Yesterday, I wrote about how to best store your digital documents. You can find that here. Today, the focus is going to be on pictures. Gone are the days of gigantic photo albums, waiting to get your film developed, and waiting to see how many of your pictures turned out. Now, pictures are on demand, and you can edit and perfect them as you see fit.
So, in this on-demand world, what do you do with all of those pictures? They take up plenty of space on your phone or tablet, so where to put them? I’d suggest either saving them on a portable hard drive, your computer, or in the cloud. My wife and I have a 1 Terrabyte portable hard drive that we store our pictures on. The great part of it is that you can share it between devices. Saving it to your computer is another easy way, just plug your device into the computer and save. For many, though, saving to the Cloud is the easiest. If you’re an Apple user, you can save to ICloud. You can also use Dropbox, Google Photos, Amazon Photos and others. All of these are helpful tools, the only drawback is the limitations on space before you have to purchase more space.
The same principle applies for pictures as it does documents. You don’t want them just haphazardly thrown in one big lumped file. The organization can happen as you see fit. You can break it down by year, by subject, by month, however you want. And as with the documents, it’s a lot of work upfront, but once you get your storage organized as you want it, it’s very easy to keep up with. Also, once you’ve saved your pictures from your device, delete them if you don’t want them on your device. That frees up more space. This is a process I’ll be starting very soon, but I’ll be doing it while watching football, so I’ll be multitasking!
But what about those old not digital pictures? How do you store them? You can continue to store them as you have in the past, or you can digitize them. Either you can scan them in a flatbed scanner (or if you’ve got a printer/scanner combo) or you can use your phone. I’ve found a great app called Scannable, which connects to your Evernote account (and if you’re not using Evernote....well, that’s another blog post) and you can save to it. Also, the app Tiny Scanner works just as well.
Finally, if you want to share photos, you can get a digital picture frame and upload your pictures to that. Many of them connect via wi-fi, so that’s an easy way to share pictures with those around you. Another way that my wife has found, which is super easy and inexpensive is www.chatbooks.com. For $10 you can have your pictures automatically uploaded from social media, your devices, wherever. She’s made a bunch of them for our girls and summer adventures.
I highly encourage you to consider digitizing your photos. They are great snapshots and memories of your life. As I have seen in the area around me over the past year with Hurricane Harvey, water comes and destroys, no matter how valuable your things are or what your income status is. If you have solely physical photos, they may be gone forever. But if you have digital copies, you’ll be able to see those pictures and remember.
Check out the Uncluttered course as it will help you if you’re stuck in your journey of minimalism, or if you’re wanting to dive in.
Also, join The Minimalist Musician group on Facebook
Showing posts with label Minimalism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Minimalism. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 29, 2018
Monday, August 27, 2018
A minimalist office
What does a minimalist office look like? The easy answer is, whatever you want it to look like. The harder part is what practical form does it take on?
A desk, right? Sure. Does it have to be big or small? Well, if you have a big desk, but not much use for a big desk, then that won’t work. And the other way around, too. It has to be functional for your needs.
What about storage? Books? If you have books, you need a place to store them, right? Shelves work. Shelving units or shelves mounted on the walls.
Ultimately, I could walk through everything in an office, but really, you have to determine what you need and what priority that has in your life. Will you need a pen to write with? Probably so. But do you really need 50 pens? You can probably get rid of a few of those, right?
Minimalism doesn’t mean spartan and bare. Unless you want it to. As I look at minimalism, it’s about practicality, function and purpose. Start with what the purpose of your office is, then the purpose of the stuff in your office will follow suit. Don’t just ask the question once. Come back to it again and again. Your purposes may change, and then your needs will change with the purpose!
A desk, right? Sure. Does it have to be big or small? Well, if you have a big desk, but not much use for a big desk, then that won’t work. And the other way around, too. It has to be functional for your needs.
What about storage? Books? If you have books, you need a place to store them, right? Shelves work. Shelving units or shelves mounted on the walls.
Ultimately, I could walk through everything in an office, but really, you have to determine what you need and what priority that has in your life. Will you need a pen to write with? Probably so. But do you really need 50 pens? You can probably get rid of a few of those, right?
Minimalism doesn’t mean spartan and bare. Unless you want it to. As I look at minimalism, it’s about practicality, function and purpose. Start with what the purpose of your office is, then the purpose of the stuff in your office will follow suit. Don’t just ask the question once. Come back to it again and again. Your purposes may change, and then your needs will change with the purpose!
Sunday, August 26, 2018
One year ago...
One year ago, August 26th, was a Saturday. Hurricane Harvey had already made landfall to the south and west of us in Houston. There were predictions of the potential of a whole lot of rain, but by mid day, it had rained just a bit. I went to our neighborhood Kroger to run errands and heard people commenting about how this hurricane was a dud. How I wish that would have been true.
As a church musician, sleep on Saturday night is essential. As the afternoon wore on and evening started, there were heavy bands of rains moving toward our area. In our staff text thread, the plan was to have worship as normal. The church isn’t far from Cypress Creek in Houston, and we don’t live too far from that. In fact, my drive to get to the church runs parallel to the creek for most of the drive. It started raining that night. Heavily. And kept raining. And kept raining. And kept raining. I got concerned, because our street in front our house regularly floods when there is just a bit of heavy rain. And the street the church is on has bar ditches along the street that regularly fill with water with minimal rain.
As Sunday morning came, the realization was that people weren’t going to be able to safely get out. So worship was cancelled. As Sunday wore out, it kept raining. Thankfully, we didn’t flood, but watching TV, keeping up with all of the updates on Twitter and Facebook, it was bad. The street I drive on to get to church was impassable by car. The Interstates were filled with water. I had experienced this on a smaller scale the year prior, because on April 15th, the “tax day flood” happened. We had heavy rains which led to heavy flooding and schools were shut down for the entire week. This was the “tax day flood”, but on a much grander scale. We finally lost power on Tuesday, because there was so much infrastructure issues and there were many without power. Thankfully, because the storm had passed, it was cooler and less humid. We made it 24 hours without power before we borrowed a propane powered generator from a friend.
Finally on Wednesday afternoon, I was able to get out. We as a staff met at church to figure out what we needed to do. We contacted members and found that about 25 families had major flooding, as well as families connected to our childcare. Getting out broke my heart. I couldn’t go my “normal” way, so I had to go another way to cross over the creek. I could, but the water was so high, still under the bridge, but so many houses were saturated with water. I cried the entire drive. We also have a time of worship Thursday night, and basically opened the church and our gym for families on that Friday. All of it was powerful, cathartic and needed. “How are you doing” became the question we all asked each other.
When I was able to drive on my normal route, the piles of debris were unbelievable. Brick walls were knocked down. A Catholic Church that was nearby suffered horrible damaged and had to worship in an outdoor location until mid May. But what I saw out of that devastation and destruction was people pitching in, helping out, and a city coming together.
So what does all of this have to do with minimalism? Everything. While yes, minimalism has to do with “stuff” and our relationship with it, it’s a choice that we have to make with our things. Harvey changed that for many people in my area. It didn’t matter if you had a million dollar house or you lived in an apartment. Because of 51 inches of rain, if the water comes in to your residence, what you valued, treasured, loved, owned.....is now junk. So many piles of debris were out in front of people’s houses for so long. To me, that was the biggest lesson I learned in relation to things from Harvey.
Having things is essential to living. A roof over your head keeps you dry and comfortable. What you choose to put under that roof is something that is replaceable, but hopefully, it’s your choice when and how to replace it. Seeing all of this first hand breaks my heart because these people lost their choice to make in regard to their things. A year later, much looks “normal” in the city of Houston. We’re all changed by it, no doubt. And I think that people have been changed in many different ways. For me, it’s how I value things and how much more willing I am to pass things on to others if their need is far greater than mine.
For a visual of then and now, check this article out.
Check out this link for information about the Uncluttered course, which I highly recommend!
As a church musician, sleep on Saturday night is essential. As the afternoon wore on and evening started, there were heavy bands of rains moving toward our area. In our staff text thread, the plan was to have worship as normal. The church isn’t far from Cypress Creek in Houston, and we don’t live too far from that. In fact, my drive to get to the church runs parallel to the creek for most of the drive. It started raining that night. Heavily. And kept raining. And kept raining. And kept raining. I got concerned, because our street in front our house regularly floods when there is just a bit of heavy rain. And the street the church is on has bar ditches along the street that regularly fill with water with minimal rain.
