100 Things That Made My Year 2024

 Things That Made My Year 2024

1.  What Matters 2024.  In June, brainstormed this RD: slowing down/stopping, noticing, being grateful/thanking, making, questing/trying something new, savoring, washing the dishes/maintaining with love, begining again, repairing/making things better.  (I added these words to the side later: do something hard/be uncomfortable, say hello/connecting/checking in/listening)
2.  Current Teachers.  Thinking on the regular about who are my current teachers... micro teachers...
3.   Death Clock.  I began writing my death clock on top of each month's log staring in March.  In May I hit 9500.  In June I write: "I'm at 9468... at what date does what's left get 'precious'? the last M&M in the bag.... don't waste it! don't let it go to waste!"  Countdown Clock and How Much Time do We Have Left? and
4.   Biking.  I bought a Priority belt-drive bike.  I bought two panniers so that when commuting I can take off my backpack. One turns into a backpack; the other (from REI) is light and easy to remove - this is the one that I continue to use; First time to school - May 15 (#33 ->40 for spring semester); I buy a $35 back bike light from Machine Row bikes in Madison that is rechargeable and does different patterns. 
5.   Bike exploration.  I did a bunch of bike explorations and bike journeys during the summer.  Maybe 29 of them? Some had specific plans - go to Harbor Frieght, the Brookfield Post Office, then Aldi, some were directional ("bike to the SW and see how far you can get in 30 mins").
6. Bike vacations.  I brought my road bike on Door County trip and did two long rides there; on another trip, J and I brought bikes to Madison and did two bike rides in the city.  
7. Bike group.  I rode with Erwin a few times this summer, I also road to Geneva (60 miles) with Mike S and the Tower Riding Group.
8.  Bike to Work. Jan 1-2; April 19-27; May 28-40; August 1-9; Sept 10-23; Oct 24-39; Nov 40-46; 
9. Books that had excellent moments that made me think at times, but mostly I didn't like them: 100 Essays by Sarah Ruhl (5 TILF and Teach us how to wait and Life is About Pleasure and), Wintering, You Could Make this Place Beautiful by Maggie Smith, Outside Lies Magic
10.  Favorite Fiction.  A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki (book notes here),  Playground by Richard Powers, The Nix by Nathan Hill at the very end of the year, Cahokia Jazz by Francis Spufford, Austerlitz by W.G. Sebald, Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki (book notes here), James by Percival Everett, Table for Two by Amor Towles, completely unexpected favorite: Northwoods by Amy Pease, The Wren The Wren by Anne Enright, Villa E by Jane Alison
11.  Stephen King, for another year. Stephen King's You Like It Darker and Mr. Mercedes and The Cell, by which I blacktopped my driveway, and Under the Dome (Feed Me)
12. Nonfiction Books.  Reinventing Bach by Paul Elie (book notes here), Master of the Senate, by Mark Caro (1167 pages!) (Report on the Status of Legislation and Muffle the Dissent), A Fever in the Heartland by Timothy Egan,  The Wager by David Grann, Once Upon a Prime by X.... Vibrant Matter by Jane Bennett, Zeitoun, which I decided to teach,   Vincent and Theo by X, The Creative Act by Rick Rubin (booknotes here), How to Know a Person by David Brooks, At Home by Bill Bryson
13. Buddhist Books. When You Greet Me I Bow and Training in Compassion by Norman Fischer (Booknotes on Training in Compassion), Taking the Leap by Pema Chodron, 
14. Books for fun. Really loved Horror Movie by Paul Tremblay and enjoyed mindless fun of The Secret and Nothing to Lose by Lee Child, The Thirst by Jo Nesbo, Everyone in my Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson, Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith
15. ReRead Books. White Noise by Don DeLillo, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey, both for book clubs for teaching AP Lit
16. Reading Poetry.  Made Ted Kooser document of favorite poems. Learned of new poets in You are Here by Ada Limon.  Read a book of poems about birds editted by Billy Collins. Read Felon by Reginald Dwayne Betts. Read Felicity by Mary Oliver, Splitting an Order by Ted Kooser
17. Garden. Each year I'm getting more from the garden.  Not too long ago I read that you should plant more of what you really like and less of things that are hard to take care of.  I harvested lettuces and arugula in May and June, green beans in June and the beginning of July, Cucumbers in mid-July, raspberries in spring and mid August, tomatoes through August. April (week 15) prep garden; (week 16) plant garden
18. First tomato- July 23, by August 23, I'm only getting a few per day; still some tomatoes early Sept; one last plant keeps going thru the beginning of October
19. Cut flowers in the house.  Mom said that she likes to have cut flowers from the garden in the condo.  Maybe I heard her say Zinnias.  I planted a bunch and they have become a seasons-long joy -- both in the garden and in the house.  I began cutting other flowers to add to them - hostas, anenomes, bee balm earlier in the year.  In August I began adding blooming grasses.
20. Flower baskets. Zinnias and petunias that last from May through August. September!
21. Flowers as part of the garden. I used to plant some chrysanthemums for bug control.  This year I planted Zinnias which are quite tall and expressive.
22. Guitaring.  I practiced 10x in January, 22x in February, 12x in March.  16x in July.  In July my practice began when I realized that I would learn 312 songs before I die if I memorize or learn 1 per month.  I began in earnest, learning one per month and trying to memorize an older one that I have learned and forgotten.  The memorization for Study 12 has been a challenge in July, but I'm getting there.  My "fall guitaring" gets to 100 by Nov 18.  End of Dec I'm 120.
23.   Guitar.  Finally learned what CAGED really is in July and it becomes a portal to chord shapes and voicings.  Learned from YouTube on the chords from Lay Down Sally. from Marty Guitars.  
24.   Guitar repertoire. I begin a project in August of learning two songs a month -- one old one that I try to memorize and one new one that I have to work through.  I record the songs on Voice memos.  By end of September, I have recorded 5.  Guitar daily practices: July 1-18; Aug -43; Sept -66; Oct - 87.  (I had a short stint of guitar praticing at the end of January and most of February, where I relearened Scarlatti).
25. Being more fit.  I began running farther - up to 6 miles on Sundays in Bemis.  And continued to run MWF pretty religiously.  I continue to run Fullersburg Woods on Fridays (a practice I started during summer school in 2023) and often run Bemis on Wednesdays and Spring Rock on Mondays. In May it has become such a habit that I rearrange my schedule on challenging days in a single week to fit all the runs in (and run after 2 beers); In July I began lifting (mostly body weight stuff, always a small number of exercises) almost every day.  In July, I also add a fourth day to my run -- this is when I'm no longer doing the weekly bike ride to Geneva
26.   Benches after runs.  One of my favorite parts of running is the park bench I sit in when it's done.  On Mondays I sit in the middle of spring rock park and watch the garden, one Wednesdays at Bemis I stand on top of the bridge or if I'm in neighborhoods, I am at Field Park bench; on Fridays there are a couple different benches in Fullersburg Woods; On Sundays at Bemis, there is the bench by Go Ape where I park my car.  In the fall, running at FW was often a race with the dusk.  Often I continued my run with a walk of ten or fifteen minutes.  There was a memorable supermoon walk and another walk into the dark (in December) when dozens and dozens of geese came to land on Salt Creek.
27.   Reflection Project #1. When I did my blog index, I kept the notes here, in a file called Dave's Booklet.  I didn't know yet what I was going to do with this trove of stuff.  One of the categories was reflection questions that I had accumulated.  That became the first project to spin off the blog -- a book of daily and yearly reflection questions.  
28. Reflection Project #2. Cards.  In July I got the idea to put daily reflection questions on index cards with a key ring on the corner.  This idea morphed into a set of daily processes and monthly processes.  One card has like 70 reminders on it - daily meditations, daily new music listening, daily reflection question, weekly chores, monthly chores, the Jazz Year that I'm working through, etc.  I borrowed this idea then for school -- what's my opening procedures? what's my weekly reflection? etc.
29. Reflection Project #3. Journal. Then I begin to write 2 questions per page in the back of the Sept-EOY journal, the 7 big reflective questions, then write the date and an update on that reflection. Connction, Passion Project, Teachers, World/Health, Comfort Zone, Naikan, Try something new/Adventure/novelty; also, Monthly Haiku prompts
30. House Care.  I installed a new (quieter!) ceiling fan in the mater bedroom in April; I sealcoated the driveway again in July.  I bought a long tree trimmer to cut new growth on maple tree that we had trimmed last year, I began a month limb cutting from the overgrown junk tree by the garage which had gotten all into the cable lines on hanging on the garage roof, I re-caulked a number of windows in the house.
31.   Blog Index. From Feb to May I do a 3+ year blog index in this document  here.  In Sept I add the index from this year - May->Sept; My goal is that this will spawn a number of projects.  see Reflection project #1 and #2 above.  In Dec I add Oct-Dec.
32.  What "contributes to" a life well spent? Idea for a book where each chapter is an idea from a specific "teacher." Start with the "ideal": Thoreau, Emerson, Muir; Then a chapter about a practice that gets us there: Baubauta, Langer, Brach, TNH, Humphries, Harjo, Chodron, Greg.  The book can also be about "what gets in the way" - hiding, fear, discomfort, distraction
33.  Blog.  I complete another year of blogging every day.  I continue to do "middle seasons" collages on the 10th, 20th, and last day of each month.  I continue to post poems on the 1st, 11th, 21st.  I begin posting artwork on the 15th after the Nov trip to Boston.
34. Cooking.  I began making the Cooks Illustrated granola recipe and having it around, I pickled cucumbers from the CSA and our garden using a spicy brine from Cookie and Kate, I continue to make a pot of beans per week, I collected 6 Buddha Bowl recipes and tried them in continuing weeks and have incorporated them as part of the usual menu (on Mondays). I started making an air fryer eggplant parmesan, I made raspberry blueberry crumble.  I made a quiche in January with a very good crust.
35.  Big batches. I begin regular stocking up for up quinoa, rice, Cooks' Illustrated granola, oatmeal.... freezer pantry filling;  The InstantPot is my most used kitchen implement, followed closely by the Air Fryer.  
36.   Documentaries. Leonardo, Martha, Get Back
37.   Cicadas.  See them May.  See bird with cicada in mouth May 16; not that they "begin emerging" on 17th; 
