Apu’s World

So we’re approaching the end of 2008; I don’t know whether it’s a good thing or not, that I can remember the hype and fear of Y2K as if it wasn’t too far back. Does time pass too quickly, or what? I was just thinking to myself on how this year has gone by, for me, and I thought it would be a good idea to take stock of what I’ve been doing. 

 

First the good. 

• I’ve expanded my client base, for my communications related/writing work; I quit the corporate world in mid-2007, and started off with a single client, though I continued doing some research/consulting work. This year, I’ve focused more on the communications business and my client base has grown, though it is still small. 
• I’m also happy that though I haven’t yet actually done any sort of marketing or publicity work for myself, my new clients have mainly come through referrals/networks. I hope that indicates some amount of client satisfaction! 
• I’ve been working on different kinds of assignments from fiction editing to web content to print articles to PR work to formal report writing and even blogging. 
• I resumed blogging here after a break, and while I wouldn’t call myself prolific, I’ve been more consistent this time. This is my 77th post in 7 months. 
• I have been working to improve my travel writing skills, and got published twice in The Hindu, here and here. 
• On the personal front, we (the husband and I) were able to continue the practice of a yearly vacation; this year, we travelled to the beautiful Andaman Islands. We were also able to do shorter trips to Hampi, Shimoga and Yelagiri. 
• I’ve been reading a lot, and I’m glad that I’ve started reading more than fiction; this year, I made a start with reading science, and some books I’ve really enjoyed are Richard Leakey’s ‘The Origins of Humankind’ and Richard Dawkins’ ‘The Ancestor’s Tale’ and ‘Unweaving the Rainbow’. I’m currently reading Steven Mithen’s ‘After the Ice’, an account of human history after the end of the last ice age.  
• I’m getting more used to being a self-employed professional, which means better at managing time, working on my own and managing an uncertain payments calendar without the security of a monthly cheque. 
• I’ve started learning the violin and managed to find a good school and teacher, not too far from home. 
• Since I’m not constrained by a 9-to-6 schedule anymore, I’ve started taking public transport more often. 

 

Now, The not-so-good 

• I’m still not as organized as I would wish , and constantly need to remind myself to watch my time, especially when I start reading something interesting online! 
• I haven’t paid enough attention to health and fitness; while I have been trying to do a 30-min brisk walk every evening, this often falls through for various reasons such as ‘too-cold’, work to do or simply, laziness. I’ve completely abandoned yoga, something I used to practise diligently. 
• I’ve made attempts to control my temper and I think I get better with this as I grow older but I’m still not as composed as I’d like to be. One of my favourite stories is from the life of the Buddha - one day, a man insults the Buddha using harsh words, but the Buddha stays calm. When the man asks him why, he tells him, “If you give someone a gift and he refuses it, what would you do?” The man says, “I would take it back”. The Buddha says, “Well, I have refused the gift of your words.” I heard this story as a child and it has stayed with me. Harsh words are not to be given easily, nor are they an excuse for us to give back harsh words in return. Of course, this is easier said than done. 
• I would like to work on a better website (besides the blog) to talk about my professional services, but I just haven’t found the right supplier at a price that I can afford. I must also admit that I haven’t looked too closely!
• I haven’t worked on my fiction writing as much as I should have. Writing is hard work, atleast to me. It doesn’t simply flow effortlessly. Though I have ideas, I need to work on them. I started work on my first novel but abandoned it after 3 chapters. I also realised that writing a novel is harder than one thinks. I have been working on a few short stories but I’d like to do more in 2009. 
• I wanted to get back to reading poetry, something I haven’t done since college, but I haven’t gotten around to it. 
• While I’ve set my waking time a little earlier and now manage to get up at 7 a.m or a little later, I keep feeling that I could get more exercising done, if only I was able to get up at 6 or 6.30. 
• I haven’t been as good as I used to be, at keeping in touch with friends. Infact, I think things like facebook are responsible for this. You see friends there and throw sheep at them, and ‘believe’ that you are keeping in touch; but this isn’t really the same as a good talk on the phone or even a personal email that really says something. 
• I don’t practise my music enough; I also don’t spend enough time listening to Western classical music as I wanted to, and this is sad, because classical music, one appreciates even more with regular listening. 
• I wanted to start volunteering actively, with an outfit that works with either women or children. I have been making some enquiries but not yet got to the right place where my skills would be useful. 

apu In General