Back For Round Two
Aug. 2nd, 2010 09:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
stapsdoes101thingsIn the autumn of 2007, I spent two months au pairing my three small cousins in Germany. In my spare moments, between reading about die kleine Menschenzahnefresser and scraping dried Weetabix off the dining table, I put together a list of 101 things to do in the space of 1001 days. On the whole, they were things that I thought would help me to move on in my life.
And on the whole, they did. When I got back to the UK and the clock started I moved out of my father's house, I found myself a job, I got rid of a lot of junk and picked up some more junk. I also did some things that weren't on the list - I got engaged; I got married. In the course of that I managed a couple more tasks. Have a look here for assorted updates from the coalface.
On my 25th birthday, the 1001 days came to an end. I had completed 47 of the 101 things, and on balance I was quite pleased with that. OK, so it was a less than 50% success rate, but that's still 47 things I might not have got round to doing otherwise. That's not bad going.
And so here I am, ready to give it another go. Actually, I'm not quite ready. This time I want to do better. This time I'm aiming for 101 out of 101. This time I'm going to take my time over making my list; and I'm certainly not going to start it right in the middle of some fairly major life changes.
Last time I fixed the dates so I'd finish on a significant date: my 25th birthday. This time I don't have any convenient anniversaries that fall in about two and three quarter years' time. I don't really have any significant dates in the next few months, either. So when to start? The new year, of course -
- but which? In the course of everyday life, I find myself working on four different years: calendar, academic, church and financial. I thought I'd seen the last of the academic year when I graduated from university, but when you're married to a postgrad and you sing in a choir that relies on school-age children for the top line, the academic year retains its importance. However, that would mean beginning in early September, and I have quite a few other things to worry about in August.
I've never been much of a one for dates; it's as much as I can do to remember people's birthdays, and the fact that we turn the calendar over... isn't really very exciting. The financial year isn't very exciting, either, and besides, it's a long time until April.
I've decided to start on Advent Sunday, which this year falls on 28th November. In the Church, Advent is when everything starts getting interesting. [In the Northern hemisphere] it's dark and cold outside, but indoors people are doing their best to spread joy and light, preparing for the greatest joy and the greatest light. Advent is a time for looking forward, a time of hope, expectation, and preparation. Advent is going to be an excellent time to begin.
So is this blog going to be dead until November? No. I need a list first, and I'll be using the coming months to hash it out. I'll be doing that here.
And on the whole, they did. When I got back to the UK and the clock started I moved out of my father's house, I found myself a job, I got rid of a lot of junk and picked up some more junk. I also did some things that weren't on the list - I got engaged; I got married. In the course of that I managed a couple more tasks. Have a look here for assorted updates from the coalface.
On my 25th birthday, the 1001 days came to an end. I had completed 47 of the 101 things, and on balance I was quite pleased with that. OK, so it was a less than 50% success rate, but that's still 47 things I might not have got round to doing otherwise. That's not bad going.
And so here I am, ready to give it another go. Actually, I'm not quite ready. This time I want to do better. This time I'm aiming for 101 out of 101. This time I'm going to take my time over making my list; and I'm certainly not going to start it right in the middle of some fairly major life changes.
Last time I fixed the dates so I'd finish on a significant date: my 25th birthday. This time I don't have any convenient anniversaries that fall in about two and three quarter years' time. I don't really have any significant dates in the next few months, either. So when to start? The new year, of course -
- but which? In the course of everyday life, I find myself working on four different years: calendar, academic, church and financial. I thought I'd seen the last of the academic year when I graduated from university, but when you're married to a postgrad and you sing in a choir that relies on school-age children for the top line, the academic year retains its importance. However, that would mean beginning in early September, and I have quite a few other things to worry about in August.
I've never been much of a one for dates; it's as much as I can do to remember people's birthdays, and the fact that we turn the calendar over... isn't really very exciting. The financial year isn't very exciting, either, and besides, it's a long time until April.
I've decided to start on Advent Sunday, which this year falls on 28th November. In the Church, Advent is when everything starts getting interesting. [In the Northern hemisphere] it's dark and cold outside, but indoors people are doing their best to spread joy and light, preparing for the greatest joy and the greatest light. Advent is a time for looking forward, a time of hope, expectation, and preparation. Advent is going to be an excellent time to begin.
So is this blog going to be dead until November? No. I need a list first, and I'll be using the coming months to hash it out. I'll be doing that here.