PERSONAL FITNESS
1. Don’t die.
A car stopped dead on the exit from the George Washington Bridge amid a rainstorm, which created a dangerous situation for us, but we survived.
That was my closest call in September.
As always, I plan on living forever or die trying.
2. Lose 20 pounds.
I lost the two pounds I had gained in August due to vacation and COVID-19, plus I lost one additional pound.
This brings my total weight down to 36 pounds in 2023. Still well ahead of the original goal of 20 pounds.
I won’t declare victory until I get through the year with sustained weight loss, but at the moment, the goal to lose 20 pounds and my revised goal of 30 pounds have been achieved.
Now that I’ve hit my new goal, I’m setting my sights on another 10 pounds, which would bring my total weight loss to 40 pounds.
Those last four pounds will likely be challenging.
3. Do at least 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, and three one-minute planks five days a week.
Done.
4. Cycle for at least five days every week.
Done. I cycled for all but three days in September. I was traveling on these three days, so biking was impossible.
5. Improve my golfing handicap by two strokes.
My handicap at the start of the year was 17.6.
I played more than a dozen rounds of golf in September, including many mornings before work, but my handicap is holding steady at 20.9.
But improvement is happening. I need to hit my driver consistently and hit all of my clubs longer if I hope to improve significantly.
WRITING CAREER
6. Complete my eighth novel.
Progress has commenced! Completion by the end of the year is very doable.
7. Write my next Storyworthy book.
Done. Sent it off to the editor!
8. Write/complete at least three new picture books, including one with a female, non-white protagonist.
Three books are complete.
“Operation Beaver Drop” is going out to publishers soon.
“Rock a Bye Baby” and “Duel in the Sky” will be sent to my agent shortly.
“Rock a Bye Baby” features a female, non-white protagonist.
I’m working on a new one now.
9. Write a new solo show.
Done.
10. Perform a new solo show.
Done. Performed July 30 and 31 and August 1. I look forward to performing it again soon.
11. Write a musical.
My friend Kaia and I are writing a musical that we will also perform, even though I cannot sing. She writes the music and lyrics. She and I write the story.
We brainstormed ideas in August and came up with some exciting ideas. A new concept and some ideas for songs.
I need to write some of the story for Kaia to begin writing music.
12. Submit at least five Op-Ed pieces to The New York Times for consideration.
No progress.
13. Write at least four letters to my father.
I wrote a birthday note to my father in March.
One letter has been sent in 2023 so far.
14. Write 100 letters in 2022.
Done.
Another 13 letters were sent in September, bringing the total number to 178.
Recipients included students, former students, a colleague, a former colleague, and a bank teller.
15. Convert 365 Days of Elysha into a book.
No progress. There is probably a company that does this sort of thing.
Does anyone know of one?
16. Read at least 12 books.
Done. Three books were read in September. A total of 16 books so far in 2023.
“The Wager” by David Grann
“The Other Wes Moore” by Wes Moore
“Million Dollar Maverick” by Alan Weiss
I’m in the middle of reading the following books:
“Holly” by Stephen King
“Think Like a Monk” by Jay Shetty
“The Groucho Letters” by Groucho Marx
“Smart Brevity” by Jim VendeHei, Mike Allen, and Roy Schwartz
Sixteen books read so far in 2023.
- “Sapiens” by Yuval Harari
- “Life’s a Gamble” by Mike Sexton
- “The Sea We Swim In” by Frank Rose
- “Born a Crime” by Trevor Noah
- This Will All Be Over Soon” by Cecily Strong
- “Magic Words” by Jonah Berger
- “The Science of Storytelling” by William Storr
- “Slayers and Vampires” by Edward Gross and Mark Altman
- “Hooked: How to Produce Habit-Forming Products” by Nir Eyal
- “Tough Sh*t” by Kevin Smith
- “From Saturday Night to Sunday Night” by Dick Ebersol
- “The Ship Beneath the Ice” by Mensun Bound
- “Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t” by Steven Pressfield
- “The Wager” by David Grann
- “The Other Wes Moore” by Wes Moore
- “Million Dollar Maverick” by Alan Weiss
17. Read TIME’s 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time.
I didn’t read any of these books in September. Reading will resume this month now that school has begun.
A total of 15 so far.
I’ve read many of the other books on the list in the past, but I am only counting those books I read in 2023 toward my goal.
18. Write to at least six authors about a book I love.
No progress.
STORYTELLING/SPEAKING CAREER
19. Complete the re-recording of Storyworthy For Business.
“Storyworthy” for Business is complete and available for purchase. Find it and much more at storyworthymd.com.
I want to produce a much-improved version of the course ASAP. Module 1 is now re-recorded. A lot more needs to be done.
20. Record the next Storyworthy course.
Done.
Two brand-new courses have been added to the Storyworthy platform:
Finding Stories
Anatomy of a Story
Humor: Volume #1
I’m proud of all of them. You should check them out.
21. Produce a total of six Speak Up storytelling events in 2023
Three shows in 2023 so far:
- April 22 at the Connecticut Historical Society
- May 4, in partnership with Voices of Hope
- July 29 at Hartford Flavor Company
We have shows scheduled for November 4 at Wolcott School, December 4 at the Playhouse on Park, and December 16 in Middletown, CT.
22. Pitch myself to at least three upcoming TEDx events with the hopes of being accepted by one.
Done!
I spoke at a TEDx event at the University of Connecticut in January.
