Chamber Sweats

Tomorrow begins my first Challenge Month: The Month of Conditioning. The intention of this month is to instill a sense of discipline that can then be carried forward into the rest of the challenge months in addition to all the other aspects of the project. I'm not entering into this month "cold turkey"; I've been slowly ramping up my daily practice to ensure success. Here are the terms of the month:

1. Rise at dawn
2. Cold Showers
3. No Television, No Video/Phone Games, No Mindless web surfing
4. Daily Meditation

Day One for Imaginary Life Seven, Survivalist:

Looked up how to start a fire without matches. It looks surprisingly easy. I'm going to see if I can do it three different ways:

-Old School: Rubbing a stick on another stick.
-Nerd Style: With my own glasses
-Bow method: Rubbing the stick but with a bow instead of your hands

I also looked up some methods for water retrieval in the wild. This life will be two tiered: Research and then practical application. I might try to do some this weekend if possible!

Haiku of the Day:

Persistant neck sweat
trickles down the knobbly spine
a luge to my ass

Today's Drawing

Nadir

1 : the point of the celestial sphere that is directly opposite the zenith and vertically downward from the observer
2 : the lowest point

Words Escape

Day One for Imaginary Life Four, Poet:

Already this one is a little tougher than the others...Poetry has always been a "lightning strike" kind of artistic experience - The words seek my out and demand to be released. I usually have very little say in the matter. Scheduling will be a challenge...

-Later that day-

So I didn't end up getting to write the poem I wanted. The day and my own fatigue snatched it away from me. I did find a fun poem site that I've begun perusing each day to keep the flavor close to the surface. I will pay this life more mind next time it comes in the cycle.

Haiku of the Day:

Tangy yellow paste

scooped from tin foil crevices

with a wooden stick

Today's Drawing

Attenuate

1 : to make thin or slender
2 : to make thin in consistency : rarefy
3 : to lessen the amount, force, magnitude, or value of : weaken
4 : to reduce the severity, virulence, or vitality of

You Can't Be Serious!

Day One for Imaginary Life 6, Voice Actor:

The first few days for most of the Lives will be devoted to immersion and planning. Yesterday I spent a couple of the spare hours I could muster in my day researching and brainstorming and generally living in a Board Gamer mindset. Trying it on like a hat. Today I've been looking up different sites for voice actors and looking at who are the successful ones to emulate and study. I've already stumbled on a couple books for voice training and I plan on implementing some basic voice exercises into my day to day where possible. One of my favorite ideas so far is to create a bank of tongue twisters for practicing.

Here are three different voices doing the same line reading from a random dialogue generator:

Jon McClember
Len Cheep
Frank Oz Knock-Off

Haiku of the Day:

Crackling knee joints

protest the endless staircase -

Tell it to the judge.

Today's Drawing

Licit - conforming to the requirements of the law : not forbidden by law : permissible

Jack the Cracker

Day One for Imaginary Life Two, Board Game Designer:

-I realize when I talk about board games folks might get the impression that I'm talking about Monopoly or Scrabble, which is only partially the case. Many of the games that I own don't have a physical board associated with them (think Yahtzee) but at least some chance based element like dice or card drawing. There are games with heavy themes that are cleverly backed by their mechanics. They're created by nerds, like me, who enjoy storytelling paired with probability. It's like a video game but you end up having to do all the math and imagining yourself. 

-I'm going about the soul searching for this all wrong...I think I need to start with a theme, something I find really compelling and then find a set of mechanics that meshes with the subject matter.

Idea!

Wards - Patients in a mental hospital must stave off insanity while attempting to get through a whole day. Each player has a different cocktail of disorders and must use that to their advantage to avoid particular pitfalls and hazards on the way. There's a variation where one player is the therapist and can help treat patients and give them options while still adhering to the rules of their position. I'm interested in whether or not this would have a "win" condition and what that might mean. 

