Day 46: December 11th

Today’s choice: “Make a playlist, with the songs that meant the most to you at ages 15, 20, 25, etc. Take a long walk…" A couple of reflections about music in my early life. Music wasn’t a big part of my life until college. The music I remember from the ‘60s I mostly associate with my older brother. Songs he played that I didn’t care for at the time now have deep meaning, both because I associate them with him and because they represent how much I changed in the intervening time. I remember learning that lyrics are poetry when studying a Simon and Garfunkle song in my early teens. I remember how certain songs evoked deep emotions as an adolescent, particularly sadness and longing. And I remember the jubilation from the Wreck of the Old 97 in a live performance that was my first exposure to the banjo (the second banjo memory was shortly after from Deliverance, which had a very different reaction). Music is so evocative.

Today’s photo post: moving

Day 45: December 10th

Today’s photo post: complicated

Day 44: December 9th

Today’s photo post: enigmatic

Day 43: December 8th

Today’s photo post: paradoxical

Day 42: December 7th

Today’s photo post: grateful for the beauty of life

Day 41: December 6th

Today’s choice: “Say goodbye to something or someone. Let something go. You have to say no to things in order to have space to say yes. Goodbyes are tender.” Such a powerful suggestion. I’ve been reflecting on this since I first read it and reflecting on what do I most want to let go of.

Today’s photo post: adaptive

Day 40: December 5th

Today’s choice: “Reconnect with your younger self. Celebrate him. Be grateful for him.” I watched the Michigan football game last night after seeing the victory over Ohio State the week before. I don’t think I’ve watched two back-to-back football games in decades. It was a big part of my childhood growing up in Ann Arbor. Nice to recapture some of those memories. Backyard football, long before experiencing the collegiate stuff, gave me so much joy. It was a major element of my childhood innocence. I still enjoy football, and movies, as I did as a child. They are through-lines of joy in my life.

Today’s photo post: connected to family

Day 39: December 4th

Today’s choice: “Make your way over to the Cambridge side of the river … about an hour before sunset … to see the city from that perspective .. to take some photos.” Marvelously beautiful to see the city from this vantage point at sunset.

Today’s photo post: majestic

Day 38: December 3rd

Today’s choice: “getting over to the Harvard Stadium, one of my happy and meditative places, and having you run or walk up a few of the 37 sections.” Hanging out with a friend, talking about everything. Running up the steps (blurry because of the speed :-). And a few photos of the stadium. A perfect way to end the work week.

Today’s photo post: layered

Day 37: December 2nd

Oh, I’ve fallen behind on blogging! Fortunately, not on my daily celebration.

Today’s choice: “Have lunch with a close friend.” One of the biggest lessons in my life is learning that friendships transcend time, distance, and circumstances. This lunch reminded me so much of that lesson.

Today’s photo post: passionate (a Rodin favorite)

Day 36: December 1st

Today’s choice: “Solve some fun, clever, non-intuitive math problems. For example, these.” Oh, this brought back so many memories! I wasn’t able to solve either, but how glorious each failure was — they brought back soooo many memories and also resonated with parallels of struggling to solve personal challenges.

The first problem required confronting the disorientation of a problem that feels like I have the techniques to solve but they don’t work, and then being mystified. It goes back to the mistake of trying to solve the problem without first working on how to frame it properly. So many times the key to the problem’s solution is how it is framed rather than how it is solved. It was gratifying to learn it was an Einstein challenge.

As I began solving the second problem I was very careful not to repeat that mistake, so I actually framed the problem perfectly and began solving it the right way. I then realized the amount of time needed to figure out the pattern exceeded my patience and commitment to solving the problem. So I gave up, feeling 75% sure I was on the right path and that was a moral victory. In reality, if I was 100% sure it would have led to the solution I would have continued. So the combination of being uncertain whether I was on the right path, willing to settle for a partial win, and lack of discipline to stick to it colluded to make the failure possible. I think I’ve experienced that failure mode thousands of times in my life. And in life, the nagging belief that a problem is unsolvable so deflates our drive to solve it.

