This post has quite the history. I commenced drafting it a year ago and it had quite a different tone from the final version. The post started with this paragraph, "www.goodreads.com have a yearly reading challenge where you set yourself a certain number of books and try to read that many over the course of a year. I don't find that particularly interesting as I read because I want to and don't need to set a goal to make myself read, any more than I need to set goals to breathe."
This arrogant and inaccurate paragraph was composed while I was clearly in denial about the radical shift in my reading habits. Yes, I still read with a voracious appetite, but firstly the Internet and secondly and more powerfully, the smartphone and tablet have combined to revolutionise my reading habits while I wasn't even noticing. I read copious numbers of short articles and longer articles and that time has been filched from my book reading allocation. It's January 28 and I've only completed 3 books in my Year of Books series. For me, 3 is not a satisfactory total and indicates that more time needs to set aside for book reading.
The primary purpose of this post is to list the books that I've had for a long time and failed to read for whatever reason but still want to read. Recent purchases do not count, most of these books have been on the reading list for a decade or more. as of the 28th January 2017, this is
The Unread Books List:
Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell I read the start of this and liked it but I didn't finish it, I think the pacing was an issue.
The Wizard Knight Gene Wolfe is a great writer, but his works are usually fairly demanding and the first 100 pages of this was no exception!
Watchmen I have no idea why I haven't read this yet! I've read other great comics.
Master and Commander I wanted to find out if I would be interested in the whole series - I enjoyed the film! Again, it has been tried but not finished. If the next attempt fails, the book will be culled.
The Last Lion: Defender of the Realm: Winston Churchill is my all time favourite biographical subject and William Manchester wrote two compellingly readable volumes in an intended trilogy. Unfortunately old age got the better of him and he was struck down by a stroke which caused permanent damage to his memory, rendering him unfit to finish the book. He chose Paul Reid to finish the trilogy, which has been well reviewed, but I haven't yet started his contribution.
Pillar of Fire and At Canaan's Edge by Taylor Branch; Parting the Waters was a magisterial account of the civil rights movement and given it's one of my favourite all time books, it does the beg the question of why I haven't read the sequels. A question which I must confess that I have no reasonable answer to.
War and Peace and Anna Karenina by the incomparable Leo Tolstoy. I've read some of Tolstoy's short stories, loved them but his two masterpieces read I have not.
Charles Dickens is another great author whose works I've read comparatively little of. I'm adding David Copperfield to the list as I own the book, but I could add most of his novels.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. Another unread classic.
The Red Badge of Courage by Steven Crane and Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman can safely be added to the unread classics list.
For some additional history books there's Norman Davies' Europe: A History. Simon Schama's Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution can't be ignored and Orlando Figes' A People's Tragedy, A history of The Russian Revolution is a critically acclaimed account of that dramatic period.
How about some biography with David McCullough's magisterial Truman or the concluding volumes of Edmund Morris's magnum opus about the most important President of the twentieth century, Theodore Roosevelt, Theodore Rex and Colonel Roosevelt?
Looking for some modern classics? Try Tim Winton's cloudstreet, Commac Mcarthy's The Road or Garbriel Garcia Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude.
There are some shared characteristics among the books listed here. They're nearly all long and they're generally densely written. They require some effort to read. I found making that effort easier in the pre-Internet age. Also, there were fewer entertainment options for me, there's only so long I can watch television before I get bored, that's not the case when surfing the Internet.
I don't anticipate that A Year of Books will be overrun by these titles but I aim to take four of them off the list this year, that's one every three months. That's an achievable target!
Sunday, 29 January 2017
Saturday, 28 January 2017
The wisdom of ages.
One of the areas that I have found most difficult over my life has been making a consistent effort at fulfilling whatever my goals at a particular period may be. I have been good for a spurt of effort, particularly at deadlines, but prone to dropping off tasks if they become too challenging or require too much work over a consistent period of time to be achieved.
