2008 Meinvent, Day 9

Poison ivy and toilets seemed to be my biggest challenge today. The Ivy that started developing on Saturday seemed to crest today at well above black-eye stage. One of the custodians at school today asked me in what round I went down. Surprisingly, it looks a little better this evening (I'm trying to avoid the "shot," not because I hate needles--bring it on--but because I don't have time to fool with a trip to the doc.)

As for the toilet incident, let's just say "a hand in the toilet is worth more than the price of a new phone." Oh, yeah, if you happen to put your phone in your back pocket because you're too lazy to carry your purse in the building, remember to take it out before dropping your drawers in the bathroom. My heart sank when my phone did. It was kaput all day, and finally decided it had dried enough and so, came back to life this evening...this after a trip to Verizon to see about getting a new phone, which is a hassle by the way. Thankfully I didn't buy anything. Cross your fingers that the phone's guts aren't going to die a vicious death. That pretty much covers the "other stuff" that could have happened today that had nothing to do with my goals.

The up-side is that I got to watch my buddy's son romp around at gymnastics in the morning...then we met up again for dinner, and got to watch my God daughter run and kick. Both are so full of life and fun to watch and reconnect with, which is one of my newer-improved goals, by the way...

I've rewritten my goals now in a much more succinct fashion--one that encompasses several of the previous goals implicitly...here they are:

1) Walk closer to God
2) Blog 3 times a week
3) Live a healthier lifestyle
4) Organize, Consolidate, and Liquidate any (all) material possessions
5) Make more friend and family time
6) Tie-up Internship
7) Prepare and Sell (rent) Fort Wayne properties
8) Prepare myself professionally
9) Plan mom and dad's 50th reunion (for next summer)
10) Advance toward home remodel
11) Remember to plan some time for me (including reading)

Now that I have these, I will code my time chart by adding these sweeping categories. This will help my quantify my time, then determine what's off. I have started preparing a daily list of sub-goals in manageable chunks so that I can cross of what I do as I do it, then add it to the top of the next day if I don't. This has worked in the past, so I'm reviving it.

I know, I know...this all seems a little too analytical, but there's a method to the madness. I remember the words of a wise old sage (sages, really, nonetheless, this is not a new concept) at IPFW who said, "What doesn't get measured, doesn't get done." Or was it, "what gets measured, gets done?" Either way, you get the point. I'm on it, and I'm using the skills learned in TQM class to see to it that I can be as productive as possible. How can I go wrong, when part of my days are scheduled time with God, friend, family, and me?

I'm on a roll...let's see what surprises lurk tomorrow.