Resolutions
While I’m not much for formal lists, I do like to make some resolutions for change or improvement each year. Last year I was pretty good at following through on at least half of them and fair on most of the rest. Here are a few of mine for 2009, no particular order:
Read more books that are out of my field – especially those about Science:
While I’m an avid reader I noticed recently that my reading habits have gotten pretty narrow in the last few years and that’s not good. While drilling down on subjects that one already knows well increases expertise, learning new information is a critical catalyst for creativity and insight. Science holds so many keys for future evolution as a society that I feel a need to get a better grasp on the potential of major scientific trends. Book suggestions here from readers are welcome.
Become a better informed, more upscale, drunkard:
Excepting hot summer days and certain events, my consumption of beer has dwindled down to very occasional bottles of really good microbrew. Wine and scotch are more appealing at social occasions or at dinner and I’d like to learn more about them. Not so much to become a connoisseur as to know what the hell I’m talking about and not waste money on bad selections. I picked up some Glenlivet for my friend Shane’s holiday roadtrip stopover but, alas, the Wizard & co. lost their way in Wisconsin 😉 and never arrived.
Diversify my workouts:
Having done bodybuilding and powerlifting for over twenty years, I’m experiencing some wear and tear issues from the repetitive stress as well as boredom. Every January, I tighten up my diet and intensify my training but this year I’m going to widen the spectrum of exercises, do more conditioning and try periodic cross-training. I’d like to jump back into martial arts like Dan from Madison ( though not Muay Thai, I ache enough from lifting weights) but given the time constraints of grad school, that will have to wait until 2010.
Take the kids on more “field trips”:
The Eldest and the Son of Zenpundit are now at an age where they will be able to appreciate museums, cultural events, outdoor sites and doing new things. Time to get out and explore!
Set and pursue strategic goals but include “downtime” as one of them:
I have to say that my lifestyle since midsummer was too frenetic to be healthy. While I had a lot of concrete and significant accomplishments in 2008 compared to previous years, I also took on too much, left many tasks unfinished, failed to follow up on occasion and shortchanged my best in order to do “more”. I fell into the habit of sleeping around 4 hours a night in order to read more, write, blog or get in mundane tasks and I’d keep it up until I either got sick or lapsed into unproductive vegging. It’s too much and I’m going to schedule more “unplugged” time and learn to say “No” to low priority or non-value added tasks ( this will be the hardest resolution for me to keep).
What are your resolutions ?
Seerov:
January 3rd, 2009 at 8:17 am
Four hours of sleep just isn’t enough. Especially if you’re working out! I would put more sleep at the top of the list. More of it will make you better at whatever you do. I’m a 9 hours a night guy myself. Of course, in the Army I went days without sleeping. I remember doing and seeing all kinds of funny stuff while sleep deprived. A friend of mine was so sleep deprived he tried to put a dollar in a tree in order to get a Dr. Pepper. I’m sure you don’t get that bad, but you should at least make six hours your goal.
deichmans:
January 3rd, 2009 at 2:07 pm
Oh, fine… Rub it in!
I was seriously tempted to ask you to come pick us up in Portage, Wisc. while the various and sundry Mitsubishi dealers in the upper Midwest hunted for a serpentine belt tensioner.
Perhaps a summer road trip will be in order? 🙂
deichmans:
January 3rd, 2009 at 2:12 pm
BTW: Science book recommendations to consider:
1. Barabasi’s Linked
2. Hawking’s A Brief History of Time
3. Gleick’s Chaos
4. Bar-Yam’s Making Things Work
5. Anything by Richard Feynman (particularly "6 Easy Pieces", followed peremptorily by "6 Not-so-Easy Pieces")
zen:
January 3rd, 2009 at 4:13 pm
hi Seerov,
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I agree, 4 hours is not enough but even with taking melatonin, chamomile, tryptophan etc. I rarely can sleep 9 hours. I’ll be happy if I can get in the habit of 6-7.
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Hi Shane,
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I thank you for not exposing me to the flu – gracias! Summer is a definite possibility. Out of your list I’ve read Barabasi and Gleick ( Faster not Chaos though) – Feynmann and Bar-Yam go to the top of the list
Cheryl Rofer:
January 3rd, 2009 at 4:15 pm
Starting easy with the science reading, I recommend the January issue of Scientific American, on Darwin and evolution.
Gunnar:
January 3rd, 2009 at 4:16 pm
some how – i posted this two times in the wrong place…wrt Science -"Deep Simplicity" by John Gribbinhttp://www.amazon.com/Deep-Simplicity-Bringing-Order-Complexity/dp/140006256X"The Bottomless Well" by Huber and Millshttp://www.amazon.com/Bottomless-Well-Twilight-Virtue-Energy/dp/0465031161"Godel, Escher, Bach" by Hofstadterhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gödel,_Escher,_Bach"Islands in the Clickstream" by Richard Thiemehttp://www.amazon.com/Islands-Clickstream-Reflections-Virtual-World/dp/1931836221
Arherring:
January 3rd, 2009 at 5:19 pm
On expanding your drinking ability (gee, that sounds awful), the best way to train your palate is to sample as many different types and styles of alcohols as possible. Even if you think you don’t like something now, you might in the future as your tasting ability expands. Don’t forget sweet wines, clear liqours and fuit(y) beers. Make friends with your local retailers, the best ones are more about education than snobbery and sales, (Sam’s is an icon in the Chicago area, but I’m sure there are many other quality shops) and seek out beverage tastings and wine dinners. Not only are they fun but they make for a great date night.