As Sunday morning came, the realization was that people weren’t going to be able to safely get out. So worship was cancelled. As Sunday wore out, it kept raining. Thankfully, we didn’t flood, but watching TV, keeping up with all of the updates on Twitter and Facebook, it was bad. The street I drive on to get to church was impassable by car. The Interstates were filled with water. I had experienced this on a smaller scale the year prior, because on April 15th, the “tax day flood” happened. We had heavy rains which led to heavy flooding and schools were shut down for the entire week. This was the “tax day flood”, but on a much grander scale. We finally lost power on Tuesday, because there was so much infrastructure issues and there were many without power. Thankfully, because the storm had passed, it was cooler and less humid. We made it 24 hours without power before we borrowed a propane powered generator from a friend.
Finally on Wednesday afternoon, I was able to get out. We as a staff met at church to figure out what we needed to do. We contacted members and found that about 25 families had major flooding, as well as families connected to our childcare. Getting out broke my heart. I couldn’t go my “normal” way, so I had to go another way to cross over the creek. I could, but the water was so high, still under the bridge, but so many houses were saturated with water. I cried the entire drive. We also have a time of worship Thursday night, and basically opened the church and our gym for families on that Friday. All of it was powerful, cathartic and needed. “How are you doing” became the question we all asked each other.
When I was able to drive on my normal route, the piles of debris were unbelievable. Brick walls were knocked down. A Catholic Church that was nearby suffered horrible damaged and had to worship in an outdoor location until mid May. But what I saw out of that devastation and destruction was people pitching in, helping out, and a city coming together.
So what does all of this have to do with minimalism? Everything. While yes, minimalism has to do with “stuff” and our relationship with it, it’s a choice that we have to make with our things. Harvey changed that for many people in my area. It didn’t matter if you had a million dollar house or you lived in an apartment. Because of 51 inches of rain, if the water comes in to your residence, what you valued, treasured, loved, owned.....is now junk. So many piles of debris were out in front of people’s houses for so long. To me, that was the biggest lesson I learned in relation to things from Harvey.
Having things is essential to living. A roof over your head keeps you dry and comfortable. What you choose to put under that roof is something that is replaceable, but hopefully, it’s your choice when and how to replace it. Seeing all of this first hand breaks my heart because these people lost their choice to make in regard to their things. A year later, much looks “normal” in the city of Houston. We’re all changed by it, no doubt. And I think that people have been changed in many different ways. For me, it’s how I value things and how much more willing I am to pass things on to others if their need is far greater than mine.
For a visual of then and now, check this article out.
Check out this link for information about the Uncluttered course, which I highly recommend!
Friday, August 24, 2018
Uncluttered
Are you struggling as to what the first step is take in Minimalism? Or do you feel like you got rid of a bunch of stuff and you’re struggling where to go? May I suggest Uncluttered.
Uncluttered is a 12 week online course led by Joshua Becker, a minimalist whose voice has resonated with me, as well as many others.
What do you get out of the course?
Videos with step-by-step instructions
Interviews with thought leaders in productivity and minimalism
Live webinars tackling specific tough-clutter topics
Live Q&As for members to ask questions
Weekly challenges
And accountability and encouragement from a super-engaged community.
One of the best parts I think about this course is that you get LIFETIME membership! That means that if you get to a “stuck point”, you can come back and review the material covered.
The course is offered 3 times a year and registration starts today and goes through September 2nd. The cost for the course is $89. Check it out and sign up here!
Uncluttered is a 12 week online course led by Joshua Becker, a minimalist whose voice has resonated with me, as well as many others.
What do you get out of the course?
Videos with step-by-step instructions
Interviews with thought leaders in productivity and minimalism
Live webinars tackling specific tough-clutter topics
Live Q&As for members to ask questions
Weekly challenges
And accountability and encouragement from a super-engaged community.
One of the best parts I think about this course is that you get LIFETIME membership! That means that if you get to a “stuck point”, you can come back and review the material covered.
The course is offered 3 times a year and registration starts today and goes through September 2nd. The cost for the course is $89. Check it out and sign up here!
Tuesday, August 14, 2018
Minimizing your screen time
One of the primary things people talk about and think about when it comes to minimalism is getting rid of stuff. And that’s a big part of it. However, I feel, as do many others, that minimalism is about relationships.....with things, people and in the case I’ll be talking about today, technology.
Technology is awesome, isn’t it? Well, it can be. I remember growing up without an answering machine until I was in high school. We had a rotary dial phone until I was in 6th grade. And in the time since the 90’s phones have gone from big and bulky, to fitting in your pocket...if you have the right sized phone. But technology can be distracting. How often do you look around, if you’re looking up from your phone at all, to see people walking and looking down at their phones? We’re obsessed with our screens. We’re connected whenever we want to, which is good and bad.
I did a personal experiment when we were on vacation in July. I didn’t really look at my phone much for anything at all. I used it to play podcasts and music when I went for walks, but that was pretty much it. I limited my time to check e-mail, rarely checked social media. The shocking thing was....I SURVIVED! Tomorrow, my girls start back to school. We’re getting back into routines. And that’s the one thing I’m going to be doing more often. Getting back to using my phone to make and receive phone calls, minimal texting, and checking social media and e-mail twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening. I’ve realized that I’ve personally become very engrossed in my screens, and it’s something that I cannot continue to do if I want to be productive.
I’d encourage you to consider your interaction with screens. Are you also finding yourself distracted by them? There are times I’ve considered going to a “dumb phone”, but haven’t gone there yet. Maybe you have. That’s great if you have. I think that getting rid of apps goes a long way. If I want to use Facebook, I have to log in and use it. It takes more time and work to do it. So I have to think about it before I do it. Breaking habits are hard. This week will be tough, no doubt about it. But I know that I can intentionally do it. I’d love to hear your feedback on what you do in regard to screen time!
Technology is awesome, isn’t it? Well, it can be. I remember growing up without an answering machine until I was in high school. We had a rotary dial phone until I was in 6th grade. And in the time since the 90’s phones have gone from big and bulky, to fitting in your pocket...if you have the right sized phone. But technology can be distracting. How often do you look around, if you’re looking up from your phone at all, to see people walking and looking down at their phones? We’re obsessed with our screens. We’re connected whenever we want to, which is good and bad.
I did a personal experiment when we were on vacation in July. I didn’t really look at my phone much for anything at all. I used it to play podcasts and music when I went for walks, but that was pretty much it. I limited my time to check e-mail, rarely checked social media. The shocking thing was....I SURVIVED! Tomorrow, my girls start back to school. We’re getting back into routines. And that’s the one thing I’m going to be doing more often. Getting back to using my phone to make and receive phone calls, minimal texting, and checking social media and e-mail twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening. I’ve realized that I’ve personally become very engrossed in my screens, and it’s something that I cannot continue to do if I want to be productive.
I’d encourage you to consider your interaction with screens. Are you also finding yourself distracted by them? There are times I’ve considered going to a “dumb phone”, but haven’t gone there yet. Maybe you have. That’s great if you have. I think that getting rid of apps goes a long way. If I want to use Facebook, I have to log in and use it. It takes more time and work to do it. So I have to think about it before I do it. Breaking habits are hard. This week will be tough, no doubt about it. But I know that I can intentionally do it. I’d love to hear your feedback on what you do in regard to screen time!
Wednesday, August 8, 2018
Living in the moment
“Christopher Robin, what day is it?”
“Pooh, it’s today.”
“Oh good. That’s my favorite day.”
I had the opportunity to go with my wife and daughters last night to see the movie Christoper Robin. It’s an excellent movie, and that quote (as best as I can remember it) happens at the end of the movie. Without spoiling it, it’s an excellent movie that I knew would punch me in the gut and make me cry. It sure did.
So what does the movie have to do with minimalism? I’m glad you asked. Minimalism isn’t about stuff....completely. It’s about an attitude, a relationship with things, people, and your surroundings that frees you up to focus on what is most important. And when we’re at the heart of it all, what is most important is today. It’s what we’ve got.
This thought has been rolling around a lot in my head, but over this past week, it’s been so much more apparent. You see, my mom has been a widow since March of 2017. So I’ve been trying once a month to go visit her (she lives 3 hours away) and check in on her, do some projects for her, and give her some company. I went Sunday afternoon through Monday afternoon. This trip had a fairly main objective. Go through my dad’s model HO gauge train stuff and figure out what I wanted. You see, growing up in Wisconsin, we had basements. And in the basement was an 8 foot by 8 foot train table that my dad built. I spent so much time with him putting cars and houses together, laying out track and tacking it down. And then, when my parents moved to Texas 17 years ago, no more basement. Not much space at all for the full train layout. So it sat. And sat. Funny thing is, my dad kept collecting. So in my excavating of things, I found buildings I put together by myself, buildings I helped my dad piece together. Even 2 buildings still in the box, not put together. Train track galore, even....more track that was still in the packaging! You may be wondering how model trains have to do with living in the moment. I am excited about getting my own train layout set up and running. It reminded me about those happy, simpler times of being a child, spending time with your dad, doing something fun. And it made me really think about what living in the moment looks like.
