Today, I'm two thirds of the way through the project period and have learned less than half of what I hoped to. Which is actually a 'win', as far as my predictive powers are concerned.
I usually hope to achieve 4 times what's actually possible, and expect to achieve twice what I do.
Is it wisdom, or merely pessimism, that comes with age?
Review
An day that was going to be unremarkable, until the late evening.
At which point, 3 cliff-hanger episodes of Justified took me hours past my intended bedtime. Turning an 'OK' day into the lowest productivity day of the proect, so far
I didn't even make time to properly complete this review.
Right now, my decision not to immediately return to the routine on 1 Jan 2022 looks like a really bad one.
But I don't think the decision itself was the wrong.
The error was failing to take the necessary steps to implement it.
Specifically, I failed to put in place the preparation that could have ensured that I returned to routine through increments — allowing my 'chimp of the perverse' (cf. Neal Stevenson and Dr Steve Peters) to get loose and fulfil its impulse to watch too much telly.
So, the overwhelming objective for Monday, 3 Jan 2022, is to get to bed at least one hour earlier.
That means that it'll be the end of the week before I'm back to a equilibrium position. But I'm determined not to repeat previous mistakes, by over-doing the reset.
Routine Checklist
Legend
- Ticks — right activity on time
- Crosses — not done to schedule
- Hyphens — not applicable to currrent routine configuration
| Task | M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0730 — Get going | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| 0845 — Session 1 | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ |
| 1015 — Break | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| 1030 — Session 2 | ✓ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ |
| 1200 — Dinner | ✓ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| 1245 — Session 3 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ |
| 1415 — Break | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| 1430 — Session 4 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 1600 — Transition | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 1630 - Session 5 | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 1800 — Tea | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| 1830 — Maintenance | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ |
| 2000 — Relax | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 2230 — Review, uwind | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| 2330 — Bed | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
Learning Tasks Checklist
| Task | M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading comprehension | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Read aloud | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| Just read | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| Word & phrase exercises | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Sentence exercises | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ |
| Socratic dialogue | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| A song | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| Aural comprehension | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Verb exercises | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Preposition exercises | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ |
| Pronoun exercises | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ |
| Conjunctions | - | - | ✓ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Eng.→Spa. translation | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Spa.→Eng. translation | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Physical exercise | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| Subbed video | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Non-subbed video | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| Research lang. acquisition | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | List 'issues' | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | Prepare materials | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Review this checklist | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |