10,000 Hours

It takes 10,000 hours of practice to become an expert at anything. This has been proven over and over again - sports, music, whatever - the 10,000 hour figure remains constant.

For some perspective on 10,000 hours, one year, around the clock, 24 hours a day for 365 days is 8,760 hours. So, obviously, you're not likely to become an expert in a year. So, if you want to go for something more reasonable, and become an expert in five years, you'll need to practice more than five hours a day, every day. You don't get weekends or holidays off. If you want to stretch it out for a decade, you'll need to practice about 19 hours a week - essentially a parttime job for ten years.

Obviously, becoming an expert in not easy. I guess that's why there aren't a lot of prodigys and experts in any field.

I've been thinking if there's anything I've spent 10,000 hours on this far into my life. The only thing I can come up with is writing. Working in my favor on that one is that I started keeping a journal when I was very young, so I got a head start.

What have you spent 10,000 hours practicing?

Killing Time

Whenever I hear someone refer to "killing time," I'm shocked. Just recently someone said they liked to "go shopping to kill time" and I was nearly speechless.

Time is a very precious commodity to me so I can't imagine purposefully trying to waste it, or "kill" it. How is it that people have, or at least think they have, so much time they are looking to fritter it away? Maybe I am just jealous that I haven't found those hours in the day, or feel that security, but the idea of "killing time" seems barbaric to me.

I've always had a sense that there are more things I want to do than I'll ever have time to get done in a lifetime - even a long lifetime. So I've always been going and doing to get to as many of them as possible. The idea that you'd have time to spare, time to waste, time to kill, is completely foreign to me.

I'm not sure which of us is sadder - people who take their time on Earth so for granted that they want to "kill" it, or people like me who try to cram so much into their time that nothing gets its full due.

Dusting the SR-71 Blackbird

Dustin is stretching to reach a spot on the SR-71 Blackbird as they dusted it this afternoon in preparation for this weekend's Apollo 13 events.

While you might not think about it, it does need to be dusted on occasion. Dante is working on it, too.



When you walk in the door at the Cosmosphere, the Blackbird is hanging overhead. It was America's first "stealth" plane, although its greatest defensive technique was its speed - literally faster than a speeding bullet.



Dante and Dustin were working on the main body and Bill was working on one side.





Bill also worked on the T-38 to get it ready for this weekend.



It's interesting to walk under these every day at work. I was thinking today that it's really nice to be in a job where I can talk about what happens at the office. When I worked in the mental health field I could never say much about my work to anyone for privacy reasons. And I was ultra conscientious about privacy issues.

Now I don't have to edit what I say about work. And cool things happen in my work day - like people dusting blackbirds - so it's fun to share it.

Making a Wine Run to Eudora, Kansas

It was a gorgeous day for a drive, and I got to take a long one today. Everything is starting to bloom, and for those of us who are not allergy sufferers, it's lovely.

I drove to Eudora, Kansas, near Kansas City, to Davenport Winery to pick up wine for the Cosmosphere's Apollo 13 event this coming weekend.



The back of the van was full of wine. It's ironic that I don't drink wine, but I volunteered for the wine-run.



This is Greg, from the winery, with some of the vines. These vines are 20 years old and being phased out.



The grapes are picked in August and September, so they're just starting to bud now.



The newer method for growing grapes is to keep them more vertical to cut down on the heat and humidity. Greg says they pick them when they're very ripe and sweet, so they couldn't travel at that point.



All in all it was a lovely day. I enjoyed meeting Greg at the winery and getting the tiniest lesson in wine making. It would be really cool to be there when they actually make the wine.

I was struck today by how many fields had been burned off. This is the season for controlled burns in Kansas. Although I've lived here a long time, I'm still not used to seeing this. It still smells burned, but amazingly enough in a short time it will be green again. The prairie is an interesting thing.





It's becoming rare to see cows grazing in fields, so I always take note when I see it. Today had the added bonus of the blooming trees.

Don't Acquire More Demons

At lunch today Greg and I were talking about anniversaries, brought on by a discussion about the Cosmosphere's Apollo 13 celebration this coming weekend. I'm devoted to marking time, always taking note of the dates of events. Greg rarely does that.

As we were discussing our different approaches, Greg said he thought if you didn't remember a date something negative happened in your life, there was no point in trying to. "Don't acquire more demons," he said.

I was struck by the wisdom of that statement. It's brilliant. Simple, but brilliant. "Don't acquire more demons"

It made me think about how often we all "acquire more demons," and that it's sometimes a conscious decision. I am certainly guilty of this myself, although I note happy occasions as well as sad ones. I'm not sure it's a part of my personality I can change, but I will certainly question if I'm acquiring more demons the next time I mark a date.

After all, who among us needs more demons?

Earlier this week I went to see Karl Casell in Wichita. KMUW brought him to town. I met him years ago at a public radio conference, and he was very funny. Now he's the score keeper on "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell me," and adds to the humor on that show.

He told a few stories, and talked a bit about the history of NPR News. I was shocked at the behavior of some in the audience. There were people who were yelling while he was talking. Not heckling, because that would be negative, but chiming in to back up what he was saying. I didn't appreciate the additions.

I had hoped to write a full report about his visit, but there isn't much to say. He didn't talk about much that isn't available on google. I'm always a bit disappointed when I go to the trouble to go see someone and don't get something unique out of the experience.



This past week was very busy at work and with after work activities, so it was unfortuante I didn't feel that was the best use of my time. The same night there was a gentleman speaking in Wichita about the Hubble. That would have been interesting I think but I couldn't be in two places at once.

That is one thing I've not yet mastered. Yet.

Work is very busy as we prepare for the Apollo 13 celebration. Tomorrow is the 40th anniversary of the day the mission blasted off. The 17th the anniversary of when they returned to Earth after a mid-flight explosion on their way to the Moon.

Of course, just because we're busy getting ready for an event doesn't mean everything else stops. Other things still have to get done. One part of my job I enjoy is creating gift baskets for various auctions and such. This one is going to an Air Force Base and has some goodies from us and the salt museum. Fortunately, we partner on projects, which makes so much sense for all of us.



I have spent most of the day working on my taxes. Don't worry - I won't bore you with the details. I did have a nice long lunch with Rita and dinner with Greg and Sharon. I also found time to do multiple loads of laundry and work in the yard a little bit. Amazing the things I will find to do to avoid working on taxes.

Unfortunately, when I do much physical work I feel it later and that's certainly true tonight. There are still areas that get sore if I am bending very much. Otherwise, I'm feeling great, but I'm obviously still healing in places. No doubt I'll wake up feeling normal in the morning, which is good because I need to complete the taxes and get them on their way. I will be glad to be finished with that.

Plants I Forgot

A week or so ago I planted some seeds. Then I promptly forgot about planting seeds. Today I remembered and checked on them to find the tender green shoots pushing on the plastic cover.

You're supposed to get them under lights the second they poke their little heads up. I'm guessing since these were a few inches tall when I remembered them that it's a little late for that. I put them under lights at noon today. By tonight they were already orienting themselves to stretch for the lights.

How could a person forget they planted seeds? I don't know, and I'm that person. I do know I fear for the long term health of these little plants.