For each individual, living in the moment looks completely different. Even at different points in life, it’s different. When I was in college and just out of college, I wanted stuff. I got credit cards....I paid for that stuff on those credit cards. I didn’t care about the cost. Now, stuff just doesn’t excite me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m thankful for what I have, and I’m quite blessed. But I know that I have far more stuff than what I need.
Without giving too much of the movie away, Christopher Robin has grown up. He’s lost that sense of imagination and wonder. In his book “Love Does”, Bob Goff talks about it as “whimsy”. It’s the doing stuff just because. Christopher Robin is so focused on his work that even though he says certain things are important, he doesn’t show it in his actions and choices. And looking in the mirror, that’s the biggest gut punch for me. I know that I’m capable of doing that, and I know that I have. We all have.
So what does living in the moment look like for me? I’m figuring that out. I’m going to be trying to figure it out. I know it involves being sillier, laughing more and enjoying things as they come. Does that mean that I slack off on my responsibilities and duties or not do the best job that I can? Absolutely not! But, I know that it does mean that my attitude and my approach to those duties and responsibilities has to change. For you, living in the moment may be looking at similar things. Maybe it is different things. But I strongly encourage you to take a good long look in the mirror and remind yourself that today.....it is your favorite day.
“Pooh, it’s today.”
“Oh good. That’s my favorite day.”
I had the opportunity to go with my wife and daughters last night to see the movie Christoper Robin. It’s an excellent movie, and that quote (as best as I can remember it) happens at the end of the movie. Without spoiling it, it’s an excellent movie that I knew would punch me in the gut and make me cry. It sure did.
So what does the movie have to do with minimalism? I’m glad you asked. Minimalism isn’t about stuff....completely. It’s about an attitude, a relationship with things, people, and your surroundings that frees you up to focus on what is most important. And when we’re at the heart of it all, what is most important is today. It’s what we’ve got.
This thought has been rolling around a lot in my head, but over this past week, it’s been so much more apparent. You see, my mom has been a widow since March of 2017. So I’ve been trying once a month to go visit her (she lives 3 hours away) and check in on her, do some projects for her, and give her some company. I went Sunday afternoon through Monday afternoon. This trip had a fairly main objective. Go through my dad’s model HO gauge train stuff and figure out what I wanted. You see, growing up in Wisconsin, we had basements. And in the basement was an 8 foot by 8 foot train table that my dad built. I spent so much time with him putting cars and houses together, laying out track and tacking it down. And then, when my parents moved to Texas 17 years ago, no more basement. Not much space at all for the full train layout. So it sat. And sat. Funny thing is, my dad kept collecting. So in my excavating of things, I found buildings I put together by myself, buildings I helped my dad piece together. Even 2 buildings still in the box, not put together. Train track galore, even....more track that was still in the packaging! You may be wondering how model trains have to do with living in the moment. I am excited about getting my own train layout set up and running. It reminded me about those happy, simpler times of being a child, spending time with your dad, doing something fun. And it made me really think about what living in the moment looks like.
For each individual, living in the moment looks completely different. Even at different points in life, it’s different. When I was in college and just out of college, I wanted stuff. I got credit cards....I paid for that stuff on those credit cards. I didn’t care about the cost. Now, stuff just doesn’t excite me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m thankful for what I have, and I’m quite blessed. But I know that I have far more stuff than what I need.
Without giving too much of the movie away, Christopher Robin has grown up. He’s lost that sense of imagination and wonder. In his book “Love Does”, Bob Goff talks about it as “whimsy”. It’s the doing stuff just because. Christopher Robin is so focused on his work that even though he says certain things are important, he doesn’t show it in his actions and choices. And looking in the mirror, that’s the biggest gut punch for me. I know that I’m capable of doing that, and I know that I have. We all have.
So what does living in the moment look like for me? I’m figuring that out. I’m going to be trying to figure it out. I know it involves being sillier, laughing more and enjoying things as they come. Does that mean that I slack off on my responsibilities and duties or not do the best job that I can? Absolutely not! But, I know that it does mean that my attitude and my approach to those duties and responsibilities has to change. For you, living in the moment may be looking at similar things. Maybe it is different things. But I strongly encourage you to take a good long look in the mirror and remind yourself that today.....it is your favorite day.
Friday, July 27, 2018
Where to start?
So you’ve been looking at this idea of minimalism for a while now and it sounds great and all, but you’re not quite sure where to start. Great question! You can be paralyzed quite quickly and not be able to make any progress because you’re not sure where to start.
The easy answer.....PICK A PLACE! Start simple. Maybe it’s the drawer that you just throw things in. Here’s the thing....don’t just “go through” it and “organize” it. You’re just rearranging the junk and the clutter. What do you use and what don’t you use? What has value and what doesn’t? You can start with books. You can start with your kitchen utensils. It doesn’t matter where, just picking a place and starting is the most important place.
If you join The Minimalist Musician group on Facebook, I’ll be starting a challenge in August. It’s really, really easy. Each day, you choose the number of items to get rid of corresponding to the number of the day. So, August 1st, you get rid of one thing, the 2nd, you get rid of 2, and so on until you get to the 31st. On the 31st, you’ll have to get rid of 31 things. If you follow this, you will get rid of 496 items. That seems like a lot, but I think once you get going, you’ll see it’s not hard at all! I’ll be giving more details over the next few days in the group so we can get ready to start on August 1st!
The easy answer.....PICK A PLACE! Start simple. Maybe it’s the drawer that you just throw things in. Here’s the thing....don’t just “go through” it and “organize” it. You’re just rearranging the junk and the clutter. What do you use and what don’t you use? What has value and what doesn’t? You can start with books. You can start with your kitchen utensils. It doesn’t matter where, just picking a place and starting is the most important place.
If you join The Minimalist Musician group on Facebook, I’ll be starting a challenge in August. It’s really, really easy. Each day, you choose the number of items to get rid of corresponding to the number of the day. So, August 1st, you get rid of one thing, the 2nd, you get rid of 2, and so on until you get to the 31st. On the 31st, you’ll have to get rid of 31 things. If you follow this, you will get rid of 496 items. That seems like a lot, but I think once you get going, you’ll see it’s not hard at all! I’ll be giving more details over the next few days in the group so we can get ready to start on August 1st!
Monday, May 28, 2018
Digital versus Physical
One of the things I have too much of is books, CDs, DVDs and printed music. They take up so much space in my house! Last night, we went over to a friend’s house, and he asked before we went over if we had bought or rented the movie Black Panther that we watched the night before. We bought it. Digitally. And it got me thinking when the last time I bought a physical movie was. I can’t remember. Between streaming on Netflix and Amazon Prime, and purchasing movies digitally on Amazon Prime, We don’t buy physical movies anymore.
The same thing goes for music. I can’t remember the last time I bought a physical CD. I stream all of my music through Amazon Prime. I’ve uploaded most of what I had already purchased to their site as well, so that I have access all in one place. I’ve been moving that way more with books, as well as sheet music.
Yes, moving from physical to digital can be scary. And can be a lot of work. But to me, it’s worth it, because I have many stacks of books now accessible on my Ipad. It’s far more practical. I can plug my phone in when I’m in my car and play whatever music I’m in the mood for. I don’t have to mess with CDs or where to store them when I’m not using them or whatever the case is.
Yes, it is nice to have the physical things, because you can mark them up, if they’re books. I do still have some CDs, and the reason is because they’re autographed. But, you can make notes with the Amazon Kindle app, if you choose to go that route. Is it exactly the same? No, but it works just as well. And you can digitally check out books from your local library and access them via your device.
To me, the pros far outweigh the cons to go digital. My hope is that by the end of summer, I’ll have everything completely digital, and will have much more space in my house! It is definitely something for you to consider as you continue to go through and sort through all of those physical things and wonder if having all of it is worth it!
The same thing goes for music. I can’t remember the last time I bought a physical CD. I stream all of my music through Amazon Prime. I’ve uploaded most of what I had already purchased to their site as well, so that I have access all in one place. I’ve been moving that way more with books, as well as sheet music.
Yes, moving from physical to digital can be scary. And can be a lot of work. But to me, it’s worth it, because I have many stacks of books now accessible on my Ipad. It’s far more practical. I can plug my phone in when I’m in my car and play whatever music I’m in the mood for. I don’t have to mess with CDs or where to store them when I’m not using them or whatever the case is.
