Holy Super Busy Day!

 Basically on the go from the moment I woke until now. Solid flow almost the entire day. Lots of progress in many crucial areas and projects. All kinds of positive momentum. Now I'm looking forward to tomorrow!

A couple long days of driving.

 Good for the soul? Maybe.

I always enjoy seeing the beautiful scenery basically everywhere I've ever driven. Sure, there can be some boring stuff from time to time but the contrast of that is what makes the beautiful elements that much more enriching and captivating. And the boring stuff isn't really that bad, even... just common.

We have hit the road running here in Arlington. So much to do in so little time. There are going to be a lot of crazy memories to make over the next several days, I expect. Arm fun mixed with people fun! Woot woot!

Connecting the Past to the Present.

 I have a few friends in my life who I have been friends with since before I was the age of ten. Most of them are fairly loosely engaged with the happenings in life these days... but there's at least one or two that still bear a greater portion of the weight in my current emotional space. It's a strange, rare, very cool, highly appreciated thing to experience. I'm not entirely sure why it feels so valuable, outside of all the obvious things one could state about it, but it's yet another reason to be super grateful for the incredible blessings in my life.

Long and Boring and Productive.

 And sometimes that's just how the day goes. It's not necessarily a bad thing but it can feel kinda weird or annoying at times. "The grind" can sometimes be unnecessarily glorified... but the intensity of "the grind" is really where it should be assessed for its relevance, quality, or importance. Keep it just out of the self-destruction zone and you'll be in good shape, I'd say.

I am so grateful for the help of my friends and family!

 And I guess it's such a simple statement that there probably isn't much I can say to elaborate effectively.

No man is an island. Even me.

Strong Potential Landing Spot.

 I have a lot of cleaning to do of all my gear and garbage before I actually do any sort of move... BUT... after having a solid conversation about the state of the production industry in the Utah Valley I am starting to feel quite confident it would be a good place to give it all another go.

Things are a little slow at the moment, as they pretty much are everywhere I can get a sense of, but there seems to be a lot of potential on the horizon. It's exciting to me about the possibility of joining the fun.

So... Time to start looking for a place to live. I probably should have been doing this all along but I have definitely been busy with my work so it isn't for a bad reason. I hope to find a place somewhere near Lehi... we'll see how it all shakes out.

Getting Things Done.

 Staying in the cave and plugging away at the tasks at hand is often boring but definitely needed at times. I have a decent little chunk of stuff left to do but I'm always happy to have some of the more difficult elements completed.

Beyond all that, not much else to say. A quiet day of progress is almost always more valuable than a loud day of nonsense. Ha.

Positivity is Attractive.

 Which might be the exact title I have conjured for a previous blog entry but I am not really sure... but I don't mind if I am echoing such a deceptively valuable statement. I say deceptive because it probably seems quite obvious from the outside. Even like a dumb thing to say. But I think it's deeper than what it appears. I'll lay out a few ideas about why I think that.

Positivity can show resilience. The ability to rebound from challenging times, negative situations, or otherwise detrimental behaviors. Resilience is a kind of toughness and also a kind of steadfastness. It can be a key ability making personal change in life.

Positivity can show intention. It is not typically a natural behavior in many settings but expresses a person's decisive intention when it manifests in those settings... even more so when it stands in opposition to the negative settings we experience.

Positivity can show self-control and strength of will. This might be the most attractive element I can see among these qualities. Maybe it is because they are qualities I seek to have within myself the most. The qualities that I admire the most in others. Qualities which you can build as a foundation where other qualities and grow from.

Anyway... I felt like exploring the topic a bit because I was offered a bit of positivity in the online dating world today. Some people write songs... I write blog posts. Ha. It's a different kind of art, I suppose. So sue me!

Travel Always Makes This Challenging.

Even now, I am typing this laying forward on the bed. An uncomfortable typing posture for sure. Ha.

I guess the other main challenge of doing this arises from the fact that I don't exactly have my normal routine while I'm traveling, too. I am somewhat settled here at my sister's house but I still don't have quite a normal routine.

Anyway... here is my attempt to find my usual groove a little. It isn't all puppies and parades... but it'll do, 

Meeting All the People.

