Books Are Like Methadone

You know, I used to LOVE reading. I couldn't get enough. I could read a 600 page book in a week.

Then computers came along, and I created a website, and then I discovered blogging. Of course, probably the real problem began when I found that I could borrow the company laptop to use at home. That meant that I could sit in bed and "laptop it", or carry it to the living room and settle in, or out to the porch. Whatever I wanted! Now all of my free time is spent on a computer, and I can't remember what was the last book that I read. A 600 page book now takes probably a month or two for me to get through.

I miss reading. I miss the simplicity of it, and of losing myself in the story on the page and in my mind.

I've won a few books lately, so I hope to get back to reading soon. I've been visiting different book review blogs, and I see all of these reviewers who are doing "100 Book Challenges", and I'm amazed how people can find time to read 100 books in a year. That's a book every 3 1/2 days. And we're talking big books, not little 100 page books!

So I am issuing myself a challenge. In an attempt to wean myself off of my computer addiction and back to my true love (books), I am issuing myself a 12 book challenge. A challenge to put down the computer and pick up a book. My goal is to read twelve books before the end of 2009.

Twelve books may not sound like much, but that is time that I will have to spend away from the computer. No blogging or emailing or surfing while I just lose myself in what will hopefully be twelve good stories.

I hope to regain some creativity, passion and innocence while I hearken back to simpler days. I hope that the books become the methadone for my computer addiction, taking the edge off and giving me the incentive to stay away from the computer.

The first book on the list is Robin Cook's The Invasion.

Others on the list:

• The Terror by Dan Simmons
  
• My Little Red Book by Rachel Kauder Nalebuff
  
• The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

I'll keep you posted!

My 2009 Life Plan

I'm not really much for "resolutions". They usually are just a whim and soon forgotten. Instead I believe in changing your lifestyle, creating the person that you want to be. I believe in "imaging" things into existence. "Fake it 'til you make it", so to speak. Make conscious decisions to guide your life where you want and to become the person that you can be proud to be.

That being said, here are my "goals" for 2009:

• Health...Commit to eating more healthfully. Increase my vegetarian eating, and cut back on the junk food and sweets. For exercise, my goal is to ride my bike to work at least once a week, and take at least one leisure bike ride a week (I hope to do more when the days are longer again. Right now it is usually dark before I get home during the week, so leisurely bike rides are tough to squeeze in).
  
  
• Business...Work towards being able to work for myself. A lot of this will rely on my learning a lot of things.
  
  
• Learning...This year I want to learn HTML more fully, and start learning CSS. Learn more about website administration. I hope to find time to learn about photo editing and graphics. Learn about gardening,
  
  
• Reading...Aside from the books that I need to read in order to learn the skills that I am trying to teach myself, I would like to read more in general. I've become so bound to technology that I've fallen away from simple pleasures like reading. I also hope to read the bible more, and to read the book I bought regarding drawing closer to God over 30 days.
  
  
• Connect with nature...Get out more. Bike ride, camp, hike, kayak, garden-- whatever. Just get outside!
  
  
• House...Get unpacked and settled in to my new house. Get organized. Get the yard cleaned up and weeded. Put my books and papers away and clean up after myself more. Have a garage sale and get rid of stuff. Throw away the old stuff on the lanai that came with the house.
  
  
• Self-sufficiency...Work more towards being more self-sufficient. Learn to grow vegetables, work on preserving foods, cook more utilizing foods from my own garden. Take classes at Home Depot and the like to learn basic plumbing and home repairs. Learn more about computers and technology so that I am less reliant on others to fix my problems when I encounter them.
  
  
• Buy local...Make regular trips to farmer's markets and flea markets.
  
  
• Eat seasonally...Learn to eat what is in season locally. Even when buying produce, I want to learn to buy what is in season locally instead of eating what is shipped in hundreds or thousands of miles.
  
  
• Personality and character...Work on being more patient with others. Slow down. Watch the sharpness of my tone when I am stressed.
  
  
• Give back...Try to find some volunteer work to do. If I don't know what to volunteer doing, due to having so many varied interests, then mix it up and volunteer one place one time and somewhere else next.
  
  
• Peace...Learn to quiet myself inside. My mind is always going a mile-a-minute. I need constant external stimulation. I need to learn to find quiet moments, and to enjoy the solitude in the silence.
  
  
• Finances...Save, save, save! Quit spending, be more frugal. Shop at places like Goodwill and Habitat for Humanity. Use Freecycle.
  

Above all, live consciously! Be aware of what I am doing and why. CHOOSE to do things, don't just live on auto-pilot. Live life with purpose, and live it well.

Independence in 2009

(This article was originally run on my other blog Survivalist Gardening, but I figured I would include it here, as my Purpose Challenge is more suited to this blog.)

I came across this article on Casaubon's Book, and thought that it was very well written and inspiring. She issues a challenge for herself and everyone to work towards independence, which I think is what my own blog is all about. It is what all "survivalist gardeners" are striving for: independence from supermarkets and waste and modern convenience. To live life with purpose and true freedom.

I came across a quote the other day that I found personally moving and profound.

The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.  Ralph Waldo Emerson

So, while I am going to try my own Independence Days challenge inspired by Casaubon's Book (although my goal is to do one thing at least weekly, as I work full time and don't have a large homestead, and am still unpacking, so daily would be a real strain), I am also extending myself a personal Purpose Challenge: To continually work towards a more purposeful life, a life of honor and compassion, and to live life well. I want to continually work on becoming a "better person": More patient and kind and well-tempered and understanding.

I issue a challenge to myself to not only be independent of modern society, but to be independent of my modern self. To rise above the strife and stress and rushed hours, and stop and think before I speak, to remember that Golden Rule to treat others as I would like to be treated, and to learn the patience that I have lost over years of life's stresses.

And I issue a challenge to everyone to challenge themselves, in whatever way that best suits them. We all have certain "challenges" in life and in our personalities, and I issue each of you a challenge to work towards recognizing them and overcoming them.

Happy New Year, and let's make 2009 a year of purpose and success!