These are my Momentos, short personal diary entries I write daily – since 2013 – and publish monthly. Some links are affiliate links.
1
Another legal threat from a course creator. Sent them our review, told them we’d correct any errors. And this is how they respond. Someone on my team receives these emails now instead of me, so I don’t take it so personally.
2
The last written words of Leonardo da Vinci…
“Here’s another way of looking at it… but the soup is getting cold.”
He was an old man, sick and dying, but still noodling on a problem, trying to learn something new, ignoring his cook’s repeated pleas that he leave the notebook and come down for supper.
3
The Blue Lagoon from 1980, based on a book published in 1908. Not a great movie, but it gets you thinking. Two children marooned on a tropical island, growing up without education or supervision, having to figure out the most basic things for themselves.
4
Have to shake my head sometimes at how spectacular Andorra is. Just looking out the window or walking to the village is like a postcard. I see a video like this one and realize that everything shown there is within an hour of me.
5
Good timing reading this after I almost lose the head trying to put together a bicycle…
Often, once you discover what someone is trying to teach you, it’s easy to let go of your frustration. For example, suppose you’re in the post office and the postal clerk appears to be intentionally moving slowly. Rather than feeling frustrated, ask yourself the question, “What is he trying to teach me?” Maybe you need to learn about compassion—how hard it would be to have a job that you don’t like. Or perhaps you could learn a little more about being patient. Standing in line is an excellent opportunity to break your habit of feeling impatient. You may be surprised at how fun and easy this is. All you’re really doing is changing your perception from “Why are they doing this?” to “What are they trying to teach me?” Take a look around today at all the enlightened people.
Source: Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff and It’s All Small Stuff by Richard Carlson.
6
Feeling tired – exhausted, even – can be nice. But mostly when I don’t have lots to do or catch up on. Then I can lean into the tiredness, laze on the couch and watch a movie. I guess all feelings are fine so long as you’re not thinking you shouldn’t have them.
7
Sluggish and a bit pissed off this morning. Asked myself: how can I make this a good day? Figured out a few things I could do to turn it around, and it worked. I wonder if I often avoid asking myself that question on days like this. Maybe some part of me enjoys being miserable, wants to revel in it.
8
Work piling up as usual but took the afternoon off to go for a spin on our new bikes. 10 minute drive and we’re on a flat path through the mountains and around a lake. Place was empty except for four nuns and a few lads setting up an obstacle course.
9
Amazing how strongly people used to believe things on very little evidence. I guess a lot of people still do. But I like to think it’s becoming more common to question assumptions and recognize when you’re talking out your arse.
10
Two minutes looking out my kitchen window this morning and I see… kids in a playground, a woman gardening, several cyclists, climbers on the via ferrata, a dozen cows in the field, people walking their dogs, fresh sown crops, and a purple Porsche.
11
Chatting about the weather gets a bad rap. It can be a shallow conversation piece, but it doesn’t have to be. If you really stop to notice the weather and the affect it has on your mood and surroundings, it can be the basis for a good, grounded conversation.
12
Hard for me to get lost in a movie or TV show, always end up thinking about how they got the shot or why they chose to do it that way. That’s enjoyable in its own way though, trying to figure out the craft of it.
13
Why does life often feel so hard nowadays despite all the conveniences we have? Part of it is probably that we know so much, hyper aware of what’s possible and what’s preventable. Makes us feel like we always need to be doing more.
14
Eat the frog, do your toughest task first. Great advice… sometimes. This morning I needed to be gentle with myself, start with some light tasks and warm up to the hard stuff. After about an hour I was willing and able to do some heavy lifting.
15
Took the bikes to Vall d’Incles this afternoon. It’s a spectacular valley, the road closed to cars. Horses in the fields, old stone buildings, carpets of wildflowers, the river running through it all. Had the place mostly to ourselves.
16
Gratitude requires imagination. Like today, imagining all the headaches we would have had to endure if we hadn’t switched to that better bank rep a few months back. Or what it would have been like to cycle for an hour through Tbilisi today instead of Andorra.
17
Being present vs capturing the moment. Those travel YouTubers can’t be all that present while creating their content. But it’s easier for them to look back through their videos later and refresh their memories, keep them alive forever. Probably a worthwhile trade.
18
Woke up from a dream about my last 9-to-5 job. Coming up on 13 years since I quit that. The memories are fading. The building I worked in for years… can’t picture the staircase, even though my cubicle was upstairs for several months.
19
Running on the spot in the bathroom at 11pm so I can hit my daily goal of 7000 steps. It’s one of the best habits I’ve developed, got a 400-day streak going. Gives me a good baseline of physical activity each day.
20
One of my ears isn’t working properly but still did good with the Spanish conversations today. The guy at the car wash, the lady in the photo place, the woman on the phone at the clinic. I’ll get a tutor at some point to take it to the next level.
21
Writing up an article about our review process. A lot of course creators assume we assign ratings to their courses somewhat randomly, but there’s actually a lot to it. Having it all laid out publicly should reduce the time we spend explaining everything by email.
22
Some of the downsides to living in Andorra…
- Tough to order stuff online here, has to cross at least one border.
- Tough to return stuff you buy online.
- Can’t sign up for some basic business stuff, like a Stripe account.
- You really need a car to get around.
- We use 6-digit phone numbers, which some online services won’t accept.
- Awful customer service sometimes.
- We’re not part of the EU.
- The language barrier (but I’m working on it).
Other than that, everything is pretty great.
23
Watching a masterclass on social media marketing with viral videos. Another thing I’d love to try, add it to the big list. Won’t let myself go there for a while though. So many more fundamental things to work on and improve in my business.
24
The people who left a bunch of rubbish behind at this scenic picnic spot in the mountains… I’d love to understand what they were thinking…
- It’s someone else’s job to clean it up?
- Doesn’t matter, it’s only a little bit of rubbish?
- My life sucks so I want to make life suck a bit more for other people?
- I don’t give a shit about anything?
- The bins are too far away and I couldn’t be arsed?
- Something else?
25
I live in a town about 1500 meters above sea level. The extra elevation keeps us a few degrees cooler than the capital 15 minutes away. We get more snow in winter, and less heat in summer. It was hot today, but bearable. Helps to have lots of shaded woodland walks nearby.
26
People-watching at the mall. Keeping my eye on the guy in the Steph Curry jersey. Creepy vibes. Jerky movements. Wipes his mouth with a napkin picked up from the floor. Hands a €10 note to a random kid trailing his mom.
27
It’s basically a big metal syringe. I thought the idea was to suck out the gunk but no, she fills that thing with water and shoots it into my ear hole. The water pressure loosens everything up and I’m no longer half-deaf.
28
Heading to London tomorrow for the DC conference. First proper fun trip I’ve done since the pandemic. Been getting loads done the past few days so I won’t have to work much over the weekend, can try kick back and be una mariposa social.
29
Only four hours of sleep last night then two on the plane but I’ve got a good buzz going this evening, dusting off the social skills and chatting it up with dozens of people. I’m that nice kind of exhausted walking back to the hotel, ready for a long and dreamless sleep.
30
Bill Murray is apparently in London right now. I love Bill Murray. What would I do if I bumped into him on the street? Couldn’t ask for a selfie, too common. No, I’d offer him a piggy back ride, no photos. If he accepted, nobody would ever believe me.