Yes, it is nice to have the physical things, because you can mark them up, if they’re books. I do still have some CDs, and the reason is because they’re autographed. But, you can make notes with the Amazon Kindle app, if you choose to go that route. Is it exactly the same? No, but it works just as well. And you can digitally check out books from your local library and access them via your device.
To me, the pros far outweigh the cons to go digital. My hope is that by the end of summer, I’ll have everything completely digital, and will have much more space in my house! It is definitely something for you to consider as you continue to go through and sort through all of those physical things and wonder if having all of it is worth it!
Wednesday, May 9, 2018
What do you have too much of?
Interesting question to ponder, isn’t it? For my daughters, it’s probably Barbie stuff or stuffed animals. For me, it’s probably sheet music. For my wife, I’d say it’s shoes....but she’d disagree! :-) The reality is that we all have too much of something. Sure, we can justify and explain why, but if you really ask yourself the hard question of “do I NEED it”, the answer is probably no.
Growing up, I used to have too many baseball cards. I collected them from when I was about 5 until I was a sophomore in college. I then decided to throw them out. Just threw them out. Didn’t miss them at all. Then, it was CDs. I sold some and gave the rest away to cull my collection down to ones that truly have meaning for me. As for the sheet music, I have gone through some and pared down, but I definitely need to spend time over the summer going through my music and purging some more.
So how do you determine whether you have too much of something? Ask yourself if you need it. Pack it up and put it in the garage for a month and see if you can do without it. Or just go cold turkey and get rid of it. Or, better yet, choose a few of the things that have value to you and get rid of the rest. Then you have a manageable collection of things that has meaning to you. With my CDs, I kept the ones that I had autographed and ones by friends and bands that I really liked. And do you know how much I have listened to CDs? Maybe about 10 hours in total over the past year. So, it’s time to cull again. Why? Because I have everything digitally. And that’s the other thing. It’s always an ongoing process.
Growing up, I loved my grandparents’ nutcracker collection. So, when I got out on my own, I bought a couple of nutcrackers and had them out at Christmas. Of course, more and more and more were purchased for me. It got to over 25 nutcrackers. I decided to get rid of some and get down to 9. And that’s manageable. Now they’re out all the time, not just a massive pile of them at Christmas. Was it hard to get rid of them? Not really. I thought it would be, but it really wasn’t.
So, ask yourself those tough questions. Pack up a few of those things and see if you miss them. Or comment with what you’ve done with the things you’ve had too much of.
Growing up, I used to have too many baseball cards. I collected them from when I was about 5 until I was a sophomore in college. I then decided to throw them out. Just threw them out. Didn’t miss them at all. Then, it was CDs. I sold some and gave the rest away to cull my collection down to ones that truly have meaning for me. As for the sheet music, I have gone through some and pared down, but I definitely need to spend time over the summer going through my music and purging some more.
So how do you determine whether you have too much of something? Ask yourself if you need it. Pack it up and put it in the garage for a month and see if you can do without it. Or just go cold turkey and get rid of it. Or, better yet, choose a few of the things that have value to you and get rid of the rest. Then you have a manageable collection of things that has meaning to you. With my CDs, I kept the ones that I had autographed and ones by friends and bands that I really liked. And do you know how much I have listened to CDs? Maybe about 10 hours in total over the past year. So, it’s time to cull again. Why? Because I have everything digitally. And that’s the other thing. It’s always an ongoing process.
Growing up, I loved my grandparents’ nutcracker collection. So, when I got out on my own, I bought a couple of nutcrackers and had them out at Christmas. Of course, more and more and more were purchased for me. It got to over 25 nutcrackers. I decided to get rid of some and get down to 9. And that’s manageable. Now they’re out all the time, not just a massive pile of them at Christmas. Was it hard to get rid of them? Not really. I thought it would be, but it really wasn’t.
So, ask yourself those tough questions. Pack up a few of those things and see if you miss them. Or comment with what you’ve done with the things you’ve had too much of.
Tuesday, May 8, 2018
Ikea
Yes, I’m writing a blog post about Ikea. Why? Well, we went as a family last Saturday and it was quite fun. Yes, we bought stuff. I know that violates the “rules” some may have of minimalism, but see my last post about the “rules”. Here’s the deal. After exploring the possibility of purchasing our own house (we rent), enough doors were closed where it looks like making another year in our rental house will work. But, we have to be better organized and make the space work. So that’s our summer project.
A big part of that summer project is getting rid of stuff. There’s just too much that we have and do not need. But for my youngest daughter, her room was a disaster. Primarily because we had a dresser that was far too big and not enough efficient storage space. So, that was our primary purchases at Ikea. A new dresser, a bookshelf and a storage unit.
But one of the things that amazed me in looking at Ikea was the creative uses of space. Sure, you could spend a ton of money there and get stuff and not really be better off for it. And really, it doesn’t matter what store you go to, that would be the case. Ikea’s design, though, is definitely to make efficient uses of space.
Will we purchase more stuff at Ikea? Probably. Depending on how our purge and organization process goes. We have a few things that would better benefit us when it comes to organization, whether that is something to put on the wall to keep us better organized when it comes to paper, or storage for things, or whatever the case is. As we go through the process, we’ll figure out. We’re starting with the girls’ bedrooms, then moving out from there. It’s a process that will be a lot of work, but is necessary and will be beneficial for us in the long run.
A big part of that summer project is getting rid of stuff. There’s just too much that we have and do not need. But for my youngest daughter, her room was a disaster. Primarily because we had a dresser that was far too big and not enough efficient storage space. So, that was our primary purchases at Ikea. A new dresser, a bookshelf and a storage unit.
But one of the things that amazed me in looking at Ikea was the creative uses of space. Sure, you could spend a ton of money there and get stuff and not really be better off for it. And really, it doesn’t matter what store you go to, that would be the case. Ikea’s design, though, is definitely to make efficient uses of space.
Will we purchase more stuff at Ikea? Probably. Depending on how our purge and organization process goes. We have a few things that would better benefit us when it comes to organization, whether that is something to put on the wall to keep us better organized when it comes to paper, or storage for things, or whatever the case is. As we go through the process, we’ll figure out. We’re starting with the girls’ bedrooms, then moving out from there. It’s a process that will be a lot of work, but is necessary and will be beneficial for us in the long run.
Wednesday, April 25, 2018
Rules of minimalism
Yesterday I wrote a post titled “How many shoes do you need?” I shared it on Facebook and got a few interesting responses. Most of them were actual responses about actual shoes. While I’m glad people have reasons for specific shoes, that wasn’t quite my point. The shoes are a means to an end. You can insert anything for shoes and still have a question that only you can answer.
There has been a big push toward minimalism. But the interesting part of it is that there isn’t any specific “rules” that you must follow. If you want to have 20 shirts, you can. If you want to have 5 shirts, you can too. Really, the biggest rule is how you justify what you have and why you have it. And whether you consider yourself a minimalist or not, Justifying what you have and why you have it is practical and benefiical.
Whether it’s shoes and you having your reasons for 10 pairs of shoes, or CDs and your reasons for having 125 of them, or anything else you come up with, asking yourself the questions, “Why do I have this?”, as well as “Do I need this?” and “What purpose does this serve” will definitely help you to sort out the things that need to stay and the things that need to go.
So it’s not completely about shoes. It’s not about rules. It’s about your individual reasons for why you have what you have. I would guess that many of us, myself included, have plenty of things in our houses that we don’t have very strong reasons for why we have.
There has been a big push toward minimalism. But the interesting part of it is that there isn’t any specific “rules” that you must follow. If you want to have 20 shirts, you can. If you want to have 5 shirts, you can too. Really, the biggest rule is how you justify what you have and why you have it. And whether you consider yourself a minimalist or not, Justifying what you have and why you have it is practical and benefiical.
Whether it’s shoes and you having your reasons for 10 pairs of shoes, or CDs and your reasons for having 125 of them, or anything else you come up with, asking yourself the questions, “Why do I have this?”, as well as “Do I need this?” and “What purpose does this serve” will definitely help you to sort out the things that need to stay and the things that need to go.
So it’s not completely about shoes. It’s not about rules. It’s about your individual reasons for why you have what you have. I would guess that many of us, myself included, have plenty of things in our houses that we don’t have very strong reasons for why we have.
Tuesday, April 24, 2018
How many shoes do you need?
This topic was something my wife and I go back and forth on from time to time. Recently, I brought the topic up and she told me. Black shoes, brown shoes, casual shoes, heels, flats...and she kept going and after that my head started spinning.
When it comes to things, this question of how many do you need is an interesting one. And I’ve gone through this in my life. How many CDs do I need? How many shirts do I need? How many.....you name it.
