Outcome: "Win"
Record: 34-0
Streak: 34

Summary: Talk about bullshit: I was shopping for a USB cable to connect my new printer, and the ones I found seemed outrageously expensive. $20 at Staples and $35 at Best Buy. What the hell? I don't remember simple cables being that ridiculously expensive. They cost as much as some of the cheaper inkjets. I refrained from making a purchase, and when I got home, I looked on newegg, which is where I got my printer, and I found one for $1. ONE DOLLAR! What is going on with that mark-up? A 3,400% mark-up is worse than wine at a fancy restaurant. Anyway, put a point on the board for frugality (I feel virtuous with my laser printer and $1 cable; I may never go to a brick and mortar electronics store again).
I shopped, had a nice lunch with Eva, stayed calm and relaxed most of the time (shopping on Saturdays is often one of the most stressful times of my week), I'm going to put in an hour of writing, and then I'm going to work on my outline of How to Read a Book. It was a nice day overall--I especially enjoyed the colors outside.

Outcome: "Win"
Record: 33-0
Streak: 33

Summary: worked, finished my french lesson, went to my meeting in Baltimore, and wrote for two hours. The meeting was great. The person was helpful and encouraging. I'm 99% sure that I'm going for the Penn M.Arch degree with a certificate in ecological design. I got some contacts and things to look into.

Outcome: "Win"
Record: 32-0
Streak: 32

Summary: other than the usual, finished writing the hardest section of the novel so far, wrote two e-mails for "b" and printed out some materials for my meeting tomorrow. I skated for the first time in months tonight. It sucks because everytime I stop I'm back to square one when I start. I'm back at my 8th grade level, so to speak. Oh well, fuck it, it's fun. I also realized that I love lasagna. I made a pan tonight for dinner, and it blew my mind. Listening to Satie right now. So beautiful. Les trois sarabandes, gymnopedies, et gnossiennes.

Outcome: "Win"
Record: 31-0
Streak: 31

Summary: Worked, had an ethics victory, ate more healthfully than usual to compensate for last night, wrote for an hour, and set up a meeting for Friday.

Outcome: “Win”
Record: 30-0
Streak: 30

Summary: In keeping with my goal of cultivating a tranquil state of mind, I took a refreshing break for an hour and a half this afternoon. I rode my bike around the neighborhoods, looking at the trees, and I chilled out on a dock to watch the sun set. I also drank some herbal tea at work. I observed my ethics, wrote for an hour, and made a strategic move in “b”. I have two hours surplus at work still, which I think I’ll use Friday for a meeting for “b”.

Monthly Summary: The biggest thing is that I think I’ve found my system. It’s flexible enough that it can change as needed while still retaining its fundamental identity. To use the language of a famous proverb, I’ve figured out how to fish, and even though the catch might fluctuate, I’m still going to be eating. One big testament to the system’s quality, aside from the 30 days themselves, is the fact that the 30 days haven’t felt hard, barring one or two. That’s huge, namely, that the system be sustainable.
Objectively I’ve done a lot. I checked the blog and I hadn’t started actually writing my second novel draft before the 30 days began. In that time, I’ve completed about 17% of my second, almost polished draft. So in five more months, maximum, I should have a solid draft. I know that sounds like a lot, but I don’t care, because I’m moving forward with my other plans, and I’m not going to rush my writing. It’s infinitely better than last year in the sense that it’s actually something, i.e, more than zero. Those months will be over before any of us know it.
Plan b went from a vague concept to a tangible project. I’m meeting with someone in Baltimore on Friday who runs a sustainable design firm, and I’ve been in contact with several other environmentally related organizations in the area. I’ve also been writing to Upenn about their program and beginning the process of putting together my application.
My ethics have been overall solid this month. Not much to say about that in such a public forum, as much of that has to do with personal relationships.
I’ve also been sure to put in full, honest days of labor at work. It’s been annoying at times, since my true interests are suspended while I’m there. But I’ve used the time well given the weird schedule.
So I'm picking this up where I left off, and I can't remember the order of thoughts that I had in my head yesterday. Incidentally, I had a meaningful ethics victory last night and today, but that type of stuff I don't really want to put into the blog.
Objectively speaking, I wrote 17% of my book. Next month I would like to at least continue at this rate. I picked up a book about writing that was recommended to me by a St. John's tutor. It will probably affect my approach, but I'm not sure if it'll effect my absolute output. With regard to "b", I narrowed down my interests, first of all. At the beginning of the month I was trying to everyone about what I want to do since it wasn't focused. Now I'm much more focused, I think the Penn program in architecture would probably suit my interests well, and the path between where I am and there seems somewhat clear to me. I also have 1 internship that I might get that I've already applied to, one very promising contact in Annapolis, and a meeting on friday with someone in Baltimore. I have plans about next month, but I'll keep them to myself at the moment. Work was straightforward, but even with the job that I have I saved a respectable amount of money. I'm not stressing about money at any rate. Next month will be more of the same. (Not that I have the mythical 7 that's being chased around here, but I'm good for now). I've been getting into much better shape. I don't know how much weight I lost in this last month, but overall I've lost about 30 lbs. I don't know what weight at which I want to stop my descent--it'll more be a question of when my body looks right to me. More of the same next month, which should be a lot, considering what I've done this month. In French I've been keeping a steady pace. I'll keep going with 1 lesson a week, which means I'll finish my program in three months. It sounds like a lot, but I just need that 15 minutes a day. I'm also going to start reading Harry Potter in French to master the level of elementary reading in that language, to use the How to Read a Book term. After that I'll start reading heavier stuff. Speaking of reading, now I'm going to apply the system from the aformentioned book (not Harry Potter) whenever I read. I'm extremely psyched about the growth of understanding that it should bring.