38.   Concerts.  Sarah Shook and the Disarmers in Forest Park in August was the best.  Another real memorable concernt and venue: Saw Gillian Welch with J at Cahn Auditorium with J; Saw Marc Ribot and (later) Alejandro Escovedo with T&J at Fitzgeralds - both not great; Tu night jazz at Skeleton Crew; Boston Symphony in Nov
39.   I completed my 26th year at Hinsdale Central and started my 27th year.  (In December I reviewed information from TRS and found that June 1, 2030 should be my retirement date.)
40.   Watching the Summer Olympics. 
41.   Watching a couple season of the Netflix Tour de France TV show.
42.  Asheville Spring Break trip.  Impressions of Asheville 
43. Madison Vacation #1.
44. Madison Vacation #2. (7/5)
45. Madison Vacation #3.
46.  Madison Vacation #4. (10/14) Leave Cafe Coda Jazz; Spring Green Bluegrass jam; 
47.  ChatGPT at home.  I used ChatGPT as a "thing" to bounce ideas off of.  I asked it to help me create "annual reflection questions" using people that I admire - JKZ, TNH, Tara Brach, etc. (also create monthly intentions list
48.   Chat GPT at work.  In August I used it to help me create some gamified word games and lessons for school.  It feels very much like brainstorming with someone who can help create structure, fill in the gaps of ideas, and occassionally surprise you with good ideas.  
49. Daily Haiku.  Not really daily.  Here's where I keep them. (I'm seeing that it was a project I started in April 2023.  In August of this year I wrote a dozen.  I commit to daily writing this year in April, too.  At some point I came up with spreadsheet model of keeping them.  Blog: What brings you joy? write a haiku
50. My Touareg.  It went over 150K this summer.  It got new tires.  It has served very well and I'm grateful!
51.  Shokz headphones.  My AirPods Pro began making crackly sounds and caused me some ear irritation; the Shokz work great and are safer for biking and running and don't go in the ear canal.
52.  Movies/TV. Turn Every Page about Mark Caro and his editor.
53.  Generate a Good Motivation Thubten Chodron
54.  90% Solar Eclipse in April.
55.  Excellent sentences, like Mark Caro and 
56.  Friends.  Todd, Jeff and I got together a couple times at Bubble house brewery, we ate German food before that. Todd and I exchange a weekly playlist on Spotify.  I begin - about week 30 - to give them genres:  once a month jazz, classical, twice a month rock/alt/pop
57.  Jennie hosts Carol Jago at Nazareth.  (The Magic Ingredient)
58.  Artwork I like.  Rockweed by Andy Goldsworthy
59.  Podcasts.  I didn't listen to many.  "People I Mostly Admire" with Stephen Leavitt
60.  WFMU.  I use the archive like crazy to listen to DJs and increase my knowledge (and Spotify store) of music.  I begin to get tired of the Michael Shelley show and by September am loving Toddophonic Todd's show... which is sometimes 3 hours!  The player is improved so that you see the playlist and can "click around" for songs.
61.  Helping Mom and Dad.  In May try to help fix printer a couple times, then come to set up new one; In September help move a new piece of furniture in;  Give them our bistro table; Refix stereo hookup in November.  I built them a google sheets budget spreadsheet, then updated it for 2025 in December.
62.  Ten Things Now.  
63.  Cicadas arrived in May
64.  Monthly Intentions 
65.  Thinking about What Matters now and in 2014
66.  Making things with wood.  I created a prototype of a stationary holder, then made one out of 1/4" plywood.  I made three fan trellises (learning how to rip safely) out of a cedar fence panel, I made small trellis (x2) for x flower to grow on,   I bought a roller to catch wood and a push stick, assembled a work table I bought from Aldi a year ago.
67.   Dyson animal ball vacuum.  Lumbering, but solid; I buy one directly from factory in Nov.
68.   First official act.... of summer.  Second official act of summer.  I like this phrase and the next.
69.   Accumulating signs of spring... of fall
70.   Blog index.  Created this massive blog index.  This led to reflection cards.
71.  Twitter is a wasteland.  Instead, read blogs: M - Alastair H, Tu - Sarah Hendron or Mandy Brown, W - Marc Zao Sanders/ Leo Baubauta; Th - James Clear; F - Kleon; Sa- Alan Jacobs, Su - Cool Tools/ Kevin K
72. House Ownership/Sisyphisian Chores.  As I do more deep cleaning, I notice house things that need maintenance -- while washing windows, I see that the window caulk needs to be repaired in many places
73. Everything in its Place.  After several times not knowing where to find X, I begin a massive organization project.  I store it in Google Keep.
74. Book Order Spreadsheet.  Proud of a book order spreadsheet I create because I need to buy each book for teachers this year.
75. The Verbs of Summer.  On June 6, I wrote: outside in afternoon yesterday - climbing ladder, moing kayaks, rehanging ladder, clipping, lifting, moving, cutting, gluing, nailing, carrying heavy things, measuring, marking
76. Classical Music.  Rosalyn Tureck play Bach in a very Glen Gould way before GG's recording; Josh Rifkin does small scale mass in B minor (of Bach), Olaf Viking (Viking Olafson?) playing Philip Glass; Rene Fleming singing a piece about Georgia O'Keefe and Alfred Steiglitz at BSO while we are in Boston, 
77. Wonderstate Coffee.  On several of the trips to Wisconsin, I bring back a big bag of Wonderstate coffee on sale.  It's a good way to keep a memory of the place. It's delicious.  It's roasted in the town we visited on the west side of the state:
78. Nespresso.  More elevated than either Vias or Keurig.  I begin buying sleeves of Nespresso and using Mike Palmquist's machine at school 3-4x a week.
79. McDonalds Coffee.  and on Fridays I'll drive to work so that I can run at Fullersburg Woods. On the way in the morning, I'll stop for a large black coffee.
80. William Street Co-Op. We joing the Co-op.  Visit Madison several times.  Our regular grocery list includes: Wonderstate Coffee, MSD bread, bulk barley and bulgur; Origin Bakery wheat bread
81. Favorite Restaurant Dishes: Madison sour dough - molasses cookie, minestrone
82. Changing Seasons: Summer. insect on screen of window; Hummingbirds through Sept, impatiens, raspberries
83. Changing Seasons: Fall. Oct 15 garden cut down, Oct 22: Service berry changing color by driveway (that apple pink), Oct 25 - riding through a colorful tunnel of trees; 24 - last cut Zinnias; season of foxes and skunks; Nov 2 - sandhill cranes; Nov 7 - trees pretty much empty now
84. Menu. Trying to improve menu game this year - trying to sort through all old saved recipes - trying to list recipes around the core pots of beans
85. Scrapbooks!  I began keeping scrapbooks this year:  
86. My Core Teachers This Year:
1.  Ruth Ozeki (interview with Ezra Klein highlights here and Fluxus and When You Read these Words on the Page and), 
2. Kevin Kelly (collected items from his book of advice here and Usually It's the Fifth Idea and Catalog of Possibilities and Advice at 73 and ), 
3. Norman Fischer (I am Grateful that you are in my life and We Live in Relation and Pass thru the dry place and No Fear and The Manner in Which Something is Accomplished and BookNotes on Training in Compassion
4. James Clear newsletter, (Mundanity of Excellence and Unit of Measure and It's the Way I Want to Live My Life and Know Your Next Step and It's Beautiful to Do Things Right and Giving Credit to Others (Thank you page) and The Task You're Avoiding (the 2-min version) and Choose the Story you Tell About It and Create 25 of What You Need and Which activities are the best impressions of You?  (do it for 5 mins today) and The Things You Don't Have that You Don't Want and Problems Worth Solving and Proud of this Conversation and The Problems that Should Concern You and Is My Attention on Loving? and It's Not the answer the enlightens but the question and Five Good Minutes and What are You Practicing? 
5. Alastair Humphries (It only matters that you go)
6. Carl Jung (Surrender to the Current of My Thoughts and Booknotes on his book Dreams and Memories
7. Sara Hendron (On Design, Education and Limiting Virtues and Vocab Lesson and Who Taught Me)
8. Mandy Brown (Whose Benefits? Whose Risks?) and Doubt Opens and 
9. Alan Jacobs (How do we love rightly and teach others to love? and Against Efficiency and)
10. Brad Stulberg (on building resilience in a changing world), 
11. James Hollis (The purpose of addictions and Responses to Powerlessness and What You Do Not Bring Forth Will Destroy You) and 
12. Rob Walker (Regrounding Exercise and Every Single X Mission Packs and Surprise Dates and 
13. Leo Baubauta/ Zen Habits (Know Your Desires. Know Your Light and A Slightly More Challenging Path and What would it b like to slow down? and Abundance and Chaos and Commitment is a Practice and)
14. Gottman (A Real Apology and What Soothes You? and Build Love Maps and I appreciate exercise and Date Night Conversations and Make Them Feel Important
15. Austin Kleon (Creativity is a Volume Business and Funny and thoughtful gift giving and
16. Ellen Langer We Come Alive When We're Engaged and 
17. Pema Chodron Taking the Leap Booknotes
18. JKZ Invitation to be Fully Present and At Home in Heart, Mind, Body
19. Rick Rubin. Listening is Openly Receiving and The Outside World is a Conveyor Belt and Book Notes on The Creative Act and What's Worthy of Our Time and Attention and Live Life Like Landing a Plane and 
87. My Single Corest Teacher this Year: Gregg Krech and Naikan - Change your seeing and Purpose Centered Approach and Naikan Practice: the way the world is supporting us and (related from Seth Godin: Infrastructure) and Goals that Are Not Totally Self-Centered and On Just Getting Through the Year and No Drama and Services Provided and Naikan Year-End Reflection
88. Best January blog idea:  What if teaching made you more energetic? and the idea of Primordial Abundance 
89. Best February blog ideas: How to take pleasure in things and The Weave of Collective Attention
90. Best March blog ideas: The Dodge and The Real Luxuries and The Sentry
91. Best April blog ideas: The Magic Ingredient and Label Each One With a Purpose and How to Criticize Wisely and Surrender Myself to the Current of My Thought
92. Best May blog ideas: Sanctuary and Unafraid of Change and Three Small Shifts Make all the Difference and The Manner in Which Something is Accomplished
93. Best June blog ideas: Unit of Measure and It's the Way I Want to Live My Life and Create a Fun File
94. Best July blog ideas: What is it I really like? and
95. Best August blog ideas: Act as if what you do matters and What Would It Mean to Be Done for the Day and Fall in Love with the Struggle and If you let it alone and Decay and 
96. Best September blog ideas:
97. Best October blog ideas: Selecting, Sifting, rejecting Sorting and If you would be love, love and Blue Jays Imitating Hawks and In the Place You Actually Find Yourself and Less Planning and More Doing and Analog Living and The Things that are Saying Choose ME! and Daily Checklist: Repair, Explore, Build
98. Best November blog ideas: Care-taker and $1 will be extracted each hour and A Quick Painting to Document the Last Tomatoes and I am slightly undone, in a good way and Soto Zen Instructions
99. Best December blog ideas:  The Year of... and The World of the Happy 