With minimalism, there aren’t really any specific rules. That’s part of the beauty of it. You’re in charge. For me, the question of shoes is simple. Black and brown dress shoes, running shoes, old running shoes to wear for mowing, causal shoes, and a pair of boots. I’ve got a couple of pair of flip flops, but I rarely wear them. Simple, right? And even that might be excessive to some. But that’s what I’ve chosen as my amount of shoes.
I’m not dogging my wife for her amount of shoes. She does have a lot of them, and over the years we’ve been married, she does do a good job of going through them from time to time to cull them. But whether it is shoes, clothes or anything else, it can be quite easy to justify and explain why we need to have so many of some item. And if we’re honestly asking ourselves the question of if it is needed or what number is needed, we may realize that we don’t need as much as we thought we did.
So...how many shoes do you need?
When it comes to things, this question of how many do you need is an interesting one. And I’ve gone through this in my life. How many CDs do I need? How many shirts do I need? How many.....you name it.
With minimalism, there aren’t really any specific rules. That’s part of the beauty of it. You’re in charge. For me, the question of shoes is simple. Black and brown dress shoes, running shoes, old running shoes to wear for mowing, causal shoes, and a pair of boots. I’ve got a couple of pair of flip flops, but I rarely wear them. Simple, right? And even that might be excessive to some. But that’s what I’ve chosen as my amount of shoes.
I’m not dogging my wife for her amount of shoes. She does have a lot of them, and over the years we’ve been married, she does do a good job of going through them from time to time to cull them. But whether it is shoes, clothes or anything else, it can be quite easy to justify and explain why we need to have so many of some item. And if we’re honestly asking ourselves the question of if it is needed or what number is needed, we may realize that we don’t need as much as we thought we did.
So...how many shoes do you need?
Thursday, April 19, 2018
What’s important?
In life, it’s always good to step back and take inventory of your priorities. Just to make sure that you’re on track and focusing on what you need to focus on. Yesterday, I had an opportunity to do that.
You see, 13 months ago, my dad died. My mom lives in Waco, 3 hours from Houston, where I live. She had bronchitis, was sent to a pulmonologist for a breathing test and some things of concern showed up. So, yesterday, she had a follow up. Because she has a hard time hearing, even with hearing aids, and is getting more and more forgetful, she asked if I could come. I said absolutely. So, I dropped my daughters off at school, spent 3 hours in the car, did a few things for her around the house, went with her to her appointment (all is well) and drove back home. It was a long, exhausting day, but I would do it again in a heartbeat.
So what’s important? To me, it’s not stuff. It’s not activities. It’s not even work. I enjoy those things and enjoy doing them. To me, what I hope that people see and say is my priority is my family. That I prioritize them first over anything else. I know that I haven’t always made those choices to put them first all the time. And the reality is, there may be times when I get off track again. But have an opportunity to refocus and reset are always beneficial.
So.....what’s important to you? Is it evident to others through your choices and actions?
You see, 13 months ago, my dad died. My mom lives in Waco, 3 hours from Houston, where I live. She had bronchitis, was sent to a pulmonologist for a breathing test and some things of concern showed up. So, yesterday, she had a follow up. Because she has a hard time hearing, even with hearing aids, and is getting more and more forgetful, she asked if I could come. I said absolutely. So, I dropped my daughters off at school, spent 3 hours in the car, did a few things for her around the house, went with her to her appointment (all is well) and drove back home. It was a long, exhausting day, but I would do it again in a heartbeat.
So what’s important? To me, it’s not stuff. It’s not activities. It’s not even work. I enjoy those things and enjoy doing them. To me, what I hope that people see and say is my priority is my family. That I prioritize them first over anything else. I know that I haven’t always made those choices to put them first all the time. And the reality is, there may be times when I get off track again. But have an opportunity to refocus and reset are always beneficial.
So.....what’s important to you? Is it evident to others through your choices and actions?
Sunday, April 15, 2018
Discipline and focus
Yesterday I came across a post on Facebook which really hit me. It was “Clutter is no just physical stuff. It’s old ideas, toxic relationships and bad habits. Clutter is anything that does not support your better self.” There’s a lot to unpack, but I’m going to deal with what hit me out of that quote.
I’m awesome at something. I do really great at it. It’s a talent that I have.....but I don’t want to be that way anymore. What am I awesome at? Being focused, successful and disciplined for a short period of time. And then I fall completely off the wagon. Whether that’s exercise, practicing music, composing music, being organized and cleaning up regularly, blogging, and more....I’m awesome at being focused and doing great for short, maybe 2-4 week spurts....and then for whatever reason, I quit. I stop.
So how does it change? That’s the struggle. Of course the easy answer is, “suck it up buttercup”. But that only goes so far. So what changes? What is different? I wish I could say there is a magic bullet that if you do this one thing, everything falls into place. Ain’t gonna happen. What it is going to take is a plan, focus and consistency.
So how do I exercise more? Well, back on about Ash Wednesday (February 14th) I quit walking. Why? I chose sleeping in. This morning, that changed. I got up and took the dog for a walk, even though it was cold (for Texas) and it’s going to be a long day. That’s even more reason for me to do it.
How do I practice more? I calendar it. And I stick to that calendar. This is one of the hardest ones because throughout my week, my schedule isn’t always “regular”. There may be meetings that come up, funerals to practice for (that’s happened the last 2 weeks after Easter) and more. So it’s a matter of doing my best and when I’m practicing, focusing on using that time as well as I can.
How do I compose more? That’s easy. Just do it. Actually, the laptop I’ve used to compose is a few years old and it’s run slowly....which, of course, works great when you’re fantastic at making excuses. Of course I made excuses to not do anything because of schedule, computer being slow, and really, honestly, what the answer is, I was scared. Composing music puts you out there. You’ll get plenty of rejections, non responses or tepid encouragements. I’ve gotten plenty of all of them. But I feel called to be a composer, so the only way I can call myself a composer is......to do it.
How do I get and stay organized and keep the house clean. Funny, right? Well, yesterday was my oldest’s 9th birthday. We got the house (and her room) cleaned. So, keeping up shouldn’t be too hard. It’s about doing a few things each night after the girls go to bed. Of course, moving (as we’re hoping to) will lead to even more of a focus and attention to organization, what needs to stay or go, etc.
And finally, blogging.....how do I do it regularly? Just like doing things before bed, I sit down and write out posts. Whether that’s going to be daily or a few days a week, that remains to be seen. But in a previous blog incarnation, I planned out the month coming up and topics to write about. That helped to keep me focused. With this blog, I haven’t. I’ve basically been spitballing, throwing things against the wall, and been unplanned.....and yet you still read it. So thanks for that! I know that I’m capable of giving you better ideas and information than I have in the past, and I look forward to doing it.
How about how? Where do you struggle with discipline and focus? What habits are you wanting to adjust, change or drop completely? Comment with those habits!
I’m awesome at something. I do really great at it. It’s a talent that I have.....but I don’t want to be that way anymore. What am I awesome at? Being focused, successful and disciplined for a short period of time. And then I fall completely off the wagon. Whether that’s exercise, practicing music, composing music, being organized and cleaning up regularly, blogging, and more....I’m awesome at being focused and doing great for short, maybe 2-4 week spurts....and then for whatever reason, I quit. I stop.
So how does it change? That’s the struggle. Of course the easy answer is, “suck it up buttercup”. But that only goes so far. So what changes? What is different? I wish I could say there is a magic bullet that if you do this one thing, everything falls into place. Ain’t gonna happen. What it is going to take is a plan, focus and consistency.
So how do I exercise more? Well, back on about Ash Wednesday (February 14th) I quit walking. Why? I chose sleeping in. This morning, that changed. I got up and took the dog for a walk, even though it was cold (for Texas) and it’s going to be a long day. That’s even more reason for me to do it.
How do I practice more? I calendar it. And I stick to that calendar. This is one of the hardest ones because throughout my week, my schedule isn’t always “regular”. There may be meetings that come up, funerals to practice for (that’s happened the last 2 weeks after Easter) and more. So it’s a matter of doing my best and when I’m practicing, focusing on using that time as well as I can.
How do I compose more? That’s easy. Just do it. Actually, the laptop I’ve used to compose is a few years old and it’s run slowly....which, of course, works great when you’re fantastic at making excuses. Of course I made excuses to not do anything because of schedule, computer being slow, and really, honestly, what the answer is, I was scared. Composing music puts you out there. You’ll get plenty of rejections, non responses or tepid encouragements. I’ve gotten plenty of all of them. But I feel called to be a composer, so the only way I can call myself a composer is......to do it.
