Month: November 2018

50 Questions That Will Free Your Mind

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Source: http://www.marcandangel.com/2009/07/13/50-questions-that-will-free-your-mind/

 

  1. How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are? Based on my energy level, I would say in my 30s. Not doing bad in looks department either. Barely any visible wrinkles. Chin and facial hair is whole another story, but nothing that can’t be fixed in two minutes.
  2. Which is worse, failing or never trying? Definitely never trying. IF you don’t try, you’ll always wonder, what if. That’s the worse feeling to live with.
  3. If life is so short, why do we do so many things we don’t like and like so many things we don’t do?
  1. When it’s all said and done, will you have said more than you’ve done?
  2. What is the one thing you’d most like to change about the world?
  3. If happiness was the national currency, what kind of work would make you rich?
  4. Are you doing what you believe in, or are you settling for what you are doing?
  5. If the average human life span was 40 years, how would you live your life differently?
  6. To what degree have you actually controlled the course your life has taken?
  7. Are you more worried about doing things right, or doing the right things?
  8. You’re having lunch with three people you respect and admire.  They all start criticizing a close friend of yours, not knowing she is your friend.  The criticism is distasteful and unjustified.  What do you do?
  9. If you could offer a newborn child only one piece of advice, what would it be?
  10. Would you break the law to save a loved one?
  11. Have you ever seen insanity where you later saw creativity?
  12. What’s something you know you do differently than most people?
  13. How come the things that make you happy don’t make everyone happy?
  14. What one thing have you not done that you really want to do?  What’s holding you back?
  15. Are you holding onto something you need to let go of?
  16. If you had to move to a state or country besides the one you currently live in, where would you move and why?
  17. Do you push the elevator button more than once?  Do you really believe it makes the elevator faster?
  18. Would you rather be a worried genius or a joyful simpleton?
  19. Why are you, you?
  20. Have you been the kind of friend you want as a friend?
  21. Which is worse, when a good friend moves away, or losing touch with a good friend who lives right near you?
  22. What are you most grateful for?
  23. Would you rather lose all of your old memories, or never be able to make new ones?
  24. Is is possible to know the truth without challenging it first?
  25. Has your greatest fear ever come true?
  26. Do you remember that time 5 years ago when you were extremely upset?  Does it really matter now?
  27. What is your happiest childhood memory?  What makes it so special?
  28. At what time in your recent past have you felt most passionate and alive?
  29. If not now, then when?
  30. If you haven’t achieved it yet, what do you have to lose?
  31. Have you ever been with someone, said nothing, and walked away feeling like you just had the best conversation ever?
  32. Why do religions that support love cause so many wars?
  33. Is it possible to know, without a doubt, what is good and what is evil?
  34. If you just won a million dollars, would you quit your job?
  35. Would you rather have less work to do, or more work you actually enjoy doing?
  36. Do you feel like you’ve lived this day a hundred times before?
  37. When was the last time you marched into the dark with only the soft glow of an idea you strongly believed in?
  38. If you knew that everyone you know was going to die tomorrow, who would you visit today?
  39. Would you be willing to reduce your life expectancy by 10 years to become extremely attractive or famous?
  40. What is the difference between being alive and truly living?
  41. When is it time to stop calculating risk and rewards, and just go ahead and do what you know is right?
  42. If we learn from our mistakes, why are we always so afraid to make a mistake?
  43. What would you do differently if you knew nobody would judge you?
  44. When was the last time you noticed the sound of your own breathing?
  45. What do you love?  Have any of your recent actions openly expressed this love?
  46. In 5 years from now, will you remember what you did yesterday?  What about the day before that?  Or the day before that?
  47. Decisions are being made right now.  The question is:  Are you making them for yourself, or are you letting others make them for you?

 

Watch 26 Movies

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A

B

Christmas Wedding Planner 11/25/18 with JK on Netflix

D

E

Fantastic Beast – 11/21/18 (in theater with Avni, Neil and JK

G

Half Girlfriend (11/24/18) – At Sameerbhai and Jaimini’s home

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

T

U

V

White Christmas – 1/14/19

X

Y

Z

 

Watch 50 of IMDB’s top 250 movies

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I’m not much of a movie/TV watcher, so this is really going to be a challenge for me! But that’s what makes this goal even more fun! Let’s see how many I’ve already watched so far and go from there! This is the list I’ll be using for this. I was really surprised to see 3 Idiots making this list. Pooja loved this movie and she had actually made us sit down and watch the movie rather than it being the other way around when it comes to Hindi movies.

