Christmas season, rather than treating it as just one day. So for me, the Christmas season finally ended yesterday, when the 12 Days of Christmas were over.
Tree is still up, but now unplugged, and will come down this weekend.
And with the end of that season, and of course the start of the new year, I'm trying to do some clearing out and organizing. In addition to a few little things, I've also been tackling some things that have been on my list for waaaaay too long. Among other things:
1. I attacked one messy case at work that has needed attention desperately for over two months. It only took two dedicated days, but I felt so good when it was done. Well, technically, I felt so good after the second day working on it -- it was totally done assuming the one remaining question I'd posed via email and VM was answered the way I expected it would be (otherwise, I was going to be back at square 1). The next morning, I got the answer I expected and shipped that correspondence off my desk and onto my boss's desk! That leaves only one "stale and urgent" priority project on my desk -- and as soon as that one is done (which is going to take more like 40 hours), my backlog will officially be less than 2 months!
2. I finally called the airline we flew to and from Europe this fall to try to sort out while the miles hadn't posted to our accounts yet. I'd sent email requests, and responded to the airline's request for more information -- and I'd even resent copies of those boarding passes and ticket receipts 3 more times. But the "should post within 30 days" window had closed repeatedly. So frustrating! So I actually called, dealt with all the touch menus, the talking menus, the holding, and got a person (goodness, I'm glad I have status and get to call the priority number, I can't even begin to imagine how much more painful it would have been otherwise!). It took him about 20 minutes, but he was able to sort it all out, and by the time we go to sleep tonight, we should have the miles posted. I was so pleased with myself for getting this done, and so pleased with the service rep I got for resolving it, that I went the extra "mile" (oh, I slay me!) and filled in all my info on the airline website to post a compliment about the customer service rep doing such a good job!
3. I've made plans. Registered for two races before New Orleans (just a local 10k and a local half), made dinner or "other" plans with friends for upcoming weekends, picked this weekend's recipes, made to do lists, etc.
4. We've made more progress on our guest room. We picked out the new dresser we want (planning to call to buy it today), made arrangements to borrow a friend's truck to pick it up this weekend, spent about 30 hours longer than anyone would guess trying to find a new desk chair that had to meet very particular size requirements (specifically, regarding the height of the chair base, which seems to be information never included in any product specs), and will hopefully have the whole room done in the next week or two (though we may have to get outside help to figure out how to connect the new TV...).
5. I'm finally back to running regularly and am now up to over 6 miles without any ankle pain. And I am finally starting to see some progress in terms of paces. The last couple weeks have been a struggle, falling behind my friends, heartrate that made me think I'd die before I finished, etc. And while I'm still struggling and falling behind, I am able to hang for the warm-up, and today I even managed to do the two pace miles on the schedule! Of course, my effort level was higher than it should have been for those miles, and as a result, my cool-down miles were crazy slow and exhausting, but it's progress, and I'll gladly take it!
Tree is still up, but now unplugged, and will come down this weekend.
And with the end of that season, and of course the start of the new year, I'm trying to do some clearing out and organizing. In addition to a few little things, I've also been tackling some things that have been on my list for waaaaay too long. Among other things:
1. I attacked one messy case at work that has needed attention desperately for over two months. It only took two dedicated days, but I felt so good when it was done. Well, technically, I felt so good after the second day working on it -- it was totally done assuming the one remaining question I'd posed via email and VM was answered the way I expected it would be (otherwise, I was going to be back at square 1). The next morning, I got the answer I expected and shipped that correspondence off my desk and onto my boss's desk! That leaves only one "stale and urgent" priority project on my desk -- and as soon as that one is done (which is going to take more like 40 hours), my backlog will officially be less than 2 months!
2. I finally called the airline we flew to and from Europe this fall to try to sort out while the miles hadn't posted to our accounts yet. I'd sent email requests, and responded to the airline's request for more information -- and I'd even resent copies of those boarding passes and ticket receipts 3 more times. But the "should post within 30 days" window had closed repeatedly. So frustrating! So I actually called, dealt with all the touch menus, the talking menus, the holding, and got a person (goodness, I'm glad I have status and get to call the priority number, I can't even begin to imagine how much more painful it would have been otherwise!). It took him about 20 minutes, but he was able to sort it all out, and by the time we go to sleep tonight, we should have the miles posted. I was so pleased with myself for getting this done, and so pleased with the service rep I got for resolving it, that I went the extra "mile" (oh, I slay me!) and filled in all my info on the airline website to post a compliment about the customer service rep doing such a good job!
