It occurred to me that some of the people who read my blog have never been addicted to cigarettes. They may have been addicted to food, or booze, or masturbation, or who knows what. Here's my take on being a smoker:
I've spent 25 years as a smoker; that's more of my life than I was a nonsmoker. So I really don't *know* what it's like to be "normal", to be "not addicted" to cigarettes. I know, rationally, but not emotionally, that after nonsmokers finish a meal, that they're happy to just sit there. I know that nonsmokers are happy to engage in fun activities for hours on end, without the need to run outside and get a fix. I know these things, yet I don't understand them.
To me, being a heroin addict is completely repulsive. I can't imagine how anyone would find joy by plunging a needle into their arm. Yet cigarette addiction is worse, because "getting a fix" only lasts for about 5 minutes. Nicotine leaves the system so rapidly that we start withdrawal within 5 or 10 minutes. Heroin lasts for hours; after shooting up, the addict is high for a number of hours, normal for a number of hours, and then starts withdrawal. Smokers, by contrast, are almost always in withdrawal. And after the first few times trying cigarettes, we never get high. We don't smoke to make ourselves feel good, we smoke because we're trying to make the bad stuff stop. Imagine if you had a neighbor whose car alarm had been going off all day. It starts off as an annoyance, but after a while you're thinking seriously about going over to his house, jimmying open the hood, and throwing his battery in the street...
Withdrawal starts with a little psychic nagging, kind of a "Did I leave the oven on?" type of feeling. That nagging gets worse, until after an hour or two, it's more like "You left the oven on! You need to turn around RIGHT NOW and fix it, and if you run over that kid on his bike, it's secondary to getting the oven turned off RIGHT NOW."
Physical symptoms: Dizziness, increased temperature, headaches. Fatigue, restlessness. Sometimes joint pain. Constipation. Mental symptoms: Thinking about smoking every three minutes. Fear. Sometimes envy--if you see other people smoking, you think of them as lucky, as opposed to addicts. My grandpa quit for 4 years one time, and said every time he saw someone else smoking, he wanted to choke them, take the cigarette away, and smoke it himself.
Carr talks about how great life is as a nonsmoker. To someone still in the throes of addiction, this is like a terrorist cell leader talking to me about how I'm going to get 72 virgins when I blow myself up--nice idea, in theory, but I haven't seen any proof of it. Carr's book is great on the logic, and getting started, but after the first few hours, it's pure emotion, baby. If junkies could operate on logic, they wouldn't be junkies.
There are 2 parts to this addiction--the mental part, and the physical part. Since nicotine leaves the body so quickly, the physical part is done in a few days. The mental part, though, can last a lifetime. Today I re-lit 2 cigarette butts out of our outdoor ashtray, to get the precious 3 puffs from each. It doesn't matter that I "know" that after x days, I'll be symptom free forever. I've just got to shut that car alarm up, if only for an hour. I found myself longing after butts in the Kwik Trip parking lot today. Would I scavenge a ciggie from a fresh, steaming pile of dog shit? Yes, I would.
Tomorrow is a new day. And I will continue my withdrawal, for everyone's amusement.
Monday, April 5, 2010
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Smoke free, or at least smoke-discounted
As my facebook friends know, I quit smoking yesterday at 2:30pm. I did it using Allen Carr's "Easyway to Stop Smoking" book. This is not the first time I quit using this book. Carr smoked for over 30 years, and was up to 5 packs a day at one point. He quit, relatively painlessly, and figured out how to make others quit, too. Then he started a chain of quit-smoking shops in Europe which claim a 90% success rate. Rather than threaten people with physical violence, like in the Stephen King short story, "Quitters, Inc.", Carr examines each of the myths which smokers tell themselves, then explains why they're lies. By the time you reach the end of the book, you have no good reason on earth to continue smoking (like you ever did before).
Unlike the well-intentioned twats at the American Cancer Society and other non-profit and governmental organizations, Carr actually was a smoker, so he understands the way that smokers think. We know it's killing us. We know it's socially unacceptable. We know it costs too much. But we can't imagine a life without it. Carr takes the time to show us addicts how tobacco/nicotine actually gives us nothing but relief from withdrawal symptoms, and takes so much from us in return.
And that's the key point--that it doesn't do anything for us. So Carr goes on to say, "Look, if you try to use your willpower to quit, and go mooning on about how much you love cigarettes, of course you're going to be miserable. But if you realize that they're a big lie, and you quit with the intention of regaining your health, wealth, and psychic freedom, then it's going to be a lot easier."
I'm paraphrasing here, of course.
So here I am, with 98% of the nicotine out of my system. It's not so bad; I feel sleepy all day, and I feel kind of buzzed, in a bad way--not like as in "hangover", but as in "I was drugged and abandoned in Mexico, and all I got was this lousy t-shirt" way. I'm kind of "out of it", in that I'm kind of wandering all over the house in search of something to do. I keep reminding myself that "Fear is nicotine leaving the body, SIR!", so on balance I'm doing fine. I slept like 12 hours last night, and probably will again tonight. Lori found me locked up in a corner of the kitchen tonight, and she said, "You just don't know what to do with yourself, do you?" I said, "Well, I have this extra 5 minutes, ever hour, which I'm not smoking in. They're starting to pile up."
Unlike the well-intentioned twats at the American Cancer Society and other non-profit and governmental organizations, Carr actually was a smoker, so he understands the way that smokers think. We know it's killing us. We know it's socially unacceptable. We know it costs too much. But we can't imagine a life without it. Carr takes the time to show us addicts how tobacco/nicotine actually gives us nothing but relief from withdrawal symptoms, and takes so much from us in return.
And that's the key point--that it doesn't do anything for us. So Carr goes on to say, "Look, if you try to use your willpower to quit, and go mooning on about how much you love cigarettes, of course you're going to be miserable. But if you realize that they're a big lie, and you quit with the intention of regaining your health, wealth, and psychic freedom, then it's going to be a lot easier."
I'm paraphrasing here, of course.
So here I am, with 98% of the nicotine out of my system. It's not so bad; I feel sleepy all day, and I feel kind of buzzed, in a bad way--not like as in "hangover", but as in "I was drugged and abandoned in Mexico, and all I got was this lousy t-shirt" way. I'm kind of "out of it", in that I'm kind of wandering all over the house in search of something to do. I keep reminding myself that "Fear is nicotine leaving the body, SIR!", so on balance I'm doing fine. I slept like 12 hours last night, and probably will again tonight. Lori found me locked up in a corner of the kitchen tonight, and she said, "You just don't know what to do with yourself, do you?" I said, "Well, I have this extra 5 minutes, ever hour, which I'm not smoking in. They're starting to pile up."