Naikan Year-End Reflection

 Gregg Krech on Year-end Reflection

So I encourage you to take time and PAUSE and reflect on the year that is ending, before jumping into the New Year.   It can help us to honor the past year and to bring our best selves to the new year.  The following suggestions are adapted from Naikan: Gratitude, Grace & the Japanese Art of Self-Reflection (Stone Bridge Press) by Gregg Krech – (p.172-175)

1. Reflect on your mother, father or other people who have supported you during the past year. You may have received things during an earlier time period, but still benefited from them during this past year.  

2. Do Naikan reflection on someone with whom you’ve had difficulty, conflict, or tension during the past year. This can be challenging, since we all have our stories in place.  Sincere reflection allows you to challenge and modify your story.  It may soften your heart, which can allow for something new to occur.

The basic format of Naikan reflection is simple:  Select a specific person for a specific time period. Consider the following questions, spending 45-60 minutes for each period.  It can be helpful to capture your answers on paper.

– What did I receive from _____?

– What did I give to _______?

– What troubles or difficulties did I cause ______?

3. Reflect on your unfinished business.  What important work or projects have been left undone?  What important matters need resolution?  What important relationships need attention?

4. Make a list of up to fifty things/services you’ve received this past year without providing any compensation or consideration. These could be things you received as gifts, things you had access to for free, things you borrowed or stole, or things you used without payment.

5. Write thank-you letters to those who have supported you this past year. Be specific about why you appreciate their support. End the year by thanking others for their support, which allows them to start the year by knowing your gratitude for their efforts.