3. I've made plans. Registered for two races before New Orleans (just a local 10k and a local half), made dinner or "other" plans with friends for upcoming weekends, picked this weekend's recipes, made to do lists, etc.
4. We've made more progress on our guest room. We picked out the new dresser we want (planning to call to buy it today), made arrangements to borrow a friend's truck to pick it up this weekend, spent about 30 hours longer than anyone would guess trying to find a new desk chair that had to meet very particular size requirements (specifically, regarding the height of the chair base, which seems to be information never included in any product specs), and will hopefully have the whole room done in the next week or two (though we may have to get outside help to figure out how to connect the new TV...).
5. I'm finally back to running regularly and am now up to over 6 miles without any ankle pain. And I am finally starting to see some progress in terms of paces. The last couple weeks have been a struggle, falling behind my friends, heartrate that made me think I'd die before I finished, etc. And while I'm still struggling and falling behind, I am able to hang for the warm-up, and today I even managed to do the two pace miles on the schedule! Of course, my effort level was higher than it should have been for those miles, and as a result, my cool-down miles were crazy slow and exhausting, but it's progress, and I'll gladly take it!
Friday, January 1, 2016
5 years later
Back in December 2010, one of the bloggers I've read the longest, Bella, got me into doing a series of prompts in December that were on such interesting topics.
One of the prompts in December 2010 was to write a letter to yourself going into 2011 from the year 2015. And I did it! And now, 5 years later, I'm still blogging, and it's going to be 2016 soon.
Here's my original post (and here was Bella's), I thought it would be fun to see where things stand now.
The prompt was awkwardly phrased, telling you to imagine yourself 5 years from now (in Dec. 2010) and give advice to your current self for the year ahead. I kind of blew that off, saying that I didn't really see any big changes in 2011 (other than knowing my 2 youngest brothers were getting married that year), and I was kind of hoping my life would be basically the same at the end of 2011 as it was at the end of 2010. The biggest struggle for me at the end of 2010 was that I didn't really like my job, but the rest of my life was pretty much just as I wanted it.
I chose to look at the question based on the main categories of how I define myself set out on my About Me page.
Runner. In late 2010 (almost 3 months after my first BQ), I figured that by late 2015, "I hopefully will have run Boston and requalified several times" and I'd have run several other marathons that were of interest, as well as a trail race and an ultra. And I'd still run with the same crew, and hoped 2 friends who had left our crew would be back.
Status: Well, I've run Boston and I have requalified on more than one occasion, but I'm not presently qualified, and I'm a long way from it! But running Boston and having the option to do so again was the real goal in 2010 looking toward 2015, and I've accomplished that. As to the other aspects of my 2010 running goals/predictions for 2015, I've made some progress. I have done a couple of the other marathons on my list, as well as a bunch of other marathons. But I didn't really run a trail race or an ultra -- I did a marathon that was partially on trails (the Bataan Memorial Death March Marathon) and in training for that, I did 27 miles of walking while wearing the extra 40 pounds I carried on my back for that marathon. But neither of those are really what I envisioned 5 years ago as "doing a trail race" and "running an ultra." But as predicted in 2010, I still run with the same group of people. But sadly, my 2010 dream was that two of my favorite running buddies who both moved to Cali would move back to Dallas, and neither of them has (but I'm still in touch with both, just visited the So-Cal one (and his wife and son) this past summer!). But I've met some new running friends over the last half decade and those have been great experiences too.
Wife. In late 2010, I wanted 2015 to have us as a settled and secure married couple, who know each other well and think of each other first. I knew that would be tough (not just because I'd been unmarried for the first 30+ years of life), but I wanted to always think before speaking, to make more of an effort to let the little things go and to have the word "squadra" (Italian theme for our goal marriage) at the forefront of my actions.
Status: Going stronger than ever! Feel very secure and settled, but there are definitely times we each think of ourselves first, and less like a team. But I'm better about not sweating the small stuff, and we work on being a "squadra."
Vegetarian. Five years ago, it was easy to predict that I'd still be a vegetarian. I also predicted that I'd have even gone vegan on many days. In 2015, I wanted to be an adventurous cook, always trying new recipes and relying more frequently on homemade leftovers for lunch instead of frozen meals or restaurants.
