Kristin’s Playground

Haha! Another item on my list completed, and long overdue for blogging!

Back on August 11, I went on my first (and only so far) AABTS bike ride. It was a Monday night, and I biked over to Beth and Nathan’s to meet up with them before the ride. They hadn’t been biking in awhile, and I was a bit nervous about biking with a group too. I’m not terribly fast, and this This was the “Civilized Ride” - a slow ride to the Dairy Queen in Dexter and back. It was a beautiful ride there by the river, but our group was definitely much slower than the rest of them, and the hills took their toll on us. The ride leader stayed back with Beth, Nathan, and I to make sure we didn’t get lost or anything. There was one section of road that was in the process or being repaved, and biking on that was not a lot of fun. I was quite thankful for the rest stop when we finally got to the Dairy Queen. A caramel sundae sure was tasty. Still no sign of the other riders though - I guess we were just that far behind. The ride back seemed long, the hills tiring, and I was ready to get home. My knees were starting to bother me with this trip. I think I pushed myself a little too hard. At least the view was nice when the sun was setting over the fields. Even saw a couple of deer. I think I’ll have to do some more preparing if I want to go on another one of their rides. The leaders were all quite nice, but I still felt a little bad keeping them back. We’ll see what happens next summer!

This post is long since overdue, but here it is anyway.

After my post-doc friend moved away at the end of July, I decided it would be a good time to tackle item #45 on my 101 things list. He was a coffee buddy whenever we needed out of the office or lab, so it seemed right to have a little break from coffeeshops when he was gone. (We miss him!) My coffee-shop hiatus was a success though, and I lasted two weeks without buying anything. It was a little hard towards then end. Thankfully, the two weeks were over on our local coffee shop’s Latte Day. $2 lattes. Any size. It was nice to have one. I made the following photo on the day I resumed my trips to the coffee shop. (It was also useful for an Utatan project - Diptych with a Message.)

Coffee Break! (Get it? I had a break from coffee, and when I went back, I took a coffee break! Ha! Sorry, ignore me. I think I need sleep.)

Now, I know mowing the lawn doesn’t really seem like it should be on the same list as “Get your Ph.D,” but I felt this was an important life skill that I should know how to do. Don’t get me wrong - it’s not like I’ve never mown a lawn before, it’s just that, growing up, we had a rather large lawn. This meant that we ended up having a riding lawn mower. So, I’ve used one of those plenty. I’ve just never used one of the standard push-mower things, and I felt I should probably know how to use one. Of course, once it was on my list, Logan was all to eager to help me cross this goal off, so yesterday evening I did!

All in all, it wasn’t so bad, though I can’t imagine doing it in full sun on a hot day. You get surprisingly sweaty, even when there’s a nice breeze. Our lawn mower is supposed to have a self-propel feature, but unfortunately, it really doesn’t do too much. The most annoying part of it was the large plants on the edge of the lawn in the backyard. Trying to sufficiently mow the lawn under some rather pokey branches was frustrating at times.

Still, the lawn is mowed, and I get to cross something off of my list! Go me!

Edited: Since constantly updating this would keep refreshing it for people’s RSS feeds, click the 101 Things tab above to see my progress, or check the 101 Things category for any post where I get to cross-off a task!

So. I’ve been pondering this for awhile now. I’ve seen the 101 Things in 1001 Days going around, and I decided that it might be a good thing for me to do. The following gives a description of the project straight from the source, and my list follows. I had a hard time coming up with 101 reasonable, yet challenging goals. Some on the list are easier than others, but if I work, they could all be done. We’ll see! I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments, and I’ll try to keep you updated on my progress.

The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year’s resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

Some common goal setting tips:
1. Be decisive. Know exactly what you want, why you want it, and how you plan to achieve it.

2. Stay Focussed. Any goal requires sustained focus from beginning to end. Constantly evaluate your progress.

3. Welcome Failure. Frequently, very little is learned from a venture that did not experience failure in some form. Failure presents the opportunity to learn and makes the success more worthy.

4. Write down your goals. It clarifies your thinking and reinforces your commitment.

5. Keep your goals in sight. Review them frequently, and ensure that they are always at the forefront of your thinking.

Start Date: 18 July 2008
End Date: 15 April 2011

Here goes nothing - in pseudo-categorized form:
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