• Pros: I have familiarity with the subject matter and it excites me to no end.
• Cons: It is a minefield of controversy and could end up very easily being distastefully done. UPDATE: It has been done, but in a horror setting. I just found its Kickstarter campaign from 2015. Bummer. Will have to revisit this idea with this new information.

-I spent a good few hours doing research and brainstorming...I think it'd be worth doing again next time with a little more focus. It was interesting.

Haiku of the Day:

The great snooze button

A reset of our waking

Skinner box for sleep

Today's Drawing

Crackerjack - of striking ability or excellence

Sunday Blueprint Begins

First Sunday Planning day!

So I have a busy first week to start off on... three days of rehearsals, one friend date and then the wife and I head out for a wedding on Saturday. I will have to chose wisely and hope for the best. Here's what I'm thinking:

Mon - Board Game Designer - Look up and study the different types of boardgames. Identify a top three for the types I enjoy
Tues - Voice Actor - Record three different types of voices with a single line
Wed -  Poet - Go outside and write a short poem using a specific form
Thurs - Survivalist - Look up various ways to light a fire without a match. Start planning a trip to the woods.
Fri - Dancer - Learn a basic dance move
Sat - Carpenter - Brainstorm and come up with three basic things to make for the house. Think of one way to make each of them interesting.

Also I've drafted up a template for these Sunday check-ins:

Days of My Lives:

1. Dancer - 0
2. Board Game Designer - 0
3. History Teacher - 0
4. Poet - 0

5. Carpenter - 0

6. Voice Actor - 0

7. Survivalist - 0
8. Playwright - 0
9. Drag Queen - 0
10. Spiritual Counselor - 0

Obviously I haven't official had a day yet so they are all zero but that should change this week!

Haiku of the Day:

Fuzzy carpet threads

cushion thick and callused toes

A fur substitute

Today's Drawing 

Jactitation - a tossing to and fro or jerking and twitching of the body

The Resolution Continues

Cue the Triumphant Fanfare! It is time to begin another ridiculous endeavor in self -improvement!

I am 29 today and will begin my project. This project will present itself in a few parts:

• Challenge Months - Each month brings with it a challenge, either in a thing I have to do or a thing I can't do. More details below. They all start with C because my blog was founded on the principles of abhorrently abundant alliteration. DEAL WITH IT.
• Haikus - Usually a description/snapshot of the day. Keep to the form. Keep up the garden.
• Drawing - The drawing is done in pen (for the time being) and on a piece of printer paper. It is inspired by Merriam Webster's word of the day. VERY loosely inspired.
• Imaginary Lives - I have chosen ten "Imaginary Lives" that I would like to try and make less imaginary. I will spend 30 total days this year on each life and each life will have a simple stretch goal attached to it. If goals are reached before the end of the year (many of them will be) new stretch goals will be established. The stretch goals for each life are listed below. If you want a little more in depth understanding of why I chose each Life, I have embedded links in each one to the previous blog post that explains it.
• Sundays - On Sundays, I plan and reflect. Like a status report. This will give me time to do any blog maintenance, make sure I'm keeping up to date with the Lives and plan the upcoming week.

Here are the Imaginary Lives with all their stretch goals:

1. Dancer - Choreograph a dance to a song and record performing it
2. Board Game Designer - Design a board game
3. History Teacher - Present a ten minute lesson on a topic
4. Poet - Perform a piece of orginal poetry

5. Carpenter - Build a thing out of wood

6. Voice Actor - Record telling a story (original or otherwise)

7. Survivalist - Start a fire without any matches
8. Playwright - Write a one-act play
9. Drag Queen - Perform in drag (I'm doing this in August through a show called Dolls As Guys)
10. Spiritual Counselor - Take a counseling class

Many of these stretch goals will be achieved early on. After that point I will update them to a whole new stretch goal!