Status: Definitely still a vegetarian. More vegan days since November 1, 2015 than probably in the last 5 years combined, but still far from being a real vegan. I'd say I'm a pretty adventurous cook, but I still don't cook enough. I work a lot and we go to bed usually not too long after I get home from work, so almost all weeknights it's something in the microwave (usually something from the in-store prepared meals section from the grocery). And it's leftovers for lunch maaaaybe once a month. When I cook on the weekend, there are usually leftovers, but I use those for other dinners and still eat Amy's frozen meals for lunch most days (though now vegan meals more often).
Dallas-dweller. In 2010, I wasn't certain where we'd be living today. I knew it was most likely the same place we lived in 2010, but there were thoughts of moving back near my parents or near my in-laws, or maybe even to near my husband's family in Italy. In 2010, my husband had said he really didn't want to move until 2016 or ideally after 2020. In 2010, my immediate hope was to make progress hammering down the mortgage in 2011.
Status: Same, same! Happily living in the same condo and no plans to move on the horizon. Earlier this year, I had a strong bug to move to San Fran, and I'd still love to do that, but my husband still isn't ready to change jobs and it's not really on the radar anymore. I did refinance the mortgage at least once, maybe even twice, and I'm working on paying it off ahead of schedule.
Attorney. In 2010, I expected that right now I'd still be a a practicing attorney and that I'd love my job. In late 2010, I knew the 2015 plan was likely going to require change from where I was in 2010, either by making some changes to how my 2010 job worked, or changing jobs. I also expected that in 2015 I'd be a zealous advocate for a pro bono cause dear to my heart, and doing what I can to help children who encounter worse circumstances in their living arrangement than most people can imagine or would ever want to consider.
Status: Success! Crazily enough, I changed jobs within about 3 months of writing out these predictions in 2010 and I'm still at that job. Up until a few weeks ago, I loved it more than I thought it was possible to love a job. The last couple months have been exceptionally stressful and yielded an unmanageable caseload, but that is presently slowly resolving. The last few weeks have also added some very stressful salary negotiations, but as of last week (a call with the president of the sub for which I work, after multiple conversations with my boss, and with the president of my division), it seems like the negotiations are going well and I'm optimistic it will get worked out within the next couple weeks. If it doesn't that will leave me in an awkward spot -- I don't want to change jobs, but I also don't want to be paid less than I believe (and apparently my boss, the president of my division, and the president of our sub) I deserve, it's just a matter of working out when and how that will happen. If they don't make it happen, I don't want to leave, but I might try to make myself look. It would all just be so much easier if they could just give me what I ask for immediately, sigh!
Traveler. In 2010, I was hoping that in 2015 I'd still go overseas every year, and roughly every other one of those trips would include Italy. I wanted to get better at speaking Italian and even learn some dialect. I planned on speaking Italian at home more and going back to an Italian conversation group, but adding some actual studying outside of class. I hoped that by 2015, I'd have "been to Egypt, India and/or China." I wanted to manage my work schedule and finances as needed to allow for an overseas trip each year, knowing that big trips overseas tend to strengthen our marriage, my perspective, and my sanity.
Status: I'd say success! We have gone overseas every year for the last five years (including trips to many places I've long dreamed of going), and there's nothing like planning a wedding in an isolated non-touristy part of Italy where you pretty much can't find a wedding planner to force your Italian language skills to improve! Unfortunately, even though I was able to communicate pretty easily a couple months ago in Italy, I don't work on my Italian as much as I should. I really would like to use it more at home (though prioritizing open and clear communication is certainly more important), I really should go back to conversation group (my husband still goes weekly), and I really should study on my own. I'd say I've met my actual travel goal -- I've been to India AND China (and I would have gone to Egypt, but for that political stuff...). And, to excuse my lack of Italian studying, in my defense, I've taken Chinese class for a pretty long time (though you wouldn't really know that to hear me speak). Honestly though, "learning" is something I should put more effort into going forward. Italian, Chinese, French or something new, I should just buckle down and spend at least an hour a week on it. I usually like trying to unplug on the weekends, but it's turned into lazily watching TV lately instead of even just pulling out a language book and working on it. Guess now's the perfect time to make some kind of resolution...
There was also a bonus question in December 2010, looking back at where I was 10 years earlier (December 2000) and thinking what advice I wished I'd had then. In December 2000, I had just found out I passed the bar and was settling into my first few months of work. The main thing lacking from my life then was work-life balance, and there were lots of dinners at work that were bad for my social life and my waistline. But in December 2010, I recognized that I was quite content, and everything in December 2000 worked out just right to lead me to where I was in December 2010.