Don’t try to resolve your reflections and tie them into a tidy package of goals or resolutions. Just sit with the questions and consider your life and your conduct this past year. Sit quietly with your reflections  before you come to any conclusions about what needs to be done in the coming year.

Major Event Summary 2024

 January 2024 - Trip to New Buffalo with Jennie. Hike at Morton Arb in the snow, learn about Elmhurst Bike club; Karen Page insists on psych visit for dad; first Bavarian Lodge/Bubblehouse with Todd and Jeff; steady running -2 or 3x/ wk; occassional smell of the underworld coming from the sump pump pit (again after lots of laundry in Nov); 1/21 - CCL in Virgina for XC; 1/28 some red TP; 1/13 hear water dripping behind plastic in basement... water proofing working

February 2024.  Property Tax appeal. Toxic vortex with CCL/tuition. Tulips (22), Snowdrops (23), Sandhill Cranes (24)

March 2024. 9534 days left.  Working on blog index project. lunch with J at Marche. Massive RWB bird calling (16) at Fullersburg Woods, Get threatening lawyer letter, a new low (17) Spring Break Trip to Asheville.

April 2024. Drive home from Asheville.  Bubblehouse Brewery with Todd and Jeff. Prep and Plant garden. 90% solar eclipse in courtyard of school. See Marc Ribot and Alejandro Escovedo with T&J; Begin daily haiku; add "accelerations" to runs.  J hosts Carol Jago at Naz for CMEL; Continue indexing blog; send CCL $1000; 

May 2024. buy Priority 600 commuter bike. buy panniers; begin exploratory rides in different directions; garden: Cover 3 trees in netting for cicadas; plant garden; build plywood desk organizer work: articulation mtg with middle schools goes well; proud of complex book order spreadsheet I make for new we-buy-all-books process family: J struggling with dad relationship, KBL emails, wants $1K for HDL summer class; CCL home 5/9 for wisdom teeth removal; Hannah pregnant (born in Sept? early Oct?); Diane puts in for retirement; HG sleepwalking 80% of nights

June 2024. Door County trip (stay in Sturgeon Bay), bring bike for rides to Jacksonport and Potowatami, visit Bill and Susie, go to Washington Island; Woodwork- make 3 fan trellis, make 2 diplandia trellis, House: wash windows inside and out; recaulk many windows; Office; organize all old tax docs, make spreadsheet;  first time to CH pool; Moorings to help set up new printer, garden: trim maple, cut a couple limbs from junk tree, edge grass, clip branches, pull clover; HG bday leads to 2-day JG headache; HWx5; Dinner with Andy Jones and PQ; HG golf; see SG Goodman at SPACE; Anniversary dinner at Petite Vie, harvesting peas and beans, buy new running shoes; family: JG upset at Matt @ not rdg emails and missing golf event; JG continues to struggle with Harry; JG remakes HG's room to update for 12 year old; HDL says he's coming to visit G&G at Moorings (tells them, not me); (6/14) invites me to graduation, I decline; I see CCL stay in hotel near AllState Arena; I continue to be hopeless; first Geneva bike  bike ride

July 2024. Two trips to Wisconsin - bring bikes to Madison in early July (Taliesien, Catfish music fest), then to Driftless Area in late July. Pretty Zinnias in the garden. Get new entryway furniture from friend of M&D; Dad gets COVID again, sealcoat driveway, make kitchen storage cookie sheets; 

Passing.  Jeff's dad died ?

August 2024.  Trip to Madison. established guitar habit again -- a couple weeks 7 days/week.  Get lower left crown at dentist.  Raspberries ripen. Handful of tomatoes each day; De-ice "broken" basement freezer.  See Sarah Shook & the Disarmers in Forest Park. Super high dew points (75-78); begin UC flare-up; Running 3-4x/week. Running 6 miles on Sundays; Guitar #19-43; BTW #1-9; car in for 150K checkup; Andy Jones goes to Japan; begin the year review in here; UC flare up 8/23+

September 2024. UC flare-up; Guitar #44-66; BTW 10-22; Run 4x/week; left knee soreness; Morton Arb walk on Labor Day; Gillian Welch Concert in Evanston; Skeleton Crew brewery for Tu night jazz; text clash with CCL who shows no interest in regular communication; help parents a couple time move a piece of furniture to Moorings and set up stereo; HG volleyball;  HG tells Clare he's "afraid" of JG after she's frustrated with him; Hurricane from FL hits North Carolina; watch Moonflower Murders (veggie burgers, chickpea caesar salad, orchiette with tom and beans; reading Master of Senate, under the Dome, You are Here, How to know a person, Cartographers, Northwoods; 9350 left

October 2024.  9320 days left. Guitar 68-87. BTW 23-39.  Run 4x,3x,3x,4x. Trip to Verona and Gov Dodge over Columbus Day. Rash on flank.  Jennie has been fighting bloating by doing FODMAP diet.  She gets a colonoscopy in Oct.  CCL traveling with team - Madison, Loyola, Champaign, Nationals in Champaign.  Lots of XC and volleyball for HG.  Get shingles and Covid vax. Furnace needs repair - new board and igniter.

November 2024. 9289 left. Guitar 89-106.  BTW 40-46.  Run: total of 7x; Basement weights: 1. Donald Trump wins in landslide. Present at CEL in Boston with Jennie. Thanksgiving at Julie's, mom and dad come. Jennie gets new tires on her Jeep.  I sort and audit pantry.  My left knee is sore -- from running.  Out for after-work drinks with Myles.  Do first basement weights.  Excellent Indian-inspired tomato, chickpea soup.

December 2024. 9259 left.  Guitar: 107-120.  BTW: 47  Run:  Weights: 2x, 4x, 1x, _x; Colonoscopy gets good report on 20th.  Take m & d to Botanic Gardens lights.  Christmas at Anita's; mom and dad come. Lots of year-end reflection.  Start making bread again.  Start another sourdough starter. HG sick both weeks we have him.  Morton Arb walk with J.  Good soups: black bean, mushroom barley.

