The 12th Vitamin has been Discovered

For those who know something about nutrition, there are currently eleven known vitamins: vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, B6, B9 (folic acid), B12, C, D, E and K. Just an aside here: whatever happened to the letters F, G, H, I and J, and how did more than half of the vitamins end up with B? The letter B is just being greedy here. If all eleven vitamins got their own letter we would still have the letters A through to K covered, and no letters would miss out. Just putting it out there…

But I digress. After much long research, I have come to the conclusion that there is indeed a twelfth vitamin lurking in the shadows, that many — indeed, most — people are desperately deficient in. Given the somewhat random way that vitamins have been allocated letters, I have allocated this most essential vitamin to be called vitamin T. The reason for this name is the rich source of this vitamin is found in tea. (For a really good explanation of zen and tea, here.)

Now informed by this new discovery, I am pleased to announce the scientific facts* about this vitamin:

Vitamin name: Vitamin T

Recommended daily intake: Ideally, vitamin T is taken in on awakening, having a calm moment before the start of the day. During the day at selected intervals would also be good, and a final one at night before sleep.

Minimum daily intake: At the very least, once a day is the bare minimum intake for vitamin T.

Sources: The most common source of vitamin T is tea, which involves sitting down, switching off, and living in the now as you inhale the vapours of the freshly brewed tea. Unfortunately, quickly grabbing a cup of tea and sitting at your desk in front of a computer is not a good source of vitamin T, as it will not be absorbed. Similarly, grabbing a cup of coffee in the morning and racing out the door with a “heart-starter” is not only not a source of vitamin T, but is likely to put the body on a caffeine-sugar-burnout-caffeine-sugar-burnout treadmill that so many run on “just to get through the day”. And people wonder why they’re exhausted at the end of the day.

Tea is not the only source of vitamin T; a well-made cup of hot chocolate or even coffee if your taste runs to these things will suffice. In fact, just about anything eaten or drunk with mindfulness will suffice.

Meditation is also a brilliant source of vitamin T, and most definitely recommended in cases of vitamin T deficiency.

Symptoms of deficiency: There is a subtle but noticeable shift from cause to blame, and happiness no longer comes from within but is dependent on circumstances in the outside world. As a result, things tend towards a feeling of overwhelm, or as Abraham Hicks would put it, “outside the vortex” experiences.

Symptoms of overdose: A sense of calm, a happiness/joy/peace in whatever circumstances surround you; being “inside the vortex“.

So there. That’s vitamin T in a nutshell. I’m off to have a cup of tea right now!

 

*Okay, so they’re not entirely scientific facts. But what I’ve written makes some sense. 🙂

The Power of Lists

I have a habit, and it’s been a habit of mine that has stood me in good stead: making lists. I’m an incorrigible list maker. If I have to pick up more than three things from the market or store, I make a list. (Oh, and I never go shopping hungry; otherwise you end up buying all sorts of stupid thinks, like pickled artichokes).

And it’s a habit that I’ve been extending. I now shop for clothes the way other people shop for groceries: I make a list. I made a list of all the clothes in my wardrobe a few months ago, and the clothing I need, here. Right now I don’t need t-shirts but I do need business shirts: I’ll be going shopping for some business shirts on Friday, and I will simply walk past the t-shirt section. It’s that simple.

There are other lists I have, with lists of things to buy for the bathroom, the kitchen; my weekly shopping lists for the markets and the supermarket; and my diary, which is really a collection of 365 to-do lists. I have two lists of projects that I’m working on (ones that require money, and ones that don’t). The 2007 movie The Bucket List starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman really put into people’s awareness the wonderful idea of making a list of the things you want to do before you die. A brilliant idea. Needless to say, I have a bucket list.

