30 April - 6 May 2018
Reading progress
I finished both Dearly Devoted Dexter and How to have a good day this week. I’m in two minds about the Dexter books. I do like some aspects of the writing but I’m having a hard time “getting” the book version of Dexter. I’m not sure if I’ll read any more, I think the TV series version of Dexter is more fulfilling and does a much better job of conveying the characters.
On the other hand, “How to have a good day” is one of the best books I’ve read. I really liked the easy reading style, combined with a huge amount of practical steps to implement the various practices that she presented. All backed by cited scientific research. I wish every book was this thorough. The biggest issue is figuring out how to really digest and begin to action everything in it.
We had an interesting discussion about the book in our Inline Block book club and we’ve picked Willpower doesn’t work by Benjamin Hardy as our next book. I’m busy working though the authors Journal Mastery course at the moment so hopefully the book will be quite interesting.
Overall, with the amount of note-taking I’m doing, I’m a little behind on my target of reading 36 books this year. I think I will need to carve out a bit more specific time each day to account for the extra time it’s taking to take notes properly.
Tech and the great outdoors
I headed to Shrewsbury on Thursday night for a Shropgeek event organised by Bealers around tech and fitness. He got Rachel Andrew and Simon Collison to come along and talk. Both talks were excellent. Rachel’s, Well, this is suboptimal talk was all about how you can and should find time to make fitness a part of your life. I also got a brief chance to say “hi” at the end too. Simon’s talk was a wide-ranging discussion about how tech can bring us closer to the outdoors and how we can start redefining our relationship with it from the sentimental and romanticized view of it before moving into how it can and should start influencing us in our digital products, demonstrating some concepts for a new hypothetical OS.
Getting home was a little frustrating because in their infinite wisdom the Highways Agency (I assume) decided that they should close both the M54 and the A5 for roadworks at the same time. I had to do a fair number of extra miles to end up back on the M6 in a traffic jam at 10:30pm because of an accident.
Biking at Long Mynd
The Shropgeek event was arranged to coincide with a May the fourth Star Wars themed run at Long Mynd that Bealers wanted to take part in. He also organised a bike ride option for the non-runners like me. While several people signed up for the run and ride initially, quite a few dropped out so in the end there was just four of us (apt, really). Two runners and two bikers. Phil, who also happens to be my book-keeper, took me out around Long Mynd. It had been quite some time since I’d been on my bike and even longer since I’d even done any kind of mountain-biking. It showed. Phil is super-fit and knows it like the back of his hand and breezed around like it was a Sunday stroll.
Yorkshire Brick Show
We finished the week off with an early start on Sunday to avoid the inevitable bank holiday traffic for a jaunt up north. First visiting family for my niece’s birthday before heading over to Wakefield on Monday to the Yorkshire Brick Show. As usual there were some fantastic builds and it was fun chatting with fellow AFOLs. I think my wife enjoyed it more than she might admit, spending her birthday money on several Disney Toy Story sets. I was happy just adding a few more to my Mixels collection. We headed home via Leeds to pop in to see another brother as we were in the vicinity.
A week in Stoicism
”Those who receive the bare theories immediately want to spew them, as an upset stomach does its food. First digest your theories and you won’t throw them up. Otherwise they will be raw, spoiled and not nourishing. After you’ve digested them, show us the changes in your reasoned choices, just like the shoulders of gymnasts display their diet and training, and as the crafts of artisans show in what they’ve learned.” Epictetus
Something I’m probably guilty of much more than I’d care to admit. This weeks lesson is a healthy reminder that we should show, don’t tell.
weeknotes