I feel that same way now, looking back at December 2010. It all worked out just right. There were lots of changes between December 2000 and December 2010 (job change, starting running, dating, meeting and marrying my husband, etc.), but there have been very few changes between December 2010 and today (the primary one being my job), and I don't really expect much to change in the next 5 years. I'm actually hoping very little will change -- I'd be very content to still be running the same mileage, still traveling, still at the same job and in the same condo with the same guy, going to visit the same relatives...
If I get motivated, maybe I should now try to look ahead to December 2020... But that would be three posts within a week, and yow, that's just unsustainable these days!
One of the prompts in December 2010 was to write a letter to yourself going into 2011 from the year 2015. And I did it! And now, 5 years later, I'm still blogging, and it's going to be 2016 soon.
Here's my original post (and here was Bella's), I thought it would be fun to see where things stand now.
The prompt was awkwardly phrased, telling you to imagine yourself 5 years from now (in Dec. 2010) and give advice to your current self for the year ahead. I kind of blew that off, saying that I didn't really see any big changes in 2011 (other than knowing my 2 youngest brothers were getting married that year), and I was kind of hoping my life would be basically the same at the end of 2011 as it was at the end of 2010. The biggest struggle for me at the end of 2010 was that I didn't really like my job, but the rest of my life was pretty much just as I wanted it.
I chose to look at the question based on the main categories of how I define myself set out on my About Me page.
Runner. In late 2010 (almost 3 months after my first BQ), I figured that by late 2015, "I hopefully will have run Boston and requalified several times" and I'd have run several other marathons that were of interest, as well as a trail race and an ultra. And I'd still run with the same crew, and hoped 2 friends who had left our crew would be back.
Status: Well, I've run Boston and I have requalified on more than one occasion, but I'm not presently qualified, and I'm a long way from it! But running Boston and having the option to do so again was the real goal in 2010 looking toward 2015, and I've accomplished that. As to the other aspects of my 2010 running goals/predictions for 2015, I've made some progress. I have done a couple of the other marathons on my list, as well as a bunch of other marathons. But I didn't really run a trail race or an ultra -- I did a marathon that was partially on trails (the Bataan Memorial Death March Marathon) and in training for that, I did 27 miles of walking while wearing the extra 40 pounds I carried on my back for that marathon. But neither of those are really what I envisioned 5 years ago as "doing a trail race" and "running an ultra." But as predicted in 2010, I still run with the same group of people. But sadly, my 2010 dream was that two of my favorite running buddies who both moved to Cali would move back to Dallas, and neither of them has (but I'm still in touch with both, just visited the So-Cal one (and his wife and son) this past summer!). But I've met some new running friends over the last half decade and those have been great experiences too.
Wife. In late 2010, I wanted 2015 to have us as a settled and secure married couple, who know each other well and think of each other first. I knew that would be tough (not just because I'd been unmarried for the first 30+ years of life), but I wanted to always think before speaking, to make more of an effort to let the little things go and to have the word "squadra" (Italian theme for our goal marriage) at the forefront of my actions.
Status: Going stronger than ever! Feel very secure and settled, but there are definitely times we each think of ourselves first, and less like a team. But I'm better about not sweating the small stuff, and we work on being a "squadra."
Vegetarian. Five years ago, it was easy to predict that I'd still be a vegetarian. I also predicted that I'd have even gone vegan on many days. In 2015, I wanted to be an adventurous cook, always trying new recipes and relying more frequently on homemade leftovers for lunch instead of frozen meals or restaurants.
Status: Definitely still a vegetarian. More vegan days since November 1, 2015 than probably in the last 5 years combined, but still far from being a real vegan. I'd say I'm a pretty adventurous cook, but I still don't cook enough. I work a lot and we go to bed usually not too long after I get home from work, so almost all weeknights it's something in the microwave (usually something from the in-store prepared meals section from the grocery). And it's leftovers for lunch maaaaybe once a month. When I cook on the weekend, there are usually leftovers, but I use those for other dinners and still eat Amy's frozen meals for lunch most days (though now vegan meals more often).
Dallas-dweller. In 2010, I wasn't certain where we'd be living today. I knew it was most likely the same place we lived in 2010, but there were thoughts of moving back near my parents or near my in-laws, or maybe even to near my husband's family in Italy. In 2010, my husband had said he really didn't want to move until 2016 or ideally after 2020. In 2010, my immediate hope was to make progress hammering down the mortgage in 2011.