How do I get and stay organized and keep the house clean. Funny, right? Well, yesterday was my oldest’s 9th birthday. We got the house (and her room) cleaned. So, keeping up shouldn’t be too hard. It’s about doing a few things each night after the girls go to bed. Of course, moving (as we’re hoping to) will lead to even more of a focus and attention to organization, what needs to stay or go, etc.
And finally, blogging.....how do I do it regularly? Just like doing things before bed, I sit down and write out posts. Whether that’s going to be daily or a few days a week, that remains to be seen. But in a previous blog incarnation, I planned out the month coming up and topics to write about. That helped to keep me focused. With this blog, I haven’t. I’ve basically been spitballing, throwing things against the wall, and been unplanned.....and yet you still read it. So thanks for that! I know that I’m capable of giving you better ideas and information than I have in the past, and I look forward to doing it.
How about how? Where do you struggle with discipline and focus? What habits are you wanting to adjust, change or drop completely? Comment with those habits!
Monday, April 2, 2018
Are you a superhero?
In talking about expectations of self, as I did in yesterday’s post, one of the things we struggle with is that we expect far too much of ourselves and when it doesn’t go perfectly or as flawlessly as we think it should, we quit. I think it’s a superhero complex. We feel we can do everything, fix everything and everyone and still have time to make dinner. News flash: it isn’t going to happen.
I’m a church musician. One of the things that I’ve found in comparing my two very busy seasons of Advent/Christmas and Lent/Easter is that Advent/Christmas is neatly wrapped up in a 4 week period, with two really big, busy days of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. For Lent/Easter, it’s a 6 week period with a really big, busy week of Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter. Sure, December for everyone else is busy, and that compounds the hectic nature of the season. But I’ve regularly found that by the time Easter Sunday afternoon rolls around, I’m exhausted. It’s a good exhausted, but I’m worn out. And so today is the recovery. Sure, I could dive back in to the organizing and cleaning that I’ve wanted to do and needed to do. I could check things off my list. But today, my goal is to find the kitchen table, do dishes and laundry, find the kitchen counter and do yard work. That’s a good amount to do, but my girls are off of school today, so I wouldn’t be able to be a whirling dervish of work anyway.
So, to the question I posed in the title of this post. Are you a superhero? If you answered “I’m Batman”, nicely done. None of us are. So why do we expect ourselves to be? Give yourself a bit (or a bunch) of grace. Keep plugging away, little by little. Set your goals and your plans for the day to be achievable, but give yourself a reward. Maybe it’s watching an episode or 2 (not 20) of your favorite show. Maybe it’s going for a walk. Whatever it is, give yourself that reward for knocking out things on your to-do list. And keep plugging away. While you’re not a superhero, you’re still very capable of plenty of amazing and awesome things.
I’m a church musician. One of the things that I’ve found in comparing my two very busy seasons of Advent/Christmas and Lent/Easter is that Advent/Christmas is neatly wrapped up in a 4 week period, with two really big, busy days of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. For Lent/Easter, it’s a 6 week period with a really big, busy week of Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter. Sure, December for everyone else is busy, and that compounds the hectic nature of the season. But I’ve regularly found that by the time Easter Sunday afternoon rolls around, I’m exhausted. It’s a good exhausted, but I’m worn out. And so today is the recovery. Sure, I could dive back in to the organizing and cleaning that I’ve wanted to do and needed to do. I could check things off my list. But today, my goal is to find the kitchen table, do dishes and laundry, find the kitchen counter and do yard work. That’s a good amount to do, but my girls are off of school today, so I wouldn’t be able to be a whirling dervish of work anyway.
So, to the question I posed in the title of this post. Are you a superhero? If you answered “I’m Batman”, nicely done. None of us are. So why do we expect ourselves to be? Give yourself a bit (or a bunch) of grace. Keep plugging away, little by little. Set your goals and your plans for the day to be achievable, but give yourself a reward. Maybe it’s watching an episode or 2 (not 20) of your favorite show. Maybe it’s going for a walk. Whatever it is, give yourself that reward for knocking out things on your to-do list. And keep plugging away. While you’re not a superhero, you’re still very capable of plenty of amazing and awesome things.
Friday, February 16, 2018
Conference swag
Yesterday, today and tomorrow, I’m at the Texas Music educators conference. I’ve been to my fair share of conferences and this one is huge! Especially the amount of vendors. And I can remember in the past leaving with a ton of stuff from vendors. It’s overwhelming. And much of it, I just threw out.
So, now with a minimalist mentality, how have I approached this conference differently? Simple. I structured my time at the conference to only have about 2 hours in the vendors area yesterday. While in the vendor area, I had mentally targeted specific vendors to visit. And that’s exactly what I did. Primarily I went to the chocolate fundraiser booths, as I told my girls I’d bring them back some chocolate.
Today and tomorrow, I’m focused on different sessions and getting information and learning instead of getting stuff. This will make my haul back home so much lighter and easier.
So how about you? When you go to conferences or places where there are giveaways and stuff to take home, do you grab handfuls? Or are you more meticulous and planned out? Comment with how you approach this.
So, now with a minimalist mentality, how have I approached this conference differently? Simple. I structured my time at the conference to only have about 2 hours in the vendors area yesterday. While in the vendor area, I had mentally targeted specific vendors to visit. And that’s exactly what I did. Primarily I went to the chocolate fundraiser booths, as I told my girls I’d bring them back some chocolate.
Today and tomorrow, I’m focused on different sessions and getting information and learning instead of getting stuff. This will make my haul back home so much lighter and easier.
So how about you? When you go to conferences or places where there are giveaways and stuff to take home, do you grab handfuls? Or are you more meticulous and planned out? Comment with how you approach this.
Monday, February 12, 2018
Week 6 check in
Wow! Here we are, 42 days into the new year! Only 11.5% of the year has passed! So how are you doing? I did one monumental thing for me at least, and had a couple of major realizations. So let’s dive in.
My monumental thing was that I participated in a 5K. This was my 4th ever, but this was the first time I picked a 5K because I wanted to do a 5K. The others were supporting an awesome ministry called Coreluv, which does great work with orphans in Haiti. So why did I randomly pick a 5K to do? I’ve set a goal of doing 4 of them this year. But here’s what happened. I ended with my best per mile pace ever, my best 5K time ever. I finished 169/175. The guy who finished first had a 15 minute and change 5K. I mean, the guy finished in 15 minutes. I finished in a smidge under 45 minutes. In fact, the majority of the people finished in 20-30 minutes. I did some jogging and the rest walking. I’ll be doing my next 5K in 2 months and I’ll be running it. I’m doing really well with the Couch to 5K app, and the best part is that my boxer/lab pup who has been going with me has only tried to cut in front of me about 3 times.
Now to the realizations. And they tie together. The first one happened Saturday afternoon. After my 5K, my oldest asked “why does daddy do 5Ks?” My wife started to answer, and she said because I want to be healthy, get exercise and I chimed in with “they’re fun!” But she noticed. She’s almost 9. And then she said the thing that got me. “I want to do a 5K with daddy, too!” There’s the realization that I’ve known since I became a parent, but I get those hit over the head moments as reminders. What I’m doing is being noticed. I’m setting an example for my girls, something that I didn’t always have the healthiest and most positive set for me.
And then the second realization happened yesterday while hunting for a book that my oldest daughter couldn’t find. What ended up happening was I was supposed to snap a picture of a page for my wife and send it to her (which I did), but I didn’t return the book to where it was supposed to go! But we’re looking everywhere in my daughter’s cluttered room. Then we looked under the bed. And the piles of stuff that came out from under that bed! It was a mess. But then the realization hit again. Not only am I being watched for the good example, but the bad examples are being picked up as well. My wife and I don’t always put things away like we should. And we don’t always make our girls pick up their stuff. So, when they see that example, they follow it. So I spent the afternoon focused on cleaning up the kitchen. And tonight, I’ll focus on another room. And another...and you get the point.
As a parent, it’s not easy. But when you’re honest with yourself and your children, and you work on consistent discipline for yourself and your children, you all win in the long run. That’s the word that I’ve always struggled with my entire life. Discipline. And it’s something that’s really hard to pick up when you’re 40. The good news for me is that I’m realizing it is possible. It’s hard, but it’s possible.
My monumental thing was that I participated in a 5K. This was my 4th ever, but this was the first time I picked a 5K because I wanted to do a 5K. The others were supporting an awesome ministry called Coreluv, which does great work with orphans in Haiti. So why did I randomly pick a 5K to do? I’ve set a goal of doing 4 of them this year. But here’s what happened. I ended with my best per mile pace ever, my best 5K time ever. I finished 169/175. The guy who finished first had a 15 minute and change 5K. I mean, the guy finished in 15 minutes. I finished in a smidge under 45 minutes. In fact, the majority of the people finished in 20-30 minutes. I did some jogging and the rest walking. I’ll be doing my next 5K in 2 months and I’ll be running it. I’m doing really well with the Couch to 5K app, and the best part is that my boxer/lab pup who has been going with me has only tried to cut in front of me about 3 times.