Life Hacks 2024

 Life Hacks I tried in 2024

1. Jazz/year chart.  I make a spreadsheet. This makes me see careers and the width of recordings per year.
2. New 10 Projects 2-page spread.
3. Protocol at the end of the hour
4. Monthly area "clean up".
5. The Things that are Saying Choose ME! and Daily Checklist: Repair, Explore, Build
6. My weekly playlists to Todd and Larry have genre themes that rotate monthly.
7. Comprehensive Clean Up of all areas.  Start recording where everything is in Google Keep.
8. Monthly mindfulness "focus" (awake, gladness, clarity, equanimity, connected, etc.)
9. Begin a Ted Kooser file of poems.
10. More serious workout: pull ups (5x3), kettle swing, bridge, plank (in Aug and Sept, I'm doing Hinge foot exercises and am doing 9x3 pull ups.
11. Creativity is a Volume Business (Kleon)
12. If you wanted to notice 10,000 things each year, you'd need to do 28 per day;
13. If I wrote a poem a day, from here on out, it would get me to about 10,000 by my actuarial death
14. do 4 things each day: make, build, repair, connect
15. over the summer, I made a chart, based on 11: read, exercise, garden, maintain/repair, explore/adventure, make/build (chart consists of the days of the month on the left side and those words as headings)
16. car snack: sugar snap peas and green beans from the garden.. mindless snacking
17. Some ideas that never materialized: write 10 "books" each year, each one containing 10 sub topics - recipe book - 10 categories, 10 best recipes for each; poetry book - 10 poets, 10 poems each, poetry book (25 each for spring summer, etc.)
18. index cards 10x10 (p.88) (10 meditation teachers (1 per card) with ideas from them on each card; top card TOC), when I do year review, use cards to index - one card for people, music, books, do the same for teaching ideas (10 topics, 10 ideas on each), cards for "audit my shit" or 100 things I learned or interesting ideas, facts, images, 
19. another idea that never materialized: what is the idea of the week? recipe of the week? quote of the week? 
20. another idea that never continued: record daily - 5 "images" from the previous day
21. another idea never continued: 365 days of X.... what's worth a yearly habit building (in previous years I'd thought of brief habits - 10 days in a row or 10x10)
22. Began reviewing year early - start with April in Sept, did May and June in Oct, July, Aug, Jan in Nov... (missing others).  But next year, I should do Jan-Mar in April.
23. Similarly, do blog index thru year, similiar 3-month spans.
24. Set the timer for sunset each day; 
25. Review day's notebook (field note notebook), circle some of the events -- best of? most alive? proud of? highlights? Time Well Spent
26. During day's review, see if there's a "daily theme" of what I observed/noticed (old people together, hawks, inspirational things?)
27. "The easy version"... get started, prototype the thing, do the easy version immediately
28. take time to list "my current teachers".... this could be each day, each week
29. In fall, I began reflecting on a daily question (of 7)... had them in the back of the daily journal
30. Grout cleaning paste - apply paste of baking soda, add hydrogen peroxide, scrub.  
31. Weight-lifting that I begin in Nov:  bulgarian split leg squats, shoulder press, flies, curls, goblet squats, bridges with weight, rows (from ground), swings (between legs), sit ups, "salutes" (raise weight straight in front), 
32. Instead of New Year's Resolutions, write a letter to yourself (Fast Company)
33. Alan Jacobs Weekly Review
34. Do Hard Things and Be Less Boring
35. Mr Elf - for when you feel at loose ends and have a few minutes
36. Implementation Intentions - and why timeboxing works
37. Implementation Intentions again - from a different source
38. Agile Results
39. Decide on Your Unit of Measure
40. Burkeman: In the Place You Actually Find Yourself and Less Planning and More Doing

The world of the happy

Georgia O'Keeffe Starlit Night, watercolor, 1917, 9"x12"

 “The world of the happy is quite different from the world of the unhappy.”— Ludwig Wittgenstein, Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus
[I ask Claude to make connections between this idea, that emotions are the fundamental filter of reality (Claude's word) and Buddhist meditation.... Claude replies:

Yes, there's a fascinating connection between Buddhist meditation practices and this idea of emotional filtering! Let me explain how they relate and build on each other.

In Buddhist meditation, particularly zazen, the core practice is indeed to simply observe both internal and external phenomena as they arise, without getting caught up in them. This practice reveals something profound about our emotional filters - we begin to see them in action rather than just experiencing reality through them unconsciously.

Think of it like sitting beside a river versus being swept along in its current. When we're caught up in our emotional filters, we're like someone being carried by the river - we can't really see the water we're in because we're too busy being moved by it. But in meditation, we metaphorically step onto the riverbank. From there, we can watch both external events (sounds, sensations) and internal events (thoughts, emotions) flow past without being swept away by them.

This relates to Wittgenstein's insight in a fascinating way. While Wittgenstein points out that our emotional state creates our world, meditation offers a way to step slightly outside this process and observe it happening. When practicing zazen, you might notice how an emotion like anxiety arises and immediately begins coloring your experience - making ordinary sounds seem threatening, or turning neutral body sensations into sources of concern.

What makes this especially interesting is that meditation isn't trying to eliminate emotional filters (which would probably be impossible and maybe not even desirable). Instead, it's developing what Buddhist teachers call "witness consciousness" - the ability to observe how our minds create our experience of reality. This awareness creates a kind of space between us and our emotional filters.

To make this more concrete, imagine you're sitting in meditation and feeling anxious. Rather than either trying to stop feeling anxious or getting lost in anxiety-filtered experience, you simply observe: "There's anxiety... it's making my chest feel tight... it's making that dog barking outside seem threatening... it's pulling my attention toward worried thoughts." This process helps us understand experientially what Wittgenstein described philosophically.

The ultimate Buddhist insight goes even deeper - suggesting that our very sense of having a fixed self is another kind of filter that shapes our experience. This is why advanced meditation practices often focus on questioning who or what is doing the observing, leading toward insights about the nature of consciousness and reality itself.

Time well spent

 

I began writing an hourly reflection after I thought about "100,000 hour left".  I was thinking "what will you do with your hours?"  (similar to "what will you do with your money?"  I would list items of the day, including small items, like "thought about..." or "listened to...." or "talk with Chris Wilbur in the bathroom about discussion structure...."  

At the end of each hour, do a reflection ("gently lifting the bone from a fish fillet" I write in my journal, but I don't understand why). What was the worthwhile bit?  Not the commute, but the audiobook... or th eimage in the scene in the book I'm reading.  

Then write: Get rough draft of next hour.  (I write:) item, present, gift.

Then, at the end of the day, I think, I circled some of the events (see photo).  Are these highlights?  Are these possible things that raise themselves from the hum-drum?

Books Read 2024 Table

Category	Books
Literary Fiction	The Nix (Nathan Hill) Villa E (Jane Alison) The Adventures of Augue March (Saul Bellow) The Light Pirate (Lily Brooks-Dalton) Playground (Richard Powers) Northwoods (Amy Pease) The Cartographers (Peng Shepherd) The Wren, the Wren (Anne Enright) Table for Two (Amor Towles) Let Us Descend (Jesmyn Ward) The Book of Form and Emptiness (Ruth Ozeki) James (Percival Everett) Austerlitz (W.G. Sebald) The Passenger (Cormac McCarthy) White Noise (Don DeLillo) A Tale for the Time Being (Ruth Ozeki)
Mystery / Crime / Thriller	The Cuckoo's Calling (Robert Galbraith) Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone (Benjamin Stevenson) The Thirst (Jo Nesbø) Nothing to Lose — Jack Reacher #12 (Lee Child) The Secret — Jack Reacher #28 (Lee Child) One Good Turn (Kate Atkinson) Beware the Woman (Megan Abbott)
Horror / Dark Fiction	Horror Movie (Paul Tremblay) Cell (Stephen King) You Like It Darker (Stephen King)
Classics	It Can't Happen Here (Sinclair Lewis) Anna Karenina (Leo Tolstoy) One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (Ken Kesey) What Maisie Knew (Henry James) Austerlitz (W.G. Sebald)
Poetry	Felon: Poems (Reginald Dwayne Betts) You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World (Ada Limon) You Could Make This Place Beautiful (Maggie Smith) Bright Wings: An Illustrated Anthology of Poems About Birds (Billy Collins) Splitting an Order (Ted Kooser) William Carlos Williams, Selected Poems (Randell Jarrell, ed.)
Essays / Literary Nonfiction	The Anthropocene Reviewed: Essays on a Human-Centered Planet (John Green) 100 Essays I Don't Have Time to Write (Sarah Ruhl) Zeitoun (Dave Eggers) A Book of Noises: Notes on the Auraculous (Caspar Henderson) Outside Lies Magic: Regaining History and Awareness in Everyday Places (John R. Stilgoe) At Home: A Short History of Private Life (Bill Bryson) Excellent Advice for Living: Wisdom I Wish I'd Known Earlier (Kevin Kelly)
Nature, Environment & Practical	Zugunruhe: The Inner Migration To Profound Environmental Change (Jason F. McLennan) Permaculture for the Rest of Us: Abundant Living on Less than an Acre (Jenni Blackmore) Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times (Katherine May)
Philosophy, Mindfulness, Psychology & Spirituality	Vibrant Matter: A Political Ecology of Things (Jane Bennett) Training in Compassion: Zen Teachings on the Practice of Lojong (Norman Fischer) Taking the Leap: Freeing Ourselves from Old Habits and Fears (Pema Chödrön) Memories, Dreams, Reflections (C.G. Jung) When You Greet Me I Bow: Notes and Reflections from a Life in Zen (Norman Fischer) How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen (David Brooks)
History, Biography & Politics	The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder (David Grann) A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan's Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them (Timothy Egan) Master of the Senate — The Years of Lyndon Johnson #3 (Robert A. Caro) Hubert Humphrey: A Biography (Carl Solberg) Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers (Deborah Heiligman) The Faith of Christopher Hitchens: The Restless Soul of the World's Most Notorious Atheist (Larry Alex Taunton)
Music, Art & Culture	The Creative Act: A Way of Being (Rick Rubin) Chain Saw Confidential: How We Made the World's Most Notorious Horror Movie (Gunnar Hansen) Cahokia Jazz (Francis Spufford) Reinventing Bach (Paul Elie) Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers (Deborah Heiligman)
Reading, Writing & Ideas	Still Writing: The Perils and Pleasures of a Creative Life (Dani Shapiro) Once Upon a Prime: The Wondrous Connections Between Mathematics and Literature (Sarah Hart) Outside Lies Magic: Regaining History and Awareness in Everyday Places (John R. Stilgoe)
Memoir & Personal Writing	Still Writing: The Perils and Pleasures of a Creative Life (Dani Shapiro) I Want to Thank You: How a Year of Gratitude Can Bring Joy and Meaning in a Disconnected World (Gina Hamadey) Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma (Claire Dederer) Chain Saw Confidential: How We Made the World's Most Notorious Horror Movie (Gunnar Hansen)
Drama	Leopoldstadt (Tom Stoppard)

