Current Reading

So I finally finished Steve Berry's The Amber Room. I have been reading it for nigh on 3 months, in amongst other books. I love reading but having seen how long it took me to read this I was wondering why it had taken so long. I just seemed unable to settle to the task as there was always something else going on. The worst part of this is I keep seeing more and more books that I would love to read and there is less and less time to do so...or so it seems.

So how does everyone else manage it or is it true that a large percentage of books are bought for show, effectively ornamentation, and sit on a bookshelf as a display item that defines your taste or the taste you want people to think you have. And am I falling into this category by accident, rather than design. I'd like to think not as my bookcase is tucked away where no once really sees it.

In some ways this is worse as it highlights a "road to hell" with a bookcase filled with good intentions of reading.

And boy does that phrase come back from my childhood. I can clearly remember my Dad telling me I was like that, though I can't remember what specifically triggered the statement. I am sure it was something I had said I was going to do and not done! And that one for me ranks up there with being told he was "disappointed" in me. He obviously had expectations I was failing to live up to.

And that is all a strange flashback as Dad is gone now. He was an incredible man in many ways and it was very tough to live up to his standards. I think I still subconsciously try to reach or exceed them and often as not fail, or believe I do. He used to say "let others tell you how good you are and I'll tell you how to be better"...quite inspirational to a kid until you realise you can never attain the goal as there is always another one behind it.

I digress, though it all ties together in some ways. I always feel I am never reaching the goal with my reading but maybe there is no goal and I need to just accept enjoying or learning from it. And the lesson in all this would be to be in the moment with everything I do so that I am 100% focused on the item at hand. That way I enjoy it to the maximum and then move to the next thing.

Current books I am reading
- Born to Run by Christopher McDougall
- In God We Doubt by John Humphrys
- The Omega Rx Zone by Dr Barry Sears
- The Relaxation Response by Herbert Benson and Miriam Z. Klipper
- Learn to Speed Read (Ironic eh) by Evelyn Wood

TIOT

In the first of a potential series..."I didn't realise"

I didn't realise (UK spelling to satisfy my need to disobey the American spell check on my machine) how dull my life really was in terms of finding something to blog or write about.

Don't get me wrong, I knew my life was dull or, perhaps routine is a better word for it, but is it this dull or am I just not seeing the trees for the wood?

This thought occurred to me because two months ago I got the urge to explore the social networking (SN) environment. Unsure of where / how to start I decided to jump in on twitter (yes, bandwagon I know) as a quick and simple way to feel my way into the SN medium. And it is fascinating to see what people say and how they use the service but at the same time it tends to make me feel a little lacking as my life is routine and rarely prompts me to say something a little interesting.

And there in lies the rub as I don't think my life is interesting enough to warrant posting my various daily tasks "got to work, sat in cube, answered phone, missed lunch, sat in cube some more, on conference call for hoooooooooours, etc" and my daily life doesn't often provide me enough manna to feed my imagination that prompts interesting tweets. Or if I manage to feed my mind at work by reading, viewing, experiencing multi-media, etc. then my cube is not being used as it was designed and my boss gets a little testy that I am not delivering on my tasks.

So this is my conundrum or perhaps best stated by Churchill "a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma". ..how to service my soulful desire to post words to the world that are not mundane or forced while maintaining my current life (as it pays the bills).

At the moment my answer is to persist and post as I feel the words or moment fits. This means there are wordless stretches of barren mental wasteland interspersed by occasional bursts of wordy firestorms as endorphins kick me into action.

TIOT

Weekend May 16 & 17

Just had an very enjoyable weekend although it may be fairer to say that events started Thursday night even though work on Friday was a bear in the middle of it all.

Thursday we went to see Don Henley in concert. He was was good, playing a lot of Eagles stuff in a good tight fashion although the concert was reasonably short at 90 minutes. But better going for quality than quantity having seen Fleetwood Mac a month ago and where the sound from the system, or venue, was so muffled I felt like I was listening from inside a garbage can (rubbish bin).