 I can't remember the last industry mixer that I attended. I especially can't remember the last one as well-attended as the one I went to tonight. Tons of people! Fun!

It was pretty cool to meet many of the people I have seen in online interactions but have never met in person. It was cool to meet people totally cold and learn something new from a few of them. It was cool to mill about in all the noise and have a bunch of good laughs and some chips and salsa from time to time. It was good to hand out some of my contact details and maybe it'll turn into a little bit of future work.

I definitely want to make sure I get to this sort of thing more frequently in the future. I do best in person and I think I made some decent connections that are important to my line of work. All around a groovy old time was had for sure!

All Kinds of Overtime!

 I'm not sure the cause but I have had several days of deep overtime in the last couple or so weeks. Whacky and well-paying! Ha. I am not complaining, either. Maybe I'd like even more?

I slept a meager three-ish hours last night... worked almost 15. What a strange sleep to work ratio. Kind of a flex, I guess. Other than any of the nights I didn't get any sleep at all I have to guess this would be close to the most whacky ratio I have ever done.

So, now I go hit the sack with a full body attack. Snack!

Whoa... Post number 2,000. Cool.

 I was once quite consistent at this blog thing maybe 15 or so years ago and somehow I let it get behind me. I think of this as the easiest way to communicate through the written word because I type way faster than I write and it allows me to flow a bit better... so it occupies a semi-important role in the productive communication experience in my life. In a way it kind of seems like I get to be a bit more creative. I am not sure that necessarily means it is any higher quality than the rest of the things that I do(journal writing in handwritten form and vlogging) but it is definitely different and so I guess it has a different meaning to me.

I think I started this whole blogging journey sometime around 2002 or so. I asked the question rhetorically to myself(and maybe to the reader) - "Am I a blogger?' and sort of fancied myself a bit of a creative in that way. I've always thought of writing as one of the more noble forms of communication so maybe it seemed like blogging was my own personal way to jump on that bandwagon. It is a thing that basically anyone can do but, for whatever reason, it doesn't seem like many people actually do it these days. Not outside of social media posts, twitter, or whatever is like that.

I think thoughts are important. I think taking the time to express things is also important. I've learned in the many years since I started that there are proven beneficial effects that come along with this kind of habit, and maybe that might've seemed like an obvious thing to me back then, but it's a nice confirmation to hear it does good things and certainly helps to motivate me to do more of it.

So... this is post 2,000. If I compare myself to the more consistent or intense or prolific writers of the world that probably seems like small change but I don't really care. I am not them, nor they me. Maybe I have technically covered the entire gamut of my potential life's topics in one form or another and have even repeated some of them multiple times. None of that matters either. I am a different person every time I address anything because my view is newly informed by every experience prior to it. They all have different meaning to me. All 2,000 of them.

Familial Recognition and Legacy.

 It's always a humbling and unexpected thing when somebody who knows my family or parents somehow recognizes me because of them. It is because of this that I also hope I am representing them well, that I somehow meet that person's expectations of what a member of my family does and is. Maybe another phrase to illustrate the feeling I have... "with great power comes great responsibility." It might seem like a poor comparison but it still reflects the feeling well.

A Day of Profound Quietness.

 I think it was a bit of an oozy, slow Sunday. I went to bed so late last night that I basically just sloshed through the day at about half speed. I made my progress on the various things I took time to focus on so that was nice. Beyond all that I interacted extremely little with the outside world. The descent into my man cave has been thorough, indeed.

Happy Birthday, Pops!

 I didn't make time to swing by the graveyard today but I should be able to make it tomorrow. It was a nice day trip to Canada today and I think he would've enjoyed it. Good friends make for good memories. I miss Pops but know he'd be happy for me and the family nonetheless.

Working and Cleaning and Monologging.

 The day was a relatively typical-ish day. I did my work. I cleaned my car for the trip tomorrow. But then I delved into the deeper conversation that generally only comes with my closer friends and we sort of landed on the value of monologging to camera, both for his acting experience and as a thing I can practice in my own vlogging efforts, mostly just for fun. Kinda weird but reasonably cool, I'd say.

