Month: October 2025

My Bullet Journal method

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-I do a simplified version of the Bullet Journal. I start out with a title page, an index, and a future log. I write down lists of audiobooks, physical books, Kindle books, movies, and TV Shows that I want to watch. Then I write down any important work notes that I need to remember over the long term. Then I make a life plan for myself and write down all of the blogging, podcasting, YouTube, social media, personal, and professional goals I have for myself.

Then I create a monthly log with a calendar and specific tasks that I want to accomplish for that month. Things like read two books, watch one movie, whether I am on call at my job, etc. Then I do a daily log that is really just a list of things I need or want to do every day. I make note of whether I completed them and leave some room at the bottom for any notes for the next day or important things that I need to remember.

I am currently using a Leuchtturm 1917 411 notebook. I also am currently using the lined version, but may switch to a dotted notebook when I am done with this one. I switch pen colors every month between black, blue, and red.

What kind of note taking method do you use?

How Chair Yoga Helped My Cold Recovery

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-I have had a lingering cold for the past week. I have had the running nose, sore/scratchy throat, coughing, congestion, you name it. It is mostly better, but the last bit of congestion and the runny nose is just hanging around.

Then yesterday, I am part of a committee at work to help with professional development outside of the normal 9-5 workday. Things to make you more active or help you improve your job, your health, and your quality of life. As part of this initiative, we had a session of chair yoga for 30 minutes outside.

I don’t know if it was the act of moving around, the sunlight, the fresh air, or a combination of all of the above, but I haven’t felt that good for over a week. It did more in 30 minutes to help me heal than anything else I’ve done lately. So if you get sick and you are able, get up and move around. Outside preferably.

Taking Responsibility: The 1% Rule in Relationships

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-Many years ago, I was in church one Sunday and the pastor was talking about an exercise he did when someone came to him for counseling.

He said that the person usually had an issue with another person, whether it was a spouse, business partner, friend, coworker, etc. The pastor said that he would take a blank sheet of paper and draw a circle on it. Then he would hand the person the paper and tell them to fill in the circle like a pie chart on how much of the issue was the other person’s fault. It could be anywhere from 0-100% their fault.

He then told the congregation that he never had a person fill in the entire circle. He said usually it was half and half according to the people who came to him for counseling. Even if they thought the other person was mostly to blame, they would only fill in 99% of the circle.

He would then say to the person that the part of the circle that they filled in, even if it was 99%, they had no control over. The part of the circle that was their responsibility, even if it was just 1%, was what they needed to work on.

I took that to heart. I have almost no control over what happens to me, only how I react to it. I need to work on my own faults and hand ups, even if it is only 1%.

Discipline and determination

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-I’ve been sick this week, and I missed two days of work. That puts me behind on things that I need to accomplish. So when I get back into the office this morning, I have a list of things that need to get done.

How do I get it done? It goes back to discipline. You can have all the want and drive in the world, but until you actually put word to screen, pen to paper, etc. It means nothing. I was determined to write 5 pages worth of script for my podcast. I means nothing until I actually sat down and did it. Then it feels good when I get it accomplished.

Surrounded by death

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-A lot of people I know have died lately. It’s all been distant relatives or family friends. It’s weird to me. They say death runs in three and I am up to 5 in the past 10 days.

I was thinking a couple of months ago that there seem to be two types of people. Those who would go to the funeral, but it is highly inconvenient to them for some reason. Then there are those who would go to the funeral if it were held at the North Pole on Christmas morning. I have been both types during my lifetime.

Living After Gastric Bypass: My Ongoing Journey

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-I had gastric bypass surgery four years ago this past May. I have had struggles the past two years with a little weight gain, but mostly discomfort. I am bad about not taking my time to eat and as a result, have a lot of trapped air that leads to discomfort.

I also struggle to get my daily steps in as well as getting enough protein and water. I try to focus on taking it one day at a time as I know that this is a tool to a better lifestyle and not a magic fix. I do get frustrated though, mainly at myself. The struggle continues.

Stuff I’m reading/listening to…

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-Howdy and Happy Monday, folks!

I’m enjoying that the weather is starting to turn cooler.

I decided several years ago that I would read more for pleasure. I usually have a physical book that I am reading, a book that I am listening to, and a few comic series that I read.

I have heard so many great things about All-Star Superman from Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely. I recently picked it up and started reading it, and I have been blown away. This series lays out exactly what Superman should be. I’m two issues in so far and can’t wait to read the rest.

-Anyone who knows me knows I am a huge Stephen King fan. My friend Nan and I do a podcast called the Book Club Baristas on my Patreon feed . Our next book is ‘Salem’s Lot. It perfectly captures the spookiness of the season and Autumn in New England.

Why Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen is a Must-Read Comic

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I recently finished the 2019-2020 comic series Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen: Who Killed Jimmy Olsen? and it was the most fun I’ve had reading a comic in several years. I got back into reading comics in 2021 as I decided that I was going to read things that I liked and that made me happy.

This book had it all. Laugh out loud moments and visual gags. You can tell that writer Matt Fraction and artist Steve Lieber are having the time of their lives with this one.