10. Tight, Deep V-Necks

This final part may be somewhat biased. I met someone, a person who couldn’t have been more than two years younger than I was, who called me a suit. A suit. Of course, he was wearing girl pants, a beanie when it was at least 65 degrees outside, a lip ring and a V-neck shirt at least two sizes too small. The modern-day hipster has destroyed so much of what we’ve worked so damn hard to achieve. Hipsters have a funny thing about them. They can take things like the V-neck, which, if worn properly, is always a good basic addition, and wrong them. Burn it with fire and dance on the ashes.

This is a good piece of reading covering 10 of the common mistakes guys make when dressing. I have been guilty and am still guilty of many of these… As part of my 101, I’m going to clean out my wardrobe properly, and make sure that any clothing I do have is versatile, timeless and well looked after. And I might start looking into high-low dressing (where you mix and match items from the high and low ends of your wardrobe – blurring the lines, but properly).

It’s good to be on holidays.

For 5th Year Medical students, we’ve got a little bit over a week left before we return to our Hospital placements, and it’s been really good to just… not do Medical related things. Having a mind clear of pharmacology and pathophysiology has left some room for creative outlets, as well as planning for the year ahead with regards to SMA (Shadrach Meshach and Abednego) and TCC (Thyme Court Church).

Building a LEGO set has been something I’ve wanted to do for a while, partly for the process, and partly for the catharsis of finishing. I never really played with LEGO that much as a kid, but I always liked the idea of finishing what you start. Getting together your resources, following the steps of someone who has been there before, to reach a destination that is more than the sum of it’s parts.

Taken from the box and paraphrased a little:

The Farnsworth House is a building that was designed and constructed between 1945-1951 as a one-room weekend retreat, commissioned by a Dr. Edith Farnsworth. She was a medical specialist who wanted a place to engage in her hobbies: playing the violin, translating poetry and enjoying nature.

I hope that this year, in the busy-ness of life in roles as President of SMA and one of the leaders at Thyme Court, I can find a retreat in my life, to continue to engage in the hobbies I enjoy, but above all else to find a fortress of solitude where I can rest in GOD.

Part of the work that I give myself around the new year is to make sure everything in the Tech side of my life is running smoothly, and not backing up has been a big risk that I’ve taken for the last couple of years. It seems silly and completely obvious to back up but a lot of the time, it’s the little things that we neglect that make a huge difference when it counts. <– and that sounds like it could be said about life in general, not just backing up your computer. But what I’ve learnt from this, is that WITH these little things, the most important thing is to just get started. To just sit down, and make the investment in time and money to ensure that you have a running, reliable system that you can depend on, and then forget about. And this is starting to sound like it could be a post about the benefits of developing good habits, but I’ll probably leave that for another day.

I ended up buying a Time Capsule from the Apple Store, which is an overpriced but amazingly effective piece of hardware that I’ve connected to our wireless router and am using as wireless storage. Since we’re pretty much a Mac only house now (just got a new iPhone 4S and gave my dad my old 3GS to go with his iPad and iMac), the “Time Machine” functionality provided in the OS means that we can just set it to back up, and forget about it until we really need it.

And although it feels a little bit like cheating (since I don’t physically have to back up every week), it’s another achievement in the 101.

The Challenge:

Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:

Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on your part).

Why 1001 Days? 

Many people have created lists in the past – frequently simple challenges such as New Year’s resolutions or a ‘Bucket List’. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips, study semesters, or outdoor activities.

Happy new year!

Ames recently finished her 101 in 1001, and I had never heard of it before and was intrigued by the concept. So, I spent a bit of time putting together my list, and you can find it on the sidebar to the right. I’m looking forward to growth, wisdom and seeing more of God in the every day. For achievements and direction, and long-term goals in an age of instant gratification.

And I’m looking forward to my own failure. Because as long as 1001 days can seem, I know that there is no way I’ll be able to get through this on my own.

The next five weeks sees me going to:

An elective in Singapore – where I’m going to be studying Ophthalmology at the National University Hospital.

A two day stint in Beijing to see the sights and experience first-hand the Chinese culture… as well as test my proficiency in 中文.

A three week relaxing holiday in Seoul, where the cold winter and warm coffee will be very much welcome.

Thanks, it’s been a good ride, and I’ll see you sporadically during the trip.

The other day I watched a thirty second clip of an incredible goal scored by a footballer in a crucial match. The goal was watched live by tens of millions, and will be replayed for the next twenty years. What most people will miss however is the backend. We forget that the thirty sublime seconds of skill was built on a decade and a half of practice and perseverance. In the thirty second clip we don’t see the blood, sweat and tears, the tens of thousands of hours of practice. We love the ‘yes’ of the goal, but don’t see the thousands of ‘no’s’ that proceeded it, no to a social life, no to doing what you want when you want, no to sleeping in, no to anything else but utter discipline.

To keep it short, we just don’t WANT things enough. All of our time and energy is devoted to starting things, developing ideas and initiatives, but the actual implementation is where it goes awry.

We are afraid that if we try we’ll fail. So instead, it’s easier to just try, say it’s too hard, and then move on to the next new thing.

It’s sad that our generation is the first where someone can be famous for being famous (re: Kardashians etc.)

From a Christian perspective, if you really want to call yourself a Christian by definition of the word, then you belong to Christ, and you believe that:

a) You have sin, that Christ died for.

b) Christ’s death and resurrection not only paid the debt of your sin, but restored your relationship with God (and won victory over this life)

and c) that GOD is sovereign and faithful. Sovereign over all things such that all things are possible, and faithful; faithfulness that means He will deliver on the promises He has made.

Looking through the Bible we see verses about victory, God knowing the plans he has set for us, God’s faithfulness, righteousness, victory over life, life in full, nothing being able to separate us from the love of God, and if we actually look at it objectively, those are amazing promises.

Now, if we believe that, then what reason is there for us not to try?

Why should we dream mediocre dreams?

What happens if we “fail”?

Recently got a Herschel bag for my birthday.

Amazing quality, great materials and attention to detail.

There’s a felt-lined sunglasses pocket, a felt lined laptop pocket, leather detailing and padded arm straps.

Not to mention the candycane interior!

If you’re looking for a backpack with great build quality and durability, I don’t think I can recommend anything else.

Surprisingly, this isn’t a breakup song. Or rather, it is, but not the kind you expect.

Rachael Yamagata used to be part of a band, and due to irreconcilable creative differences they were forced to go their separate ways.

Nowadays, she writes sad music.

Yep. It’s good to be on holidays, and to look back on good music.

Dear Students,

I am e-mailing you all to confirm that I have now communicated with any student who has not passed the 4^th yr OSCE and has been granted a supplementary exam for the OSCE.  If you have not heard from me then you can assume that you have a clear pass for that unit.

Heart stopped. Then started again.