Friday, March 12, 2010
Promises Kept
When I was younger, I worked for an answering service which also took some catalog orders. One of the catalogs that people would order stuff from was called "Promises Kept". It was a collection of overpriced foods and decorations that rich people would order because they were too busy or neglectful to actually go to the store and pick out a present. I guess the name of the magazine helped assuage their guilt somewhat.
With that in mind, here's a list of the things I'm supposed to be doing (or have done) by now, with commentary:
1. Drink 8 glasses of water per day. I'm doing it, pretty much. 8 8-oz. glasses is about 2 liters, and I should be coming pretty close. I have 2-3 cups of coffee per day, then drink water until switching to beer about 8pm. I have a hydration bottle that I carry in my car when I work. Still haven't had any soda since New Year's, except the one can, and I don't miss it.
2. Floss 1x per day. I'm still doing it, err, 80% of days. I went on a real bender for awhile and used up every piece of floss in the house, then we got these y-shaped sticks with the floss in them, and I don't like them as much. The kids use them, though, which is good. Favorite floss: Crest Glide.
3. Get enough sleep. I do get enough sleep. I think I'm addicted to it. What I meant to do was "go to bed earlier at night, get 8 hours, then stay up after you take the kids to school". FAIL. I have been going to bed earlier, often, and sleeping less in the mornings after dropping off the Evil Geniuses (TM), but bed on a cold, dark morning is just irresistable. Now that the sun is coming up earlier, I find myself getting more motivated to get up and get stuff done, but I'm far from mastering this one.
4. Get wisdom teeth pulled (first step of "Get supermodel teeth"). Done. I will soon be scheduling an appointment with the regular dentist for root planing and cleaning, and will plot strategy with him accordingly. This might take years.
5. Quit smoking. I don't think I promised to do this in the blog, but I mentioned to several people on Facebook that I was planning to do it concurrently with getting my teeth yanked. NOT DONE YET. I will be quitting very shortly, as smoking is holding me back in about 5 areas of life. Also spring is coming, and I want to go out biking. Later on, I can use the money I've saved for LASIK, Invisalign braces, and laser hair removal.
Addictions use your own mind to fight against you for their survival; I've been thinking recently about whether I'd be better off quitting on a work day (where I drive for 8 hours) or a non-work day (where the kids might increase my stress levels), and I realized there's just no magic day on my calendar. My addiction says I don't have a free day to quit smoking, well, for the rest of my life. At this point, I'm going to pick...this coming Tuesday.
With that in mind, here's a list of the things I'm supposed to be doing (or have done) by now, with commentary:
1. Drink 8 glasses of water per day. I'm doing it, pretty much. 8 8-oz. glasses is about 2 liters, and I should be coming pretty close. I have 2-3 cups of coffee per day, then drink water until switching to beer about 8pm. I have a hydration bottle that I carry in my car when I work. Still haven't had any soda since New Year's, except the one can, and I don't miss it.
2. Floss 1x per day. I'm still doing it, err, 80% of days. I went on a real bender for awhile and used up every piece of floss in the house, then we got these y-shaped sticks with the floss in them, and I don't like them as much. The kids use them, though, which is good. Favorite floss: Crest Glide.
3. Get enough sleep. I do get enough sleep. I think I'm addicted to it. What I meant to do was "go to bed earlier at night, get 8 hours, then stay up after you take the kids to school". FAIL. I have been going to bed earlier, often, and sleeping less in the mornings after dropping off the Evil Geniuses (TM), but bed on a cold, dark morning is just irresistable. Now that the sun is coming up earlier, I find myself getting more motivated to get up and get stuff done, but I'm far from mastering this one.
4. Get wisdom teeth pulled (first step of "Get supermodel teeth"). Done. I will soon be scheduling an appointment with the regular dentist for root planing and cleaning, and will plot strategy with him accordingly. This might take years.
5. Quit smoking. I don't think I promised to do this in the blog, but I mentioned to several people on Facebook that I was planning to do it concurrently with getting my teeth yanked. NOT DONE YET. I will be quitting very shortly, as smoking is holding me back in about 5 areas of life. Also spring is coming, and I want to go out biking. Later on, I can use the money I've saved for LASIK, Invisalign braces, and laser hair removal.
Addictions use your own mind to fight against you for their survival; I've been thinking recently about whether I'd be better off quitting on a work day (where I drive for 8 hours) or a non-work day (where the kids might increase my stress levels), and I realized there's just no magic day on my calendar. My addiction says I don't have a free day to quit smoking, well, for the rest of my life. At this point, I'm going to pick...this coming Tuesday.
Almost 2 weeks with the teeth out
And I'm late posting, as usual. After getting my wisdom teeth pulled that Monday, everything went swimmingly. My pain on Tuesday was down to a "2" (out of 10), and I took the last Vicodin that morning. So not much of a drug vacation after all; I only took 4 Vikes. Glad I didn't waste money on a new prescription.
So there we are: no dry socket, no bruising, no massive pain. The oral surgeon did a very good job, and the job was as easy as he said it would be. In retrospect, I chalk up much of my freak-outed-ness to lingering bad effects from the NO2. Next time I'll smoke pot instead. Eirik took my teeth to school that Friday, for show 'n tell.
So there we are: no dry socket, no bruising, no massive pain. The oral surgeon did a very good job, and the job was as easy as he said it would be. In retrospect, I chalk up much of my freak-outed-ness to lingering bad effects from the NO2. Next time I'll smoke pot instead. Eirik took my teeth to school that Friday, for show 'n tell.
Monday, February 22, 2010
Holy fuck.
Just got my wisdom teeth out, uh, 20 minutes ago. Worst. Experience. Ever.
I've had some pretty unpleasant stuff done to my body, and up until today, the winner was having skin tags blasted off the inside of my butt crack with liquid nitrogen. But we have a new champion.
Insurance decided they'd spring for the Nitrous Oxide, which contrary to making me feel giddy and laugh-y, made me nauseous and sent me into a panic attack. Best use of $70 ever. But at least it gave me something to focus on besides the 12 shots of novocaine I was getting.
