I created an acronym to describe my daily goals: W.E.I.R.D. It stands for Write, Exercise, Instrument, Read and Dinner.
Write: I have a writing thing I occasionally do where, with pen in hand, I start at the top of the page of a paper notebook and don't stop writing until I get to the bottom of the page. Kind of like a free-flowing, non-sensical diary entry. The only thing that's pre-meditated might be the first "sentence" or opening words. After that it's whatever my hand marks onto the page. It only takes about ten minutes to fill up the page with hand-written words, but it checks a creative box. It's something I've been doing off and on for over twenty years.
Exercise: I've been working out on an almost daily basis for going on three years now. In its current form I do 25 to 30 minutes in the morning six days a week. Cardio on Mon/Wed/Fri (jog/run, slide board, mini-trampoline rebounder, exercise bike or row-n-ride), and more strength-training focused on Tues/Thurs/Sat (Y-Bells, dumbbells, steel mace, kettlebell, Lebert Fitness dip bars, shena board, wooden Karlakattai clubs). This doesn't include any walking I do such as dog-walking or hiking on a nearby trail.
Instrument: Instrument stands for musical instrument. I'm trying to get back into playing a musical instrument daily, whether it be a stringed instrument tuned in 5ths GDAE (mandolin or tenor banjo) or in all 4ths EADGCF like how I tune a guitar. I have an ongoing interest in gathering old melodies from the Caribbean/West Indies region, such as folk tunes from Haiti, the Virgin Islands, Martinique, and so on. That's usually what I would be playing, but I have nothing against scales either. I hope to get a left-handed tiple doliente from Puerto Rico this year.
Read: Reading 30 to 50 pages a day is easy when you have a good book, like one of Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch or Mickey Haller books, or a classic horror paperback by Ramsey Campbell. It's more difficult when you can't find something good to read but I'm usually pretty good about finding something. Novels over 400 pages tend to be too wordy for me. If I keep them in the 200 to 400 page range then it's pretty easy to finish a book a week.
Dinner: I've gotten into the habit of cooking dinner most nights of the week. I have certain rules or limitations: I try to keep it vegan and, if possible, keto. It's not as hard as you might think to make plant-forward yet low carb meals. Simply replace your rice, pasta and beans with lower net carb alternatives...black soy beans, edamame pasta and riced cauliflower are good places to start. Most of the things I make tend to be one pot meals loosely based on recipes I have found. Not quite "ital is vital" but it feels healthy. And there's usually enough left over for lunch the next day. Favorite spices: Jamaican curry, garam masala, creole seasoning, and berbere. Most versatile and dependable ingredient: red cabbage.
I rarely accomplish all five of these goals in any given day. If I hit three of the five then I consider it sufficient. Good enough.
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