It’s a beautiful day. Sun shining. Not too hot, not too cold. Gentle breeze. Soes, I talk myself into a nice rejuvenating hike. Half hour in, “Why not write while I hike?” Thus here I am, writing while I hike… Tripping every dozen meters or so.

What to write about today?

A conversation with a good friend. The topic: what skill sets would you sacrifice or trade to enhance yourself. A roundabout way of asking, how would you change your life to improve it?

I suppose we all do this. Sometimes short term, sometimes long. Sometimes to up end the whole goddammned thing.  Me, I’m cleaning house and rearranging bullshit. Seems apropos that as I evaluate the meaning and worth of material possessions, might as well do the same with spiritual.

The parameters for both, material and spiritual, are only the basics to get me to and thought the next 20 years. Looking for a streamlined me. At my age of… Mrm, 40 billion years old, I get the sense this’ll be my last hurrah. So with deliberate consideration and careful contemplation, I’ll take my sweet ass time. Best to do it right.

So what’s on the list so far? Health, mental and physical. Exercise, eating right, meditation, essentially the fundamentals of self care. Next, endeavors that mean something, namely art and writing. Those also fall under self care but with the added contexts of “legacy”, “societal contribution”, and work that I believe in. That’s mine and meaningful. Career something, something. You know a job outside of myself. To keep me in touch and with an income. A part time throw away would do fine, but its be more responsible of me to aim a little higher. Still building that adventure. More soon. So this paragraph outlines what I got going. Solid basics all together. Well on my way.

Room for improvement: social life. I guess this falls under the self care umbrella, too. This has always been a weakness, but I believe and respect the nurturing of a good social network. Being a habitual almost fanatical introvert, this will be a toughy. Even so, I’ll keep the faith.

Career and social aspects seem to be the biggest changes. I’m nibbling on those aspects while I regrow a few other habits. I’m of a strong mind that alongside a career, endeavor all my own to get me through in a good way. The “endeavor” would be to continue my off-and-on-again relationship with book making. Shrug, its all I know. I’m not bad at it. Its always the networking and promotion part that kills me. Might as well make the best of the efforts already invested.

Rounding back to the larger topic, how to prep for this final life’s journey, like a long-camping trip or mountain climb, travel light. Take only what you need.