After a long hiatus and the sad realization that I’m often over ambitious with my goals, I’ve come back to this blog with what I hope to be a sustained renewed energy. I’m interested to see how I’ve matured in two years and will mature thereafter. Am I fine wine, or still just fermented grape juice? (My future self will most likely be embarrassed by that line but the today me thinks it’s brilliant.)

A lot has changed in two years. November 2014 was when I first put in an offer to the place I’m living now. I didn’t close until May and renovations lasted until the end of July. Psychologically, buying a place attaches you to a physical location. You spend so much money just to call a place a home that you feel invested. Don’t get me wrong, I still love traveling but fall last year was the first year I ever felt a tinge of longing for home or moreover just my own bed.

For 2016, I hope to have learned my limits. I can’t do it all but I hope to choose the right things. How will I spend my time?

To answer this, I took a look at how I spend my time today.

There are 168 hours per week.
52.5 Hrs of Sleep (7.5 Hrs/day * 7)
48 Hrs at Work
16 Hrs 50 Mins of Commute (1 1/3 Hrs each way on wkdays + 1.5Hrs commuting Saturday for various Saturday plans + 2 Hrs commuting to church/climbing on Sunday)
11 Hrs of Eating/Meals (1 Hr of eating/wkday * 5 + 2 Hrs from 1 meal out with friend(s)/wk + 2 Hrs @ church dinner)
11 Hrs of Exercise (2.5 Hrs *2 wkday climbing sessions + 4 Hr wknd session + 2 Hrs cross-training)
7 Hrs of Hygiene/Personal Care (1 Hr/day)
6 Hrs @ Church/Fellowship (service + small group)
5 Hrs of Cooking/Chores (includes cleaning and laundry)
Remainder “free time” : ~10 Hrs 40 Mins

The sad reality is that there’s only about 10 hrs a week I really have to devote to learning, to hobbies, and other time-suckers like Facebook and Netflix. When you put that into perspective, it’s no wonder that we tend to deprioritize sleep. We’ll work through meals. We’ll order take-out. We’ll skip today’s run and think we’ll do it tomorrow, only to repeat the same excuse.

The other reality is that our time on earth is limited. Time is valuable. How do you want to spend your life? And how can you do it without sacrificing your health? What should the percentages above be? How much of your time do you choose to devote to relationships that matter?

Just food for thought for now 🙂  App to come later (…maybe). And if you haven’t read the Wait but Why version of perspective on time, go read now: The Tail End.

PS — So what your verdict for me? Fermented grape juice? Probs. I still have much to learn.