I can see how the procedure itself is "not that bad", because there really wasn't any pain, just some really unpleasant pressure. I'm going to blame the nitrous, though, because I was white-knuckling it and actually started crying at one point.
If I had known that it was going to be this bad, I'd have given blowjobs on the street until I had the $400 for sedation. Either that or just skipped the procedure altogether.
I feel like I need to take a Silkwood shower.
I've had some pretty unpleasant stuff done to my body, and up until today, the winner was having skin tags blasted off the inside of my butt crack with liquid nitrogen. But we have a new champion.
Insurance decided they'd spring for the Nitrous Oxide, which contrary to making me feel giddy and laugh-y, made me nauseous and sent me into a panic attack. Best use of $70 ever. But at least it gave me something to focus on besides the 12 shots of novocaine I was getting.
I can see how the procedure itself is "not that bad", because there really wasn't any pain, just some really unpleasant pressure. I'm going to blame the nitrous, though, because I was white-knuckling it and actually started crying at one point.
If I had known that it was going to be this bad, I'd have given blowjobs on the street until I had the $400 for sedation. Either that or just skipped the procedure altogether.
I feel like I need to take a Silkwood shower.
Friday, February 19, 2010
OMG, so I just watched Tiger Woods' apology...
I'm supposed to be going to bed, but like a train wreck, I couldn't help but watch his shame-fest.
"I was wrong, I was foolish. The same rules that apply to everyone apply to me."
No, they don't. You're a billionaire. It wasn't until one of your handlers came up to you and said, "You personally will lose 200 million dollars this year, unless you read this cut-n-paste speech," that you actually sat up and took notice.
Please. Everyone knows you're a pussy hound. If you try to cover this up with apologies and counseling, you'll just be a pussy hound in denial. Which won't last long. Just be out and proud, be the Black/Asian John Daly.
And fire your handlers. You should've been out in front on this one, going "Oh, well, I slipped up, but who doesn't want to?" Instead, you hid away in a cave for 2 months, then came out in a lame-ass press conference where the press wasn't allowed to ask questions. FAIL. If you don't like your wife, pay her $200 million to go away. Then go be a pussy hound. Are these decisions that difficult? How many kids eating Wheaties come from broken homes? My guess is "half of them".
Grow up, and grow a pair, Tiger. It's been a new millenium for a while now.
"I was wrong, I was foolish. The same rules that apply to everyone apply to me."
No, they don't. You're a billionaire. It wasn't until one of your handlers came up to you and said, "You personally will lose 200 million dollars this year, unless you read this cut-n-paste speech," that you actually sat up and took notice.
Please. Everyone knows you're a pussy hound. If you try to cover this up with apologies and counseling, you'll just be a pussy hound in denial. Which won't last long. Just be out and proud, be the Black/Asian John Daly.
And fire your handlers. You should've been out in front on this one, going "Oh, well, I slipped up, but who doesn't want to?" Instead, you hid away in a cave for 2 months, then came out in a lame-ass press conference where the press wasn't allowed to ask questions. FAIL. If you don't like your wife, pay her $200 million to go away. Then go be a pussy hound. Are these decisions that difficult? How many kids eating Wheaties come from broken homes? My guess is "half of them".
Grow up, and grow a pair, Tiger. It's been a new millenium for a while now.
Well, I'm late as crap...
Which is the story of my life. There are forces at work, here, that I can't tell you guys about just yet, but suffice to say that I am being thrust into the abyss...
I just borrowed $2,000 from my dad to file chapter 13 bankruptcy. I defaulted on half a million, 2 years ago, and while Lori and I have always tried to be self-sufficient and clean up our own messes, it just ain't happenin'. My stupid car sucked up $500 or more every month for the last 6 months, and there's always this and that that needs fixing. Anyway.
I'm going in to the accountant on Friday to file corporate taxes for 2005, 06, 07 and 08. This will cost at least $800 to get them prepared, and that's just one part of the whole filing process. This is not to say that those taxes will be paid; I'm just filing the forms so I can file my chapter 13.
I really thought I learned this lesson when I was 25--don't skimp on the paperwork, or you'll get fucked on the deal. Well, I guess that's true, when everything else is normal, but I got so...depressed for a year and a half *scratch that, 5 years*, that everything else fell by the wayside. Instant avoidance of displeasure versus unpleasant tasks...
Well, anyway, as far as health-related stuff goes, I get my wisdom teeth out on Monday, only because my dentist refused to do the rest of the work until I did. I'm also planning to quit smoking on Monday, when I'll be gorked out on Vicodin, and not taking it personally... I got a call from the surgeon's office today, and the glib lady was like, "And remember not to eat anything for 6 hours before the surgery". I said, "Umm, the doc told me to eat breakfast before". And she said, "Oh, you're not going to sleep for it?" "No, can't afford it and insurance won't cover it. It won't even cover nitrous. By the way, cancel the nitrous." "Ooooh," she said, and presumably did.
But now I find out that insurance will cover the nitrous, so I'll huff deep and have a great time--at least so Chuck M. tells me.
I have a lot of stuff piled up in front of me, which will all become clear rather shortly, but just feel like I'm going to be attending a sentencing hearing this week--that creeping sense of doom, or a potential evil fate which is out of your hands.
I just borrowed $2,000 from my dad to file chapter 13 bankruptcy. I defaulted on half a million, 2 years ago, and while Lori and I have always tried to be self-sufficient and clean up our own messes, it just ain't happenin'. My stupid car sucked up $500 or more every month for the last 6 months, and there's always this and that that needs fixing. Anyway.
I'm going in to the accountant on Friday to file corporate taxes for 2005, 06, 07 and 08. This will cost at least $800 to get them prepared, and that's just one part of the whole filing process. This is not to say that those taxes will be paid; I'm just filing the forms so I can file my chapter 13.
I really thought I learned this lesson when I was 25--don't skimp on the paperwork, or you'll get fucked on the deal. Well, I guess that's true, when everything else is normal, but I got so...depressed for a year and a half *scratch that, 5 years*, that everything else fell by the wayside. Instant avoidance of displeasure versus unpleasant tasks...
