Dana's Blog

The taste of progress

While I was running today, it felt different — in a very positive way. I felt like I could run a marathon, as if I was light as a feather, and I could glide through the distance with little effort. So it seemed.

And it was my best run yet this month, the first month of my training. As we this month comes to a close, I'm very satisfied with my progress, and the disciplined regimen that I've established for myself. I cannot find the words to express how good I feel, but part of it is psychological; that is, the ability to credibly make and keep commitments that I make with myself.

When I tell myself that I will go running, there is no excuses or doubts that I wouldn't go. And if I set a target goal for my run, I always achieve it — no matter what. And there's an inner part of me that knows that there is no alternative to success.

Moreover, I think that inner redibility will extend to the outer realm with the people and relationships in my life.

Time to reflect more

Two months have passed me by since I've last written a blog post, and it feels great to be writing right now, even though I have no clue exactly what I want to write about — so I will simply be expressing random thoughts that cross my mind. Therefore, forgive me if there is no coherent narrative to this blog post.

It strikes me that there's been a dearth of retrospection in the past two months — days would past, then weeks with such quick succession that I feel that I haven't had the time to sit back and absorb everything and see things not only from 10 feet above, but also from 10,000 feet. 

purchasing a kindle

This past weekend, I purchased the Kindle Touch - Amazon's bestselling e-book reader. And it wasn't a a decision I made in haste, because this wasn't my first e-book reader; I had a Sony one a few years ago that I sold after a few weeks and not even reading a single book.

So I was wary of yet again converting from print books to e-books. But so far, it has been a very welcome device, as I quickly warmed up to it. I purchased a book, called "Willful Blindness" and it has rendered my commutes to and from work much more enjoyable - or should I say, less dreadful.

Embracing Spring

Spring - well, it feels like spring in Toronto this week with the weather hovering in the teens and many days with clear-blue skies and dashing sunlight. 

Synonymous with this season is the ability to finally run outdoors again - and not only on the treadmill at GoodlIfe Fitness. And I did so twice this week; it was very refreshing, soaking in the environment as I traversed my neighborhood.

This running season, I'm really going to make an effort to harness technology to monitor and measure my progress. I downloaded this app on my BlackBerry called Endomondo, which can track the distance (via GPS), calories burned, and the route that I select. Moreover, it allows me to set goals for each workout (ie. run 5KM or for 30 minutes), which I find very useful in keeping me accountable. And my favorite aspect is the ability to share my workouts with friends - and them the same with me. 

Right now, I'm entertaining the thought of training for a Marathon in September. I find that I'm much more motivated when I'm working towards a longer-term goal. 

What I read

While many people I know prefer to get their news online and through digital devices, I still much prefer print content - whether it is newspapers that get delivered to my door every morning, or magazines that get dropped in my mailbox every week.

I guess I'm very old-school in that respect, and I cannot imagine my reading habits changing anytime soon.

There are two newspapers that I subscribe to: the New York Times and the Financial Times. And the list of magazines is much longer: Economist, New Yorker, Monocle, Atlantic, TIME, and Newsweek. If I had the wherewithal, I would definitely subscribe to many more magazines.

Increasingly, I subscribe and follow more and more blogs everyday on my Google Reader.

A Little Time For Myself

I'm sitting here -- somewhat restlessly now, considering it's been over 90 minutes -- with my eyes starring at the table in front of me. There's a copy of the Wall Street Journal newspaper and a half cup of coffee sitting gently on the table, beside each other like they belong together. The coffee, however, is already too cold for my liking.

Michel's Bakery Cafe, while located in a mall at the food court, it is in a separate autonomous section that gives you the feeling that you're not in a mall at all -- a respite from the loud and crowded atmopshere at this shopping centre.

This place harbors a special significance for me because I've always brought my friends here for coffee -- where we would devote a hour or so to slow things down from the hustle and bustle of life and reflect on our recent experiences.

Not so much anymore, though. 

Haven't been here for awhile, but it feels good being back. After a long day at work, and one in which I felt under the weather, I suddenly feel restored, fortified in a way -- and I don't think it's the coffee.

It's more about finding time alone to deliberately meditate on the day's thoughts, feelings and experiences -- and kicking them around to gather insights and direction. To get away from the battleground and look at things from 10, 000 feet above ground -- to gain a sense of the forest, not just the trees.

Russia, Putin, and the West

This past weekend I watched a documentary by one of my favorite film producers of that genre: Norma Percy. Her documentaries covered most of the crises of the late 20th century - from the fall of Milosevic to the Iran's relationship with West.

Her latest one -- and very timely, indeed -- is about Russia, Putin, and the West. It's a four part series that aired on the BBC not too long ago, and it was completely fascinating because it adopted the style that Norma Percy fans are accustomed to: She interviews the important people involved in the events from both sides and allows them to tell their story of what happened.

There's no doubt that Putin will return as President -- and possibly until 2024. What's less certain is whether the increasingly authoritarian tendencies of the Putin era will continue. Or whether he will initiate much-needed reforms, a so-called Putin 2.0. And finally, how the recent mass protests will pan out in the nect few months ahead. All of this remains to be seen.

Lin As An Ambassador To The Game

With the massive coverage of Jeremy Lin in recent weeks, much of what could be said about him has already been said. One could touch upon his remarkable abilities, his faith, his ivy league background, or his race.

And much could be said about all of the above. But this has all been covered extensively by many, - if not most - media outlets.

What intrigues me, though, about the Linsanity phenomenon is him bringing an interest to the sport of basketball - especially to people who previously had little knowledge or interest in the game. 

I've always been in love with the game of basketball since I was a young child playing with my brothers outside my elementary school. And the game is still a part of my life.I don't see that changing anytime soon.

It would have been nice, however, to have a Chinese role-model to admire while I was growing up.

Succumbing to our worst selves

The Civility In America survey can make for some gloomy reading: two-thirds (65%) of people think that the US has a major civility problem, and 55% expect a lock of civility to become the norm.

All of us, I'm sure, can readily think of instances of being on the receiving end of incivility: be it while driving, shopping on at the workplace. So I doubt that these statistics would truly surprise anyone.

This being the second annual nationwide survey, we don't have enough data to tell if this trend has been on the uptick historically, but I reckon that if there were such data, it would be more or less similar to the numbers we have now.

Civility training should begin with parents and continue in the educational system, turning the tide of incivility and restoring respect back into society.

What I've been reading

This past weekend I started two books that I've been itching to read for a long now - not surprisingly, both are nonfiction. The first book is about Introverts, called Quiet, and is written by Susan Cain. In recent years, there has been a proliferation of books about Introverts, and I've read most of them because I'm very introverted. So it will be interesting to see how this is different from the rest. She wrote a fantastic op-ed piece in the NYT that is worth reading, whether you're introverted or extroverted.

The second book is called Poor Economics, written by Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee. It won the FT's award for best business book for 2011. It's about fighting poverty: what works, and what doesn't. There is, for me, a moral imperative to do what I can for the less fortunate - regardless of whether or not they are far across the world or in your own city.