Perfect week? No such thing.

Not exactly a perfect week. But I'll go easy on myself.

It started off well. I accomplished nearly all my goals for the first few days, except for the time editing the documentary (scheduling time for this is somewhat complicated, since I don't have the means to edit at my home.) It feels good to exercise and write daily, but soon I fell into enjoying the 'afterglow' too much and neglecting the work that put me there. No real issue, though, as I'm back to writing after a two day break.

In the past it would have been an issue for me. If you care enough to look through the earlier entries of this blog, I spend a lot of time writing about writing and getting back on track. Those were always my least favorite days, and the idea of doing yet another post talking in circles put me on edge and led to me procrastinating. God, I'm doing it again. I feel like I'm just a snake eating itself.

I'm stuck wondering why I couldn't finish a perfect week. This is a great opportunity to condemn myself, to fall into despair or self loathing. I think a less fortunate person, somebody in a less supportive environment, or with true financial problems, health problems, etc. would have a tougher time climbing out of this mindset. It's times of failure and reflection that leaves me grateful for how many safety nets I have that I didn't earn myself. I would say this is my privilege, but that word has been so heavily politicized that I now expect immediate backlash from my more right leaning family members. Fuck it, I have privilege. #feelthebern2016

Changing the topic, this Saturday brought me to a Melee tournament in NYC. I went in with almost no expectations for myself, or real plans for the day. I was sponsored last minute by my mother who felt like I deserved a tournament, which gave me a different mindset than most tournaments I enter.
I got 9th out of 63 entrants, a modest placing but better than my seeding. I made an upset in winners before losing twice in a row. In pools, I took the eventual 2nd place player to game 3. Overall, I'm just about where I want to be, but I wouldn't call it a breakout performance by any means.

After losing, I was settled but not satisfied. I got wobbled in winners (0-3 to sunn, great player) and lost a tight game 5 set to Lumble, a luigi player. I feel confident that on any day I have the capacity to beat both of these players, but yesterday was not that day. I'm happy with my continuous improvement with the game, and will continue to work towards improving my results.

I like how this melee thing works, honestly. It seems like a similar path for comedians coming up, in terms of finding success. Every day, you put your best foot forward and show people what you have been working towards. If you stand out enough, you make some money in the long run. If not, there's the capacity to embarrass yourself and question why you came out at all. Afterwards, friends get together to talk about their performances and things they need to work on. Respect is given to those on top. The best players get together outside of tournaments to play and work on stuff together. Its a brilliant combination of community and meritocracy. I'm not quite in a stand up community, but if it's half as accommodating as the melee scene, then I can't wait to join them.

Well, my dog is barking at me now, so I'll wrap this up and take her out. I want to thank everyone who reads these and takes the time to send me feedback or praise, it really makes the whole idea of these things worth it. Not sure when I'll be back, but if something important comes up I know where I'll be writing.

P.S I have officially changed my tag from Poonslayer7 to JD Gardner. I don't need your approval.

 

The Perfect Week, Day 1

Labor day is behind us at last, and the academic year has started at my Alma mater. I've heard from grad friends that the months after college are the strangest ones, but now that I'm living it I gotta say, I'm not a fan. This summer I was able to distract myself from the grinding agony of job searches with two vacations and television, but now my road stretches long into the horizon and I have nothing to reach for.

That's bullshit, of course. I'm looking for jobs, although I just started and need to send out 100 more before I join the "looking for jobs sucks" club. I can write anything I want now, which is both exciting and terrifying. I have all day to exercise, practice melee, write a one man show, look for a career, etc. but all that stuff is intimidating when there's nothing pushing me to do it.

I guess I just gotta push myself. So I came up with the idea of a "Perfect Week"

Have you ever sat in the shower after waking up at 3pm and thought out the most productive way you could lead your life? I'm sure I'm not alone, I think about it all the time. Wake up super early, go for a run and lift weights at home, eat a healthy breakfast while I write brilliant comedy and ease into lunch by practicing smash bros. Finish multiple projects, get a phone call from the mayor, save my neighbor's children from a burning building and make love to the moon. That life sounds pretty sweet, no?

Well, to make it realistic, I gotta cut back on some stuff. But even after you take away the moon affair and saving the kids (after a few fires the neighbors probably suspect me anyway) you still have a crazy productive day. My goal this week is to make it perfect, and this is how I'm gonna do it.

Daily Goals:

1. Never sleep more than 8.5 hours. Oversleeping been the biggest killer this summer for me, and weirdly enough I actually think I'm a morning person. Everything else will fall into place as long as I can make this a habit. Well, that and...

2. Exercise. I always think about getting back into shape, but I never make a good enough habit of it. Honestly, the biggest obstacle for this has been the laundry aspect. If I can work out for a week, maybe I can get enough energy to, you know, just do the goddamn laundry.

3. Write for 1.5 hours a day. And set a timer so I know it's legit. Forcing creativity is a challenging goal, and there are a ton of distractions out there that have been keeping me from my daily dose of comedy, but for one week I need to give it a shot.

4. Practice Melee for 1.5 hours. I went on a trip for a month, came back, and took a much needed break. Now it's time to take a fresh look at the game with everything I've learned and apply it. Don't know when my next tournament will be, but I'm looking to kick ass no matter where it is.

5. Edit documentary for 2 hours. We haven't started the editing process yet, but today is the day. For one week Alex and I will be getting together for 2 hours to start chipping away at this behemoth of a project. We have given ourselves a generous deadline of 4 months, but realistically there's not a ton of pressure to finish it. We just need to put our feet on the pavement and hammer it out.

Goals for end of the week

The way I see it, there are two types of goals. Tangible, and Intangible. I'm sure there's some self help book out there that has a similar theory but is worded way better.  haven't read any self help books, though so this is what I got.

Tangible Goals
20 Minutes of One man show material, typed.
14 hours of footage sifted through, organized.
Basement (My future living space) Painted
All laundry done

Intangible Goals
Develop better sleeping habits
Have more energy
Become a better Melee player
Be less attached to phone/social media/mobile games
General self pride and accomplishement


Now that I've listed it all out, I gotta make sure I pull this off. I already woke up today and did my first bit of writing, but now's time for the hardest part, the run.

Wish me luck. Also, if you have any ideas of stuff to add to the list please feel free. Thanks for reading!