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Best reference book for wine: The New Wine Lover’s Companion by Ron Herbst and Sharon Tyler Herbst.
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The best wine guide I know of. Easy to carry into a store, and easy to navigate. If it isn’t in there, you don’t need to know it.
historyguy99:
January 3rd, 2009 at 6:24 pm
If you want a taste of something different in scotch, try an Islay malt. Laphroaig is touted as the best by some, but for me it is too much iodine like. I perfer Bowmore with the taste of the sea mixes with the rich peat-earth of Scotland to carry one back to earlier times. It took a while to develop a taste that only a scot or a sailor would appreciate.
Also sleep a bit more, I agree 9 hrs is over the top, but 4 is inviting trouble that will do you harm before you reach my age.
I also am trying to expand my reading as much as possible. Good science books written well enough to attract general readers is a genre in it’s infancy, compared to the inroads made by history and the social sciences.
Dan from Madison:
January 3rd, 2009 at 6:51 pm
6-7 hours of sleep is all I get and that seems to suit me fine. I can’t imagine only doing weights – or Muay Thai for that matter. I promised myself I would run and bike more this year on top of the Muay Thai. All around conditioning is the thing fo sho.
Eddie:
January 4th, 2009 at 4:01 am
I really hope you can improve your sleep average in ’09.
I tend to only put forward one resolution a year, but this year I will go with two.
(1) is to decrease my music listening by half, listening to more lectures on iTunes U.
(2) is to do a far better job in ’09 of helping my wife adjust from Hong Kong to life in a small Southern college city.
I wish everyone the best in sticking with their resolutions.
Lexington Green:
January 4th, 2009 at 4:27 am
Get to bed on time. Work with focus and bring in business. Get to mass every day.
Three is plenty.
Matt:
January 4th, 2009 at 8:33 am
As an Army guy I can relate to the wear and tear on your body due to exercise/life. In an effort to limit wear & tear, I would recommend either Crossfit (which can sometimes be a little bit intimidating) or Monkey Bar Gym out of Madison, WI. I prefer the second site but you do have to pay for it.
For science reading, I would recommend one of the anthology series like The Best Science and Nature Writing 2008. I have read previous editions and they are good for providing an overview of progress across disciplines and then you can decide where you want to delve deeper.
Last but not least, in the realm of alcohol, I am partial to American whiskey, specifically Kentucky bourbons. Best of all, there’s an annual KY Bourbon Festival. One of my resolutions is to be there this year provided I’m not deployed again.
Good luck with the resolutions this year.
Dan from Madison:
January 4th, 2009 at 11:49 am
Crossfit is amazing.
Dave Schuler:
January 4th, 2009 at 3:20 pm
Among single malts, may I recommend Talisker? Another to try is Highland Park.
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And when you get around to resuming the martial arts, may I recommend kendo? The upside of kendo is that it’s something you can practice for a lifetime. It also has a strong social aspect that I liked.
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The downside of kendo is that there are only handful of places in the Chicago metropolitan area to practice.
Phil:
January 4th, 2009 at 9:53 pm
I also want to read more science themed books. Currenty 100+ pages into Lee Smolin’s The Trouble With Physics. It is geared for the lay reader and, I would have appreciated a glossary of terms, it is very readable & informative. Recommended.
zen:
January 5th, 2009 at 5:38 am
Greetings all! In no particular order….
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Dave & historyguy99 – thanks for the recs – jotting them down. The Glenlivet will last for a while because of the diet but when it is done I will move on to your favored spirits. Regarding Kendo, that is something I’d definitely do if it was in a more reasonable driving distance.
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Dan & Matt – throwing in some Crossfit routines is on the agenda.
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Arherring – thanks ! I like the sauvingon blancs and cabernets best so far.
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Eddie – Quite a culture shock for the new Mrs. B. !
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Gunnar & Cheryl – thanks for the recs- simplicity & evolution are critical concepts for the 21st C. ! Another friend rec’d SciAm too – also glad to see you joined the Clausewitz roundtable Cheryl. Shane will not be the lone scientist any more.
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Seerov & Lex – I am being nagged at home to keep the sleep resolution.
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zen:
January 5th, 2009 at 5:38 am
Phil – there’s a good Smolin talk at TED.com BTW
YT:
January 6th, 2009 at 2:02 pm
8 – 9 hrs. of sleep : VERY ESSENTIAL for someone with a busy schedule like yours’, Zen. I thought you’d be familiar with the Eastern emphasis on BALANCE due to your nom de guerre?
A toast to a great year ahead for all who’ve posted here. Now, where’s that wine glass of mine?