10 Things about Christmas

 

Picasso - Santa Claus - 1959

10 Reasons I Don't Like Christmas

1. The generalized task of needed to buy presents; the request for lists
2. My own sense of failure at buying (or making or choosing) meaningful or fun gifts
3. Inflatables; the new arms race for bigger inflatables
4. Midnight mass...  my inability to understand why people would want to do that
5. Or any other Xmas mass...  why would going to mass 1 or 2x year count.... the casualness of it: either it matters pretty intensely, or it doesn't; again, my inability to understand why people would do it: to assuage what?  to take part in what?
6. TV commercials from expensive car companies that suggest that real families, real husbands buy cars for others for Xmas
7. TV commercials for stores - Walmart, Menards, Dicks - that you can solve all of your Xmas buying needs (huge explosions of buying, nearly indiscriminate) in one orgy of purchasing
8. My own sense of failure at having not an ounce of excitement ... no ability to "get excited" about any of it
9. The buying, the sense that you buy stuff to not seem unthoughtful or cheap; the materialism of that
10. The reminder that everyone just buys whatever they want for themselves whenever they want; there is NO need for Xmas gifts bc everyone has already bought their own shit.  Xmas, then, a reminder of the crass materialism that we live in, which is watered by ads on TV and culturally built in to prick us to buy, buy, buy

Sensory Awareness

I ask Claude to remind me about Sarah Susanka's noticing practice: 

Susanka's practice is especially powerful because it engages all our senses, not just vision. When we pause to notice what we're hearing, smelling, and feeling, we create a richer, more textured awareness of our present moment. This multi-sensory approach helps break through what neuroscientists call "habituation" - our brain's tendency to filter out familiar stimuli. By intentionally noting these different sensory inputs, we're essentially telling our brain "this moment matters, pay attention."

This kind of practice can be particularly valuable for creative work because it helps develop what writers often call "sensory literacy" - the ability to notice and articulate subtle details that might otherwise slip past our awareness. This enhanced perception can then feed into other creative practices, like your daily haiku or morning pages, giving them more depth and immediacy.

Year-end questions 3

 After fiddling, here's Claude's Qs:

Let me revisit our ten questions, thoughtfully incorporating the Naikan perspective where it enriches the reflection while preserving the other valuable dimensions we developed. I'll number them for clarity and explain any significant revisions.

1. "What moments from this year felt most alive and true - times when you were fully present, deeply engaged, or stopped in wonder? As you recall these moments, who helped create the conditions that made them possible?" The Naikan addition helps us see how even our most personal experiences are supported by others.

2. "Looking at your calendar and journal from this year, what patterns surprise you about how you've spent your time and energy? Who has accommodated or adjusted their lives to make these patterns possible?" This reveals the often invisible support underlying our daily routines.

3. "What old certainties or assumptions did you question this year? How has your understanding become more nuanced or complex? Who or what challenged your thinking in ways that led to growth?" This maintains Langer's focus on mindful learning while acknowledging the role others play in our development.

4. "What practices or rituals have most nourished you this year? Who has supported these practices - perhaps by giving you time, space, encouragement, or practical help? What difficulties might your practices have caused others?" This brings Naikan's balanced attention to both receiving and causing difficulty.

5. "What forms of abundance already exist in your life? Consider specifically: What have you received from others? What have you given to others? What troubles and difficulties have you caused?" This directly incorporates Naikan's three questions into our reflection on wealth and resources.

6. "What communities, places, or traditions have supported your growth this year? Who has done the often invisible work of maintaining these supporting structures? How have your actions helped or hindered these communities?" This deepens our understanding of reciprocity through Naikan's lens.

7. "If you knew you had exactly five more years of good health, what would you continue, start, or stop doing? Who would be affected by these choices? What support would they need to provide, and what difficulties might your choices cause them?" This brings relationship awareness into our mortality-aware planning.

8. "What 'desire paths' have emerged in your life this year - those unofficial routes that developed from following your curiosity rather than prescribed ways? Who has given you the freedom, support, or encouragement to explore these paths?" This maintains Macfarlane's metaphor while acknowledging the social context of our explorations.

9. "What keeps catching your attention lately - what images, ideas, or possibilities persist at the edges of your awareness? How have others helped you notice or understand these persistent themes?" This preserves the attention to wonder while recognizing how understanding often emerges through dialogue and relationship.

10. "What arrangements or decisions have you been postponing that, if made, would free your attention for what matters most? Who is affected by this postponement? Who would need to help with these changes, and how might they be impacted?" This brings Naikan's relationship awareness into our practical planning.

These revisions maintain the essential insights from Oliver, Langer, Macfarlane, and others while incorporating Naikan's powerful reminder that our lives unfold within a web of relationships and mutual support. The questions now invite us to reflect not just on our personal experience but on the larger context of giving, receiving, and impact on others that shapes our lives.

Pre-Naikan adjusted questions:

After reflecting on our rich discussion about practices, rituals, attention, and meaning-making, I've distilled ten questions that weave together the wisdom of the thinkers we've discussed. I've organized them to flow from present awareness through deeper reflection and into future intention.

