Hi, Folks. 🙂
Happy Tuesday! I hope you’ve enjoyed the beautiful day, of whatever kind of beautiful it was today. 😊
It’s been a good day today. Got up right at four, and dropped to the ground to do some pushups to get the blood going–hoping to help me wake up faster. Not sure if it worked or not, but it was good.
Steven had a family emergency, so Daily Stoic challenge (21-day challenge, actually) is on hold until he gets back. Hopefully, things are ok. Positive universe vibes to him and his family.
In the meantime, I don’t slow down. What I want is independent of everyone and everything else. And I will get where I’m going, whatever it takes, whoever wants to be with me on the ride.
Tim McGraw has a song called “Next 30 Years.” It’s a fun little song, and I’ve thought about it for myself a few times, though for me it’s my next 40 years. So much is going to happen. So much. I’m excited. This time next year, my life won’t look even close to what it looks like right now. Where I am will be different. Who I spend my time with will be different. What I do every day will be different.
But I will still be following a solid daily, 24/7/365 routine. I’ve noticed that a strict routine that is the same every day is how I get the most done, how I grow the most, how I stay the most focused, and how I’m happiest. Interestingly, as I’m listening to other indomitables out there, it seems to be a common theme–focused, disciplined routine.
Bring it on. I do love it. I love what I’m able to accomplish when I’m focused and following my routine.
Made really good progress on NP stuff today, working through my vision for what things are going to be like and whatnot. It’s exciting. I also kicked trash on taxes today. 2019 is so close to being ready to submit to my accountant. So close.
It’s funny getting up so early. I end up having… second breakfast. 🙃 By the time I’d normally be eating breakfast, I’ve already been up for four hours.
Anyway, day was good. I’ve been getting better and better at seeing my obstacles as the way, seeing them for the opportunities they are giving me to grow and become, which is what I want. No fear. Unflappable (no frustration, anger, fear… nothing). Indomitable.
First car today was a super easy one. His door was stuck closed after someone slammed it, and I figured I knew what it was because the same thing happened to one of my cars at some point. The door panel had undone, and so it popped in farther than it was supposed to and was getting caught on the weather stripping on, and couldn’t open because of it. So I wedged my fingers in the gap, pressed in, and pulled the or toward the front of the car and out at the same time, and boom, it slotted in.
One unfortunate side effect was that my sliced middle finger that lost a fight with a razor blade on… saturday? got caught and stuck in the gap, and I had to pull it out, leaving oozing fluids on the door when it finally came apart. But I got him going. The next job was an alternator on a 2011 Kia Optima. That one went decently well, but at some point toward the end, I must have banged my finger again because, and I didn’t realize it right away, I was bleeding all over his engine.
Oops.
Got that one done and ran over and did a spontaneous one that popped up. A no start a car that would die every time he turned the wheel to the right. Except… it wouldn’t do it for me. 🙃
Last car was a water pump on a 2014 Dodge Ram 1500 5.7 hemi. I was trying to get done by my 6:00 goal, but I didn’t quite make it. I think I finished about 6:15 or 6:30, but it was close. 😊
I’m home now. It’s 8:11, and I’m getting ready to head to bed. One of my sisters is on the road moving to South Dakota as I write. That’s fun. Perhaps I’ll go that way one day. Who knows.
Life. It’s an adventure. And I feel like my biggest adventures are still yet ahead. Bring them on.
Daily Reflection: As I look back over the day, I shouldn’t have taken that extra little job. I was lucky that I wasn’t able to re-create the problem. It very easily could have been a rabbit hole. I was good and didn’t take any other jobs, but I need to make sure I don’t do that anymore. I’m getting better, but I need to be solid. No excuses. I would have been done on time today had it not been for that.
I did better with language and seeing obstacles as the way, I think. There weren’t too many frustrating things, so I wasn’t really tested much, but I’ll take the day. It was nice. I also did better on distracted driving. Progress.
Gratitude:
- I’m grateful that I had the go juice to jump up, drop down, and do pushups as soon as I woke up this morning.
- I’m grateful have made more progress on each of the 5x5s today. It’s been good. Little by little. It really does make it fun to do each day. Seeing little bits of progress makes me want to make more progress, spend more time, but disciplining myself has me looking forward to my 5x5s. It’s not a chore. It’s excitement. Seeing the steady forward progress.
- I’m grateful for the breakfast my mom makes every day. She always cooks a bunch extra of whatever she eats, so that I have some. So nice!
- I’m grateful to have remembered to write my gratitude list! I’m not remembering during the day like i want to. No excuses. If I want it badly enough, I won’t forget. So, stephen, how badly do you want it? Your decision. Your choice. Nothing stopping you. No reason to forget other than lack of desire. So… how you gonna get your desire up? (I guess this isn’t gratitude anymore… 🙃)
- I’m grateful to have had all my jobs go decently well. No really major sidewaysness. So… I appreciate that.
- I’m grateful to have my van still going strong. I’ve been about 8,000 miles on it since I got it, and it seems to do better in the cooler weather. I haven’ had the messed up shifting issues at lower fuel levels like I’ve had, so that’s nice.
- I’m grateful for grocery delivery–still. Saves the trip. Saves so much time. So nice.
- I’m grateful to be getting more and more passionate about this nonprofit stuff. The vision is coming together. I’m getting more and more into it, and I’m finding myself getting closer and closer to just dropping the auto stuff altogether. But I do want to be smart about it. I built this up. If it can be a source of future income with someone else running it, or if I can sell it, then I want to do that and be better prepared, but I’m not really worried about walking away if that’s what happens. Bring it on. I’ll get where I’m going. Nothing will stop me.
- I’m grateful for my internal drive to accomplish my pie-in-the-sky crazy ideals. I will accomplish them. I will.
- I’m grateful to be pretty much in bed on time tonight. It’s 8:31. I’ll be in bed by 8:35, so that’s pretty darn good.
Accountability:
- Bed last night at 8:30: I think it was 9? Maybe it was 8:30? I don’t remember. It was close though.
- Up at 4: Check
- 5x5s: Check
- Exercise: 😬 I let one or two of the 5x5s run way long, so I didn’t do exercise (other than the 10 wake-up pushups which… don’t count), and i didn’t get the cold shower in either.
- Cold shower:😬 poor time management.
- Meditation: Check! (see my meditation post from this morning.
- Breakfast: Two!
- NP Work: Check
- Tax Work: Check
- Lunch: Yup.
- Work done by 6: Sooooo close.
- Dinner: Yup.
- Only truly healthy foods: I have about a third of a jar of the “healthy” jelly left. Then we’ll be done. I’ll be doing granola half and half with grape nuts, I think. That’ll help cut the sugar substantially. Might adjust even more in the future, but we’ll see how it goes.
- No Wasted Life: Doing well!
- No Distracted Driving: Much better. Not perfect yet.
- Faced a Fear: Yikes! 😕 Totally spaced this one. I’m gonna need to actually plan it in each morning. Worth it, though–totally worth it.
- Tamed the tongue: Better. I think.
Thought of the Day: “Without ambition one starts nothing. Without work one finishes nothing. The prize will not be sent to you. You have to win it.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Love to you all!
Lift the World
~ stephen
Lift the World 