Now to the realizations. And they tie together. The first one happened Saturday afternoon. After my 5K, my oldest asked “why does daddy do 5Ks?” My wife started to answer, and she said because I want to be healthy, get exercise and I chimed in with “they’re fun!” But she noticed. She’s almost 9. And then she said the thing that got me. “I want to do a 5K with daddy, too!” There’s the realization that I’ve known since I became a parent, but I get those hit over the head moments as reminders. What I’m doing is being noticed. I’m setting an example for my girls, something that I didn’t always have the healthiest and most positive set for me.
And then the second realization happened yesterday while hunting for a book that my oldest daughter couldn’t find. What ended up happening was I was supposed to snap a picture of a page for my wife and send it to her (which I did), but I didn’t return the book to where it was supposed to go! But we’re looking everywhere in my daughter’s cluttered room. Then we looked under the bed. And the piles of stuff that came out from under that bed! It was a mess. But then the realization hit again. Not only am I being watched for the good example, but the bad examples are being picked up as well. My wife and I don’t always put things away like we should. And we don’t always make our girls pick up their stuff. So, when they see that example, they follow it. So I spent the afternoon focused on cleaning up the kitchen. And tonight, I’ll focus on another room. And another...and you get the point.
As a parent, it’s not easy. But when you’re honest with yourself and your children, and you work on consistent discipline for yourself and your children, you all win in the long run. That’s the word that I’ve always struggled with my entire life. Discipline. And it’s something that’s really hard to pick up when you’re 40. The good news for me is that I’m realizing it is possible. It’s hard, but it’s possible.
Wednesday, February 7, 2018
How much do you need?
I’m a musician. That’s my job. But I’ve recently been asking myself the question....how much music do I need? Sounds strange, right? Well, considering my organ music as an example. I have over 3,500 titles cataloged, and that’s probably not everything I own. Through the years, I have inherited organ music from family members, had my dad purchase music for me, and I purchased music for myself. I will typically play about 5-7 preludes on a Sunday morning, as well as a postlude. Even going with the high side, of 8 pieces a Sunday, playing everything I currently own, even just focusing on Sundays, without repeating, I’d be looking at about 8 and a half years before I’d need to repeat something. Now, much of my music is seasonal, but still, that’s a lot of music. And so, I’ve purged some. And I’ve also gone through music that I’ve never touched and I’ve found things that I want to work on, things that are fun, and things that I don’t even want to try.
Maybe you’re not a musician. Maybe you’ve got a bunch of something specific. Maybe it’s books. Or CDs....or something else. Do you read/listen to/use all of it? Or is it just taking up space? Maybe it’s time to review what you have and figure out if it’s needed, or remind yourself of why you got that thing in the first place.
It’s easy to collect things. It’s not always easy to review how necessary those things are. Maybe all of them serve a purpose. Maybe not. Or maybe there was a purpose, but now that purpose has changed. This has to be an ongoing process. That’s one of the harder things to do. We can get motivated to go through and determine what the purpose of things are, but does that purpose change in 6 months? In a year? And how do you figure out the purpose? In the past, I’ve gone through our CDs and movies. Honestly, I haven’t put a CD in a CD player in a good 2 years, but I still own CDs. Why? Some of them are autographed. Some have special meaning. But there are many I can do without. Same thing with our DVDs. We stream most everything, so we don’t really need the physical things. However, last week, my wife and I wanted to watch “The Goonies”. It wasn’t streaming, so we played the DVD. It served a purpose.
What is it that you need to determine the purpose of? How are you going to do it? Comment with your feedback.
Maybe you’re not a musician. Maybe you’ve got a bunch of something specific. Maybe it’s books. Or CDs....or something else. Do you read/listen to/use all of it? Or is it just taking up space? Maybe it’s time to review what you have and figure out if it’s needed, or remind yourself of why you got that thing in the first place.
It’s easy to collect things. It’s not always easy to review how necessary those things are. Maybe all of them serve a purpose. Maybe not. Or maybe there was a purpose, but now that purpose has changed. This has to be an ongoing process. That’s one of the harder things to do. We can get motivated to go through and determine what the purpose of things are, but does that purpose change in 6 months? In a year? And how do you figure out the purpose? In the past, I’ve gone through our CDs and movies. Honestly, I haven’t put a CD in a CD player in a good 2 years, but I still own CDs. Why? Some of them are autographed. Some have special meaning. But there are many I can do without. Same thing with our DVDs. We stream most everything, so we don’t really need the physical things. However, last week, my wife and I wanted to watch “The Goonies”. It wasn’t streaming, so we played the DVD. It served a purpose.
What is it that you need to determine the purpose of? How are you going to do it? Comment with your feedback.
Monday, February 5, 2018
Week 5 check in
I could subtitle this post “The new me”. Or I could subtitle it “You’re not defined by your mistakes”. Read on and I’ll explain. I blew it last night. I ate horribly. I’m guessing many of you are waking up feeling that way. The “old me” would have wallowed in self-pity, made excuses and ate some more. Most definitely wouldn’t have exercised. Today, I got up at 4:30, walked the dog, ran a bit, and have been drinking water. While yes, I didn’t eat great for 1 meal....it’s just that. 1 meal out of 21 for the week. See, this is where my thinking has radically changed. I had eggs for breakfast yesterday, I had a salad for lunch. I budgeted to eat badly. And I did. But, that doesn’t define my week. In fact, it pushes me to be even more on track. I had my meal of overindulgence. It was good. Now back to eating right.
So how about you? Maybe January wasn’t the best. Or your February isn’t off to the best start. You can fix it. You can start now. Because it’s about the choices you make.
I realized I didn’t share with you my goals for February. So my main goal in January, the Whole30, was a success. My goal for February is to continue to follow the guidelines, eating right and trying to add in more exercise. I started the couch to 5K app last week and while I’m doing a 5K on Saturday, I’m not going to be able to run all of it, but my main goal is to run the 5K I’m doing on April 7th. That’s one I’m working toward. My other stuff goal is two fold. I didn’t quite finish in the garage in January, but our youth at church are having a garage sale, so I can take stuff up there. Along with that, I want to tackle the office. It’s a mess. So that’s my 2 main goals for February.
So where are you at this week? Has your 2018 been off to a great start? We’re only 5/52 into the year, so you’ve got time. Get after it!
Oh, something random I decided to do last week. I recorded some music I’ve been working on and uploaded it to Noisetrade.com. You can listen to it for free or download it for free there. http://noisetrade.com/craigharmann/lent-and-easter-demos
So how about you? Maybe January wasn’t the best. Or your February isn’t off to the best start. You can fix it. You can start now. Because it’s about the choices you make.
I realized I didn’t share with you my goals for February. So my main goal in January, the Whole30, was a success. My goal for February is to continue to follow the guidelines, eating right and trying to add in more exercise. I started the couch to 5K app last week and while I’m doing a 5K on Saturday, I’m not going to be able to run all of it, but my main goal is to run the 5K I’m doing on April 7th. That’s one I’m working toward. My other stuff goal is two fold. I didn’t quite finish in the garage in January, but our youth at church are having a garage sale, so I can take stuff up there. Along with that, I want to tackle the office. It’s a mess. So that’s my 2 main goals for February.
So where are you at this week? Has your 2018 been off to a great start? We’re only 5/52 into the year, so you’ve got time. Get after it!
Oh, something random I decided to do last week. I recorded some music I’ve been working on and uploaded it to Noisetrade.com. You can listen to it for free or download it for free there. http://noisetrade.com/craigharmann/lent-and-easter-demos
Wednesday, January 31, 2018
Whole30 wrapup
There have been a million ways that have gone through my head as to how to begin this post. But I’ll start here: Minimalism is fashionable, trendy and hip right now, especially in regard to stuff. And I’ve written plenty about relationships to stuff. But really, the primary thing that matters in minimalism is you. And if you’re not taking care of yourself, the stuff really doesn’t matter. So this is why I started the Whole30 diet on January 2nd....which means today is DAY THIRTY!!