This proved to be a nice gentle reconnection with the valuable lessons of failure.

Today’s photo post: peaceful

Day 35: November 30th

Today’s choice: “Watch 3Blue1Brown math videos on YT.” I couldn’t believe how good these are! I remember so much of my math was learning all the techniques without really understanding how they applied to the real world. These guys get that. Bayes theorem, the geometry of changing beliefs is incredible. These are so good I’m thinking of literally watching the whole series as a course. Amazing.

Today’s photo post: delicate

Day 34: November 29th

Swamped with work. Falling behind on the celebration thingy…

Today’s photo post: back from holiday busy

Day 33: November 28th

Reviewed the list. Struggle to find the next one. Working on it, though!

Today’s photo post: dancing in the moment

Day 32: November 27th

We celebrated Thanksgiving with the family this Saturday. Lots of food and laughter. So grateful.

Today’s photo post: colorful

Day 31: November 26th

Turns out self-portraits need a lot of extra editing. Kept at it and I think it’s finished now.

Today’s photo post: listening and thinking

Day 30: November 25th

The self-portrait is done! Learned a lot about photoshop, and looked at my images from a multiple exposure perspective for the first time.

Today’s photo post: highly observant

Day 29: November 24th

Working away on the self-portrait!

Today’s photo post: busy

Day 28: November 23th

For the first time since this celebration began I felt burdened by it. I was looking for a daily choice, but I wasn’t motivated to do one. I was thinking that spending a few minutes on one wasn’t celebratory but rather just busywork not serving the intent of this experience. Further, it was more seeking credit from others for the daily plodding rather than owning it and making it what I want it to be.

That got me thinking about this podcast a friend shared, which talks about the book The Sweet Spot: The Pleasures of Suffering and the Search for Meaning. It explores the paradox that suffering is inseparable from searching and finding meaning in life. The discussion was profound because it accepted the paradox rather than resisted it.

I recently stumbled upon a magnificent list of paradoxes compiled by Sahil Bloom, and discovered that this one wasn’t mentioned, nor was the Help Paradox which I’ve worked with so many people to overcome. That got me thinking about what I call the Paradox Paradox

So today’s choice was to acknowledge the paradox of celebration being burdensome at times, and to choose to change my relationship to it.

Today’s photo post: restful

Day 27: November 22th

Today’s choice: continuing to work on a self-portrait. Lots to learn on this project, as it turns out. Practicing patience.

Today’s photo post: patience

Day 26: November 21th

Today’s choice: “Make sushi.” A family event! When I think of sushi I have a difficult time disassociating it from a health danger. It was amazing how that feeling vanished when preparing it with family. Definitely going to repeat!

Today’s photo post: spaced out

Day 25: November 20th

Today’s choice: “Watch all Godfather movies in one day.” Well, that was a bit much so I started with The Godfather. I had forgotten what a good movie it is.

Today’s photo post: hopeful

Day 24: November 19th

Today a friend mentioned an Albert Einstein quote I’d never heard before: “There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” As we were discussing this birthday thing, he said: “in a way, celebration is about experiencing everything as a miracle.” So true.

Today’s photo post: resilience

Day 23: November 18th

Today’s choice: “Watch the film Perfect Strangers.” A very provocative take on trust in relationships and the challenge of being honest with ourselves and others about who we are and the decisions we make. It was both engaging and sometimes painful to watch. Oddly enough, it made me feel grateful not to have to struggle with any of these things at this stage in my life. Despite being a very modern movie, it felt like it was from a bygone era of my life.

Today’s photo post: beautiful future

Day 22: November 17th

I’m starting to understand the similarities and differences between photography and writing as I switch between them: creativity, expression, craftsmanship, and so on. It’s fascinating to begin to see how I approach and practice each differently affects how I enjoy and get frustrated by each one. I had never made that connection before and it seems somewhere between meaningful and profound. That’ll do for today’s choice!

