On March 14, 2020, as my school closed and our world entered lockdown, I was determined to make the best use of my time as possible, so I made a list of things to accomplish while awaiting for the world to reopen.
I was not under any illusion at the time that lockdown would last a couple weeks. As we exited the school on March 14, I warned colleagues that we wouldn’t be returning again for the school year.
Some scoffed. Others stared in disbelief. A few already knew what I knew:
This virus wasn’t going away anytime soon.
In fact, I had been warning some colleagues as early as late January to stock up on prescription medicine, shelf stable food, and yes, toilet paper. In early March, one of these colleagues said to me, “It’s like you could see the future.”
Not too much. I pay attention to the news, and I have clients in medicine and biotech who warned me.
So my list wasn’t intended for the initial two week lockdown but a much longer period of time.
A little more than 20 months later, I thought I’d review my list and see how I did.
Accountability. I believe in it wholeheartedly.
Write a new book.
Done. While writing Someday is Today, my book on personal productivity that publishes next year, I also wrote the follow up to Storyworthy and perhaps the follow up to that follow up depending on how we decide to format the book.
Hopefully that book will follow on the heels of Someday is Today.
Watch as many Marvel movies as possible with Charlie and Elysha. We have barely watched any of these films, but armed with the proper order to watch them, we will proceed through the catalog thanks to our Disney streaming subscription.
Done. Elysha, Charlie, and I watched every Marvel film in order during the pandemic. It was one of those bright, silver linings during the most frightening of days. Elysha and I still look back on those evenings in front of the TV as some our favorites of the year.
Clean out the garage. The kids have made it a mess by using every item in the garage as a toy and never putting anything away. They are quite annoying.
Done, but sadly, it needs to be done again. Kids are the worst.
Empty the basement. I live in a town that provides its residents with free bulk pickup every week, so there will be a constant stream of old furniture and other related items on my curb every Thursday morning for quite a while.
Progress was made, but there is still much to do. Bulk pickup was suspended for a long period of time, making this one harder to achieve.
Play every board game that we own with my family at least once. Donate the ones we don’t like anymore.
We played many, many games during the pandemic, but we did not play every game, mostly because we already know which ones suck and should be donated.
Read at least two books.
Done. I read a total of 16 books before the end of 2020 alone and 4 books before June 1 of that year.
Wash and fold all the laundry in the house, including the bags of old clothing that were recovered from recent closet cleanings.
Done.
Do a 10-minute plank.
Not even close. What the hell was I thinking? I tried. I did a lot of planks. I even purchased a device to make planking more entertaining, but 10 minutes was a ridiculous idea.
Write and mail 25 letters.
Done. I wrote at least 32 letters before June 1. Possibly more.
Begin writing a musical with my partner, Kaia.
This was impossible during lockdown for important reasons, but progress is being made now.
Record two Speak Up Storytelling podcasts, bonus content for our Patreon account, plus the final episode of my Twenty-one Truths About Love podcast.
Done.
Record at least two new videos for my YouTube channel.
Done.
Explore the possible avenues for producing my storytelling instruction for an online platform.
Done. My partners and that company was born during lockdown and is now accelerating toward our first offering.
Go through the children’s toy bins at night while they are asleep and throw away or donate old toys that they no longer play with or even know exist. Don’t tell them.
Done.
Ride my bike with the kids.
Done. I fell in love with biking during lockdown. With the streets empty of cars and a deer on Main Street in Newington, there was never a better time to bike. I was on my bike every day beginning in March, and the kids joined me a great deal.
Another pandemic silver lining.
If it’s even close to warm enough, play a round of golf.
Done a lot. It turns out that in a pandemic, when being outdoors is considerably safer than indoors, golf is a perfect way to hang out with friends. Many agreed. Tee times became hard to get at times, and golf’s popularity soared. I played a lot.