This trait has caused me problems both personally and professionally as I regularly find myself behind whatever timetable I need to be following. This can be highly stressful and where possible, my favourite response to stress is to eliminate it!
During November last year it occurred to me that the fact my tutoring numbers hadn't reached the level I want was reflecting problems that were going to need more than just a few days work to rectify. I analysed how my business was meeting the expectations that I have of a tutoring business, its organisation, structure, administration, presentation and the overall quality of the service that I was providing.
While there were many good things about that service, it was obvious that the answer to the question "Are you doing the best you can do with this business?" was no. Tutoring's a competitive business and that answer reflected an approach where the pursuit of excellence hadn't been the number one priority. I had developed a business that was, in practice, aiming to be 'good enough'. Unfortunately, good enough isn't always good enough.
My characteristic response was to create a list detailing the tasks that needed to be completed in order to raise my business to a standard that I could be proud of. I am a past master of creating detailed, well structured lists of tasks that need to be done so that I can achieve a series of personal goals. The lists just don't get completed. With around 50 items, most of them outlining lengthy tasks, this list was particularly long and seemed no more likely to be achieved than any of its predecessors.
Nevertheless, it was completed and I commenced work. While I hadn't formalised an order of priority in formulating the list, there was definitely one in my head. As per usual, the first few days were good, making a well structured list is empowering and generates a burst of enthusiasm in the same way the New Year gets us off to a strong start in terms of fulfilling personal goals.
Historically, a good day for me has been the precursor for a disaster as I get satisfied with myself, think that I'm doing well so I relax, do nothing productive the next day and drift back to the spiral of time wasting, feeling guilty about time wasting, doing less and less because of that guilt and eventually giving up on the project. This time I have been reviewing each night what I have achieved that day, asking myself what I seek to achieve the following day. If I'm stuck for inspiration, I look at the list, which gets added to as relevant items occur to me. It's approaching 70 items now.
Initially, I had to be very tough on myself, guarding against the idea that I was getting somewhere significant and constantly re-iterating that my performances today were what mattered, not yesterday and not tomorrow. I can live quite happily in visions of a future that will never be achieved!
As this has gone on I've noticed those thoughts coming readily to my head, and the process of reviewing the day's achievements and mentally planning for tomorrow occurring naturally, instead of needing to be forced. Similarly, I'm finding that leisure breaks are becoming just that, that there's an actual desire to get back to the main game. This is virtually unprecedented for me. Today I told Kristy I wouldn't be doing much today but I actually am because I have habituated the process.
THE list is by no means completed and I anticipate that there it will take me months to tick off the items currently on it but many items have been completed and completed to a standard that I am proud of.
What's struck me most about the change is that I am internalising the wisdom of Will Durant, summarising the approaches of Aristotle;
This trait has caused me problems both personally and professionally as I regularly find myself behind whatever timetable I need to be following. This can be highly stressful and where possible, my favourite response to stress is to eliminate it!
During November last year it occurred to me that the fact my tutoring numbers hadn't reached the level I want was reflecting problems that were going to need more than just a few days work to rectify. I analysed how my business was meeting the expectations that I have of a tutoring business, its organisation, structure, administration, presentation and the overall quality of the service that I was providing.
While there were many good things about that service, it was obvious that the answer to the question "Are you doing the best you can do with this business?" was no. Tutoring's a competitive business and that answer reflected an approach where the pursuit of excellence hadn't been the number one priority. I had developed a business that was, in practice, aiming to be 'good enough'. Unfortunately, good enough isn't always good enough.
My characteristic response was to create a list detailing the tasks that needed to be completed in order to raise my business to a standard that I could be proud of. I am a past master of creating detailed, well structured lists of tasks that need to be done so that I can achieve a series of personal goals. The lists just don't get completed. With around 50 items, most of them outlining lengthy tasks, this list was particularly long and seemed no more likely to be achieved than any of its predecessors.