Unlike the Imaginary Lives, which officially begin today, The months will go by month starting with the first of July next Friday:

The Month of Conditioning (July) - No TV, video games or junk internet sites
The Month of Conquest (August) - Visit 25 different places over the course of the month
The Month of Cleansing (September) - no junk food, no alcohol, and no swearing
The Month of Character (October) - Create and workshop 10 different characters
The Month of Composition (November) - Commit to NaNoWriMo. Reading is only form of entertainment
The Month of Compassion (December) - Reach out to family and friends. Reject negativity
The Month of Competition (January) - Make and play a game every day
The Month of Contemplation (February) - Extensive meditation. No speaking for long periods. No earbuds
The Month of Computation (March) - Make your own computer and learn basic programming
The Month of Comedy (April) - Write a joke and draw a comic every day
The Month of Courage (May) - Face 10 specific fears

The Month of Calm (June) - Relax. Take up napping. Get ready for next year!

That's all for now. Let the games begin!

Haiku of the Day:
Memory shuffle
the leaflets are numerous
and stained with grievance

Today's Drawing

Extirpate
1 a : to destroy completely : wipe out
b : to pull up by the root
2 : to cut out by surgery

Another year...

We're bringing another year to a close. Tomorrow, I will be 29 years old and I'll be embarking on another grand project. This year's project fell through, but I did manage to accomplish a few things:

-Reading: I read my age in books! Again! Another 29 and they are all listed at the bottom of the page (below the drawing.) My personal favorites are in bold. The MVP author this year is Malcolm Gladwell. Such a great and informative writer and thinker.

-Haikus: I still got one for every day. Well over 700. And I've finally updated my Haiku garden! Check it out here.

-Abstention: I gave up potato chips this year and next year will be soda. List below!

Age 25: Cigarettes

Age 26: Energy Drinks

Age 27: Ground Beef

Age 28: Potato Chips

Age 29: Soda

(As a side note, I also gave up meat and fish after reading Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer in July.)

Of course there was quite a bit that was accomplished on top of this: I was a part of many successful shows, navigated TWO career changes and fought through my first major depressive episode in years. 28 wasn't a picnic but I'm coming out swinging. Stay tuned for the next step!!

The twelfth and final month of my challenge year will be the The Month of Calm. This month will be all about rest. I will allow myself sleep above all things. I will take entire days off. I will take stock and do as much as I can to eliminate stress from any final projects. This is all in the hope that I can be fully charged to leap into that next year. Which will be my 30th. We shall see.

All Twelve Challenge Months:

The Month of Conditioning (July)
The Month of Conquest (August)
The Month of Cleansing (September)
The Month of Character (October)
The Month of Composition (November)
The Month of Compassion (December)
The Month of Competition (January)
The Month of Contemplation (February)
The Month of Computation (March)
The Month of Comedy (April)
The Month of Courage (May)

The Month of Calm (June)

Haiku of the Day:

Sunshine and sirens

a park at the city's heart

soaking it all in

Today's Drawing

Hermetic

1 : relating to or characterized by occultism or abstruseness : recondite
2 a : airtight 
b : impervious to external influence
c : recluse, solitary

For those curious, this was my reading list for 2015-2016.

Invisible Ink by Brian McDonald
Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer
An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfield Jamison
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
American Gods by Neil Gaiman
Charlie Wilson's War by George Crile
The Book of Imaginary Beings by Jorge Luis Borges
Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Yes Please by Amy Poehler
Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson
Undeniable by Bill Nye
David and Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell
Bird by Bird by Ann Lamott
Take off your Pants: Outline Your Books for Faster, Better Writing by Libbie Hawker
Origins: Fourteen Billion Years of Cosmic Evolution by Neil deGrasse Tyson
Blink by Malcolm Gladwell
Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg
The Player of Games by Iain Banks
Beacon 23 by Hugh Howey
Program or Be Programmed by Douglas Rushkoff
No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy
The Emporer of All Maladies by Siddhartha Mukherjee
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff
Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo
The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss

Smarter Faster Better by Charles Duhigg