1. "What moments from this year felt most alive and true - times when you were fully present, deeply engaged, or stopped in wonder? Describe them with all your senses, as if you're experiencing them again." This question, inspired by Mary Oliver and Ellen Langer, helps us notice what truly enlivens us and where our natural attention flows.
2. "Looking at your calendar and journal from this year, what patterns surprise you about how you've spent your time and energy? What story do these patterns tell about what you value?" This combines practical reflection with Rachel Naomi Remen's emphasis on the stories that shape our lives.
3. "What old certainties or assumptions did you question this year? How has your understanding become more nuanced or complex?" Drawing from Langer's work on mindful learning, this question helps us notice how our thinking has evolved.
4. "What practices or rituals have most nourished you this year - not just what you think should be helpful, but what actually brings you alive?" This builds on our earlier discussion about the difference between habits, practices, and rituals, while honoring what genuinely sustains us.
5. "What forms of abundance already exist in your life - beyond money, what resources, relationships, knowledge, or capabilities enrich your daily experience?" This reframes the "if your bank account was full" question to recognize existing wealth while incorporating Kimmerer's ideas about gifts and reciprocity.
6. "What communities, places, or traditions have supported your growth this year? How are you called to give back to them?" This question bridges Kimmerer's emphasis on reciprocity with Gregg Krech's focus on sustaining what matters.
7. "If you knew you had exactly five more years of good health, what would you continue, start, or stop doing? What wisdom or practice would you want to ensure continues beyond you?" This combines Krech's mortality awareness with the question of legacy and meaningful action.
8. "What 'desire paths' have emerged in your life this year - those unofficial routes that developed from following your curiosity rather than prescribed ways?" This uses Robert Macfarlane's metaphor to explore how your authentic path might differ from conventional ones.
9. "What keeps catching your attention lately - what images, ideas, or possibilities persist at the edges of your awareness? What might these consistent noticings be trying to tell you?" This combines Oliver's attention to wonder with the wisdom of paying attention to what repeatedly draws us.
10. "What arrangements or decisions have you been postponing that, if made, would free your attention for what matters most?" This practical question from Krech helps us identify concrete steps that could support deeper engagement with what we value.

ChatGPT Reflection Qs

 Here are some year-end reflective questions, organized into categories for ease of use:

Personal Growth

• What is the most important lesson I learned this year?
• In what ways did I grow emotionally, mentally, or spiritually?
• What challenges did I overcome, and how did I handle them?
• What habits served me well, and which ones do I want to leave behind?

Relationships

• Who had the biggest positive impact on my life this year?
• How did I nurture my relationships with family, friends, or colleagues?
• Is there a relationship I want to invest more in next year?
• How did I show love and kindness to others?

Career and Work

• What accomplishments am I most proud of at work?
• What skills did I develop or refine?
• How did my work align with my values and long-term goals?
• What would I like to do differently in my professional life next year?

Creativity and Expression

• What did I create or build this year that I'm proud of?
• How did I express myself authentically?
• Did I explore new creative outlets or hobbies?
• What’s one creative goal I want to set for next year?

Health and Well-being

• How did I care for my physical and mental health?
• What habits or routines helped me feel my best?
• How did I practice mindfulness or self-compassion?
• What’s one area of well-being I want to focus on in the year ahead?

Memories and Joy

• What were my most joyful moments?
• What was the most meaningful experience I had this year?
• What surprises or unexpected delights did I encounter?
• What made me laugh the hardest this year?

Reflection and Gratitude

• What am I most grateful for from this year?
• What or who helped me get through difficult times?
• How did I contribute to others’ happiness?
• What three words best describe my year?

Looking Forward

• If I could give my future self advice for next year, what would it be?
• What is one thing I want to try or achieve in the coming year?
• How can I carry forward the lessons I learned this year?
• What intention do I want to set for the new year?

Would you like help tailoring these to a specific area of focus or packaging them in a fun format?

Here are some fun and engaging formats for organizing your year-end reflection questions:

1. Reflection Deck of Cards

• Write each question on a card in a deck.
• Shuffle the cards and draw one at random to reflect on.
• Option: Decorate the cards with colors, doodles, or photos representing your year.

2. Reflection Jar

• Write questions on slips of paper, fold them, and place them in a jar.
• Pull one question out each day leading up to New Year’s.
• Pair it with a gratitude jar to reflect on the year's highlights.

3. Memory Map

• Draw a "map" of your year with paths representing different areas (e.g., personal growth, relationships, creativity).
• Place reflective questions along the paths.
• You can use digital tools like Canva or do it on paper for a tactile experience.

4. Bingo Board

• Create a bingo card where each square contains a reflection question.
• Answer the questions to complete a row, column, or diagonal.
• Share the activity with friends or family for collective reflection.

5. Fortune Cookies

• Write each question on a small strip of paper.
• Fold and insert into homemade or purchased fortune cookies.
• Open one each day or during a year-end gathering.

6. Reflection Calendar

• Use an advent-style calendar or a printable one with a question for each day in December.
• Pair each question with a small treat or token as a reward for reflection.

7. Storytelling Dice

• Assign reflection categories to dice sides (e.g., personal growth = 1, joy = 2).
• Roll the dice and reflect on a question from the corresponding category.
• Create a story or drawing inspired by your answers.

8. Reflection Playlist

• Pair each question with a song that represents its theme.
• As you answer the question, listen to the song to inspire deeper thought.
• End up with a playlist that encapsulates your year.

9. Board Game-Style Path

• Create a game board with stops along a path.
• Each stop includes a question to answer before moving forward.
• Add challenges or rewards to make it more engaging.

10. Digital Wheel of Reflection

• Use an online spinner tool (like Wheel of Names) with reflection questions.
• Spin the wheel to randomly select questions.
• Answer with friends or alone for a tech-savvy twist.

Would you like me to design or customize one of these formats for you?

Year-End Questions

Revised:

1. **"When did you feel most authentically yourself this year? What were the conditions that allowed this authenticity to emerge?" "What moments from this year felt most alive and true? Describe them with all your senses, as if you're there again."

2. "What patterns or themes do you notice emerging in your life this year? Which of these patterns serve your growth, and which might be asking for attention or transformation?" "What questions has this year asked of you? Which of these questions still feel unresolved or worthy of continued exploration?"

3. "What practices or rituals have most supported your well-being this year? How have they evolved? What made them sustainable?"

4. "What gifts have you received this year that you want to acknowledge? How have you been called to give back?"  What gifts have you given?  (what have you received? what have you given? what trouble have you caused?

5. "What assumptions or certainties did you question this year? What became more nuanced or complex in your understanding?" 

6. "Where did you find adventure in your familiar surroundings this year? What territories - inner or outer - feel unexplored?" Humphreys often encourages us to find extraordinary experiences in ordinary places. "What's the smallest change you could make to invite more adventure into your daily life?" This reflects his belief that adventure is more about attitude than location or scale.

7. "What story about yourself changed this year? What new story is wanting to emerge?"
8. "What has become ripe in your life? What is asking to be harvested?"
9. "If you knew you had exactly five more years of good health, how would you want to spend them? What would you continue doing, start doing, and stop doing?"
10. "What arrangements or decisions have you been postponing that, if made, would free your attention for what matters most?" 

I asked Claude to help me think about year-end reflective questions.

Thank you for the feedback. Here’s a refined approach, separating professional and personal reflections while incorporating Naikan principles and Jungian philosophy:

---

Professional Reflection (Practical and Reflective)

Naikan-Influenced:

• What have I received from my professional life this year (opportunities, mentorship, fulfillment)?
• What have I contributed to my profession, colleagues, or students?
• What difficulties or challenges might I have caused, knowingly or unknowingly?

Jungian Lens:

• What professional roles or archetypes (e.g., teacher, mentor, leader) have been most active in my life this year?
• What unfulfilled aspirations in my career still feel important to explore?
• How has my work aligned—or not—with my inner values and sense of purpose?

---

Personal Reflection (Inner Life and Relationships)

Naikan-Influenced:

• What have I received from my relationships this year?
• What have I given to the people I care about?
• What troubles or difficulties have I caused others, even unintentionally?

Jungian Lens:

• What personal archetypes (e.g., the seeker, the caregiver, the sage) have been most present in my life this year?
• What dreams, symbols, or images have guided or intrigued me this year?
• What inner growth or transformation have I experienced, and how has it shaped my perspective?