Well, anyway, as far as health-related stuff goes, I get my wisdom teeth out on Monday, only because my dentist refused to do the rest of the work until I did. I'm also planning to quit smoking on Monday, when I'll be gorked out on Vicodin, and not taking it personally... I got a call from the surgeon's office today, and the glib lady was like, "And remember not to eat anything for 6 hours before the surgery". I said, "Umm, the doc told me to eat breakfast before". And she said, "Oh, you're not going to sleep for it?" "No, can't afford it and insurance won't cover it. It won't even cover nitrous. By the way, cancel the nitrous." "Ooooh," she said, and presumably did.
But now I find out that insurance will cover the nitrous, so I'll huff deep and have a great time--at least so Chuck M. tells me.
I have a lot of stuff piled up in front of me, which will all become clear rather shortly, but just feel like I'm going to be attending a sentencing hearing this week--that creeping sense of doom, or a potential evil fate which is out of your hands.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Now is the winter of our discotheque
Well, I dunno, but doesn't disco make everything more fun?
I went out to start the snow blower yesterday, it's a monster, a 9-hp model that originally cost someone over $900. It has electric start, which is good, because you wouldn't want to pull-start an engine that big. Not if you're 145 lbs, you wouldn't.
So, plugged the extension cord into the socket on the blower, pressed the starter, and got a shrill, whining sound and the smell of burning rubber. No go. Checked all settings, they were good. Tried it again, with the same results. Tried to pull-start it. Couldn't even get the thingie to move. I checked the oil, remembering how my dad was always on me about how engines needed oil, and not full up to the top of the crankcase, just until the dipstick read "full". If I ran the thing out of oil, I'd never hear the end of it. There was oil. Not full, but just shy of it.
So I stood with shovel, at the end of my driveway, thinking that if I just got hit by a car or suffered a heart attack while shoveling, that this would be the best week EVAR, when along came a neighbor with his John Deere rider snow blower. And he did our front sidewalk and took a chunk out of the driveway. Never seen him before--I couldn't tell you where he lived if you held a gun to my head. But he saw me and 6-year-old Frija out there with out shovels, and took a chunk out of our work. And then the next-door neighbor came over, who after 6 years I've learned is named "Jim", and he cleaned up a lot of the rest of it.
Random acts of kindness. I think that's what keeps me in Minnesota, especially in what others might think of as a small town (pop. 22,000 or thereabouts). The blower is still screwed. If I had a heated garage, I'd probably take a whack at fixing it, but I don't, so it can sit there. Could be a belt, or a seized engine, or anything in between. First $25 takes it.
I have this lifelong issue with small engines--they won't work for me, not for long. I try to avoid them as much as possible and, like a banker, I just know they're going to screw me in the end.
Uh, OK, health stuff: My success with "getting enough sleep" has been on and off. More on than off, I think, and old habits die hard, but I'll keep at it. I've got an appointment next week to get my wisdom teeth looked at, since my local dentists said they weren't doing anything until they got yanked. Due to the fact that smoking + wisdom teeth removal = dry socket, I plan to quit smoking before I have them out, later this month. So stay tuned for that. You think I'm bitter now?
Still hydrating, still flossing. I was 144 lbs. yesterday.
How healthy I feel (1 being least, 10 being best) 4
How happy am I? 4
I went out to start the snow blower yesterday, it's a monster, a 9-hp model that originally cost someone over $900. It has electric start, which is good, because you wouldn't want to pull-start an engine that big. Not if you're 145 lbs, you wouldn't.
So, plugged the extension cord into the socket on the blower, pressed the starter, and got a shrill, whining sound and the smell of burning rubber. No go. Checked all settings, they were good. Tried it again, with the same results. Tried to pull-start it. Couldn't even get the thingie to move. I checked the oil, remembering how my dad was always on me about how engines needed oil, and not full up to the top of the crankcase, just until the dipstick read "full". If I ran the thing out of oil, I'd never hear the end of it. There was oil. Not full, but just shy of it.
So I stood with shovel, at the end of my driveway, thinking that if I just got hit by a car or suffered a heart attack while shoveling, that this would be the best week EVAR, when along came a neighbor with his John Deere rider snow blower. And he did our front sidewalk and took a chunk out of the driveway. Never seen him before--I couldn't tell you where he lived if you held a gun to my head. But he saw me and 6-year-old Frija out there with out shovels, and took a chunk out of our work. And then the next-door neighbor came over, who after 6 years I've learned is named "Jim", and he cleaned up a lot of the rest of it.
Random acts of kindness. I think that's what keeps me in Minnesota, especially in what others might think of as a small town (pop. 22,000 or thereabouts). The blower is still screwed. If I had a heated garage, I'd probably take a whack at fixing it, but I don't, so it can sit there. Could be a belt, or a seized engine, or anything in between. First $25 takes it.
I have this lifelong issue with small engines--they won't work for me, not for long. I try to avoid them as much as possible and, like a banker, I just know they're going to screw me in the end.
Uh, OK, health stuff: My success with "getting enough sleep" has been on and off. More on than off, I think, and old habits die hard, but I'll keep at it. I've got an appointment next week to get my wisdom teeth looked at, since my local dentists said they weren't doing anything until they got yanked. Due to the fact that smoking + wisdom teeth removal = dry socket, I plan to quit smoking before I have them out, later this month. So stay tuned for that. You think I'm bitter now?
Still hydrating, still flossing. I was 144 lbs. yesterday.
How healthy I feel (1 being least, 10 being best) 4
How happy am I? 4
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
OK, so this is embarassing...
Well, I'm supposed to post every day, and it's been a week and a half. I really didn't think that I had anything to report, though. I have started going to bed earlier (as early as 9:30 last Saturday), but am having trouble hitting that 11pm deadline and sticking with it. Last night was 11:40.
The thing I wanted to do away with was going back to bed after I dropped the kids off at school, and I still haven't kicked that. It beckons me...
I need to get this kicked before I take on the next project though, gotta stay focused.
I am still hydrating (approx 2 liters per day), and I am still flossing. Might add a workout routine here in a bit...
The thing I wanted to do away with was going back to bed after I dropped the kids off at school, and I still haven't kicked that. It beckons me...
I need to get this kicked before I take on the next project though, gotta stay focused.
I am still hydrating (approx 2 liters per day), and I am still flossing. Might add a workout routine here in a bit...
