Happy Chinese New Year. They did a short interview with me today at The City Bee about the Chinese New Years and some of the customs involved. They changed the interview quite a bit, and took out a lot more which is really unfortunate. It almost feels like half of that interview wasn’t me, and it was edited down for reasons unknown to me. I didn’t even write a single word in that section about the Ox (like I would know Obama is an ox), so I am going to have to bring that up to the editors as that is not something I would want in the future, to have words put into my mouth or have my words misconstrued. Other than that though, they have been writing some awesome stuff over there, so I hope you guys are checking it out as there are updates everyday (except Saturday, who wants to be shackled to a computer on Saturday, right?).

I went home very last minute this weekend. I was planning on going rock climbing but my partner got sick so I didn’t have any reason to stick around. I’m glad because it was really good going home to Mom and Dad and spending New Years with them. It helped break up the monotony of dredging through the GMAT studying. I’ve been keeping a good balance and taking lots of breaks from it, which I find has helped me stay focused. I’ve learned that going fifth gear for 4 hours straight is not the best way to go about it, and that mixing things up has been a great way to keep things fresh. I’ve been working out twice a day doing a lot of pushups and chin ups and situps lately. Once in the morning to get the juices flowing, and sometime at night just whenever I feel like it, to give the brain a break while I exercise the body. I’ve also been going through all of my pictures and starring them in Picasa and geotagging them in Google Earth. Its a nice refreshment from everything else I am doing. I’ve also been scribbling feverishly in my notebooks and in Evernote for anything that pops in my head, so I don’t have to think about it while I concentrate on the things in front of me. Also, I’ve organized all of my movies using Windows Media Center and its really awesome plugins, and now I have them excellently cataloged. I also went through all of my contacts and updated their phone numbers, email addresses, birthdays and the like through Outlook. I’ve been listening to a lot of Classical music (almost exclusively) and I find it very soothing. I’ve retagged all of my music and have it cataloged as well. I’ve been haxoring my computer and its running the way I want it now, too. Just nerd things, here and there, that I have been neglecting for years, but have helped keep things organized in my system and have helped me maintain a balance. If I’m not doing any of that, then I’m either working (work work, online work, house work, etc.) or reading or writing. I also try to watch movies whenever I can, and lately have watched a number of documentaries. I watched one called Man on Wire. It was really cool. Its about this tight rope walker who had a vision to walk across the twin towers in the 70s. True story, too. It was like a real life Ocean’s 11. Really cool, movie. At the end of the movie they are asking him why he did it and he replies something to the effect of, “There is no why.” which I thought was brilliant.

One of my best buddies is down from NYC this week, so I’m looking forward to hanging out with him. As busy as I am, and I’m sure as busy as you all are, it is really important to maintain a healthy balance in life. Sure, there are stretches of time when you have to be full on crazy mode (like if you are in a super intensive program, such as Engineering) but its much much healthier to maintain balance. Its not slacking if you are enjoying what you are doing. And don’t feel guilty if somebody tells you you should be doing something else with your time (its YOUR time). That always drives me crazy when somebody tells me I should be doing this or that, as if they know what’s right for me. You can have goals, but you must not forget that you should be enjoying the journey, not the end result. Maintain a balanced lifestyle to do just that.

“It’s impossible, that’s sure. So let’s start working.” – Philippe Petit, tightrope walker