I forgot to post the second set yesterday, so here’s a makeup post to catch up.

34. You usually postpone finalizing decisions for as long as possible 

Not really, I like figuring some things out in advance. For example, I’ll think about vacations probably a year in advance. I’ll map out more or less where I’ll go and even what days would probably work. Then around 4-6 months in advance, I’ll buy the flight, hotels, car, etc. needed for the trip. Sometimes I’ve done it so far in advance that by the time the trip is actually here, I have to refresh my memory on what exactly I bought. My son spoke about going to Europe this year, probably around September. I’ve been bugging him ever since because I kind of want to know. I think we’re going to Rome. Though to be fair, this year is a tough one for vacations. My wife just quit her 33 year career at a large company, where she had gobs of PTO built up, and is now at the small law firm where I work. So she doesn’t have a ton of PTO saved like before. It would probably be best to skip a vacation this year, but I won’t get a lot of opportunities to go with my oldest son, so we’ll do our best to make it happen. But he makes more money than both of us combined, so it’s not a problem for him to travel. 

But in general, I’ll try to make decisions pretty quickly.  

35. You rarely second guess the choices that you have made 

This is true. I think I used to second guess my choices more often, but not so much anymore. I’ve just come to recognize that I can’t go back and change anything, so make the best of where I am. A big part of making the best is not wasting my time wishing I could change what I can’t. 

I mean there are a bunch of little things where sometimes I think; oh, poo. I should have ordered that instead, it looks better than mine, or maybe I shouldn’t have bought the shirt…. but to be honest, there’s not much second-guessing even in these things.  

As far as the big things, I do the best I can to make a good decision and then make the best of it when I’m there. To be honest, most of the big decisions I’ve made, I don’t regret. Even some things that I probably should regret, I just chalk them up to learning experiences, rather than spending time wishing I could undo them.  

Somewhere back around 2007-8, I decided that I should learn to dress myself better. So I underwent a period of trying to learn about style and dressing myself in clothes that would flatter me. I bought some books on men’s style and learned about colors and fit and what shapes looked good and why. I found a tailor, Rose, a Vietnamese lady at Zip Tailoring, on La Palma across from the Buena Park Mall, that I started taking clothes to regularly. Even though I rarely go there anymore, she still remembers my name. But in my zest for buying clothes, I probably made some purchases that were…. unwise. In my defense, I’m an artist and I love color, and have no problem wearing bolder patterns… but I bought a white suit for summer one year and paired it with a bright pink shirt. Wore it while I was leading worship even. A little kid came up to me at church, and I swear this is true, told me I looked like Brad Pitt! I mean, that’s for sure not the worst thing anyone’s said to me… but would I wear that ever again? Probably not. Ok, for sure I wouldn’t.  

36. After a long and exhausting week, a lively social event is just what you need 

No. My ideal weekend is having nothing planned. I love staying at home and doing some reading, and watching some shows. But I’ll break it up with trips out too. However, I have to mindful of my wife, who does thrive on doing things. So if she wants to go places, I usually get ready to go even if I don’t want to.  

Even though I do like social events and usually enjoy myself when I’m there, I often consider it ideal when I don’t have anything to do. One of my lines these days is: I’m not looking for excitement anymore, I’m just hoping nothing goes wrong! Which, alright, sounds a little curmudgeonly, but it’s closer to the truth than not. I do however reallllllllly look forward to vacations and little outings. So I’m not a total homebody.