Weekly Goals, 1/21

Weekly Goals

1. Finish 2 books.

NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children
I bought this because the Kindle version was $2.99, and I wasn't expecting much. It was fascinating. The authors discuss how much conventional wisdom about child rearing is wrong. For instance: children who go to racially diverse schools hold more stereotyped views and have fewer trans-racial friendships than children who go to less diverse schools. Children who are told they are clever take fewer intellectual risks and don't try as hard as children who are praised for hard work. Teenagers who lie to and argue with their parents respect them more than those who don't. The book was one fascinating revelation after another.
***

The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun
This was another Kindle book picked up on the cheap. The author resolves to spend a year trying to improve her happiness, rotating her resolutions on a monthly basis. I'm fond of these "stunt journalism" type books, but they're only enjoyable if I like the writer's voice. In this case, I found the author charming and entertaining. I was inspired by some of the things she did as a part of her project: she read more, started a children's literature book club (so want to join one of these). I particularly liked the author's "Secrets of Adulthood," personal rules she chooses to live by. The book inspired me to think about my goals more broadly, and I'll probably revisit it later this year.
***

2. Finish current skein on sweater.
The sweater is crawling along, but that's what I get for doing sweaters out of fingering weight yarn. I'm knitting the waist right now.

3. Finish skein on CodeMonkey's sock.
Still not done. The sock glares at me from my bedroom windowsill. I'm a terrible wife. I need to just put my big girl panties on, rip back the gusset, and redo it.

4. Go to bed by 11 5 nights this week.
Done! And I feel so much better for it. This is a pattern that needs to continue.

5. Cook dinner 5 nights this week.
Again, success! I'm very pleased by this, because it's hard for me to cook at the end of the work day. I am perhaps relying a bit too heavily on homemade chicken soup and frozen foods, but I'm still pleased.

6. Call my in-laws on Sunday.
FAIL! I managed a gchat with my father-in-law, but nothing more. I'm ashamed of this; my in-laws deserve better.

Weekly Goals, 1/21
1. Read 2 books.
2. Finish current skein on sweater.
3. Finish skein on CodeMonkey's sock, for real this time.
4. Go to bed by 11 5 nights this week.
5. Cook dinner 5 nights this week; pack my lunch three times.
6. Call my in-laws Sunday.
7. Clean the top of the bedroom dressers.
8. Get rid of 20 things.
9. Try one new recipe.
10. Fast intermittently 5 days this week.