Nevertheless, it was completed and I commenced work. While I hadn't formalised an order of priority in formulating the list, there was definitely one in my head. As per usual, the first few days were good, making a well structured list is empowering and generates a burst of enthusiasm in the same way the New Year gets us off to a strong start in terms of fulfilling personal goals.
Historically, a good day for me has been the precursor for a disaster as I get satisfied with myself, think that I'm doing well so I relax, do nothing productive the next day and drift back to the spiral of time wasting, feeling guilty about time wasting, doing less and less because of that guilt and eventually giving up on the project. This time I have been reviewing each night what I have achieved that day, asking myself what I seek to achieve the following day. If I'm stuck for inspiration, I look at the list, which gets added to as relevant items occur to me. It's approaching 70 items now.
Initially, I had to be very tough on myself, guarding against the idea that I was getting somewhere significant and constantly re-iterating that my performances today were what mattered, not yesterday and not tomorrow. I can live quite happily in visions of a future that will never be achieved!
As this has gone on I've noticed those thoughts coming readily to my head, and the process of reviewing the day's achievements and mentally planning for tomorrow occurring naturally, instead of needing to be forced. Similarly, I'm finding that leisure breaks are becoming just that, that there's an actual desire to get back to the main game. This is virtually unprecedented for me. Today I told Kristy I wouldn't be doing much today but I actually am because I have habituated the process.
THE list is by no means completed and I anticipate that there it will take me months to tick off the items currently on it but many items have been completed and completed to a standard that I am proud of.
What's struck me most about the change is that I am internalising the wisdom of Will Durant, summarising the approaches of Aristotle;
"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."The wisdom of ages.
Wednesday, 25 January 2017
Working Class Boy by Jimmy Barnes
This moving and powerful memoir hits home hard. Jimmy Barnes tells the story of James Swan, the son of Scottish parents from Glasgow who emigrated to Adelaide under the ten pound Pom provisions. James Swan's future as a rock star is irrelevant to this story, whose power relies on the drama and tragedy that the boy experienced.
James Swan did it tough, my own family didn't mind a certain amount of dysfunctional behaviour, often fuelled by alcohol, but compared to the liquor-soaked Swan family and their equally alcohol fuelled community, we were the Brady Bunch. Jimmy Barnes tells this stark story with simplicity and grace, not trying to make excuses yet still showing love for his family and understanding of their experiences.
The first volume of two, I look forward to seeing how Jimmy's legacy impacted his career as a rock star and how he learned to overcome his inheritance and become a better man but I cannot imagine the sequel being able to match this raw, beautifully told story of his childhood.
James Swan did it tough, my own family didn't mind a certain amount of dysfunctional behaviour, often fuelled by alcohol, but compared to the liquor-soaked Swan family and their equally alcohol fuelled community, we were the Brady Bunch. Jimmy Barnes tells this stark story with simplicity and grace, not trying to make excuses yet still showing love for his family and understanding of their experiences.
The first volume of two, I look forward to seeing how Jimmy's legacy impacted his career as a rock star and how he learned to overcome his inheritance and become a better man but I cannot imagine the sequel being able to match this raw, beautifully told story of his childhood.
Tuesday, 24 January 2017
The world without us by Alan Weisman
My first completed book of the year was a re-read of the great thought experiment by Alan Weisman, The World Without Us. The premise is simple, what would happen if humans all died today, in a way that did not involve any collateral damage to the Earth?
Weisman researched deeply and consulted many experts in engineering, biology, nuclear power and other fields to present a picture of what would come next. Fascinating and a brilliant head fake in the Randy Pausch tradition. Weisman's detailed account of a future without people serves to illuminate the impact we are having upon the planet right now as many of the consequences he outlines are consequences that we will have to face up to going forward. It's a book that supports conservation whilst barely mentioning the word.
Clear, concise, elegant, relatively short. A magnificent book and one of my favourite non fiction reads over the last decade.
