019 Keep track of my depression

What's this about?

I believe, and my GP agrees, that I have mild depression. It's not enough to e.g. put me or keep me out of work, but it does tend to make mountains out of molehills when it comes to certain everyday tasks. There are various checklists and scorecards around that are used to assess the severity of depression. I'll be making use of them.


Why do I want to do it?

Well, I'm a human being, and human beings like to find patterns in things. If I can link changes in my state of mind to external factors (the weather, the time I spend at work, whether I stay indoors, what I'm reading, etc.) that might give me some tools to help me deal with it better.


How will I know when it's done?

I'll have filled out a depression score checklist 100 times (that's once a week, with room for life happening), and have recorded the results.


This will be tracked on paper, probably, or possibly on locked posts at el_staplador. I don't really want to share it with the rest of the world. I'll post occasionally with a general overview of how progress has been going, though, and any useful insights.

020 Fly in a hot air balloon

Why do I want to do this?

... because I've always wanted to? Legend has it that, as a tiny child, I was taken to a balloon fair and was immediately hooked. Even today, I get very excited when I see a hot air balloon drifting through the sky: huge, improbably, brightly-coloured. I'd love to go up in one.


How will I know when it's done?

I'll have been off the ground in an untethered hot air balloon for at least thirty minutes.


I'll record this pretty much everywhere.

021 Go to the British Grand Prix, the Goodwood Revival, or a similarly high-status motoring event

Why do I want to do this?

Despite appearances, I'm a bit of a petrolhead. My two great loves (in the world of motoring, at least) are things that go very fast, and things that are positively ancient but are still doing their job. I don't have any particular desire to drive them, but being near them brings a lump to my throat.


How will I know when it's done?

I'll have spent at least five hours at a motoring event. I will leave the definition of 'high status' to my own judgement; it's only in there so that I don't go to the King Alfred Running Day (which I attend pretty much every year) and call it done.


I'll record this in a post on here.

022 Eat only local produce for one day

Why do I want to do this?

Two words: food miles. I couldn't manage even one meal of food I'd grown myself, but I'm pretty sure I could do a day of local produce.


How will I know it's done?

For 24 consecutive hours, I will have eaten only food from Surrey or adjacent counties.


I'll record this in a post on this journal.

023 Eat only British produce for one week

Why do I want to do this?

Two words: food miles. This will take a bit of lateral thinking, but I ought to be able to do it.


How will I know I've done it?

For a period of seven days, I'll have eaten nothing that was not produced on the British Isles.


I'll record this in a post, or a number of posts, in this journal.

024 Do three things to help others reach their 101

What's this about?

Looking around other people's lists, one sees a lot of things like 'Collect 50 postcards'. For goodness sake, on my own I've got 'Seek and follow up on recommendations'. They've got to come from somewhere. And then 101 Of A Wolf is trying to distribute a huge number of 'business' cards promoting her 101, and people have been helping out with that. That's the sort of thing I'm talking about.


Why do I want to do this?

A lot of my goals are very much my own, not really comparable to anything other people are doing, and I'd like my 101 in 1001 to be a bit more of an outward-looking thing.


How will I know I've done it?

I'll have done three things to help specific 101ers reach a specific one of their goals.


I'll record this in this journal.