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Time to get "Enough Sleep"
And yes, I thought that concept was important enough to rate both capital letters and quotes. "Enough Sleep" for me means, what, 8 hours? We'll start with that. Sunday I'll go to bed at 11pm and get up at 7am, which is a distinct difference from going to bed at 1am and getting up at 7am, then going back to bed at 8am, after I drop the kids off at school.
I don't expect to get 8 hours on Sunday. I expect to flop around until about 1am, then go to sleep. But if I go back to bed on Monday, I'll just be prolonging the cycle. Therefore, I may be a zombie for the next few days. I may not blog regularly next week, which is not any real change, since I'm blogging irregularly now.
I have been a night owl since I was, what, in 10th grade? I will remind my gentle readers that I'm adding this to my regimen not because I think getting up early in the morning is healthy, wealthy, or wise, but because conventional wisdom demands it, and that come January 1, 2011, I can quit doing it if I want to. Well, not really. I still have to drive the kids to school. I've always kind of despised early mornings, but maybe there's some hidden benefit there that I haven't found yet. Frankly, I doubt that, but let's explore it, shall we?
I don't expect to get 8 hours on Sunday. I expect to flop around until about 1am, then go to sleep. But if I go back to bed on Monday, I'll just be prolonging the cycle. Therefore, I may be a zombie for the next few days. I may not blog regularly next week, which is not any real change, since I'm blogging irregularly now.
I have been a night owl since I was, what, in 10th grade? I will remind my gentle readers that I'm adding this to my regimen not because I think getting up early in the morning is healthy, wealthy, or wise, but because conventional wisdom demands it, and that come January 1, 2011, I can quit doing it if I want to. Well, not really. I still have to drive the kids to school. I've always kind of despised early mornings, but maybe there's some hidden benefit there that I haven't found yet. Frankly, I doubt that, but let's explore it, shall we?
Thursday, January 21, 2010
I look good naked!
Well, I do. Not sure if it's because of the water, or what. I seem to have a healthy pale glow, rather than a Mr. Burns-type pallor. Of course, it could be the mirrors and lighting at home. I still look like shit in the Kohl's dressing rooms.
I also used to have some peeling skin on my feet. Not like "lizard boy" amounts, but a little. And that's gone. Whether it's due to hydration or the Aveda foot lotion, I'm not sure, but I like the result. We had some prescription anti-fungal cream leftover from a recent bout with a dermal fungal infection, and with the help of The Google, I found out it was most commonly prescribed for athlete's foot. So I used up the rest of the tube on my feet, and think I've finally kicked the athlete's foot that has plagued me since I was 12. The same stuff turns out to be the basis for hair-restorative Rogaine, but unfortunately there wasn't enough left for me to apply to my receding hairline.
Anyway, I should be in great shape, come sandal season.
One unfortunate side-effect of the hydration is that I have to pee a lot. Like every hour. This would be great, if I were in an office setting and could get paid for peeing. Unfortunately, I'm driving around in my car, and either have to find a convenient rural area or stop at a gas station. Since I have this weird fetish about not using a gas station restroom unless I actually buy something there, I kind of have to pre-plan my stops. "Crap, I have to pee again. What do I need? I got cigarettes last time. More water? Yeah, I can buy a bottle of water." This is starting to run into money...
I also used to have some peeling skin on my feet. Not like "lizard boy" amounts, but a little. And that's gone. Whether it's due to hydration or the Aveda foot lotion, I'm not sure, but I like the result. We had some prescription anti-fungal cream leftover from a recent bout with a dermal fungal infection, and with the help of The Google, I found out it was most commonly prescribed for athlete's foot. So I used up the rest of the tube on my feet, and think I've finally kicked the athlete's foot that has plagued me since I was 12. The same stuff turns out to be the basis for hair-restorative Rogaine, but unfortunately there wasn't enough left for me to apply to my receding hairline.
Anyway, I should be in great shape, come sandal season.
One unfortunate side-effect of the hydration is that I have to pee a lot. Like every hour. This would be great, if I were in an office setting and could get paid for peeing. Unfortunately, I'm driving around in my car, and either have to find a convenient rural area or stop at a gas station. Since I have this weird fetish about not using a gas station restroom unless I actually buy something there, I kind of have to pre-plan my stops. "Crap, I have to pee again. What do I need? I got cigarettes last time. More water? Yeah, I can buy a bottle of water." This is starting to run into money...
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Me, My Son, and Oblivion
So my son is playing Oblivion, which is a 4-year-old RPG for XBox 360, PC, and PS3. I'm playing it too, after a hiatus of about a year and a half, because we ("we" meaning "I") got a new XBox 360 Elite for Christmas, and he asked me, "Dad, if you get another 360, can I make a character on Oblivion?" And I said "sure", not really expecting that I'd get one any time soon, but I did, so he plays.
So he's going through this one part of the main quest, which involves going into this cave full of fanatical cult members, and pretty much you have to kill them all. Well, I came home tonight at 7:50pm, just to change clothes so I could go meet Haberman in Mankato to pick up his paperwork. And he's in the middle of this cavern, no healing potions, chased by 10 bad guys. And he's super frustrated. And I try to help him out of this impossible situation, and I get his character killed, and he goes to bed still frustrated. I jumped in once already to bail him out, and those results were short-lived.
So work with me, here, the allegory is coming. So I'm like, "Son, you should always be carrying about twice the number of healing potions you think you'll need," and he's like, "Dad, it's not fair. You got to this point and this other point in the quest when you were level 1, and I'm level 11." And I said, "Son, you wouldn't believe the number of hours I've *already* put in on this game, like well over 100." And I got to thinking about the game as an allegory for life, and my current experiment with doing healthy things.
I've tried to tell my son the things to do in the game to be successful, like picking all kinds of plants to make potions, repairing armor after each battle, and so forth. And he keeps ignoring what I tell him, and going on his own way, lah-dee-dah. Because even though he knows I'm better at the game than him, his ego still gets in the way, and he wants to screw around and do things his own way. And I'm thinking, "Wow, this must be how my own father felt when I wanted to buy a car, or make a career choice, or date someone." He's put in all these hours, knows the game better than I do, but still I have to be a dick and ignore his advice, and find out for myself.
Well, if I hadn't done so, I never would have learned anything. I remember Eirik trying to walk for the first time, falling down, crying, frustrated, but he kept at it and eventually pulled it off. I'm not sure that I could've passed him any information that would've been helpful at the time, like "lean forward". When it was important enough for him to walk, he figured it out. And likewise with Oblivion. And the rest of his life. Forget the ego that says "you suck", or "you can't handle this", lean forward, and walk.
