This site is the online home of one guy's personal quest to reengineer his everything and build a better life.
This is a long-term project, something that I expect to be updated for many years to come, though honestly not always that often. But even if there are long gaps between posts, it doesn’t mean that I’ve abandoned the project. Much more likely that I’m busy elsewhere, in a funk, or something else like that.
You can also see what I’m up to at the following sites:
Topical Posts

Reestablishing Routine
For several months after I began my new job earlier this year, I established a very fruitful structure to my day, a habitual pattern of

Discarding Socks and Suits Alike
This morning, I put about ten pairs of socks in the trash. These were all still in OK shape, but filled a role for which I no longer have any use. Since changing jobs, I no longer have any need to dress in a business casual style, so a sizeable chunk of my wardrobe has sat untouched for months.

Chaos Internal and External: The Comorbidity of Clutter and Depression
Clutter has always been a part of my life, but it took on a sinister aspect as an adult when I first experienced depression. I discovered they fed into each other.

Flossing, Meditating, and Calisthenics
Every evening at 22:00, I receive a reminder to go over my day in my habit-tracking app. It’s a good day when I can check

Starting the Second Act
When the total disaster that seems imminent never materializes, you take note. You naturally rejoice, but if you’re of the right mind, you immediately set
Daily Thoughts
Daily(ish) posts on whatever I’m thinking about on a given day.

Daily Thoughts for 2021-06-25 Friday
Many miscellaneous things today. At work now, and I’m writing this while my students do their homework. It’s strangely quiet in here for what is usually a pretty rowdy group of elementary school kids.

Daily Thoughts for 2021-06-16 Wednesday
It’s been a minute since I’ve posted. I’m still here, haven’t abandoned the blog or anything, but I have been wrestling with a wave of

Daily Thoughts for 2021-05-25 Tuesday
Today, the sun rose at 4:30. I gave up on sleep about an hour later. Journal in hand, I set off to visit the shrine1

Daily Thoughts for 2021-05-19 Wednesday
It’s been more than a week since I last posted here and I feel like I have a lot to say, but also nothing to

Daily Thoughts for 2021-05-10 Monday
It’s been a little while since my last post, largely because I’ve been caught up in a million things, distracted to no end, and more

Daily Thoughts for 2021-04-30 Friday
It’s about 14:00 as I begin this post, and kids will start showing up soon, so this will be quick. As I noted in another

Daily Thoughts 2021-04-28 Wednesday
Today I’ve been wanting to write something here, but wasn’t sure where to start or what to say, so I’m just starting and seeing where

Daily Thoughts 2021-04-26 Monday
Failure! This is one way to describe my weekend, at least from the perspective of getting anything useful done. I had an ambitious to-do list for Saturday and Sunday, and accomplished almost nothing. Hell, I didn’t even start most of the things.

Daily Thoughts 2021-04-23 Friday
Skipped Thursday’s daily post because I just wasn’t feeling it. Writing Friday’s daily post in brief spurts during downtime in the teaching day, so I’ll try something new and do most of this post through bullet points.

Daily Thoughts 2021-04-21 Wednesday
I’ve been told that the best, most effective goals are formatted as SMART goals. That is, they are best when they are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

Daily Thoughts 2021-04-20 Tuesday
Today, simply this: when we feel stuck, like we don’t know what to do next or why or how, often it’s not that we’re actually stuck in any practical way. Instead, we’re often stuck emotionally.

Daily Thoughts 2021-04-19 Monday
It was a good, relaxing weekend, and I got a fair amount done, but most importantly was able to relax in a way that I