Howdy folks
You'll notice that the title of this post is not in English; that's because I tried to learn a bit of Spanish recently. Apparently I'm still not very good at it, because I was leaning towards "El listo", which means "the ready". Of course, that wouldn't have made sense and you would've expected some surrealistic flimflam from this post (and you would've been disappointed). Fortunately, Google Translate was there to save my dignity and give you "La lista de 2011/2012", or "The list of 2011/2012".
In no particular order;
I want to play more golf
On the previous two lists, I said that I wanted to improve my score on a particular course. This time round, I want to improve my game in general, I want to enjoy the great outdoors and stay fit. This also means that I have to make more money and get more free time. If you have any idea how I can screw over the laws of the universe (in particular the one that says income and free time are the inverse of each other AKA "more money, less time; more time, less money"), please let me know.
Do more than I say
You know the drill by now.
Buy a new car
Not necessarily a German one, but something with a bigger boot and more safety and convenience features, at the very least.
Train my brain
Books, puzzles, whatever it takes to keep my head in shape.
Grow the business
This one explains itself.
That's it for now. I'm not being as overly ambitious as I was the previous years. I wanted to do a lot, but I ended up not doing much of it. Thus, if my list is shorter, I should be able to accomplish more of the items on it.
You'll also notice that one of the recurring items on the previous lists (hint: it's bred in large numbers on Venus) is missing. I've spent a lot of time pondering about my last relationship (and the ones before it). Quite frankly, if one looks at it historically, relationships aren't that great. Oftentimes, the bad ends up outweighing the good - so much so that the scale turns into a catapult and flings what little good there was right over the horizon. I've come to the realization that it's not something that I particularly want/need at this stage of my life. Sure, it would be nice, but I'm not about to go chasing after it. Besides, you can go play a round or two of golf for the cost of the average date.
Disclaimer: I've no intention to abandon my manners, my chivalric ideals, or all the other points that I discussed on Facebook not too long ago. I'm sticking to my guns in that regard.
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Back by Popular Demand
I've not written anything on this blog for a whole year, but thanks to some awesome positive feedback that I've recently received, I'm back. There's no guarantee that I'll be back for long, but at least you (the faithful reader) got something new to read. FYI, I haven't been slacking all year - I've written quite a lot of stuff on my personal blog over at the Art of Manliness and I've started a business blog on The Forum SA. While I'm on the subject of the Art of Manliness; if you're a dude, read it, love it, live it. Once you start reading it, go out and buy yourself some bigger shirts so that you can have space for all the extra hair that will start sprouting on your chest.
Here's a review of last year's list;
I want to do an advanced driving course
I did it, twice. The first time got to go around a high-speed oval in a Chevrolet Lumina SS (6.0l V8). It was great fun, and afterwards, I smiled so much that my face hurt. I want one. The second time round I tackled the same oval with an Opel Corsa OPC; smaller engine, but still pretty quick. I had a screaming, swearing female passenger. Apparently people don't like being in the passenger seat while a complete stranger floors it. The two courses also featured a skidpan and a dynamic handling track. The dynamic handling track was particularly awesome; scary, but in a good way. My passenger said something about Schumacher after I went around a corner at a speed that caused a front-wheel drive car's rear end to start feeling slippery. I'll gladly do it again, any day. I'm generally not a fan of small, high-performance hatchbacks, but I gained a lot of respect for the Corsa OPC. That thing sticks to the road like a toddler's finger to his nostril.
I want to finish the golf course at Midstream Estate in under forty strokes
Only played it once, and sucked.
I want to raise money for a worthy cause
I donated to Movember, for what it's worth. I haven't strictly "raised" any money.
I want to improve my English
I say old chap, do you know what a bandersnatch is? (Word of the Day)
I want to improve my leadership skills
I'd say that I improved in this area of my life. How to Win Friends and Influence People is in my bookcase, waiting to be read.
I want to start my own business
Not quite, but I became a partner in an existing business. I still want to do my own thing though.
I want to 'do' more than I 'say'
Well, I said I was gonna do it...
I want to get an awesome girlfriend and keep her
See the new list.
I want to write a blog post at least once a week
I got close to it; between the Art of Manliness, TFSA and The Pursuit of Efficacy, I've written a good 40 or so posts.
I want to write at least one piece of prose or poetry each month
Failed, miserably.
I want to read at least one book a month
I may not have read a book every month, but I read more than one book during a couple of months. I'm confident that I read more that twelve books over the past year.
Other Stuff
As for the "Wouldn't Mind" and "Awesome! (but unlikely)" items on the old list - I'm not going to force you to to read through a bunch of stuff that I didn't do. The only one worth mentioning is that I came very close to buying a German car (albeit an Audi). Had I been able to negotiate a premium of R200 or R300 per month less, I probably would've taken it. In hindsight, I'm glad that I decided to stick to my budget; you pay a heckuva lot of interest on a car like that I you finance it over 5 years.
I'm planning on writing a new list (really, I am). Before I can do that, though, I have a bunch of emails that I need to respond to and a new post for Caffeine and Donuts. Don't hold your breath.
Here's a review of last year's list;
I want to do an advanced driving course
I did it, twice. The first time got to go around a high-speed oval in a Chevrolet Lumina SS (6.0l V8). It was great fun, and afterwards, I smiled so much that my face hurt. I want one. The second time round I tackled the same oval with an Opel Corsa OPC; smaller engine, but still pretty quick. I had a screaming, swearing female passenger. Apparently people don't like being in the passenger seat while a complete stranger floors it. The two courses also featured a skidpan and a dynamic handling track. The dynamic handling track was particularly awesome; scary, but in a good way. My passenger said something about Schumacher after I went around a corner at a speed that caused a front-wheel drive car's rear end to start feeling slippery. I'll gladly do it again, any day. I'm generally not a fan of small, high-performance hatchbacks, but I gained a lot of respect for the Corsa OPC. That thing sticks to the road like a toddler's finger to his nostril.
I want to finish the golf course at Midstream Estate in under forty strokes
Only played it once, and sucked.
I want to raise money for a worthy cause
I donated to Movember, for what it's worth. I haven't strictly "raised" any money.
I want to improve my English
I say old chap, do you know what a bandersnatch is? (Word of the Day)
I want to improve my leadership skills
I'd say that I improved in this area of my life. How to Win Friends and Influence People is in my bookcase, waiting to be read.
I want to start my own business
Not quite, but I became a partner in an existing business. I still want to do my own thing though.
I want to 'do' more than I 'say'
Well, I said I was gonna do it...
I want to get an awesome girlfriend and keep her
See the new list.
I want to write a blog post at least once a week
I got close to it; between the Art of Manliness, TFSA and The Pursuit of Efficacy, I've written a good 40 or so posts.
I want to write at least one piece of prose or poetry each month
Failed, miserably.
I want to read at least one book a month
I may not have read a book every month, but I read more than one book during a couple of months. I'm confident that I read more that twelve books over the past year.
Other Stuff
As for the "Wouldn't Mind" and "Awesome! (but unlikely)" items on the old list - I'm not going to force you to to read through a bunch of stuff that I didn't do. The only one worth mentioning is that I came very close to buying a German car (albeit an Audi). Had I been able to negotiate a premium of R200 or R300 per month less, I probably would've taken it. In hindsight, I'm glad that I decided to stick to my budget; you pay a heckuva lot of interest on a car like that I you finance it over 5 years.
I'm planning on writing a new list (really, I am). Before I can do that, though, I have a bunch of emails that I need to respond to and a new post for Caffeine and Donuts. Don't hold your breath.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)