But damn, it's hard to sit back, as a father, and let him get his bumps and bruises, either in real life or on video.
So he's going through this one part of the main quest, which involves going into this cave full of fanatical cult members, and pretty much you have to kill them all. Well, I came home tonight at 7:50pm, just to change clothes so I could go meet Haberman in Mankato to pick up his paperwork. And he's in the middle of this cavern, no healing potions, chased by 10 bad guys. And he's super frustrated. And I try to help him out of this impossible situation, and I get his character killed, and he goes to bed still frustrated. I jumped in once already to bail him out, and those results were short-lived.
So work with me, here, the allegory is coming. So I'm like, "Son, you should always be carrying about twice the number of healing potions you think you'll need," and he's like, "Dad, it's not fair. You got to this point and this other point in the quest when you were level 1, and I'm level 11." And I said, "Son, you wouldn't believe the number of hours I've *already* put in on this game, like well over 100." And I got to thinking about the game as an allegory for life, and my current experiment with doing healthy things.
I've tried to tell my son the things to do in the game to be successful, like picking all kinds of plants to make potions, repairing armor after each battle, and so forth. And he keeps ignoring what I tell him, and going on his own way, lah-dee-dah. Because even though he knows I'm better at the game than him, his ego still gets in the way, and he wants to screw around and do things his own way. And I'm thinking, "Wow, this must be how my own father felt when I wanted to buy a car, or make a career choice, or date someone." He's put in all these hours, knows the game better than I do, but still I have to be a dick and ignore his advice, and find out for myself.
Well, if I hadn't done so, I never would have learned anything. I remember Eirik trying to walk for the first time, falling down, crying, frustrated, but he kept at it and eventually pulled it off. I'm not sure that I could've passed him any information that would've been helpful at the time, like "lean forward". When it was important enough for him to walk, he figured it out. And likewise with Oblivion. And the rest of his life. Forget the ego that says "you suck", or "you can't handle this", lean forward, and walk.
But damn, it's hard to sit back, as a father, and let him get his bumps and bruises, either in real life or on video.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Achievement unlocked
I made the appointment for an oral surgeon exam today, then one a week later to get the dreaded wisdom teeth out. The exam is on Feb. 16th, and the actual surgery is on the 23rd. Lori said to make sure and get it done early in the week so that if I have any complications, I can call them up and yell at them. Well, make nonsensical noises while drooling at them. I'd better get good pain meds out of this deal, as I hate dentists and have a low pain tolerance.
All my pint glasses are in the dishwasher, so I'm drinking water out of a German beer mug and trying to figure out how many ounces are in .51 liters. OK, the conversion calculator says I need to drink 1.9 L, which seems like an awful lot, but there we are.
Jason Frazier is good-naturedly bugging me to quit smoking (he recently quit, and I think just wants company being miserable), and I told him "soon". I think the next thing I'm going to work on, though, is "getting enough sleep", meaning 8 hours, I suppose. That means bedtime at 11pm on weeknights. Weekends will be a little trickier, since nobody knows when the kids will come in the bedroom and poke me in the eye.
Still flossing, haven't backslid yet. I like the added discipline of having to report back to my mystery readers.
How healthy do I feel? 6
How happy am I? 6
Weight today as 146 lbs.
All my pint glasses are in the dishwasher, so I'm drinking water out of a German beer mug and trying to figure out how many ounces are in .51 liters. OK, the conversion calculator says I need to drink 1.9 L, which seems like an awful lot, but there we are.
Jason Frazier is good-naturedly bugging me to quit smoking (he recently quit, and I think just wants company being miserable), and I told him "soon". I think the next thing I'm going to work on, though, is "getting enough sleep", meaning 8 hours, I suppose. That means bedtime at 11pm on weeknights. Weekends will be a little trickier, since nobody knows when the kids will come in the bedroom and poke me in the eye.
Still flossing, haven't backslid yet. I like the added discipline of having to report back to my mystery readers.
How healthy do I feel? 6
How happy am I? 6
Weight today as 146 lbs.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Oops
OK, so shortly after promising to update every day, I miss 4 days. I'm a work in progress, people. Still doing the hydrating, and today was my 4th day of flossing. This has extended by 3 minutes my current bathroom routine:
How healthy do I feel: 5
How happy am I: 5
Empty weight today was 147
- Rinse mouth with 50/50 hydrogen peroxide and water solution.
- Brush teeth.
- Removal of callouses with ped-egg 1x week.
- Facial cleanser (we were using Olay, but we replenished our favorite from Merle Norman).
- Facial scrub 2x week.
- Shave 3x week, in shower, using Coochie shave cream from Pure Romance (great stuff!)
- Wash body with either Caress soap or their new body wash.
- Shampoo and condition with Pantene.
- Merle Norman toner on face to help moisturizer work better.
- Olay moisturizer.
- Olay anti-aging skin rejeuvenator & wrinkle cream.
- Aveda foot lotion on feet, immediately covered by socks.
- Style hair 3x week, or throw in ponytail 4x week.
- I had been plucking my eyebrows, too, but I think I'll go in for a wax.
How healthy do I feel: 5
How happy am I: 5
Empty weight today was 147
Friday, January 8, 2010
Huffpost bloggers do the sleep challenge
Arianna Huffington and Cindi Leive have started trying to get enough sleep as a New Year's resolution. Since this is on my "to do" list also, I thought it was interesting to read their comments.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/sleep-challenge-2010-the_b_414404.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cindi-leive/sleep-challenge-2010-thre_b_415033.html
They talk about still being on the phone with their editors at 10:30 at night, while needing to get up 7 hours later. I do not miss being the boss.
In unrelated news, Lori and I got a little tipsy last night and ordered the Slap Chop. Actually, we didn't want the slap chop, we wanted the Graty that came with it, and we got 2 sets of 2 for $19.95 (plus $7.95 shipping). We already have a chopper from Pampered Chef which looks like the exact same thing, except better quality. And we mostly wanted Graty because of this running joke with Betsy Ruppert and our kids. But it does look like a super-cool cheese grater. And we can re-gift the other stuff.