What I really need, perhaps, is then a list of lists. But here goes so far:

• Clothing that I have
• Clothing that I require
• Colours that actually suit me (as opposed to the ones that make me look deathly ill; canary yellow and mustard, I’m looking straight at you!)
• Things to get for the bathroom
• Things to get for the kitchen
• Vegetables I would like to grow
• My to-do lists (daily, in the diary)
• Essential things to pack when I travel (an upcoming post)
• Things I would like to do in my career
• Gemstones that I would like to cut and give to friends (it’s a long list and I’m very slow, so please don’t expect to see a sapphire coming from me any time soon!)
• Things I want to achieve this year
• Things that I would like to acquire in my life (bucket list part 1)
• Things that I would like to do in my life (bucket list part 2)
• Places that I would like to go to in my life (bucket list part 3, and by far the longest one. What can I say, I’m a born traveller!)

I did mention that I’m a list maker, right? Good.

So, how on earth does my almost obsessive list-making relate to minimalism? Simple. If it’s not on the list, I don’t need it.

For example, if I go shopping and I haven’t written “chocolate” on the shopping list, I don’t buy chocolate. Ever. (Needless to say, I am now very good at remembering to put chocolate on my shopping list — usually near the top! 🙂 ). But it also works for my other lists: I no longer get distracted by things that aren’t on my list. I had a friend once whose goal was to visit every single one of the 50 states of America. All 50 states are not on my list: if I don’t get to Wisconsin, I won’t be bitterly disappointed at the end of my days. But I really do want to cruise Alaska, go for a helicopter ride in the Grand Canyon, tour Hawaii, Seattle and New Orleans, and revisit San Francisco, Boston and New York.

The power of lists is the power of focus: you know exactly what you want, you only go after exactly what you want, and in all probably you get exactly what you want. And you don’t end up with stuff you don’t want. True, there can be some nice surprises: things and places you didn’t expect to enjoy but end up loving to bits (hello America!), but for the most part, you get what you want.

And I think lists are essential for minimalists.

Goals for 2013

Yes folks, I’ve made the move. I’ve got new (temporary) accommodation close to town and transport, my stuff in boxes — I’ve sorted through a whole lot of stuff, and discarded, given away or am selling a lot of things.

The move showed me that I’ve got a long way to go in my goal of simple, minimalist living, but it also showed me how far I’ve come. I’ve been thinking about my goals for 2013 (my goals for 2012 went south: out of 21 listed goals, I achieved nine. Nine. I guess finishing a master’s degree was a bit more taxing than I imagined it would be.)

And I know that there’s a lot to be said for having no goals (try mnmlist or theminimalists  for their take on no goals), but I still want something to move towards at this point in my journey. Maybe down the track I won’t, but then again, maybe I will. I just don’t know yet, and I don’t feel that I have to.

I’ve decided that one of my goals is to have everything physical in my life sorted out. My filing, my wardrobe, my photographs, the paraphernalia… everything. I remember one time in my life (wayyyyy back in the 90s!) when I did have everything sorted out, and it felt good.

So I’ll make my goal-declaring as public as possible, and I’ll happily welcome other people to post their goals in the comments section, something to remind them, put a structure of accountability in place. With this in mind, here are my goals for 2013:

STEVE’S GOALS FOR 2013

1. Have everything sorted out. Know where everything is, and have it on lists. I will have several lists, for example, clothing, filing, stuff in boxes. And hopefully, most of the stuff in boxes will be gone. Mike For Short has written a list of his stuff, which I find inspiring.
2. Have my tax up to date. Currently, it is not up to date; nothing like up to date, in fact.
3. Start on my PhD. I’ve come to realise that I’m passionate about commercialising biotechnology, so the sooner I get started the better. I am currently drafting a study proposal for RMIT.
4. Take up swimming and yoga. I want to be healthier than I am, and those are the two exercises that seem to benefit me most, healthwise.
5. I’ve been making jewellery for a couple of years, I’d like to make myself some cuff links and cut a few stones for friends and family.

That’s about as much as I feel I want to try and handle in 2013, and if I get all that done I’ll be mighty pleased. What are you goals for 2013?