Today’s photo post: striving

Day 21: November 16th

I’m greatly enjoying Saga, “a long story of heroic achievement.”

Today’s photo post: my home is my castle

Day 20: November 15th

Was motivated today to return to my graphic novel :-)

Today’s photo post: always in motion, forever young

Day 19: November 14th

I continued working on the self-portrait. Have an idea and am experimenting.

I began reading The Boys, a memoir by Ron Howard and his brother Clint. It is filled with gratitude and a grounded philosophy about what’s important in life. I remember him singing “The Wells Fargo Wagon” from my favorite movie, The Music Man, when I was very young. Turns out he’s only two years older than I am :-)

Today’s photo post: proud

Day 18: November 13th

Spent the day learning more about black and white photography. That got me thinking about my next choice. I’ve been thinking about two: “Make a self-portrait and use the portrait as a way to express something nameable or unnamable about yourself” and “produce a photograph in a style you've never done before.” Perhaps they should be the same. A work in progress…

Daily photo post: juggling many things

Day 17: November 12th

Today’s choice: “Have dinner with a close friend” of 40+ years.
Daily photo post: industrious

Day 16: November 11th

Today’s choice: “Watch a special movie…” Watched The Electrical Life of Louis Wain, a story about being different and celebrating it.
Daily photo post: beautifully different

Day 15: November 10th

Today’s choice: “Read a graphic novel.” Chose Saga, just getting started. Very…graphic :-)
Daily photo post: contemplative.

Day 14: November 9th

Today’s choice: “Sign up for Adobe’s free creativity conference.”
Finished my favorite childhood book: David and the Phoenix. A mixture of wonder, childish innocence, and kindness. So many things to love.

Daily photo post: playful

Day 13: November 8th

Today’s choice: “Re-read a chapter from one of your favorite books.”
Decided to read many chapters from my favorite childhood book: David and the Phoenix.

Daily photo post: Opportunistic

Day 12: November 7th

A friend shared What I’ve Learned From Running Marathons and noted these last two thoughtful paragraphs:

It takes courage to accept where you are now, to resist trying to force yourself back to what you once were. As great as it feels to peak, eventually we crest and then descend. Whether that’s now or later, we’ll all get there, and that’s fine. The ghost of my former self may still try to haunt me, but she’s no longer a rival I have to beat. Everything she has is mine, too.

On Sunday, I’m going to wake myself up before dawn. I’m going to tear through Central Park like I’m running the best race of my life. When people cheer for me, I’m going to cheer back. I’m going to cross the finish line as if I won. And when I see my ghost sprinting up ahead of me, I will smile.

I find that as the body crests and descends, the spirit rises and soars. It’s much better than winning the race.

Today’s choice: “Listen to this 11 White Christmas playlist and rank them”

1. Michael Buble / Shania Twain (great duet)

2. Ella Fitzgerald (love the band, too)

3. Drifters (love the do-op)

4. Bing Crosby (amazing voice; weak arrangement and backups)

5. Norah Jones (love the piano)

6. Frank Sinatra (phrasing is very good)

7. Darlene Love (can’t stand the talking, but the style is nice)

8. Otis Redding

9. Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings

10. Loretta Lynn (nice voice, just too simple)

11. Stiff Little Fingers (ugh)

Daily photo post: peaceful

Day 11: November 6th

A day of reflection. This whole experience has been surprisingly rich in so many ways: reflective, connecting, joyful, mindful, and many more. It made me curious, too: what does “celebration” mean? According to Merriam-Webster, it is defined as:

• the action of marking one's pleasure at an important event or occasion by engaging in enjoyable, typically social, activity. We are celebrating my birthday by going out to dinner.

• to praise: to say that something is great or important. The book celebrates the movies of the past.