  1. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring(2001)
  2. Forrest Gump (1994)
  3. 3 Idiots (2009)
  4. Toy Story (1995)
  5. Up (2009)
  6. The Sixth Sense (1999)
  7. Gone Girl (2014)
  8. Jurassic Park (1993)
  9. The Truman Show (1998)
  10. Rang De Basanti (2006)
  11. The Princess Bride (1987)
  12. Catch Me If You Can (2002)
  13. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2(2011)
  14. Monsters, Inc. (2001)
  15. Gandhi (1982)
  16. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
  17. The Help (2011)

Read 3 Banned Books

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I went thru the the Banned Books on GoodReads and seems like I’ve read plenty of those! I was surprised to see Harry Potter books making this list even more than them making the list on Classic books list!Since I’ve already read more than 3 banned books, I’ll try to read 3 more books that I haven’t read so far. But just for reference, here’s the list of books I’ve already read.

  1. To Kill a Mockingbird
  2. Harry Potter Series
  3. The Giver
  4. I know Why The Caged Bird Sings
  5. The Hunger Games Series
  6. The Kite Runner
  7. The Da Vinci Code
  8. Twilight
  9. The Glass Castle
  10. Holes
  11. My Sister’s Keeper
  12. Fifty Shades of Grey (Yeah…)

 

 

Read 10 Classic Books

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While I like reading historical novels, I haven’t been able to get into older books that hits the Classic book lists. I’ve tried reading Romeo and Juliet, Jane Eyre, and few others, I wasn’t able to finish them. This will be a good reason to get those finished and add some more to my reading list! I am glad that Harry Potter book is considered as a classic book! To be honest, I was surprised to see it on the list. Can I cheat and add all seven books to my list? If that’s the case, I’m done with this goal!

I think I’m going to add the books I’ve already read so far. I’ll be using the list from GoodReads for the reference.

  1. To Kill a Mockingbird
  2. Kite Runner
  3. Harry Potter and Sorcerer’s Stone
  4. The Kite Runner
  5. The Giver

 

Read 26 books with each letter of the alphabet

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Art Matters – 01/13/19

B

C

Dare to Lead – 12/15/18

E

F

Grit – 01/08/19

I

J

K

L

Mindset:The New Psychology of Success – 11/26/18

N

O

P

Q

Rising Strong – 01/03/19

Start With Why – 12/17/18

The Alice Network  – 11/18/9

The Book of Joy – 11/27/18

The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Businesses Don’t Work and What They Do About It – 12/26/18

The Miracle Morning: The Not So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life : Before 8AM – 12/28/18

U

V

W

X

Y

Z

200 Squats challenge

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When I saw the challenge for 200 squats, I had to jump on it right way. Usually, squats are the only thing I do at home if I don’t go for the exercise. I’m following the program from twohundredsquats.com. I took the initial test and did 34 unbroken squats. This put me in the week 3 program to start out.

Day zero – 11/17/18: – 34 squats (After dinner)

Each set done with 60 second rest time in between. Last set is the max reps.

Week 1 – 11/19/18 – Day one – 16 – 22 – 17 – 17 – 40  Total reps: 112

I did this set at 3PM. I was kind of surprised that I was able to max rep to 40 today! Took me about 7-8 minutes including 4 minutes of rest time.

Week 1 – 11/21/18 – Day two – 19 – 25 – 19 – 19 – 40 Total reps: 122

It had been a long day. Forgot to do them in the morning before going to work. After work, went to watch the movie (Fantastic Beasts) as soon as I got home. Then, went to mom’s home to stay overnight and prepped for the monkey bread for the next morning. Next thing I know, it was almost midnight. But I made sure to get those squats done! Not bad after a long day!!!

Week 1 – 11/23/18 – Day three – 22 – 29 – 20 – 21 – 50 Total reps: 142

Did this set at 7:45, right before dinner. Seems like I’m doing better already!