Before I dive into the diet and my review, a bit of my backstory. To be absolutely honest (and there will be real talk here), I had an addiction to food. Food was my friend. Food never laughed at me, never let me down, and was always there for me. When I was younger, I kept moving, riding my bike, playing sports, but that problem was lurking below the surface. Cookies, ice cream, seconds on meals, all of that was there. But, in my physical activity, I was burning plenty of it off. And of course, then came.....the dreaded HUSKY size jeans. And then when I started high school, I went from 175 my freshman year to 225 my senior year.....and it wasn’t from hitting the weights. It was hitting the TWENTY piece chicken nuggets and super sized fries from McDonalds when I was in musicals my junior and senior years of high school. It was giving up completely on exercise and becoming sedentary. College was worse. A cafeteria where you could eat as much as you want? YES PLEASE! It was a fat boy’s dream. I had Mountain Dew for breakfast, lunch and dinner (literally) desserts and other food galore. I went from 225 to 275 when I graduated. But all of that paled in comparison to what happened between graduating college and living on my own. The highest I saw on the scale was 330. But I’m sure it was higher. I’d eat 2 frozen pizzas, chase it with a container of ice cream and be happy. I’d eat a dozen donuts for breakfast. And so on. I’m embarrassed to see this all typed out in front of me. But that was who I was. Once I got married, we started to make healthier choices and because we were having trouble getting pregnant, we both started the South Beach Diet. Which led to 2 beautiful daughters. What has happened over the past 14 years is that I’ve lost 15 pounds, gained 10, lost 10, gained 15, lost 20, gained 10. Back and forth.
In the fall, I really started focusing in on exercise, specifically walking. I was feeling great, eating pretty healthy (minus the bags of tortilla chips here and there in an evening) and was making progress. Then December hit. While I didn’t hit the sweets too hard, I stopped exercising. And by the end of December, I felt horrible. I needed to do something different. I turned 40 in September, and my dad passed away last March. I had to start getting really serious about my health so that I can be there, God willing, for my girls and grandchildren. I had friends that had done Whole30 and I started looking into it.
How to describe Whole30? Crazy, insane, stringent, amazing, life-changing and beneficial. The simplest way to describe it is that you can eat meat, fruit, veggies, and spices. You don’t get to eat beans, peanuts, grains, dairy, or alcohol. And it’s all about looking at the labels of food. No added sugar, no added anything. Have you read labels? Do you know how much junk is added to our food? For example, I love bacon. And it’s allowable, without sugar....And most bacon has BROWN sugar added to it!! I broke down and tried turkey bacon, and in the end, I just got ground turkey, seasoned it with homemade taco seasoning, and added that to my eggs for breakfast. AMAZING!!
Now to the details. On January 1st, I stepped on the scale and weighed 280.6 pounds. This morning, 31 days later, I weighed 260.2 pounds. TWENTY POINT SIX POUNDS LOST! I can’t believe it. And yes, my clothes fit better. Clothes that I couldn’t fit into, or were tight, now fit comfortably. I have to wear a belt daily. I’ve had people tell me regularly that I’m looking really good and that I’m losing weight....although I did shave my beard in early January and no said anything about that! :-) But over and above the scale, here’s the biggest and best takeaways. I feel amazing. I am more focused. I am less tired. I have accomplished a lot over this month. I feel creative. My relationship with food has been readically changed. And this is the exact opposite of how I felt at the end of December, just 1 month ago. And that’s been with minimal exercise. However, over the past 3 days (including today), I’ve started the couch to 5K app and have seen my time per mile go from between 17-18 minutes, to 15 minutes, 14:58 and 14:40 over the first 3 days.
Do I recommend Whole30 to everyone? Nope. It’s your choice. It’s very restrictive. I had people telling me, “Day 4 is going to be the hardest. You’re going to have a crash”. I didn’t. It went a whole lot easier that I thought it would. I thought giving up dairy would be hard. I grew up in Wisconsin. I love cheese. But I didn’t miss it. Probably the one thing I’ve missed over the 30 days is beer. But even that, I survived without.
So now what? Do I go back to what I ate before? Of course not. I’ll slowly be adding in certain things. One beer is first tomorrow. I’ll have a smoothie on Monday with Greek yogurt. Down the road, I’ll probably add in more things, but I’ll definitely be looking at the label. I don’t want to go back to the way I felt before. I want to keep this feeling. Ultimately, I’d like to be between 200-225 pounds, so I still have more weight to lose. But as the weather warms up and I continue to walk/run the dog and do more yard work outside, I don’t see that being a problem. So go check out Whole30 and see if it’s for you!
Before I dive into the diet and my review, a bit of my backstory. To be absolutely honest (and there will be real talk here), I had an addiction to food. Food was my friend. Food never laughed at me, never let me down, and was always there for me. When I was younger, I kept moving, riding my bike, playing sports, but that problem was lurking below the surface. Cookies, ice cream, seconds on meals, all of that was there. But, in my physical activity, I was burning plenty of it off. And of course, then came.....the dreaded HUSKY size jeans. And then when I started high school, I went from 175 my freshman year to 225 my senior year.....and it wasn’t from hitting the weights. It was hitting the TWENTY piece chicken nuggets and super sized fries from McDonalds when I was in musicals my junior and senior years of high school. It was giving up completely on exercise and becoming sedentary. College was worse. A cafeteria where you could eat as much as you want? YES PLEASE! It was a fat boy’s dream. I had Mountain Dew for breakfast, lunch and dinner (literally) desserts and other food galore. I went from 225 to 275 when I graduated. But all of that paled in comparison to what happened between graduating college and living on my own. The highest I saw on the scale was 330. But I’m sure it was higher. I’d eat 2 frozen pizzas, chase it with a container of ice cream and be happy. I’d eat a dozen donuts for breakfast. And so on. I’m embarrassed to see this all typed out in front of me. But that was who I was. Once I got married, we started to make healthier choices and because we were having trouble getting pregnant, we both started the South Beach Diet. Which led to 2 beautiful daughters. What has happened over the past 14 years is that I’ve lost 15 pounds, gained 10, lost 10, gained 15, lost 20, gained 10. Back and forth.
In the fall, I really started focusing in on exercise, specifically walking. I was feeling great, eating pretty healthy (minus the bags of tortilla chips here and there in an evening) and was making progress. Then December hit. While I didn’t hit the sweets too hard, I stopped exercising. And by the end of December, I felt horrible. I needed to do something different. I turned 40 in September, and my dad passed away last March. I had to start getting really serious about my health so that I can be there, God willing, for my girls and grandchildren. I had friends that had done Whole30 and I started looking into it.
How to describe Whole30? Crazy, insane, stringent, amazing, life-changing and beneficial. The simplest way to describe it is that you can eat meat, fruit, veggies, and spices. You don’t get to eat beans, peanuts, grains, dairy, or alcohol. And it’s all about looking at the labels of food. No added sugar, no added anything. Have you read labels? Do you know how much junk is added to our food? For example, I love bacon. And it’s allowable, without sugar....And most bacon has BROWN sugar added to it!! I broke down and tried turkey bacon, and in the end, I just got ground turkey, seasoned it with homemade taco seasoning, and added that to my eggs for breakfast. AMAZING!!
Now to the details. On January 1st, I stepped on the scale and weighed 280.6 pounds. This morning, 31 days later, I weighed 260.2 pounds. TWENTY POINT SIX POUNDS LOST! I can’t believe it. And yes, my clothes fit better. Clothes that I couldn’t fit into, or were tight, now fit comfortably. I have to wear a belt daily. I’ve had people tell me regularly that I’m looking really good and that I’m losing weight....although I did shave my beard in early January and no said anything about that! :-) But over and above the scale, here’s the biggest and best takeaways. I feel amazing. I am more focused. I am less tired. I have accomplished a lot over this month. I feel creative. My relationship with food has been readically changed. And this is the exact opposite of how I felt at the end of December, just 1 month ago. And that’s been with minimal exercise. However, over the past 3 days (including today), I’ve started the couch to 5K app and have seen my time per mile go from between 17-18 minutes, to 15 minutes, 14:58 and 14:40 over the first 3 days.
Do I recommend Whole30 to everyone? Nope. It’s your choice. It’s very restrictive. I had people telling me, “Day 4 is going to be the hardest. You’re going to have a crash”. I didn’t. It went a whole lot easier that I thought it would. I thought giving up dairy would be hard. I grew up in Wisconsin. I love cheese. But I didn’t miss it. Probably the one thing I’ve missed over the 30 days is beer. But even that, I survived without.
So now what? Do I go back to what I ate before? Of course not. I’ll slowly be adding in certain things. One beer is first tomorrow. I’ll have a smoothie on Monday with Greek yogurt. Down the road, I’ll probably add in more things, but I’ll definitely be looking at the label. I don’t want to go back to the way I felt before. I want to keep this feeling. Ultimately, I’d like to be between 200-225 pounds, so I still have more weight to lose. But as the weather warms up and I continue to walk/run the dog and do more yard work outside, I don’t see that being a problem. So go check out Whole30 and see if it’s for you!
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