• to perform, as in a religious ceremony. A priest celebrates Mass at the church daily.

I’ve limited my own celebrations to intimate family events because I only thought of them as #1: marking one’s pleasure. That doesn’t seem very meaningful, though it can be joyful.

Using celebration as praise of something important, now that’s meaningful. This experience has made me appreciate that much more, both for myself but also in thinking of others.

Using celebration as ceremonial seems natural as a tradition (celebrating birthdays and anniversaries), but it takes on a deeper meaning to me when framed as a ritual, particularly as it also involves gathering.

Today’s choice: “Buy an NFT.” Hmm, but I’m much more interested in creating one! Perhaps for a few of my photos? Wouldn’t that be interesting? Needs more investigation, but I’m working on it…

Daily photo post: flexible and resilient

Day 10: November 5th

Today’s choice: “Watch a movie I’ve heard good things about.”
Chose Rashomon, the classic about perspectives. I started thinking about the multiple perspectives of my childhood: my real-time experience, my family members’ perspective, and my adult interpretation. Added onto that are creative inaccuracies of memory.

Daily photo post: hopeful

Day 9: November 4th

Today’s choice: “Ask a friend to write a poem about you.” I asked two :-)

Daily photo post: creatively self-expressive

Day 8: November 3rd

Today’s choice: “Read a page from a Calvin and Hobbs book every day.”
The person that picked this one knows me well!

Daily photo post: loving father

Day 7: November 2nd

Today’s choice: “Write a document, "What matters", and a separate one, "What doesn't matter".” Wonderful to see so many things that matter are a part of my life, which evokes gratitude.

Daily photo post: smoldering passion for things that matter.

Day 6: November 1st

Today’s choice, a return to poetry: “write a poem…”
I learned what a sestina is and left writing one as an exercise for another day. Instead, this:

My Writing Ritual
In tribute to William Wadsworth

Recalling strong emotion in tranquility:
Inspired by that one person eager to read,
Courageous to face my harshest critic: despair.
Motivated to push beyond the avoidance,
Striving for connection to my heart and my soul,
Curious to discover thoughtful emergence,
Grateful to connect with many rich memories,
Eager to reach beyond my knowledge for wisdom,
Serene in clarity: what will be is enough.

Daily photo post: Marveling at beauty

Day 5: October 31st - Halloween!

A day of rest. Today’s choice: "I experienced the joy of Nutella.” Dipped with pretzels.

Daily photo post: Stolid

Day 4: October 30

More ideas streaming in. Thanks, everyone!

Today’s choice: "Listen to Stromae” Definitely stretching myself :-)

Daily photo post: The beauty of work

Day 3: October 29

More ideas streaming in. Thanks, everyone!

Today’s choice: "produce photos in a style you’ve never done before."
City Nightscape. And a bit of B&W.

Daily photo post: My complex self

Day 2: October 28

Walked through the suggestions list and picked out 40 that I will definitely do, and another 40 that I want to think about.

Created and published this page you’re reading.

Today’s choice: "read four poems written by a friend."
I loved “Funny how my gifts to you Accrue to me also.”

Daily photo post: Beautifully chaotic creativity (also on Instagram)
Remembering when I first discovered creativity within.

Day 1: October 27

First of my 65 choices, one per day through the end of the year.

Wrangling the suggestions; adopted this approach to making a daily choice from among the (evergrowing) suggestions list:

• Maximize our future nostalgia rather than minimize regret

• Choose breadth of types: Select one from every category

• Choose breadth of emotions: discomfort, connection, atonement…

• Choose breadth of experiences: grow, slaying demons… 

• Capture and share the process

Today’s choice: "each day publish a favorite photo showing a different perspective of myself."

Daily photo post: Gratitude (also on Instagram)
Noticing the beauty all around me.

Day 0: October 26 Birthday

Sent this follow-up to the original birthday invitation.
Scrambling to get organized and started!