Week 2: 11/26/18 – Day one – 24 – 30 – 22 – 22 – 55 Total reps: 153

Week 2 – 11/28/18 – Day two – 27 – 34 – 27 – 27 – 55 Total reps: 170

Week 2 – 11/30/18 – Day three – 31 – 38 – 31 – 31 – 55 Total reps: 186

I’m super excited about the progress I’m making! On day three, I was tempted to cut it short by only doing 45-50 squats on last round. I had already bought workout in the morning involving all legs, but I stuck it out and finished with 55 strong  I did have to take 3-5 seconds breather every once in a while, but I picked myself back up and kept going!

Onto week three! By end of the week three, I’m supposed to finish with 75 squats on last round or else repeat the week again. So, I made a plan to finish round with 60-65-75 on three days.

Week 3 – 12/4/18 – Day one – 38 – 47 – 34 – 30 – 60 Total reps: 209

Week 3 – 12/6/18 – Day two – 24 – 24 – 27 – 27 – 19 – 19 – 22 – 65 Total reps: 227

Week 3 – 12/8/18 – Day three – 23 – 23 – 27 – 27 – 23 – 23 – 27 – 75 Total reps: 248

Yay!!! I did it!!! Finished off the week with 75 consecutive squats! I did need to take 3-5 seconds breaks to take a deep breath, but I kept on going with final number as my goal. Also, I didn’t follow regular routine of doing this on Monday, Wednesday, Friday this week. Instead I started off with Tuesday, Thursday and then on Sunday. I just kept forgetting to do them on Saturday even though I had the best intentions for it. Most of time, I did them after the dinner.

Week 4 – 12/11/18 – Day one – 34 – 40 – 27 – 20 – 80 Total reps: 201

Today was the tough day to get this done. After two 12 hrs workdays, I was physically drained. New shoes aren’t helping either, they’re killing my feet! I didn’t get home till 7:30 (really bad traffic, took me hour and half to get home). I had set timer for 9pm to get the squats done. But I just couldn’t bring myself to get to it. Finally, I forced myself at 10:30 when I was almost falling asleep. I knew I’ll feel better about it, once I get them done, but just getting out of comfort was taking all the will power. BUT, I did it and I even did 5 more than I did last week. Recommended minimum was only 54 and I did 80. Super happy about it!!!

Week 4 – 12/13/18 – Day two – 19 -19 – 21 – 21 – 19 – 19 – 13 – 13 – 90 Total reps: 196

I meant to do this earlier, but time slipped by and by the time I got around to it, it was 10PM! But, it’s never too late to get it done. So, I got it going and this round was so much easier with very small numbers of reps per set. I guess that’s what gave me the boost to finish up with the bang! I meant to finish off with 85. Even while I was at 65, I told myself, only 20 more to go! By the time I realized that I had passed 85 already on 88! So, I finished off at 90. I’m pretty sure I could’ve gone for at least 3-5 more. This time, I set the timer for the last set to see how long it takes me. I completed first 40 in one minute. Finished off 90 squats at 2:45. Not bad at all. I’ll curious to see my time for 100. Let’s see if I’ve caught up with my time from 2 years ago, or I still need some more work to do. That will be interesting to see.

Week 4 – 12/15/18 – Day three – 18 – 18 – 23 – 23 – 22 – 22 – 19 – 19 -100 Total reps: 264

I was too tired and actually sore from yesterday’s workout. But Since Pooja is coming home tomorrow, I knew I won’t get chance to get this done unless I do it today. Finally, at 9:45pm, I dragged myself to just get it over with. After all, I need to wake up at 3:45am, so I can’t put toff any longer. At times, I didn’t think I’ll beat Day Two’s max number of 90, but I kept on going and finished it strong at 100!!!! My time for last set of 100 reps was 3:!5!!! Not bad at all! Now, it’s all about the final test. Let’s see how I do it next week.

101 Projects in Progress

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Although I’ve listed these goals in previous post, This will be running list as I find more things to add and I’ll links and/or dates as I start and finish the projects/goals.

