Jump to content

NEW VIDEO: The EASIEST Way to Stop Gaming

Tom

Members
  • Posts

    400
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by Tom

  1. Just popping by to say thanks: I'm almost done reading Off to be the wizard and I'm definitely going for the next two!
  2. Tom

    Pauls Journal

    Hi Paul. Thanks for sharing. You got it right: forgiving might be hard, but it's necessary to live a happy life. I've been there myself, over and over again. Fortunately it becomes easier with practice. Because yes, every day there's someone or something to forgive. Most importantly you can learn to forgive yourself. One thing that helped me (and helps me still) is Buddhist philosophy. If you are interested I found Radical Acceptance by Tara Brach one of the most accessible and human books on, ehm, "applied Buddhism".
  3. Tom

    Tom's journal

    Day 123. All day at an expat fair. There are so many possibilities is this town. And since the children are growing, soon my wife and I will be able to improve our social life. Today I got contacts, among others, to a list of choirs, a rugby club, and Toastmasters. So far so good. Gratitude journal: My son tried climbing and put all his heart into getting to the top of the wall. And he did it!Today my nephew turned three months. She had it tough. I guess we have another fighter in the family.The tea and chocolate cake my wife just made.
  4. Tom

    Tom's journal

    Days 118, 119, 120, 121, 122. Wow, that many? I didn't feel like writing lately. I was trying not to get sick and pouring all my energies towards work and family. Nothing significant happened. Oh wait, that's not true. Four months and no gaming is kind of a big deal. Skipping two workouts out of three is something I should be proud of too: I'm still learning to respect my limits, and failing to do so probably would have hammered me into bed. Also, the shortest guy at home just turned three Gratitude journal: I'm feeling much better.These salt and pepper chips have the most satisfying crunch and flavor.Dark Side of the Mule. Oh gods.
  5. Well done! By the way, how did it go at the arcade?
  6. Tom

    Tom's journal

    Day 117. Up the slope. This morning the weather was uncannily warm for this time of year. Non that I minded! Early workout that went quite OK considering that I just moved my weightlifting to the time of day when I'm weakest. Still, waking up before everybody else gives me the time and space I need to start the day properly. I'll write it down as another key habit. A good working day which taught me many lessons. For the first time I noted them on my Trello board. Gratitude journal: Going for a walk with my youngest son. It's also a good excuse to hum or croon in the street.My oldest son for having a strong character.My wife is getting better.
  7. Tom

    Tom's journal

    Days 114, 115, 116. Down the slope, no sled. Friday was OK, closed in glory with going to the movies with my wife. However on our way back she started feeling terrible and it turned out she had a high temperature. Next two days: non-stop chores and child rearing. I was quite stressed and I couldn't carve out five minutes just for myself. To this let's add that my physical health was iffy as well. I did what I had to do and I behaved well with my family. That's what matters. By the way, waking up early again works well. Gratitude journal: The Doors.Another delicious homemade pizza.Feeling better already.
  8. Tom

    Tom's journal

    Day 113. An odd day. Yesterday night I found it hard to fall asleep and when I did my night was troubled with dreams. My wife isn't feeling well, my son did everything half-speed in the morning and we both got irritated because he was late, I'm dealing with an unpleasant situation at work... I've seen better days. I wish I could have kept a better attitude. Instead I procrastinated, and I'm a tad moody too. I thought of a time when I was consistently happier. What now seems obvious to me is that I must wake up before everyone else and kick off the day with activities that make me feel accomplished. That's lifting weights, reading, playing the piano, maybe resuming my dream journal. So that's it, off to bed and let's see how it goes tomorrow. Gratitude journal: The walk in the woods I took this morning to calm down. Good call, pat on the back.Feeling down. Makes me appreciate life from another angle.I'm going on a date with my wife tomorrow. Star Wars!
  9. It takes time and effort to actually become friends with yourself. We can be our hardest critics. That's why it's so important to surround ourselves with people who are honest in the way they give us feedback. Also it's often easier to notice our shortcomings than our average or strong points. We might even be ashamed of some of our good qualities!
  10. Excellent! You might enjoy a book called The Flinch. It helped me realize the importance of taking action when undecided.
  11. Tom