Status: Same, same! Happily living in the same condo and no plans to move on the horizon. Earlier this year, I had a strong bug to move to San Fran, and I'd still love to do that, but my husband still isn't ready to change jobs and it's not really on the radar anymore. I did refinance the mortgage at least once, maybe even twice, and I'm working on paying it off ahead of schedule.
Attorney. In 2010, I expected that right now I'd still be a a practicing attorney and that I'd love my job. In late 2010, I knew the 2015 plan was likely going to require change from where I was in 2010, either by making some changes to how my 2010 job worked, or changing jobs. I also expected that in 2015 I'd be a zealous advocate for a pro bono cause dear to my heart, and doing what I can to help children who encounter worse circumstances in their living arrangement than most people can imagine or would ever want to consider.
Status: Success! Crazily enough, I changed jobs within about 3 months of writing out these predictions in 2010 and I'm still at that job. Up until a few weeks ago, I loved it more than I thought it was possible to love a job. The last couple months have been exceptionally stressful and yielded an unmanageable caseload, but that is presently slowly resolving. The last few weeks have also added some very stressful salary negotiations, but as of last week (a call with the president of the sub for which I work, after multiple conversations with my boss, and with the president of my division), it seems like the negotiations are going well and I'm optimistic it will get worked out within the next couple weeks. If it doesn't that will leave me in an awkward spot -- I don't want to change jobs, but I also don't want to be paid less than I believe (and apparently my boss, the president of my division, and the president of our sub) I deserve, it's just a matter of working out when and how that will happen. If they don't make it happen, I don't want to leave, but I might try to make myself look. It would all just be so much easier if they could just give me what I ask for immediately, sigh!
Traveler. In 2010, I was hoping that in 2015 I'd still go overseas every year, and roughly every other one of those trips would include Italy. I wanted to get better at speaking Italian and even learn some dialect. I planned on speaking Italian at home more and going back to an Italian conversation group, but adding some actual studying outside of class. I hoped that by 2015, I'd have "been to Egypt, India and/or China." I wanted to manage my work schedule and finances as needed to allow for an overseas trip each year, knowing that big trips overseas tend to strengthen our marriage, my perspective, and my sanity.
Status: I'd say success! We have gone overseas every year for the last five years (including trips to many places I've long dreamed of going), and there's nothing like planning a wedding in an isolated non-touristy part of Italy where you pretty much can't find a wedding planner to force your Italian language skills to improve! Unfortunately, even though I was able to communicate pretty easily a couple months ago in Italy, I don't work on my Italian as much as I should. I really would like to use it more at home (though prioritizing open and clear communication is certainly more important), I really should go back to conversation group (my husband still goes weekly), and I really should study on my own. I'd say I've met my actual travel goal -- I've been to India AND China (and I would have gone to Egypt, but for that political stuff...). And, to excuse my lack of Italian studying, in my defense, I've taken Chinese class for a pretty long time (though you wouldn't really know that to hear me speak). Honestly though, "learning" is something I should put more effort into going forward. Italian, Chinese, French or something new, I should just buckle down and spend at least an hour a week on it. I usually like trying to unplug on the weekends, but it's turned into lazily watching TV lately instead of even just pulling out a language book and working on it. Guess now's the perfect time to make some kind of resolution...
There was also a bonus question in December 2010, looking back at where I was 10 years earlier (December 2000) and thinking what advice I wished I'd had then. In December 2000, I had just found out I passed the bar and was settling into my first few months of work. The main thing lacking from my life then was work-life balance, and there were lots of dinners at work that were bad for my social life and my waistline. But in December 2010, I recognized that I was quite content, and everything in December 2000 worked out just right to lead me to where I was in December 2010.
I feel that same way now, looking back at December 2010. It all worked out just right. There were lots of changes between December 2000 and December 2010 (job change, starting running, dating, meeting and marrying my husband, etc.), but there have been very few changes between December 2010 and today (the primary one being my job), and I don't really expect much to change in the next 5 years. I'm actually hoping very little will change -- I'd be very content to still be running the same mileage, still traveling, still at the same job and in the same condo with the same guy, going to visit the same relatives...
If I get motivated, maybe I should now try to look ahead to December 2020... But that would be three posts within a week, and yow, that's just unsustainable these days!
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