thoughts on the eve of September, re: 2010 Focus(es)

i know this isn't the beginning of a new year, but it will be the beginning of the first (& hopefully last) school year for ava, so to fill my time whilst in Dubai (as it is illegal for me to work w/out going thru proper channels, though i will teach if i find some willing students) i thought i should plan, make a schedule & have a few goals, or i will squander each & every day playing rpg games & surfin' the net. i have sooo many things i'd like to do/learn, alas i can only do so many in a day/year. this year's energy will be consumed with the following list, but hope that next year i'll make an entirely new list from a long list i have on a sticky note somewhere.

Primary Goals:

1. exercise: we have a gym & a pool in our apt bldg (*shame*); &, of course, yoga

2. practice vegan cooking/baking; org recipes into my cookbook db; think about cookbook idea

3. practice some music: piano, singing & clairnet

4. read books on my reading challenge list+

5. learn all the buttons on my SLR & take photos; work on 'ava 2 1/2 years later'

6. blog about my accomplishments


Secondary Goals:

i'd like to include travel, macrame, sewing, quilting & embroidery if/when i can find the time.


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i'm hoping to actually see more of the UAE & not-to-distant countries, as well as a trip to Korea. :) for gayageum & jasu, as well as, food & friends. all the above is done while trying to save money for a house/land when we return to canada. ha!


i'm making this public as a push to myself. looking at it, it doesn't seem realistic. crap. i don't think i could simplify this if i tried even harder. well i hope to at least post some accomplishments by the end of september. we'll see...

12 Books, 12 Months Challenge

* Pick 12 titles from your To Read Pile. These should be titles you currently own in whatever format you prefer.
* Acquisition of other formats or translations is permitted. So, if you have a paperback but want to read on your Kindle, you can get a Kindle copy. If you have a library copy but want to buy your own, that’s kosher. Heck, if you own a copy and want to check another out from the library, I’m not gonna stop you.
* Post your list in your public space of choice by September 1, 2010.
* Read all 12 titles between now and September 5, 2011. Might as well tack on an extra long weekend at the end for cramming.
* When you finish a title on your list, post about it in your public space of choice.

okay, so here's my picks for the year... they've not necessarily been on my shelf for a while, but it's what i have in Dubai. i'm gonna leave the final three empty as i don't recall what titles are on my shelf in Dubai, but i'll fill them in next week. i'd like to include all the books i've started reading this past year or two, but i'm trying to be realisitic! as well most of them are boxed up in canada.

1. Neil Gaiman - Anansi Boys

2. Jonathan Lethem - Motherless Brooklyn

3. Ian Banks - the Wasp Factory

4. Shree Ghatage - Brahma's Dream

5. Karen Armstrong - Islam

6. A. Hourani - the History of Arab Peoples

7. William Dalrymple - Age of Kali

8. Ghada Karmi - In Search of Fatima

9. Emma Goldman - Living my life Vol.II (& finish Vol.I)

10. William H. Burroughs - Interzone

11. Simone Weil - the Need for Roots

12. Julian Barnes - Talking it Over



what books will you challenge yourself to this year?


good enough.