    Tom's journal

    Day 112. Yesterday evening and night I spent a lot of time getting that old netbook operational and well-suited for children. Job done, and better earlier than later. But that meant that I went to sleep very late and today my energy was lower. Oh well, life is made of trade-offs. I took a look at logs of how much power my space heater used to keep my home office above freezing temperature. It's just too much. So here's what I did. My PC and monitor won't freeze if they are on and with power saving disabled. And since they are on, they might as well make themselves useful. So I installed folding@home, "a distributed computing project for disease research that simulates protein folding, computational drug design, and other types of molecular dynamics". I keep it running at full load. So I save my electronics and human lives too. Isn't that awesome? Gratitude journal: System of a Down.Folding@home. Come on people, join in and put your unused computing power to good use!Completely nailing my workout today.
  12. Tom

    Tom's journal

    Day 111. How nice. I had a review with my manager today and it went fantastic. I just received a component I needed to revive an ancient netbook. Now I'm fixing it and turning it into something good enough for a first grader. Gratitude journal: My boss is a great mentor and an outstanding professional.I can read throughout all my commute, so I don't really mind when the trains are delayed.Open source software. It does make the world a better place.
  13. Tom

    Tom's journal

    Days 109, 110. Sunday spent as a family, all day together. Monday (today) I was sluggish. The only way I could get everything done has been to work longer hours. I've been trying to find a root cause and then realized I'm overthinking it: sometimes one is a bit under the weather and that's it. I have issues accepting my limits and I constantly try to push them, tweaking here and there. Every so often, rather than trying to be perfect I should just enjoy the ride. Gratitude journal: Andreas Wollenweider. Headphones recommended.The possibility to dim screens.I can eat when I'm hungry, I can sleep when I'm tired,
  14. Seems like you have quite a challenge in front of you. Don't worry too much about it before you even start. Think of the feeling of accomplishment you can get every day. Make it a point to enjoy the ride. And for goodness's sake, schedule breaks and make them count!
  15. Hope everything will turn out fine. Be strong!
  16. Tom

    Tom's journal

    Days 107, 108. All is well. Friday I found I lacked motivation to work. It's good that plan everything in advance and in detail. I pushed myself to get started and of course the day went well and I felt accomplished. Today the book on cognitive behavioral psychology I'm reading talked about procrastination and how action precedes motivation. A nice coincidence. Actually Feeling Good is coming in handy. It clicks with how I see the world and provides me with many little tricks I can use to keep my mind healthy and to help others. I'm almost done with the other book I'm reading, Siddhartha, It's a true masterpiece and maybe the only book by him I hadn't read yet. Makes me want to reread all the others! Gratitude journal: The excellent book suggestions I received on this forum.Making a cardboard plane with my children and watching them fly around the house.The thought-provoking dreams I'm having lately.
  17. Congratulations! Way to go! I found arcades highly addictive, fighting games and brawlers in particular. There are a few titles I played over and over again, at arcades and at home with emulators. Now I just don't want to pick up a controller anymore. That said, if I were at an arcade in a social situation I don't know how I'd react. I'd avoid getting there in the first place, but that just me. I'm actually curious to know what your experience will be. Please write about it in due time!
  18. Tom

    Tom's journal

    Day 106. My wife's turn to catch up with some sleep. I helped my son get ready for school and plunged into another interesting workday. I am now fully sold on the beneficial effect of taking real breaks. I work happier and procrastinate less. Gratitude journal: My wife made our headboard all by herself using reclaimed wood. It looks great.A meeting that was supposed to be nasty turned out not to be.I've been cheerful today.
  19. Thanks! Sounds excellent! It's now on my reading queue.
  20. Well done! Enjoy your rewards! What are you reading?
  21. Alcohol. I used to love it. Now, just like you, I'm quite disenchanted with it. I curbed it down since summer to a drink or two during the weekend or in a social situation. Since January 3rd my wife and I are going 90 days without any alcohol. My concern is peer pressure: drinking sometimes is part of my job (IT sales). Caffeine. We went decaf ages ago. I drink black and green teas too but they don't make me jerky like coffee does. I drink an espresso every now and then, when decaf isn't available. Experimenting with tea blends is a pleasure in its own. Sugar. Not in your list but hear me out. I used to be a sweet tooth. Limiting my sugar intake is one of the best decisions I took. Improved focus, healthier skin, better digestion.
  22. Tom

    Tom's journal

    Day 105. No school today so I could sleep in a bit. Yay! A scrumptious breakfast, then an action-packed workday followed by weight training. Good breaks spent with my family. The only blemish of today is that my wife doesn't feel good. Gratitude journal: My two months old nephew is finally home after weeks at the hospital.Seaweed tastes so good.I get to know so many different cultures thanks to my job.
×
×
  • Create New...