I’m a big fan of summer, and so far, I’ve had a great one. But there’s always so much I want to do, and never enough time to do it. What happened to fixing up the bike? What happened to borrowing a car and taking the family out of town for an afternoon? Stuff like that, you know?

Now, I’m not trying to kick off the week on a down note. Think of this as a reminder that our summer days are limited, and think of it as a call to make the most of them. What haven’t you done this summer that you’d really like to do?

Either way, there’s always room for improvement. If you’re an iOS user, and you’ve got a WordPress app you’d like to recommend, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments. Free is always nice, but I’m happy to shell out a few bucks for something that makes my life easier. Thanks in advance!

In the end, I got the best of both worlds this morning. I got to spend a bunch of time with my wife and kid before they headed off to the office and daycare, and now I’m getting an early jump on the day. Which is good, because it’s going to be a bit of a tough one.

Wish me luck! It’s great to be back, and as much as I enjoyed the time off with family, I’m looking forward to finding my rhythm again.

Of course, it’s one thing to say that, and another to do it. It doesn’t even make much sense to talk about a “great year” without thinking about what that means, exactly. I guess that will be the first step.

I do know that it’ll be a year full of changes and challenges, and it’s going to take a lot of work and planning to do it well. It’s also going to be a year of opportunity, with lots of chances to make good choices. That’s true of any time period, sure, but I like the thought of taking on a year and taking stock of my progress.

These are all things to think about as the new year approaches. I’m sure a lot of you have done this sort of thing before, and I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

Today, however, a good chunk of work has chased me across the sea, and it’s come at a time when I really ought to remind myself that I’m currently on vacation. Let’s take a break and pick up where we left off tomorrow, yes?

If all goes well, I’ll be flying back this morning. I’d ask you to wish me luck, but it sounds like anyone who actually spent last night in Toronto could use a little more luck than I could. Hope you’re all okay!

Right now, I’ve got a bit of the latter going. Let’s just say this isn’t one of those posts I wrote in advance last night. In fact, once I’d put my kid to bed, I was pretty much done for the day.

And that’s the thing, I suppose. It’s not about how much sleep I get, although that’s certainly important. It’s about how I use the time when I’m not sleeping. I could tell you I feel exhausted today, but I really feel behind in my work and my routine.

Thankfully, it’s easy to get back on top. I know what I want to catch up on, and I’m rested and engaged enough to do it. All I’ve got to do now is do it.

It’s sad when this sort of thing happens. Alec Baldwin is a talented and charming actor, but he’s one of those people who goes out of his way to remind us that he’s probably not a great person, and certainly not a great father. His rant last night was as immature and unhinged as we’ve sadly come to expect – and shockingly homophobic to boot, just in time for Pride Week.

If only I were one of those people who doesn’t like Baldwin at the best of times, you know? In addition to being a short-fused blowhard, he’s also a vocal liberal, and his condescending approach to politics has earned him many enemies and critics over the years. Why can’t I be one of those people at a time like this?

Then again, maybe this is a good thing. I think we can all agree that our politics have become too divisive, and that our culture could benefit from a little common ground. If someone like me can reach across the aisle and acknowledge that Baldwin’s an asshole, then maybe that could be the start of some real change.

My favourite take on last night’s incident, aside from a lengthy series of ill-advised tweets I posted in tribute, was a comment from a “conservative/libertarian” named Steve. “I think he’d be a fine politician for the dem’s,” Steve said. “fat, old, temperamental, white guy. Fits right in!”

I drew a lot of comfort from that comment, because despite our differences, that’s exactly how I’d describe a typical member of the Republican Party. Sure, I’m a hundred percent right, and Steve’s obviously a partisan hack with no sense of humour. But maybe we’re not so different, he and I.

Last week was unusually challenging. Tough in certain senses, and very exciting in others. In order to get through it without compromising my commitments to anyone else, I had to put everything by my top priorities on the shelf.

Now, instead of jumping back into my cluttered old routine with both feet, I’m phasing things back in slowly, one at a time.

Before I reintroduce each thing, I take a good look at it. I remind myself why it’s important, and why I’m excited about doing it. And if it’s neither of those things, I choose not to do it anymore, at least not for now.

Today, for example, I started blogging again. I’ll try it to keep it up on a daily basis, just as I did before. I might even do a better job of it, since I’ll hopefully be less concerned with getting it done and rushing off to the next thing on my plate.

What have you been thinking of phasing out? What would you rather be doing, if only you had the time? Feel free to share your thoughts.

Okay, sure, I took a bunch of work home with me when I left the office yesterday, and I’m going to have to try and carve out the time to get it done before Tuesday. But whatever, right?

I mean, at least I’m not amazingly sick anymore. Granted, a lot can happen in three days, but knock wood, you know?