So, I sort of feel like I’m going through Lent, but I’m not Catholic, so I don’t get a Mardi Gras.

I have decided to go through a fast, of sorts. At the beginning of this month, I drank my last soda for the rest of the month. That’s right: no carbonated drinks for me for the whole month. Why am I doing this? Seems like a good idea. I drink too much soda, and I figure that if I go without entirely for a month, then I’ll learn better how to cut down, and choose other alternatives more often.

Along those same lines, next week I’m starting another fast along the same lines. Starting Monday morning, after I check my email, I’ll go for a full week without any electronic media of any kind. That means I won’t watch TV, watch movies, listen to the radio, and by far the hardest, no Internet.

(pause for effect)

Yes, I said no Internet. You may be wondering how I’m going to survive. I’m wondering the same thing. Of course, I’m a website designer, so at work, I will HAVE to use the Internet, but outside of work, I will not use a computer once during the next week.

Since I need email for work, I will still be checking my email while I’m at work, but I won’t respond to anything that’s not work-related, unless it’s urgent. And if I’m not at work, I won’t be checking email at all. Also, I won’t be getting on Facebook AT ALL. So, if you need to contact me next week, don’t email, IM, or facebook me. Call me up on the phone. Yeah, I know that the telephone is an electronic medium, but I have to make an exception for it. Unless people want to contact me by smoke signal. That would work too.

So, why am I doing this? I’m crazy, of course. But it’s really the same deal as with soda. Anyone who knows me knows that I spend WAY too much time on my computer. If I can go cold turkey for a week, then I should be able to better find a reasonable amount of time on the computer once the week is up. So, why don’t I just give up the computer? Why all electronic media? Well, I know myself well. If I just gave up the computer, I would just end up spending too much time watching TV and playing Wii. So, I have to give those up at the same time.

Don’t worry. It’s only for a week. After the week is over, I’ll be back on my computer, and hopefully using it much more responsibly.

So, a couple of weeks ago, in an Institute class, my teacher challenged our class to come up with 100 life goals. I decided this was a great idea, and have started on my list. I want to share with you the ones that aren’t too personal. I haven’t come up with 100 yet, but I’m still working on it, and will post again when I have more.

If you notice missing numbers, it’s because that one was too personal to publicly share.

So, here’s my list so far.