2025-01-31 • no tags • 919 words
(This is entry 83 of 100DaysToOffload)
It is approaching the end of January, so I figure I will write a month in review, going over all that has happened this month. I suppose this compliments the weeknotes and the yearly review, too.
It's been a month of writing what happened in each day in the Hobonichi Techo. I quite enjoy it. In the last few days of the month, and sometimes on weekdays where I wouldn't really do anything different to any other day, I would not write a lot. What has been useful though, is the tickboxes at the top of each day, which allow me to sort of work out what it is I want to do with each day just before it happens.
I've adopted a process, after writing this blog post on priority, of marking each with one thing that is my main-thing to do on that day. There have granted been the odd days where I haven't done this, or where I didn't actually do the "one thing" I had to do. Occasionally, the "one thing" would be something that I was going to do, anyways, like visit the opera. Still, it's been a useful idea.
I had on my list to read two books, Lolita and Sense and Sensibility. I read both of these. I also comtinued with The Extended Phenotype, and started a short book on Buddhism (outside of my 20 books list).
I planned a bare minimum of eight study sessions to meet my target set out in 25 for 2025. I studied guitar seven times, and mandolin 12 times. So I think I roughly achieved that bare minimum.
I am definitely improving at Losing my Religion. I think I haven't done guitar enough, or with enough passion, to really improve. I have restrung both my guitars, though, for the first time: I haven't done a perfect job, but I'm happy I've done it at least. Then, I can maybe do it a bit better next time. (I actually still need to cut the top bits of string off, as I don't have the tools for it anywhere.)
I didn't even go once. Still, it's covered over for winter so not a problem.
I'll start in Feb - we need to dig up the leeks anyways from last year, and also I need to start with sowing, e.g. if I want to crop early things like lettuce.
I have studied RHS a bit, though honestly still not enough. I did get my mock back at get 85/100, which is decent, but I feel the conditions were a bit favourable. I don't have that level of confidence for the real deal.
I started IF2, though haven't actually begun to study it yet: instead, I'm waiting until I get RHS done early next month, and then will begin with IF2. Avoid having too much at once.
I think I've definitely underperformed here. I had a goal to skip ten minutes each day, potentially do some running, as well as a minimum of 100 sets of weights. I did begin to skip at the start of the month, but found I sort of over-exerted myself: after the first day (where I did ten minutes) my legs were excessively painful and I was forced to rest for a few days. I did it in smaller numbers on later days, however stopped due to concerns about arrhythmias. Much later in the month, I realised that I could amend the goal, and decided that I would much prefer to be flexible than to have incredibly strong calves. As a result, I decided that ten minutes of yoga could also count towards the goal.
In terms of the sets, I "underperformed" here too. I think I got only some 86 done. That is fine though - it is vaguely within reason, and should hopefully be alleviates by a slight additional exertion I'll have next month. Fix my present follies, future me, this reads as...
I did quite well on this. I actually had a fair few additional expenditures, such as opera (La Boheme, where I bought Zizzis and a tea and a cider - totalling £40 or so, phew! also Jenufa), a violin (£75), guitar and mandolin strings (some £60), ...
Still, I managed to stick within the budget, more or less, and put away a good chunk of savings. I also got a £150 bonus and £311 back from previously unclaimed expenses this month, which was nice.
I definitely feel I had a bit of a shift across the month, where I started out highly motivated, and then towards the ended sort of fell into rote or routine, or basically was not as energised nor as productive. I think also, the concerns about the arrhythmias slowed me a little. The drudgery of work also despirited me a tad, especially given that on several evenings I was compelled to work late due to an overabundance of work.
On the up, I do feel a certain levity now, both as my workload at work has reduced (as has my backlog), and that I am generally in a way making a progress across things, and coming to have my work be a precursor to tasklessness. It is this state I think I really desire. Having things I need to do weighs greatly upon my mind.
A decent month, though I did devolve a little as the month went on. I will write up a prospective for next month, to try to avoid this continuing into the new month. I don't think this month was altogether incredible, but rather a process of finding out, and orienting.