30 - Momentus...

Down to the wire here.

I feel the urge to say something profound, but no luck.

I go through my work day (4:25-10PM) hacking through 6 classes, walking up and down the stairs thinking, "only 30 more days of this..." and I'm not sure how I feel about it. One part sad/scared, six parts elated and looking forward to the future. I feel like that's a good ratio.

Leaving for the Philippines on Thursday on this work-sponsored vacation. Returning late Sunday night.

And I leave with a kid quote.

Me: What would you buy with one million dollars?

Kid: A pencil case and mechanical pencil.

46 - Getting it Right

"I have never though of myself as a ‘born’ writer—anymore than I think of myself as a ‘natural’ athlete, or even a good one. What I am is a good rewriter; I never get anything right the first time—I just know how to revise, and revise."

John Irving, Trying to Save Piggy Sneed

(via wordpainting.tumblr.com)

In life, I feel like we're constantly offered the opportunity to "revise". In any given situation if we haven't gotten it right the first time, it feels like we're often given other chances to learn the same lesson over again. Sometimes this is a blessing; sometimes this is a curse. In my current situation, I feel like I'm being offered an opportunity to re-learn the ability to say good-by. In the past to make a transition easier I've soured relationships/work situations to the point where it was actually a relief to be leaving them, but I realize that this may be my pattern.

In this current transition, I'm aiming to work to my very best right up until the end and be able to close out my contract knowing that I have finished well.

Preparing for the 100 Day Countdown...

In preparation for my last 100 days in the country, I have been trying to think of something that I could do once a day, for 100 days, that would make me a better person. I kicked around a couple of ideas: take a picture a day (which I might actually try), learn a Korean phrase a day (which might be a good idea... but more on that later), or find a joke a day (which I also might try, if only for your benefit, dear reader). Try as I might, though, I couldn't come up with one distinct thing that I would be dedicated enough to do for a solid 100 days, as is the point of this exercise.

Though I have my moments of sloth, I'd like to think that I have cultivated some daily habits of which I am enormously proud. My good-lady-mother and her dear-mother before her have been faithful journal-keepers, and so I have kept a daily journal faithfully since 2000. Also at the *ahem* "strong insistence" (and shining example) of the good-lady-mother, I have learned the habit of a daily meditation time, which has also served me quite well. I offer these as examples (to myself, mainly) that strong, beneficial daily habits are worth pursuing.

Is it cavalier to think that I would be dedicated enough to post once a day for 100 days? Perhaps, but darn it, I will give it my darn-est. I spent the better part of yesterday evening figuring out how to install that darn counter you see in the upper left-hand corner (seriously, that little thing took me close to an hour) but now that I know how to do it, I'm guessing (hoping?) that doing something similar might take less time in the future.

It seems like that's often the way: it takes a long time to learn a skill, but once you master that skill, it becomes easier, (and dare I say more enjoyable?) to use. I am trusting that this skill of distilling my day into a blog post, and the discipline of carving out a few minutes to post it, every day, will become easier --and more fun-- as the days count down.

So, here's to this grand 100 day experiment!

(and thank you very much for reading. :) )