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Phase Shift

There are several things I wish to talk about today, so I think I shall write a numbered list again so I can get them all out here on (electronic) paper:

1. I have decided that this Summer will be the Summer of "Achievement Without Stress". What I mean by this is that I shall pursue goals and activities in such a way that I can have fun, and enjoyment and contentment.

2. One way I shall accomplish this (item #1) is through a return to regular exercise. I have been rather slack on this score for roughly a year. It used to be typical for me to walk 5 miles every day. I think I shall strive for that effort again. I may even try to cajole my baby brother into participating in exercise as well (and perhaps nudge him to return to writing on his site as well).

3. I plan to become more proactive in my teaching so as to not procrastinate and leave things to the last minute. This should reduce stress.

4. I may attempt to adopt in a "hobby" sort of way, some sort of new manner of artistic expression. Perhaps is shall be photography, perhaps painting or drawing, perhaps something else. I am not sure yet.

5. I shall make a more concerted effort to stay atop of the chaos that my office and laboratory are prone to become. I can function so much more efficiently if I give myself 10-15 minutes a day for organizational duties in the two spaces, but the net gain in time saved is far, far greater.

6. I shall of course, continue to speak of and write of my beloved mother. Yesterday, my wife and kids got together in the back yard and released helium-filled balloons with notes written on them to my beautiful mother. As we watched each balloon disappear into the sky, we thought about how each of us missed Mom, and how beautiful and special a person she was. Her love was (is) like a beacon of light from a lighthouse in a misty and foggy harbor. This balloon ceremony allowed us, at least in a small way, able to try to be with her on that most special of days for mothers. On Saturday, I drove to the cemetery and placed a large pot of flowers near her headstone and also another set near the headstone of my grandmother. My mother was always very, very diligent about placing flowers at her mother's grave. I made sure I was honoring to my own mother by purchasing the same sort of flowers in the same sort of vessel that she herself had bought all these many years. I knew they were my mother's favorite. She bought them to honor her mother. Likewise, even though these flowers were not *my* personal favorites... I bought them both for my beautiful mother's grave and for my grandmother's grave to honor them both.

7. I would like to also try a new approach to guide students in research. I am still marinading the ideas in my head on how to do so, so it is a bit early to outline them here, but as they become ready, I shall tell more.

PipeTobacco