So, in the interest of time I don't really plan to start doing that tonight but I do think I'll give it a try sometime soon. I just gotta put some time committing the script into memory so I don't have to read anything off. Gotta do it like an actor would do it, right?

The Work Play Work Sandwich.

 Which probably seems like a strange order of operations but it worked out well enough today.

Lots of good planning for the upcoming event always feels good. We have a fairly focused direction with clear objectives to follow and complete beforehand. I made the orders for most of the remaining gear needed and should be able to build the setups by the middle of next week.

Play in the middle of the day was fun. Of course. Not much else to say there.

Lots of good progress on the color grade rebuild for the quality control checks. It's very tedious at this point because it is clip by clip transfer and there are well over 2700 clips to touch in the process. I'm about 1400 or so through it so far. It moves relatively fast at the moment. That'll change when I get to the next pass with a more critical eye.

And now... the all beautiful act of sleeping. Recharge in style for tomorrow's resumed action.

Entering the Arm Wrestling Dungeon.

 Today was the first time I was able to visit the most excellent monument to strength that is Binh's arm wrestling dungeon. That man is an arm wrestling mad scientist with the dedication and intensity of a road flare. Ha.

We did several of his current routine's lifts and talked over theory and strategy, plans and goals, and all the highlights of our team and the various local teams as well. We even crossed into the realms of relationships and life. A wise and gentle soul lies firmly within that fiery exterior.

Anyway... always a good time and he even offered me a great piece of optimism for better things to come in the future. A groovy old time was had for sure!

Disagreement is Productive.

 And I think it ties into the same principle of progress that stems from the diversity of opinion in the workplace(and, broadly, any collective entity.) The more homogenous a group is the less it will innovate and improve... and maybe it is the fundamental disagreements that are at the core of that progress.

Kicking Off the Week in Chill Fashion.

 It wasn't much of a remarkable entrance but I'll take it over the negatively remarkable entrances every time. Ha.

I did a bit of my work, both at home and at arm wrestling practice, but I relaxed a decent amount as well. My back is even feeling noticeably better so hey, relaxing was justified.

Beyond all that... nothing particularly fancy to ponder on tonight. Just a simple thought that keeping things simple can definitely be the right way to go sometimes.

A Positive View of the Church.

 And maybe I am starting to aim my direction that way. I know I am still pretty far from what one would consider "active" but I have always had soft feelings toward the church in general.

So, what does this mean for me? I hope it means that I am headed in the right direction for my possible future wife and kids. I want to be the best person I can be for them. I need to improve myself. I need to focus on the right things WAY more. Does this mean I need a change of scenery? Hmmm... I don't really know.

What is Focus?

 I have heard it said that true focus is maintained by rejecting other great options to follow the one you desire most. It reminds me of the concept how people are lead around by the wind when they travel without a rudder. The wind can come in the obvious form and direction that is obviously negative to your goal... but the wind that is only a slight crosswind is just as dangerous... your aim will still miss the mark.

So, how does one accomplish this? I have no exact prescription about how to go about this but here's a few thoughts.

Practice saying "no" in general but better yet to potentially good options. Practice is pretty much the only way to improve at anything in life but it's especially important for the subtle and often overlooked soft skills that almost imperceptibly shape a person's character.

Take time at regular intervals to thoughtfully consider the subject of said focus. Daily might be the easiest interval to create and/or keep that sort of habit but I'm pretty confident weekly, semi-weekly, and monthly are all great stretches as well. Thoughtfully considering could be as simple as meditating on the subject but any sort of writing or communicating, especially to others, can really help the consideration more deeply sink in.

Adding peripheral goals that themselves are beneficial and synergistic toward the main subject of focus can be quite helpful. Steps in any direction tend to help more than doing nothing. Steps in a similar direction should help even more. Just be careful that the similar ones don't become the primary one.

Anyway... that's just a few ideas about the importance of focus and some ways to tackle how to stay on track. Hope some of it is useful!

Just Wonking Around.

 A new word that means what it seems like it means. Ha. I'm so loopy from the sleep deprivation that I have quite a bit less focus and motivation today. I mostly just want to heal my back and get back on track with my sleep. Is the lack of sleep a person's main priority to fix whenever it happens? Sort of like a person's health would be if that were in a similar realm of disfunction.