Due to the delay in posting a TEDx Talk from more than a year ago, my University of Connecticut talk will not be loaded onto the TED platform for reasons I don’t quite understand.
I also spoke at a TEDx event in Natick, MA, on April 13. It went quite well. That video should be online shortly.
I also pitched myself to TEDx events in Harlem, Roxbury, and on the campus of Yale University.
TEDx Harlem and TEDx Yale declined. TEDx Roxbury was canceled.
23. Attend at least eight Moth events with the intention of telling a story.
I attended three Moth events in September—two in Boston and one in NYC.
A total of 13 Moth shows attended in 2023 thus far.
24. Win at least one Moth StorySLAM.
Done. I won the Moth StorySLAM in Boston on March 29.
25. Win a Moth GrandSLAM.
I competed in a Moth GrandSLAM in Boston in May and did not win. I also had to go first, which is not exactly fun or conducive to winning.
I was invited to compete in the Seattle GrandSLAM in March and again in October, but traveling cross country was impossible.
I will be performing at the Moth GrandSLAM in NYC on November 1.
26. Produce at least 24 episodes of our podcast Speak Up Storytelling.
No progress.
27. Perform stand-up at least six times in 2022.
I’ll perform stand-up at the New York City Comedy Festival in November.
28. Pitch three stories to This American Life.
No progress.
29. Pitch myself to Marc Maron’s WTF podcast at least three times.
No progress.
30. Send a newsletter to readers at least 50 times.
One newsletter was sent in September.
A total of 42 newsletters have been sent thus far in 2023.
HOME
31. Clear the basement.
Progress continues and is going well. Large furniture is now removed. Closing in on the finish line.
32. Clean and clear the garage.
A much-needed dumpster, a trip to the dump, or perhaps a neighbor’s tag sale will be key to completing this task, but it’s nearly done. Large items need to be discarded, and a pile of school supplies needs to be organized or eliminated, but otherwise, it is almost complete.
33. Furnish and decorate the studio.
Done!
34. Eliminate clothing not being worn and closet bins.
Done!
FAMILY/FRIENDS
35. Text or call my brother or sister once per month.
Done.
36. Take at least one photo of my children every day.
Done.
37. Take at least one photo with Elysha and me each week.
After three consecutive months of multiple photos, only two photos were taken together in September. They were admittedly taken on the same day, about an hour apart.
38. Plan a reunion of the Heavy Metal Playhouse.
No progress.
39. I will not comment positively or negatively about the physical appearance of any person save my wife and children to reduce the focus on physical appearance in our culture overall.
Done.
40. Surprise Elysha at least six times in 2023.
One surprise in September:
I noticed that Elysha was eyeing some simple syrups on Whidbey Island, so I took a photo of them and ordered them for her when we arrived home.
A total of 19 surprises so far in 2023, including:
- Half a dozen birthday cards, all handmade, scattered throughout her life on her birthday
- Tickets to the upcoming Lizzo concert
- A Pusheen Mystery Box
- Goodie bag of Trader Joe’s delights
- Coat from Canyon Ranch
- Visit from Kathy
- Surprise dessert delivered personally to her school
- Another surprise surprise dessert delivered personally to her school
- Another Pusheen Mystery Box
- Tickets to Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me, Tina Fey/Amy Poehler, and Jenny Lewis
- Flowers following Clara’s dance recital
- First-class tickets on the flight back from DC
- First-class tickets on the flight to Everett, WA
- Pusheen gift box
- Tickets to “Back to the Future” on Broadway
- Tickets to “Mrs. Doubtfire” at the Bushnell
- A collection of simple syrups from Whidbey Island
- Rhode Island and Boston weekends planned with friends for the fall
- Simple syrups
41. Play poker at least six times in 2023.
No progress. It’s ridiculous since I love this game so much.
42. Spend at least six days with my best friend of more than 30 years.
Three visits in September. Five total visits in 2023 so far.
MUSIC
43. Memorize the lyrics to at least five favorite songs.
I’ve memorized the lyrics to two new songs so far.
I memorized the lyrics to “Lay It On Me” by Vance Joy.
I memorized the lyrics to “Come a Little Bit Closer” by Jay and the Americans.
I’m still working on Fleetwood Mac’s “Go Your Own Way” and “Renegade” by Styx (with Charlie and Clara).
Others, too.
44. Learn to play the piano by practicing at least three times a week.
Done.
MISCELLANEOUS PROJECTS
45. Learn the names of every employee who works at my school.
I learned the names of four paraprofessionals and two certified staff members this month. Two new and four existing staff members.
46. Convert our wedding video to a transferable format.
Done! The wedding video and a great deal of other content were successfully extracted from my ancient Apple laptop. The footage was not removed in perfect order, so some work will need to be done to reassemble the parts of the video, but at last, this goal has been completed.
47. Memorize five new poems.
No progress. But there is a show in Hartford called Other People’s Poems, where you read (and perhaps recite poetry) from memory.
I had planned to attend in September, but a rescheduled Little League game interfered.
48. Write to at least three colleges about why they should hire me.
I have begun writing the letter, but I wonder if I would still want the job.
49. Complete my Eagle Scout project.
I’ve reached out to the folks who manage the cemeteries in Newington for assistance on this project in March.
No response.
Still need to reach out again.
50. Post my progress regarding these resolutions on this blog and social media on the first day of every month.
Done!