101 Projects in 1001 Days

HEALTH:

  1. Complete a 200 squat challenge – start date – 11/17/19

 

DIGITAL LIFE:

  1. Clean out my Inbox – start date – 11/18/19

 

INTELLICTUAL:

  1. Read 26 books that I’ve never read starting with each letter of the alphabet
  2. Read 10 Classic Books
  3. Read 100 Books
  4. Read 3 books from the banned books list
  5. Read One Book a Week
  6. Read a Book More Than 100 Years Old (69)
  7. Read 10 Books that Inspire Me (76)
  8. Read Self-help Book (83)
  9. Read a non-fiction Book (89)
  10. Read a Book over 500 Pages Long (96)
  11. Read a Book That Makes Me Cry (61)
  12. Read a biography of someone I admire (58)
  13. Spend an afternoon reading at the park (27)

EMOTIONAL:

50 Questions that free up your mind

ENTERTAINMENT:

  1. Watch 50 of IMDB’s top 250 movies
  2. Watch 26 movies that I’ve never seen starting with each letter of the alphabet (3)
  3. Watch 10 class movies

101 Projects in 1001 Days

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Yesterday, I was reading thru posts on Miracle Morning group on Facebook and someone had suggested this link to create 101 projects in 1001 days as a goal setting exercise for someone who doesn’t know what to do. I thought it was perfect for me. I’ve been feeling like I’ve been wasting away my idle time on my off days. First of all, I’m not used to have so many days off, so it gets me restless. I try to go hiking with friends and stuff like that, but it seems like I might have more and more free time as overtime is out of the picture for a while.

Without any delay, I created the account and off I went to add my goals to the list. They have so many suggestions for the list that I didn’t need to come up with anything of my own. I might add some of my own later on. I also added one category that listed the things I’ve already done in the past. Just gives a good feeling that even though you feel like you haven’t done  much, things that you take for granted are in other people’s wish list/bucket list. Looking at that list makes you feel more grateful about things you’ve already done.

I decided on three lists, one to finish by 101 days, another to finish ‘someday’ and one that I’ve already done.

Someday:

  1. Plant a Tree.
  2. Run a marathon.
  3. Visit all 50 states.
  4. Eat a salad from my own garden.
  5. Hike Mount Kilimanjaro.
  6. Catch the sunrise over Annapurna range (Nepal).

101 Projects in 1001 Days

  1. Answer 50 questions that free up my mind
  2. Don’t complain about anything for a week
  3. Watch 26 movies that I’ve never seen starting with each letter of the alphabet
  4. Read 26 books that I’ve never read starting with each letter of the alphabet – Started
  5. Identify 100 things that makes me happy
  6. Vacation somewhere that requires a passport
  7. Buy a house
  8. Take a hike in Grand Canyon
  9. Find a personally inspirational quote and turn it in to piece of art or home decor
  10. see 10 classic movies I’ve never seen before
  11. Read 10 classic books – Started
  12. Complete a coloring book
  13. Write a letter to myself to be opened when 1001 days are over
  14. Say “yes” to something I would not normally do
  15. Go to 5 different museums
  16. Take a picture for each letter of alphabet
  17. Watch a meteor shower
  18. Make a custom recipe book
  19. Learn Spanish
  20. Buy something from Etsy
  21. Make a list of 101 quotes that inspire me
  22. Make a list of 30 recipes that I want to cook and cook them
  23. Make a list of all family and friends’ birthdays and anniversaries
  24. Make a year in pictures album
  25. Make an iTunes playlist of 101 of my favorite songs
  26. Meditate for 10 minutes everyday for a year
  27. Spend an afternoon reading at the park
  28. Visit the butterfly sanctuary
  29. Spend a day without technology
  30. Fill my wall space with pictures of my life
  31. Go on overnight hiking trip
  32. See an active volcano
  33. Hike a mountain and watch the sunrise
  34. Go a month without buying anything that isn’t necessity
  35. Marvel at the northern lights in Alaska
  36. See a lava flow in Hawaii
  37. Learn meditation
  38. Learn kitchen knife skills
  39. Climb to the top of one of the Seven Summits
  40. Mentor someone
  41. Trek to  Machu Picchu
  42. Complete a 200 squats challenge
  43. Complete a 200 sit-ups challenge
  44. Complete a 100 push-ups challenge
  45. Write a letter to open in 10 years
  46. Meet an online friend in person
  47. Read 100 books
  48. Clean out my inbox
  49. Visit a state that I have never been to
  50. See a financial planner
  51. Save $5 for every task I complete
  52. Save my change and cash it in at the end of 1001 days
  53. Learn to cook 5 new things
  54. Visit Joshua Tree National Park
  55. Take a short course in something
  56. Read one book a week
  57. Try a new recipe every month for a year
  58. Read a biography of someone I admire
  59. Walk the Golden Gate Bridge
  60. Visit Yosemite and photograph the famous “Lava” Horsetail waterfall
  61. Read a book that makes me cry
  62. Read 3 books from the banned books list
  63. Influence a person to make Day Zero list
  64. Visit Alcatraz
  65. Make a list of 100 things that make me smile or laugh
  66. Get new glasses
  67. Reach 500 Instagram followers
  68. Complete a 1000 piece jigsaw
  69. Read a book more than 100 years old
  70. Get my eyes tested
  71. Get mammogram
  72. Back up all digital photos
  73. Watch 50 of IMDB’s top 250 movies (http://www.imdb.com/chart/top)
  74. Make a collage of photos of me and my friends
  75. Start a scrapbook
  76. Find 10 books that inspire me
  77. Take a photo of the same place every month for a year and then turn it into a calendar for next year
  78. Be able to do 10 pull-ups
  79. Photograph a landscape from the same location, capturing all four seasons
  80. Complete a photography course
  81. Buy five cookbooks, each of different country
  82. Complete 30 day plank challenge
  83. Read a self-help book
  84. Find a new best friend
  85. Get a new hair style
  86. Hold a handstand for 10 seconds
  87. Start a gratitude journal, write down I’m thankful for everyday for a year
  88. Buy a new iMac
  89. Read a non-fiction book
  90. Start a retirement savings fund
  91. Create a vision board
  92. See a movie alone
  93. Go on a new hike/trail
  94. Visit Alcatraz Island
  95. Try five different Indian cuisines
  96. Read a book over 500 pages long
  97. Read all 100 books on the Modern Library’s Greatest Books list
  98. Eliminate all clothes that currently do not fit
  99. Read a book with number in title
  100. Make 101 blog entries
  101. Leave 100% tip