---

Looking Ahead: Transition and Integration

Naikan-Influenced:

• What gratitude can I carry into the next chapter of my life?
• How can I give back to the people and roles that have shaped me so far?

Jungian Lens:

• What aspects of myself am I ready to explore more deeply as I move into the next phase of life?
• How can I embrace the "wisdom years" as a time of individuation and renewal?
• What do I sense is calling me forward into this new chapter?

Would this separation feel more balanced for you?

Answer:

Thank you for sharing these thoughtful influences - I notice they represent a fascinating intersection of Buddhist thought, habit formation, Jungian psychology, and contemplative practice. Let me craft some reflection questions that weave together these different wisdom traditions while honoring your interest in practices and rituals.

For the first few days, we might begin with presence and acknowledgment, inspired by Pema Chödrön and Tara Brach's teachings about meeting ourselves where we are:

"What moments from this year felt most alive and true? Describe them with all your senses, as if you're there again."

**"When did you feel most authentically yourself this year? What were the conditions that allowed this authenticity to emerge?"

Moving deeper, drawing from James Hollis's Jungian perspective about individuation and meaning:

"What patterns or themes do you notice emerging in your life this year? Which of these patterns serve your growth, and which might be asking for attention or transformation?"

"What questions has this year asked of you? Which of these questions still feel unresolved or worthy of continued exploration?"

Then, incorporating Gregg Krech's Japanese psychology perspective and James Clear's ideas about habits:

"What practices or rituals have most supported your well-being this year? How have they evolved? What made them sustainable?"

"Looking at your daily practices, what's the gap between who you are and who you're becoming? What small shifts might help bridge this gap?"

From Norman Fischer and Thubten Chödrön's Buddhist perspectives:

"What has been your relationship with uncertainty this year? When did you meet it with grace, and when did it challenge you?"

"What forms of suffering have you encountered this year - in yourself and others? How has your response to suffering evolved?"

Finally, looking forward while grounded in present wisdom:

"What wisdom has this year offered that you want to carry forward? How might you honor this learning in your daily practices?"

Consider approaching these questions not as a task to complete, but as invitations to deeper understanding. You might let each question simmer, returning to it throughout the day, noticing what emerges in different moments of reflection.

From Mary Oliver's contemplative approach to nature and attention: "What has astonished you this year? When did you find yourself stopped in your tracks by wonder or beauty?" This question invites us to recall moments of deep presence and connection, helping us recognize what truly moves us.

Drawing from David Whyte's poetic exploration of work and identity: "What conversations are you avoiding having with yourself? What truths are whispering at the edges of your awareness?" Whyte often speaks about the courage needed to face our internal dialogue honestly.

Inspired by Rachel Naomi Remen's work on finding meaning through story: "What story about yourself changed this year? What new story is wanting to emerge?" Remen teaches that our narratives shape our experience, and noticing how they evolve can reveal deep patterns of growth.

From Parker Palmer's work on vocation and authentic living: "When did you feel your inner and outer life were most aligned this year? What were the conditions that supported this alignment?" Palmer emphasizes the importance of living from our authentic center rather than external expectations.

Considering Robin Wall Kimmerer's teachings about reciprocity and gratitude: "What gifts have you received this year that you want to acknowledge? How have you been called to give back?" This perspective helps us see our place in a web of relationships and responsibilities.

From Sharon Salzberg's work on lovingkindness: "How has your relationship with yourself evolved this year? What moments of self-compassion stand out?" This exploration helps us notice our growing capacity for self-kindness.

Drawing from John O'Donohue's Celtic spirituality: "What thresholds did you cross this year? Which ones are you approaching now?" O'Donohue viewed transitions as sacred spaces worthy of attention and ritual.

From Angeles Arrien's anthropological perspective: "What has become ripe in your life? What is asking to be harvested?" Arrien often encouraged people to notice the natural cycles of growth and completion in their lives.

From Ellen Langer's research on mindfulness: "What assumptions or certainties did you question this year? What became more nuanced or complex in your understanding?" Langer's work reminds us that growth often involves embracing uncertainty and questioning what we think we know.

These questions complement your original influences by adding perspectives from:

• Nature-based spirituality (Oliver, Kimmerer)
• Poetic inquiry (Whyte, O'Donohue)
• Social engagement (Macy)
• Cultural wisdom (Arrien)
• Scientific research (Langer)
• Medical humanities (Remen)

You might consider interweaving these with your earlier questions, perhaps organizing them around themes like:

• Attention and wonder
• Relationship and reciprocity
• Challenge and growth
• Wisdom and understanding
• Future emergence

Let me build on these themes while incorporating the practical wisdom and mortality-awareness from Krech's questions. I notice there's a powerful intersection between reflecting on meaning and considering concrete life choices.

Let's craft questions that weave together several layers: the contemplative noticing of Oliver and Langer, the practical wisdom of Krech, and the story-aware approach of Remen, while keeping Kimmerer's sense of reciprocity and relationship.

For noticing patterns and meaning:

"When you look back at this year's calendar, what patterns surprise you? What do these patterns reveal about what truly matters to you?" This helps us see the gap between our stated values and how we actually spend our time.

For examining relationship with time:

"If you knew you had exactly five more years of good health, how would you want to spend them? What would you continue doing, start doing, and stop doing?" This builds on Krech's health awareness while inviting specific reflection about choices.

For exploring learning and growth:

"What misconceptions did you shed this year? What beliefs became more nuanced?" This extends Langer's interest in mindful learning while inviting personal story.

For considering legacy and contribution:

"What wisdom or practice are you cultivating that you want to ensure continues beyond you? How might you begin sharing or teaching this now?" This transforms Krech's institutional concern into a broader question about passing on what matters.

For examining relationships:

"Who are the people who help you remember who you are? What specific practices or rituals maintain these vital connections?" This builds on Krech's relationship question while incorporating the idea of practices we discussed earlier.

For exploring wonder and attention:

"What keeps catching your attention lately? What might these persistent noticings be trying to tell you?" This combines Oliver's attention to wonder with Remen's story-awareness.

For considering reciprocity:

"What communities or places have nourished you this year? How are you called to give back to them?" This brings Kimmerer's reciprocity into practical focus.

For examining resources:

"Beyond money, what forms of abundance do you already have in your life? How might you share this abundance?" This reframes the "if your bank account was full" question to consider multiple forms of wealth.

For confronting mortality:

"What would you want the people you love to know about how they've enriched your life? What keeps you from expressing this now?" This brings death-awareness into relationship with present choices.

For practical planning with deeper meaning:

"What arrangements or decisions have you been postponing that, if made, would free your attention for what matters most?" This combines Krech's practical planning with attention to meaning.

From Robert Macfarlane's deep attention to landscape, language, and the stories places hold: "What 'desire paths' have you created in your life this year - those unofficial routes that emerged from following your curiosity rather than prescribed paths?" This draws from Macfarlane's interest in how paths emerge from repeated human passage and choice.

"What words have you learned or rediscovered this year that help you see the world more precisely?" This connects to Macfarlane's fascination with language that helps us notice and name our experience more exactly, like his work in "Landmarks" collecting words for landscape features.

From his exploration of the "old ways" and how they inform our present: "What old paths - literal or metaphorical - did you return to this year? What did you discover by walking them again?" This builds on his understanding that paths are both physical and cultural, and that returning to them can reveal new layers of meaning.

From Alastair Humphreys' concept of microadventures and finding wonder in the nearby: "Where did you find adventure in your familiar surroundings this year? What territories - inner or outer - feel unexplored?" Humphreys often encourages us to find extraordinary experiences in ordinary places.

"What's the smallest change you could make to invite more adventure into your daily life?" This reflects his belief that adventure is more about attitude than location or scale.