Another month down, another review.
They’re coming thick and fast.
Unfortunately, due to lockdown, the separation between months seems non-existent.
Time is generally punctuated by significant moments upon which we can hang memory hooks to reflect on time and place.
Unfortunately, during the groundhog day of pandemic land, no such diversions exists, each day blending into the next, rendering my memory landscape flat and dusty in the mind’s eye.
Announcements in the UK have left hope that things will be opening shortly in a staggered resumption of society life.
In the meantime, this monthly review will likely mimic the last.
Work
Not much to report here – work has been good – continuing on an upward growth trajectory.
We’re currently seeking investment, which will further boost our expansion plans.
Biking
I’m not sure I’ve mentioned this on the site before, but I’m a keen motorcyclist.
Unfortunately, the second-hand bike a bought last year needed some work.
However, my mechanic worked his magic and I’ve taken her out on a couple of gloriously sunny days; great to blow away the cobwebs.
Meditation
In short, I just haven’t done enough.
Getting up early enough before work to nail down a time between my other morning routine activities has been difficult, so this habit languishes in mid-afternoon, depending on the vagaries of my work schedule, which isn’t good for compliance.
Needs work.
Exercise
So, I’m getting pretty bored of running.
Despite having a lovely run right outside my door and feeling great afterwards, I think the sheer lack of exercise options is starting to grate.
Pre-pandemic, I varied my exercise in the form of running, weights and exercise classes at the gym, not to mention tennis once or twice a week.
Although running will become more pleasant as the weather improves, I can’t wait to re-integrate other activities.
Writing
I have written for the website and published some reasonable articles, but similar to my other habits, February felt rather disjointed.
At one point I was writing nearly an article a day, but that has diminished since I’ve been doing my coding course.
Morning remains my most lucid time to write and I’ll try to keep the output up.
Reading
Reading is an area I haven’t scrimped on, maximising the extra time available in lockdown to get stuck into some good books.
Kindred by Octavia E. Butler
A classic sci-fi tale covering diverse ground; time travel and US slavery. I didn’t love this at first but it steadily grew on me as the book progressed.
True Grit by Charles Portis
I wanted to try True Grit because I enjoyed the films and my recent Western reads after Cormac McCarthy last month. Unfortunately, it didn’t live up to expectations. Perhaps it’s just because I’ve watched the films, removing any element of surprise. If it’s your first time, however, it might be a different story.
Endurance by Alfred Lansing
This is an incredible tale of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ill-fated Antarctic expedition. Thoroughly researched and excellently written, you feel like you’re right there with these hardy men, living their deepest fears and worries in extracts from their personal diaries. I will never complain about being cold again! Highly recommended.
Contact by Carl Sagan
Sagan is quite the legend, so as a sci-fi nerd, I was interested in what he had to say about mankind’s potential meeting with extraterrestrials. In summary, it was OK. The book covered some interesting concepts, but could have been edited further to condense the story and increase the pacing.
Coding
Going well, until I reached the backend web development section – perhaps it’s just because we’re setting up Node and getting used to using the Terminal, but I’m finding it a slog.
As a result, I missed a couple of days of videos during February.
Summary
Admittedly, not one of my best months – Winter has seemed to drag on forever and I’ve felt a general malaise, which seems to have disrupted my habits.
I’m hoping to spend more time outside with the incipient sunny weather and perhaps less time on the computer, which might further impact my daily routines.
However, I think such a natural reset is necessary.
Roll on Spring and Summer!