Anyway, it took probably 15 minutes to place the order, never talking to a human being, but to one of those damned voice-recognition programs. After placing the initial order and taking "normal" shipping (3 to 4 weeks) instead of "expedited" shipping (5 to 8 business days for an additional $5.95), I then got pitched several other products, including Shamwow. If I had a live operator, I would've asked how Vince was healing up after his unfortunate hooker incident, (http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2009/0327092sham1.html), but as all I had was a computer on the other end, all I could do was answer "NO" in a loud, robotic voice. I couldn't hang up--I was terrified to hang up. Here was Lori's credit card number, and God alone knew what the machine would do if you disconnected before the program was complete. By hanging up now, you agree to accept delivery of 10,000 Slap Chop machines, with complimentary Gratys.
Anyway, I look forward to getting Graty, and I just might send the other one to Betsy.
How healthy I feel: 6
How happy I feel: 5
I was 145 lbs. (empty) yesterday.
I went shopping with Lori today, got home after picking up Frija, and remembered, "Damnit, I have 2 more pints of water to drink!" So I chugged those down before supper. It's getting to the point now where I reach for water first thing in the morning... Maybe I'll start flossing tomorrow to up the ante a little bit. I can't write about water for the next 51 weeks.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/sleep-challenge-2010-the_b_414404.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cindi-leive/sleep-challenge-2010-thre_b_415033.html
They talk about still being on the phone with their editors at 10:30 at night, while needing to get up 7 hours later. I do not miss being the boss.
In unrelated news, Lori and I got a little tipsy last night and ordered the Slap Chop. Actually, we didn't want the slap chop, we wanted the Graty that came with it, and we got 2 sets of 2 for $19.95 (plus $7.95 shipping). We already have a chopper from Pampered Chef which looks like the exact same thing, except better quality. And we mostly wanted Graty because of this running joke with Betsy Ruppert and our kids. But it does look like a super-cool cheese grater. And we can re-gift the other stuff.
Anyway, it took probably 15 minutes to place the order, never talking to a human being, but to one of those damned voice-recognition programs. After placing the initial order and taking "normal" shipping (3 to 4 weeks) instead of "expedited" shipping (5 to 8 business days for an additional $5.95), I then got pitched several other products, including Shamwow. If I had a live operator, I would've asked how Vince was healing up after his unfortunate hooker incident, (http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2009/0327092sham1.html), but as all I had was a computer on the other end, all I could do was answer "NO" in a loud, robotic voice. I couldn't hang up--I was terrified to hang up. Here was Lori's credit card number, and God alone knew what the machine would do if you disconnected before the program was complete. By hanging up now, you agree to accept delivery of 10,000 Slap Chop machines, with complimentary Gratys.
Anyway, I look forward to getting Graty, and I just might send the other one to Betsy.
How healthy I feel: 6
How happy I feel: 5
I was 145 lbs. (empty) yesterday.
I went shopping with Lori today, got home after picking up Frija, and remembered, "Damnit, I have 2 more pints of water to drink!" So I chugged those down before supper. It's getting to the point now where I reach for water first thing in the morning... Maybe I'll start flossing tomorrow to up the ante a little bit. I can't write about water for the next 51 weeks.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
No pop, and how I'm not going to be John's triathalon partner
I haven't had any soda in a week. Has it been a week? Well, since I started this, anyway. I usually have about 3 cans a week, one for each time I'm out working. Since I'm required to drink 64 oz. of water a day, though, I'm usually so busy with the water that it doesn't occur to me to want a soda. So you soda junkies might try the water trick, I guess. If I weren't required to drink it, I might be complaining about how water is boring, but it's really not bad at all. It's not anything. It's water.
John H. asked me on fb if I wanted to start training to be his triathalon partner. Not just "no", but "hell no". I hated running even when my lungs were pink and healthy. And those athletes look awful. Not as disgustingly skinny as marathon runners, but they're getting there. I'm already over-skinny. I heard marathon runners are often forced to poop themselves while they run. Wow, and I thought I was an attention whore. No thanks, I'll be in the bar.
John H. asked me on fb if I wanted to start training to be his triathalon partner. Not just "no", but "hell no". I hated running even when my lungs were pink and healthy. And those athletes look awful. Not as disgustingly skinny as marathon runners, but they're getting there. I'm already over-skinny. I heard marathon runners are often forced to poop themselves while they run. Wow, and I thought I was an attention whore. No thanks, I'll be in the bar.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Inspirations for this experiment
A friend of mine called me the other day and asked, "why exactly are you doing this?"
As I mentioned on Facebook, one of the inspirations for this blog was the movie "Julie & Julia", where a fledgling writer and wanna-be chef re-creates each recipe from a Julia Childs cookbook in a year.
Another thing that got me thinking was the nature of addiction, and procrastination. I've quit cigarettes a million times, cold turkey, getting the crankiness, muscle aches, all kinds of stuff. Then I read "Easyway to Quit Smoking" by Allen Carr, and accidentally quit before I finished the book. No withdrawal, no aches, no nothing. Carr maintains, and I agree, that there is no such thing as nicotine addiction, really. You don't get the cold sweats and start vomiting, like with heroin, and any physical symptoms are purely psychosomatic. Carr knows what he's talking about--he smoked for 30 years, and now runs a chain of quit-smoking clinics in Europe with a 99% success rate. Carr maintains that the addiction is all in your head, and that the worst part of breaking the addiction is debating with yourself--"I can quit tomorrow, cigarettes are not that expensive, etc."
Is procrastination an addiction, or should it be dealt with in the same way? Think of all the things we tell ourselves. "I can do it tomorrow," "I need x to do y", and so on. What addiction and procrastination have in common is that we'd like to put off unpleasant things in order to do more fun (or normalized) things. For me, sucking smoke into my lungs is normal. For most people, it's abhorrent.
So my thought for the blog was this: What if we just drop the ego, skip the mental debate, and just do what's good for us? What's hard about that, and why do we never do it? Those damned little voices in our head, promising us salvation, but leading us deeper into the mire--those are what's hard.
Still drinking the water. I was 148 lbs. yesterday.
How healthy I feel (1 being superman and 10 being a zombie): 6
How happy I am (same scale): 6
I'll add another regimen in the next few days. I'm thinking.... flossing.
As I mentioned on Facebook, one of the inspirations for this blog was the movie "Julie & Julia", where a fledgling writer and wanna-be chef re-creates each recipe from a Julia Childs cookbook in a year.
