Life Goals, Rhinosinusitis, & Looking Forward to Christmas

So I would've been at work today, but instead evolutionary responses to pathogens decided to manifest themselves beginning yesterday evening and at the moment continue to prevent my otherwise optimal biological functions.  Postnasal discharge, irritation of the pharynx, minor inflammation of the larynx, cephalgia, and generalized ache and fatigue are the symptoms that point to rhinosinusitis - commonly said as the common cold.  It's fascinating how when we look at the medical terminology it makes things seem a lot worse than it is.  Of course, so far I'm not bad off.  I'm faring better than my daughter fared this past week.  I don't have any excessive phlegm, fever, or respiratory inflammation that has been characterized by some who've been so fortunate as to already been afflicted with this round of cold.

The symptoms of course are easily mitigated by AleveⓇ, green tea with honey, and rest. Vitamin C is also a good thing to add, just because the body needs it (or so I've been consistently told).  Vicks Vaporub™ of course is a gift from God if congestion and respiratory inflammation become exasperated.  But so far, unlike most men of my condition, I'm not in critical condition.

Today I finished one of the three books I was reading.  The book "Personality Hacker: Harness the Power of Your Personality Type to Transform Your Work, Relationships, and Life" was written by Joel Mark Witt and Antonia Dodge and is a fantastic read if you're interested in personality theory and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).  I first heard of their book by listening to the Personality Hacker Podcast which I heard about via their YouTube channel which I definitely recommend taking a look at.  You can read my review of their book here.

Aside from having the imposition of a malaise I've been making some positive progress toward my goal of waking up early.  Alternatively I'm not waking up at 5:30 every morning like the video says, but reasonably around 7:30.  This of course has not been without challenge.  My work schedule constantly fluctuates so going to bed at the same time every evening has been difficult.  My goal has been to be ready to sleep by 11 pm, and this is done well most nights.  Of course with the responsibilities and joys that come with parenting I must see this is as an attainable, if at times impractical, goal - especially while my daughter was ill with rhinosinusitis and my wife and I found ourselves up late at night making sure she was as comfortable as possible.

I'm looking forward to the next few days off of work to spend with the family and visiting with relatives.  Christmas, at least per my perception, is a much bigger deal than Thanksgiving.  Both are filled with food, but there's just a more relaxed ambiance that comes with Christmas.  There's less rushing around to do, all is quiet.

I want to take this opportunity to wish every one who somehow chances to fall upon my blog a very Merry Christmas!

Review: Personality Hacker: Harness the Power of Your Personality Type to Transform Your Work, Relationships, and Life

Personality Hacker: Harness the Power of Your Personality Type to Transform Your Work, Relationships, and Life by Joel Mark Witt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Personality Hacker is an absolutely phenomenal book on Cognitive Function and the Myers-Briggs (MBTI) concepts. The book begins in a similar manner to other Myers-Briggs texts I've read on the topic by discussing the dichotomies of the MBTI and then relating the various cognitive functions with seamless precision. Joel Witt and Antonia Dodge clearly outline with each of the MBTI personality types how the different cognitive functions operate using their "car model" which is easily explained.

The concepts covered in the book itself are easy to understand and not watered down like some other books I've read on personality theory. Witt and Dodge use an engaging style and presentation that eases the reader into a conversation about how to be yourself to the full, understand and be comfortable with how you are mentally wired, and opening the path to better self awareness and improvement. It was a difficult book to put down and it has earned pride of place among books I recommend as well as a useful reference.

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My Daughter Is Crawling Successfully

Took a few weeks of trying, but finally got a video of my beautiful baby girl crawling forward.  Typically, as infants learn to crawl they figure out how to move backwards before they move forward.  At seven months my daughter figured out how to crawl forward, and since then has wanted to do nothing less!

Every day I anticipate with excitement and joy what developmental milestones she will reach next.  Guess the next milestone will be walking and adding a few more words to her vocabulary.  In addition to "dad" and "hi" she's added "momma," "hungry," (very important!) and "hey."  Little by little she grows and it amazes me that we all start out with just a couple of words and working out how to move around.