Weisman researched deeply and consulted many experts in engineering, biology, nuclear power and other fields to present a picture of what would come next. Fascinating and a brilliant head fake in the Randy Pausch tradition. Weisman's detailed account of a future without people serves to illuminate the impact we are having upon the planet right now as many of the consequences he outlines are consequences that we will have to face up to going forward. It's a book that supports conservation whilst barely mentioning the word.
Clear, concise, elegant, relatively short. A magnificent book and one of my favourite non fiction reads over the last decade.
A Year of books
I inhale words, there's not been a night of my adult life where I haven't read something before going to bed. Once, books held sole place in my nightly Festival of Reading. Those days are long gone, my trusty tablet has intruded into my bedroom and seized control of the reading agenda, just as the Internet bulldozed its way into my daily Reading Festivals and slashed the number of books I read over time. I still read books and by most people's standards, I read a lot of books. For the owner of a rather extensive library, however, the number has dropped below acceptable levels and my ability to read for long periods of time without stopping has also diminished. Far worse than not being the man I used to be, I'm not the reader I used to be!
It's time, indeed it's beyond time to fight back. I am challenging myself to read more books. I don't know what my baseline is any more, so this year I will set a baseline by recording each book that I read and writing a short review about it.The world, after all, needs to know what my opinions about the things that I read are. Granted, the world isn't aware of this need, but Rome wasn't built in a day.
The ground rules: A book that has been read for the first time or substantially re-read shall be counted and reviewed. Reviews will be short. Picture books do not have to be counted but longer books that I read to Cassie do count. Reviews shall be posted here and on goodreads. This post will be updated periodically with the list of books read and links to the varying reviews.
The use of cliches and other writing shortcuts is permitted.
It's time, indeed it's beyond time to fight back. I am challenging myself to read more books. I don't know what my baseline is any more, so this year I will set a baseline by recording each book that I read and writing a short review about it.The world, after all, needs to know what my opinions about the things that I read are. Granted, the world isn't aware of this need, but Rome wasn't built in a day.
The ground rules: A book that has been read for the first time or substantially re-read shall be counted and reviewed. Reviews will be short. Picture books do not have to be counted but longer books that I read to Cassie do count. Reviews shall be posted here and on goodreads. This post will be updated periodically with the list of books read and links to the varying reviews.
The use of cliches and other writing shortcuts is permitted.
Sunday, 14 February 2016
Went's Wonderful Web - Stumble Upon
One of the great blessings of the Internet is the sheer size and
variety of great content that is out there. This is also one of the
problems, how do you find the great content, that you would be
interested in, that you know is out there, waiting for you to visit it?
Stumble Upon is a website that aims to help solve this problem. You visit their homepage and you can log in using your Facebook profile or create a new profile specifically for Stumble Upon. After you've signed up, you'll be asked to add interests. You *MUST* do this if you want to get any benefit from the site. There are a lot of interests to choose from, so you might need half an hour or so to go through them all, but the process is worth the time.
Once you've added your interests, you're all set, you can return to the homepage and you'll find a collection of sites that you can go visit, personally tailored to your interests. You can also download an add-on for your browser, which was my preference. Whenever I'm bored online, I click the Stumble button in my browser and a new page will be presented to me. I have found many of my favourite sites using this button, if I particularly like/dislike a page, I can click a button to approve/disapprove of it. I don't do that particularly often, but your mileage may vary. If no one else has recommended the site, you get asked to fill out a little form describing the site - takes less than a minute if you choose to do it.
There are also apps for your phone but I prefer using the web browser as the sites look better. You have to be logged in to use the site so your stumbles are being recorded, they keep them on file in your history which you can check out on the main page. So if you're looking for perfect privacy online, this application isn't for you.
I've used StumbleUpon for years now and remain very pleased with it, it's found so many sites for me that were worth seeing and it's only a few seconds of my time if the site isn't worth seeing :). As the sites that you visit are tailored to your interests, a lot of them are going to appeal.
