Life needs a plan

I did a great deal of thinking as I walked around the cities of Portugal and Spain.  Sometimes it seems I need to move in order to think.  Some of the thinking was about how the past year has gone, and much of it was about how I want the next year to go.  It's quite possible, though not guaranteed, that I'll be returning to the USA a year from now  I need a plan to make the most of this year.  I settled on four main goals.  

1. Be the best physics teacher I can possibly be

This feels like the basis of everything for me.  If I am not teaching well, then everything else feels off.  I want my students, their parents, and my colleagues to feel quite fortunate to work with me.  If I am doing well with my career, then I can relax and get the next goals accomplished.

2. Significantly improve my fitness

This is always a good goal regardless of the situation, but I've come to realize in the past year that I have body image issues.  I don't feel good about myself physically, nor have I in a long time.  I need to change this. So many things in my life outside of work are affected by this, because it seriously affects my self esteem.  I realized in the past year that big changes are possible in my life (I am in Europe now after all), and I tried confronting this issue both physically and mentally.  The time constraints of my job and my general stress level eventually got in the way, but not before I saw the beginnings of real improvement.  It's time to try again.

3. Make the most of living in a big city

I have always lived in the suburbs and dreamed of living in the middle of a big city.  The suburbs are generally where the good schools are, so I have accepted it as part of my chosen career.  Now I am presented with a wonderful opportunity.  I'm in the city.  I'm in my favorite city, London.  I may only be here for a year, so I need to take advantage of my time here.  Right now, that means go to the theater, see live music, and find social opportunities that aren't normally available to me.  I'm sure the advantages of living in London will be clearer to me as the year progresses, but I simply want to embrace them as much as possible. I've already popped over to the Globe to see Julius Caesar on a whim, so this feels like a start.

4. Get Europe out of my system.

I've spent most of the past 8 summers in Europe, and I'm eager to finally move on and concentrate my travels in other areas.  I have yet to see much of Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, and parts of Central Europe, and it would feel a bit foolish to move back to the USA only to continue planning summer escapes to Europe.  That is, unless I find a city or two that really deserves an extended exploration.  When I move back to the USA, I want to focus my attention on the Western Hemisphere for a while.  

If I can accomplish those four things, I should be satisfied that I've used my time well.