Outcome: "Win"
Record: 29-0
Streak: 29

Summary: Good ethics, worked very hard, stored up two hours for writing later in the week, and put in a solid hour on project b. I also got a great start on my French for this week, actually pulling ahead of my normal mark. I plan to do at least 1 hour of reading tonight. I'm making a chart for the system presented in How to Read a Book. Seriously, read it.
This morning I was thinking about ideal states of mind. One state of mind which has some virtues and is generally respected is the warrior state of mind. In this state of mind you are a beast, and everything you have to do is like a battle in which you're going to dominate your opponent. It's all about intensity. I like this state of mind in some respects, but I am pretty sure that it's not the best. I think it's better to be rational, calm, and optimistic. This ties into my whole thing about psychic energy. So, in following up on my stated area for improvement in my weekly summary, I'm going to cultivate the compassionate monk's state of mind. That will be in the forefront of my challenges. I want to relax my stomach muscles and breathe deeply. I want to be slow to anger and quick to forgiveness. I want to focus on one task at a time, calm and reassured that everything will get done in due time because I have crafted a rationally sound plan. I will save energy and be less prone to fucking up, freaking out, and mistreating others. This is my hypothesis.

Outcome: "Win"
Record: 28-0
Streak: 28

Summary: At first I couldn't make it for an entire week and now it's been four. I would think that I'd be happier than I am now, but I feel like shit. Probably because of the Eagles. Win or lose, I'll still root for them and watch the games.

Week in Review
Things I did well:
1. Put in a solid effort on the novel.
2. Put in a solid effort at work.
3. Read a lot--finished How to Read a Book for the first time, and last night I blasted through Encyclopedia of Manliness, although that wasn't "reading for understanding" as Adler and Van Doren put it, it was "reading for entertainment", so it's less of an accomplishment, if it's an accomplishment at all.
4. Made a few strong moves on project b. It's tough at times because my problem is precisely that I don't have a place to start, which is what I need to solve me problem. But I'm getting there, and I know that soon things will take off.
5. Finished an entire French lesson, as planned.
6. Didn't let the Eagles loss affect me too adversely.
Things I need to work on:
1. Controlling my feeling of being hurried and my irrational stress. Saturday was kind of bad. I have two strategies for this. One is to continue doing what I have been doing, which is to meditate and work on cultivating a calm, rational state of mind. This works sometimes and doesn't work other times. I think over all I'm winning that battle. The other thing is looking into therapy. Before I can do that I need insurance. And before I get that I'd need to get another job.
That's about it for stuff that's glaring. I just need to maintain, continue plugging away and executing on the big stuff. Ethics, book, project b, and work, that comprises "the big stuff".