Another thing that got me thinking was the nature of addiction, and procrastination. I've quit cigarettes a million times, cold turkey, getting the crankiness, muscle aches, all kinds of stuff. Then I read "Easyway to Quit Smoking" by Allen Carr, and accidentally quit before I finished the book. No withdrawal, no aches, no nothing. Carr maintains, and I agree, that there is no such thing as nicotine addiction, really. You don't get the cold sweats and start vomiting, like with heroin, and any physical symptoms are purely psychosomatic. Carr knows what he's talking about--he smoked for 30 years, and now runs a chain of quit-smoking clinics in Europe with a 99% success rate. Carr maintains that the addiction is all in your head, and that the worst part of breaking the addiction is debating with yourself--"I can quit tomorrow, cigarettes are not that expensive, etc."
Is procrastination an addiction, or should it be dealt with in the same way? Think of all the things we tell ourselves. "I can do it tomorrow," "I need x to do y", and so on. What addiction and procrastination have in common is that we'd like to put off unpleasant things in order to do more fun (or normalized) things. For me, sucking smoke into my lungs is normal. For most people, it's abhorrent.
So my thought for the blog was this: What if we just drop the ego, skip the mental debate, and just do what's good for us? What's hard about that, and why do we never do it? Those damned little voices in our head, promising us salvation, but leading us deeper into the mire--those are what's hard.
Still drinking the water. I was 148 lbs. yesterday.
How healthy I feel (1 being superman and 10 being a zombie): 6
How happy I am (same scale): 6
I'll add another regimen in the next few days. I'm thinking.... flossing.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
2 days of hydrating done
...and I'm not really noticing any difference except more frequent pee breaks. Well, I'll keep up with it for the year and see what happens.
A facebook friend called me today, and said that he was unable to comment on my blog without giving tons of information to one of several companies (Google being one of them). My fb friends can feel free to just leave messages on my wall, rather than having to sign up or register...
I'm going to do my best to post to this blog every day, though granted that won't always happen. Because I can't spend the next 2 weeks talking about hydration and how I don't notice the difference, I thought I'd toss out a few ideas for self-experimentation in the upcoming year.
Some of the things I'm going to try in the next 12 months:
* Quit smoking
* Get a physical, including prostate check
* Get my cholesterol checked (I think this is B.S., but who am I to go against conventional wisdom?
* Get my wisdom teeth yanked, root planing on teeth, cleaning, and maybe whitening strips.
* Exercise 3x per week, maybe join Tai Chi.
* Get a facial peel--Sasha swears it will take 10 years off your face.
* Other ideas suggested by readers. Coffee enemas? Vegetarian diet? Green tea instead of coffee?
A facebook friend called me today, and said that he was unable to comment on my blog without giving tons of information to one of several companies (Google being one of them). My fb friends can feel free to just leave messages on my wall, rather than having to sign up or register...
I'm going to do my best to post to this blog every day, though granted that won't always happen. Because I can't spend the next 2 weeks talking about hydration and how I don't notice the difference, I thought I'd toss out a few ideas for self-experimentation in the upcoming year.
Some of the things I'm going to try in the next 12 months:
* Quit smoking
* Get a physical, including prostate check
* Get my cholesterol checked (I think this is B.S., but who am I to go against conventional wisdom?
* Get my wisdom teeth yanked, root planing on teeth, cleaning, and maybe whitening strips.
* Exercise 3x per week, maybe join Tai Chi.
* Get a facial peel--Sasha swears it will take 10 years off your face.
* Other ideas suggested by readers. Coffee enemas? Vegetarian diet? Green tea instead of coffee?
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Day 2: Drinking water
I said I was going to ease myself into this regimen. I've already tried to do various healthful things, but have failed to stick with them; hopefully the added scrutiny of my (so-far nonexistent) readers will keep me going. I decided to start with hydrating. I've got some minor skin issues (dry skin, wrinkles) that I hope this will help with.
A quick search on hydrating gave me the answer that everyone's hydration needs are different, and recommended consumption varied between 1.5 liters and 3 liters a day, depending on body needs and how much liquid is taken in as food. Thanks a lot! I decided to go with the CW of "8 glasses (of 8 oz) per day".
As a beer drinker, I know that a pint glass holds 16 oz, so I'll drink 4 of those per day.
Weight: 145 lbs
How healthy do I feel? 6 (making a healthy decision makes me feel healthier)
How happy am I? 5 (glad to be writing again)
A quick search on hydrating gave me the answer that everyone's hydration needs are different, and recommended consumption varied between 1.5 liters and 3 liters a day, depending on body needs and how much liquid is taken in as food. Thanks a lot! I decided to go with the CW of "8 glasses (of 8 oz) per day".
As a beer drinker, I know that a pint glass holds 16 oz, so I'll drink 4 of those per day.
Weight: 145 lbs
How healthy do I feel? 6 (making a healthy decision makes me feel healthier)
How happy am I? 5 (glad to be writing again)
Day One: Baseline
My name is Pete. I live in Minnesota. I'm married with 2 kids. I'm 40 years old. I smoke. I tend toward depression, and self-medicate with alcohol. I don't take drugs, aside from marijuana once or twice a year. I don't get enough sleep, and I rarely drink water. I eat mainly to keep from passing out--I don't really enjoy it. I haven't had a physical in 10 years or more. My wisdom teeth need to come out before I can get needed dental work done, and I haven't been real eager to get them yanked. I'm overdue for my eye exam. I work out 0-2 times a week, mostly squats and lunges so I can have a nice butt.
Height 5'10", weight 145.
How healthy do I feel 1-10? 7 (not very)
How happy am I 1-10? 6
Height 5'10", weight 145.
How healthy do I feel 1-10? 7 (not very)
How happy am I 1-10? 6
What if everyone else's advice was right?
All my life, I've heard conventional wisdom and ignored it. "Drink 8 glasses of water per day", "eat a balanced meal", "2 glassses of wine a day is good for you", "get enough sleep", and so on. So what would happen if I suddenly started taking this advice, all of it?
I've decided to start a year-long experiment where I start out with the easy things to do, and gradually work my way upward, so at the end of the year, I'm doing all of them. Will I feel any different? Will I be happier? Let's find out.
I've decided to start a year-long experiment where I start out with the easy things to do, and gradually work my way upward, so at the end of the year, I'm doing all of them. Will I feel any different? Will I be happier? Let's find out.
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