So, what are you waiting for? Give it a try!
This post was originally made in May 2014, it got targeted by some stupid bots and got thousands of 'hits'. That actually annoys me because I prefer my stats to be relatively accurate, so I've delted the original post and am re-publishing it here.
Stumble Upon is a website that aims to help solve this problem. You visit their homepage and you can log in using your Facebook profile or create a new profile specifically for Stumble Upon. After you've signed up, you'll be asked to add interests. You *MUST* do this if you want to get any benefit from the site. There are a lot of interests to choose from, so you might need half an hour or so to go through them all, but the process is worth the time.
Once you've added your interests, you're all set, you can return to the homepage and you'll find a collection of sites that you can go visit, personally tailored to your interests. You can also download an add-on for your browser, which was my preference. Whenever I'm bored online, I click the Stumble button in my browser and a new page will be presented to me. I have found many of my favourite sites using this button, if I particularly like/dislike a page, I can click a button to approve/disapprove of it. I don't do that particularly often, but your mileage may vary. If no one else has recommended the site, you get asked to fill out a little form describing the site - takes less than a minute if you choose to do it.
There are also apps for your phone but I prefer using the web browser as the sites look better. You have to be logged in to use the site so your stumbles are being recorded, they keep them on file in your history which you can check out on the main page. So if you're looking for perfect privacy online, this application isn't for you.
I've used StumbleUpon for years now and remain very pleased with it, it's found so many sites for me that were worth seeing and it's only a few seconds of my time if the site isn't worth seeing :). As the sites that you visit are tailored to your interests, a lot of them are going to appeal.
So, what are you waiting for? Give it a try!
This post was originally made in May 2014, it got targeted by some stupid bots and got thousands of 'hits'. That actually annoys me because I prefer my stats to be relatively accurate, so I've delted the original post and am re-publishing it here.
An update
Again, I'm not publicising this post, it's just a record for me and for those who are interested enough to click on it if they came here for something else.
I'm reasonably happy with my progress so far this year. I slashed the sugar intake once I got back from Canberra. I haven't gone quite as brutal as last time given that I do like the poisonous shit, but the reduction is significant. No chocolate or lollies or ice cream or biscuits at all so far, a handful of Cokes usually consumed at social events and 2 litres of orange juice purchased for home. Occasional drinking of cordial and ate about 4 Zooper Doopers in total.
I do intend to have sugar occasionally, but very much as a party food, eg, I will eat cake at dinners, and I will eat crap at morning teas at schools. I will have an Easter rabbit at Easter, but 1, not the usual half dozen! I have honey and jam at home and will use them sometimes.
I don't weigh myself much so I don't know if I've lost any weight, but there's been some small improvements in my back, which stiffens up and gets very sore after brief periods of walking and even when standing. The last few days it's lasted longer before bitching and hasn't bitched quite as hard. So that's a good sign. As the pain doesn't occur immediately, it's very likely caused by too much pressure applied by the weight. If I lose enough weight, it will probably disappear except for stiffness due to age.
I've done quite a bit to tidy and organise the house but that's very much a work in progress, the back room, the verandah, the shed and the back yard all require significant work. I've been devoting a lot of time to tutoring, improving the website, the advertising and the organisation of my resources. There's been considerable progress on that front and I'm just about ready to resume full advertising. There's still plenty to do regarding the organisation of my resources, but I'm not displeased with how it's going.
I've started regular posts on my Facebook group for my tutoring and I have hopes that it will eventually reach a relatively wide audience - something in the hundreds would be great. About 20 viewers so far but I've only just started. It will pick up more as we go along.
I've made no progress re improving my own Maths skills, the other tasks have been crowding it out and will continue to do so for at least another month is my expectation. Once the advertising and the resources for Tutoring are up to standard the amount of time I need to devote to those things will drop substantially, opening up time for regular Maths work.