 

Done:

  1. Donate blood
  2. Sleep under the stars
  3. Watch the sunrise and sunset in the same day
  4. Go to a concert
  5. Go camping
  6. Go on a picnic
  7. Find out my blood type
  8. No fast food for a month
  9. Not log into Facebook for a whole week!
  10. See a movie in 3D
  11. Make ice cream from scratch
  12. Go rock climbing
  13. Visit a Buddhist Monastery
  14. Become a bone marrow donor
  15. Cook an Indian meal from scratch
  16. Live in a foreign country for a year
  17. Read a political memoir
  18. Try pistachio ice cream
  19. Make pesto from scratch
  20. Cross a glacier on foot
  21. Wrap a snack around my neck
  22. Get a henna tattoo on  my hand or foot
  23. Make fresh pasta
  24. Create a budget and stick to it for 4 weeks
  25. Save $1000 for emergency fund
  26. Grow something from a seed
  27. Hike to Base Camp at Mount Everest
  28. See Saturn thru telescope
  29. Learn kitesurfing
  30. Make homemade spaghetti sauce
  31. Run a half marathon
  32. Drive the Pacific Coast Highway
  33. Learn Sudoku
  34. Learn how to make an omelet
  35. Learn how to cross stitch
  36. Learn basic HTML
  37. Learn simple needle and thread sewing
  38. Learn how to use formulas in Excel
  39. Learn basic crocheting
  40. Learn how to bake cookies
  41. Hike up to Mission Peak
  42. Have a conversation in your second language with native speaker
  43. Drink from a coconut
  44. Learn how to use Photoshop
  45. Buy a new bed
  46. Go to Six Flags
  47. Wake up before 8 AM everyday for a week
  48. See the Taj Mahal at dusk
  49. Visit New Delhi
  50. Camp in a National Park
  51. Buy a Kitchen Aid mixer
  52. Volunteer somewhere
  53. Read a book that became a movie
  54. Do a walk for a cause
  55. Make my own bread
  56. Cook for friends
  57. Go cherry picking
  58. Go to Fireworks show on Fourth of July
  59. Watch a movie in IMAX
  60. Watch all the Harry Potter movies
  61. See a double complete rainbow
  62. Visit India during Holi festival
  63. Visit a foreign country
  64. Go strawberry picking
  65. Read a romantic novel
  66. Take a nap in a hammock
  67. Take my kids camping
  68. Watch the sunrise
  69. Make homemade soup
  70. Visit the Adler Planetarium
  71. Watch a Bollywood film
  72. Do something completely crazy and out of character
  73. Visit Monterey Bay Aquarium
  74. Read a book based on a true story
  75. Celebrate Diwali in India