brad's blog

Another year gone by

Mon, 07/09/2012 - 17:14 -- brad

Since 2004 I've marked the annual passage of my birthday by adding a line to this list, indicating the one book I read during the previous year that was the most important to my life -- often a book that either informed my personal development during that year, or that symbolized some transition. Well, this time around this exercise is kind of tricky, because this year I worked long hours, drank a lot of beer, and did very little reading. Here are the books I've read or started to read this year:
"The Count of Monte Cristo" by Alexander Dumas

Brakes and Breaks

Mon, 09/19/2011 - 23:40 -- brad

It's been two weeks since I last checked in about my progress with the Artist's Way. The first week it was because I had little to report... I'd been a little overwhelmed at work and in other ways, and had only managed to write my morning pages a few times. I did do something resembling an Artist's Date that weekend: I bought some paint ("Dark Autumn Leaves") and began painting my bedroom, and more generally reimagining my living space... although I left the paint job about 75% complete and won't be able to finish it until October.

Artist's Way

Imaginary Life Paths, Part 2

Sun, 09/04/2011 - 04:00 -- brad

On Wednesday I posted five imaginary life paths -- alternative paths I might have taken if I'd had five extra lives to live. (Coincidentally, this week I also listened to an episode of The Moth podcast, about a woman bailing on one version of her life and plunging wholeheartedly into another version. It's kind of fantastic.) My first five alternative lives were film director, teacher/professor, runner/triathlete, poker pro, and research scientist.

Artist's Way

My Imaginary Life Paths

Wed, 08/31/2011 - 04:11 -- brad

One of the Artists Way exercises I was most excited about was to list 5 imaginary lives, alternate paths I might have taken if I had 5 different lives to live. I really like the framing of this exercise, because it acknowledges that every person's life can end up going many different directions, and where we end up is due to a combination of chance, outside influences, and the choices we make along the way.

Artist's Way

20 things I love to do

Mon, 08/22/2011 - 22:50 -- brad

One of my exercises this week for the Artist's Way was to list twenty things that I love to do and how long it has been since I've done each, and then to pick two of those activities and do them this week. I was kind of stunned to find myself getting stuck, pretty seriously, at #13... I honestly felt like I'd exhausted my hobbies, past and present, and I couldn't think of anything else. Then as soon as I thought of one more, the rest came flowing out, and I was done! Here's my list:

Artist's Way

"All the characters seem the same"

Fri, 08/19/2011 - 01:26 -- brad

This week I started working through "The Artist's Way," Julia Cameron's book and 12 week program for awakening creativity. I'm trying not to put pressure on myself by committing to the full 12 weeks straight out of the gates, but I've succeeded in writing three pages every morning so far, and I've really enjoyed the process. I'll be keeping my "morning pages" to myself, but I'm going to see how it feels to post some of the more focused exercises here.

Artist's Way

Mindfully Turning 32

Thu, 07/07/2011 - 20:58 -- brad

Back in 2004, with a little help from my mother, I dug deep into my memory and made a list of the most important book from each year of my life. I didn't necessarily name the best book I read in a given year, or my favorite, but instead either the book that best encapsulates my life in that year or had the biggest direct impact on my life in that year.

Ever since I made that first list, I've added a new book every year after my birthday.

mindfulness
books
birthdays

My religion has a first name, it's Tee Eee Dee Dot Com

Thu, 04/21/2011 - 23:23 -- brad

A few weeks ago, I changed my "Religion" setting on Facebook to "TED.com."

This was not entirely tongue-in-cheek. If you're not familiar with TED ("Technology, Education & Design"), it's a series of talks with the tagline "Ideas Worth Spreading." Featuring world leaders, artistic leaders, thought leaders, and occasionally an average Joe, the talks tackle a huge range of topics and, more often than not, reveal radical, impassioned, and potentially world-changing ideas. I'm not overselling, either -- it's really amazing stuff.

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