I'm not getting a lot of casual work, I will make some further efforts to get some as I'm hoping for 60-80 days this year and I've only had 2 to date. I'm finished with full time teaching, I'd seek work outside of education altogether rather than do that again.
I'm doing some exercise, not enough, but it is moving up the priority list and reducing weight will make exercise easier to do. Walking has been hurting too much so losing enough weight to repair the back is crucial. That would also let me play tennis again.
I want to write more, including finishing my series of sports nostalgia posts here. I think that's a couple of months off, but once the Tutoring organisation campaign is finished, there will be time for that as well. I don't entertain any great ambitions to become a major author, but I'd like to be able to call myself a writer knowing that I am doing enough of it to justify the claim.
I don't have a shortage of things that I would like to write, so it's a matter of finding the time to fit it into the regular routines of my life.
Nothing especially dramatic to report here, but it's another post made and I like the idea of making it semi-public, adds a little spice to the activity, rather than just journalling it for myself.
I'm reasonably happy with my progress so far this year. I slashed the sugar intake once I got back from Canberra. I haven't gone quite as brutal as last time given that I do like the poisonous shit, but the reduction is significant. No chocolate or lollies or ice cream or biscuits at all so far, a handful of Cokes usually consumed at social events and 2 litres of orange juice purchased for home. Occasional drinking of cordial and ate about 4 Zooper Doopers in total.
I do intend to have sugar occasionally, but very much as a party food, eg, I will eat cake at dinners, and I will eat crap at morning teas at schools. I will have an Easter rabbit at Easter, but 1, not the usual half dozen! I have honey and jam at home and will use them sometimes.
I don't weigh myself much so I don't know if I've lost any weight, but there's been some small improvements in my back, which stiffens up and gets very sore after brief periods of walking and even when standing. The last few days it's lasted longer before bitching and hasn't bitched quite as hard. So that's a good sign. As the pain doesn't occur immediately, it's very likely caused by too much pressure applied by the weight. If I lose enough weight, it will probably disappear except for stiffness due to age.
I've done quite a bit to tidy and organise the house but that's very much a work in progress, the back room, the verandah, the shed and the back yard all require significant work. I've been devoting a lot of time to tutoring, improving the website, the advertising and the organisation of my resources. There's been considerable progress on that front and I'm just about ready to resume full advertising. There's still plenty to do regarding the organisation of my resources, but I'm not displeased with how it's going.
I've started regular posts on my Facebook group for my tutoring and I have hopes that it will eventually reach a relatively wide audience - something in the hundreds would be great. About 20 viewers so far but I've only just started. It will pick up more as we go along.
I've made no progress re improving my own Maths skills, the other tasks have been crowding it out and will continue to do so for at least another month is my expectation. Once the advertising and the resources for Tutoring are up to standard the amount of time I need to devote to those things will drop substantially, opening up time for regular Maths work.
I'm not getting a lot of casual work, I will make some further efforts to get some as I'm hoping for 60-80 days this year and I've only had 2 to date. I'm finished with full time teaching, I'd seek work outside of education altogether rather than do that again.
I'm doing some exercise, not enough, but it is moving up the priority list and reducing weight will make exercise easier to do. Walking has been hurting too much so losing enough weight to repair the back is crucial. That would also let me play tennis again.
I want to write more, including finishing my series of sports nostalgia posts here. I think that's a couple of months off, but once the Tutoring organisation campaign is finished, there will be time for that as well. I don't entertain any great ambitions to become a major author, but I'd like to be able to call myself a writer knowing that I am doing enough of it to justify the claim.
I don't have a shortage of things that I would like to write, so it's a matter of finding the time to fit it into the regular routines of my life.
Nothing especially dramatic to report here, but it's another post made and I like the idea of making it semi-public, adds a little spice to the activity, rather than just journalling it for myself.
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