Friday we went to dinner with an acquaintance from England who we had not seen in 12 years and another couple who are mutual friends. A lot of stories shared and ribald stories told. I laughed so hard at one point I was crying and I am not one for laughing heartily let alone like that. Needless to say it is not a story I can relate here, partly because it will not translate and partly because it related to the moment. I think the odd thing to note is that dinner/drinks with a group of Americans is vastly different to that with Brits. There may be a thesis there as I am unable to readily explain it.

Saturday was chores (weed killing, car washing, cleaning our sprinkler filter, etc. wild stuff I know) with sorting things around the house before going to the cinema to see Wolverine which was very enjoyable. I am not a hard core comic buff having not read one for years so had little issue with the story though I believe that is not the case for some folks. I go to the cinema to be entertained having long ago accepted that films can rarely do justice to original source material.

Talking of which Sunday was breakfast with the kids and then the movies again to see Angels and Demons. This fits the same bill as above, entertaining and a good enough translation of the book for me. It's hard not to like Tom Hanks having seen him interviewed a couple of times this last week. Probably part of his success (really, you think so!).

A litany of events and things done but it led to positive and upbeat feeling through the weekend which has been hard to come by lately. So not to look a gift horse in the mouth I thought I would acknowledge the buzz and document it here.

TIOT

Travel

The previous mention of vacation (holiday) has me thinking. And I know my talking about going on a vacation may seem odd having just got back from the UK but I really have the yen to travel and see something new or experience a different culture. The UK was, and is always, fun and a going home experience but it is also tinged with obligation and craziness in trying to fit in seeing as many people as possible.

I am a late starter with travel but have really learned to love it. The little travelling I have done has allowed me to visit a few different places and often it is the people you meet that make the difference. The smile and support you sometimes get when trying to speak someones language (albeit butchering it along the way) is incredibly rewarding. Don't get me wrong there are equally folks out there who will not be helpful, interested or engaged but the good times outweigh the bad and the bad often gives you something to laugh about later.

The thought and planning around travelling is almost as fun and therapeutic as the trip itself. I am not sure what that says about me and I am not going to look at that too closely, for now.

So perhaps a side project to pique my interest when time allows.

Note: The attached photo is from a trip to Amsterdam with my wife when we took my brothers-in-law on their first major trip abroad.

TIOT

Recharge

I feel exhausted at the moment, beaten down by the nature of my current day to day existence. No way to feel or live especially as I am not sure how to get out of the unhealthy and unproductive rhythm. There is a simple answer to this, if I quit everything, but this does not fit with my paying the bills! So I need a change but work will not differ in the near future as won't the turmoil that is currently my home life.

So my challenge is how to recharge on the fly: a vacation, a new goal, something new to learn, exercise, all of the aforementioned, etc. And to do this while working towards a more ultimate goal of a calmer and more enjoyable life pattern.

Maybe I can I combine the vacation, new goal and learning thing...but perhaps I am overstretching and over complicating things. A common factor here, trying to cram a quart into a pint pot.

The key has to be to start simple and then build things out. So where to start, suggestions welcome.

TIOT

Back ...

Back to blogging, back from a trip to see family and back to work.

My blogging has been thin on the ground as I have found time difficult to find between work and home as both have been complicated of late. I don't see either of those changing so I will be doing the best I can here which comes down to being a bit better organised.

I am also just back from a week in the UK which was fun but extremely hectic and tiring. I spent the week chasing down family members and hanging out with them plus visiting a couple of friends. It was great to see folks and catch up on news and views but there was a degree of family politics plus dealing with the issues that have arisen around my Mum's health issues.

And now I am back to work which is like putting on an itchy and uncomfortable coat.

Finding a path through the various issues that life presents is something I struggle with every day. I am sure I am not the only one and I envy those who seem to make it look easy and keep a positive demeanor.

Envy is a strong word but likely apt as I wonder and wish I could manage it and make life a little more effortless or at the very least seem so.

Enough self flagellation for today though...just nice to be back in the blogging groove.

TIOT